The Aisle Seat: Home Edition series continues with a preview of new movies/shows hitting Netflix for May. Brief advance warning, some of the trailers might feature language that’s a bit raw – ’cause y’know, this ain’t your basic cable service.
May 1: ‘Hollywood’
Ryan Murphy, the mind behind ‘American Horror Story’ produced this limited series, set in Hollywood post WWII, following a group of very young and very ambitious fictional characters trying to break into show business. The notes on this one include emphasis on Murphy and his team trying to give the era a more socially-conscious spin. Cast features Darren Criss, Patti LuPone, and Jim Parsons.
May 1: ‘All Day and a Night’
Jeffrey Wright and Ashton Sanders star in this original Netflix film about a young man sentenced to life in prison. Joe Robert Cole, co-writer of ‘Black Panther’, wrote the script and directs the drama.
May 3: ‘Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours To Kill’
He’s baaaaaack. Jerry Seinfeld makes his Netflix debut in his first original stand-up special in over 20 years. Comedy specials don’t come much bigger than this.
May 8: ‘The Eddy’
An eight-episode drama series, this is created by an English writer, Jack Thorne (the stage play, ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’), partly directed by an American filmmaker, Damien Chazelle (‘La La Land’), and filmed and set in Paris with dialogue in three languages – talk about innovative! A multi-national Jazz band assembles to play a Paris nightclub, in spite of numerous hurdles and tragedies. Reportedly, each episode will focus on a different member of the band.
May 11: ‘Have a Good Trip: Adventures in Psychedelics’
And now for something completely different. This mock-documentary comedy series is written and directed by Donick Cary (‘The Simpsons’), in which multiple celebrities such as Sarah Silverman, Ben Stiller and Nick Offerman are interviewed about their experience with psychedelic drugs. Sounds odd, yet…..I’m curious.
May 11: ‘Trial By Media’
Okay, this one is a REAL documentary, exploring how television cameras have influenced modern trials, and how, given that, everyone in the courtroom ups their showmanship. The film will use examples of several widely-covered recent trials…..can you say O.J.??…..and executive producers include writer Jeffrey Toobin and a guy by the name of George Clooney.
May 12: ‘Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy Vs. the Reverend
Something special for the fans of the quirky Netflix series, ‘The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’, which ended its run last year. This special assembles the regular and guest cast (oh, and Daniel Radcliffe), as Kimmy goes up against her former cult leader (Jon Hamm). It’s interactive too, as viewers will be allowed to choose their own adventure and see different scenes played out based on how they want the story to go. Fun!
May 19: ‘Patton Oswalt: I Love Everything’
Hard to believe a comedian as prolific as Patton Oswalt has gone a handful of years without a Netflix special. That stretch ends this month!
May 22: ‘The Lovebirds’
This comedy film features Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjani as a couple on the run after they’ve blamed for a murder. Originally, it was to hit theatres last month. Paramount, instead of delaying the theatrical release due to COVID-19, gave it Netflix instead. We might be seeing a lot more of that as the months go on.
May 29: ‘Space Force’
From much of the gang that brought you ‘The Office’ comes a sci-fi comedy series that will, if nothing else, fulfill Donald Trump’s wildest fantasy. Steve Carell plays a general who is assigned to create the interstellar equivalent of the Air Force. The supporting cast includes John Malkovich who, in an inspired piece of casting, plays a crazed scientist, and Lisa Kudrow as Carell’s wife.
