DR DEATH
Stan
SURGEONS are one of - if not the most - trusted professions. They literally hold our lives in their hands when we're at our most vulnerable.
That's why US series Dr Death makes for terrifying viewing. Based on the popular podcast by Wondery, it tells the true story of former neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2017 for gross malpractice that resulted in the deaths of two patients and the severe maiming of others while working in two Texas hospitals.
Joshua Jackson (Dawson's Creek, The Affair) plays Duntsch in a top-heavy cast, which also includes Alec Baldwin and Christian Slater as doctors who report his crimes.
Jackson is comfortable in the role of the narcissistic and troubled Duntsch, as he soothes the concerns of patients with boasts of his superior skills and knowledge ahead of their routine spinal surgeries, before berating nurses and hospital management if they question his methods. However, there's minimal shades of grey applied. The story is very black and white. We're told Duntsch is a sociopath and Jackson rarely provides a glimpse behind the mask.
Dr Death is still a fascinating story, but if you've got a hip replacement booked it might be safer to postpone this series until you're in recovery.
WILD WESTS: TALES FROM TIGER TOWN
Foxtel & Kayo Sports
RUGBY league finally tackled the saturated sports documentary market this week with episode one of the four-part series on the Wests Tigers' 2021 NRL campaign.
Over the past decade the Tigers have arguably been the NRL's most dysfunctional club, having not qualified for the finals since 2011 despite fielding a consistently strong roster. So the decision to agree to a behind-the-scenes documentary is intriguing, especially as the season is still unfolding.
Unfortunately episode one doesn't reveal too much. We meet some hardcore fans, chat briefly to chilled CEO Justin Pascoe, but mostly we're treated to coach Michael Maguire's locker room pep talks and coach's booth instructions.
Maguire is notorious for being a hard task-master, but other than the frequent F-bombs, he mostly comes across as a father figure.
CATCH AND KILL: THE PODCAST TAPES
Binge
THE unmasking of serial rapist and movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was probably the biggest entertainment story of the past decade. It set off a seismic shift in gender relations through the #metoo movement which continues to provide a reckoning throughout the world.
Catch and Kill: The Podcast Tapes tells the story, in his own words, of how journalist Ronan Farrow exposed Weinstein's crimes through filmed interviews with Italian model and victim Ambra Battilana Gutierrez and veteran reporters Kim Masters (Hollywood Reporter) and Ken Auletta (The New Yorker). Farrow is the son of actress Mia Farrow and filmmaker Woody Allen.
If you've read Farrow's 2019 book Catch & Kill you've heard the story. That sordid tale is told brilliantly through video and recordings of Weinstein admitting to Gutierrez's assault.
If you're fascinated in how the sausage is made when it comes to breaking one of the world's biggest stories, Catch and Kill is a must watch.