Tuesday, September 6, 2016

“Obscurities and What the Hell Was That?!?: The Stuff You’re Definitely Missing on NETFLIX”



“Obscurities and What the Hell Was That?!?: The Stuff You’re Definitely Missing on NETFLIX”

The following picks should keep you busy for the next few weeks; if not, you, like me, have way too much time on your hands… weirdo.  We should start a support group!  At least until “Luke Cage” comes out on September 30th; then, I might be unavailable for a bit…

NEW ARRIVALS
TV/DRAMA

MARCELLA
(2016, TV-MA, 8 episodes, 45 Min. each, NETFLIX ORIGINALS)


Expect a nomination for Anna Friel’s performance of the mentally unstable Detective Marcella Backland, a woman on the brink of madness.  Well, it isn’t so much as a “brink” as it is “did she just freaking do what I think she just freaking did?!?”.  While there are a few unfortunate holes in this sometimes typical procedural, there are enough surprises and characters to keep you guessing.  This is a well-executed whodunit, with richly drawn characters and strong acting that never lets you down.  It is also one of the few shows with one of the most diverse casts you will find.  It is refreshing to see and hear the heartbeat of this story, indeed what I imagine the real London is actually like, in the ethnic and cultural diversity on display here.  No stereotypes, just well-designed lives with intertwining stories.  Oh, and a few lunatics.  The story itself is about Marcella re-joining the police force after her husband leaves her.  She gets caught up in the investigation of a serial murderer, the identity of whom you probably will not see coming.  Just don’t try to watch it all in one sitting; the story is pretty heavy, and should be taken in, say, no more than a couple of doses a night.  LIKE ME.

International/Drama/Independent

PAUL VERHOEVEN’S TRICKED
(2012, NR, 88 minutes, FCCE/AMSTELFILM)


The director of ROBOCOP, BASIC INSTINCT, and STARSHIP TROOPERS likes to stretch his limits.  In this production, he had screenwriter and fellow Netherlander Kim van Kooten write four pages of a script.  Then, they allowed the residents of their home country to complete the rest.  He and another writer sat down with all of the submissions, pulled the best stuff from all of them, and came up with a fifty-five minute film that is fun (and occasionally painful) to watch.  You would never guess, from the final production, that thousands of people had a hand in figuring this story all out.  All you need to know is that a family man, on his fiftieth birthday, and on the verge of losing his company, hits rock bottom when one of his girlfriend’s shows up to his party pregnant.  That is the first few minutes of the film, the original scripted part; the rest, well, is fun.  None of the people in this film are all that likeable, but that isn’t the point.  This is art, created in a way that is original and fresh.  In fact, the first half hour of the Netflix presentation is actually a documentary on how they did it.  You should not fast-forward, by the way.  Listen to Paul and the rest of the production team and watch as they create, ponder, come up with a color scheme for the ever-changing story, and eschew on the number of submitted pages they actually had to go through.  Then watch the film itself, and see if you aren’t surprised with how cohesive (and amorally rewarding) the story turns out.  And yes, it is subtitled, but you’ll feel smarter afterwards, so stop complaining and go watch the damn thing.

The LETHAL WEAPON Movies
(1987 – 1998, R, approx. 120 minutes Each, WARNER BROTHERS/SILVER PICTURES)


Someone at Fox Studios thought it would be a good idea to turn this beloved franchise into a TV show.  It doesn’t debut on the network until September 21st, which gives you plenty of time to catch up on the classics beforehand.  The first film is interesting to watch in that it re-invigorated a washed up genre: the “buddy-cop” films.  Shane Black’s first released script (MONSTER SQUAD came out later in ’87) turns the typical odd-couple concept on its head, introducing a chemistry between the two leads that may have wavered in later films, but still kept the series going for four decent enough films.  The strongest is the second one, the weakest the third, but all are worth a watch.  Or a re-watch.  Do it before the show airs, to better judge the new cast (Damon Wayans and Clayne Crawford in the roles made famous by Danny Glover and Mel Gibson).  Besides, part of the third installment was filmed in Clearwater; watch and see if you can recognize the location.

-        T.S. Kummelman

You guys have been a little slow, lately… no challenges?!?  This is a lot easier than it sounds, kids; Netflix always throws some stupid sounding queues together for you (Quirky Bollywood Movies, Foreign Horror Comedies, etc), so think of something creative and make me hunt this stuff down!  Otherwise, I’m binge watching “Stranger Things” as many times as I can over the next few weeks…

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