Today's Entertainment

Brainerd Dispatch • September 27 - October 3, 2020 •19 By Jessica Gosse TV Media WHAT'S NEW ON NETFLIX "The Boys in the Band" (2020) On Wednesday, Sept. 30, Netflix brings Mart Crowley's ground- breaking 1968 off-Broadway play "The Boys in the Band" from the stage to the screen in the premiere of this drama. Featuring the same cast of openly gay actors who revived the play on Broadway for its 50th anniversary in 2018, the film follows a group of gay men in 1968 who come together for a birthday party. Jim Parsons ("The Big Bang Theory") stars as Michael, who is hosting the party in honor of his friend Harold (Zachary Quinto, "NOS4A2"). In attendance are Michael's ex, Donald (Matt Bomer, "White Collar"); Hank (Tuc Wat- kins, "One Life to Live"), who just left his wife; Larry (Andrew Ran- nells, "A Simple Favor," 2018), the man Hank now lives with; the high- ly opinionated Emory (Robin de Jesus, "Hair Brained," 2013); and Bernard (Michael Benjamin Wash- ington, "30 Rock"), who is deter- mined to keep the peace between his dramatic friends. Tensions begin to rise within the group as Harold's gift — a prostitute named Cow- boy (Charlie Carver, "Desperate Housewives") — arrives, closely followed by Michael's seemingly heterosexual, conservative college friend, Alan (Brian Hutchison, "The Sinner"). As the night rolls on and intense party games are played, the friends are forced to confront deep personal truths. "American Murder: The Fam- ily Next Door" (2020) Fans of true crime are in for a thrill- ing ride as Netflix presents the true story of convicted murderer Chris Watts in this documentary, premier- ing Wednesday, Sept. 30, on the streamer. While there are pictures of Watts that seem to depict him as a typical family man, nothing could be further from the truth. This docu- mentary provides firsthand footage as it explores how Watts went from being a seemingly loving husband and father to murdering his preg- nant wife and two daughters in cold blood. Despite having originally claimed that his wife killed their children and that he accidentally killed her when he discovered what she'd done, Watts went on to pro- vide a full confession and was given a life sentence after pleading guilty. "Emily in Paris" From the creators of "Sex and the City" and "Younger" comes this charming new series, which pre- mieres Friday, Oct. 2, on Netflix. Lily Collins ("Tolkien," 2019) stars as Emily, a twentysomething woman working at a marketing firm in Chi- cago who gets the opportunity of a lifetime when she is sent to work for a French marketing company in Paris, France. Emily has deeply romanti- cized the idea of living in Paris, as is evident by her exclamation upon arrival: "I feel like Nicole Kidman in 'Moulin Rouge!'" But she's in for a shock. As she starts her job at the firm and offers an American perspective on things, she realizes that many Parisians aren't particularly fond of Americans. Now, Emily must adapt to life in Paris with confidence, style and a certain je ne sais quoi to balance the demands of her job while breach- ing the cultural divide and making new friends (and maybe meeting a cute Frenchman). Also starring in the series is "Grey's Anatomy" alumna Kate Walsh, as well as Broadway star and Tony Award nominee Ashley Park. WHAT'S NEW ON HULU "Monsterland" Supernatural horror meets psycho- logical horror in this new anthol- ogy series premiering Friday, Oct. 2, on Hulu. Based on dark fantasy author Nathan Ballingrud's novel "North America Lake Monster Stories," the series features eight hour-long episodes, each of which tells a different story set in a dif- ferent part of America. "Monster- land" depicts the darkness within human beings and the lines we are willing to cross when pushed to a point of desperation with episodes featuring a wide range of scenar- ios from an elderly, grief-stricken couple or a struggling single mother to a reformed scheming socialite or a wealthy CEO. Each faces struggles that weigh on them, but there's a twist: each epi- sode features an encounter with a non-human creature, whether it be a fallen angel (perhaps encour- aging a Faustian deal?) or even a mermaid. The series is set to feature an impressive cast, includ- ing Mike Colter ("Evil"), Kaitlyn Dever ("Unbelievable") and Kelly Marie Tran ("Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker," 2019). WHAT'S NEW ON PRIME "The Glorias" (2020) The life of famed American jour- nalist Gloria Steinem is brought to the screen in this biopic, premier- ing Wednesday, Sept. 30, on Prime. "The Glorias" takes an unusual approach, showing four different stages of Steinem's life depicted by four different actors — her tumultuous childhood segment stars Ryan Kiera Armstrong ("Anne with an E"); Lulu Wilson ("Sharp Objects") depicts Steinem as a teen; Alicia Vikander ("The Dutch Girl," 2015) portrays her from her early 20s in the early stages of her career to the age of 40; and Acad- emy Award winner Julianne Moore ("Still Alice," 2014) plays Steinem in the 1970s as an established feminist and political activist. Based on Steinem's autobiogra- phy, "My Life on the Road," "The Glorias" looks into how every part of Steinem's life led to her becom- ing a leader in the women's lib- eration movement. Also featured are a wealth of other prominent women in the movement with whom Steinem had close relation- ships, such as lawyer Bella Abzug (Bette Midler, "The Stepford Wives," 2004), fellow feminist and eventual business partner Dorothy Pitman Hughes (Janelle Monáe, "Hidden Figures," 2016) and Cherokee activist Wilma Mankiller (Kimberly Guerro, "Longmire"). "Force of Nature" (2020) Mel Gibson ("The Expendables 3," 2014) stars as Ray, a stubborn and aging former cop, living in an apartment in Puerto Rico in this ac- tion film coming to Prime on Mon- day, Sept. 28. When a Category 5 hurricane hits and the building's residents are told to evacuate, Ray refuses to leave, much to the cha- grin of his daughter, Troy (Kate Bo- sworth, "Straw Dogs," 2011), not to mention Cardillo (Emile Hirsch, "Once Upon a Time ... In Holly- wood," 2019) and Jess (Stephanie Cayo, "Club de Cuervos"), the two cops sent to ensure that everyone evacuates. However, Ray's refusal to leave the premises turns out to be a blessing in disguise when Cardillo discovers that a team of violent thieves has infiltrated the building and is using the hurricane as a cover for their heist. Now, Car- dillo and Jess must team up with Ray and Troy in order to stop the thieves and survive the storm. Jim Parsons, Robin de Jesus, Michael Benjamin Washington and Andrew Rannells in "The Boys in the Band" Julianne Moore in "The Glorias" Kelly Marie Tran as seen in "Monsterland"

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