I think it’s pretty safe to say that cable television is slowly but surely going the way of the dodo bird. With the introduction of other programming options like Netflix, Roku, and Hulu, the internet is yet again putting the power in the hands of the people. Netflix, for one, not only allows you to watch a vast catalog of films, documentaries, stand-up comedy specials, and television series (say, in case you never finished watching The Office), but they also have original programming (i.e. House of Cards, Orange Is The New Black, and Marco Polo). The bad habit you may fall into is treating Netflix like an online DVD collection, simply watching films and TV series that you’ve already seen. So we put together a quick list of 5 films on Netflix that you have to watch! Trust us, you’ll be glad you did.
Side Effects
In case you thought you had “Channing Tatum movies” all figured out, think again. First off, the movie isn’t about his character. Second, believe it or not, he plays a stock broker who just got out of prison for insider trading – not your typical Channing Tatum character. And third, the movie isn’t about his character. The lead in this film is his character’s wife, Emily (played by Rooney Mara) who’s world only begins to fall apart when her husband is sent to prison. The story is set when upon his release, Emily – suffering from depression – begins to take a drug prescribed by her psychiatrist that has unexpected side effects. The cast also includes Jude Law, who plays the psychiatrist, and Catherine Zeta-Jones, who also plays a psychiatrist. Oh, and its directed by Steven Soderbergh.
Casa de Mi Padre
I’m willing to bet you haven’t seen this film. In fact, you may have never even heard of it – which is saying a lot for a Will Ferrell project. Casa de Mi Padre is a spoof film, taking jabs at the story lines, production flaws, and over-the-top drama found in telenovelas, spaghetti westerns, and Quentin Tarantino films. The plot is simple enough. Will Ferrell plays Armando Alvarez, a cattle rancher who finds out that his brother (his father’s favorite) is actually a drug dealer and at war with a Mexican drug lord. It’s up to Armando to restore the honor of the family name. The incredible twist is that 1. the entire movie is in Spanish with English subtitles, and 2. there is as much effort put into the cliche production styles, technical errors and eccentricities of telenovelas and spaghetti westerns as there is in the story itself. You’ll find yourself laughing…and rewinding…a lot.
Lawless
Based on a true story, Lawless is set in Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia. The Bondurant brothers (played by Shia Lebeouf, Tom Hardy, and Jason Clark) are local bootleggers who find themselves threatened by a new special deputy (played by Guy Pierce) and other authorities angling for a cut of their profits. This collection of actors is enough to get my attention. Shia Lebeouf plays the baby brother Jack. He isn’t the star and he doesn’t try to be. Tom Hardy plays Forrest, the oldest of the three. I liked him in Inception but my mind was blown when my friend Steven Strickland told me he is also the actor who played Bane in The Dark Knight Rises…yup, blown. Jason Clark has a wonderful ability to play the back as seen in Zero Dark Thirty and The Great Gatsby. I absolutely love Guy Pierce’s ability to play the bad guy that just desperately needs to have his ass kicked. And with the grace of an esteemed actor who doesn’t need to see his name in bold, Gary Oldman plays a small but indelible role as a local gangster.
Defiance
I had never heard of Defiance before seeing it on Netflix. In fact, now that I mention it, I don’t think I’d ever heard of Lawless either. Anyway, Defiance tells the story of three Jewish brothers, Tuvia, Zus, and Asael Bielski (played by Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, and Jamie Bell, respectively) in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe who escape into the Belarussian forests, also occupied by Russian resistance fighters. The brothers end up building a village in the forest in order to protect themselves and about 1,000 fellow Jewish non-combatants. This is not the 007 Daniel Craig. Much more The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo character – a man of will and integrity even if not a man of physical dominance.
Pain & Gain
Pain & Gain is a film that is difficult to define. “Absurd” comes to mind. Yet another movie based on a true story of a group of personal trainers (Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson and Anthony Mackie) who decide to steal the American Dream. Mark Wahlberg plays Daniel Lugo, a personal fitness trainer and natural salesman who is painfully dissatisfied with how unsuccessful he is in life. With the help of Paul Doyle (Dwayne Johnson) and Adrian Doorbal (Anthony Mackie) he sets off to execute a fool-proof (and by fool-proof I mean completely not fool-proof and spectacularly ridiculous) scheme to kidnap a wealthy client and rob him of his riches. And yes, that’s a fanny pack Anthony Mackie is sporting. It was the 80’s, everybody was doing it.
These are the 5 films that made the cut for us. Let us know what you think of the list and if there are any movies on Netflix that you think are on the “must watch” list, mention them too!
