Watching Instantly
By Vijay Kumar
August 17, 2010
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Went Looking For…
Believe it or not, I sometimes do have a predetermined playlist while browsing for movie titles. Generally, there is a week between my adding them to the playlist and actually watching them. The movies under “Went Looking For…” are typically the movies that I had slotted as “Ended up with…” the previous week.
Planet 51
Planet 51, while confirming some sci-fi theories such as people living outside of earth are possibly green skinned and they do speak English, places your average alien landing on a planet in a reverse milieu where the human crash lands on an alien planet and needs local support to get back to the mother ship. Phew! That's a long, disjointed sentence but that is pretty much the story. I understand the casting of Dwayne Johnson as the cocky astronaut. Justin Long absolutely fits the role of Lem, the soft spoken nerdy hero. Stifler plays the clueless yet wisecracking sidekick to the hilt. I normally wouldn’t say this but it is Jessica Biel that I have a problem with. You don’t associate her as a voice talent. Then again, for a token girlfriend role, who else can you hire? The "Alien" (the movie… no pun intended) inspired "dog" is a nice addition to the cast and so is the WALL-E like rover robot. Writing by Joe Stillman of the original Shrek Fame relies on juxtaposing the story of E.T in another planet where the human is the alien. So we have some of the legendary E.T sequences played out in reverse. That novelty wears off in the effort to push the story forward. Animation is definitely from the Maya school of thought, which means clear well defined character animation.
Every Which Way But Loose
I guess this is as close it comes to a Clint Eastwood comedy. The narrative style is "loose" as suggested in the title. The story follows the wanderlust ways of Philo, a sometimes truck driver and a full-time fist fighter. He has a pet orangutan and a faithful brother for company in his escapades. Just when his life (and indeed the movie) starts getting aimless, purpose comes through a wandering singer who appears to be evading Philo. Philo assumes certain details about her and hits the road in her pursuit with his cohorts, both of whom get hooked up during the trip. That’s right! The orangutan has a one night stand. Thanks to his fist fighting ways, there are two separate groups chasing him. One is a set of bikers trying to avenge constant humiliation at the hands of Philo. The other is a pair of cops trying to settle scores with Philo as well. Hilarity ensues through the ineptness prevalent among them.
There is added hilarity in the side track with Ruth Gordon ("Ma" in the movie) and her attempts to get her driving license renewed. “This is the second Ruth Gordon movie this month. Wonder what that means...” I said trying to draw a comment from my wife. She complained that her eye sockets are hurting with the constant rolling of its contents.
Legend is that everyone was trying to talk Eastwood out of pursuing this movie. His knack of picking hits shines through in this fun ride.
Sin Nombre
Sin Nombre does not go about addressing the topical issue of illegal immigration. It is in essence a gritty tale of two youngsters trying to reach the Promised Land to escape their lives south of the border. Willy aka Casper is a gangster who changes the course of his life by killing his gang leader in an impromptu revenge act. The only link that Casper had towards a normal life was his girlfriend, who unwittingly wanders into his gang’s meeting place at a cemetery. Casper, smarting from betrayal, blows his fuse when the gang leader attacks another girl, Sayra, on a train frequented by illegal immigrants. He continues traveling with the immigrant group as returning to the life he once led is not an option anymore. Sayra is on a long trip of her own starting from Honduras and traveling with her father and uncle, memorizing a phone number that she needs to use once she is on the other side. She takes an instant liking to Casper and develops a loyalty towards him that surpasses any emotional connection she has with the other men in her life. Casper’s old gang is relentless in their pursuit of the traitor. They are aided by Smiley, their youngest member, who ironically was introduced to the gang by none other than Casper. The movie is a study in contrasts. The cargo trains, enveloped by bewitching landscapes, chug along carrying human misery. It is difficult not to wonder why a majority of these people are fleeing their life into the unknown. Migration is generally about survival but it seems absurd in the human context.
Ended up with…
Whilst checking out the above movies, I invariably end up fattening my instant watch queue with some new additions. These go into my “Ended up with…” list and the plan is to watch them during the week ahead. NetFlix keeps tempting me to move each one of them to the top of the queue but I resist. These are movies that I plan to check out in the days ahead.
The Other Man
I am suffering from temporary amnesia. I am unable to recollect why I added this title to my queue. Yet, there it is, moving up the order like the no-talent son-in-law with connections in a bureaucratic regime. It is possible that I added this Liam Neeson flick in a Taken hangover. The storyline of a man working with his missing wife’s supposed lover suggests that it might have been added to please my wife. Anyway, I am still trying to wrap my head around the tagline – "Is knowing the truth worth living a lie?"
Patton
Patton was suggested to me by NetFlix based on my interest in such varied movies such as 12 Angry Men and Mr.Smith Goes to Washington. I doubt if these movies have anything in common other than the era in which they hit the theaters. However, I am eager to see this movie of which I have heard so much but never found an on-demand medium to see until now. The movie fetched an Academy Award for George C. Scott, who plays the titular role.
The Thin Blue Line
The Thin Blue Line promises to be another of those many treasures stocked at NetFlix. A game-changing documentary, TTBL helped throw light on a murder investigation that initially held the wrong man responsible. It is helmed by Errol Morris, who was nominated for the Academy Award and won several other awards.
On a separate note, NetFlix has struck a deal with Epix and will start adding even more titles to its streaming library. These include modern hits such as Ironman, all time favorites such as The Indiana Jones series and classics including The Godfather. Ironman and Indiaan Jones start streaming as early as September. Busy days ahead…