What to watch in February 2021

With no sign of the Covid-19 pandemic abating globally, streaming services are continuing to up their game and cinemas are continuing to offer some more selective films for your enjoyment.

But that's no reason to fear going to the movies; certainly Minari and I Care A Lot are likely to be part of the awards talk, no matter what shape or form these eventually take.

Here's what else is good to watch on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Neon NZ, and Disney + during February.

Parks and Recreation Seasons 1-7 (February 1, Netflix)

Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman head up this beloved US sitcom that revels in positivity. It's about a group of people working in a government department in the US. But don't let that put you off - this is the series that surprises you, and the comedy that's packed full of heart, leading you to watch hours when you least expected it. Highly recommended. (Pair it with viewing of the US Office and you can thank me later).

Malcolm and Marie (February 5, Netflix)

Already described by the BBC as a 'vibrant and perceptive film', Tenet's John David Washington and Euphoria's Zendaya star in this two-hander about the long dark night of a relationship laid bare.

Writer director Sam Levinson ramps up the intensity after Washington's Malcolm forgets to thank his girlfriend at an awards ceremony...

Greenland (Amazon Prime Video, February 5)

Gerard Butler delivers bread and butter performance as a man trying to save his family and survive when an extinction-level event hits the globe. 

Refreshingly intimate for what is at heart a disaster movie, this B-movie flick knows what it wants to do and what it should be and doesn't shy away from it. But its aforementioned heart and willingness to emotionally invest singles it out as something different in the genre.

Minari (Cinemas, February 11)

A film guaranteed to break you in more ways than expected, this take on the American immigration dream is sensational from beginning to end.

When the Yi family are moved to the middle of nowhere in the US heartland at the behest of patriarch Jacob (The Walking Dead's Stephen Yeun), the cracks begin to show. But slowly from these cracks, roots grow and shoots of a new life develop in surprising ways.

Intimate, devastatingly well done, this semi-autobiographical tale is the film to lead the awards chatter - and rightly so.

The Muppet Show (Disney +, February 19)

It's time once again to play the music, it's time to light the lights.

The iconic Muppet Show with Kermit and all the gang gets its first full outing on Disney + and a chance for newer viewers to see where the anarchy all began. With brilliant guest stars, and top notch work from the Jim Henson company, The Muppets were and still are iconic. 

Best you binge their fuzzy frantic antics as soon as you can.

I Care A Lot (Amazon Prime, February 19)

Rosamund Pike heads up this twisty thriller about a woman playing the elderly care system to her advantage. And to say any more than this is to ruin the ride of what The Disappearance of Alice Creed's J Blakeson has set down as a perversion of the American dream.

Stylish, shallow, enticing and intriguing, I Care A Lot is the film you didn't know you needed to see until you did, thanks to a stunning performance from Gone Girl's Pike.

Go in blind, it's the best - and only - way.

Shadow in the Cloud (February 4, Cinemas)

Chloe Grace Moretz stars in this thriller that has a somewhat Twilight Zone-esque premise.

While travelling with top-secret documents on a B-17 Flying Fortress, a female WWII pilot encounters an evil presence on board.

Directed by NZ's Roseanne Liang, this action horror film is a mix of genres and a film that revels in its unpredictability according to reviewers.

Supernova (Cinemas, February 25)

Stanley Tucci and Colin Firth play a pair of older lovers faced by a difficult decision in this movie written and directed by Harry MacQueen.

Sensitively told and maybe lightly handling the moral elements of its central premise, Tucci and Firth are the reasons to see this film.

Heartfelt and earnest, this one last road trip benefits greatly from their chemistry - even if the conundrum at the centre of the story seems to veer away from any great rhapsodising or preaching.