Netflix Watch Instantly Recommendation Thread

fuck ozon

this is v watchable - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_LA_Complex

s2 <<< s1 i think - largely bcuz the blonde dancer leaves and theres an ep w/ a rapper named "infinite jest"

saw a little bit of that on the air just for Jewel Staite, it seemed like typical light fluffy soap stuff

British detective shows I have seen recently (I am not a britisher):
The Fall- really good, strangely moving
Hidden- generates tension but too convoluted, and ultimately dumb
Luther- corny but engaging due to Elba.

in that bbc mystery vein, Wallander (w/ kenneth branagh) is good, though sort of hilariously glum. beautiful swedish scenery.

or just watch Wallander. (and The Bridge)

(ie the original swedish Wallander)

Am I going to want to see both?

so the swedish wallander is better? is it all the same story lines or...?

there's some overlap, yes. the Lassgard below is more a series of films and sticks close to the same books as the Branagh. the Henriksson is more of a weekly tv series and more based on the character than the actual books (none of which i've read) but is v watchable (series 2 heartbreaking because of what happened to the actor playing his daughter). the branagh suffers from having people dressed in swedish uniform but speaking in english accents and it just seems odd at times.

Branagh (English):
Sidetracked
Firewall
One Step Behind
Faceless Killers
The Man Who Smiled
Fifth Woman
An Event In Autumn
Dogs Of Riga
Before The Frost
+ more to come according to imdb

Krister Henriksson:
2 x 13 stories

Rolf Lassgård:
Faceless Murderer (1995)
Hounds Of Riga (1995)
White Lioness (1996)
Sidetracked (2001)
5th Woman (2002)
Man Who Smiled (2003)
Firewall (2006)
Pyramiden (2007)

The Swedish ones are frequently wonderful and really benefit from the talent of Ola Rapace and Johanna Sällström in the secondary roles. But yes, the Sällström back story makes series two almost unbearably poignant at times.

I have never made it more than about half way through any of the Branagh ones. They aren't bad, per se, but feel odd and a bit redundant.

I've enjoyed all the Jack Taylor eps immensely. Each one has at least one instance of hilariously cornball dialogue, but mostly the tone, pace are great. And Iain Glen is so damn likable.

that's the guy from the game of thrones series, right? (and probably a billion other things). Need to check that one out. These BBC mystery things are definitely good in that my wife and I both enjoy them.
the branagh suffers from having people dressed in swedish uniform but speaking in english accents and it just seems odd at times.
yeah this is always weird -- obviously a decision they made to only use british actors, but it is a little bizarre to have these amazing swedish landscapes and not a swedish accent to be heard.

and when someone is reading an email or a newspaper it's in Swedish!

my taste in bbc is pretty old ladyish, i'm really into foyle's war right now haha

What Foyle's I've seen is good. I also liked The Bletchley Circle, so maybe I'm an old lady too.

Foyle's gets progressively worse, but there are plenty of entertaining episodes in the first few seasons. It is fairly old lady-ish, but it makes me feel like I'm watching something with my long-gone grandmother. She would've loved it.

Foyle's War is great, though I couldn't really get into the most recent season. I consider "old-ladyish" to mostly be a good thing though.

i'm mostly just gently pleased that a person named 'honeysuckle weeks' exists

"honeysuckle weeks" is the best name

oh man it really is. and she's almost as adorable as her name.

we've watched a lot of inspector lynley too, though mainly that one is unintentionally hilarious. lynley has to be one of the lamest "heroes" of any TV show.

jesus christ i had no idea about Johanna Sällström. or about what happened to her in thailand. just totally awful.

what is really odd is this: a film about a swedish policeman, played by original wallander, whose fictional wife and daughter died in the tsunami.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/041011four.html

Will not recommend "The Iceman" which despite the cast was as rote a gangster flick as you could possibly imagine. The biopic formula is so rigid that in the one scene that's not set up with title cards giving you the date and location, one character actually says, "I can't believe it's June 28th, 1979 and here we are in Hackensack".

couldn't get ten minutes into that

I fucking loved it

'drug war' is pretty amazing and its ending is unremittingly bleak for almost all parties involved. it's also got one of those great HK film characters, a guy named "HaHa" whose primary characteristic is laughing at everything (reminding me of overweight characters named "fatty" usually played by eric tsang in "gems" like 'hard boiled 2')

yoooooo drug war was terrific. it being his first movie shot in mainland china, too, to really effectively subverts their more black-and-white policies toward morality

yup its awes

Always keep meaning to catch up on my Johnny To, added.

Yeah it's great. Starting Berberian Sound Studio but I am suspecting that nothing will be better than fake opening credits.

On Wallander front I just want to point out everyone should skip the adaptations and just read the books.

try the documentary talhotblond if you are into murder porn and reading long sex chats of v deluded ppl

forget the wallander UK adaptation, or the tv series, or even the books, i suggest you just meditate for 20 minutes with an image of wallander in your head

forget the wallander UK adaptation, or the tv series, the books, or even meditating on an image of wallander. I suggest you travel to Sweden and think long and hard about national identity.

just booked my flight, looking forward to it.
in other news, i understand the recent Big Star documentary is going to be streaming soon.

last night after I wrapped all the presents and everyone else was asleep, I figured I'd celebrate Christmas and watch 'dredd'. not just good but excellent imo. enjoyed the whole cast, nicely directed, brutal w/o being nasty abt it, and moments of actual beauty (the final plunge in particular.) thumbs up!

I liked dredd. also thought Solomon Kane was surprisingly decent for a relatively unknown action film. Some good cast (Pete Postelwaite, Max Von Sydow, Mckenzie Crook with small rolls)

slocki's doc, the fruit hunters, is up on instant.

yes!!

fruit hunters! gonna watch that shit

recent watches worth recommending:
caesar must die (not as good as advertised but very very strong)
the bletchley circle (fun silence of the lambs style bbc murder mystery stuff with "hey we used to be horrible and sexist" retrofeminist historical bent that improves the plot)
GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (this was AWESOME, very nostalgic if incomplete)
cutie and the boxer (amazing documentary about married artists; one of the better things i saw this year)
resolution (meta horror film with a bit of a copout ending but totally worth the trouble)

i would also strongly recommend the wall (a bit of a plod unfortunately; think a quieter more morose under the dome) and una noche (great filmmaking, somewhat by the numbers plot though)

i will watch a slocki docki

I watched GLOW last night and loved every minute of it.

didn't know if it was just me! i watched glow as a kid; stunned to discover that the hee-haw style interstitials were based on actual living conditions

oh shit a GLOW doc? i gotta see that.

You Ain't Seen Nothin Yet is up and recommended.

The Big Star doc is up

Streaming only to Jan. 1
TV Shows: Expire January 1, 2014

"Dark Shadows" (original from late 1960s)
"Saturday Night Live The 2000s"
"Mr Bean"
"The Kids In The Hall"
"Perfect 10 Model Boxing" (Volume 1)
Movies - Expire January 1, 2014

"The Rundown"
"Brick"
"Being John Malkovich"
"Back To School"
"Battle Of Britain"
"Born On the Fourth Of July"
"Braveheart"
"Body Of Evidence"
"Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo"
"Man On The Moon"
"Lionheart"
"1492 Conquest Of Paradise"
"Killer Klowns From Outer Space"
"Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind"
"FX"
"Do The Right Thing"
"Desperado"
"Up In Smoke"
"Can't Hardly Wait"
"Capote"
"Biloxi Blues"
"Seed Of Chucky"
"Jarhead"
"As Good As It Gets"
"In The Name Of The Father"
"Inside Deep Throat" (documentary)
"I'm Gonna Get You Sucka"
"In Like Flint"
"Hard Target"
"Foxy Brown"
"Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell"
"Gallipoli"
"Half Baked"
"Flashdance"
"50 First Dates"
"For The Love Of The Game"
"The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas"
"The Bad News Bears"
"The Russia House"
"The Secret Of Nimh"
"Revenge OF The Ninja"
"Roman Holiday"
"Rob Roy"
"Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back"
"Remo Williams"
"Requiem For A Dream"
"Quigley Down Under"
"Pumpkinhead"
"Platoon"
"Once Upon A Time In Mexico"
"October Sky"
"Mystery Men"
"The Skulls"
"Titanic"
"Ronin"
"Romeo And Juliet" (1968)
"Tales From The Crypt: Bordello Of Blood"
"Tales From The Crypt: Demon Knight"
"The Woman In Red"
"Top Gun"
"Street Fighter"
"TNT Jackson"
"Serpico"
"Seed Of Chucky"
"Scary Movie"
"Running Scared"
"Troll II"
"True Grit" (1969)
"War And Peace"
"Talk Radio"
"War Games'
"We Were Soldiers"
"What Dreams May Come"
"Windtalkers"
"World Trade Center"
"The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes"
"The Odd Couple" (1968)
"The Mask Of Zorro"
"The Great Train Robbery"
"The Faculty"
"The Dream Team"
"Best Of Times"
"Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot"
"Species"

Apple TV must display only a fraction of what's available on Netflix because half of those I had no idea about. Looks like I'll be making time for Lionheart before the new year