📺 Say Nothing & Cruel Intentions...
plus the return of a Mindy Kaling comedy, a post-mortem of Disclaimer, and a watchlist of 5 new streaming movies & 4 new and returning TV shows this week
Happy one week to Thanksgiving! As is our tradition, we will be taking next Thursday off to spend with our loved ones and eat way too much food, but don’t worry, it won’t be a fully Double Take-less week. Our November Sharies will hit your inboxes that Sunday. Wishing a wonderful holiday to all who celebrate. <3
In today’s edition:
Weekly Watchlist
The Sex Lives of College Girls
Cruel Intentions
Say Nothing
Disclaimer
— Jenni Cullen and Jess Spoll
First time reading? Subscribe to receive Double Take weekly.
Below is a selection of new shows and movies premiering this week. Our unabridged list of November releases, including theatrical releases and streaming debuts, is available here and published monthly for our premium subscribers.
Based on a True Story (Season 2) — Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina return as a couple whose love of true crime podcasts leads them to become tangled in a real-life mystery.
Watch on Peacock: November 21 (all 8 episodes)Alien: Romulus (Movie)* — Fede Álvarez directs the seventh installment in the Alien franchise. Set between the events of Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986), the story follows a group of young space colonists who, while scavenging a derelict space station, encounter terrifying life forms.
Watch on Hulu: November 21 (*Streaming Premiere)A Man on the Inside (Season 1) — Charles (Ted Danson), a retired man, gets a new lease on life when he answers an ad from a PI and becomes a mole in a secret investigation in this series from creator Mike Schur.
Watch on Netflix: November 21Outlander (Season 7b) — Claire and Jamie’s epic love story continues as they face new battles and shifting timelines in this next chapter of the time-traveling drama.
Watch on Starz: November 22 (2 of 8 episodes, then weekly)Blitz (Movie) — Saoirse Ronan and Harris Dickinson star in this historical WWII drama about a mother who sends her son away to be safe from the bombings.
Watch on Apple TV+: November 22The Piano Lesson (Movie) — This adaptation of August Wilson’s 1987 play is set in Pittsburgh after the Great Depression and follows a family with an heirloom piano, decorated with designs carved by an enslaved ancestor.
Watch on Netflix: November 22Joy (Movie) — From the producers of An Education and Brooklyn, this film is based on the remarkable true story of the world’s first “test-tube baby,” and the breakthrough invention of IVF.
Watch on Netflix: November 22Get Millie Black (Limited Series) — An ex-Scotland Yard detective returns to Jamaica to uncover dark secrets and track a missing person in this gripping noir-inspired mystery.
Watch on Max: November 25 (5 episodes, released weekly)Our Little Secret (Movie) — Lindsay Lohan’s new Christmas movie follows two resentful exes who must spend the holidays under one roof when they discover their current significant others are siblings.
Watch on Netflix: November 27
Note: If you’re a premium subscriber, you have access to 6 other movies and shows premiering this week that aren’t listed above, via our November Preview edition.
These popular shows came back with new episodes. Here’s what we thought and where you can watch them.
The Sex Lives of College Girls - Season 3
Keywords: Comedy-drama, friendship, witty
Watch if you like: Never Have I Ever, Sex Education, Crashing
Jenni’s Rating: B-
Season 3 of The Sex Lives of College Girls premieres today after a two-year, strike-affected hiatus. Written and produced by Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble, this show follows four roommates and (at-first) reluctant friends at a fictional prestigious liberal arts school in Vermont. Think Gilmore Girls Season 4, if it had spotlit all of Rory’s roommates equally, skipped Stars Hollow entirely, and dialed up the raunch factor.
The show narrowly sidestepped the dreaded sophomore slump two years ago by leaning into its greatest strength: the chemistry between the four leads. Each character is distinct, three-dimensionally written, and refreshingly real—within the heightened context of TV, of course. Their contrasting upbringings and personalities create just enough tension to keep their friendship interesting, laying the groundwork for plenty of less-than-wholesome and hilarious campus adventures.
Unfortunately, Renée Rapp’s reduced presence in the latest season threatens to disrupt that carefully crafted balance. Her decision to prioritize her music career leads to an early exit from the series, leaving fans (me) bracing for a shift in the show’s dynamic. As one of the show's sharpest personalities, her absence leaves a noticeable void. The big question is whether Season 3 can maintain its stride without her—or if it will stumble in her wake.
— Jenni
Length: ~40-min runtime, 3 seasons / 30 episodes (1 of 10 from S3 available so far, new on Thursdays)
Watch on: Max
Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.
Cruel Intentions
Keywords: soapy, melodrama, college
Watch if you like: Gossip Girl, Riverdale, Tell Me Lies
Jess’s Rating: B+
1999’s Cruel Intentions, although not originally well received by critics, is a cult classic that launched the careers of Reese Witherspoon, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Ryan Phillippe. The latest attempt at a reboot, this new Cruel Intentions on Prime Video takes a popular movie from the past and adapts it into a 8-episode series.
In this modern retelling, the toxic and questionably incestuous duo are step-siblings Caroline (Sarah Catherine Hook) and Lucien (Zac Burgess), high in the social ranks at an esteemed Washington D.C. college. After a hazing incident paints their beloved sorority and fraternity in a negative public light, they find themselves battling to defend their institutions and powerful positions within them. When Annie—the guileless daughter of the U.S. Vice President—matriculates, the step-siblings scheme to convince her to rush Caroline’s sorority, thus returning credibility to Greek life and saving her position at the top of the campus’s social hierarchy.
Critics will argue that this series doesn’t improve upon the original, that it’s toothless in comparison, and that it isn’t doing enough to justify its existence. While I don’t disagree with the first two complaints, I’ll push back on the third. As a fan of glossy teen/YA dramas, Cruel Intentions is one of the better entries, and if this didn’t have the baggage of being an adaptation, people would be celebrating it as an edgy and well-executed, lustful teen drama. The star of the show is undoubtedly Sarah Catherine Hook, who plays the manipulative, envy-inducing alpha with an immense amount of poise and allure. But the supporting cast is all strong, with Sara Silva as Caroline’s anxiety-ridden right-hand woman as another standout. Beyond the central trio, the sub-plots hold intrigue of their own, warranting the runtime and (hopefully) subsequent seasons.
With any teen drama, there is a self-selecting audience. If you like the meanness and soapiness of shows like Gossip Girl, or the ridiculous but addictive quality of Riverdale, this will probably be a fun time for you. If you want believability and earnest characters, or you’re ready to nitpick the differences between this and the original, look elsewhere. I may be in the minority on this one, but I devoured this as a binge watch and hope there’s more of it in the future.
— Jess
Length: 40-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Watch on: Prime Video
Say Nothing
Keywords: historical drama, true crime, Irish
Watch if you like: Peaky Blinders, Chernobyl, Handmaid’s Tale
Jenni’s Rating: A
Adapted from journalist Patrick Radden Keefe’s acclaimed historical true crime book of the same name, FX’s new limited series is an electrifying blend of war-time drama and political thriller. Set against the backdrop of the Troubles, a decades-long conflict in Northern Ireland, the series delves into the human cost of political unrest while also delivering gripping, meticulously-crafted entertainment.
I want to stress before I go further that I write about this series with the benefit of distance, fully aware that those closer to the time, place, and people of this story might view Say Nothing with more mixed emotions. The Troubles are well within living memory, and the show’s nuanced, humanizing portrayal of various members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) is sure to provoke conflicted feelings in some viewers.
In broad strokes, the series focuses on Belfast’s predominantly working-class Catholic population, a community historically marginalized by systemic gerrymandering, job discrimination, and housing inequality. Following a few key players in the IRA resistance against British occupation, the show captures the simmering tension of this era, providing a vivid portrait of a community on the brink of collapse. But it is no dry history lesson. Say Nothing is propulsive, with riveting chase sequences, surprising black humor, and tautly written confrontations. The drama of resistance, betrayal, and survival unfolds with urgency, balancing emotional depth and high-octane action.
Supporting the production are some extraordinary performances. Lola Petticrew and Hazel Doupe shine as sisters and IRA members Dolours and Marian Price, their bond crackling with intensity and complexity. Anthony Boyle is magnetic as the young Brendan Hughes, and Judith Roddy delivers a devastating portrayal of Jean McConville, a mother of ten who was “disappeared” by some of the very figures that often appear to be the show’s heroes.
There’s so much to say about Say Nothing, I’d need a full newsletter to discuss every detail I’d like to. FX has created a series that’s complex, thought-provoking, and thrilling, a combination that ensures this series will resonate long after the credits roll. For fans of historical dramas with a pulse-pounding edge, this is not to be missed.
— Jenni
Length: 40-min runtime, limited series / 9 episodes
Watch on: Hulu / Disney+
We reviewed a show in its early days on air. Now that we’ve watched more of it, would we change our initial rating?
Disclaimer
Keywords: drama, psychological thriller, suspense
Watch if you like: Gone Girl, Expats, The Night Of
Jess’s Rating: A
These days, with the glut of “prestige” dramas, there’s a fine line between pretentious banality and artistic excellence. Sometimes a series can have all the trappings of prestige—a noteworthy director, a splashy cast list, a lauded writer’s room—but fail to deliver. With Disclaimer, Apple TV+ has avoided these common pitfalls to deliver an arresting, thrilling work of art.
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón and starring Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, and Sacha Baron Cohen, this limited series is adapted from Renée Knight’s novel of the same name. Blanchett stars as a woman with a secret who’s appalled to find a book in her mailbox that recounts a traumatic, unflattering event from her past—one that resulted in the death of a boy she met while traveling in Italy. When the book’s provenance is traced back to the father of the victim, a tale of obsession, revenge, and grief unfolds.
Non-linear storytelling is an oft-used device that doesn’t always land, but here, layers are peeled back continuously, leaving the audience to try to piece together the mystery, while ascertaining the truth. The artistic devices, like the use of heavy vignette for flashbacks and a 3rd-person narrator voiced by one of the characters, feel fresh and tonally appropriate. The series is stylistically locked in, imbuing the episodes with a sense of darkness, dread, and unrelenting misery. As the episodes pass, it’s clear that nothing we’ve seen can truly be trusted, and this becomes the core tenet of the series: how do we decide whose story to believe? Why are we so willing to go along with certain versions of the truth?
Disclaimer is certainly not an easy viewing experience—in fact, it’s one of the most deeply depressing and unsettling shows I’ve ever seen. Cuarón keeps the audience in a nearly constant sense of unease, but the darkness of the material feels more introspective than self-indulgent, leaving you to question your perspective on truth and subjectivity in a powerful way.
— Jess
Length: 50-min runtime, Limited Series / 7 episodes
Watch on: Apple TV+
If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)