10 things you need to watch on Netflix this month

Russian Doll: season one

Natasha Lyonne of Orange is the New Black fame has co-created this Groundhog Day-esque series with Leslye Headland (Heathers) and Amy Poehler (Parks and Recreation), to tell the story of a game developer called Nadia (Lyonne), who keeps dying and reliving her 36th birthday party.

Learn everything you need to know about Russian Doll here. 

Release date: 1 February 

Velvet Buzzsaw 

Netflix’s newest horror film is a satirical take on the art scene in L.A. Big names such as Toni Collette, Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo play a crowd of overtly glamorous and shallow critics and dealers who have lost their integrity on their way up to the top.

After the works of a late, unknown painter start to bring in major cash, they soon realise that there was a reason he asked for all of his pieces to be destroyed. 

Release date: 1 February 

The Umbrella Academy: season one

On the same day in 1989, 43 babies were born in unison to random, unconnected women who showed no signs of pregnancy the day before. After attracting the attention of billionaire industrialist Sir Reginald Hargreeves (Colm Feore), he adopts seven of them with plans to create The Umbrella Academy, calling his children the future saviours of the world. 

With a cast including Ellen Page, Mary J. Blige and Robert Sheehan, it looks to be a good’un.

Release date: 15 February 

Dirty John: season one 

Debra Newell (Connie Briton) is killing it. She has a fabulous job, lives in California’s desirable Newport Beach and is raising her two daughters by herself. But she wouldn’t mind a little more romance in her life. So, when the handsome doctor John Meehan (Eric Bana) catches her eye, she thinks she may be on to a winner. Something her daughters can see may be catastrophic for the whole family. 

Release date: 14 February 

Get Out

If you haven’t seen this 2017 smash hit, which contributed to the changing face of horror and its focus on smarter, more political stories, then you really need to. 

When Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) takes the trip out of town to meet his girlfriend Rose’s (Allison Williams) upper class family, he has some reservations about their acceptance of the couple’s interracial relationship. What follows is a dark, twisted drama that shows the ugly truth of where America still currently is with issues of race and discrimination in society. 

Release date: 24 February 

Paris is Us

When a young Parisian woman nearly dies in a plane crash, it sends the rest of her life into a spiral. Francophiles will appreciate the dreamy-shot footage and spanning images of Paris, as she ponders on her existential crisis in the streets of a city on the edge of exploding. 

Release date: 22 February 

Isn’t it Romantic?

Rebel Wilson stars as New York City architect Natalie, who, despite working damn hard to make her career happen, seems to keep getting left in the dust. In fact, she’s having a pretty bad time all round. Not only does progression at work seem out of her reach, she’s also unhappy with her love life, and then as if the universe couldn’t throw enough at her, she’s the victim of a mugging. 

But after waking up from her ordeal, it feels like a higher power has prescribed some perverse medicine to her current cynicism: turning her life into a rom-com, in which she is the star. 

Release date: 28 February   

Mamma Mia!

This one needs no introduction. Now Mamma Mia! has landed on Netflix nothing can stop you joining in the frolics with Meryl and the gang. Filled with banger after banger, the ABBA songs and unbridled enthusiasm are sure to turn any frown upside down. Go on, treat yourself to an afternoon of all-singing, all-dancing fun. 

Release date: 26 February 

I Feel Pretty 

Amy Schumer stars as a woman who, like the female stereotype often dictates, feels unhappy with her appearance. Confronted everyday with media that shows off what the ‘perfect’ figure should apparently look like, she feels down on herself and her body. That is until she suffers a head injury that leaves her with a transformed view of herself and unearths an inner confidence. 

The film attempts to show the painful truth of how women are conditioned to feel about themselves, but also received some criticism that suggested it gives a mixed message. We recommend giving it a watch to make up your own mind. 

Release date: 27 February 

Images: Netflix