I’ll admit, I wasn’t completely entranced by Get Millie Black when I saw it earlier in the week. For some reason, I expected the titular Millie Black to have a bit more swagger, a bit more energy about her. But that’s a me issue - the show itself is good. And as the week has gone on, my mind keeps wandering back to the show.
Tamara Lawrance plays Millie Black, a woman who grew up in London and worked in Scotland Yard until returning to live in Jamaica after the death of her mother. It’s now close to a year later and she’s working a case that has the interest of Scotland Yard.
The show plays like a typical modern BBC crime detective drama, but the uniqueness of location gives it a distinct vibe. It went into production 2 years ago (I’m not sure why the show was so heavily delayed) and the politics of the show do feel slightly out of step with the modern moment. It’s never addressed directly, but you can feel it has a bit of an #ACAB vibe around the show. And bundle that in with the harder-edged feminism of the main character, with her trans sister and you have a show that probably wouldn’t be made right now in the same way with TV heading in a more blue skies direction.
I may not have been bowled over by the show, but I also can’t stop thinking about it. Some reviews likened it to True Detective and I don’t think that’s entirely spot on. But I also can’t argue that comparison either.
Get Millie Black - HBO [US] | Binge [AUS] | Channel 4 [UK]
Stars: Tamara Lawrance
An ex-Scotland Yard detective returns to Kingston to work in missing persons and finds herself on a quest to solve a case that will blow her world apart.
The Agency - Paramount+
Stars: Michael Fassbender, Jeffrey Wright, Richard Gere, Jodie Turner-Smith, Katherine Waterston and John Magaro
A covert CIA agent is ordered to abandon his undercover life and return to London Station; when the love he left behind reappears, romance reignites.
The Madness - Netflix
Stars: Colman Domingo, Marsha Stephanie Blake, John Ortiz, Tamsin Topolski
Media pundit Muncie Daniels must fight to prove his innocence after stumbling upon a murder in the Poconos, while trying to reconnect with his estranged family and his lost ideals.
Senna - Netflix
Stars: Gabriel Leone
The career of racing legend Ayrton Senna, a national hero in Brazil and three-time winner of the Formula One world drivers' championship.
Asaf - Netflix
Stars: Cihangir Ceyhan, Burçin Terzioglu, Uygar Özçelik
Separated from family, an Uber driver gets embroiled in a crime after an accident, changing his life forever as he's exploited by nefarious people.
The Trunk - Netflix
Stars: Gong Yoo
A secret marriage service is uncovered when a trunk washes up on the shore, revealing the strange marriage between a couple in the thick of it all.
Nutcrackers - Hulu [US] | Disney+ [International]
Stars: Linda Cardellini, Ben Stiller, Ari Graynor, Tim Heidecker
A workaholic has to travel to rural Ohio to look after his recently orphaned nephews.
Sweethearts - Max [US] | Binge [AUS]
Stars: Kiernan Shipka and Nico Hiraga
Two college freshmen make a pact to break-up with their high school sweethearts over Thanksgiving break, leading them on a chaotic night out in their hometown that puts their co-dependent friendship to the test.
Our Little Secret - Netflix
Stars: Lindsay Lohan, Ian Harding, Tim Meadows, Jon Rudnitsky, Judy Reyes, Henry Czerny, Chris Parnell, and Kristin Chenoweth
After discovering their significant others are siblings, two resentful exes must spend Christmas under one roof while hiding their romantic history.
The Snow Sister - Netflix
Stars: Celina Meyer Hovland, Ole Steinkjer Øyen, Jan Saelid, Mudit Gupta
A young boy whose grieving family has forgotten about Christmas forms an unexpected, healing bond with a bubbly girl full of holiday spirit.
Mononoke The Movie: The Phantom In The Rain - Netflix
Stars: Hiroshi Kamiya
A deadly and mysterious master of the occult travels across feudal Japan, seeking malevolent spirits called Mononoke to slay. He must uncover their Form, Truth, and Reason to wield the mighty Exorcism Sword against them.
That’s the TV listings newsletter for this week.
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