Must Watch reviews: Two Weeks in August, Rafa and Cape Fear

Every week, the Must Watch podcasters review the biggest TV and streaming shows.

This week, Ali Plumb and Scott Bryan join Naga Munchetty to review ‘Two Weeks in August’, 'Rafa' and 'Cape Fear'.

What do the Must Watch reviewers make of them?

Cape Fear is a psychological thriller, created by Nick Antosca, which follows a married couple who are put in danger when a convicted killer is released from prison, who is determined to seek revenge against them.

Ali thought this was a must watch and Scott thought this was not a Must Watch.

Ali explains that, “not only do you have this psychopath coming back for two people, it's their whole family as well. And so you get all the modern twists and turns you'd expect from something that's updated for 2026, where you have a sullen male, this child who's struggling at school because of relationship issues and lots of other stuff."

Ali says, “the acting talent is so exceptional it's almost just worth watching it for them. Javier Bardem, can you believe it? He's a really good psychopath. This is the same human being who is a no-country old man and whose haircut alone gives me fear.”

“It has lots of old-fashioned scoring weaved in. I like it. I like that. And there's an alarm system in their house which, it is not a coincidence, sounds exactly like the psycho stab.”

Scott says, “I think this is a good watch, not a Must Watch".

"For me, it falls into, okay, the good sides first. I think it's fantastically well acted. I mean, it's incredibly expensive to go and put on. You've got really strong performances. It also has just some fantastic tense sequences and the foreboding is quite violent, as you would be expecting.”

“This is up there, I mean, I think some of the stylistic choices, like in the opening scene, the colours are inverted, so you see people swimming in the pool, well then it looks like they're swimming in blood, essentially.”

He adds that, “it also feels quite grounded in terms of the setting and the scenes. So when the violence does happen, it does give you that creep, that dread that something like this could be happening. The reason why I'm not saying it's a must watch is that it's falling into the trap of, could have been a film. And I am thinking, and there's been a film, but it could be a film again. This feels like a two hour film that's been spread out to me.”

However he adds that it, “doesn't take away from the fact that there are some fantastic sequences and there are really tense moments and some of the finest small TV film work that I've seen for quite some time. But then it is plotted out with scenes that you know if it was going to be a film would be on the cutting room floor immediately."

"Melodrama to the max. It's just people explaining the plot points again and again and who could be behind this and it doesn't really add anything. Sometimes I feel that when we are in this world in which film and TV are becoming increasingly merged, these are all Hollywood actors in essentially a TV series that is involved with filmmakers who are more attached to films."

"Sometimes you wonder, I get it how it's ended up being a TV Series. I am enjoying it, but if it was a film, it probably would be a lot tighter and maybe even better.”

Cape Fear is available to stream on Apple TV now.

Two Weeks in August is a BBC drama series created by Catherine Shepard which is set on a Greek island and follows a group of university friends reuniting for a long-awaited summer holiday.

Both Ali and Scott agreed this was not a Must Watch.

Ali says, “I enjoyed this but I'm not going to say it is a must watch.”

He adds that “this cast is really impressive. I really like them. I didn't necessarily know them all super well in advance.”

“Jessica Raine is absolutely the star and if I could describe the show in a nutshell, it's... This is fine, everything is fine.”

Ali goes on to say, “on the first day, and this is in the first episode, and I thought it was a bit of a move to make this decision, they all take a certain amount of drugs.”

“Then, as a group, things go super south quickly, including one of the two, not a couple, kissing each other. That's sort of the set piece that kicks everything else off. But by the end, again without giving away too much, things go so wacky and off, it's not good at the end.”

He concludes by saying, “for all of the awkwardness that's sort of funny sometimes, I found myself not necessarily wanting to press play on the next episode immediately.”

It “didn't quite have that hooky, exciting, what's gonna happen next, because I don't think I really like the characters enough. I don't think I'm really engaged with all these different people.”

Scott agrees, “I think this is a good watch, not a Must Watch.”

“I think it sort of captures the pent up energy, the growing animosity.”

“The unequalness and I think also something that feels incredibly British, the presenteeism versus the actual how you are really feeling and what you are saying to other people around you.”

He adds, “it's just a bit too long but it is quite bingeable for me. I didn't have the resentment in terms of finishing each episode.

“I really did go into the next one but there were those moments when Zoe would be bringing up Greek mythology again I'll be like 'oh here we go' and I know that's an important thread that becomes more a part of the plot as the series goes on so I think for summer for this time of year it is good watch.”

He goes on to say, “It's just a bit of a crowded market isn't it? Just because we've had White Lotus.”

“There's also The Four Seasons out with the second series, with Tina Fey. It's becoming quite saturated.”

“It's sort of nearly in the category of people going on holiday having a terrible time which we have reviewed on this show. I swear a thousand times before.”

“I just think that any of Catherine Shepard's friends watching this are thinking, is this about us?”

Two Weeks in August is available to stream on the BBC iPlayer now.

Rafa is a documentary series that follows the life of renowned tennis legend Rafa Nadal and explores the highlights of his career from childhood all the way to retirement.

Both Ali and Scott agreed that this was not a Must Watch.

Ali says this is “really, genuinely intimate, you see lots of footage of him with his partner, his wife, his family, his kids. One of whom is referred to as Raffaellet, which is so indicative of how close you are to the family in this four-part show.”

Adding that “it is a fascinating life he has led. He is truly inspirational. His ability to overcome pain, this food issue he's had for essentially his whole life without realising it, the struggle he's with painkillers, the issues with his uncle. Who is a very demanding taskmaster who trained him and made him more or less into the extremely successful, passionate, incredible sportsman.”

Ali says “this is a must watch if you're a tennis fan. If you're into this world and you find the side of sport interesting, you're going to watch this, you just absolutely are, because it's just one of those Netflix documentaries which has the access that you want.”

“At one point, he's lying on his back, his physiotherapist is going through his ankles, I think maybe his calves, and he's singing to himself, Lady Gaga's Shallow from A Star Is Born, and I think I would never have experienced this, this legendary man, this intimate. He's talking about how all these ibuprofen-style anti-inflammatories have hurt his intestines, all this stuff, it's amazing.”

However, he goes on to say, “I don't think it quite has that basketball documentary style, like dynamism where all the characters on screen are electric and exciting and interesting. But it is again worth watching if you're a tennis fan.”
“You may have already devoured it over the weekend. I happily watched all four episodes back to back.”

Scott says that, “it's a good watch, not a Must Watch.”

“It's so easy to compare it to the Kylie documentary that we reviewed a couple of weeks ago, because I find that what makes a good documentary is what it tells you that you don't already know? What does it reveal about somebody that you are not that familiar with?”

He points out that, “it was really quite enlightening about how much intimacy we were having with Rafa in terms of he is finding it called he is recovering from hip surgery. He is definitely starting to face the idea of retirement and it's not because he wants to, it's because he's no longer at the absolute peak of physical health.”

“I think that what I like about it is that with sport documentaries, you tend to fall into the trap where it just becomes incredibly gushing. I mean, he's once nearly everything, so of course it would be. But you don't really get a sense of that personality because it's all full of talking heads.”

Scott disagrees with Ali on one point, “I disagree with you slightly in regards to the fact that it's only for tennis fans.I enjoy tennis, I watch Wimbledon. I wouldn't necessarily be able to tell you the ins and outs of the major players.”

“I think the way that it looks at the rivalry between Djokovic and Nadal, I think, is really quite illuminating. I think the challenges that I had with it was that it was just a bit too long. Just too long for me. Did feel like it could have been a little bit tighter.”

“But I also think that... We do really get a sense of Nadal, but there are parts that you feel that you don't get exactly all of him.”

All episodes of Rafa are available to stream on Netflix now.

Listen to the full reviews of all three programmes on BBC Sounds

But before all that, why not contact Scott and Hayley with the shows you’ve been loving, loathing or both on mustwatch@bbc.co.uk.