Too Much to Jaws @ 50 – the seven best shows to stream this week

Pick of the week

Too Much

When jilted advertising executive Jess (Hacks scene-stealer Megan Stalter) swaps New York for London, she imagines UK life will resemble “the British Jones diaries”. Initially, it’s more like Nil By Mouth, as she encounters unpleasantly opinionated cabbies and neighbours in the throes of a violent, abusive marriage. Romantic salvation seems to arrive in the shape of Will Sharpe’s winsome indie rocker Felix. But is he really all he seems? Written by Lena Dunham and Luis Felber, this comedy is delightfully unafraid to shred both the stuck-up Britons and the gormless American interlopers. And Stalter, who is equal parts bratty and brittle, carries the show superbly.
Netflix, from Thursday 10 July

Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story

Open wide! … Jaws being filmed at Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. Photograph: Universal Studios Licensing LLC

One working title for Peter Benchley’s novel was, apparently, What’s That Noshing on My Leg?. Thankfully, the snappier eventual title, Jaws, caught the eye of director Steven Spielberg and nothing was quite the same again. This documentary is a deep dive into one of the most commercially and creatively successful films of all time. It never holds back on detail – there’s even a marine biologist on hand – but it’s also full of entertaining anecdotes and strong on the emotional dynamics of the film and how its suspense-building techniques created a whole new cinematic language.
Disney+, from Friday 11 July

The Facebook Honeytrap: Catching a Killer

A remarkable story … The Facebook Honeytrap: Catching a Killer. Photograph: Amazon Amazon Amazon undefined

This film explores the circumstances surrounding the death of British woman Christine Robinson, who was raped and murdered at a safari lodge in South Africa in 2014. Robinson’s niece Lehanne took it upon herself to hunt her aunt’s killer remotely. She located the suspect online, created a fake profile and began a long-distance relationship with Andrea Imbayarwo, who had, by this time, fled the country. Eventually, her actions led to his arrest and conviction. Harrowing, but also, a remarkable story.
Prime Video, from Sunday 6 July

Ballard

Misfits … Maggie Q as Renée Ballard and Courtney Taylor as Zamira Parker in Ballard. Photograph: Adam Rose/Prime

There is seemingly always room on the small screen for another unconventional but brilliant cold case detective – and this one is a spin-off from the series Bosch: Legacy. Renée Ballard (Maggie Q) has been sidelined – shuffled off to a basement with other LAPD misfits after a brave but failed attempt to bring down a well-connected crime organisation. However, even if she doesn’t always make herself popular with her prickly demeanour and singular working practices, Ballard is soon opening decades-old murder files and making breakthroughs.
Prime Video, from Wednesday 9 July

Foundation

So striking … Pilou Asbæk in Foundation. Photograph: Helen Sloan/Apple

It’s been a comparatively long wait for season three of this Isaac Asimov sci-fi adaptation, but that’s nothing compared to the time-jump in the show’s narrative. A hefty 152 years have passed since the events of 2023’s second season but the show remains both visually striking and conceptually ambitious. Both Jared Harris’s Hari Seldon and Lee Pace’s Brother Day have made it into this far-future realm but find themselves confronted by Pilou Asbaek’s fearsome warlord who boasts remarkable powers and evil intentions.
Apple TV+, from Friday 11 July

The Wild Ones

Stunning! … The Wild Ones. Photograph: Apple undefined

This series is a mixture of wildlife documentary, environmental campaign and personality-driven adventure series as a trio of travellers (conservationist Declan Burley, cameraman Vianet Djenguet and expedition leader Aldo Kane) set off into some of the world’s wilder corners in search of exotic creatures ranging from bears to rhinos. Their aim is to capture the intimate details of their lives but also to highlight the jeopardy they face. It often feels more like a road trip than a traditional wildlife documentary but the footage is stunning all the same.
Apple TV+, from Friday 11 July

Arcadia

Really chilling … Gene Bervoets as Pieter Hendriks in Arcadia. Photograph: Channel 4

This dystopian thriller from Belgium has a premise straight out of prime Black Mirror: in a near-future society, every citizen is given a social score. When Pieter finds a way of manipulating the algorithm, he thinks he’s doing his low-scoring daughter a favour. However, when his deception is discovered, he learns that instead he’s dooming his family to a half-life in the terrifying, lawless Outer World. It’s one of those sci-fi scenarios that benefits from having just about enough plausibility to really chill and the world-building is convincingly done.
Channel 4, from Friday 11 July