Netflix Friday - Volume 60

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.
 

Action: The Outpost (2019)
A small team of U.S. soldiers battle against hundreds of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.
 

Drama: The Pianist (2002)
A Polish Jewish musician (Adrien Brody) struggles to survive the destruction of the Warsaw ghetto of World War II.

Comedy: Fatherhood (2021)
A father (Kevin Hart) brings up his baby girl as a single dad after the unexpected death of his wife, who died a day after their daughter’s birth.
 

Animation: How to Train You Dragon (2010)
A hapless young Viking (Jay Baruchel) who aspires to hunt dragons becomes the unlikely friend of a dragon himself, and learns there may be more to the creatures than he assumed.
 

Romance: Blue Jay (2016)
Meeting by chance when they return to their tiny California hometown, two former high-school sweethearts (Mark Duplass, Sarah Paulson) reflect on their shared past.
 

Horror: Happy Death Day (2017)
College student Tree (Jessica Rothe) must relive the day of her murder over and over again, in a loop that will end only when she discovers her killer’s identity.
 

Science Fiction: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
When their relationship turns sour, a couple (Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet) undergoes a medical procedure to have each other erased from their memories.
 

Crime: Sicario (2015)
An idealistic FBI agent (Emily Blunt) is enlisted by a government task force to aid in the escalating wat against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.
 

Thriller: Split (2016)
Three girls are kidnapped by a man (James McAvoy) with a diagnosed 23 distinct personalities. They must try to escape before the apparent emergence of a frightful new 24^th.
 

Documentary: Sophie: A Murder in West Cork (2021)
The documentary follows the investigation of Sophie Toscan Du Plantier, a French film and TV producer who was killed while at her isolated holiday cottage in West Cork, Ireland, in 1996.
 

Family: Dennis the Menace (1993)
When his parents have to go out of town, Dennis stays with Mr. and Mrs. Wilson. The little menace is driving Mr. Wilson (Walter Matthau) crazy, but Dennis is just trying to be helpful. Even to the thief who’s arrived in town.

Movies You Expected to Hate, but Loved

I think everyone can make a list like this. You see a trailer for a movie or read about an upcoming flick and you just roll your eyes. Because you will most definitely hate it. But when you eventually see it, you really really really love it. Here is a list of my misjudgments, the movies I expected to hate, but actually loved.

John Wick (2014)
I thought it was going to be one of those terrible revenge movies, kind of like how Steven Seagal makes them. But it eventually turned out to be such a great film with awesome fight scenes. And the sequels get better and better, I love those even more. It still is an old-fashioned revenge movie, about a former hitman who is becomes vengeful after a bunch of Russian mobsters kill his dog.

The Lego Movie (2014)
Who really needed this movie? Well, apparently I did. Nobody expected a movie about the most popular bricks would be such a huge hit. I was fascinated with how it was made and “The Lego Movie” was extremely funny. And that song.....

Avatar (2009)
I avoided this film, for as long as I could. I didn’t want to see it, thought it was just another cash-grab and found the blue creatures super weird. But I eventually caved and saw it, at home. And now I’m sad that I never saw it on the big screen. I never expected this film to have such a strong message and it looks amazing. The film still has a lot of haters, but now I don’t understand why. Because “Avatar” is such a beautiful film.

Game Night (2018)
It seemed kind of boring and goofy, and Jason Bateman starring didn’t really look inviting, since most of his comedy work is silly. Yet, I was very wrong and think this is one of the best comedies of the 2010s. I loved the starting point of this film, enjoyed Rachel McAdams and Jason Bateman together. Such a funny comedy.

Spy (2015)
A spy comedy, ugh. With Melissa McCarthy, who will probably do what she always does. But “Spy” is hilarious. And Jason Statham, whom I’m not a big fan of, is the best part of this film (never thought I would EVER say that). “Spy” is one great comedy!

Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
I like spy movies, but I expected “Kingsman: The Secret Service” to be another James Bond clone. I was so surprised with how good this film was. It has humor and does mock the genre at times. Great action and that scene in the church with “Free Bird” playing is one of the best scenes I had seen that year. A fantastic action flick.

Happy Death Day (2017)
Just another teen slasher I thought. It actually turned out to be a very funny and clever horror film. Much better than I expected it to be.

Ant-Man (2015)
I really thought ”Ant-Man” was going to suck, because I wasn’t really sure if Paul Rudd could pull off the superhero vibe. And director Peyton Reed was mainly known for some comedies he made. Little did I know that “Ant-Man” would eventually become one of my favorite MCU films. Now I can’t think about anyone else playing Scott Lang. I enjoyed the comedic tone the film has and Rudd really is perfect for it. I also really loved the fact that it brought back Evangeline Lilly, I have loved her since I was introduced to her in “Lost”.

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
I mainly hated the idea of it being rebooted, since I really love the original “Jumanji”, even though time hasn’t been kind to it at all. The CGI is very outdated, but still. When I did see “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” it really pleasantly surprised me. I loved the cast and how they told the same story, but adapted it to the modern world.

10s Movie Review - Happy Death Day

Director: Christopher Landon
Genre: Horror/ Thriller
Runtime: 96 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Ruby Modine, Charles Aitken, Laura Clifton, Jason Bayle, Rob Mello, Rachel Matthews, Ramsey Anderson, Brady Lewis, Phi Vu, Tenea Intriago, Blaine Kern III, Cariella Smith, Jimmy Gonzales, Billy Slaughter, Donna Duplantier

Description: A college student (Jessica Rothe) must relive the day of her murder over and over again, in a loop that will end only when she discovers her killer's identity.

Review: Using the concept of 1993s “Groundhog Day” and combine it with the slasher genre. A film where college student Tree relives the same day, over and over again. But she also dies each day.
Tree is a somewhat superficial, bitchy girl that one day wakes up in some guys dorm room one morning on her birthday. At the end of the day she is murdered by a masked killer. The next day, she wakes up, in the same place at the same time, on her birthday. She relives the same say and at the end of the day, someone kills her again. The reason is unknown, but she now has time to find out who her killer is. But like a cat with nine lives, she will eventually run out of lives.
“Happy Death Day” turns a standard slasher film, into a somewhat original and fresh horror film, by adding the original twist of the repeating day to the plot. It was a surprisingly fun film. Definitely not brutal, scary or bloody enough for the real horror fans, but for the viewers that aren’t massive horror fans it’s perfect.
The repetitive style of the film, gives the makers some room to be creative in all the ways Tree can die. Which becomes somewhat of a running gag throughout the film. And the film is not super serious. It adds some humor to the mix as well, which makes it even more fun to watch somehow.
The motive of the killer is a bit stupid, but the characters in the movie also believe that. So in a way, the movie mocks itself. Which adds a star to my rating.
“Happy Death Day” was better and more fun then I initially thought.

Rating: 3,5/ 5