Netflix Friday - Volume 51

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

Action: Rambo: First Blood (1982)
A veteran Green Beret (Sylvester Stallone) is forced by a cruel Sheriff and his deputies to flee into the mountains and wage an escalating one-man war against his pursuers.
 

Drama: Concrete Cowboy (2021)
Sent to live with his estranged father for the summer, a rebellious teen finds kinship in a tight-knit Philadelphia community of Black Cowboys.
 

Comedy: Liar Liar (1997)
A fast-track lawyer (Jim Carrey) can’t lie for 24 hours due to his son’s birthday wish after he disappoints his son for the last time.
 

Animation: Monsters Vs. Aliëns (2009)
A woman (Reese Witherspoon) transformed into a giant after she is struck by a meteorite on her wedding day becomes part of a team of monsters sent in by the U.S. government to defeat an alien mastermind trying to take over Earth.
 

Romance: The Half of It (2020)
When smart but cash-strapped teen Ellie Chu (Leah Lewis) agrees to write a love letter for a jock (Daniel Diemer), she doesn’t expect to become his friend, or fall for his crush (Alexxis Lemire)
 

Horror: Child’s Play 3 (1991)
Chucky returns for revenge against Andy, the young boy who defeated him, and now a teenager living in a military academy.
 

Science Fiction: Stowaway (2021)
A stowaway on a mission to Mars sets off a series of unintended consequences.
 

Crime: The Big Lebowski (1998)
Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski (Jeff Bridges), mistaken for a millionaire of the same name, seeks restitution for his ruined rug and enlists his bowling buddies (John Goodman, Steve Buscemi) to help get.
 

Thriller: Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014)
Jack Ryan (Chris Pine), as a young covert C.I.A. analyst, uncovers a Russian plot to crash the U.S. economy with a terrorist attack.
 

Documentary: Life in Color (2021)
Exploring the many ways animals use color throughout their lives.
 

Family: The Karate Kid (1984)
A martial arts master (Pat Morita) agrees to teach karate to a bullied teenager (Ralph Macchio)

Netflix Friday - Volume 10

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 Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) become targets of the Capitol after their victory in the 74th Hunger Games sparks a rebellion in the Districts of Panem.

Drama: Da 5 Bloods (2020)
Four African American Vietnam veterans battle forces of man and nature when they return to Vietnam seeking the remains of their fallen squad leader and the gold fortune he helped them hide.

Comedy: The Big Lebowski (1998)
Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski (Jeff Bridges), mistaken for a millionaire of the same name, seeks restitution for his ruined rug and enlists his bowling buddies to help get it.

Animation: Hotel Transylvania (2012)
Dracula (Adam Sandler), who operates a high-end resort away from the human world, goes into overprotective mode when a boy (Andy Samberg) discovers the resort and falls for the count’s teenage daughter (Selena Gomez).

Romance: The Half of It (2020)
When smart but cash-strapped teen Ellie Chu (Leah Lewis) agrees to write a love letter for a jock (Daniel Diemer), she doesn’t expect to become his friend or fall for his crush (Alexxis Lemire).

Horror: Red Dragon (2002)
A retired FBI agent (Edward Norton) with psychological gifts is assigned to help track down ‘The Tooth Fairy’, a mysterious serial killer. Aiding him is imprisoned forensic psychiatrist Hannibal ‘The Cannibal’ Lecter (Anthony Hopkins).

Science Fiction: Back to the Future (1985)
Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox), a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent thirty years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the eccentric scientist Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd).

Crime: Scarface (1983)
In 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant (Al Pacino) takes over a drug cartel and succumbs to greed.

Thriller: Donnie Brasco (1997)
An FBI undercover agent (Johnny Depp) infiltrates the mob an finds himself identifying more with the mafia life, at the expense of his regular one.

Documentary: Dancing with the Birds (2019)
From ruffling their majestic feathers to nailing im-peck-able courtship routines, birds in paradise flaunt their best moves in hopes of landing a mate.

Family: Hachi: A Dog’s Tale (2009)
A college professor (Richard Gere) bonds with an abandoned dog he takes into his home.

Movie Review - The Half of It

Director: Alice Wu
Genre: Drama/ Romance/ Comedy
Runtime: 104 minutes
Year: 2020
Starring: Leah Lewis, Alexxis Lemire, Daniel Diemer, Collin Chou, Becky Ann Blaker, Wolfgang Novogratz, Enrique Murciano

Description: When smart byt cash-trapped teen Ellie Chu (Leah Ewis) agrees to write a love letter for a jock (Daniel Diemer), she doesn’t expect to become his friend or fall for his crush (Alexxis Lemire).

Review: Since her well-received debut “Saving Face” from 2004, director Alice Wu has remained fairly quiet. Now, sixteen years later, Netflix finally releases her second feature film. And with “The Half of It” she once again illuminates an Asian protagonist with lesbian feelings, but this time at a high school in the fictional town of Squahamish. Don’t let the lightness of the film distract you too much from the good message it contains.
There is a strange amount of A’s in Ellie Chu’s class. Ellie sells essays, mostly about philosophy and literature, to other students. If her teacher hadn’t enjoyed reading them so much, she would have turned in Ellie a long time ago. Just when Ellie’s financial distress is greatest, classmate Paul comes up with an assignment she would otherwise never accept: write a love letter to the most beautiful girl in the class, Aster. An additional complicating factor is that Ellie herself has had her eye on her for a long time.
It's actually a retelling of the story of Cyrano de Bergerac, but with a contemporary twist. Director Wu also shows that she is influenced by “The Remains of the Day”, by referring extensively to this story about people who can never be open about their feelings. And perhaps even more, it’s about the masks the characters put on. Ellie looks like a somewhat naïve geek, concealing her sexual preference. Aster loves literature and art, but behaves as expected of her as the most popular girl in school. And Paul, with Ellie’s help, acts a lot smarter to win Aster.
Casting is everything with these kinds of stories, and Wu has succeeded in doing just that. Leah Lewis has a look that makes it easy to underestimate her. However, her voice is the most mature in the whole movie. When she’s full of irony talking to her teacher, you’re immediately struck by the fact that these words come out of her mouth.
When the three main characters, Ellie, Paul and Aster, come together something great happens. Because of his feelings for Aster, Paul really wants to do his best to grow as a person. In addition, purely out of instinct, he becomes the friend Ellie needs to get out of her shell. And disguised as Paul, she knows how to give Aster the push not only to walk the path of least resistance. So how much the setup of this triangular relationship might have always been doomed to fail for someone, it’s kind of refreshing to get a story where not every character gets what they want. It's also nice that “The Half of It” fully recognizes the intensity of love at this young age, but doesn’t overly romanticize them.
Let’s hope Alice Wu doesn’t wait another 14 years to make a new film. “The Half of It” was worth the wait, but I hope we hear from her more often from now on.

Rating: 4 / 5