3 Best all-new Netflix and Prime Video arrivals for a mid-week binge (July 13-17)
What a week to be streaming – here are the highlights
Here in the UK, the heat shows no sign of abating, even if we're all going to spend the week telling ourselves that 29 degrees is way better than 32 (it just about is). That means it's a great week to continue cowering inside, avoiding that heat with some good streaming.
Sure, if you have a portable air conditioner like me, then you'll be even happier, but the best news is that this is a really strong week for the best streaming services on the market (or, at least, the biggest ones). I've checked out everything being added to Netflix and Prime Video this week, to pick out three highlights that you're going to want to know about.
The Hawk
- Streaming from: 16 July
This looks like a real throwback from Netflix and Will Ferrell, who's picking things up again to play a somewhat forgotten fictional golfer trying to get back to the top level to complete the grand slam of majors that he never quite managed in his pomp. This time, though, he's going to have to contend against his own son, who's become the buttoned-up pro he never was.
Ferrell's character is called Lonnie "The Hawk" Hawkins, giving his name to the whole movie, and the project looks like an old-school comedy in the vein of Anchorman or Dodgeball, which means it might be fairly predictable, but also comforting. The real joy will almost certainly be in the ad-libs and seeing how far Ferrell is willing to take his performance – I'd bet way further than you think.
Heartstopper Forever
- Streaming from: 17 July
One of Netflix's most beloved series comes to an end not with another season, but with a feature film to send its characters off into the sunset. The story of Charlie and Nick's whirlwind school romance has captured millions of fans over the last few years, but with the two characters moving into a new phase of life, it's reached a natural stopping point.
That doesn't mean there's no tension to work out, though – far from it. With one going to university and the other staying at home, the big question will be how they keep their relationship going. Will they be up for the hard yards of long-distance love? Will one have to give up his dream for the other? Or will they call it quits? Expect this one to shoot up the charts as people tune in to find out when it arrives.
Ride or Die
- Streaming from: 15 July
If I had a dollar for every time a big streaming service made a movie about normal-seeming people who secretly live double lives as spies, I'd probably be able to buy a decent lunch by now – it's a topic that just can't seem to be left alone for more than a year without being brought back up. In fairness, this go-around from Prime Video does look a little more fun and inventive than some.
It stars Hannah Waddingham as that secret spy, alongside her best friend, played by Octavia Spencer, who's taken along for the ride when assassins target her bestie at the wrong moment. It's a classic fish-out-of-water gag that'll last for most of the movie, you'd guess, and Ride or Die will probably sink or swim based on the chemistry between those two leads.
