First off let me introduce myself. I’m the IT/Website Manager for The Garden Island Newspaper. A month ago, the paper asked the employees to write about what they love. The first thing that came to my mind was Netflix Streaming.
First off let me introduce myself. I’m the IT/Website Manager for The Garden Island Newspaper. A month ago, the paper asked the employees to write about what they love. The first thing that came to my mind was Netflix Streaming.
You may be asking yourself: “Richard, why do we care what you love?,” and that is something you’ll have to answer yourself. I didn’t go to film school. I won’t write about how this film or that film: “explores the darkness of man.” I’m a regular guy who loves Netflix streaming and I’m on the hunt for hidden gems. Perhaps together we can “explore new realms of cinamatic expression.” Did I just write that? Man, that sounds uppity.
I welcome your instant Netflix suggestions. Use the online comment section for this article, point me in the right direction and I’ll credit you for the find.
This week’s choices are distinctly British. Given that Starz Entertainment broke off talks with Netflix, my future choices could become even more unknown, old and foreign. I’m not worried about the failed contract talks. It’s part of doing business and Netflix has got an edge up on its competition with the streaming. It is the future, and I can’t imagine Netflix won’t do what needs to be done to supply us with quality content.
My streaming queue is loaded with Jason Statham movies. As a bald man, he gives me hope that I too could be a kick-ass action star. He plays a variety of characters and has more depth as an actor than, say, Stallone or The Governator. I haven’t seen a movie of his I didn’t like, and “Blitz” is no exception.
“The Reef” was a choice from my wife (thanks, honey). She added it to the queue and we made a date night of it. This Australian movie, based on a true story, drops you into the middle of the Great Barrier Reef without a paddle. Living on an island, facing sharks is always a possibility and this movie will have you asking yourself if it’s safe to go in the water. By the way, did you know that the distance to the horizon is 1.17 times the square root of your eye’s height above sea level? How far can you swim?
In “Trainspotting,” we take another trip to England, to watch young people shoot heroin. This movie was recommended many years ago, and not because I had a heroin addiction, mind you. The film is a cult classic. It does make one cringe as we learn how to chase the dragon. But Ewan McGregor shows off his acting chops before America met him in “Star Wars: Episode I.” Perhaps I’m showing my age, but I’m not sure I’ll be joining the cult.
‘Blitz’
Cast: Jason Statham, Paddy Considine, David Morrissey
This show is: Exciting, Suspenseful
Rated: R
Common Sense rating: Strong, brutal, bald-headed guy violence, language, some drug use and nudity
Based on a Ken Bruen novel. Jason Statham takes on a cop killer in this gritty British crime thriller. Statham kicks ass with the best of them, but in this film we see he is more than just an action star. 4 of 5 Netflix stars.
‘The Reef’
Cast: Damian Walshe-Howling, Gyton Grantley
This show is: Suspenseful, scary
Rated: R
Common Sense rating: Very intense, life threatening depiction involving giant ocean creatures, language
Capsized yacht in shark-infested waters of the Great Barrier Reef will have you asking yourself: “I wonder if I could punch a shark in the nose before it eats me?” Based on a true story that makes the ocean much bigger and much scarier than you ever thought. 4 of 5 Netflix stars.
‘Trainspotting’
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Robert Carlyle
This show is: Violent, mind bending
Rated: R
Common Sense rating: Graphic heroin use and resulting depravity, strong language, sex, violence and McGregor frontal nudity (just thought you should know)
This British movie follows four young men into to their drug addiction. You learn what a young Obi-Wan Kenobi would look like if he did heroin. Based on a Irvine Walsh novel. 3 of 5 Netflix stars.
