Sparking Joy
(Netflix)
As we enter week two of lockdown you may have started to notice that your home is crammed full of stuff. In the before-times when you were constantly in and out of your house it was easy to overlook the overstuffed kitchen drawers, ignore the taped-up boxes in the garage, and not worry about your straining wardrobes. But now all that stuff - your stuff - is staring you in the face each day. Chances are it's not sparking joy but is instead stressing you out. Well, now's the time to get on top of it and get rid of the needless stuff overflowing from drawers, cabinets and bookshelves. Starting is the hardest part so for decluttering inspiration turn to the new series from world-renowned tidy-upperer Marie Kondo as she goes about transforming people's lives through the power of tidying up.
Streaming from Tuesday.
Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games
(TVNZ DUKE)
It's rare watching television can be considered your patriotic duty. Especially during a lockdown when screen-time rates skyrocket. So if you're looking to make your bubble's viewing schedule a little more guilt-free then tune into the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and cheer on the Kiwis taking on the world's best.
Each day through to next Sunday TVNZ DUKE is putting on a gold medal-winning timetable of live, delayed and replay coverage from Japan with a focus on our athletes. 1 NEWS' Emily van Velthooven, Paralympian and Para swimmer Rebecca Dubber and Paralympian and former Wheel Black Grant Sharman make up the hosting team presenting the games. If you're juggling work and lockdown, no need to fret over missing any medals as DUKE, TVNZ 1 and TVNZ OnDemand will all be screening daily highlight packages.
Go team! Screening daily.
An American Pickle
(Neon)
This delightfully absurd, humorous modern fable sees Seth Rogen playing double duty in both lead roles.
The first is Herschel Greenbaum, a cantankerous Eastern European Jew who accidentally falls into a giant pickle vat where he is perfectly preserved in brine for 100 years. The other is Greenbaum's great-grandson Ben, an affable app developer who takes him in. At first, the distant relatives get along but Herschel's old school values quickly clash with Ben's modern takes and after a huge falling out both vow to ruin the other. Reviews for the low-key dramedy have been mostly positive with Rogen's dual performances praised. Of the film, one critic noted that while "it asks its viewers to suspend a lot of disbelief, those willing to go along for the ride will find much to entertain them". Streaming now.
Cruella
(Disney+)
From Friday the dazzling, visual extravaganza of Cruella becomes available for all Disney+ subscribers as the movie shifts off their extra-fee-requiring Premium Access service and on to their general consumption menu.
The movie is the origin story of one of Disney's most fashionable villains, the puppy-hating Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians. Here Academy Award winner Emma Stone struts and schemes as the well-dressed de Vil, resplendent in trendy, trademark monochrome fashions as she plots out wicked revenge on those who wrong her. Lavish and stylish, the prequel particularly impressed fashion lovers, with one critic calling the movie "visually striking, fashionably astute and all-embracingly entertaining". Streaming from Friday.