Streaming this week: Romance, music, crime and farms

JL
May 3 2024 - 4:00am
Nicholas Galitzine and Anne Hathaway are Hayes and Solène in The Idea of You. Picture by Prime Video
Nicholas Galitzine and Anne Hathaway are Hayes and Solène in The Idea of You. Picture by Prime Video

The Idea of You

Prime Video

It's got a passionate following in the book community, and now the film iteration of The Idea of You is garnering a lot of buzz - for good reason. As a romance, it's a solid and enjoyable film, spearheaded by the strong performances and chemistry of leads Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine (a rising star who is filled with talent). Hathaway is Solène, a 40-year-old mum to teen Izzy and owner of a small art gallery in outer LA. Galitzine, meanwhile, is Hayes, a very famous member of Izzy's former favourite boy band, and some 16 years Solène's junior. They meet at Coachella and get swept away in a whirlwind romance. The songs are cute and the acting better than expected. The biggest plus is the writing of Hathaway's character, which is layered and well-rounded. Worth a watch.

Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story

Disney+

There are few bands whose music can please a crowd as well as Bon Jovi's and now we're treated to the story behind the soundtrack with this four-part docuseries. Each episode is over an hour, so it's a fair bit of viewing, but when there's as many toe-tappers to sing along to while watching the talking heads as there is in Thank You, Goodnight, you're in for a treat. Jon Bon Jovi, speaking in 2022, is candid about his insecurity in his ability to perform as he has for decades with his ageing body, reminiscing on the times the band conquered the world with albums like Slippery When Wet and New Jersey. A must-watch for fans of the band and rock music in general.

Elsbeth

Paramount+

Power couple TV creators Robert and Michelle King are back with another delightful entry to their The Good Wife universe. This procedural follows zany and offbeat lawyer Elsbeth Tascioni (Carrie Preston, at long last getting the lead role treatment she has deserved for years), who first appeared in the first season of The Good Wife as Peter Florrick's attorney. But fear not, you don't need to have any knowledge of the earlier shows to enjoy Elsbeth, it's self-contained. Following much the same structure as last year's delightful mystery series Poker Face, the series introduces us to a crime, and shows us exactly who did it, before Ms Tascioni and the NYPD come along and try and arrest the right doer. Every episode has a new guest star (from Preston's True Blood co-star Stephen Moyer to Jane Krakowski, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and more), while Tascioni is also secretly trying to figure out if the police captain (played by the always excellent Wendell Pierce, The Wire) is corrupt. If you enjoy your police procedurals with fun characters and a side of whimsy, this is definitely the show for you.

Clarkson's Farm

Prime Video

We return to Jeremy Clarkson's accident-prone farm in this third edition of the Top Gear alum's reality series. If you're already a fan of the series, it's sure to tick all the boxes, but if you're coming in as a newbie it feels overly designed to create drama and problems that would never have existed on their own. Kicking off in August 2022, Clarkson promises that "everything that could go wrong, has gone wrong" and decides that he and his farmhand Kaleb are going to face off to see who can make the most profit - Kaleb farming traditionally, and Clarkson trying to turn the 'unfarmed' areas of the property into moneymakers.

Dead Boy Detectives

Netflix

The latest series from the wonderfully wacky mind of Neil Gaiman is Dead Boy Detectives, a spin-off of sorts from The Sandman. The new teen-friendly show follows two dead, but not yet disappeared, detectives who solve all manner of paranormal cases for their undead clients. The titular boys, highly strung Edwin (George Rexstrew) and infectiously cheery Charles (Jayden Revri) team up with human psychic Crystal Palace (Kassius Nelson) for their endeavours, recalling the monster-of-the-week stylings of Sam, Dean and Castiel in Supernatural.

Compiled by Jess Layt

JL

Jess Layt

Journalist

Hi! I'm a pop culture obsessive and write film and TV content across ACM.