True crime lovers have an entertaining weekend ahead of them with the newly released Charles Manson documentary on Netflix, Chaos: The Manson Murders. Filmmaker Errol Morris uses Tom O’Neill book, “CHAOS: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties,” as the foundation.
For more fictional horror lovers, the popular film Heretic will be available to stream this weekend. The Righteous Gemstones enters its final season on Sunday, March 9, and Amanda Seyfried reunited with Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan for the movie Seven Veils, now in theatres.
But what will be a best fit for your taste in TV shows and movies? We’ve scored this week’s notable new releases to help you find what you’ll most enjoy.
Each week Yahoo Canada will break down newly released TV shows and movies, recommending what to watch next, and what you may want to skip:
The Righteous Gemstones, Season 4 — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I have been a fan of The Righteous Gemstones since Season 1, with creator Danny McBride truly crafting one of the most outrageously funny and unique shows in recent years. But the Season 4 premiere on Sunday marks the beginning of the last season of the series.
While I’m not really ready to say goodbye, Season 4 is the most exciting in the series. It’s the raunchy, obnoxious fun we’ve come to love in previous seasons, but McBride also dives deeper into the emotions of the show’s character, in a way that makes the comedy feel even grander.
This will forever be one of my favourite TV shows.
Where to watch The Righteous Gemstones, Season 4: Sundays on Crave in Canada, HBO and Max in the U.S., beginning March 9
Heretic — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A favourite from last year’s the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), and its theatrical release in November, Heretic will be available to stream this weekend.
Written and directed by Bryan Woods and Scott Beck, starring Sophie Thatcher, Chloe East and Hugh Grant, this religious thriller is incredibly captivating, but more importantly, even this many months later, still feels like unique and truly original storytelling.
Yes, there are certain elements, like evaluation of Mormonism (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) that has been intriguing ground for storytelling for decades, but Heretic fully achieves interesting philosophical arguments, mixed with terror and fun.
Where to watch Heretic: Paramount+ beginning March 8
Chaos: The Manson Murders — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I believe Tom O’Neill book “CHAOS: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties” is actually a more compelling read than the 1974 book “Helter Skelter,” by Vincent Bugliosi, prosecutor of the Manson Family. So I was particularly excited about this documentary.
Filmmaker Errol Morris is able to unravel the details of Charles Manson and Manson Family conspiracy theories in a compelling way, but while really leaning into the chaotic battling of possible theories.
Questions around mind control should have complex and alive discussions, leaning into our urge to come up with theories to explain what we don’t know, and fear. It’s not about finding an end to a quest for truth, but rather why things may be accepted as the truth.
Where to watch Chaos: The Manson Murders: Netflix
Mickey 17 — ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
From Oscar-winning filmmaker Bong Joon-ho, Mickey 17 isn’t without its faults, plot lines introduced and then never reconciled, and underusing actors Toni Collette and Steven Yeun, but watching this movie is ultimately fun and enjoyable. Yes, the performances are over-the-top, but it’s a satisfying blend with Bong’s social criticism.
Robert Pattinson, Naomi Ackie, Ruffalo, Collette and Yeun make up a great cast and I haven’t gotten Pattinson’s Mickey 17 accent out of my head since watching this film.
While I didn’t leave Mickey 17 with the same enthusiasm that I did when I saw Parasite, it was still a satisfying trip to the movie theatre that provided entertainment and critical thinking long after the film concluded.
Where to watch Mickey 15: Now in theatres
Seven Veils — ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Atom Egoyan is one of Canada’s most notable filmmakers and has reunited with Amanda Seyfried for Seven Veils. Seyfried plays Jeanine, a theatre director who is remounting Richard Strauss’ opera “Salome,” years after she worked on an earlier production under her late mentor Charles, with whom she was having an affair.
A film that explores sexual trauma, Seyfried gives an emotionally resonant performance and Egoyan has a clear style in this twisty story. But the film feels like it fizzles out when Seyfried isn’t on screen.
Voiceover is also used in a way that feels like too much handholding, hearing several details about Jeanine’s perspective on her past and present, and it still doesn’t make the lesser developed portions of the film any clearer.
Seven Veils has the foundation to setup a captivating and gripping evaluation of power and misogyny, but doesn’t quite land with the impact I craved.