This Swedish miniseries is so effective that we wolfed it down in one sitting last weekend. Adapted from the novel A Nearly Normal Family by author Mattias Edvardsson, it tells the story of a seemingly perfect – but absolutely dysfunctional – family which is slowly but surely sinking since a traumatic event (which it attempted to to slide under the carpet) occurred four years earlier. When a new tragedy occurs, its artificial balance suddenly collapses. Divided into six episodes of approximately 45 minutes, this legal thriller has been in the top 10 most watched series in Canada on Netflix for almost three weeks. Not hard to understand why.
Social and cinematic phenomenon (revenues exceeding a billion dollars at the global box office) of the year 2023, Barbie is not without its faults. It’s long, and five months later, we’re still wondering about the usefulness of the scenes with Will Ferrell, who histrionics more than anything else. On the other hand, the feature film by Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird) is not the radical antichrist that some columnists have tried to portray. It’s entertaining, funny at times, and above all, extremely well acted. In the lead roles, Margot Robbie (Barbie) and Ryan Gosling (Ken) deliver high-calibre comedic performances that should earn them an Oscar nomination.
Directed by Mélissa Beaudet (CHSLD au front, 180 jours), this documentary series lives up to its name. The dog owners she features actually do everything – and more – for their pets. We’re talking elaborate birthday parties, designer clothes (for Tika the Iggy, an Italian greyhound-turned-fluencer dog who has 2.8 million followers on TikTok), unusual activities, etc. “It’s a way of life,” says canine pastry chef Nathalie Gendron in the first episode. His story is touching. Her little dogs filled the void she felt after trying and failing to have children for 20 years. If you think you’re crazy about your pooch, you haven’t seen anything yet!
Lovers of Christmas songs will enjoy this one-hour special, in which Lynda Lemay invites her singing friends to her highly decorated log cabin. Everything is there: the fireplace, the tree, garlands of lights, the checkered tablecloths, the snow, the lark. On the program: anecdotes, conversations, well-known tunes (Christmas is Love, The Little Red-Nosed Reindeer, I Saw Mom Kissing Santa Claus), others a little less so (Rumeur sur le père Christmas) and two special guests, Mario Pelchat (What child was born tonight?) and Roxane Bruneau (Children’s Christmas).