Sometimes it’s a bit slow getting back into the swing of things after a long weekend. But one thing I do know helps take the edge off is a good movie during the week. Netflix‘s May additions are pretty much spent at this point, but there’s always something new to watch, and I’ve got a few suggestions.
First up is Sacha Baron Cohen’s new switcheroo comedy, which pairs well with some popcorn. Second is a classic ’90s dark crime drama with one of the craziest casts you’ll ever see. Lastly is a new revealing documentary film about a living comedy legend that’s been on the Netflix Top 10 for weeks now.
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Ladies First
Sacha Baron Cohen and Rosamund Pike in a genre-flip corporate comedy
If you’re looking for a movie that’s fun, quirky, and low-stakes to get you through the week, this English-language remake of the 2018 French movie I Am Not An Easy Man will do the trick. Ladies First is a hilarious gender-role switcheroo movie that follows a high-powered, chauvinistic ad executive named Damian Sachs (Sacha Baron Cohen, Borat, Da Ali G Show), who’s gunning for the CEO spot at Atlas, where he regularly slings condescending and sexist remarks to the agency’s female staff, including ambitious underling Alex Fox (Rosamund Pike).
There’s no magic lightning bolt or potion drunk for this switchup, though. Instead, the womanizing Damian, while distracted by a gorgeous blonde on the street, walks headlong into a lamp post. When he comes to, Damian finds himself in an alternate reality where the societal power dynamics are reversed—Alex has his job, women in cars are cat-calling him, Burger King is Burger Queen, you get the idea.
Stuck with no way back, Damian gets a taste of his own medicine and is forced to claw his way back up the corporate ladder while enduring the exact indignities and objectification he once doled out. Will he learn his lesson and find a way home? With a stacked cast, including Charles Dance (Game of Thrones‘ Tywin Lannister), Fiona Shaw (Killing Eve), Richard E. Grant, and Emily Mortimer, Ladies First hasn’t gotten much love from critics, but the Rotten Audience score is better.
Ladies First
- Release Date
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May 22, 2026
- Runtime
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90 minutes
- Director
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Thea Sharrock
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True Romance
Tarantino’s early script becomes a ’90s cult classic
If it weren’t for this gritty modern take on Bonnie and Clyde, Quentin Tarantino might never have found the money to make the masterpiece that is Reservoir Dogs. True Romance has the distinction of being the first screenplay the prolific filmmaker ever sold, which he did to director Tony Scott (Top Gun), who turned it into one of the coolest cult films of the 1990s, with an insane all-star ensemble cast that’s still hard to believe.
Christian Slater was about as hot as you can get as a young Hollywood star, having starred in generation-defining movies like Heathers, Gleaming the Cube, and Pump Up the Volume, but he needed to shed the teen heartthrob persona. True Romance did just that. The story follows Clarence Worley (Slater), a clerk at a Detroit comic book shop, who falls madly in love with Alabama Whitman (Patricia Arquette), a call girl, whom he instantly marries. Clarence also kills Alabama’s pimp, Drexl (Gary Oldman), and steals a suitcase full of cocaine that belongs to the mob.
Quiz
Blockbuster movies on Netflix
Trivia challenge
From indie romance to post-apocalyptic horror and rock ‘n’ roll history — how well do you know these Netflix hits?
DramaHorrorMusicDirectorsCasting
Which director is behind the quirky 2012 coming-of-age film Moonrise Kingdom?
Correct! Wes Anderson directed Moonrise Kingdom, bringing his signature symmetrical framing and deadpan humor to a story of young love set in 1965 New England. The film was his seventh feature and earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
Not quite — Moonrise Kingdom was directed by Wes Anderson, the auteur known for his meticulously composed visual style. While Sofia Coppola, Spike Jonze, and Michel Gondry are all acclaimed indie filmmakers, this whimsical tale of runaway children belongs to Anderson’s distinctly quirky cinematic universe.
Which veteran actor plays the eccentric Scout Master Ward in Moonrise Kingdom?
Correct! Edward Norton plays the well-meaning but hapless Scout Master Ward, delivering a wonderfully earnest performance. Norton was part of an ensemble that also included Bruce Willis, Bill Murray, and Frances McDormand, making Moonrise Kingdom one of the most star-studded indie films of its era.
Not quite — Scout Master Ward was played by Edward Norton, who gave the role a wonderfully sincere, slightly bumbling quality. Bill Murray and Bruce Willis were also in the film but in different roles, and Jeff Goldblum, while a Wes Anderson regular, did not appear in this particular picture.
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is a sequel in a long-running horror franchise. What infected the population in the original 28 Days Later?
Correct! The original 28 Days Later introduced the terrifying Rage virus, which was accidentally released when animal rights activists broke into a research lab and freed infected chimpanzees. Unlike traditional zombie lore, the infected in this franchise are alive and driven by uncontrollable aggression.
Not quite — the culprit in the original 28 Days Later was a virus called Rage, unleashed after activists freed infected chimpanzees from a laboratory. The franchise is notably distinct from zombie films because its victims are not undead; they are living humans overwhelmed by violent, uncontrollable rage.
Who directed 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, continuing the franchise Danny Boyle originally launched?
Correct! Nia DaCosta, known for her acclaimed work on Candyman (2021), directed The Bone Temple. Her involvement brought fresh creative energy to the long-dormant franchise, with Danny Boyle returning to direct the first film in the trilogy and handing off the second chapter to DaCosta.
Not quite — The Bone Temple was directed by Nia DaCosta, who previously helmed the 2021 Candyman. Alex Garland wrote the screenplay for the original 28 Days Later, while Juan Carlos Fresnadillo directed the 2007 sequel 28 Weeks Later, making all the wrong options plausible names attached to this franchise’s history.
In Moonrise Kingdom, what is the name of the young girl who runs away with Sam Shakusky?
Correct! Suzy Bishop, played by Kara Hayward in her feature film debut, runs away with fellow misfit Sam Shakusky across the fictional New England island of New Penzance. The name Margot is a nod to Wes Anderson’s earlier film The Royal Tenenbaums, making it a clever red herring.
Not quite — the young heroine is Suzy Bishop, brought to life by first-time actress Kara Hayward. Margot is actually the name of a character from Anderson’s earlier film The Royal Tenenbaums, while Clementine and Agatha appear in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and The Grand Budapest Hotel respectively.
The Rise of the Red Hot Chili Peppers: Our Brother, Hillel focuses on a founding member of the band. What instrument did Hillel Slovak play?
Correct! Hillel Slovak was the original lead guitarist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and his soulful, eclectic playing style helped define the band’s early sound. His tragic death from a heroin overdose in 1988 profoundly impacted his bandmates, particularly Anthony Kiedis, and shaped much of the band’s later music.
Not quite — Hillel Slovak was the lead guitarist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, not the bassist or drummer. Flea held down the bass, while Chad Smith would later take over on drums. Slovak’s distinctive guitar work was central to the band’s identity in their formative years before his untimely death in 1988.
Which Red Hot Chili Peppers member is most prominently featured alongside Hillel Slovak in the documentary Our Brother, Hillel, given their lifelong friendship?
Correct! Anthony Kiedis and Hillel Slovak were childhood best friends long before forming the Red Hot Chili Peppers, making their bond central to the documentary’s emotional core. Kiedis wrote extensively about Slovak’s death in his memoir Scar Tissue, describing it as one of the most devastating moments of his life.
Not quite — Anthony Kiedis is the central figure in exploring Hillel Slovak’s legacy, as the two were childhood friends who grew up together in Los Angeles before co-founding the band. While Flea was also a close friend, it is the Kiedis-Slovak relationship that forms the emotional backbone of the documentary.
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is the second film in a planned trilogy. Who wrote the screenplay for the project, as they did for the original 28 Days Later?
Correct! Alex Garland, who wrote the screenplay for the original 28 Days Later, returned to pen the scripts for the new trilogy. Garland has since become a celebrated director in his own right with films like Ex Machina and 28 Days Later spiritual successor Men, cementing his place as one of modern horror and sci-fi’s most important voices.
Not quite — Alex Garland is the screenwriter behind the 28 Days Later franchise, including the new trilogy. Danny Boyle directed the original film rather than writing it, Cillian Murphy was its star, and Andrew Macdonald served as producer. Garland’s return to this world was a major draw for fans of the original film.
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This sparks an epic cross-country road trip chase to Los Angeles, as the lovelorn couple evades the Mafia and the police, while trying not to die. Oh, that insane cast includes Dennis Hopper as Clarence’s ex-cop father, Christopher Walken as the Mafia consigliere, Val Kilmer as the ghost of Elvis, Brad Pitt as Floyd, a couch-bound stoner, and James Gandolfini as a brutal hitman. True Romance still holds up today, and has a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
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Marty, Life Is Short
Lawrence Kasdan’s intimate portrait of a comedy giant
We Canadians derive an enormous amount of pride when one of our own makes it big in Hollywood. And while there are many icons to choose from–John Candy, Mike Myers, Jim Carrey, Lorne Michaels, Seth Rogen, Eugene Levy, Phil Hartman, and (pause for effect) Catherine O’Hara—there’s another among them that stands out, and he’s now the subject of one of the best documentaries of the year.
Legendary writer Lawrence Kasdan’s (The Big Chill, Raiders of the Lost Ark, um, Empire Strikes Back!) first documentary, Marty, Life Is Short, is all about his longtime friend, Martin Short, whose classic characters like Ed Grimley, sweaty lawyer Nathan Thurm, and men’s synchro hopeful Lawrence, were required viewing for any comedy nerd. The 101-minute doc is a love letter to Short, which follows his career arc: Toronto kid, SCTV and SNL breakout, the Three Amigos! and Father of the Bride years, Broadway, Jiminy Glick, his decades-long stand-up partnership with Steve Martin, and his late-career renaissance on Only Murders in the Building.
But more touchingly, Marty is a rare look at the genuinely good man himself. It uses touching interviews from his best friends—including Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Steve Martin, Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw, Eugene Levy, and the late Catherine O’Hara (from archival footage)—to paint a picture of a life well lived, that includes spending time with those he loves at his beloved Muskoka cottage, and the precious time he had with the love of his life, Nancy Dolman, whom he lost to cancer in 2010.
Ease back into the work week
Whatever you’re in the mood for after the long weekend, Netflix does a pretty good job of meeting you wherever you are. And if you’re already filling out your week’s watchlists, our other How-to Geek streaming roundups can help fill in the gaps.
- Subscription with ads
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Yes, $8/month
- Simultaneous streams
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Two or four
- Live TV
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No
- Price
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Starting at $8/month
Stephan is the sports journalist for the Maple Grove Report.
