The past week saw an alarming rise in Covid-19 cases in India, with many states calling for drastic measures. While the Karnataka government implemented 50% seating occupancy in cinema halls as part of its revised guidelines, the Maharashtra government on Sunday declared a total weekend lockdown in the state till April 30. Following this announcement, the share prices of INOX Leisure and PVR dipped 8% each.
As people are being encouraged to stay indoors and practice safety protocols to curb the spread of the virus, audiences can now take the time to unwind with their favourite streaming platforms. Here are 10 films and shows releasing on OTT platforms this week:
1. Joji – Amazon Prime Video (April 7)
Inspired by Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth, Joji presents a twisted version of a plot filled with greed, ambition, murder and mystery. The story revolves around Joji, an engineering dropout and the youngest son of the rich plantation family who lives with his aspirations of becoming a wealthy NRI. But his father looks down on him and thinks of him as nothing more than a loser. Driven by greed and blind ambition, Joji finally decides to execute his plans following an unexpected event in the family.
2.Them – Amazon Prime Video (April 9)
Them is a limited anthology series that explores terror in America. The first season centres on a Black family who moves from North Carolina to an all-white Los Angeles neighbourhood during The Great Migration in the 1950s. The family’s idyllic home becomes ground zero where malevolent forces, next-door and otherworldly, threaten to taunt, ravage and destroy them.
3. Hello Charlie – Amazon Prime Video (April 9)
Hello Charlie showcases the funny antics and chemistry between a gorilla named Toto and a simpleton called Charlie. The film takes the audience on an immersive journey when a billionaire’s escape results in a series of comedy of errors and strange situations.
4. Well Done Baby – Amazon Prime Video (April 9)
Well Done Baby is a story inspired by a real family. The film is about a young modern-day couple who are struggling to find a purpose in their marriage, till destiny actually gives them one.
5. The Big Bull – Disney+ Hotstar (April 8)
The Big Bull is based on India’s securities scam of 1992. The film is loosely based on stockbroker Harshad Mehta’s life and his involvement in financial crimes from 1980 to 1990.
6. Big Shot – Disney+ Hotstar (April 9)
After getting ousted from the NCAA, a men’s basketball coach is given a chance for redemption with a coaching position at an elite private high school. He soon learns that the teenage players require empathy and vulnerability, foreign concepts for the stoic Coach Korn. By learning how to connect with his players, the coach starts to grow into the person he’s always hoped to be. The girls also learn to take themselves more seriously, finding their footing both on and off the court.
7. Thunder Force – Netflix (April 9)
Thunder Force revolves around two childhood best friends, who reunite as an unlikely crime-fighting superhero duo when one invents a formula that gives ordinary people superpowers.
8. Night In Paradise – Netflix (April 9)
Night in Paradise is a South Korean film about a man, targeted by a criminal gang, who meets a woman cornered to a dead end in life.
9. The Big Day: Collection 2 – Netflix (April 7)
The Big Day is a two-part collection follows the journeys of different, and differentiated, couples as they take the reins of planning the wedding of their dreams. The second season showcases three more extravagant Indian weddings.
10. This Is A Robbery: The World’s Biggest Art Heist – Netflix (April 7)
In 1990, two men dressed as cops con their way into a Boston museum and steal a fortune in art. The show takes a deep dive into this daring and notorious crime.
