What are you going to be watching in February? With thanks to our friends at Nando’s, we round up everything coming to streaming services this month, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, Neon and TVNZ OnDemand.
The biggies
Inventing Anna (binge on Netflix from February 11)
Any show from Shonda Rhimes, the prolific producer behind the likes of Grey’s Anatomy, is worth a watch – but Inventing Anna is poised to be appointment viewing. The Netflix series stars Ozark breakout Julia Garner as real life con woman Anna Delvey who, for four years, pretended to be a German heiress in order to defraud banks, hotels, and practically anyone in her path who was rich. It’s hard to tell from the trailer whether this will end up being trashy popcorn TV or high brow drama. But either way, I’m in. / Stewart Sowman-Lund
Super Pumped (weekly on Neon from February 28)
Before Elon Musk was the poster child for toxic techbro behaviour, there was Uber founder Travis Kalanick. His heinous exploits – from employee bullying, to industrial espionage, to reckless overspending – were documented in Super Pumped, a 2019 bestseller by New York Times tech journalist Mike Isaac. Now that book has been adapted into the first season of a planned limited anthology series about “businesses that have affected the culture”, with Joshua Gordon-Levitt as Kalanick. Made by the team behind tycoons-at-war drama Billions, Super Pumped seems all set to fill the Succession-shaped hole in our lives. / Catherine McGregor
Landscapers (weekly on Neon from February 21)
Olivia Colman AND David Thewlis in a British crime black comedy directed by the creator of Flowers?! Need I say more. If I must: Landscapers is inspired by the 1998 murder of William and Patricia Wycherley by their own daughter, Susan. It doesn’t sound like particularly “funny” subject material but by all accounts Landscapers manages to balance the horror of the real life crime with a darkly comedic script. But as I said… Colman and Thewlis: need I say more? / SS-L
Pam and Tommy (weekly on Disney+ from February 2)
There’s leftfield casting, and then there’s casting English period-drama queen Lily James (Downton Abbey, War & Peace, The Pursuit of Love) as the thoroughly modern (and American) Pamela Anderson. It could have been a disaster, but the critics are raving over her performance as the Baywatch babe who married a rock star (Mötley Crüe’s Tommy Lee, played here by Sebastian Stan), recorded a private sex tape, and then watched on in horror as the tape was stolen and illegally distributed worldwide. The first three episodes of this eight-part miniseries are directed by the guy behind Tonya Harding biopic I, Tonya – expect a similar mix of pitch black comedy and heart-tugging pathos here. / CM
The notables
RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World (weekly on TVNZ on Demand from February 2)
Truly, when this pandemic is over, all that may be left are the roaches and Drag Race spinoffs. The latest spinoff is slightly more complicated than what the title implies: it’s not actually the queens of the Drag Race UK pitted against international contestants, it’s every drag performer for themselves. It would be more accurate to call it: RuPaul’s Drag Race: International All Stars. If you’re lamenting the loss of RuPaul’s Drag Race US on a platform you have access to, this should temporarily sate your appetite for all things Drag Race. / Sam Brooks
Raised by Refugees (weekly on Neon from February 25)
A win for local comedy is a win for local audiences! This new series, which also airs on Prime, is from award-winning comedian Pax Assadi, and it’s a more-than-semi-autobiographical look at the confusing and harsh reality of being a part-Pakistani part-Iranian kid growing up in post-9/11 Aotearoa. Sky/Prime’s last commissioned work, Inked, was a triumph, and I can only hope this continues the company’s confident foray into scripted work. / SB
Bel-Air (weekly on TVNZ on Demand from February 14)
Should you be allowed to reboot The Fresh Prince of Bel Air if you’re not going to include the iconic ‘Carlton Dance’? Seems like the answer is yes. The popular 1990s sitcom that launched Will Smith’s career has been flip-turned-upside down and rebooted into a serious drama, taking a modern look at the fresh prince’s journey from West Philadelphia to opulent Bel Air. It’s darker, it’s more serious, and while there’s no nerdy dancing, Bel-Air is about to show us the Banks family like we’ve never seen them before. / Tara Ward
Murderville (on Netflix from February 3)
Celebrities solving murders? Sure, why not. Will Arnett stars as detective Terry Seattle in Netflix’s new improvised comedy series, and in every episode he’s joined by a different celebrity who helps him solve a fictional murder. Based on the British show Murder in Successville, Murderville takes American stars like Sharon Stone, Conan O’Brien and Annie Murphy and chucks them into the middle of an unusual crime scene. The twist? They have no script and no idea what’s about to happen. The chance for chaos is high, and also, fake moustaches never fail to get a laugh. / TW
The movies
The French Dispatch (on Disney+ from February 2)
The full title of this Wes Anderson film is actually The French Dispatch of the Liberty Kansas Evening Sun, which tells you all you need to know about the grand arbiter of twee’s latest. The film is set in the fictional French town of Ennui-sur-Blase (yup) in the aftermath of the death of Arthur Howitzer Jr, the American editor of the French Dispatch. According to his will, the publication of the magazine is to be suspended following one farewell issue, and this film follows a few of the stories that are to be published in this issue. As per usual, a stacked cast of people you can recognise by last name only (McDormand, Chalamet, Brody, del Toro, Swinton, et al) deliver it./ SB
Unsound (on Netflix from February 1)
This Aussie indie film is one of the more risky, but interesting, acquisitions that Netflix has made in the past while. It follows a disillusioned musician after he quits his band and returns to his hometown. When he clashes with his mother, he finds himself involved with a transman who only speaks Auslan. As they become closer, despite no shared language, they work together to save a community nightclub for the deaf. Unsound has received rave reviews, and I’m pretty stoked to be able to stream it from the safety and security of my own home. / SB
Those Who Wish Me Dead (on Neon from February 27)
Angelina Jolie runs away from fires. That’s pretty much the pitch for this silly but deeply watchable thriller. If that sounds like your thing, you’ll enjoy it. If it doesn’t, move along./ SB
This post is made possible by our friends at Nando’s.
The rest
Netflix
February 1
Raising Dion: Season 2
My Best Friend Anne Frank
Gabby’s Dollhouse: Season 4
Red Dog: True Blue
Unsound
February 2
Dark Desire: Season 2
The Tinder Swindler
Meateater: Season 10: Part 2
February 3
Murderville
Finding Ola
Kid Cosmic: Season 3
February 4
Sweet Magnolias: Season 2
Through My Window
Looop Lapeta
February 8
Love is Blind Japan
Ms Pat: Y’all Wanna Hear Something Crazy
Child of Kamiari Month
February 9
Ideias a Venda
Disenchantment: Part 4
The Privilege
Only Jokes Allowed
Catching Killers: Season 2
Jeenyuhs: A Kanye Trilogy
February 10
Until Life Do Us Part
Into the Wind
February 11
Inventing Anna
Toy Boy: Season 2
Love is Blind: Season 2
Love Tactics
Love and Leashes
Anne+: The Film
Tall Girl 2
Bigbug
February 12
Forecasting Love and Weather
Twenty Five Twenty One
February 14
Devotion, a Story of Love and Desire
Fishbowl Wives
February 15
Ridley Jones: Season 3
February 16
Thirty-Nine
Swap Shop: Season 2
Secrets of Summer
February 17
Young Wallander: Killer’s Shadow
Erax
Heart Shot
Forgive Us Our Trespasses
Fistful of Vengeance
Mo Gillian: There’s Mo to Life
Keeping Up with the Kardashians: Season 9
Keeping Up with the Kardashians: Season 10
February 18
One of us is Lying
Space Force: Season 2
Rabbids Invasion Special; Mission to Mars
Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Downfall: The Case Against Boeing
The Cuphead Show!
February 20
Don’t Kill Me
February 22
Cat Burglar
Race: Bubba Wallace
February 23
UFO
February 24
Karma World Music Videos
February 25
Back to 25
Merli. Sapere Aude.
Vikings: Valhalla
Tyler Perry’s A Madea Homecoming
Restless
February 28
My Wonderful Life
Neon
February 1
Equal
Peppa Pig: Season 2
Dirty Harry
February 2
MTV’s Living the Dream
Patriots Day
February 3
Dora the Explorer: Season 7
Dora the Explorer: Season 8
Interstellar
February 4
Raised by Wolves: Season 2
Shark Tale
February 5
Blackbird
Executive Decision
February 6
Wrath of Man
February 7
Bump: Season 2
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army
February 8
Magnum Force
Sudden Impact
February 9
La Brea
Lake Placid: Legacy
February 10
Monster Beach: Season 1b
About Time
The Dead Pool
February 11
Every Breath You Take
Monster House
February 12
Dollface: Season 2
My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
February 13
The Girl Before
Locked Down
Maid in Manhattan
February 14
Five Bedrooms: Season 3
Notting Hill
The Bodyguard
Forever Young
February 15
Apple and Onion: Seasons 1-2
February 16
Medici The Magnificent: Seasons 1-2
The Enforcer
February 17
Clarice: Season 3
The Witches of Eastwick
February 18
Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore
Four Good Days
The Shining
February 19
State of Play
February 20
Snake Eyes: G.I Joe Origins
February 21
Landscapes
Cobra
February 22
Victor and Valentino: Seasons 1-2
Cape Fear
Maverick
February 23
Ravi Patel’s Pursuit of Happiness
Robin Hood
February 24
Monsters vs Aliens
Eraser
Wyatt Earp
February 25
Raised by Refugees
Snowfall: Season 5
Songbird
February 26
Dream Horse
February 27
Those Who Wish Me Dead
February 28
Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber
TVNZ on Demand
February 1
Ragdoll
From the Vault: Waitangi Day
The Last Suit
Borfer
100 Kilo Kids: Obesity SOS
Roxette Diaries
Masked Monkey
Wild Horse, Wild Ride
Invisible Heart
Death of a Vegas Showgirl
Bury the Past
Beaches
Story of a Girl
Kidnapped: The Hannah Anderson Story
Buccaneers and Bones: Season 4
Dead Meat
Madfin Shark: Season 2
Marc & Todd’s Crazy Clips
Fight to Survive
February 2
RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World
February 3
The Inbetween
February 5
Madam Secretary: Season 1-6
February 8
Rules of the Game
February 10
Alphas
February 12
The Go-Go’s
Can You Feel It – How Dance Music Conquered The World
John and Yoko: Above Us Only Sky
February 13
Outcry
February 14
Bel-Air
Killer Camp
February 15
CSI: Vegas
Home Ground: Season 1-2
February 16
DEAD
February 19
Harper House
February 21
Riddle Me This
The Long Song: Season 4
February 24
Under the Dome: Seasons 1-3
February 26
Dsorry For Your Loss
Disney+
February 2
Pam and Tommy
The French Dispatch
Blaze
NYPD Blue: Seasons 1-12
This is Us: Season 6
T.O.T.S: Season 3
February 4
Derek DelGaudio’s In and Of Itself
Torn
Inside Costa Concordia: Voices of Disaster
The Book of Manning
The Band That Wouldn’t Die
The Best That Never Was
Big Shot
Brian and the Boz
Broke
Fantastic Lies
Hawaiian: The Legend of Eddie Aikau
No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson
Run Ricky Run
Silly Little Game
Slaying the Badger
Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL?
Survive and Advance
This Magic Moment
Al Davis vs. the NFL
Angry Sky
23:59: the Haunting Hour
Let’s Eat
Long Long Time Ago 2
More Than Blue
Zombiepura
February 9
Assembled: The Making of Hawkeye
The Chicken Squad
How to Win at Everything
Superstar
Nothing Gold Can Stay
Ruyi’s Love in the Palace
The Wolf
February 16
Assembled: The Making of Eternals
Abbot Elementary
Filthy Rich
World’s Deadliest
February 23
City of Angels | City of Death
The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder
Mira, Royal Detective: Season 2
February 25
No Exit
The Kid
Amazon Prime Video
February 1
Law and Order: Season 10-20
Law and Order: Special Victims Unit: Season 17-18
February 2
The Ugly Truth
February 3
Limitless
February 4
Reacher
Phat Tuesdays
February 8
17 Again
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Pineapple Express
February 9
Sex and the City
Sex and the City 2
February 11
I Want You Back
Dream Horse
Les Norton
February 16
Inferno
February 17
Downton Abbey: Season 1-6
February 18
The Marvelous Mrs Maisel: Season 4
Last One Laughing
February 21
Almost Famous
February 23
Life (2017)
February 24
Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard
February 27
Old
February 28
Shrek
Shrek 2
Apple TV+
February 4
Suspicion
February 18
Severance
Acorn
February 7
The Chelsea Detective
The Madame Blanc Mysteries
Rectify
Taggart: Season 10
The Good Karma Hospital
February 14
Poldark: Season 3
Taggart: Season 11
February 21
Taggart: Season 12
February 28
Cracker: Season 3
Taggart: Season 13
Candice Renoir: Season 3
Shudder
February 3
Slapface
February 8
Entwined
Intiation
February 10
All the Moons
February 15
The Wretched
A Night of Horror
XX
February 17
They Live in the Grey
February 22
Dawn of the Beast
February 24
Hellbender