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We've seen Ben Affleck on screen a lot in movies. It's where he's behind the scenes that's really interesting.
From winning an Oscar for writing "Good Will Hunting" with his buddy Matt Damon to noteworthy directorial efforts like "Gone Baby Gone" and best picture winner "Argo," Affleck is very specific about what he tackles as a filmmaker. His latest finds him on and off camera, playing a politician whose son is kidnapped in the Netflix thriller "Animals." That's out now as well as the new Facebook movie "The Social Reckoning," a kinda sorta, not really sequel to "The Social Network"
with Jeremy Strong taking over as Mark Zuckerberg from Jesse Eisenberg. And because it's spooky season, there's a fresh and modern take on Stephen King's classic "Carrie" on Prime Video.
Now on to the good stuff:
See Ben Affleck, Kerry Washington put through an emotional wringer in Netflix's 'Animals'
Ben Affleck directs and stars in the kidnapping drama "Animals" (streaming now on Netflix) as a LA mayoral candidate whose son is held for ransom, which exacerbates an already-tense relationship with his wife (Kerry Washington). I talked with Affleck about politics and his own aspirations for public office ("It would be an awful job," he admits), as well as him tackling a movie dealing with marital issues after living his romantic life in the public eye. When “a relationship that's really important to you is ending, if you've been through it, you sort of know how it feels, and you understand the gravity of what it is,” Affleck says.
"Animals" is one of several new movies hitting streaming services this week. I rounded up a lot for y'all to watch including the Steven Spielberg sci-fi thriller "Disclosure Day" and the John Cena action vehicle "Matchbox: The Movie."
Click on Aaron Sorkin's latest Facebook movie 'The Social Reckoning'
"The Social Network" writer Aaron Sorkin revisits the social media revolution directing "The Social Reckoning," a true-life thriller that follows a Wall Street Journal reporter (Jeremy Allen White) and a whistleblower (Mikey Madison) investigating radicalizing efforts happening at Facebook on the watch of tech billionaire Mark Zuckerberg (Jeremy Strong). My pal Brendan Morrow talked with Oscar winner Madison about being "surprised" by her casting, and Sorkin explains why "things will stay this bad" until there's Facebook reform.
As for the movie itself, don't expect something as good as "The Social Network." Instead of an essential movie about the high-tech world, "Reckoning" is a dull, half-baked journalism flick – albeit with a talented cast – that can't get its themes together enough to make a point. (Peep my ★★ review.)
Stream Mike Flanagan's modern take on Stephen King's 'Carrie'
I was one of many who shrugged mightily when I first heard Stephen King's classic novel "Carrie" was being remade as a Prime Video series (streaming now). But in Mike Flanagan I always trust, and he doesn't disappoint. His modern take on the telekinetic title youngster (played by Summer H. Howell) really works for me – and the bullying scenes especially are quite unnerving if you've got a teen daughter at home. But TV critic Kelly Lawler wasn't as keen, writing in her review that it's a "desperately extraneous" adaptation.
Brendan, who like me is all about the horror, talked with Howell about getting such a "life-changing" role as a 22-year-old and why, like Carrie, she felt like an outsider among her teenage peers. "I was the only actor I knew in my school growing up," she says. "That's what people knew me as. So maybe they just assumed things about me, and it made it a little difficult to connect with people truly."
Even more goodness to check out!
- "NCIS" nerds! We've got all the scoop on main man Mark Harmon's return in "NCIS: Origins" and LL Cool J back in the Big Apple for "NCIS: New York."
- "Law & Order: SVU" star Kelli Giddish talks about her friendship with Mariska Hargitay and how her longtime costar initiates rookies.
- Now that the "Ted Lasso" Season 4 finale is out, let's dig into those coaching shake-ups and big revelations.
- Dig touching true stories? Based on a real Marine's search for forgiveness, the drama "Atonement" explores grief, PTSD and the human cost of war.
- And Warner Bros. and Paramount are now together. Here's what the merger means for you as a watcher of stuff.
Got thoughts, questions, ideas, concerns, compliments or maybe even some recs for me? Email btruitt@usatoday.com and follow me on the socials: I'm @briantruitt on Bluesky, Instagram and Threads.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ben Affleck is a political 'Animal' in new Netflix thriller
