Three very different worlds await you on Netflix this weekend. A 19th-century murder mystery that questions everything you think you know about the case, a Danish Nordic noir serial killer you can’t stop watching, and a Japanese drama that’s just as compelling as it is.
The first is based on a novel by Margaret Atwood, the second has a 100% perfect rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and the third will make you seriously care about a game you’ve never thought about in your life. All three are criminally underrated and worth a weekend treat.
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Alias Grace (2017)
Based on Margaret Atwood’s novel of the same name, the six-part miniseries follows Grace Marks, a young Irish immigrant in 19th century Canada, who is convicted of murdering her employer and housekeeper. Ten years of his sentence, psychiatrist Dr. Simon Jordan begins interviewing her to determine if she should be pardoned on the grounds of insanity. The whole game hinges on one important question: is Grace telling the truth?
Sarah Gadon plays Grace with a calmness, with such limited control that you never quite know where you stand with her. She is fragile yet magnetic and potentially dangerous at the same time. The exhibition is also a sharp study of how women were viewed, judged and silenced at the time. It holds a 99% on Rotten Tomatoes and deserves it all.
You can watch Alias Grace on Netflix.
The Chestnut Man (2021)
This is your perfect weekend watch because season 2 of The Chestnut Man: Hide and Seek will drop on Netflix on May 7. So you have plenty of time to binge on the first season before it arrives. This Danish crime thriller follows detectives Naia Thulin and Mark Hess as they hunt down a killer in Copenhagen who leaves little chestnuts at each crime scene.
What makes the series so engaging is how the mystery keeps expanding in directions you don’t see coming. The movement doesn’t move, the atmosphere doesn’t really move, and the ending stays heavy. With six episodes, 100% perfect on Rotten Tomatoes, it is one of the best Nordic noir series Netflix has ever released.
You can watch The Chestnut Man on Netflix.
Sanctuary (2023)
It’s confusing how little people are talking about this hidden gem on Netflix. This Japanese drama follows Kiyoshi, a broken and careless young man who stumbles into the world of sumo wrestling, chasing money, only to find himself swallowed up by its culture, politics, and brutal bosses. Think Rocky, but based in one of Japan’s most hallowed sports centers, with a dark comedy running through it.
Real sumo matches are equal parts brutal and exciting. But what keeps you engaged in this underrated show is the way it captures the culture of sports, the rivalries between the stables, the iron grip of culture, and the political games played in the background. It holds 86% on Rotten Tomatoes and 8/10 on IMDB. I recommend you give it two episodes before you judge the show.
You can view the Sanctuary on Netflix.
