What to watch this weekend (September 28 – October 4)

Close after Adolescence’s Emmy sweep and Wayward’s release comes another drama about a beleaguered teacher at a reform school filled with boys who have behavioural issues. Cillian Murphy steps into the chaos of a crumbling school in 1990s England, where the only thing running on schedule is disorder. The film unfolds over one frazzled day, with Murphy’s Steve trying to hold together a “last-chance” boys’ institution where the kids are violent, unruly and casually misogynistic. The education system has clearly clocked out, and what’s left is Murphy sweating through existential dread while boys hurl chairs and worse. It is gritty, it is bleak, and it makes you wonder if the adults need reforming more than the children.

Based on the real-life 2018 Camp Fire in California, The Lost Bus turns survival into high drama. Bus driver Kevin McKay (Matthew McConaughey) and teacher Mary Ludwig (America Ferrera) shepherd 22 children through smoke and flames. The stakes are terrifyingly real, but on-screen you also get McConaughey playing peak McConaughey—calm, laconic, saying “alright, alright, alright” as the world burns. With Paul Greengrass in the director’s seat, the ride is jittery, intense and just Hollywood enough that you forget this was someone’s worst day ever.

Abbott Elementary is back, which means more Janine optimism, Gregory charm and Ava chaos in Philadelphia’s most underfunded school. The Emmy-winning sitcom has always nailed the mix of sweet and sharp, though critics say this season opener feels a touch lighter thanks to new writers. Still, Abbott Elementary is the kind workplace drama where you feel hanging out in the chaotic staffroom—you might not be crying with laughter every second, but you still want to see what everyone’s up to.

Season 2 drops Louis and Claudia into 1940s Paris, which is romantic until you remember they are vampires. They find their way to the Theatre des Vampires, where the undead put on nightly shows for humans who have no idea they are also dinner. Lestat still haunts the story like that one toxic ex who just refuses to leave. It is moody, stylish, bloody and the kind of gothic melodrama that makes you want to wear velvet at home and sigh dramatically.

The pods are open again, this time in Denver, where 32 singles try to prove you can fall in love without ever making eye contact. Spoiler: you cannot, but that does not stop the proposals, tears and inevitable meltdowns once couples enter the real world and realise love is not just candlelit pod chat, it is also toothpaste caps and rent. The show remains a hot mess dressed up as a social experiment, and yes, we are all still watching, because nothing is blinder than Netflix viewers when it comes to this circus.