media
These are the streaming tips for the week
Scene from the children’s series Iwaju, an animated series set in a futuristic Lagos, Nigeria. photo
© Disney/dpa
What’s worth streaming now, including a documentary about the new science fiction spectacle “Planet of the Apes”, a special children’s series and a midsummer festival that goes differently than planned.
A film about a cult film, visions of the future in Lagos and a midsummer festival with surprises – that’s what will be available to stream in the coming days.
“”Planet of the Apes – a milestone in science fiction
Arte offers an introduction to the long-awaited film spectacle “Planet of the Apes: New Kingdom”, which will be released in cinemas on May 8th. The documentary “Planet of the Apes”, a milestone in science fiction, is available in the media library and on arte.tv until June 8th. Starting with the first film from 1968, which became a cult classic, the French production traces how it developed into a real franchise. Four sequels followed in the early 1970s, and in 2011 the film series was completely restarted with “Planet of the Apes: Prevolution”. The current film is part four of this new edition. The almost hour-long documentary promises a lot of archive material and a classification: The franchise comes across as harmless Hollywood entertainment, but in reality includes a series of highly political works with a subliminal anti-racist message, writes Arte in the program preview.
Media library
“Iwaju”
The animated series “Iwájú” from the media company Kugali has been running on Disney+ since the beginning of April. The company is dedicated to telling stories about African culture. The series is therefore an exciting and long overdue break from what is otherwise offered in Germany. Because white people play no role at all in the six episodes. Instead, “Iwájú” immerses itself completely in the culture and life in the Nigerian capital Lagos, in a futuristic, high-tech future in which the people are naturally black. The focus is on two children: Tola’s father is very rich, while Kole has to work hard to earn money for himself and his sick mother. The two curiously explore their different worlds. But Kole becomes the target of gangsters: They take advantage of his difficult economic situation and put him under pressure in order to get to Tola.
In six episodes, an adventurous story unfolds that is as entertaining as it is exciting, and on top of that with all sorts of technical gadgets and sophistications of artificial intelligence, which in “Iwájú” has already arrived in the middle of everyday life.
“Midsummer Night”
The longest day of the year is approaching and with it happy, exuberant celebrations around the summer solstice, especially in Scandinavian countries. The entertaining miniseries “Midsummer Night” on Netflix takes place against this background. Carina would like to celebrate with her family, in the traditional way, as always, with her husband Johannes, the adult daughters, new and old relatives and friends. But even before it gets started, the first problems arise. It’s about old and new injuries, repressed feelings, worries and secrets that come to light over the course of the festival. Carina also has a secret that she would like to reveal. The Norwegian series tells of small and large dramas that unfold over the course of the day, sometimes dramatic, sometimes humorous or wistful. The five episodes are embedded in a Scandinavian idyll with a yellow wooden house on the water, flowers and a bright blue summer sky. Incidentally, Carina is played by Pernilla August, known from the tragicomedy “Britt-Marie Was Here” or from “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace”, where she appears as Anakin Skywalker’s mother.
Trailer
“Our living world”
Plants, animals, people – everything in the world is somehow intertwined. And this despite the fact that people are spreading further and further. “In our crazy world, nature continues to make its way,” says the series “Our Living World” on Netflix. The four episodes explore different habitats, show the rhythm of the sun, the seasons and phases of the moon and point out threats such as climate change or fires. In the English original you can listen to Oscar winner Cate Blanchett (“Blue Jasmine”), who recorded the lyrics to fantastic nature recordings.
Trailer
Iwaju