Netflix Friday - Volume 57

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 Kingdom (2007)
A team of U.S. government agents are sent to investigate the bombing of an American facility in the Middle East.
 

Drama: Honey Boy (2009)
A young actor’s stormy childhood and early adult years as he struggles to reconcile with his father and deal with his mental health.
 

Comedy: The Bronze (2015)
A foul-mouthed former gymnastics bronze medalist (Melissa Rauch) with local celebrity status reluctantly trains a rising Olympics aspirant.
 

Animation: Captain Underpants (2017)
Two overly imaginative pranksters named George (Kevin Hart) and Harold (Thomas Middleditch) hypnotize their principal (Ed Helms) into thinking he’s a ridiculously enthusiastic, incredibly dimwitted superhero named Captain Underpants.
 

Romance: Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001)
Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) is determined to improve herself while she looks for love in a year in which she keeps a personal diary.
 

Horror: The Curse of La Llorona (2019)
Ignoring the eerie warning of a troubled mother suspected of child endangerment, a social worker (Linda Cardellini) and her own small kids are soon drawn into a frightening supernatural realm.
 

Science Fiction: War of the Worlds (2005)
An American family is fighting for survival during an alien invasion threatening the future of humanity.
 

Crime: The Kid Detective (2020)
A once-celebrated kid detective (Adam Brody), now 32, continues to solve the same trivial mysteries between hangovers and bouts of self-pity. Until a naïve client brings him his first ‘adult’ case to find out who brutally murdered her boyfriend.
 

Thriller: The Visit (2015)
Two siblings become increasingly frightened by their grandparents’ disturbing behavior while visiting them on vacation.
 

Documentary: The Last Days (1998)
In late 1944, even as they faced imminent, defeat, the Nazis expended enormous resources to kill or deport over 425,000 Jews during the “cleansing” of Hungary. This documentary focuses on the plight of five Hungarian Jews who survived imprisonment in Auschwitz.
 

Family: The Road to El Dorado (2000)
Two swindlers get their hands on a map to the fabled city of gold, El Dorado.

Movie Review - The Kid Detective

Director: Evan Morgan
Genre: Comedy/ Drama/ Crime
Runtime: 100 minutes
Year: 2021
Starring: Adam Brody, Kaitlyn Chalmers-Rizzato, Sophie Nélisse, Kaleb Horn, Wendy Crewson, Jonathan Whittaker, Brent Skagford, Steve Cagne, Giovanna Moore, Jesse Noah Gruman, Olivia Williams

Description: A once-celebrated kid detective (Adam Brody), now 32, continues to solve the same trivial mysteries between hangovers and bouts of self-pity. Until a naïve client (Sophie Nélisse) brings him his first ‘adult’ case, to find out who brutally murdered her boyfriend.

Review: As a kid, Abe Applebaum was a widely loved child detective. He solved little mysteries for the residents of the town of Willowbrook, where he was considered a local hero. However, his success abruptly ended when his close friend Gracie Gulliver disappeared. Despite his investigation, Gracie remained without a trace, which quickly killed Abe’s reputation.
Years pass, but the now 32-year-old Abe is still a detective. However, no one seems to trust him as a serious investigator. Abe therefore prefers to spend his days drinking and playing videogames, irritating everyone around him. When high-school student Caroline approaches him, everything changes. She wants to hire Abe to investigate the murder on her boyfriend. Despite the fact that Caroline can’t pay him, Abe takes the case.  
“The Kid Detective” is an ironic, yet cheerful crime comedy. The script is filled with witty dialogue and it tells a solid detective story. Evan Morgan’s directorial debut functions not only as a blend between comedy and crime, but at the same time as an homage to film-noir. Although the atmosphere of this film us largely upbeat, Morgan also manages to bring serious subjects to the fore. In doing so, he succeeds amazingly well.  
The biggest asset of “The Kid Detective” is Adam Brody, who plays Abe. He is your typical anti-hero. Brody gets a chance to prove himself as a serious actor here. His character is well-developed, humorous, but also deeply tragic at times. Abe is someone trapped in his younger self, someone who has never taken the step to move on. You hope he achieves his dream, but you also hope he finally takes responsibility.
“The Kid Detective” is one of those hidden gems that can be seen on Netflix right now.

Rating: 4/ 5