African Couch Potato

Welcome to the Season 3 Finale of African Couch Potato, still the number 1 place for what's going down in the world of SA's TV and movies. We have also recently hit number 8 in Million Podcasts' Top 100 African Podcasts.

So what has been happening? last week Gino got the invite to a VIP screening of The Shards, a new series on Disney+. 17-year-old Bret finds his whole world changing with the arrival at his prestigious L.A. prep school of enigmatic new classmate Robert Mallory, that just happens to coincide with the appearance of a serial killer called The Trawler.

With 3 years of episodes done and dusted, Gino looks back on what we have acheived since we began.

One streamer that we all forgot about is eVOD, free to air broadcaster e.tv's viideo on demand platform. Gino gave the free version a whirl.

In other news, Season 3 of Tyler Perry’s Beauty In Black returns to Netflix on the 27th of August, while, later in September, fresh from The Polygamist, Kenneth Nkosi hits the silver screen in a local comedy adventure. Timmy The Kid also features Lillian Dube, Celeste Ntuli and Sandile Mahlangu.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day broke records with the biggest box office opening ever seen in SA cinemas. And, finally, to bring it home, Gino raves about The Odyssey, and why he rates it so highly.

Till next time.

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Let us know what you think, what movie or series you would like to see featured, or just to tell us how brilliant it all is:
instagram.com/africancouchpotato
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gino.arlechino@gmail.com

WhatsApp Channel: Mzansi Film News, Views and Reviews

YouTube; African Couch Potato - YouTube

https://www.patreon.com/c/AfricanCouchPotato

Gino Shelile’s profile • Letterboxd
Member of the Film Critics Association of South Africa (FCASA)

Produced by Ted Loukes and A10 Consulting
ted@aten.co.za

Music by The_Mountain from Pixabay

CHqjHqS2RAMkVSeydGo7

© SANTE MEDIA 2026

“A Bartender is the aristocrat of the working class.” So goes the line from Tom Cruise's Cocktail.

The latest ACP is dialling in to Vegas to find out what went into the mix of Shaken & Stirred: The Story of Flair Bartending which is currently streaming on Apple TV.

4 x Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, and flair champion herself, Deborah Richards, directed this documentary with the help of Emmy-nominated producer and documentarian, Patrick Wirtz. Gino grabbed a Zoom call with the award-winning duo to find out how this all came about.

Shaken & Stirred is the first full length documentary that covers the sport and art form of Flair Bartending. This is all about performing tricks with cocktail shakers, bottles, and other bar tools to entertain the patrons while making drinks. It combines elements of juggling, flipping, and sometimes even bar-magic, such as manipulating flaming liquors or performing choreographed routines, to enhance the overall guest experience and add excitement to bartending.

Shaken & Stirred: The Story of Flair Bartending recently won Film Threat's 2026 Best Sports Documentary and you can catch it right now on Apple TV.

The Official Site for Film Director, Deborah Richards

Yes? No? Send us a text

Let us know what you think, what movie or series you would like to see featured, or just to tell us how brilliant it all is:
instagram.com/africancouchpotato
x.com/africancouchpot
gino.arlechino@gmail.com

WhatsApp Channel: Mzansi Film News, Views and Reviews

YouTube; African Couch Potato - YouTube

https://www.patreon.com/c/AfricanCouchPotato

Gino Shelile’s profile • Letterboxd
Member of the Film Critics Association of South Africa (FCASA)

Produced by Ted Loukes and A10 Consulting
ted@aten.co.za

Music by The_Mountain from Pixabay

CHqjHqS2RAMkVSeydGo7

© SANTE MEDIA 2026

The end of July and thoughts are already turning to spring and warmer temperatures. Hi and welcome to ACP, still your number one spot for what's happening in the world of film and TV.

In this ep, Gino casts his eye across the latest in the dating world as season 3 of Married at First Sight hits DStv Stream, and, adding some local flavour, Mageza Wants A Wife - follows a taxi driver who spends time with 10 young singles in the hope of also finding a forever connection. So good to have something that showcases the township side of SA, rather than the usual "yawn, yawn" places.

Gino also takes a quick look at what you can look forward to on Netflix, which has a whole stack of stuff coming up:

1. Mourinho - documentary about Jose Mourinho
2. 72 Hours - comedy with Kevin Hart
3. Various Comedy Specials - look out for Rory Scovel, Kelsey Cook and Mary Beth Barone
4. Umthetho - SA drama with Nqobile Nunu and Tony Kgoroge
5. Big Chicken: A Fast Food Conspiracy - Mo Gilligan leads a documentary look into the fried chicken industry
6. Let's Marry Harry - Dating show with Harry Jowsey
7. The Last House - a psychological thriller
8. The Idaho Murders College Nightmare - a documentary murder investigation

It's not often that you get something for free, but Amazon is running a 30-day free trial, which Gino used to check out Project Hail Mary and, would you believe it?, Tyler Perry's Finding Joy.

And finally, we mourn the tragic passing of 18 year old actress Kaylee Hottle, known for the last two "Godzilla" movies, where she played an orphaned girl named Jia who sees beyond Kong’s threatening appearance and learns to communicate with him through sign language.

Next time we hook up with the director of Shaken & Stirred, a flair bartending documentary.

Yes? No? Send us a text

Let us know what you think, what movie or series you would like to see featured, or just to tell us how brilliant it all is:
instagram.com/africancouchpotato
x.com/africancouchpot
gino.arlechino@gmail.com

WhatsApp Channel: Mzansi Film News, Views and Reviews

YouTube; African Couch Potato - YouTube

https://www.patreon.com/c/AfricanCouchPotato

Gino Shelile’s profile • Letterboxd
Member of the Film Critics Association of South Africa (FCASA)

Produced by Ted Loukes and A10 Consulting
ted@aten.co.za

Music by The_Mountain from Pixabay

CHqjHqS2RAMkVSeydGo7

© SANTE MEDIA 2026