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Rom-com or spy thriller? Streaming offerings get creative
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Listen to me: Yi-Zhi (Chris Wang, right) and his girlfriend Lisa (Allison Lin) appear in a scene from 'Adventure of the Ring'.
(Courtesy of HBO Asia/-)
F
or those stuck at home during the pandemic, the growing list of streaming services is good news, giving them plenty of options to while away the long hours.
The latest film offerings at HBO Asia and HBO GO include a romantic comedy, a supernatural spy thriller and a documentary on golf legend Tiger Woods.
ADVENTURE OF THE RING
To propose or not to propose – that is the question for those looking forward to the final episode of HBO Asia rom-com Adventure of the Ring.
After traveling through the hands of several strangers as they learn to love in their own ways, the titular ring will culminate its journey in the eighth and final episode, which premieres on Jan. 24 on HBO GO.
Based on the romance novel Ring of the Day, the series, directed by Nelson Yeh, tells the stories of different couples who come in contact with an engagement ring.
Starring Chris Wang as Yi-Zhi – a baseball-loving actuary – and Allison Lin as Lisa – his free-spirited flight attendant girlfriend, the adventure begins the morning Yi-Zhi’s meticulously planned proposal gone wrong after he misplaces the ring on the train.
The last episode follows the ring as it ends up back in the hands of its original owner, Yi-Zhi, who now finally understands the essence of love after hearing about the adventures of the ring from Rossy’s radio show. As he and Lisa prepare to go abroad separately, Yi-Zhi wonders what to do.
THE ROOK
This eight-episode STARZ Original series The Rook lands in Asia for the first time in January, telling the story of Myfanwy Thomas (played by Emma Greenwell), a woman who wakes up in the rain beside London’s Millennium Bridge with no memory of who she is and no explanation for the circle of dead bodies splayed out around her.
The only clue to her past is a letter in her pocket, the first of several she planted for herself knowing her memory would be wiped.
When Myfanwy discovers she’s a high-ranking official in the Checquy, Britain’s last truly secret service, for people with paranormal abilities, she’ll have to navigate the dangerous and complex world of the agency to uncover who wiped her memory – and why.
The supernatural spy thriller also stars Golden Globe nominee Joely Richardson who plays Linda Farrier – Myfanwy’s mentor and ally who must defend her tenuous hold on the agency’s secrecy – and Olivia Munn as Monica, who arrives in London after the mysterious incident at Millennium Bridge to investigate the death of her former lover.
A new episode premieres on the streaming platform every Monday from Jan. 25 to Feb. 22.
EUPHORIA
The second special episode of the Emmy-winning HBO drama series Euphoria premieres at the same time as in the US, on Jan. 23.
The second special episode, directed by Euphoria creator Sam Levinson and titled "F*ck Anyone Who's Not A Sea Blob”, follows Jules (played by Hunter Schafer) over the Christmas holiday as she reflects on the year.
Schafer serves as an executive producer on the second special episode, which she cowrote with Levinson. Both special episodes were produced under COVID-19 guidelines.
Euphoria received three Primetime Emmy awards last year, including for the best lead actress in a drama for Zendaya.
C.B. STRIKE: LETHAL WHITE
Tom Burke and Holliday Grainger return in the brand-new second season of C.B. Strike, based on the best-selling crime novels written by Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith.
The miniseries, which premieres on HBO GO on Jan. 21 and has new episodes premiering every Thursday, follows a war veteran turned private detective, who operates out of a tiny office in London’s Denmark Street.
Although wounded both physically and psychologically, his unique insight and background as a military police investigator prove crucial in solving complex crimes that have baffled the police.
AN AMERICAN PICKLE
Seth Rogen stars in dual leading roles in the film An American Pickle.
Rogen stars as Herschel Greenbaum, a struggling laborer who immigrates to America in 1920 with dreams of building a better life for his beloved family. One day, while working at his factory job, he falls into a vat of pickles and is brined for 100 years.
The brine preserves him perfectly and when he emerges in present day Brooklyn, he finds that he hasn’t aged a day. But when he seeks out his family, he is troubled to learn that his only surviving relative is his great grandson – Ben Greenbaum (also played by Rogen), a mild-mannered computer coder whom Herschel can’t even begin to understand.
Directed by Brandon Trost and adapted by Simon Rich, the film, which has been released under HBO Max’s Warner Max label, is an adaptation of the 2013 New Yorker series Sell Out by Simon Rich.
TIGER
Tiger, a two-part HBO documentary, illuminates in sweeping scope and vast detail the rise, fall and epic comeback of global icon Tiger Woods.
The series paints an intimate picture of the prodigy whose dedication to and obsession with the game of golf not only took his fame and success to new heights, but also down a dark, spiraling road that eventually led to a legendary sports comeback, culminating with his victory at the 2019 Masters.
Tiger is driven by never-before-seen footage and revealing interviews with those who know the golfer best, including his former caddy and close friend, Steve Williams; golf legend and six-time major champion Sir Nick Faldo; and Earl Woods’ friend and biographer, Pete McDaniel.
It also sheds light on Tiger’s first true love, Dina Parr, as well as Rachel Uchitel, the woman at the center of the sex scandal that forever altered Tiger’s world. She breaks her silence with her first sit-down interview about their relationship.
