The SheerLuxe Culture List

WHAT TO WATCH

Leave The World Behind

In this apocalyptic thriller from award-winning writer and director Sam Esmail (Mr Robot), Amanda (Julia Roberts) and her husband Clay (Ethan Hawke) rent a luxurious home for the weekend with their kids, Archie and Rose. But their trip is soon upended when two strangers – G.H. (Mahershala Ali) and his daughter Ruth (Myha’la) – arrive in the night, bearing news of a mysterious cyberattack and seeking refuge in the house they claim is theirs. The two families reckon with a looming disaster that grows more terrifying by the minute, forcing everyone to come to terms with their places in a collapsing world.

Visit Netflix.com

Ferrari

From Michael Mann, this Christmas Day release is the story of motor mogul Enzo Ferrari as he enters the 1,000-mile Mille Miglia race in the summer of 1957. With a star-studded cast including Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari, the blockbuster stars Penelope Cruz as Laura Ferrari, Shailene Woodley as Lina Lardi, Patrick Dempsey as Piero Taruffi, and Jack O’Connell as Peter Collins.

Visit Picturehouses.com

Maestro

Directed by and starring Bradley Cooper, Maestro is a towering love story chronicling the lifelong relationship between composer Leonard Bernstein and Costa Rican actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (played by Carey Mulligan). A love letter to life and art, shot in black and white, Maestro at its core is an emotionally epic portrayal of family and love – and is surely a shoo-in for awards season.

Visit Netflix.com

The Boys In The Boat

The Boys in the Boat is a sports drama based on the number-one New York Times bestselling non-fiction novel written by Daniel James Brown. The film, directed by George Clooney, is about the 1936 University of Washington rowing team that competed for gold at the Summer Olympics in Berlin. This inspirational true story follows a group of underdogs at the height of the Great Depression as they are thrust into the spotlight and take on elite rivals from around the world. Stars Callum Turner and Joel Edgerton.

Visit Picturehouses.com

Under Pressure: The U.S. Women's World Cup Team

This all-access sports series will allow audiences to follow the US Women’s National Team’s players and coaches and reveal an inside look at the most decorated team in soccer history. Viewers will get a first-hand look at the pressure, euphoria, joy and the hardships these world-class athletes experience as they strive to capture their third World Cup title in a row. Issues ranging from injury, criticism and doubt, equal pay and upholding legacies are all brought to light as the narrative unfolds. The series will capture all the personal and team preparation on the road to the 2023 FIFA World Cup. Throughout their tournament run, audiences will learn how this team stands on the shoulders of those who played before them, and how they continue to break the glass ceiling for equality in sports for women of the future.

Visit Netflix.com

Genie

From Richard Curtis, (Love Actually), comes a magical Christmas comedy with infinite wishes. Bernard (Paapa Essiedu) is a workaholic whose life choices have left him alone this Christmas. When chance should bring a magic lamp with magical genie (Melissa McCarthy) and infinite wishes included, he sets out trying to set things right and win his family back before Christmas.

Visit NowTV.com

Smothered

Co-created by Monica Heisey (a writer on Schitt’s Creek and a recent SheerLuxe Book Club guest author), Smothered is a not so typical rom-com. Starring Danielle Vitalis and Jon Pointing in a tale of two worlds colliding, where romance blossoms but the pressures of modern dating linger, it focuses on Sammy, a fiercely independent young woman who is done with dating apps, sick of immature men, and here for a good time. Tom has never been inclined to swipe left or right; he’s a settled man with a warm heart but carries his fair share of baggage. On a night out, the two strangers meet, and end up singing out their drunken souls in a karaoke booth. Then the inevitable happens. The strangers agree to have a no-strings attached affair for three weeks – but on the condition that they never speak again. What was supposed to be a few weeks of great sex, pasta in bed and first names only, the sparks flying around them cannot be ignored… The show also stars Aisling Bea, Rebecca Lucy Taylor, Jordan Stephens and Harry Trevaldwyn.

Visit NowTV.com

Eileen

Set during a bitter 1964 Massachusetts winter, young secretary Eileen becomes enchanted by the glamorous new counsellor at the prison where she works. Their budding friendship takes a twisted turn when Rebecca reveals a dark secret – throwing Eileen onto a sinister path. Directed by William Oldroyd, it stars Thomasin McKenzie, Anne Hathaway, Shea Whigham, Siobhan Fallon Hogan and Owen Teague.

Visit Picturehouses.com

Wonka

Directed by Paul King (Paddington 1 & 2) and based on Roald Dahl’s much-loved children’s story Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Wonka is the origin story of Willy Wonka – and tells the tale of how the world’s eccentric inventor became the beloved chocolate-maker we know today. Starring Timothée Chalamet as Wonka and with Sally Hawkins, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant and newcomer Calah Lane in its ensemble cast, this family friendly film is just right for the festive season.

Visit Picturehouses.com

Anyone But You

Despite an amazing first date, Bea (Sydney Sweeney) and Ben’s (Glen Powell) initial attraction quickly turns sour. However, when they unexpectedly find themselves at a destination wedding in Australia, they pretend to be the perfect couple to keep up appearances. With rumours of a real-life romance between the two leads and a couple of viral trailers, we’re looking forward to seeing this edgy comedy over the Christmas break.

Visit Picturehouses.com

WHAT TO READ

Archive By Sofia Coppola

Archive is the first book by director Sofia Coppola, covering the entirety of her career in film. Constructed from Coppola's personal collection of photographs and ephemera, including early development work, reference collages, influences, annotated scripts, and unseen behind-the-scenes documentation, it offers a detailed account of all eight of her films to date, including Priscilla, released in the UK in early January.

Visit Amazon.co.uk

Welcome to the O.C. by Alan Sepinwall

This is the definitive oral history of beloved TV show The O.C., from the show’s creators, featuring interviews with the cast and crew. Just in time for the show’s 20th anniversary, the show’s creator Josh Schwartz and executive producer Stephanie Savage are ready to dive into how the show was made, the ups and downs over its four seasons, and its legacy today. With Rolling Stone’s chief TV critic and bestselling author Alan Sepinwall conducting interviews with the key cast members, writers and producers who were there when it all happened, Welcome to the O.C. offers fans the definitive inside look at the beloved show – a nostalgic delight for audiences who watched when it aired, and a rich companion to viewers currently discovering the show on HBO Max and Hulu.

Visit Amazon.co.uk

WHAT TO SEE & DO

Accidentally Wes Anderson: The Experience

Accidentally Wes Anderson: The Exhibition launches in Kensington on 8th December. The gallery-style experience will take guests on a journey through seven themed rooms that transport visitors to the whimsical world of Wes Anderson’s distinctive aesthetics. Through amazing photography from around the globe and opportunities to capture personal themed moments throughout, guests will be able to immerse themselves in pastel-hued grandeur and idyllic landscapes that seem plucked from the world of the iconic director.

Visit AWAExhibition.com

The Moonwalkers: A Journey With Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks writes and narrates this new experience at King’s Cross’s Lightroom, offering a unique perspective on humankind’s past and future voyages to the moon. Hanks and co-writer Christopher Riley tell the stories of the Apollo missions, reflecting their gripping journeys at spectacular scale. Original NASA footage and breath-taking images from Andy Saunders’ Apollo Remastered will transform Lightroom’s vast space into an immersive journey to the lunar surface. Through newly filmed interviews between Hanks and astronauts of the current Artemis programme, the show provides an insight into the return of crewed surface missions to the moon.

Visit Lightroom.UK