Netflix Friday - Volume 47

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

Action: Mortal Kombat (1995)
Three unknowing martial artists (Bridget Wilson, Robin Shou, Linden Ashby) are summoned to a mysterious island to compete in a tournament whose outcome will decide the fate of the world.
 

Drama: On the Basis of Sex (2018)
The true story of Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Felicity Jones), her struggles for equal rights, and the early cases of a historic career that lead to her nomination and confirmation as U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice.
 

Comedy: The Lady in the Van (2015)
A man (Alex Jennings) forms an unexpected bond with a transient woman (Maggie Smith) living in het van that’s parked in his driveway.  
 

Animation: Despicable Me 3 (2017)
Gru (Steve Carell) meets his long-lost, charming, cheerful, and more successful twin brother Dru (Steve Carell), who wants to team up with him for one last criminal heist.
 

Romance: Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
Devastated Peter (Jason Segel) takes a Hawaiian vacation in order to deal with the recent break-up with his TV star girlfriend Sarah (Kristen Bell). Little does he know, Sarah’s traveling to the same resort as her ex and she is bringing along her new boyfriend (Russell Brand).
 

Horror: Annabelle (2014)
A couple begins to experience terrifying supernatural occurrences involving a vintage doll shortly after their home is invaded by satanic cultists.
 

Science Fiction: Total Recall (1990)
When a man (Arnold Schwarzenegger) goes in to have virtual vacation memories of the planet Mars implanted in his mind, an unexpected and harrowing series of events forces him to go to the planet for real. Or is he?
 

Crime: Burden (2018)
When a museum celebrating the Ku Klux Klan opens in a South Carolina town, the idealistic Reverend Kennedy (Forest Whitaker) strives to keep the peace even as he urges the group’s Grand Dragon to disavow his racist past.
 

Thriller: The Life of David Gale (2003)
A man (Kevin Spacey) against capital punishment is accused of murdering a fellow activist and is sent to death row.
 

Documentary: Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal (2021)
Reenactments drive this documentary investigating the mastermind behind a scam to sneak the kids of rich and famous families into top US universities.
 

Family: A Dog’s Journey (2019)
A dog finds the meaning of his own existence through the lives of the humans he meets.

Netflix Friday - Volume 33

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

Action: Hanna (2011)
A sixteen-year-old girl (Saoirse Ronan) who was raised by her father to be the perfect assassin is dispatched on a mission across Europe, tracked by a ruthless intelligence agent and her operatives.
 

Drama: My Sister’s Keeper (2009)
Anna Fitzgerald (Abigail Breslin) looks to earn medical emancipation from her parents who until now have relied on their youngest child to help their leukemia-stricken daughter Kate (Sofia Vassilieva) remain alive.
 

Comedy: The Other Guys (2010)
Two mismatched New York City detectives (Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg) seize an opportunity to step up like the city’s top cops, whom they idolize, only things don’t quite go as planned.
 

Animation: From Up On Poppy Hill (2011)
A group of Yokohama teens look to save their school’s clubhouse from the wrecking ball in preparation for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
 

Romance: Four Christmases (2008)
A couple (Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon) struggles to visit all four of their divorced parents on Christmas.
 

Horror: Hostel (2005)
Three backpackers head to a Slovak city that promises to meet their hedonistic expectations, with no idea of the hell that awaits them.
 

Science Fiction: Total Recall (1990)
When a man (Arnold Schwarzenegger) goes for virtual vacation memories of the planet Mars, an unexpected and harrowing series of events forces him to go to the planet for real – or is he?
 

Crime: The Infiltrator (2018)
A U.S. Customs official (Bryan Cranston) uncovers a money laundering scheme involving Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.
 

Thriller: Gerald’s Game (2017)
A couple (Carla Cugino, Bruce Greenwood) tries to spice up their marriage in a remote lake house. After the husband dies unexpectedly, the wife is left handcuffed to their bed frame and must fight to survive and break free.
 

Documentary: Strong Island (2017)
When filmmaker Yance Ford investigates the 1992 murder of a young black man, it becomes an achingly personal journey since the victim, 24-year-old William Ford Jr., was the filmmakers brother.
 

Family: Hugo (2011)
In 1931 Paris, an orphan (Asa Butterfield) living in the walls of a train station gets wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father and an automaton.

Netflix Friday - Volume 11

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

Action: Daylight (1996)
Disaster in a New York tunnel as explosions collapse both ends of it. One hero (Sylvester Stallone) tries to help the people inside find their way to safety.

Drama: Scent of a Woman (1992)
Prep school student Charlie Simms (Chris O’Donnell) needing money agrees to ‘babysit’ the blind Frank Slade (Al Pacino), but the job is not at all what he anticipated.

Comedy: Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020)
When aspiring musicians Lars (Will Ferrell) and Sigrit (Rachel McAdams) are given the opportunity to represent their country at the world’s biggest song competition, they finally have a chance to prove that any dream worth having is a dream worth fighting for.

Animation: Curious George (2006)
The man in the Yellow Hat (Will Ferrell) is and oddball museum employee who looks after his pet monkey (Frank Welker), an inquisitive and wonderful creature whose enthusiasm often gets the best of him.

Romance: The Notebook (2004)
The poor yet passionate Noah Calhoun (Ryan Gosling) falls in love with the rich Allie (Rachel McAdams), giving her a sense of freedom, but they are soon separated because of their social differences.

Horror: Troll Hunter (2010)
A group of students investigates a series of mysterious bear killings, but learn that there are much more dangerous things going on. They start to follow a mysterious hunder, learning that he is actually a troll hunter.

Science Fiction: Total Recall (1990)
When Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger) goes for virtual vacation memories of the planet Mars, an unexpected and harrowing series of events forces him to go to the planet for real. Or is he?

Crime: The Hateful Eight (2015)
In the dead of a Wyoming winter, a bounty hunter (Kurt Russell) and his prisoner (Jennifer Jason Leigh) find shelter in a cabin currently inhabited by a collection of nefarious characters.

Thriller: Miss Sloane (2016)
In the high-staked world of political power-brokers, Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) is the most sought after and formidable lobbyist in D.C. But when taking on the most powerful opponent of her career, she finds winning may come at too high a price.

Documentary: Athlete A (2020)
Follow the Indianapolis Star reporters that broke the story about USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar’s abuse and hear from gymnasts like Maggie Nichols.

Family: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)
Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) wins a tour through the most magnificent chocolate factory in the world, led by the world’s most unusual candy maker: Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp)

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 146: Total Recall

Director: Len Wiseman

Genre: Actie/ Science Fiction/ Thriller

Runtime: 118 minutes

Year: 2012

Starring: Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Jessica Biel, Bryan Cranston, Bill Nighy, John Cho

Description: A factory worker, Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), begins to suspect that he is a spy after visiting Rekall - a company that provides its clients with implanted fake memories of a life they would like to have led - goes wrong and he finds himself on the run.

Review: Remakes of big movies are really popular these days. You take a big film from the last twenty to twenty five years, modernize it a bit, throw in some famous actors and a success is guaranteed. Right? There are movies that where ready for a remake, like “Cape Fear” by Martin Scorsese or “Ocean’s 11” by Steven Soderbergh. And the Hitchcock classic “Psycho” was a film that didn’t really need that at all. Len Wiseman’s “Total Recall” falls right in the middle.

It’s 2084 and due to a chemical war the biggest part of the world is uninhabitable. Two big areas fight for the power on earth. Factory worker Douglas Quaid lives in The Colony with his wife Lori. He has a recurring dream where he and a woman are being chased. Quaid wants more from his life and he decides to visit the company Rekall. They implant memories. Quaid chooses a memory as a secret agent, but before they can implant it something goes wrong and he turns out to be a wanted man. When Quaid is chased by the police he finds out that nothing is what it seems.

With a remake it’s hard not to compare. “Total Recall” from 1990 was Paul Verhoeven’s break. The biggest difference between the two movies is that in the original the planet Mars is a big part of the film. In the new one, the movie is set on planet earth. Verhoeven’s version had some self-mockery, but Wiseman is going for a more serious approach and gives it a political touch. And the look of the film reminds you a bit of “Blade Runner” as well. Originality is hard to find here. It does look very good, the visuals and action sequences are amazing. But it’s hard to take in the environment because it all goes in warp speed.

Colin Farrell is off course a better actor then Arnold Schwarzengger and he’s a believable action hero. My biggest problem with the film is that you never really know if the events really happened or were all in Quaid’s head.

“Total Recall” is an entertaining action/ sci-fi film that takes itself a bit too seriously. Visually it’s stunning and Colin Farrell is doing a solid job as Quaid. But the movie never convinces you the way the original did.

Rating: 3/ 5

Movie Trailer Sunday (32)

This weeks trailers are about Rome, turning dreams into real memories, Mexican criminals, fear and a single woman going on 30.

To Rome with Love
Description: It's a story about a number of people in Italy - some American, some Italian, some residents, some visitors - and the romances and adventures and predicaments they get into.
Director: Woody Allen
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Ellen Page, Alec Baldwin, Penelope Cruz, Roberto Benigni, Greta Gerwig, Woody Allen
Trailer: Trailer "To Rome with Love"
Comment: If it's as good as "Midnight in Paris", I'm totally in.

Total Recall
Description: Welcome to Rekall, the company that can turn your dreams into real memories. For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), even though he's got a beautiful wife (Kate Beckinsale) who he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life - real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man. Finding himself on the run from the policem controlled by Chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston), the leader of the free world, Quaid teams up with a rebel fighter (Jessica Biel) to find the head of the underground resistance (Bill Nighy) and stop Cohaagen. The line between fantasy and reality gets blurred and the fate of his world hangs in the balance as Quaid discovers his true identity, his true love, and his true fate.
Director: Len Wiseman
Starring: Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Jessica Biel, Bryan Cranston, John Cho, Bill Nighy
Trailer: Trailer "Total Recall"
Comment: Another remake, I'm not sure but it does looks pretty awesome.

Savages
Description: Laguna Beach entrepreneurs Ben (Johnson), a peaceful and charitable Buddhist, and his closest friend Chon (Kitsch), a former Navy SEAL and ex-mercenary, run a lucrative, homegrown industry, raising some of the best marijuana ever developed. They also share a one-of-a-kind love with the extraordinary beauty Ophelia (Lively). Life is idyllic in their Southern California town...until the Mexican Baja Cartel decides to move in and demands that the trio partners with them. When the merciless head of the BC, Elena (Hayek), and her brutal enforcer, Lado (Del Toro), underestimate the unbreakable bond among these three friends, Ben and Chon, with the reluctant, slippery assistance of a dirty DEA agent (Travolta), wage a seemingly unwinnable war against the cartel. And so begins a series of increasingly vicious ploys and maneuvers in a high stakes, savage battle of wills.
Director: Oliver Stone
Starring: Taylor Kitsch, Blake Lively, Salma Hayek, Benicio Del Toro, Emile Hirsch, John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Aaron Johnson
Trailer: Trailer "Savages"
Comment: Great cast and director. I have big expectations.

A Fantastic Fear of Everything
Description: A children's author turned crime novelist whose does research by moving into the lives of Victorian serial killers turns him into a paranoid wreck, especially when a Hollywood executive decides he wants to make a film out of his findings.
Director: Crispian Mills, Chris Hopewell
Starring: Simon Pegg
Trailer: Trailer "A Fantastic Fear of Everything"
Comment: Simon Pegg is hilarious and this looks just as funny.

Ted
Description: John Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) is a grown man who must deal with the cherished teddy bear who came to life as the result of a childhood wish... and has refused to leave his side ever since.
Director: Seth MacFarlane
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Seth MacFarlane, Giovanni Ribisis, Patrick Warburton
Trailer: Trailer "Ted"
Comment: Come on, sounds ridiculous but looks hilarious!