Well done everyone – we made it through January! To celebrate, Netflix has a bunch of great shows and films for you.
Such as? Art world satire, sci-fi horror from the man behind Game of Thrones, stand-up comedy, offbeat superhero thrills and even a new dating show for all those Valentines out there. Ahhh.
Available 1st February
This horror is set in LA’s art scene, portraying the gruesome outcome when “art collides with commerce”. Jake Gyllenhaal plays art critic Morf Vandewalt, who passes judgement on everything he comes across.
But when he popularises some art produced by a now-deceased neighbour, its darkness spreads to those who spend time with it.
Think: figures in the paintings reaching out and attacking those nearby. It’s written and directed by Dan Gilroy, and has an all-star cast, including Gyllenhaal, John Malkovich, Rene Russo, Toni Collette, Natalia Dyer, David Diggs, Tom Sturridge and Zawe Ashton.
Available 1st February
This sci-fi horror is based on a 1980s novella by George R.R. Martin, and follows a group of scientists aboard a spaceship in search of alien life in the year 2093. Martin has previously described it as “Psycho in Space”, so expect plenty of thrills.
The show aired on the SyFy channel in the US last year, and didn’t get great reviews. But with Netflix’s global audience of millions, it could well get a new lease of life.
Available 5th February
This is Romano’s first new stand-up show in 23 years, so expectations are high that it will be a good one. In it, he jokes about surviving marriage, ageing and the best way to choose your friends.
Available 10th February
The second series sees the top US comedian continue with his take on current affairs.
The last series had an episode banned in Saudi Arabia after Minhaj implicated the Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman in the death of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, which he’s sure to talk about in this new series.
The Saudi regime might not be best pleased, but for the rest of us, it’s sure to be an entertaining watch.
Available 14th February
Netflix’s first ever dating show launches – suitably enough – on Valentine’s Day. The concept is simple enough: a singleton goes on five dates, and has to choose who to see again. But as Shakespeare said, the course of true love never did run smooth.
Available 15th February
This is an offbeat superhero series adapted from the comic by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá. The concept? A bunch of young people were all born on the same day in 1989, to mothers who weren’t pregnant before that day. Some of them are adopted by a billionaire who nurtures their extraordinary skills and trains them to be superheroes.
When the billionaire dies, the siblings reunite to find out exactly what caused his death. And save the world in the process, as you do.
It’s not your standard superhero fare. It includes time travel, fantasy dance sequences and even a talking chimpanzee. Ellen Page and Mary J. Blige star.
Available 22nd February
Inspired by the real-life events of the Mafia Capitale investigation (an organised crime syndicate involving the Rome’s city government), this series focusses on power clashes and corruption in Rome and the Vatican City.
But who’s more corrupt: the politicians, or the churchmen? The show is notable for being the first Italian TV series to feature a gay Sinti mobster character.
Available 24th February
The Oscar-winning horror has been available elsewhere before, but it’s sure to get a new viewership once it hits Netflix. Daniel Kaluuya stars as a young black man who discovers a disturbing secret about his white girlfriend’s family. Rarely has horror blended so well with social commentary.