A slew of new Netflix originals arrives with the start of a new year. These January 2022 releases, which include both returning and new series, are not to be missed.
The coming of January heralds the start of a new year, as well as a slew of new Netflix originals. The streaming site has been gradually increasing its scope to include Japanese, Korean, and Danish productions, resulting in even more original content than before.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW4LajakPHk
There are more reasons than ever to make a New Year’s resolve of viewing more Netflix, from horror anthologies with stop-motion animation to Kristen Bell’s satires of suspense thrillers.
Whether viewers want a series with international intrigue about former KGB operatives, something sci-fi to consume while waiting for the next season of Stranger Things, or a solid standby like Ozark returning for its last season, Netflix offers enough entertainment to brighten January 2022.
The Journalist (January 13th)
Fujii Michihito, the director of the hit Japanese drama The Journalist (2019), returns with a gripping series of the same name, following an indefatigable journalist in her pursuit of exposing corruption in her government. As political scandals and crimes rock Japanese society, she must find a way to expose the truth.
This harrowing drama pits one brave young woman against an authoritative body determined to neutralize her at any cost, putting her family and coworkers in jeopardy.
It also features slick visuals and an enigmatic synth-wave soundtrack, as well as some of Japan’s top talent, such as Ryoko Yonekura, Ryusei Yokohama, and Go Ayano.
Brazen (January 13th)
There’s a lot to take in with Brazen, a film about a mystery writer turned crime expert who returns home to Washington, D.C. to find her sister dead, as well as several troubling threads that all point to a double life. She works with an austere detective to solve her sibling’s murder, unknowingly putting her on the trail of a serial killer.
The cast of this thriller based on the bestselling Nora Roberts novel Brazen Virtue is led by Alyssa Milano, with Sam Page (of Mad Men) providing support. According to the trailer, this isn’t your typical Lifetime mystery, with Milano looking tough as nails as she hunts down an elusive murderer.
After Life: Season 3 (January 14th)
Netflix will release the third (and final) season of the bleakly comedic UK series After Life in the middle of the month. Ricky Gervais, the director, producer, writer, and star, returns for the final time as grouchy newspaperman Tony Johnson, He is still trying to cope with the death of his wife and father by being cynical shell of his former self.
Along with his best friend Brandy, Tony seems determined to find a way to be happy again, following his father’s wishes to scatter his ashes in his favorite places.
Grief has never been as amusing as it is in the popular British series, and with Tony on the verge of understanding his purpose, the series finale may end on a brighter note than it began. He might eventually figure out what the words mean “Be content. Be considerate. Don’t be Tony”.
Archive 81 (January 14th)
Based on the same-named podcast, Archive 81 follows an archivist whose job entails restoring old videotapes from the mid-1990s, with each tape drawing him into the work of a documentary filmmaker who investigated a cult 25 years before. The more he looks into it, the closer he gets to discovering what happened to her.
This found-footage series, which promises a lot of atmospheric chills, should pique the interest of fans of horror auteur James Wan. It appears to be an enthralling story with compelling characters, starring Ariana Neal, Dina Shihabi, and Mamoudou Athie.
The House (January 14th)
The House, an anthology horror series featuring the appropriately unsettling medium of stop-motion animation, bills itself as an “eccentric dark comedy,” and based on the creepy trailer (which includes dancing cockroaches), there appears to be enough oddity to warrant the label.
Fans of David Lynch, Tim Burton, and Wes Anderson will enjoy this surreal series full of whimsical dread as a poor family, a disgruntled landlady, and a nervous developer are destined to live in the same strange house across multiple eras.
It also features the vocal talents of Mia Goth, Miranda Richardson, Matthew Goode, and Helena Bonham Carter, as well as a cast that is as diverse as it promises to be.
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