#SetTheVCR: July 03-09, 2023

Monday, July 03

The Lost King (Anytime / AMC+)

An amateur historian defies the stodgy academic establishment in her efforts to find King Richard III’s remains, which were lost for over 500 years.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: HONOR AMONG THIEVES (ANYTIME / NETFLIX CANADA)

A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people in this hilarious and action-packed adventure. Let the Satanic Panic begin!
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The Marvel Studios version of Dungeons & Dragons set in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting. (I dunno what that means…) This movie was designed to appeal to a wider audience; probably folks who only know D&D from Stranger Things. So while this is fantasy this isn’t J.R.R. Tolkien or George R.R. Martin fantasy. This is meant to be fun hence the Marvel Studios reference. (Well it was either Marvel Studios or Monty Python, right?) Because more than fantasy this is also a heist comedy. Cue the quest: “Having spent two long years in a dark and dank prison cell after a botched attempt to get his hands on a magical artefact, lute-playing bard-turned-thief Edgin Darvis decides he has had enough.” Of course this isn’t a short movie. He and his crew gotta battle and deal with evil sorcerers, powerful necromancers, and legendary creatures of lore to succeed. So…do Edgin and his band of misfits have what it takes to complete their quest in the perilous world of Dungeons and Dragons? Well? Are you gonna roll the dice and take a chance on this fresh take of Dungeons & Dragons?

Tuesday, July 04

Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest (12 p.m. / ESPN 2)

The annual tradition continues this Fourth of July, as the 2023 Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog-Eating Contest will air live from the iconic corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues on Coney Island. This marks the 20th consecutive year ESPN has televised the event, and will continue to do so at least through 2029.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: INDEPENDENCE DAY (TODAY! / CRAVE OR CHECK YOUR FAV STREAMER)

The aliens are coming and their goal is to invade and destroy Earth. Fighting superior technology, mankind’s best weapon is the will to survive.
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Happy Independence Day! It was either this or a Purge movie. (By the way for a 96 movie the FX hold up so good.)

Wednesday, July 05

Who You Gonna Call? (Anytime / Crave)

Chances are, even someone who doesn’t immediately recognize the name Ray Parker Jr. will recognize his monster smash hit song Ghostbusters. This is the amazing and fascinating story of Ray Parker Jr. who escaped the violence of the 1967 Detroit riots to become one of the most prolific session guitarists, songwriters and stars of the 70’s and 80’s.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: WHAM! (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)

Through archival interviews and footage, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley relive the arc of their Wham! career, from 70s best buds to 80s pop icons.
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The music docs continue. We’ve just had docs on Ed Sheeran, David Bowie and Duran Duran. And today you can stream one on Wham! Says Andrew Ridgeley: “With the 40th anniversary looming, there was suddenly a focus for it. The fanbase was much bigger than anyone expected.” Wham! released 3 albums from 1983 to 1986. And yet…their impact was massive. There’s something so gloriously 80s decadent about Wham! They somehow accurately reflected the decade much as Nirvana does for the 90s. Sadly George Michael passed away on December 25, 2016. He was 53. It would have been interesting to hear how his Wham! views would have evolved with age. Either way let’s explore this classic 80s Freedom.

Thursday, July 06

The Lincoln Lawyer: Season 2 – Part 1 (Anytime / Netflix)

Based on the series of bestselling novels by renowned author Michael Connelly, the second season is based on the fourth book in The Lincoln Lawyer series, The Fifth Witness. Mickey Haller an iconoclastic idealist, runs his law practice out of the back seat of his Lincoln, as he takes on cases big and small across the expansive city of Los Angeles.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: A KEVIN HART DOUBLE BILL (ANYTIME / PEACOCK)

Happy Birthday Kevin Hart!
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To quote Don Cheadle from his 2021 Hart to Heart episode: “These are two different damns.” First Damn: a new one hour comedy special from Kevin Hart! In Reality Check Kevin self-reflects on his growing family, fame, mentions on Black Twitter and more. All filmed at the Resort World in Las Vegas. Second Damn: Season 3 of Hart to Heart. His wine cellar is again the setting for hour long in-depth interviews with famous folks. This season Kevin talks to Bill Maher, Dr. Dre, Dwayne Johnson, J.Cole, John Cena, Mark Cuban, Sofia Vergara, Will Ferrell and Will Smith. See? “Damn!”

Friday, July 07

Halloween Ends (Anytime / Crave)

The saga of Michael Myers and Laurie Strode comes to a spine-chilling climax in the final installment of this trilogy.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE OUT-LAWS (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)

Owen Browning is a straight-laced bank manager about to marry the love of his life, Parker. When his bank is held up by the Ghost Bandits during his wedding week, he believes his future in-laws who just arrived in town are the infamous outlaws.
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The cast of this goofy Netflix movie aren’t Out-Laws so much as family? You know pretty much the entire cast: Pierce Brosnan and Ellen Barkin, Adam Devine, Nina Dobrev, Michael Rooker, Richard Kind, Lil Rel Howery, Lauren Lapkus and more. I like streaming movies like this. No pressure, it could be fun. It could be terrible. Only way to know for sure is to press play.

Saturday, July 08

Rare Objects (Anytime / AMC+)

Tells the story of a young woman who seeks to rebuild her life when she takes work at an antique store. She regains her confidence from the kind souls who own the shop, until those from her traumatic past begin to resurface.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: GREATEST GEEK YEAR EVER: 1982 (8:00 P.M. / THE CW)

A remarkable new epic documentary spotlighting the pop culture milestones of 1982.
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I’ve seen this docuseries and I cannot fully convey just how fun it is. We’re talking 1982 so…E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Blade Runner, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Poltergeist, Tron, Conan the Barbarian, The Thing, Rocky III…so much more. All blessed the cinemas in 1982. To talk about all that awesome is Cameron Crowe, Keith David, Nolan Bushnell, Bruce Campbell, Roger Corman, Amy Heckerling, Ron Howard, Marc Guggenheim…William Shatner!! They’re smiling and laughing as they talk about these movies. That’s where the fun shines. 1982 was such a rich stew of imagination…look at that list of movies again. Those are iconic characters set in magical moments. This is a cup of tea…you’ll want to savour these 4 parts every Saturday. (Or stream em on The CW app.)

Sunday, July 09

Unknown: The Lost Pyramid (Anytime / Netflix)

In the sands of Saqqara, two of the world’s most famous Egyptologists, Dr. Zahi Hawass and his protégé and rival, Dr. Mostafa Waziri race with their teams against the clock to see who will make the biggest discovery.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: RICEBOY SLEEPS (ANYTIME / CRAVE)

Set in the 90s, a Korean single mother raises her young son in the suburbs of Canada determined to provide a better life for him than the one she left behind.
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Riceboy Sleeps is a poignant and heart-wrenching exploration of the trauma of immigrating to a new country, following the story of So-young and her son Dong-hyun as they navigate the challenges of relocating to Canada in the 1990s. As they fight for acceptance and respect (dignity, yo!), Dong-hyun faces brutal bullying at school despite adopting a white name (David), while So-young endures a difficult lonely job rife with the racist and sexist comments of her colleagues…all for a better life here. All of this and more is happening in Riceboy Sleeps, a tender reflection on the struggles and stress of immigration. This time it’s Korean though it could be any culture. Don’t Sleeps…on this movie.

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Sammy Younan is the affable host of My Summer Lair: think NPR’s Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.