"Obscurities and Abject Pandering: What You’re Missing
on NETFLIX"
NEW ARRIVALS
Drama
SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD
(2014, R, 101 minutes, FOCUS FEATURES)
Quite possibly the sweetest Armageddon movie ever made. Steve Carell and Keira Knightley star in a
movie about a man and woman’s road trip to reunite him with his high school
sweetheart as a giant space rock hurtles toward earth. The science behind this movie is all in the
human behavior around Dodge and Penny as they travel; they witness humanity at
its best, and worst. There are little
touches in this film that make it quietly affecting, and sometimes downright
humorous. Don’t go in expecting to see
awesome explosions and landmarks being destroyed; the greatest special effects
lie in the quiet and honest performances of Carell and Knightley. And the dog named 'Sorry'.
IF I STAY
(2014, PG-13, 107 minutes, DINOVI PICTURES/MGM)
Worried about Chloë Grace Moretz not expanding her horizons
and being pigeon-holed into genre films (see: LET ME IN, DARK SHADOWS, CARRIE)
for the rest of her life? Check out her latest, the story of a girl in a coma
who apparently has the choice of whether to live or die following a tragic car
accident. She shows new depth with the
role of “Mia” than in everything else she has ever done—and I love her early
stuff. Brilliant in LET ME IN and the
first KICK-ASS movie. Here, she proves
that not only does she have a future in Hollywood, but Hollywood will have a
better future with her in it. I watched
this one with my daughter; she cried. I
hid it.
MEAN GIRLS
(2004, PG-13, 97 minutes, PARAMOUNT PICTURES)
This should be required viewing for any girl entering high
school. Starring Lindsey Lohan and
Rachel McAdams as two girls vying for the same guy, popularity takes on a whole
new meaning as their scheming takes on new heights. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are also on hand, as is Tim Meadows,
playing quite possibly the 'Greatest School Principle Ever'. There is a marvelous soundtrack, genuinely
funny moments, and a pre-whacko Lohan.
It’s like HEATHERS meets Ridgemont High, just with no killing. Or smoking vans.
New Release vs. Old
Instead of: THE
WOMAN IN BLACK 2: ANGEL OF DEATH (which tries to recreate the atmosphere of the
first—the setting is creepy, but the cheap scares are not)
Watch: THE AWAKENING (a 2011 film that is moody, dreary,
creepy, and does everything WOMAN IN BLACK 2 tries to do but fails to deliver
on—a rather effective ghost story that will leave you thinking)
Instead of: THE COBBLER (I lasted through exactly twenty-three
minutes of this film, and then promptly forgot everything I had seen by hitting
myself in the face with a hammer fifteen times)
Watch: BIG DADDY (Sandler’s last really good film, with a
scene stealing performance by everyone else in the film, including Rob
Schneider and Jon Stewart)
Make up a queue kids, and put me to work! Suggestions are always welcome, so get
creative! I’m always up to new
challenges!
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