A weekend doesn’t go by without some form of desperate scrolling through Netflix for the next new film or TV series to watch. You’ll be happy to hear, though, that we’ve handpicked the very best new releases coming to the UK streaming service this first bank holiday weekend of January 2022. Thank us later…
Allow me to paint a familiar scene. It’s New Year’s Day. You’ve woken up after some questionable sleep after a) overindulging in the fun of New Year’s Eve celebrations or b) going to bed before midnight in stubborn denial of the turn of yet another 360-odd days before another Christmas holiday.
Instead of even considering the stress of a New Year’s resolution, you open Netflix and the familiar, reassuring glow of that bold red ‘N’ lights up you face and you mentally prepare not to move a muscle for the next few hours unless a hangover takeaway arrives, you need to take an emergency bathroom break, or you run out of liquids to ease that relentless dehydration.
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But impending bliss is disrupted by one fatal, if not familiar, problem: you don’t know what to watch. You’re not in the mood to return to a familiar series that you’re halfway through, you’re nervous to commit to a brand new TV show that might not be worth your precious time, and who really has the time to scroll through that entire list of ‘recommended’ films?
Fear not, my friend. I’m here to help. I’ve done the (relatively) hard work for you and picked out a selection of fresh films and TV shows that are landing on Netflix UK this January bank holiday weekend. There’s a variety awaiting any mood or need you stumble upon. Enjoy.
TV: Queer Eye 6, released Friday 31 December
It’s been a long old wait but the Fab 5 are finally back on our screens for some wholesome, uplifting TV watching. Watch as Jonathan Van Ness, Karamo Brown, Antoni Porowski, Tan France and Bobby Berk make their way across Texas transforming the lives of unsuspecting heroes.
Film: The Lost Daughter, released Friday 31 December
A lot of early praise for Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut has been circulating the internet already, and if the stellar cast isn’t enough to convince you to watch it (we’re talking Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson, Ed Harris, Peter Sarsgaard, Dagmara Dominczyk & Paul Mescal) then I don’t know what is. Here’s our review of The Lost Daughter just in case, though.
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TV: Stay Close, released Friday 31 December
If you’re a sucker for tense British drama following the lives of unsuspectingly intertwined people, this one’s for you. Netflix has gathered Cush Jumbo, James Nesbitt, Richard Armitage and Sarah Parish for this dark thriller that will probably make you question how well you can ever really know anyone.
Film: Don’t Look Up, released 24 December
Okay, okay. This may have landed on Netflix last week but who was really going to sit and watch a film that could potentially cause an existential crisis on the night before Christmas? Now that we’re (kind of) better prepared to watch Hollywood darlings Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep and Jonah Hill tease a potential scenario for the end of the world, add it to your watch list. You may not love it, but if anything it’s worth a watch purely for the chat…
Film: Marie Antoinette, released on Netflix Saturday 1 January
What’s a bank holiday weekend without a period drama to soothe you through that smidgin of extra time? Allow me to offer up a Sofia Coppola classic with this story of France’s very unlucky Queen played by Kirsten Dunst.
Film: Silver Linings Playbook, released on Netflix Saturday 1 January
I fear this film has too quickly been forgotten. Adapted from Matthew Quick’s 2008 novel of the same name and starring Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro, Jackie Weaver, Chris Tucker and Julia Stiles, this story is one that touches your heart in ways that you don’t expect when you first sit down to watch it.
Film: She’s The Man, released on Netflix Saturday 1 January
No, this isn’t a great film and yes, it poses more questions than it answers as a quirky take on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. But, it is a fun relic of the early 00s starring Amanda Bynes and Channing Tatum that you can happily half watch, half scroll through Instagram/reply to Whatsapp messages to.
Lead image: Netflix
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