What to watch: ‘Shards’ is a terrifically tawdry thriller

A successful collab between a popular novelist and high-flying producer, and a steal-your-heart documentary about some young entrepreneurs top our roundup this week.

Here’s a look.

“The Shards”: Bringing together satirist Bret Easton Ellis, a novelist known for vividly capturing pop-culture posturing with affectless prose and shocks aplenty, with hitmaker Ryan Murphy, a high-gloss creator of a sexy/scary phenoms such as “American Horror Story” and “Monster,” seems so no-duh genius you wonder why it didn’t happen before now. Here, they’re in perfect step with each other in am insanely entertaining nine-part FX/Hulu series based on one of Ellis’s plunges into the foibles and excesses of a specific time and place. (The hummable ‘80s soundtrack is irresistible). The embattled author of the once-banned “America Psycho” returns to his first-book roots — an 1980s Los Angeles full of coke-sniffing, serial killing and sexual experimentation, as experienced by a brat pack of bored, horny and rich high schoolers. True to form, the story is narrated by an unscrupulous wanna-be novelist named Bret Easton Ellis (Igby Rigney), a closet case lusting away for the new hunk at his cruel prep school. Bret ogles the heck out of the alluring Robert Mallory (Homer Gere) at a screening of Kubrick’s “The Shining.” When he runs into Robert at school, the homme fatale disputes whether he was ever in that theater. Uh-oh. The suspicions and secrets and lies pile on from there as a Night Stalker-like serial killer named The Trawler stalks wealthy estates and a Manson-like cult called the Riders of the After Life paint satanic symbols and invade homes.

If those monsters aren’t enough to remind you of real-life counterparts, there’s a who’s-who assembly line of human predators slithering about and preying on duplicitous Bret, troubled Robert, “perfect” student Susan (Kaia Gerber), attention-seeking Debbie (Hayes Warner), insecure and fragile Thom (Graham Campbell) and the formidably talented Ryan (Daniel Dale). Each characters is a far, far cry from anything that event resembles virtuous. Yet you can’t help but want to watch them. The adults are much worse: Debbie’s smarmy, touchy-feely dad (Wes Bentley, so good he’s destined for an Emmy nomination) is a slimebucket and drugged-out Hollywood exec who likes the boys a little too much. Then there’s his blurry-eyed car wreck of a wife (Evan Rachel Woods), an actress faded into obsoleteness.

They all are juicy characters to portray and to watch, and the cast couldn’t be better at getting into their toned, tanned and scaly skins. There’s a lot of sex and many nasty acts committed by these beautiful people. But beyond that there’s a vitality and spirit here that is filled with nostalgia, and that sense extends from a televised dance-off contest (one of the best episodes) on to the sexy, anything-goes pool and house parties and gossipy lunches where teens get overserved. “The Shards” captures — as Ellis always has —the mood, the style, the music and the tempo of these wild times. And Ellis and Murphy do it with style and substance. After watching the final episode, all I can say is there better be another season on the horizon. Details: 3½ stars; first two episodes land this week on Hulu and FX, with one episode released each week after.

“Cookie Queens”: One of the sweetest surprises of this year’s Sundance Film Festival got unpacked in “Cookie Queens,” Alysa Nahmias’ girl-power documentary that warms the heart and is guaranteed to make you smile. It’s a non-fussy film that follows four Girl Scouts as they, and their supportive parents and family members, strive to sell as many cookies as they can. Through the process, the girls not only become shrewd salespeople but gain confidence and sometimes even stand up to better the rights of their troops.

The four girls come from various socio-economic and cultural backgrounds and geographic locations, offering a vivid snapshot of America. You’ll enjoy meeting all these girls — 12-year-old go-getter Olive who shatters sale records; 9-year-old Nikki who is following in the footsteps of her sisters; and 8-year-old Shannon Elizabeth, whose Girl Scout experiences have lifted her out of her shell. The one who stole my heart, though, (and will likely do the same to you), is 5-year-old bespectacled Ara, who’s so adorable it literally hurts. How could you not buy 20 boxes from her? “Cookie Queens” might well end up the feel-good film of 2026. Details: 3 stars; in theaters Aug. 7.

“Monsters of God”: Filmmaker/conservationist Eric Goode’s passion for reptiles fuels a damning five-part expose that mirrors his best-known work, co-directing Netflix’s ratings hit “Tiger King.” While “Monsters” might not pump out as many twisty surprises per episode, it’s still an outright shocker and talker that sinks its fangs into you from the very first episode. Goode charts the exploitation and mistreatment of reptiles that are illegally sold and sometimes endangered through intricate, decades-old smuggling operations that have often, but not always, escaped detection at airports. The principles involved are a colorfully wild bunch from Florida — a father and his two sons — who have created a murky empire in which some couriers board international flights with luggage containing squirming venomous snakes, as well as “the godfather” in Malaysia, who sold the critters in bulk to go-betweens who would then sell to others, including zoos. There’s a dizzying amount of outlandish behavior going on, from chimps with a taste for cocaine, to a former drug dealer who is devoted to reptiles and on to those who engage in intense undercover sting operations. Even Livermore gets mentioned in the final episode (not another word on that) along with references to “Jurassic Park,” Michael Jackson and more. To say all of this is eye-opening and disturbing doesn’t begin to cover it. But there’s also an element of sadness that Goode taps into, as he expounds on how man can indeed be the cruelest beast of all at times. Details: 3½ stars; first episode debuts at 9 p.m. Aug. 6 on HBO, with new episodes debuting Thursdays.

“Ice Cream Man”: Baskin Robbins dreamt up 31 flavors, a decent selection capable of satisfying most sweet tooths. Horrormeister Eli Roth’s cinematic specialty is serving one flavor — Gross-Out Gore Galore — in copious scoops to an eager horror fan base. The “Thanksgiving” and “Cabin Fever” disruptor is back with a unsettling and darkly comic skewering of suburbia where little darlings — many with potty mouths and clueless parents — eat ice cream and turn into savage bloodthirst freaks intent on attacking, garrotting and dismembering authoritative figures in the Capraesque community of Bayleen Bay. They spare no one and rely on a variety of instruments — handsaw, garden shears and more — to take out annoying adults. The Pied Piper here is a creepy mustachioed ice cream man (Ari Millen), who comes with an interesting backstory revealed in the final act. The screenplay offers a few tricks up its sleeve while the trio of pint-sized actors (Kiori Mirza Waldman, Charlie Zeltzer and Shiloh O’Reilly) and two older teens (Sarah Abbot and Dylan Hawco) caught up in the massacre make for company you root for to survive, but as with all Roth’s films, the real stars are the inventive, gross kills that make up the bulk of “Ice Cream Man.” For that reason, some will despise its very existence. Regardless, it is well-made horror that never lags in its steamroll of committed carnage and comes with clever touches (animated sequences are inspired) with these adults getting their just desserts. Roth has a bit part as a dad and Snoop Dogg even came up with a weird ice-cream-themed tune as well. Gotta hear it, to believe it. Details: 3 stars; in theaters Aug. 7.

“Wrath”: An earthy authenticity and a strong grasp for location and feel for strong-willed characters distinguish Netflix’s six-part series from Brazil and sets it apart from the usual underdog sports-themed tales. Creator Igor Verde and Gustavo Bragança’s raw, sometimes brutal series thrives on emotionally and physically wounded characters, all of whom are seeking a fighting chance back into the ring of life. The story it tells is not groundbreaking, but the performances, the fight scenes and the execution do keep you fully invested. An all but feral man (Vinicius Neri) takes a shot to the head and can’t remember much, not even his name. He latches onto a surrogate family he finds in a scrappy, down-on-its-heels MMA gym run by the strong-of-faith owner who found him in a trash heap near the beach. Unlike him, his savior Toni (Fabio Lago) and daughter Gabriela (Alice Carvalho) are looking to escape from their past after a car accident changed the direction of both their lives, ‘Marcelo,’ on the other hand, is trying to put the flashing memories of his past together. Tensions emerge when a father-daughter team at a flashier rival gym that stepped on Toni’s toes too many times before, eye Marcelo and his fists of fury that can kill. “Wrath” shuffle steps away from the normal “Rocky” routine and it punches just slightly above its fleet weight. If you like gritty sports tales and MMA specifically, seek it out. Details: 3 stars; available now on Netflix.

— Contact Randy Myers at [email protected].