What’s New on Netflix in November: Elvis, ‘Pedro Paramo’, & More!

Some months on Netflix leave viewers with more intriguing offerings than time to watch everything that catches their eyes. This November may not be one of those months. But it doesn’t mean it’s time to check out what Apple TV or Hulu has to offer. Fans of such favorites as The Empress and Chef’s Table will have new episodes to keep them happy.  Fans of pop culture old and new might want to check out a look at the Elvis ‘68 Comeback Special from the director of The Last Dance or the untold story of how a decidedly unwanted kiss brought the #MeToo movement to Spain.

Those who prefer off the beaten path entertainment have a few things to look forward to as well. One is a new adaptation of Juan Rulfo’s classic Mexican novel Pedro Paramo. The other is an adaptation of a Pulitzer Prize-winner from August Wilson’s famed American Century play cycle. Elliot Page’s return to cinema screens will be either achingly intimate or divisive depending on which IMDB reviewer you’re willing to listen to. 

Here are ideas for things to watch in between food coma bouts.

November 1

It’s All Over: The Kiss That Changed Spanish Football–The Spanish National Women’s Soccer Team may have achieved an incredible victory at the 2023 World Cup.  But savoring that accomplishment proved short-lived after Luis Rubiales, then-president of the Royal Spanish Football Association, gave Spanish Team player Jennifer Hermoso a very public and unwanted kiss on the lips.  Public outrage did not spur Rubiales to resign.  It would take the launching of the #SeAcabo (“It’s Over”) social media campaign to start bringing about the necessary change in the football world.

Katie–Ross Whitaker’s award-winning documentary follows Irish champion boxer Katie Taylor as she attempts to bounce back from a first round elimination at the 2016 Rio Olympics despite being the favorite to win.  That high-profile disaster as well as a year of personal turmoil led many to write off Taylor’s future in boxing.  So the female pugilist decided to change things up in a couple of ways: first, she would start again by going professional and second, this publicly private person would let Whitaker’s film crew follow her attempt to rescale the heights of boxing, win or lose.

The Whale–People who’ve seen director Darren Aronofsky’s “Requiem For A Dream” or “Black Swan” will agree that he doesn’t do comfort food filmmaking.  But his adaptation of Samuel D. Hunter’s stage play promises to be more divisive than his previous films, with the viewer either wowed by star Brendan Fraser’s central performance or angered by the film’s fatphobia.  The title refers to Fraser’s character Charlie, a morbidly obese and reclusive college English teacher who teaches online courses with the webcam off.  Charlie’s also a gay man who hopes to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter Ellie.  But it’s not clear if the people this recluse has extended contact with are just there to exploit him or to help him.

Whitney–Kevin Macdonald’s documentary recounts the life of the one-time pop superstar behind such classic songs as “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” and “How Will I Know.”  How did Houston go from having the soaring success of seven consecutive #1 hits to dying in a Beverly Hills hotel bathroom at age 48?  The answers go beyond drug addiction to personal betrayals by Houston’s parents, childhood trauma, and accusations of lacking Black credibility.  At the very least, the folks who ridiculed Houston’s drug abuse struggles might want to apologize for their public cruelty. 

November 6

Pedro Paramo–Famed cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto makes his directorial debut with this adaptation of Juan Rulfo’s magical realist novel.  To honor his promise to his dying mother, Juan Preciado arrives in a nameless Mexican village in search of his long absent father Pedro Paramo.  His ultimate goal is to obtain his birthright inheritance from his father.  While Paramo’s physical presence remains elusive, it soon becomes clear the inheritance left for Preciado has nothing to do with land or money.  Instead, it’s a legacy of trauma Paramo inflicted on the other villagers, including a string of illegitimate children, nasty business tactics, and more than a few suspicious deaths.

November 7

Born For The Spotlight–Top actresses Xue Ya Zhi and Zhou Fan debuted in show business at the same time.  Media gossip publicly painted the two actresses as fierce rivals, but in reality the two women were friends who supported each other.  That friendship gets severed when Xue Ya Zhi marries Li Zi Qi.  The two women may nowadays no longer talk to one another, but each actress in her way is still tormented by that years-old split.

November 8

Mr. Plankton–In this Korean romantic comedy, Hae Jo feels his life is empty because he doesn’t seem to belong anywhere and he lacks someone to care about.  Having a jinxed life where he doesn’t even know who his real father is makes things worse.  But one day, a bit of life-changing news sends him on a search for his real father.  Accompanying Hae Jo is runaway bride Jo Jae Mi, who’s skipped out on a ceremony that would have seen her married to the heir to the Eo food company.

Vijay 69–This Bollywood slice-of-life film stars veteran actor Anupam Kher as Vijay, a 69-year-old man whose adventurous soul has not been quenched by age.  This foul-mouthed former swimming coach decides to train and compete in a triathlon.  His decision may be one that shakes up societal expectations, but it’s also a testament to the idea that you’re never too old to pursue your dreams.       

November 10

Cien Anos Con Juan Rulfo–Writer Juan Rulfo (“Pedro Paramo”) is synonymous with Mexican literature.  Yet little is known about his life.  Filmmaker (and the writer’s son) Juan Carlos Rulfo attempts to answer these questions with a documentary series that looks at various aspects of his father’s life such as his involvement with the Center for Mexican Writers and an interest in photography that resulted in his creating more than 7000 images.  

November 13

Return Of The King:  The Fall And Rise Of Elvis Presley–Jason Hehir (“The Last Dance”) directs this recounting of the events leading to the famed NBC television broadcast special “Singer Presents…Elvis.”  That special is more popularly known as Elvis’ “‘68 Comeback Special.”  In 1967, a string of so-so movie performances and meh records had more than a few people suspecting The King Of Rock And Roll was now washed up.  How did he get back his mojo, loosen manager “Colonel” Tom Parker’s creative handcuffs on him, and even reinvent himself for his fans with his famed black leather suit?

Sprint Season 2–The second season of this docuseries about the fastest athletes on Earth follows their public struggles to deliver their personal best during the 2024 season.  Naturally, the main center of attention will be on the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.  Expect to see such Olympic champions as Noah Lyles and Gabby Thomas as well as such other sprinters as Kishane Thompson and Tanisha Terry.

November 14

Beyond Goodbye–Saeko Sugawara’s romantic relationship with Yusuke goes to the next level when he proposes to her.  However, on the same day as the proposal, he dies in a car accident.  After several months of grief and despair, Saeko meets Kazumasa Naruse.  There are signs of a connection between the two.  But could these feelings be the result of Kazumasa’s having Yusuke’s heart transplanted into his body?

The Fairly OddParents: A New Wish–In this continuation of the beloved Nickelodeon series “The Fairly OddParents,” titular fairy godparents Cosmo and Wanda have retired to a quiet life in Dimmadelphia.  But when new neighbor Hazel Wells moves in, the duo rethink their retirement decision.  10-year-old Hazel has accompanied her father to this unfamiliar environment because of his new job.  If Hazel’s older brother Antony was here, it wouldn’t be so lonely.  However, Antony’s off starting college.  Cosmo and Wanda decide to become Hazel’s fairy godparents, but will their wish-giving ability avoid causing chaos for Hazel? (Short answer: Nope.)

The Lost Children–Orlando von Einsiedel (Oscar winner “The White Helmets”) helms this documentary about a real-life miracle.  When a small plane crashes in a remote part of the Colombian Amazon jungle, all the adults aboard are killed.  The only survivors are the four indigenous Mucutuy siblings, whose ages ranged from 11 months to 13 years old.  The Colombian Army, indigenous volunteer rescuers, and Mucutuy family members set out to find the missing children.  But the children relied on ancestral wisdom and their own survival instincts to stay alive until help arrived…40 days later.

November 15

A.P. Bio (all seasons)–What do you do when you lose out on your dream job to your rival?  For disgraced Harvard philosophy professor Jack Carson Griffin, the unfortunate answer is a return to Toledo, Ohio…and a job teaching A.P. Biology at Whitlock High School.  However, Griffin has no intention of teaching biology to his roomful of honor roll students.  Instead, he wants to use his students to advance such personal interests as revenge on the rival who stole his dream job or researching material for what Griffin hopes will be a best-seller.  Whether Principal Durbin (Patton Oswalt) can keep the renegade teacher in line is a matter of debate.

November 16

Close To You–Sam (Elliot Page) travels back to his Lake Ontario hometown to join in the celebrations for his father’s birthday.  But there’s an underlying tension to the visit.  Sam’s quietly caught between grin-and-bear-it mode and worrying how much his family’s accepted him post-gender transition.  This tension threatens to boil to the surface with brother-in-law Paul, who resents being asked to change and adapt to Sam’s new gender identity.

November 20

The Merry Gentlemen–What do you get when you cross “Magic Mike” with a Christmas rom-com?  The answer is this film.  Former big-city dancer Ashley is determined to save The Rhythm Room, her parents’ small-town performing-arts venue.  Her solution is to put on an all-male Christmas-themed revue featuring lots of shirtless hunky performing guys.  But the trick might be convincing the guys she needs, such as contractor Luke (Chad Michael Murray), to bare themselves for a good cause.

November 22

900 Days Without Annabel–On April 12, 1993, young Annabel Segura was kidnapped while out on a jog in her quiet Spanish neighborhood.  The abduction would wind up turning into Spain’s longest kidnapping.  This docuseries recounts the events of this nearly 3-year-long case including (for the first time in years) the conversations between the Seguras’ negotiator and the kidnappers.

The Empress Season 2–This German historical series recounts the life of Bavarian Princess Elizabeth (better known as “Sisi”).  Sisi’s marriage to emperor Franz Joseph finds her balancing her love for her husband against the court’s very rigid mores.  As this season opens, Sisi has yet to reveal that she’s pregnant even though she’s under pressure (particularly from mother-in-law Archduchess Sophie) to provide a male heir to secure the empire’s future.  Bigger challenges await the couple as Franz faces a powerful European adversary.  Meanwhile, Sisi must deal with the consequences of a misfortune that threatens both her family and her own mental health.  Is this the right time for Sisi to develop an interest in politics?

The Helicopter Heist–This Swedish miniseries dramatizes the notorious 2009 Vastberga robbery.  Two childhood friends plan to rob millions from Sweden’s safest cash depot.  Their plan involves using a stolen Bell 206 Jet Ranger helicopter as transport.  Even if the robbers pull off their audacious crime, can they keep eluding the police forever?

Joy—Contrary to yet another of a certain Orange Felon’s public lies, he was not the father of In Vitro Fertilization.  This British biopic shows the honor actually belongs to the trio of pioneering biologist Robert Edwards (James Norton), revolutionary obstetrician Dr. Patrick Steptoe (Bill Nighy), and embryologist nurse Jean Purdy (Thomasin McKenzie).  In fact, Purdy would be the primary driver behind the research.  Their dogged rapport would be useful as their work faced scare-mongering from the press and indifference from the Medical Research Council.

The Piano Lesson—This new adaptation of another of August Wilson’s American Century Cycle plays takes viewers to 1936 Pittsburgh.  There, a brother and sister bitterly clash over the disposition of a precious family heirloom: a piano which has the faces of their ancestors carved into it.  Sharecropper Boy Willie wants to sell the piano and use the money to buy the land their ancestors toiled on as slaves.  Berniece wants to keep the piano because the carvings include the faces of their great-grandfather’s wife and son when they were enslaved.

November 27

Chef’s Table Volume 7–The new edition of this docuseries about great chefs and restaurants from around the world features a pair of U.S. cooks, a chef from Mexico, and another one from Spain.  The subjects showing off their skills are: Angel Leon (Spanish chef who does innovative work with marine ingredients), Norma Listman & Saqib Keval (a pair of Mexican cooks specializing in Mexican-South Asian fusion cuisine), Kwame Onwauchi (American chef celebrating both his Afro-Caribbean heritage and New York’s culinary history), and Nok Suntaranon (American cook pushing the boundaries of traditional Southern Thai cuisine).

November 29

Senna–This mini-series recounts the life of legendary Brazilian F1 driver Ayrton Senna (Gabriel Leone, “Ferrari”), from his humble beginnings to the heights of Formula One racing.  Senna’s love for racing from age 13 and his ability to race in the rain flawlessly would serve him well.  Over his professional career, he would win 41 races, hold the Most Pole Positions record, and even become a three-time World Drivers champion.