Hidden Gems of Netflix's Watch Instantly

Images don't work in spoiler tags Veloxi.

Yaaaaay! Love that movie!

Yeah, I see that now, sorries! Hopefully linking to the image will work.

Being Human (UK) is pretty good. Although, with Series 2:

Spoiler:

What's up with George turning into a gaping asshole seemingly overnight?

Being Human (US) is hilariously awful. We made it through ten minutes before we turned it off.

ClockworkHouse wrote:

Being Human (UK) is pretty good. Although, with Series 2:

Spoiler:

What's up with George turning into a gaping asshole seemingly overnight?

Being Human (US) is hilariously awful. We made it through ten minutes before we turned it off.

And I got an email that UK Season 4 is up on Netflix as well.

I never even bothered with the US version-- why Americanize a show that doesn't really have much basis in its local culture? It's not like American's aren't going to understand the language or something... That's like remaking Doctor Who for US audiences because they might not get the concept of a police box.

Just watched The Trip, with Steve Coogan. Really recommended, particularly if you're an Anglophile. I knew nothing regarding the two leads of this Mockumentary about 2 buddies on a food tour of England, it was hilarious, even moving at times.

WipEout wrote:

It's not like American's aren't going to understand the language or something...

I dunno, we tried watching the UK version of the Office and couldn't make it through the first episode. Even though the first episode of the US office was almost a shot-for-shot copy, we could barely understand what they were saying. I know it's English, but the accent and different word usage made it difficult to follow.

Or maybe we're just stoopid

Well, sure-- some shows have characters with heavier accents that are difficult to understand (Honey Boo Boo comes to mind), and wouldn't benefit aesthetically from having subtitles. In those few (in my opinion, there aren't so many) cases, I can see needing to "Americanize" for local audiences. Having watched the UK version of Being Human, though, I don't believe there's anything there that would go over the average American's head as far as language, cultural reference, or otherwise. Perhaps it's the naked male werewolf butt that American producers dislike...

It's not a universal taste, but I really enjoyed Take This Waltz. It explores emotional territory that is seldom revealed without sensationalism, and doesn't really tell you how to feel about the choices the main character makes. All in all, I was awed by it and it stuck with me, but judging by critical response that's not a universal reaction.

WipEout wrote:

Well, sure-- some shows have characters with heavier accents that are difficult to understand (Honey Boo Boo comes to mind), and wouldn't benefit aesthetically from having subtitles. In those few (in my opinion, there aren't so many) cases, I can see needing to "Americanize" for local audiences. Having watched the UK version of Being Human, though, I don't believe there's anything there that would go over the average American's head as far as language, cultural reference, or otherwise. Perhaps it's the naked male werewolf butt that American producers dislike...

It's true, I wasn't saying it's all UK TV, but it happens. I watched through all 6 episodes of Sherlock on Netflix and enjoyed those a lot, had no problems understanding Sherlock's English ranting

garion333 wrote:
edosan wrote:

So I've been watching the BBC miniseries "House of Cards" and it's pretty great. It's about a British politician decides he's been passed over one time too many and goes out to force out the old Prime Minister and take his place. It's some great political backstabbing and totally worth a watch.

Seconded. I love this series. Apparently they're making an American version. I don't have high hopes as so much of the show was based on how awesome Ian Richardson played the character.

It took me more than a year to get to it, but these folks speak the truth. House of Cards is a deliciously devious political thriller.

If an early 90s British miniseries isn't your cup of tea, then check out The Yellow Sea.

It's the thoroughly gripping story of a Joseonok (Chinese person of Korean descent) cabdriver who is on the hook to the Chinese mob for a lot of money because they smuggled his wife into Korea so she could make money for their family. After not hearing from his wife for months and no money coming back, the mob boss offers the cabby a way to get out from under his crushing debt and even check up on his presumably unfaithful spouse: he just has to go to the Gangnam District of Seoul, kill someone, and bring back their thumb.

Let's just say things don't go as expected.

Seriously, though. This is an absolutely fantastic movie.

A word of caution, though. If you're squeamish about blood and a bit of the 'ole ultra-violence, you might want to pass. The Korean and Chinese mob guys like knives and hatchets much more than firearms.

Recently Added: Atticus Finch and Humbert Humbert have spread Hitler clones across the globe, and only Henry V can stop them! Check out The Boys from Brazil! Seriously, it's pretty fun.

Holy sh*t. Todd and the Book of Pure Evil. It's a tv comedy about a metalhead stoner and his group of friends hunting down the necronomicon-ish Book of Pure Evil as it wreaks havoc on their high school and their satanist guidance counselor schemes against them.

ruhk wrote:

Holy sh*t. Todd and the Book of Pure Evil.

Sold!

OG_slinger wrote:

House of Cards is a deliciously devious political thriller.

If an early 90s British miniseries isn't your cup of tea, then check out The Yellow Sea.

Sold! Looking forward to digging into all of these.

Fredrik_S wrote:
ruhk wrote:

Holy sh*t. Todd and the Book of Pure Evil.

Sold!

Just started watching this. 5 episodes in now. This is the best show in the world.

Edit:

Spoiler:

BUT, when I wanna grease my piece, I go obese.

Oh my god. The musical episode is awesome. I tried to find a YouTube clip of it, but couldn't. I did find this however. Feel free to watch it. It doesn't really spoil anything exactly. I don't know what episode it's from because I haven't gotten that far yet.

Edit: NSFW

It's from another musical episode towards the end of the second season, which is also awesome.

I watched the entire series in the last two nights, then immediately started back at the beginning. I have no idea why this show was cancelled.

See you in Valhalla!

Spent a few late-night viewings getting through Exit Humanity and I'm impressed. The finished product is uneven, with rough acting in parts, but I can see past that to something genuine. It carries the hallmarks of its genre but beyond this they mix alternate history with a little hokum to good effect. At least one other GWJer appreciates it.

And, yes, that's Brian Cox's voice you'll instantly recognize narrating.

EDIT: And I really enjoyed the art production. They had limited funds and stretched 'em pretty far.

Watched The Yellow Sea recommended by OG_Slinger. It has a very OldBoy feeling and tempo to it as well as the violence in it is very... uhh.. real, I guess? Never been in an knife / axe fight, but it's got the same kind of brutality to it as Oldboy. The story had a good twist to it as well as keeping me guessing throughout the movie. So yeah.. if you liked Oldboy I would recommend this one as well.

I've started watching 'Life' and, so far, I've found it pretty entertaining. The premise is OK (a cop gets convicted and sent to prison for a murder he didn't commit. After serving 15 years, DNA evidence clears him of the crime. He gets 15+ million dollars in a settlement and returns to the force with a new outlook on his job. Of course, he's partnered with a female detective with "issues' of her own. Add to that the question of who framed him and it makes for a pretty interesting story.

IMO, It's worth a look.

sr_malo wrote:

I've started watching 'Life' and, so far, I've found it pretty entertaining. The premise is OK (a cop gets convicted and sent to prison for a murder he didn't commit. After serving 15 years, DNA evidence clears him of the crime. He gets 15+ million dollars in a settlement and returns to the force with a new outlook on his job. Of course, he's partnered with a female detective with "issues' of her own. Add to that the question of who framed him and it makes for a pretty interesting story.

IMO, It's worth a look.

There's a couple of real stinker episodes, but the characters and the fun of the rest of the show overpower them in my eyes. There's a "videogame" episode that's spectacularly bad in a few moments, but if you can ignore moments like that the rest of it is, IMO, pretty great.

Thin_J wrote:
sr_malo wrote:

I've started watching 'Life' and, so far, I've found it pretty entertaining. The premise is OK (a cop gets convicted and sent to prison for a murder he didn't commit. After serving 15 years, DNA evidence clears him of the crime. He gets 15+ million dollars in a settlement and returns to the force with a new outlook on his job. Of course, he's partnered with a female detective with "issues' of her own. Add to that the question of who framed him and it makes for a pretty interesting story.

IMO, It's worth a look.

There's a couple of real stinker episodes, but the characters and the fun of the rest of the show overpower them in my eyes. There's a "videogame" episode that's spectacularly bad in a few moments, but if you can ignore moments like that the rest of it is, IMO, pretty great.

Yep. Life is one of my all-time favorite series. And as sad as I was to see it end, I feel like the show had a nice story arc and flt complete at the end. And the two-part season finale for season one is pretty epic.

I'd agree. Despite the over-arching story not being really finished, there's a good solid sense of closure at the end of season 2. Well worth a watch.

I feel similar on Life.
Casa de mi Padre was excellent.

sr_malo wrote:

I've started watching 'Life' and, so far, I've found it pretty entertaining. The premise is OK (a cop gets convicted and sent to prison for a murder he didn't commit. After serving 15 years, DNA evidence clears him of the crime. He gets 15+ million dollars in a settlement and returns to the force with a new outlook on his job. Of course, he's partnered with a female detective with "issues' of her own. Add to that the question of who framed him and it makes for a pretty interesting story.

IMO, It's worth a look.

Life was AWESOME. One of the best shows I've watched and it does conclude even though it was cancelled. They had time to do a real ending of sorts.

Damian Lewis was great as the lead

Just got an e-mail that season 7 of How I Met Your Mother is finally up.

interstate78 wrote:
sr_malo wrote:

I've started watching 'Life' and, so far, I've found it pretty entertaining. The premise is OK (a cop gets convicted and sent to prison for a murder he didn't commit. After serving 15 years, DNA evidence clears him of the crime. He gets 15+ million dollars in a settlement and returns to the force with a new outlook on his job. Of course, he's partnered with a female detective with "issues' of her own. Add to that the question of who framed him and it makes for a pretty interesting story.

IMO, It's worth a look.

Life was AWESOME. One of the best shows I've watched and it does conclude even though it was cancelled. They had time to do a real ending of sorts.

Damian Lewis was great as the lead

It's always good when a show gets to wrap the story before being taken off the air. There's a show called 'Detroit 187' that was only on for a season but managed to close out the story arc rather well.

I've been a fan of Damian Lewis since 'Band Of Brothers'. Nice to see him getting the recognition he deserves.

Yay, Life was an AMAZING show that I still watch from time to time. The plots were ridic, but Damien Lewis and the amazingly hot Sarah Shahi really made it work for me.

Sexy Beast

See Sir Ben Kingsley curse like a drunken, foul-tempered sailor. Actually, he plays a gangster, not a sailor. But he does curse like a motherf*cker. I promise.

If you like older movies, then you might want to check out the slapstick comedy Monkey Business. It's hard to go wrong with Cary Grant and Marilyn Monroe.

OG_slinger wrote:

Sexy Beast

I love this film. It takes the standard "gangster who thought he left the life behind being pulled back in for one last job" plot and makes the actual heist inconsequential. Instead, it pretty much focuses on the type of terrible people you would probably have to associate yourself with to live that kind of life. Ben Kingsley is so effective in spreading discomfort.