Weekend Watchlist, 3/13: Rings
What to watch this weekend
Happy Friday everyone! Here are this week’s picks.
An audio-themed horror or thriller
The A24 movie Undertone is the biggest new release in theaters this week, following a podcast host who listens to creepy sounds. I’ve heard mixed things about the movie, but “audio-based” horror/thriller is a very fun sub-genre, and Undertone is a good excuse to recommend some others. The most direct recommendation for Undertone I can make is Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s excellent and creepy Chime, but it’s not available to stream anywhere right now (although enterprising readers can probably find it online). Some backup options, though: Blow Out (Kanopy, Tubi, Hoopla), The Conversation (Kanopy, YouTube, Prime), and Berberian Sound Studio (Kanopy, Shudder, Prime).
The Birdcage
Where to watch: Kanopy, Hoopla, YouTube, Tubi
It’s always a good time to watch The Birdcage, but especially now: This week was the 30th anniversary of the endlessly entertaining Nichols and May comedy. It’s also been very present on my mind over the past month: My partner’s been in recovery from a (successful!) surgery, and they’ve watched it at least three times during that recovery.
World Baseball Classic knockout stage
Where to watch: Fox network of channels
This edition of the World Baseball Classic hasn’t been quite as immediately compelling as the last time, but it’s still been a reminder of how much fun baseball can be when removed from the stodgy, joyless restraints of Major League Baseball and American sports culture. It’s been great fun to see baseball players around the world really invest themselves in the tournament … except for Team USA, which once again is blatantly treating the tournament as an afterthought (with the embarrassing press conferences to prove it). Outside of Team USA, it’s been great to see Japan’s dominance, Italy’s surprise success, and an absolutely stacked Dominican Republic squad. This weekend starts the period where the best teams all play against each other, and it should be appointment television.
