The best new movies and TV series
The Brutalist: Brady Corbet’s third directorial effort is an ambitious attempt at redefining the American Dream immigration tale—think Upton Sinclar’s ‘The Jungle’ but set after World War 2. As with the literary classic, the protagonist is from an Eastern European background—Hungarian architect and Holocaust survivor László Tóth (played by Adrien Brody) packs his bags for Pennsylvania. With both his career and his wife’s (Felicity Jones) emigration status in limbo, Tóth gets a potential boost when he befriends a prominent industrialist (Guy Pearce). Yes, it’s a long movie—at just over 3.5 hours.
Reviews are stellar. Rolling Stone says: “It’s not just that they don’t make movies like this anymore — of course they don’t! — so much as no one bothers to tell these types of sprawling narratives with this level of storytelling, chops, nerve and verve.” According to Empire Magazine: “Brady Corbet’s seismic drama reaches for the sky as it surveys the soul of a man and a nation. There will be Oscars.” Our take: This is one of the frontrunners for Best Picture—needless to say, we are already seated. In IMAX. Watch it in cinemas now!
Superboys Of Malegaon: Reema Kagti is back behind the camera for this biographical take on the film-within-a-film trope, based on the 2012 documentary ‘Supermen of Malegaon’. The plot: wannabe director Nasir Sheikh (Adarsh Gourav) bands together his motley crew of friends to make a low budget no-frills superhero film set in his humble small town—Malegaon. Shashank Arora co-stars as one of Nasir’s friends named Shafique. By focusing on Sheikh’s production, the film acts as a loveletter to the DIY mindset of the Malegaon film industry.
Reviews are good. The Guardian found it “terrific fun” and noted that “it settles on an interesting theme: very rarely indeed does a new film-maker find success with a completely original work.” Siddhant Adlakha in Variety calls it “a moving ode to filmmaking that overcomes its lopsided structure and rushed reconciliations through the sheer power of Kagti’s intimate moments.” Our take: The talent behind this at all levels of production is too high to ignore. The film is now out in theatres.
A Complete Unknown: The film follows a young Bob Dylan (Timothée Chalamet) as he arrives in New York City in 1961, seeking to make a name for himself in the folk music scene. Inspired by Woody Guthrie, Dylan quickly rises through the ranks, forming relationships with key figures like Pete Seeger (Edward Norton), Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro), and Suze Rotolo’s fictionalised counterpart, Sylvie Russo (Elle Fanning). As his fame grows, he struggles with expectations, artistic evolution, and the pressures of celebrity. The film builds to the pivotal moment when Dylan goes electric at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, marking a turning point in his career and folk music history.
Reviews are very positive. Variety says that the film is a “drama of scruffy naturalism” with Timothée Chalamet delivering an “uncanny” performance, capturing the “anguish in Dylan’s heart” as he transforms folk into something bolder and electric. Consequence praises it for its vivid recreation of 1960s Greenwich Village and Chalamet’s performance that "never feels like mimicry." Our take: The movie captures Bob Dylan’s rise with a stellar cast and a look at the moment he changed music forever—perfect for fans of music history and storytelling. Watch the film in theatres today!
Dabba Cartel: A group of women running a tiffin service in Mumbai. What could go wrong? Yup, you guessed it: the dabba becomes a vessel for selling drugs. Headlined by Shabana Azmi and Gajraj Rao—along with the Tamil movie star Jyothika, ‘The Great Indian Kitchen’s’ Nimisha Sajayan, and Lillete Dubey—the series looks at how these ambitious women get caught up in this drug cartel mess. And yes, the premise is very similar to the Tamil movie ‘Kolamaavu Kokila’ and its Hindi remake ‘Good Luck, Jerry’ starring Janhavi Kapoor.
Reviews are not that bad. NDTV writes: “Uneven but always engrossing, ‘Dabba Cartel’ has the potential for a longer run.” Scroll is of the view that ‘Dabba Cartel’ has an “overcooked premise” but is “more convincing than the similarly themed ‘Saas, Bahu aur Flamingo’.” Our take: We’d drop everything to watch Shabana Azmi playing a crime boss lady! You can watch the series on Netflix.
Ziddi Girls: The series is from the makers of ‘Four More Shots Please!’ and follows five fierce freshers take on college life, camaraderie, and a conservative principal. Set in Delhi’s elite Matilda House College (yep, the show was shot in Miranda House), the series follows Wallika, Devika, Tabbasum, Trisha, and Vandana as they navigate ambition, love, and rebellion—all while shaking up age-old traditions. With authority figures cracking down on their spirited defiance, the campus becomes a battleground of ideologies.
Reviews are sparse so far. Scroll praises the series for its warmth, "terrific performances," and "astute observations," highlighting its strength in subtle moments, even as its "hectic plotting" and "ostentatious dialogue" occasionally overshadow its powerful message. Our take: With Miranda House students and admin up in arms over it, it's a watch wrapped in a bold portrayal of tradition-breaking. Catch it on Prime Video now.
Suits LA: Fans of ‘Suits’ rejoice! This is the highly anticipated spin-off series of the quarantine-time favourite show. Though it has no Harvey Specter, Mike or Donna, the show follows four new characters—Stuart Lane, Ted Black, Rick Dodsen and Erica Rollins. As usual, it has all the masala that one needs in a legal drama: sharp-tongued lawyers, betrayals and cutthroat office politics.
Reviews are kinda bad. The Guardian calls it “maybe baseline entertaining, but not sexy.” USA Today was much harsher and says: “[I]t's missing the humor and fun of the original series, an integral part of the addictive tone that makes it so very binge-watchable.” Our take: Suits may not be the greatest show ever, but it sure was superbly bingeable. We’d like to give this one a chance too, regardless of what USA Today says. You can stream it on JioHotstar.
Flow: Told without dialogue, 'Flow' follows a solitary black housecat navigating a mysterious forest filled with strange sculptures of itself. When a massive flood submerges the land, the cat barely survives and finds refuge on a small, weathered sailboat. As it drifts through the flooded world, it gathers a group of unlikely companions—a capybara, a lemur, a secretarybird, and a Labrador. Together, they learn to coexist and adapt to their new reality, facing both dangers and discoveries along the way.
Reviews are top-notch. Screenrant says that Flow, with its "curious and exploratory" storytelling and animation, creates an emotional experience that "makes us think and feel in equal measure." The Playlist thinks the movie is "an animated triumph of visual storytelling" that "deploys animals to unspool an achingly human tale," using its "non-verbal characters and the emotional currency they earn" to craft a "moving" and "bracing" meditation on survival and community. Our take: Standing out for its unique speech-less storytelling and striking animation, it's a must-see. Go catch it in theatres now!
Berlin ER: A young female doctor takes over the Emergency Room (ER) in Berlin’s busiest hospital just as her personal life is falling apart—and we don’t mean the ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ brand of hospital drama. The trauma centre is overcrowded with patients and understaffed—a deadly combination that is reality in… well most countries. The German language series has Haley Louise Jones and Slavko Popadic in the lead, among a line-up of other actors.
Reviews are decent. Wall Street Journal says “‘Berlin ER’ is the antidote to sentimental medical shows.” Decider verdicts ‘Stream it’ and concludes: “While the ER in Berlin ER looks grungier and bleaker than ones we’ve seen on American TV, the beats of the show will be familiar to people who are fans of medical dramas.” Our take: If you love a good hospital drama and have had enough of the sentimental variety, you might enjoy this one. You can watch it on Apple TV+.
Fresh off the big screen…
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice: Did we need this sequel, no—but will we still watch it? Yup. Tim Burton’s sequel to the 1988 cult classic ‘Beetlejuice’ once again brings Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder together! The whimsical gothic-horror movie follows a now grown up and TV personality Lydia Deetz and her daughter Astrid—who accidentally summons demon Beetlejuice. And the story unravels from there. The movie also stars Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, Monica Bellucci, Catherine O'Hara, and Willem Dafoe. You can catch it on Disney+ Hotstar.
