What are you watching? Readers recommend 'Mozart in the Jungle,' 'Hunt for the Wilderpeople,' 'Frasier'
I’ve enjoyed both seasons of “Travelers” on Netflix. It’s a science fiction thriller that explores issues of individuality and morality. The premise is that travelers from the future take over bodies of individuals who are on the cusp of dying in the present. In trying to “correct” the past, they inevitably affect the present and the lives of the loved ones (spouses, children) of the nearly deceased “host.” Ethical conflicts arise, especially in Season 2, when discussions of which side of the future is “right” arise. This show is the very best of what sci-fi does as a genre: It sparks the imagination and asks us to consider difficult questions.
– Stacy Murison, Flagstaff, Ariz.
I am hooked on Amazon’s TV series “Mozart in the Jungle.” It is so well done! I also loved watching the Netflix series “Godless” and “The Crown” before that. – Koa Duncan, Long Beach, Calif.
The hubby and I are both enjoying Netflix’s TV show “The Crown,” as Queen Elizabeth is a fascinating historical figure and one heck of a strong woman. The acting has been outstanding. I’m an ’80s kid, and the FX TV show “The Americans” takes us back to that time period with its great cold-war drama. I’ve got to have my sci-fi, and the Netflix movie “Bright” provided fun dialogue and an interesting story line, though I think it’s pretty similar to the movie “Alien Nation.”
– Cris Gain Weisbecker, Weisbaden, Germany
In the 2016 movie “Hunt for the Wilderpeople,” the bonds of genuine affection are woven hilariously in a delightful, well-acted movie with characters who are slightly (and wonderfully) oddball. In the film, an intelligent but misfit and delinquent 13-year-old boy, Ricky, is brought to a remote home in the mountains of New Zealand by a kooky social worker, Paula. The couple who takes him in is childless. The foster father, Hec, shuns him at first, but traumatic events throw them together when they are hunted down with trucks and helicopters after the authorities come to the conclusion that Hec has kidnapped Ricky. The few words spoken by Hec in the film are augmented by actor Sam Neill’s exquisitely etched facial expressions. It’s heartwarming when Ricky finds acceptance at last. – Jeanne Marie Peters, Grants Pass, Ore.
I’ve been bingeing the NBC show “Frasier.” I never saw it when it was on television. It holds up surprisingly well and is laugh-out-loud funny.
– Linda Phillips Newman, East Providence, R.I.
