From Netflix;
On their honeymoon in Morocco, Scott and Taylor Dolan set off on a day trip through the Sahara. When something goes terribly wrong, the couple find themselves stranded in the middle of the remote desert with no way home.
Put about a dozen disparate characters at a crash site in the desert. Learn their secrets one by one. Watch almost everyone of them die or go to prison or get away with murder. Endure a lot of violence and not terribly good lines.
Can you say “Skip this one”?
From Netflix:
Teller, of Penn & Teller fame, directs this absorbing film about inventor Tim Jenison’s quest to solve one of art’s greatest mysteries: How did Dutch master Johannes Vermeer paint so photo-realistically 150 years before the invention of photography?
Recently I took a course in photography in which the teacher recommended this film, probably because it involves the use of lenses.
For one hour and twenty minutes you get to accompany Tim Jenison on his unusual and obsessive quest to exactly reproduce Vermeer’s famous painting “The Music Lesson”. Here is a man who never gives up, although at one point he admits that if he were not being filmed then he would probably have quit before he finished.
His thesis is that without some technical aid it would have been impossible for Vermeer to create this masterpiece. In other words, the painting is suspiciously too good to be true. Other artists agree with Jenison. In the process of making his thesis more believable (we will never know for sure because Vermeer left no notes whatsoever), this amazingly talented and capable polymath begins by recreating exactly the very room that appears in the painting, including hand-making the furniture [even if it requires literally slicing an expensive tool in half].
Of course, it helps that this inventor is now financially independent. Nonetheless, his persistence is mind-blowing as we watch him day after day in the reproduction process. Finally he succeeds and weeps in happiness.
While possibly not interesting for everyone, Jenison’s achievement is worth witnessing.
From Netflix:
CIA analyst Jack Ryan tries to thwart a terrorist plot to bring down the U.S. economy in this action-thriller helmed by Kenneth Branagh. Chris Pine plays the title character alongside an all-star cast that includes Kevin Costner and Keira Knightley.
Although films consisting of spies + CIA + terrorists + international plots + action heroes + car chases + FBI + “you name it” may seem to be all more or less the same, still some writers manage to make a particular film exciting and somehow a little different. Undoubtedly the star cast which includes Chris Pine, Keira Knightley, Kevin Costner, and Kenneth Branagh helps make this film worth seeing.
Romance between Chris Pine (as Jack Ryan) and Keira Knightley (as Doctor Cathy Muller) is clever and well done.
Needless to say, if our side of the effort does not win, then our world will end in some horrible disaster and major financial depression.
And of course Jack Ryan is a super hero endowed with amazing physical powers of survival. After all, do YOU have a doctorate in complex finance? Can YOU run and catch a moving delivery van? Are you able to physically fight commando style? Are YOU a computer wiz? If not, what is the matter with YOU?
In my case all I can do is watch the fun. All it takes is a really evil bad guy and I am hooked into the plot till the end. Kenneth Branagh excels at being that really nasty villain. He does it with such a straight face. Are Russians really that mean?
Despite the fact that there are an awful lot of clever CIA-like devices and surprises that get our hero out of many jams, if you like this action genre, then DO NOT MISS!
From Netflix:
Martin Scorcese’s high-rolling Wall Street drama is based on the memoirs of stockbroker Jordan Belfort, whose giddy career — involving audacious scams and confrontations with the FBI and other agencies — ended in federal prison.
Pop quiz: Who is America’s worst enemy? Answer: Her own financial institutions.
Normally I do not consider myself a prude, but I was shocked to:
Is this film merely an excuse to present the above items? Can the bar go any lower?
On the positive side, this film IS entertaining: tongue-in-cheek banter, a true parade of idiots, nude explicit sexual activity. What’s not to love? And if you ever wanted instruction on how to enrich yourself at the expense of gullible investors, this film is textbook. Have you ever seen a broker talking to a client on the phone while simultaneously giving that client the finger? You can also learn a lot from the shady Swiss bankers.
Keep your money in a sock and enjoy this guilty pleasure embarrassment.
From Netflix:
Against formidable odds — and an old-school diving instructor embittered by the U.S. Navy’s new, less prejudicial policies — Carl Brashear sets his sights on becoming the Navy’s first African-American master diver in this uplifting true story.
HBO recently showed this 14-year old film. As with most films about real-life heroes (military and other), the story is compelling while the film can be a bit corny, as in “wearing your emotions on your sleeve”. Nonetheless, Carl Brashear was brave, persistent, and an admirable role-model.
Spoiler: this old-fashioned film has a happy ending. Give the film a B and enjoy it.
From Netflix:
In a race against time, a crew of art historians and museum curators unite to recover renowned works of art stolen by Nazis before Hitler destroys them. Written, directed and starring George Clooney.
As you can read in the Wikipedia article, the critics can boo and the historians can tsk-tsk, but that did not stop Kathy and me from enjoying this film.
At the very least the film made me appreciate that all those art works were worth the danger, the lost lives, and the effort. You and I may be forgotten but for a while at least our civilization is recorded in part in those pieces of art. According to another Wikipedia article, we have art works dating from the Paleolithic period (25 000-8000 BCE). Do you think the world should forget Hitler?
Hats off to George Clooney for telling a good story. There were even moments of suspense, for example, racing to retrieve the Ghent altar piece and Michelangelo’s Madonna before the Russians could steal them.
For awhile I did not recognize Cate Blanchette cleverly disguised as an art librarian and French Resistance fighter. But you will probably recognize Matt Damon, Bill Murray, and John Goodman.
If you are up for a not very violent and just a bit corny story about art works, you might enjoy this film based on true events (but DO check that Wikipedia article for fact fanatics.)
From Netflix:
A pianist returning to the stage five years after a public meltdown learns that a sniper will shoot him and his wife if he plays just one wrong note. But the gunman’s twisted motives go far deeper than anyone suspects.
Although the idea behind the story is novel (some say ridiculous), the film itself was nothing special. Critics panned the film.
After the film was over I still did not know the motives of the killer. Even Wikipedia offered no clues.
Try some other film.
2014-2015 REVISION:
November 2015: Netflix offers season 3 but only on DVD, no streaming.
The release date for season 4 is not yet settled. Season 3 was at least as good as the previous two seasons with some very clever surprises at the very end of season 3 which makes the audience ever more eager to see season 4.
For more information about the Viking raid on Paris in 845 see the Wikipedia article. On that occasion the French king was Charles the Bald, one of Charlemagne’s grandsons. By the Treaty of Verdun in 843, Charles became king of what was for the most part modern day France.
Now from Amazon Prime you can stream both season 1 and season 2. Season 2 is at least as good as Season 1. Wonderful but violent!
FORMER REVIEW:
Netflix offers Season 1 on DVD. However, I streamed from Amazon for free because we bought Amazon Prime. Jan 2015 – Now you can stream Season 2 from Amazon. Somehow the story just gets better and better. DO NOT MISS all the VIOLENCE!
From Netflix:
Set in medieval Scandinavia, this gritty drama charts the adventures of renowned Viking hero Ragnar Lothbrok as he extends the Norse reach by challenging the rule of an unfit leader who lacks vision.
Merely appreciating the finesse and details that went into making this remarkable TV series just gives me chills.
His ambiguous smile is mostly that of the fox waiting for its opportunity. Eventually you come to accept and even identify that constant smile with the character Ragnar Lothbrok played to dazzling perfection by the Australian-born Travis Fimmel.
Gabriel Byrne as Earl Haraldson is the only actor I recognized. You may remember him as Dr. Paul Weston in the TV series “In Treatment”. Here he is a brooding, vicious bully.
In order to enter Valhalla a Viking must die in battle. Similar to the ancient Greek culture, violence and personal bravery are everything. Whatever riches a Viking can bury will be his in the next life. Hence the need for plunder. In other words, by its nature this film had to be very VIOLENT!
Perhaps some history will set the scene. Roughly speaking as Rome abandoned England in the 400s, she invited in German mercenaries among which were the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes. They liked what they saw and oppressed the original inhabitants, the Celts. After centuries their many dialects would eventually congeal into Anglo Saxon. In the 600s Christianity appeared and the Anglo Saxons converted. In the 800s the Danes, i.e. the Vikings, reached England and were trouble for the Anglo Saxons until that famous year 1066 in which no sooner had Edward Confessor defeated the Danes then the Normans conquered the Anglo Saxons.
In regard to the previous mini-history, in the scenes in which the Vikings speak to the Anglo Saxons, the Vikings speak old Norse and supposedly the “English” speak Anglo Saxon.
Also in regard to that mini-history, probably the most important theme of the series is religion. Ragnar Lothbrok, in attacking his first monastery, brings back as a slave a young Christian monk Athelstan (thoughtfully played by George Blagden). No episode goes by without some discussion, confrontation, or comparison (call it what you like) between the “pagan” religion and the Christian. Odd how violent, vicious, and untrustworthy the Christians are. There are aspects of the Viking religion that may disturb your sleep.
Fighting is really a small part of the story. Interpersonal relations and conflicts are equally important. There is true character development.
And of course you cannot help to notice how these Viking men wore their hair. Let’s hope the costume department got it historically accurate. Needless to say there are many tattoos.
If you can stand the violence, DO NOT MISS !
From Netflix:
This Australian outback thriller brings together the classic film noir ingredients when a man’s cross-country drive is diverted by car trouble. Soon after, he witnesses a spectacular car crash that includes one survivor and a money-stuffed suitcase.
By accident I found this Australian gem that just never lets go.
None of the actors are familiar to me, but all are excellent, especially the trio:
We are NOT talking about a love triangle. Colin honestly returns the suitcase of money to the sheriff which is when Colin’s troubles really begin. Proceed from there through drug dealers, fighting, murder, bodies dumped in a mine, deception, and a satisfying final set of clever plot twists.
Don’t miss this lucky find!
From Netflix:
When their father disappears, three strong-willed women return to their childhood home and to their equally strong-willed mother. As they search for their patriarch, the dysfunctional family members wind up facing difficult truths about themselves.
What an impressive collection of actors for the family ensemble from Hell! Watching this soap opera may seem familiar because there are so many “family get-together” films just like it. For some reason this new addition to the “Dysfunctional Family Hall of Fame” was for me enjoyable. But then let’s take a look at the roster.
Once you get all those relations straight the rest is easy. If you are really confused try the Wikipedia summary.
Just be prepared for some ugly surprises. Nothing special.