Wondering what to watch this weekend? This week we have several picks for the spooky season, plus a game show to take your mind off of Halloween.
The Mill - Hulu
Picked by Lawrence Banton
It's the thick of the spooky season and I've watched a pretty good amount of horror and thriller flicks over the last several days. Hulu's The Mill was my latest watch and it really messes with you. Imagine you're going about your day like normal and then you suddenly wake up in an open-air prison. That's the predicament Joe, played by comedian Lil Rel Howery, found himself in. He has to figure out a way to escape this prison and make it home to his very pregnant wife. With Lil Rel as the star of the film, know that you will laugh – often – while your palms sweat in anticipation of his next move.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxu1zTco8-I[youtube]
Totally Killer - Amazon Prime
Picked by Keara O’Driscoll
As of late, and especially during this time of the year, I've learned that my favorite style of movies is campy, fun and mildly frightening Halloween movies. I watched Totally Killer after seeing all over my “FYP” on TikTok. I didnt think the film started out well as it gave the low-budget energy of a Disney Channel movie with insanely bad CGI that I was shocked to see in the year 2023. But…that is half of the charm. Starring Julie Bowen, Kiernan Shipka and Olivia Holt, the film follows the classic "angsty teen who hates her mom until something so outlandish happens that she is forced to realize that she is just a person" trope. But as the film progresses, it really sucks you in, and I found myself glued to the screen until the end.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNm3VPPKEQI[youtube]
Taskmaster - YouTube and Taskmaster Supermax+
Picked by Newsletter Writer Graison Dangor
This offbeat British game show is the perfect supply of clips when you just want to laugh and take your mind off things. Episodes, which you don't have to watch in any order, has comedians compete to solve odd tasks — examples include "Knock Over the Fewest Skittles," "Hide 3 Eggplants In This Room" and "Make the Plastic Bag as Heavy as Possible" — which they often fulfill in even odder ways. If you become a big fan, you can watch full seasons of the show and its international offshoots with a paid subscription to Taskmaster Supermax+, their delightfully named streaming platform.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5D4cph_KwI[youtube]
Throwback Pick
The Witches - Amazon Prime
Picked by Senior Editor Dina Ross
Based on the Roald Dahl novel, this spooky family-friendly film tells the tale of a boy who is on a trip with his grandmother when he happens upon a convention of witches. He finds out the hard way that the witches want to turn all children into mice. Now it's his job to stop them. I'll point you to the 1990 adaptation, starring Anjelica Hudson, but the 2020 remake, starring Anne Hathaway, is also worth a watch if you're into a more modern aesthetic.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_ZyqaN_XNM[youtube]
WW, the company formerly known as Weight Watchers, is looking to expand past its mostly-female base by partnering up with celebrities like DJ Khaled and brands like Blue Apron to inspire a new demographic of members. WW Chief Brand Officer Gail Tifford said Blue Apron was a "very natural fit" for WW members, despite struggles that have driven the meal kit company's stock down sharply since its 2017 IPO. WW is also partnering with Headspace's mindfulness app, Aaptiv for audio fitness content, and the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. "I think you will start to see the makeup of our community really start to change in an exciting way," Tifford said.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, Jan. 4, 2019.
Fitness and beauty booking tool Mindbody is planning to make a play for the next big thing in wellness ー on-demand video, CEO Rick Stollmeyer told Cheddar on Thursday. "You can expect us to be playing in that space because we think that the on-demand and streaming video revolution hitting the fitness space is a big breakthrough," Stollmeyer said.
Roku's new content partnership with Showtime, Starz, and other premium channels is "just the beginning" of a greater expansion into paid content, the company's VP of programming and engagement told Cheddar Thursday.
For a country that spends $72 billion a year on its pets, it would follow that some of the biggest trends in health and wellness eventually make their way to the domain of our furry friends. Vanity Fair reporter Joanna Brenner says CBD, the non-psychoactive compound in marijuana, is the next frontier in pet wellness.
PepsiCo is spearheading an autonomous food delivery service on the campus of the University of the Pacific in Stockton, Calif., where students can now order snacks via an app that are then delivered to them via a small robotic vehicle. The "snackbot" is a "first-of-its-kind" experiment in self-driving and robotics technology, Scott Finlow, vice president of innovation and insights at PepsiCo, told Cheddar.
Chipotle may be best known for stuffed burritos and chips and guac, but the fast-casual chain is kicking off 2019 as an unlikely source of health food ーlaunching a new collection of diet-friendly "Lifestyle Bowls" just in time for New Year's resolutions. The new bowls are branded around four of the trendiest diets, but the company's VP of marketing said the new venture is "a lifestyle approach, it's not a fad."
Stress and the pressure of perfection all too often get in the way of achieving goals ー or at this time of year, resolutions. But rethinking stress, "trusting the process," and practicing gratitude are some simple ways to make serious strides, according to Monica Berg, author of "Fear is Not an Option" and chief communications officer for the Kabbalah Centre.
In a new era of transportation, safety testing is critical for cars that are now more dependent on tech than on steel and rubber. The American Center for Mobility is a 500-acre testing facility located in Ypsilanti, Mich., just over 30 miles from Detroit. On the center's highway speed loop, vehicles are tested for safety on a range of roadway and weather conditions. "It's gotta work all the time, every time," the center's interim CEO, Kirk Steudle, told Cheddar's J.D. Durkin.
Tesla's latest production miss proves it is no longer a "hyper-growth story," Tesla short Mark Spiegel told Cheddar. Tesla shares tumbled close to 7 percent on Wednesday after the company missed expectations on car deliveries and broadly discounted its vehicles to offset subsidy cuts.
