From Ricky Stanicky to The Regime, Should You Add These to Your Watchlist?
From an R-rated comedy to a royal drama, Pop Culture Planet contributor Jordan Bohan shares some new releases you can’t miss, and the ones you can.
Apples Never Fall
Based on the best-selling book by Liane Moriarty, Apples Never Fall follows the Delaneys, the seemingly perfect West Palm Beach family known for their long-running tennis academy. After Joy (Annette Bening) and Stan (Sam Neill) retire, a scared young woman lands on their doorstep looking for a safe haven, turning the family’s world upside down. Joy suddenly goes missing and her four children (Jake Lacy, Alison Brie, Essie Randles, and Conor Merrigan Turner) are left to figure out where she is and the secrets they never knew about their parents.
Apples Never Fall is a perfectly paced mystery limited series. Each episode highlights one of the family members, allowing deep dives into their background and character, adding nuance to the present day problems. Each character feels distinctly different and complex, and the use of flashbacks strategically moves the story forward. Tension will keep you on your toes and the shocking ending is worth the wait.
Apples Never Fall is streaming on Peacock.
The Regime
In The Regime Chancellor Elena Vernham’s (Kate Winslet) authoritarian regime begins to unravel. The paranoid and hypochondriac Chancellor grows unstable and turns to violent soldier Herbert Zubak (Matthias Schoenaerts) as a confidant. As Elena attempts to extend her power, Zubak’s influence results in the palace and country crumbling around her.
My immediate reaction to this series was confusion. They jump in right in the middle of things without much explanation, leaving viewers lost. Winslet can command a screen and does so, but her accent is distracting. The costume design and sets are top-tier, but they don’t save this series from convoluted storylines and humorless jokes.
The Regime is streaming on Max.
Ricky Stanicky
Three childhood best friends (Zac Efron, Andrew Santino, and Jermaine Fowler) create an imaginary friend named Ricky Stanicky in a moment of panic. For twenty years, the trio use the nonexistent pal as a handy alibi for their immature behavior and mistakes. When their partners get suspicious and demand to meet the culprit, the guilty trio hire an actor (John Cena) to bring Stanicky to life. However, when he takes his role a little too far, they begin to wish they never invented Ricky in the first place.
Ricky Stanicky poses the perfect recipe for comedy in a situation gone wrong. John Cena absolutely commits to the bit, which wouldn’t have worked if he hadn’t, and steals the spotlight. It earns it’s R-rating, but rightfully so. The inappropriate jokes are sprinkled throughout and aren’t over done. Was I laughing out loud throughout the movie? No, but I enjoyed the light and funny aspects this movie set out to execute. It’s a fun watch, but nothing worth revisiting.
Ricky Stanicky is streaming on Prime Video.
