Staying Fit
April showers are on the way, and thankfully, it’s also raining fresh offerings on Hulu this month. So ditch those galoshes, stay inside where it’s dry, and check out the streaming debuts of a New York Times expose about the dark side of horse racing or the latest peek behind the reality curtain at everyone’s favorite Beverly Hills housewife or a rockin’ docuseries about Jersey’s own Bon Jovi (hair spray not included). Mark your worth-the-watch list with these 11 shows and films.
Coming April 1
The Big Lebowski (1998, R)
Believe it or not, this quotable Coen brothers caper wasn’t regarded as a classic out of the gate. But time has been very kind to the Dude. Jeff Bridges, 74, stars as a pot-addled slacker who gets wrangled into a twisty kidnap-and-ransom plot and makes a hilarious mess out of it, thanks to his dim bowling buddies Walter (John Goodman, 71) and Donny (Steve Buscemi, 66). You can never watch this one too many times; The Big Lebowski contains multitudes.
AARP Membership— $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal
Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine.
Captain Phillips (2013, PG-13)
Tom Hanks, 67, gives a bravura performance in this true-life thriller about a U.S. container ship hijacked by Somali pirates in 2009. Directed with white-knuckle tension by Paul Greengrass, 68, Captain Phillips is a first-rate tick-tock procedural that slowly tightens like a vise on the audience’s nerves. As the Somali crew’s leader, Barkhad Abdi adds complexity to what could have easily been a one-note villain. It was Abdi’s first acting job, and he rightly nabbed an Oscar nomination for his efforts.
Vanderpump Villa
If you ever wondered what Below Deck would be like if it was set at a French chateau and the host was Lisa Vanderpump of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, you’re in luck. In this reality series, the posh restaurateur curates luxury experiences for wealthy guests while trying to whip her staff of young servers, chefs and bartenders (sorry, mixologists) into shape. Will they be able to live up to her high expectations? Well, since the show’s tagline is “Come for the decadence, stay for the drama,” we’re going to guess the answer is no.
Coming April 4
American Horror Story: Delicate Part 2
The back half of the latest installment of FX’s campy horror anthology kicks off with returning stars Kim Kardashian, Emma Roberts and Cara Delevingne. Roberts plays a young actress on the rise who sells her soul for fame, which we all know almost never ends well. Judging from the trailer, it certainly looks like her publicist (Kardashian) is the one who will collect the debt.
More From AARP
What You Need to Know Before Watching ‘Feud: Capote vs. The Swans’
The docudrama boasts a boatload of 50+ stars and a gripping (mostly) true storyMembers Only: 10 Quick Questions for Mandy Patinkin
Actor stars in new Hulu series ‘Death and Other Details’
15 Hidden Gems on Hulu Right Now
Watch 'McCartney 3, 2, 1,' Stephen King's JFK time-travel series, the British original 'The Office' and moreRecommended for You