Friday, July 15, 2016

Netflix This Movie! Vol. 185

by Patrick Bromley
Netflix may not add new stuff as often as we'd like, but here are four recent additions that are well worth watching.

The Invitation (2016, dir. Karyn Kusama) I dug this tense, moody thriller when I reviewed it earlier this year, and now that it's on Netflix you should absolutely give it your time. I have some issues with some of the choices that the screenplay makes, but the acting is so good and Kusama's direction so confident that I can overlook any problems and see this is an excellent dramatic thriller with some real heavy shit on its mind. This ends up being one of the saddest movies of the year, though not for reasons you might think based on a comment like that.
Road Games (2016, dir. Abner Pastoll) Not as good as The Invitation, but this French thriller (which is not a remake of the terrific Richard Franklin movie from 1981) offers a few surprises and a performance by Barbara Crampton, recent guest on our live podcast-a-thon and a wonderful human being whose every film should be seen. I liked the movie -- didn't love it -- but it's the kind of film that's easy to invest two hours into when you're already paying for Netflix and have nothing else to lose. I know that sounds like a backhanded compliment, but I don't mean it that way. It makes sense in my head.
Mustang (2015, dir. Deniz Gamez Ergüven) I'll admit I have not yet seen this movie, but Cait Cannon wrote a terrific piece about it a few months back and I've been anxious to check it out ever since. I'll take her word for it and plan to watch it this weekend. You should too.
Deathgasm (2015, dir. Jason Lei Howden) One of the most entertaining horror movies of last year is a celebration of metal music, youthful irresponsibility and splattery gore -- yet another really fun effort to come out of New Zealand in recent years. There are some crazy set pieces that are hard to dislike, including a scene in which the heroes battle zombie demons with sex toys. I'm excited to see what Jason Lei Howden does next.

10 comments:

  1. I love The Invitation. It's my favorite horror movie of the year and my 2nd favorite movie behind The Nice Guys. Also, Kusama's earlier movie, Jennifer's Body, is better than you remember.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's huge. I "liked" the Invitation but didn't feel as strongly about it as most; much like "Green Room". "The Witch", "February" and "Darling" are holding strong as my top three Horror films for the year.

      Delete
  2. Not a Movie...but "Stranger Things" seems like an honorable mention.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Holidays...(haven't seen it) but maybe an FThisMovie consideration? Seems like your vibe. The fucker is now for free (Netflix free).

      Delete
    2. Definitely going to be watching Stranger Things soon. I reviewed Holidays (which was added to Netflix too late for this week's column) when it was out and found it very, very mixed. It may get a NTM recommendation on a week where I'm hard up for titles, but that might be it.

      Delete
    3. I really enjoyed Holidays but I'm a sucker for anthologies. I feel like people focused on Kevin Smith's shitty waste of Halloween. Father's Day is one of my favorite parts of any movie this year. I loved Easter which has one of the most fucked up and audacious things you'll ever see. It's definitely worth checking out.

      Delete
    4. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    5. Sorry for the unrelatedness but have you seen the Canadian movie Father's Day? It's a very FTM movie and my bet for the best faux-grind house movie.

      Delete
    6. I didn't respond so well to Holidays but that film did make Brent Peterson (on purpose) and I become friends so I kind of like it better now (not really). Haven't seen Fathers Day but know the filmmakers and know what to expect. The best "faux-grind house movie" with a wide release has gotta be "Hobo with..." right? Canadian as well. I can name a ton of low budget ones but I still think that's definitive of the modern genre.

      Delete
    7. Oh, and crushed two eps of Stranger Things and I love it!

      Delete