Here at The List we tend to look forward to what's on the horizon, but when that's a whole lot of staying in knowing what to watch right now in the comfort of your home has never been more needed. To help ride out these challenging times, we will be casting our expert eye over what's new to TV and streaming services each week, bringing you the cream of the current movie crop. Let us do the decision-making for you, and then just sit back and enjoy.

Onward ★★★★☆

Hitting home entertainment early due to its curtailed cinema run is the latest on-point Pixar offering, which does for brothers what Frozen did for sisters. Available to buy and keep, this typically gorgeous animation is certainly one to treasure as two very different elf siblings (voiced by Tom Holland and Chris Pratt) embark on a magical adventure to reunite with their dead father for one single day. In hot pursuit is their fearful, exasperated mother (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who teams up with sphinx-like beast turned restaurateur The Manticore (Octavia Spencer).
Watch Onward on demand.

The Assistant ★★★★☆

Tackling tricky subject matter with the deftest of touches, Kitty Green's narrative feature debut hit the UK rental market at the end of last week. This MeToo-themed drama follows a movie studio dogsbody (brilliantly portrayed by Ozark's Julia Garner) as she is worked to the bone and negotiates a hostile environment where contempt, verbal abuse and sexual harassment are just part of the package. Succession's Matthew Macfadyen and Dagmara Dominczyk co-star in a searing indictment of toxic working practices.
Watch The Assistant on demand.

Ema ★★★★☆

Here's an absolute must-watch. Though tragically deprived the scope of a cinema screen, Chilean director Pablo Larraín's latest pulsates with energy, rhythm and desire as a rule-breaking woman tries to worm her way back into the orbit of her adopted son, using an unconventional strategy of shimmying, seduction and setting things alight. Starring the magnetic Mariana Di Girolamo as the unapologetic Ema, she's lent superb support by Gael García Bernal as Ema's estranged choreographer husband, with whom she shares a destructive bond.
Watch Ema on MUBI.

Adult Life Skills ★★★★☆

New to Netflix is this hidden gem from 2016 which we at The List absolutely loved. Starring the now stratospherically successfully Jodie Whittaker – currently delighting audiences in Doctor Who – it's the story of a grieving twin (Whittaker) being coaxed from her pain by a cast of wonderful characters, including her mum (Lorraine Ashbourne), love interest (Brett Goldstein) and nan (Eileen Davies). The mighty Alice Lowe (Sightseers) also appears in a film from writer-director Rachel Tunnard that's as silly as it is sincere.
Watch Adult Life Skills on Netflix.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society ★★★★☆

Currently residing on iPlayer after its recent BBC2 debut is a plucky British romantic drama from 2018, based on the novel from Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. If you can get past the mad, mouthful of a title, it's a nicely cast, post-war yarn from Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral) featuring favourites including Lily James, Matthew Goode, Katherine Parkinson and Tom Courtenay. The story sees a London writer (James) travel to Guernsey where she sets about uncovering the secrets of the titular society. It'll take you through a whole gamut of emotions, before leaving you ultimately uplifted.
Watch The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society on iPlayer.

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