This Week’s Release Roundup: A Plethora of New Foreign Language Films and Web Series to Explore.
Get ready for chills and thrills during your binge-watch session this weekend, with almost all the major releases this week having elements of suspense, action, and mystery. Amazon Original Indian Police Force undoubtedly tops the charts, with it being the only Hindi original OTT release for the week. It follows a group of dedicated police officials who are trying to track down terrorists responsible for serial blasts in Ahmedabad and Delhi and harbouring similar nefarious plans for the rest of India.
If you are in the mood for something eerie, go for Turkish drama Kübra, in which a man starts receiving intel and warnings from an unknown account on an online friendship portal. Next in line is a martial arts fighter in Sixty Minutes, who races against time in this action flick to reach his daughter’s birthday party while facing dangerous criminals, with her daughter’s custody at stake.
From the creators of popular Korean zombie thriller Train to Busan (2016), comes another mystery in the form of The Bequeathed, in which a college professor inherits a burial ground from an uncle that she has never heard of, and soon finds herself torn between dark secrets and a string of murders.
However, if you aren’t much of an action or thriller admirer like me, you could check out Amazon Original Hazbin Hotel, which brings a twist to the fate of hell dwellers. Here we see the Princess of Hell opening a rehabilitation hotel that offers a group of misfit demons a chance at redemption.
By the way, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is now also available to stream on Amazon Prime (you could only rent it on iTunes, Google Play and YouTube earlier). If you are a DC fan, you can now also enjoy The Batman and DC League of Super-Pets on Netflix.
Also, the final episode for Reacher Season 2 is now out. Don’t forget to catch up on it if you have been following the story of the brutal spy. Prabhas starrer Salaar will also be available to stream on Netflix from January 20, in four languages. Happy binge-watching!
Indian Police Force
Where: Amazon Prime
When: Now Streaming
The show opens with a series of bomb blasts in the capital city on Delhi Police Raising Day. We are then introduced to Special Cell police officers — the ambitious rule breaker Kabir Malik (Sidharth Malhotra) and Vikram (Vivek Oberoi) — and an Anti-Terrorism Squad officer (Shilpa Shetty Kundra), who dealt with a similar terrorist attack in Ahmedabad.
The rest of the show follows the trio trying to catch the terrorists behind this heinous act — although the major focus is on Malik’s character. Plenty of action sequences, car chases, and patriotic dialogues are in store. In my opinion, do not judge the show solely based on the first episode!
Indian Police Force is the first web series from Rohit Shetty’s Cop Universe, which previously delivered box office hits in the form of Singham, Singham Returns, Simmba and Sooryavanshi. Next release from the franchise this year would be Singham Again.
Kubra
Where: Netflix
When: Now Streaming
Netflix is back with yet another Turkish drama in the form of this psychological suspense series. Based on Afşin Kum’s 2020 eponymous novel of the same name, Kubra introduces us to a man called Gökhan Sahinolu (Çagatay Ulusoy), who starts receiving cryptic messages, intel, and future warnings from an unknown internet user called Kubra, whom he met on an online friendship portal. As the messages keep pouring in, Sahinolu finds himself in a tricky position as he must now start taking sides. Naturally, he now has both friends and enemies. While he views this moral conflict as “the war of darkness and light” the unexpected follows.
The Bequeathed
Where: Netflix
When: Now Streaming
Imagine you are a struggling lecturer (Kim Hyun-joo), and you receive a mysterious phone call that your uncle — whom you never knew existed until now — has passed away and you have now inherited a family burial graveyard. What seems like good news on the surface, soon turns into a Pandora’s box of misfortunes when you find yourself at the centre of horrible family secrets and a string of murders. South Koren drama The Bequeathed is assured to bring you hearty doses of quirkiness, investigations, fishy characters, and gorgeous countryside locations. It is based on Kang Tae-kyung’s webtoon of the same name.
Sixty Minutes
Where: Netflix
When: Now Streaming
This German action movie has a Mixed Martial Arts fighter called Octavio (Emilio Sakraya) in the main role, who just has sixty minutes to reach his daughter’s birthday party — otherwise, he loses her custody forever. Desperate to reach on time, he decides to ditch an important fight; infuriating a bunch of dangerous criminals. Well, this is just the beginning! A bunch of intense action sequences follow.
Hazbin Hotel
Where: Amazon Prime
When: Now Streaming
If you remember Vivienne Medrano’s YouTube channel VivziePop, you already know what Hazbin Hotel is about. Now adapted into a full-blown eight-part web series, it follows the unusual story of the Princess of Hell opening a rehabilitation hotel that offers a group of misfit demons a chance at redemption. Why you ask? Umm because the hell is simply full, and in this world the dwellers of Heaven unleash annual assaults on those in Hell to keep its potential power in check. You’ll also find plenty of musical pieces in this adult animation series.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
A revival of the original Turtles film series, Mutant Mayhem transports viewers back to the iconic quartet (Micah Abbey, Shamon Brown Jr., Nicolas Cantu, Brady Noon), who, after an accidental exposure to radioactive material, have led a sheltered life under the guidance of their overprotective rodent father-figure Splinter (voiced by Jackie Chan). The Turtles befriend April O’Neil (Ayo Edebiri), an outcast high-schooler determined to help them gain acceptance in society. Their main obstacle comes in the form of a gang of villainous mutant turtles led by the formidable Superfly (Ice Cube).