January 2026 Screenings To Consider (or not)

I love a good series: no trying to figure out what to watch, anticipation of what comes next, growing to love or hate characters. So this month I will focus on a few I liked. And exciting news! Guest reviewer and fellow film buff Bruce Pierini will contribute his review of the wildly popular, the series on everyone’s list of conversation, including the much loved Mamdani’s recommendation in anticipation of the major snowstorm “I can think of no better excuse for New Yorkers to stay home. Take a long nap, or take advantage of our public library’s offer of free access to Heated Rivalry“. (true it’s the book he was recommending, but still…)

Heated Rivalry (2026 HBO)Here’s Bruce’s review:

It comes as no surprise that gay men love the new wildly popular series that focuses on  the hot, developing love affair between two professional hockey players, one a Montreal Canadian, the other a Muscovite Russian.  For this gay man, the emotional closeness and sexual desire front and center was astonishing.  To have our intimate lives displayed so lovingly and explicitly was something I could have never expected on TV.  And in many of our long-term  marriages, as well as straight ones, that kind of passion is likely exceptional. I believe there is something of a gay fantasy world in Heated Rivalries (two hunky, masculine professional athletes doing it!) But we remember when their kind of passion heated us when we were that age!  What is  surprising is how it has become a big hit among straight women!  There are endless analyses for why this phenomena — but clearly from all the copy about straight women it’s that the series is about male desire and communication.  Do many many women in straight marriages find those elements absent or desultory?  But I’ll leave that to others to comment.

Highly recommended and after the 6 episodes of year one, you can follow year 2 as the two hunks have been signed on for next season.Oh, yeah, the series’ popularity can’t be about ice hockey since 98% of Americans never watch the sport!

Here’s my review: (with the very important caveat that I have watched only one episode.)

Great that explicit sex scenes are no longer the provenance of the hetero gang. Is there a stronger word than explicit? Let’s just say that few details are left to the imagination. IMHO, suggestion and implication are more erotic than having it all spelled out. The early scenes in Heated where they were building up to a first connection were much more interesting than the consummation. But maybe it’s my age.Here’s how old I am: I remember when Lenny Bruce was jailed for using the F word in his stand up routine. And Lucy and Ricky Ricardo had to sleep in twin beds.

 Also, regardless of gender I tend to fast forward if a sex scene takes longer than a minute.  I get bored, anxious to move on to the story.  The game of hockey is mildly interesting but likewise a little boring if it goes on too long.  And straight or gay, they are guys and that male culture isn’t so interesting to me.  I wonder: if the protagonists were women hockey players, or swimmers or whatever, would the series be as compelling to the larger population?

Other Series:

Irma Vep (2022 HBO) French director Olivier Assayas makes movies usually designated as “art house cinema”. Film scholars and critics tend to love his work, but general audiences as rated by IMDB give him very low scores. As a member of the art house camp, I absolutely loved this series. It’s based on Assayas’ 1996 film “Irma Vep”, a satire and commentary on cinema using the 1915 classic series created by French director Louis Feuillade. The 1996 film starred Maggie Cheung, Assayas’ wife at the time. Fast forward to 2022: Assayas has returned to Irma Vep, creating series (just like the original), incorporating scenes from the previous two films, some autobiographical stuff, and a lot of commentary about films, filmmaking and the purposes they serve in our lives. I especially enjoyed his nod to the experimental as in Kenneth Anger’s, “Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome” with Anais Nin and her birdcage hat. The acting is superb and the script feels almost improvisational. The costumes from the 1915 re-creation (and the original–this is Paris, you know) are terrific. I know a number of you out there won’t be as enthusiastic as I am, but give it a shot. (it’s in French with subtitles, of course.).

Riot Women (2025 Brit Box) I was able to binge on three episodes but now I have to wait till Wednesday nights to watch this very engrossing “dramedy” about a group of pre, post and smack in the middle of menopause women whose lives are transformed by forming a rock band. The acting is of the usual British high standards and you will probably recognize some of the BBC “repertory” actors.

Beyond the Bar (2025 Netflix) Although it has the basic elements of the standard K Drama (read the Kdrama Gmamas blog), this one feels a bit more grounded, less romantic with a few unusual twists). At least in the first few episodes there are some interesting aspects of the South Korean legal system which seems to be a hybrid of German, Japanese, and American. The last few episodes involve some kind of corporate shenanigans which, like spy movies, flies right over my head, but that didn’t interfere with my enjoyment.

Pole to Pole With Will Smith (2026 Fandango and lots of others)National Geographic follows Will Smith on a journey of discovery across 7 continents. I’ve watched only one episode so far. It’s terrific! The cinematography is glorious and Smith is charismatic. I feared corny but it’s not that at all. He doesn’t ignore the “slap heard round the world”. In the one episode I watched he obliquely refers to it. I mistakenly streamed Episode 4 filmed in gorgeous Bhutan where Smith travels to find the secret of happiness. The cynical side of me recognizes that the country with the “happiest people in the world” is most likely not as blissful as reported, but it’s so charming that for 45 minutes I am inspired to lead a different kind of life.

Some diversion films:

Coup de Chance (2025 Netflix) Thanks Bonnie for this recommendation! It’s a Woody Allen film set in Paris. And he’s not in it, so those of you who are boycotting his movies can pretend you don’t know who the director is.

A Nice Indian Boy (2025 Fandango and others) I really enjoyed this gay rom com (much more than “Heated Rivalry”) because it was about real people trying to deal with family, sexuality, and the clash of cultures. It teeters on but never falls into cliche and it’s not as predictable as you might think. Spoiler alert: it leaves you with a warm feeling in your heart.

84 Charring Cross Road (1987 Amazon, Apple, Fandango) I’m not sure how I missed this true gem of a film, but thank you, Carol for the recommendation. And for those of you who have seen it but not recently,I strongly urge you to do so. Based on a true story Ann Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins star in this re-creation of a correspondence between a N.Y.C writer and a London book seller. I particularly love the N.Y.C. 1950’s scenes (but that’s of course the least of the reasons why I praise the film.) Watch it and you will thank me (and Carol).