March streaming highlights: the films and series you just can’t miss
New month, new streaming recommendations. Here’s what you can stream on Netflix, Sky, Disney+ or Apple TV+ this March.
Why do ducks have feathers? To cover their butt quacks! And I’ve got you covered when it comes to film and TV streaming recommendations this March.
Spaceman (movie)
Astronaut Jakub (Adam Sandler) has been on a lonely research mission at the edge of the solar system for six months. It’s dawning on him that his wife Lenka (Carey Mulligan) is unlikely to be waiting for him back on Earth. Suddenly, he makes contact with a strange creature hiding in the depths of his ship – a giant spider by the name of Hanuš (Paul Dano). Together, they try to figure out what went wrong in Jakub’s relationship so that he can put things right.
Well, what do you know! Adam Sandler seems to have put his wild, infantile days of making mostly lowbrow, fart-joke-filled comedies behind him. Though he’s already demonstrated his acting talent in films such as Uncut Gems and Hustle, he’s never done a movie that seems as strange and abstract as Spaceman – a film based on Jaroslav Kalfar’ novel of the same name. I’ve got to admit I’m pretty sceptical, but the audience response so far has painted a different picture.
Release date: 1 March
Where: Netflix
The Regime (mini-series)
As announced in the trailer, The Regime was made by Succession creators Will Tracy and Frank Rich. Alongside them at the helm was Stephen Frears, who directed The Queen. To top it all off, the show was produced by HBO. In other words, you have to watch it. I mean, don’t we all want to see a dastardly Kate Winslet pulling the dictatorial strings at the head of a fictitious European regime?
Release date: 4 March
Where: Sky Show with Entertainment Pass
The Gentlemen (series)
British director Guy Ritchie is without doubt the master of crime comedy. Something he’s proved with gems such as Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch and Rock’n’Rolla. In these films, a stylistic device he always paid homage to was montages. More specifically, where one character explains their criminal plan to another off-screen, while we viewers get to see the plan in action at the same time. For a while, Ritchie turned his back on his favourite genre, making fantasy films such as King Arthur and Aladdin instead. Until 2020, when he celebrated his crime comedy comeback with The Gentlemen in the middle of the pandemic.
Ritchie originally wanted to turn the movie, starring Matthew McConaughey as the lead, into a series. However, when he decided to take the film to the big screen after all, the numerous cinema closures sparked by lockdown tanked the project financially. It meant going back to his original idea of making The Gentlemen as a series. And nah, the fact that the series has exactly the same name as the movie isn’t the slightest bit confusing. Nor is it confusing that The Gentlemen is a spin-off of The Gentlemen, set after The Gentlemen. No siree. I’m looking forward to it.
Release date: 7 March
Where: Netflix
Manhunt (mini-series)
There was a time when John Wilkes Booth may not have been the most famous man in the world. But he was certainly the most wanted. For days, his name and picture were printed in every newspaper and magazine in the country. His appalling deed dominated dinner table discussions, with some even lauding him as a hero. For most people, however, the night of 14 April 1865, when Booth shot US President Abraham Lincoln, came as a shock.
Manhunt, Apple’s new series, takes on an exciting perspective – that of John Wilkes Booth himself. What drove him to commit his crime? And how did he manage to evade the law (and what was then the biggest manhunt in history) for so long? The trailer mentions conspiracies and secrets. I’m excited to watch it. Every Apple movie or TV series production lately has turned out to be good.
Release date: 15 March
Where: Apple TV+
X-Men ’97 (series)
It doesn’t take much to transport me back to my childhood. Ron Wasserman’s iconic X-Men opening is more than enough. But an X-Men animated series? Even better. The cartoon ended in 1997 on a nasty cliffhanger. After Charles Xavier aka Professor X was killed by Onslaught, a manifestation of Xavier’s rage and hatred, Cyclops and Wolverine took over leadership of the X-Men. Although Onslaught was then defeated, the future of the X-Men remained uncertain.
Until now. X-Men ‘97 picks up exactly where the original ended 27 years ago after five seasons. I don’t think the sequel keeping exactly the same art style as the original is in any way outdated. On the contrary, it’s pure nostalgia! I’ll give it a go.
Release date: 20 March
Where: Disney+
3 Body Problem (series)
With its adaptation of Liu Cixin’s novel The Three-Body Problem, Netflix is taking on one of its most ambitious science fiction projects yet. Cixin, who hails from China, became world-famous in 2007 with the first book in his Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy. In The Three-Body Problem, he combines complex science with profound philosophical and ethical questions.
The central threat to humanity in 3 Body Problem comes from an alien civilisation. A threat humanity itself set in motion when it went searching for intelligent life forms in space. This very idea is one of Cixin’s central philosophical concepts, which compare the cosmic order to a «dark forest». If the universe is roamed by countless, nameless predators, then imagine what happens to a civilisation unwise enough to give away its location.
Cixin’s novel raises exciting questions: how can humanity survive in a universe full of threats? What responsibilities do we have within the cosmic order? And what does it mean to live in a cosmos in which we’re not alone? The Netflix series has the potential to portray these questions on-screen in a spectacular way – with a high-calibre cast and a huge budget. Definitely a must for fans of highbrow science fiction.
Release date: 21 March
Where: Netflix
Next Goal Wins (movie)
Yes, I know. Since Thor: Love and Thunder, director Taika Waititi hasn’t been winning many popularity contests. While Waititi masterfully walked the fine line between comedy and satire in Thor: Ragnarok, he drifted too far into slapstick in Love and Thunder. I didn’t think it was bad. Or, to put it more accurately, I wasn’t surprised by it. I’m too familiar with Waititi’s style – his tendency to go over the top with humour from time to time.
I expect nothing less from his latest film, Next Goal Wins. Based on true events, the film tells the story of the world’s worst national football team and laughing stock of the football world, American Samoa. Their new trainer, played by Michael Fassbender, is supposed to change that.
The film got a unanimous thumbs-down from critics, with Rotten Tomatoes marking it as a flop. But what do they know? It went down surprisingly well with audiences, who’ve scored it 84%. Viewers say Next Goal Wins is as funny as it is heart-warming, and that Waititi’s just the right man to bring quirky characters and situations to life. A good portion of it is an underdog story, and there’s a pinch of New Zealand humour in there too. What more could you want from a sports movie?
Release date: 27 March
Where: Disney+ (Star)
Header image: «3 Body Problem» / Netflix
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Luca Fontana
Senior Editor
Luca.Fontana@digitecgalaxus.chI'm an outdoorsy guy and enjoy sports that push me to the limit – now that’s what I call comfort zone! But I'm also about curling up in an armchair with books about ugly intrigue and sinister kingkillers. Being an avid cinema-goer, I’ve been known to rave about film scores for hours on end. I’ve always wanted to say: «I am Groot.»
