Entertainment
Twisted, R-Rated Thriller On Netflix Is A Paranoid Prescription
By Robert Scucci
| Published
Normally I’m not into the kind of psychological thrillers that lean heavily into pharmaceuticals because most filmmakers in this lane don’t do their due diligence. There’s always some plot involving somebody taking what we know in real life to be a mild mood regulator that takes months to titrate into their system, but somehow this leads to a psychotic break that makes absolutely no sense and we’re supposed to just go with it. Going into 2013’s Side Effects, I was expecting more of the same, but that’s not the kind of story writer Scott Burns and director Steven Soderbergh were interested in telling here.
Side Effects does spend some time flirting with pharmaceutical junk science, but it’s in service of a very different story about medical malfeasance, insider trading, and, most importantly, manipulation. The kind where you don’t fully understand who the guilty party is until it’s far too late. Doses are prescribed, symptoms are listed, and lives quietly fall apart before the expected public fallout.
All the usual psychological thriller trappings are present in Side Effects, but instead of drowning the audience in jargon, the film tells a more compelling story about doctor-patient privilege in a broken industry that claims to help people, but causes real harm when the wrong doctors and pharmaceutical companies use their professions to line their pockets.
Don’t Let The Setup Fool You
When we’re first introduced to Dr. Jonathan Banks (Jude Law) in Side Effects, he’s portrayed as a passionate psychiatrist who genuinely wants to do right by his patients. By most measures, he’s an ethical doctor, and his transparency is honestly refreshing compared to what you usually see in this genre. He listens, takes thorough notes, and gives a voice to people who are otherwise dismissed, like the nameless, grieving Haitian patient he encounters early in the film.
The patient is nearly laughed out of the hospital for claiming he saw the ghost of his father driving a taxi cab, but Jonathan understands that the man is grieving and that it’s not uncommon for cultural beliefs to shape how people process loss. It’s a small moment, but an important one that establishes Jonathan’s credibility.
We can’t say the same thing about the woman who becomes his most complicated patient, Emily Taylor (Rooney Mara). Emily is a disgraced socialite following her husband Martin’s (Channing Tatum) four-year prison sentence for insider trading. When Martin is released, Emily begins to spiral, and her suicide attempt by driving her car into a wall brings her into Jonathan’s care.
Jonathan decides to enroll Emily in a paid trial for a new drug called Ablixa, and he’s forthcoming about his involvement in the study and honest about the fact that he’s being compensated. While it initially looks like he’s pushing an experimental antidepressant for personal gain, his reasoning is medically sound. Emily is a strong candidate based on her history, and the medications she previously took lead Jonathan to conclude that Ablixa may actually help her, so he prescribes it.
The problem is that Ablixa causes Emily to start sleepwalking, which leads to her blacking out and stabbing Martin to death. Once this happens, Jonathan’s professional and personal life collapses. He’s scrutinized for allegedly taking kickbacks from the company behind Ablixa, and Emily’s former psychiatrist, Dr. Victoria Siebert (Catherina Zeta-Jones), appears to know far more about Emily’s mental state than she initially lets on.
Let’s Look At All The Moving Parts Here
Side Effects is an interesting watch because it thrives on misdirection. We’re given an honest doctor trying to help a desperate woman using the tools he spent his entire adult life mastering. We’re shown a patient who exhibits all the signs of a psychotic break. And there’s a paper trail pointing directly back to Jonathan for prescribing a drug he supposedly never should have prescribed.
Jonathan also has his own skeletons in his closet from a previous professional entanglement, which leaves him with very little room to defend himself. Martin’s murder destroys his practice, ruins his reputation, and drops him into the center of a media circus that feeds on sensational stories like the one he’s now living through.
By suggesting that we may be dealing with not just one unreliable character, but possibly several, Side Effects avoids becoming the boilerplate psychological thriller I expected. There’s a web of lies so deeply entangled that you never quite know who to trust. Every motive overlaps with another, and every new detail reframes what came before it. Just about every trope you expect from this subgenre is eventually twisted, keeping the mystery alive until the final reveal.
Side Effects does far more than preach the lazy message that psychiatrists and pharmaceutical companies are inherently bad. Its story is anchored through a doctor who genuinely cares about his patients, even as he’s occasionally blinded by pressure, ambition, and competing incentives. Jude Law’s ability to walk that line is one of the film’s biggest strengths.
If you’re looking for a high-caliber psychological thriller that keeps you uneasy without insulting your intelligence, Side Effects is streaming on Netflix as of this writing and is absolutely worth your time.
Entertainment
How to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG online for free
TL;DR: Live stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League for free on RTÉ Player. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
Bayern Munich vs. PSG would have made an amazing Champions League final, but we should be happy that we’re getting two matchups between these electric teams. The first leg finished 5-4 to PSG. We’re not expecting the same again, because that was probably one of the best games of all time. If we get half that level of entertainment in the second leg, we’ll be delighted.
Expect more of the same from the likes of Michael Olise and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as these teams battle it out for a spot in the showpiece event. The winner will meet Arsenal at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest.
If you want to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is Bayern Munich vs. PSG?
Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League kicks off at 3 p.m. ET on May 6. This fixture takes place at the Allianz Arena.
How to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG for free
Bayern Munich vs. PSG is available to live stream for free on RTÉ Player.
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RTÉ Player is geo-restricted to Ireland, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Ireland, meaning you can unblock RTÉ Player to stream the Champions League for free from anywhere in the world.
Live stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG for free by following these simple steps:
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Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
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Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
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Open up the app and connect to a server in Ireland
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Visit RTÉ Player
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Watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG for free from anywhere in the world
$12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can access free live streams of the Champions League without actually spending anything. This obviously isn’t a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG (plus more Champions League fixtures) before recovering your investment.
If you want to retain permanent access to the best free streaming services from around the world, you’ll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPn for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.
What is the best VPN for RTÉ Player?
ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on RTÉ Player, for a number of reasons:
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Servers in 105 countries including Ireland
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Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
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Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
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Fast connection speeds free from throttling
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Up to 10 simultaneous connections
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30-day money-back guarantee
A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).
Live stream Bayern Munich vs. PSG in the Champions League for free with ExpressVPN.
Entertainment
AI stocks are cooling — this ChatGPT trading tool keeps delivering
TL;DR: A ChatGPT-powered investing platform that helps you find and manage stocks with clearer signals—lifetime access for a one-time $54.97.
Credit: Sterling Stock Picker
The AI trade has seemingly had its moment — big runs, big headlines, big expectations. The AI fun is not over by any means. But now that things are settling, the real question is what comes next?
Instead of chasing whatever’s trending, Sterling Stock Picker leans into a more grounded approach: using a ChatGPT-powered assistant (Finley) to help you understand what’s actually happening inside a stock. You can ask questions about companies, sectors, or your own portfolio and get explanations that are tied to real data — not just surface-level summaries.
Mashable Deals
It also handles the heavy lifting most people avoid. The platform analyzes financials, growth metrics, and risk, then surfaces signals like whether a stock is worth buying, holding, or avoiding. There’s even a “North Star” system that simplifies that call into something actionable.
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If you’re building from scratch, there’s a done-for-you portfolio builder that aligns with your risk tolerance. If you already have positions, it can suggest adjustments based on your portfolio’s performance.
One thing that stands out is how it balances guidance with transparency. You’re not just handed picks — you can see the reasoning behind them, which matters if you’re trying to build a repeatable process.
Have a lifetime way to pressure-test your judgment — especially in a market that’s moving past hype and into something more selective.
Get lifetime access to the ChatGPT-driven Sterling Stock Picker while it’s on sale for a one-time $54.97 payment (reg. $486) through May 10.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
Entertainment
Get 2TB encrypted cloud storage and collaboration tools for just $112.49
TL;DR: Lifetime access to 2TB of secure Drime cloud storage is on sale for a one-time $112.49 (reg. $299.99) through May 10.
$112.49
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Cloud storage is one of those things that quickly turns into a monthly bill you forget about. That’s what makes a lifetime option like Drime worth a closer look.
You can currently get 2TB of storage for a one-time $112.49 (reg. $299.99), which means no ongoing fees just to keep your files accessible.
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But this isn’t just a place to dump files and forget about them. Drime leans more toward being a full workspace. You can upload, sync, and access files across devices, but also edit documents, leave comments, and collaborate with others without switching tools. It’s useful if you’re juggling projects, clients, or even just shared folders with family.
Security is a big part of the pitch. Files stored in the encrypted Vault are protected by end-to-end encryption, and everything is hosted in Europe in compliance with GDPR standards. This means your data isn’t floating around unsecured, and you have more control over who sees what.
There are also a lot of small quality-of-life features that make a difference over time — like version history for restoring older files, advanced link sharing with passwords and expiration dates, and even built-in e-signature tools.
It’s a simple way to get more control over your files without adding another monthly expense.
Mashable Deals
Get lifetime access to 2TB of Drime Cloud Storage for a one-time $112.49 (reg. $299.99) through May 10.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
How to watch Bayern Munich vs. PSG online for free
Manchester City look to extend win streak, take on Everton
