Like pretty much everyone else right now I have been watching more TV and movies than usual. With both myself and my husband at home 24/7 we have definitely been spending time exploring both Netflix and Disney+ and watching things both new and nostalgic, educational and well, not (Tiger King anyone?)

Throughout the almost four years of our marriage we haven’t had cable at all and have only had Netflix. We added on Disney+ the day that it came out last year and between those two platforms we haven’t run out of things to watch yet, and I can’t imagine doing so ever.

Here are some of my favourite things that I have watched in this time of physical distancing to maybe inspire you to watch something new.

Netflix

Unorthodox

This four part mini series was a fascinating look into the lives of Hasidic Jews in New York and a young woman who runs away from her family, her husband, and everything that she has ever known to head to Berlin to find her mother.

This series was absolutely amazing and heartbreaking. You can see in flashbacks how Esty grew up, got married, and started her married life and the current section shows her starting to learn more about the modern world and discover herself for the first time.

I also really enjoyed the Making Of documentary after the series which talks about the costumes, the connections the actors have with the Hasidic culture, and more.

Never Have I Ever

This is such a fun series created by Mindy Kaling (The Office, The Mindy Project) that focuses on an Indian-American family, friendships, culture, love, and growing up.

I binged this all in one afternoon/evening and found myself laughing throughout the entire thing. There were lots of cringe-worthy moments that so many people can relate to and I loved the representation that this show brought to the screen.

A Secret Love

This documentary is a look into the lives of two women that have been a couple for over 60 years, but have just recently begun to make this public. The story takes you through their past, their relationships with their families, and the hard decisions that they have to make as they are getting older and can’t live alone anymore.

This was a fascinating look into a hidden history and I definitely shed a few tears by the end as they shared joys and sorrows.

Self Made

This is another series based on a true story that is just a few episodes long. Octavia Spencer (who I love) plays Madam C.J. Walker the possible first self-made female millionaire in the United States.

While everything in this series may not be entirely accurate, it was a fascinating look into black culture, women’s empowerment in the 20’s, and the history of a woman that I didn’t know a lot about.

100 Humans

This series is completely different from all shown above. This series, hosted in part by one of my favourite podcast hosts Alie Ward takes 100 humans through a variety of trials to prove predictions based on age, sex, and other characteristics.

It is completely scientifically baked as the experiments are more fun and meant to show some stereotypes and make you think about what we do and why we do it. My favourite episode is definitely the “Are You Biased” episode.

Disney+

Prop Culture

This series takes you through the Props from some of your favourite Disney movies old and new. You get to meet many of the people who works on some of the most iconic films of the past 100 years and see how these artifacts have weathered the time.

I love the look into the Disney Archives as I have such an interest in archival work and there are some very interesting stories of props that were lost and found decades later. My personal favourite episodes have been Mary Poppins and The Chronicles of Narnia (which has led me to watch the movies and start re-reading the books again).

National Treasure (1 and 2)

These movies are definitely ones that are a bit absurd and crazy, but they are a crazy that I really love and really needed during this time. It was fun to revisit both these movies on the same evening with some wine and popcorn and then imagine searching and finding my own cities of gold.

Onward

Due to the movie theatre shut-downs Disney decided to release this movie early onto Disney+ which I was really happy about. While this wasn’t my favourite Pixar movie I though that it was a fun adventure with a bit of heart thrown in.

I loved the relationship shown between brothers in this movie and the adventures were fun, magical, and gave me an entertaining evening.

Hannah Montana

This one is my real throwback show. I was in middle school when Hannah Montana first came out so I was a big fan through the early seasons. By the time the final few seasons happened however I had grown out of the show I had never actually seen every episode.

I was able to introduce Nigel to the show and loved singing the theme song with him every episode (Woah-oh-oh) and getting back to some of my childhood. We worked our way through all four seasons and the movie and I really loved every second of it.

What have you been watching throughout this time? Any shows or movies that I have to check out?