Watching Instantly
By Vijay Kumar
July 20, 2010
Browsing through NetFlix’s online streaming collection is not unlike those late Friday nights spent browsing through the movie maze in your local video store. The search for that perfect movie is often tricky. Sometimes you have to deal with a fuming partner and/or a melting tub of ice-cream in the car. The pressure is compounded by a listless, unhelpful store clerk in some cases. This column aims to be that clerk for NetFlix Instant Watch – maybe just a little less listless and little more helpful. This is what I waded through recently – at NetFlix.
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.
Zombieland
Zombieland is a zombie road movie that culminates in an amusement park. Jesse Eisenberg is a pioneer in the new genre of amusement park movies. He kicked off these efforts with Adventureland, an angst fueled movie set in an amusement park of the same name. Adventureland was initially meant to be just a teen comedy, but took an angsty turn after Kristen Stewart was cast. I digress. Zombieland is more of a fun ride despite having a gory premise. The few non-zombies left in the American Continent are trying to find their way to utopia.
The exact location changes from character to character but they do end up traveling together. Columbus (Eisenberg) is trying to find his way back to his home town with the aid of 32 rules and the occasional firearm. Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson) is a trigger happy zombie hunter with a side quest for Twinkies. Wichita (Emma Stone) and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) are sisters intent on duping zombies and non-zombies alike. Bill Murray throws in a great cameo for good measure. This is a black comedy in the sense that the comedy comes through blood spewing violence. We are talking about situations involving the undead and the live ones who try to stay out of their way. Shaun of the Dead is getting to be a great influence on moviemakers.
Surrogates
Surrogates turned out to be a rather decent thriller. The premise is the same as I, Robot. A few more common elements with the Will Smith movie are available through casting and plot points.
As humans continue to lead lives of seclusion, their robotic surrogates go about performing their physical activities. The surrogates themselves are good looking versions of the humans. Their job is to ensure that the real people are not exposed to any physical harm. They are in contact with their owners through a network monitored by a corporate entity. I couldn’t help wondering if it would be easier to harm a semi-sedated person locked up in an apartment than someone out and about in the real world. That would deny us a story. So, let’s assume that they are safer in their apartments.
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