What to Watch this Week (1-7 May)

American Gods

Anticipation for this small screen adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s 2001 novel of the same name has been feverish. The Amazon Prime show boasts a bewildering plot, sumptuous production design, and an intriguing cast that includes Ian McShane, Crispin Glover, and Emily Browning, with former Hollyoaks hunk Ricky Whittle in the lead role. Other reasons to be intrigued: the showrunner is Bryan Fuller, who created the visually arresting Hannibal series, and we’re told the show features a woman who can suck people into her vagina – that’s a first for streaming TV surely. The first episode of American Gods is streaming on Amazon Prime now; new episodes every Mon

Mindhorn

Julian Barratt plays washed-up TV actor Richard Thorncroft in this daft comedy. The endearingly silly plot sees Thorncroft resurrecting Mindhorn, the character he played on a cheesy 80s detective show, to help solve a murder on the Isle of Man. The reason Mindhorn is required is that the crime's chief suspect says he’ll only come forward if he can speak to the detective, whom he believes to be real. Hilarity ensues in the style of ¡Three Amigos! and Galaxy Quest, with the actor being confused for his fictional character and brought into real life danger. Our reviewer, Philip Concannon, wrote that “the absurd gags come fast enough to ensure the film is always entertaining and occasionally hilarious, and Barratt’s excellent central performance is almost Partridge-esque in its clueless pomposity.” Released 5 May by StudioCanal

Lost in London

This sounds fascinating. Earlier this year, actor Woody Harrelson made his directorial debut, a single take movie that he shot at 2am in London and broadcast live to 500 cinemas across the USA. The one-take, single-camera approach was inspired by German hit Victoria, but Harrelson takes the concept to a whole new level by shooting live. The film is also written by Harrelson, and is roughly based on a night the actor spent in London in 2002 when he ran amok and was arrested on suspicion of causing criminal damage. While British audiences will only see the recorded version when it is released in cinemas this week, it should prove no less thrilling. Released 5 May by Picturehouse

Harmonium

We’ve been fans of Japanese director Kôji Fukada since his wonderful black comedy Hospitalité screened at Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2012, and his latest film, Harmonium, arrives on UK shores on a wave of festival acclaim, including a Jury Prize in Cannes' Un Certain Regard competition. Like Hospitalité, Harmonium also concerns the problems that befall an ordinary Japanese family when they invite a stranger into their home, although this film is reportedly much more tragic in tone. Released 5 May by Eureka Entertainment