It’s the coldest time of the year right now, and much of the country is experiencing some wild midwinter weather. Which means that you and whoever you share a space with are probably rugged up and in need of entertaining. This is an excellent opportunity to slow down, give something new a watch, and have a chat about it afterwards – preferably over a hot cuppa. Here are four options we’re loving at the moment.
Fake
Living legend Asher Keddie in a show set in Melbourne about a woman who’s unlucky in love? I’m in. But this is no redo of Offspring. Fake, which stars Keddie and fellow Aussie favourite David Wenham, has a dark edge to it. This pulsating drama about a new relationship that seems (and is) too good to be true is a little bit Dirty John meets The Tinder Swindler, and it’s a white-knuckle ride the whole way through. Powerhouse performances, riveting plot, beautiful visuals. Just watch it. Plus, it’s made by a local team – both in front of and behind the camera.
Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning
At 62 years of age, Tom Cruise, the last real movie star, is still flinging himself off cliffs and climbing the sides of very tall buildings for our entertainment. And he does it with more suave, bravado and charisma than most actors half his age today. In a career stacked with iconic roles, perhaps none is more recognisable, or seared into the popular imagination, than agent Ethan Hunt. Nearly 30 years since he first dangled from a wire over a pressure-sensitive floor, the long-running series continues to outdo itself with the seventh instalment, as the Impossible Missions Force goes up against a rogue AI called the Entity. It’s an exhilarating watch on its own, or to prep for the franchise’s next outing in 2025. May as well have a movie marathon for the other six while you’re at it.
Top Gear Australia
PhD theses could be written about why Jonathan LaPaglia is the best host of Survivor worldwide (yes, even better than Jeff Probst). But, for brevity’s sake, all we’ll say is that the man has oodles of talent – and Top Gear Australia is a great chance to see a fun side of JLP that we only get occasional glimpses of over on Australian Survivor. Yep, the ultimate show for grease monkeys and car nuts is back for another lap of the circuit. The all-new Top Gear Australia brings together LaPaglia, Beau Ryan (host of The Amazing Race Australia) and Blair “Moog” Joscelyne, whose Youtube series Mighty Car Mods is revered in its own right. When Top Gear is firing on all cylinders, it brings together bombastic set pieces and challenges, humour and cars in a way that can’t be matched. And this season looks like a classic.
Knuckles
Many were surprised that 2020’s Sonic the Hedgehog was such a smash-hit at the box office. But you can never count out the famously speedy hedgehog. With a successful sequel in the books and another scheduled to come out later this year, we can now quench our thirst for all things Sonic with Knuckles, which focuses on Sonic’s super-strong ally, a red echidna played by the one and only Idris Elba, reprising his role from the film. It’s a seriously fun romp that’s ideal for the whole family. And best of all, with six half-hour episodes, this is the sort of show you can knock out in a single weekend afternoon.
This article is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with Paramount+.
