Ah, snow days. You’ve got the laptop out, the pajamas still on, and the Weather Channel playing on a loop. But how many hours of blizzard forecasting can you really watch? Since we all know you’ll be home “working” today, we put together a list of shows and movies you can enjoy from the comfort of your flurry-induced haze. Just remember to turn your out-of-office email on.
Broadcast News (HBO Go)
In a simpler time, the most treacherous threat facing the broadcast-news industry was that network news’ audience would choose style (William Hurt, dashing but dumb) over substance (a very sweaty Albert Brooks). This movie makes us wonder, what would Holly Hunter’s drill-sergeant news producer Jane Craig make of today’s news cycle, with its fake news, made-up massacres, and alternative facts? We shiver at the thought. This smart workplace comedy is a quintessential New York film with a warm romcom center. — Hunter Harris
O.J.: Made in America (Hulu)
Let’s face it: You’re not leaving that couch today. Why not lean into that fact by putting on Ezra Edelman’s Oscar-winning documentary about O.J. Simpson, which just so happens to be seven and a half hours long? Edelman masterfully weaves together several different threads of context — L.A.’s specific brand of racism, Simpson’s history of domestic violence, rich psychological portraits of the characters involved — to make this well-covered trial somehow feel completely new. — Nate Jones
The Wedding Planner (Netflix)
Say what you will about the Jennifer Lopez era of romantic comedies, but The Wedding Planner is unquestionably the best. At least this one doubles down on its ridiculousness: There’s some business about eating only brown M&Ms, and a near-death experience involving a dumpster and a pair of stilettos. It’s mindless enough to put on while you make your way down your to-do list. Bonus: Isn’t there something just a little bit hilarious that this movie, in 2001, asked us to believe that J.Lo was 100 percent Italian? — HH
Casual (Hulu)
A snow day is the perfect time to binge one of the many current California comedies. The greater Los Angeles region: There’s no snow or sleet there! Casual has attracted less attention than Transparent or You’re the Worst, but is a terrific, observant look at relationships. Season two, which explores the challenges of making friends once you’re deep into adulthood, is especially strong. — Jen Chaney
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Netflix and Hulu)
Last week’s glut of 20th-anniversary coverage should’ve already convinced you to revisit the WB genre classic, but if you need further encouragement, know that the show remains more than a nostalgia piece. The effects may look cheap, and the fashion unforgivable, but the dialogue remains second to none, as does the show’s ability to string one-off episodes into longer arcs. Drop back in for an episode or two, and before you know it, you’ll be Hellmouth-deep into a series-long binge. — Jackson McHenry
Some ace superhero stories (Amazon Prime and Netflix)
Batman: The Animated Series is the single greatest superhero TV show ever made, as well as one of the greatest Batman sagas ever told, and the show’s entire run is now on Amazon Prime. If you’re a Netflix subscriber, Justice League Unlimited distills the magic of the DC Comics superhero universe into an action-packed and surprisingly thoughtful adventure show. — Abraham Riesman
Nanook of the North (YouTube)
You want snow? Here, my friend, is a lot of snow. There are arguments over what constitutes the very first feature-length documentary, but generally the title goes to Robert Flaherty’s Nanook of the North, shot on the shores of Hudson Bay and released in 1922. It was an unimaginably difficult movie to make. The film itself had to be processed without running water, on an ice floe. Flaherty and his team lived on walrus meat during principal filming. And they had to make it twice: After the shooting was completed and the reels were shipped down to Toronto for editing, the whole thing was lost in a fire, and Flaherty had to go up north and do it all over again. Yes, it takes a little adjustment to enjoy the pacing and adjustment of a feature-length silent film today. But it is lovely to see, with a very nice score, and doubly fascinating when you discover that the filmmakers were accused of making the same adjustments that today’s documentarians are. They staged scenes, asking Nanook to pretend artisanal practices that were long defunct, and pretending to go to sleep in a fake igloo. This was reality TV long before TV. — Christopher Bonanos
Vanderpump Rules (Hulu)
It may be snowing outside, but the sun is always shining over SUR, Real Housewife Lisa Vanderpump’s gloriously acronymed West Hollywood restaurant (it stands for Sexy Unique Restaurant). If you’re looking for a guilty pleasure to tide you over post-Bachelor, it’s time you got acquainted with these servers and bartenders who work, drink, gossip, and fight (often simultaneously) with a self-sabotaging intensity. If you’re into Schadenfreude, it’s comforting on a day cooped up inside to watch beautiful people in beautiful places make any fun event miserable: Birthday parties and weddings are marred by fistfights; vacations reek of infidelity; and the restaurant’s annual semi-clothed photoshoot (!) is always rife with tension. Since this is reality TV and not a prestige drama, just let the autoplay roll and soak in multiple episodes at once. — Samantha Rollins
