What should I watch on Netflix in June 2019? - Top Best New Movies

Why Should I Watch? At this point, what choice do you have? Between its mind-bending sci-fi stories, topicality, and aggressive advancement of the medium itself, new episodes of “Black Mirror” always dominant TV discussion for a few weeks a year. If you want to stay current with the culture (and can handle the darkness), you pretty much have to watch.

Creator Charlie Brooker’s latest season is a bit shorter than previous entires — “Bandersnatch” took up a lot of time, you guys — but the three episodes are getting a prime spotlight on Netflix: They’ve each got their own trailers, stars, and synopses, all of which you can see here. Just remember: It’s called “Black Mirror” for a reason. These are all bound to pretty… bleak.

Bonus Reason: In “Rachel, Jack and Ashley, Too” (Episode 3), Miley Cyrus plays a pop star named Ashley who’s hawked to young ladies through a miniature white robot with the singer’s voice, but its own personality.

Cate Blanchett as Izabella - Documentary Now! _ Season 3, Episode 4 - Photo Credit: Rhys Thomas/IFC

Why Should I Watch? Cate Blanchett plays performance artist Marina Abramović in a spoof of Matthew Akers’ 2012 film “Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present.” That’s it. That’s all you need to know.

Bonus Reason: Out of respect for Ms. Blanchett’s incredible talent and mass appeal, as well as what little self-respect I still carry, I shall not give another reason to watch “Documentary Now!” You have all the reasons you need.

Why Should I Watch? As the best Marvel-Netflix series, it’s fitting “Jessica Jones” will also be the last of the Disney-owned superheroes to release a new season on the original streaming giant. Despite popular series, synergy has split the two entertainment behemoths, as Marvel will debut its own shows exclusively on Disney+, while Netflix hopes you like someone in “The Umbrella Academy” as much as you like J.J. Either way, pour one out for “Jones” by bingeing her swan song. It may be the end, but she can still go out on top.

Bonus Reason: I mean, it’s Krysten Ritter. Though the series itself has had some ups and downs, Ritter encapsulates her eponymous hero so thoroughly it’s impossible to imagine anyone else in the role. Someone else can don Daredevil’s red mask, but Ritter’s zero fucks attitude, badass fight choreography, and pained inner lining helped make her the one and only Jessica Jones. Here’s hoping the business folks can find a way to bring her back into the Marvel fold.

Why Should I Watch? When Mary Ann Singleton (played by Laura Linney) left her family in San Francisco to pursue a career elsewhere it was a bold, inspirational, and affecting choice. It was the mid-’70s, and when Armistead Maupin first wrote it, the decision was seen as a reflection of the second-wave feminist movement for which San Francisco was a major hub. Now, Mary Ann (still played by Laura Linney) is returning to the Bay Area, as well as her chosen family at 28 Barbary Lane, headed by Anna Madrigal (Olympia Dukakis). For the limited series sequel, showrunner Lauren Morelli is looking to stay current, break new ground, and inspire a new generation. Filled with LGBTQ characters to match its status as an iconic queer story, “Tales of the City” isn’t taking its status lightly — there’s a reason it’s dropping during Pride Month.

Bonus Reason: So what kind of updates can fans expect? For one, Anna Madrigal will be played by both Dukakis and Jen Richards, a transgender woman who will embody the transgender character in flashbacks. That’s an important step forward for onscreen representation, and Morelli isn’t stopping there. She’s also expanding the household with new young characters, and updating the narrative arc to center on current issues: Ellen Page joins the cast as Mary Ann’s daughter, Shawna, who helps Mary Ann acclimate to a new generation of queer people, and also helps her save their beloved home from destruction as San Francisco’s rapid gentrification threatens Barbary Lane.

Why Should I Watch? For a foreign-language series, “Dark” generated quite a bit of buzz when Season 1 premiered in late 2017. Co-creators Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese earned strong reviews from The New York Times as well as IndieWire, and helped fill the void while fans waited for new seasons of equally peculiar dramas, “Stranger Things” and “The OA.” The trippy story is a bit hard to sum up, but focuses on children disappearing from a small German town and travels through time to span three timelines. In short, it can be a lot, but if you’re looking for an intricate and involving mystery, “Dark” is a good place to start.

Bonus Reason: “Dark” has already been renewed for a third and final season, so there’s no reason to worry about the series running too long or going without an ending. The hourlong drama will wrap things up on its own terms — and soon.

Why Should I Watch? “3%” is the extreme dystopian drama needed to rattle a few cages, in that it reflects reality just enough to scare you, but not too much that it ruins the fun. The first season ran through a “Hunger Games”-style competition where 20-year-olds either won the right to live in paradise — where only 3 percent of the world is allowed to inhabit — or spend the rest of their lives in squalor. Season 2 tracked the winners and losers to expose problems on both sides of the economic imbalance, and now Season 3 is about to set loose even more metaphor-laced shenanigans, as the rise of a second utopian society threatens to upend whatever balance the current set-up maintains. Plus, apparently, there’s a sandstorm. (See photo above.)

Bonus Reason: “3%” was the first Portuguese-language Netflix original series and it was developed from an independent pilot made way back in 2009 — this one is rooted in an indie vision, even as it’s grown to be a popular worldwide hit. Those sensibilities have helped make it unique, and there’s no reason to expect them to disappear in the new season.

Why Should I Watch? Along with last month’s “Lucifier,” “Designated Survivor” is yet another canceled broadcast series to find a second life on Netflix. Does it deserve one? The first two seasons weren’t exactly Emmy-worthy, but there was always potential here. Kiefer Sutherland stars as the de facto POTUS after an explosion during the State of the Union kills everyone ahead of him in the presidential line of succession. Season 1 saw Sutherland’s Tom Kirkman fighting for respect in a job he inherited, not to mention stemming off another attack. Season 2 saw personal drama hit, but Season 3 is focusing on a tried and true narrative of American political dramas: campaigning. That’s right, Tom’s gotta get elected now. Tune in to find out if he can graduate from the designated Commander in Chief to an elected one.

Bonus Reason: Honestly, it’s gotta be Kal Penn. The one-time member of President Obama’s White House staff is now back to full-time acting, and his endorsement of a series as extreme as this one means a lot. “Designated Survivor” is far from a “West Wing” successor, but it’s got the bones of a solid political thriller — and the performers to pull it off.