Upstream: “Turn up Charlie” on Netflix

We’ll looking for something to keep us busy in lock up, check out Turn up Charlie, an interesting series from Netflix. We’re going to give you our impression of this latest offering from everyone’s favorite streaming service. I’ll keep my take on this to first impressions since I am only about halfway through, but I was totally hooked after just one way too short episode. It does bear mentioning that the series is comprised of only eight episodes that are less than half an hour each. This will leave you wanting more before you know it!

Starring and co-produced by Idris Elba Turn up Charlie is the story of 90s DJ Charlie who is desperately seeking his way back into the limelight. After recently being reunited with his boyhood mate, David (JJ Field – Captain America: The First Avenger, The Musketeers tv series) who is now an A list star in Hollywood who has decided to move back to London with his equally famous pop star/DJ wife (Piper Perabo – Looper, The Prestige) for the sake of their daughter Astrid’s upbringing.

I want to mention with all the great performances in this series, it absolutely could not exist without the amazing Frankie Hervey playing Gabrielle. This is Frankie’s first major role and she is completely killing it as the overly spoiled, yet strangely self-aware 11 year old. If you remember all the angst you went through as a prepubescent, just imagine if you had the power to inflict that much anxiety on those around you. Gabrielle does this with an obvious glee that is hard to not smile at.

Idris is of course equally amazing and this is a big departure from most of the hard-nosed characters I’ve seen him play before. Really nice to see him take a stab at comedy, his timing and stoic delivery really contrasts the almost surreal situations he finds himself thrust into at the hands of this pre-teen terror. Give it a watch, I’m sure you’ll find something to like about it.