3 Best all-new Netflix and Prime Video arrivals for a mid-week binge (Oct 12-16)
These are the additions you need to know about
Begun, the streaming wars have – or, more to the point, they begun long ago. Netflix and Prime Video are now locked in what feels like a fight to the death, albeit one that Netflix appears to be winning handily if you go by viewership alone. Neither has any interest in letting up the pressure on the other, though, and that means content.
Sure, it's probably the worst word in history used to describe what should be artistic pursuits, but in a time full of more TV shows, movies and other material to watch than any other era in history, maybe we have to use it. If you're a Netflix subscriber, an Amazon Prime member, or both, you have a vested interest in knowing when good stuff hits either platform.
So, I've taken a careful look at everything being added to Netflix and Prime Video this week, and have picked out three highlights that you should be aware of. They're below, with trailers and release dates so that you can plan around them for your mid-week viewing pleasure.
The Diplomat (Season 4)
- Streaming on: Netflix from 15 October
One of the biggest hits that Netflix has had in recent years has been The Diplomat, starring Keri Russell in the title role as an extremely stressed diplomat for whom nothing seems to ever be simple. If you haven't watched the first few seasons, head off and do that, because this next paragraph will be spoilerish.
Kate (Russell's character) has always had a super complicated marriage, but things are even more fraught now that Hal (Rufus Sewell) is vice-President, and becoming ever more exposed to the sort of influence that she's afraid of. Whether she can keep a grip on the whole situation is anyone's guess, and doubtless there's going to be at least one major twist to keep her on her toes.
Love of Your Life
- Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video from 14 October
If you're in the mood for a story that's a little bit more optimistic about the potential for love to strike when you're least expecting it, then Love of Your Life seems like the perfect pick for a mid-week evening pick-me-up. It stars the always-glowing Margaret Qualley as a young woman mourning the messy end of a relationship that she thought would go the distance.
She takes herself on a European trip to clear her mind, but with no intention of falling for anyone else while she's there. Life has other plans, though, as it so often does, and she's soon doing her best to stop catching feelings for none other than Aaron Pierre (fresh from his profile-raising work in Lanterns).
Masterplan
- Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video from 16 October
My final pick this week is the most light-hearted of the lot, so it might be a great pick if you're in the mood for something snackish and easygoing this week. Stanley Tucci stars in Masterplan as a master thief who's planning a job just a little bit too big for him to tackle on his own: stealing literally the Mona Lisa. This means it's a Louvre heist, which is obviously more topical than it might have been a decade ago.
The movie looks, frankly, like a bit of light fun – Tucci's clearly having a ball, from the trailer, and he's the only really recognisable face in the whole thing. That hopefully won't stop it from putting together an inventive story, and if it can nail the fundamentals of a good heist sequence, then it'll be well worth the price of entry (which you already paid in your Prime sub).
