Each week, Daily Arts writers evaluate the latest movies, shows, books, music, games and more. They watch, read and listen for the next standout artistic trends and then write about what that means for us in the art world and beyond. Come Friday, we highlight what Daily Arts loved most — here’s what will keep you captivated this weekend. 

— Zoe Phillips and Elise Godfryd, Managing Arts Editors 

Read: The Growth B-Side: The things we see and watch when we’re young tend to make deep impressions on us. “The Growth B-Side” is here to honor the ways that art — from the shows we watched to the books we read to songs we listened to — has changed us as we’ve grown. We’re here to talk about the things that brought comfort during a difficult time, represented personal experiences or influenced life in unexpected ways. 

And even as we pinpoint the things that influenced us the most, we continue to grow and learn more about ourselves in the process. Read more from Daily Arts Writers here. 

Watch: “The Father” on Amazon Prime: Throughout the film, characters appear and disappear, often to reappear played by different actors. The audience is never sure of which story is “real,” or which actor is the “real” character; in this way, we are just as deluded as Anthony. Although these shifts are upsetting to Anthony, they are often great filmmaking choices from the viewer’s perspective. As different actors slip into the same role and the set’s decor undergoes a sudden stylistic overhaul, the viewer is spellbound. Read more from Ross London here. 

  • Courtesy of Elizabeth Yoon

Read: “Let Us Dream” by Pope Francis: “Let Us Dream” is framed as a call to action, but the specifics are vague. In the prologue, the pope makes his primary concerns clear: “How will we deal with the hidden pandemics of this world, the pandemics of hunger and violence and climate change?” But the pope does not always adhere to this broad sentiment. The book reads quite differently by its midpoint, nearly abandoning all poetry. I suspect that readers were not meant to tread past the inspiring prologue — the pages you might glance over at Barnes & Noble. Past that attractive introduction, “Let Us Dream” becomes less a sermon and more a crucial pathway into the conflicted mind of this man atop the spiritual mountain. Read more from Julian Wray here. 

  • This photo is from the official trailer for “Words on Bathroom Walls,” distributed by Amazon Prime.

Watch: “Words on Bathroom Walls” on Amazon Prime: In Words on Bathroom Walls,” Adam is not defined by his diagnosis, although it obviously causes a lot of changes in his life. He has a very distinctive personality, which includes a strong passion for cooking and ambitions to become a chef. He has goals, and we follow him as he learns how to live with his disorder in order to achieve them. Even if the portrayal isn’t perfect, it is refreshing to see a story of mental illness told in a caring way. Perhaps the bar is low, but this film surpasses it nonetheless. Read more from Judith Lawrence here.

  • This photo is from the trailer for “Made for Love,” produced by HBO Max.

Watch: “Made for Love” on HBO: The new series is a dark comedy based on Alissa Nutting’s 2017 novel of the same name. We meet Hazel Green (Cristin Milioti, “Palm Springs”) crawling out of a sewage drain in the middle of a dessert. Later we find out she’s married to Byron Gogol (Billy Magnussen, “The Bold Type”), a rich, Tony Stark type and CEO of Gogol Tech. After finding out Byron wants to put a chip into her brain to make them feel more “connected,” Hazel attempts to escape but it’s too late. The deed is done. The chip has already been implanted into her head. Read more from Jessica Curney here.