Hidden Gems of Amazon Prime instant videos

firesloth wrote:

By the way, a different sort of gem for Amazon Prime Video: the iOS app now allows you to download Prime movies and TV shows for offline viewing.

This is awesome! It will make overseas plane flights much easier more fun!

As does the Android app I believe (originally it was limited to Amazon Fire devices). Very shrewd move.

Chairman_Mao wrote:
firesloth wrote:

By the way, a different sort of gem for Amazon Prime Video: the iOS app now allows you to download Prime movies and TV shows for offline viewing.

This is awesome! It will make overseas plane flights much easier more fun!

As does the Android app I believe (originally it was limited to Amazon Fire devices). Very shrewd move.

No kidding...I'm surprised they got it past the content owners, though!

BadKen wrote:

Aaron Sorkin's HBO series The Newsroom, starring Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer, Sam Waterston and a bunch of other great actors.

The only potentially negative thing I can say about this show is that it is very Aaron Sorkiny. If you don't like his style, particularly the way he writes dialogue, this show may not be for you.

Indeed. Newsroom was what made me realize that I'm done with Sorkin.

Between the hilariously "moral-superhero" nature of all his characters, which turns them all into one-dimensional unbelievable ubermenches, the awful romance sideplots (which are terrible in everything he writes), and the "it-goes-up-to-11" nature of his moralizing, I'm just bored by his work now. I get it, Aaron, you're a progressive liberal. Congratulations.

Jonman wrote:
BadKen wrote:

Aaron Sorkin's HBO series The Newsroom, starring Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer, Sam Waterston and a bunch of other great actors.

The only potentially negative thing I can say about this show is that it is very Aaron Sorkiny. If you don't like his style, particularly the way he writes dialogue, this show may not be for you.

Indeed. Newsroom was what made me realize that I'm done with Sorkin.

Between the hilariously "moral-superhero" nature of all his characters, which turns them all into one-dimensional unbelievable ubermenches, the awful romance sideplots (which are terrible in everything he writes), and the "it-goes-up-to-11" nature of his moralizing, I'm just bored by his work now. I get it, Aaron, you're a progressive liberal. Congratulations.

I'm with you on the moral-superhero bit, although it doesn't bother me very much. As much as I liked it, It didn't work for me though on Studio 60 when the characters spoke like they were changing the world from a late-night tv show instead of the oval office.

I kinda like his romance plots though. They're weird and uncomfortable and seem more realistic than your typical tv romances.

I love Sorkin, so how Sorkiny The Newsroom is makes me extremely happy. I can't wait for the Steve Jobs movie.

So, Teen Wolf. Now halfway through its fifth season, you can watch the first four on Prime.

It has a lot in common with Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It shares the name of a somewhat forgettable cult comedy, but builds its own complex and satisfying horror-injected mythology around it (but given the time gap, it's a reboot of sorts rather than a continuation of the movie). It has strong characterization, a good chunk of self aware humor, and a diverse, capable cast. It even has a catchy opening theme tune (once they add one in season 2). And brings a few recognizable genre veterans to anchor the cast, plus frankly, a sensational lock on pacing that leaves very little room for filler.

PaladinTom wrote:

I'm with you on the moral-superhero bit, although it doesn't bother me very much. As much as I liked it, It didn't work for me though on Studio 60 when the characters spoke like they were changing the world from a late-night tv show instead of the oval office.

That stuff was soooo ridiculously out of place on Studio 60. It's like he forgot he wasn't writing West Wing anymore. At least it makes sense on Newsroom.

Plus you'd think a show about a comedy show would have maybe a little comedy in it. Even the few skits we did see weren't funny.

Kurrelgyre, 7 days ago wrote:

So, Teen Wolf. Now halfway through its fifth season, you can watch the first four on Prime.

Well, season 5 certainly gets dark.

Red Oaks is pretty great. Came out of nowhere for me. I don't remember them doing a trial with a pilot at some point.

Really looking forward to Man in the High Castle when that drops soon.

I've really liked most of Amazon's offerings so far, and yeah Man in the High Castle looks great. Can't wait!

Mockingjay Part 1 is on. Mixed review turned me away, so yay free video!

So, downside of being able to download content to iPad: some content owners put limits on how long you can have it on your device before watching it.

Fired up my iPad coming back from Chile, and I was unable to watch The Americans. Had to redownload. Then I was only given 12 hours to watch each episode after downloading.

Was expecting it to pop up before part 2 hit theaters. Kind of like the Hobbit stuff, I saw no point in paying for half a movie, then waiting a year.

I have been on a tear through horror movies looking for the creepiest experience I can find. I've exhausted most of the decent found-footage movies, which I like generally, but as much as I like the conceit it can make it difficult to suspend disbelief. Most recently I watched Dark Mountain which was at least passable. The acting is fine, and--for better or worse--it pays heavy homage to The Blair Witch Project, which I love. Grave Encounters, which is fine if overly heavily indebted to its constituent tropes. Its secondary conceit is interesting but didn't end up working for me. The sequel tries a slightly different trope and works even less well. (I've also seen and liked at least parts of all four [rec] movies, the first obviously being the best, the third breaking out of its conceit as part of its particular charm, but none are currently on APV without renting or buying.)

So I went back to conventional horror movies. Last night I tried Rob Zombie's Halloween remake. It's got Rob Zombie written all over it, but I thought it was fairly well-done. I would like a bit more ambition in a remake, e.g., a little less senseless screaming that I have to repeatedly rationalize by noting how fear and stress affect our behavior. Too much retconning perhaps strains the spirit of a remake, but I think we've seen slasher staples frequently enough that something newer that aims to otherwise redefine its seed work (e.g., showing Michael Myers growing up and the environment that bred his later psychopathy worked well) could break free from the nonsense. (P.S. Please stop casting Sheri Moon Zombie in your movies thanks.)

I'll probably drop back into the found-footage pile with Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones. I'm skeptical; the first two creeped me out, the third had it's moments, but I'm not sure what the fourth (not currently free on APV) or The Marked Ones will offer that's worth my time.

What is something creepy you've found on APV?

Hmm.... the Amazon Prime requirement really limits one's options when it comes to horror. Just about everything worthwhile is pay-to-play.

The Marked Ones looks terrible!
The V/H/S films have some moments. Given the format as a roughly-framed compilation they can be pretty uneven. Umm ... beyond that... hmmm.... Well... It Follows is only 0.99 on Amazon and totally cool.

imbiginjapan wrote:

The Marked Ones looks terrible!

because it is

imbiginjapan wrote:

Hmm.... the Amazon Prime requirement really limits one's options when it comes to horror. Just about everything worthwhile is pay-to-play.

The Marked Ones looks terrible!
The V/H/S films have some moments. Given the format as a roughly-framed compilation they can be pretty uneven. Umm ... beyond that... hmmm.... Well... It Follows is only 0.99 on Amazon and totally cool.

Might just have to grab It Follows. I actually really liked V/H/S and the sequel even better.

Agreed: I've exhausted my options for watching without paying more. Have watched other stuff on Netflix (e.g., The Babadook).

muraii wrote:

I have been on a tear through horror movies looking for the creepiest experience I can find. I've exhausted most of the decent found-footage movies, which I like generally...

I thought that the V/H/S movies were fun. Looks like 1 and 2 are on Prime.

Dr_Awkward wrote:
muraii wrote:

I have been on a tear through horror movies looking for the creepiest experience I can find. I've exhausted most of the decent found-footage movies, which I like generally...

I thought that the V/H/S movies were fun. Looks like 1 and 2 are on Prime.

Kittylexy's recent experience with them was that 1 was excellent, and 2 was awful.

My contribution was going to be Sinister, but the free one is not the one you want.

Tanglebones wrote:
Dr_Awkward wrote:
muraii wrote:

I have been on a tear through horror movies looking for the creepiest experience I can find. I've exhausted most of the decent found-footage movies, which I like generally...

I thought that the V/H/S movies were fun. Looks like 1 and 2 are on Prime.

Kittylexy's recent experience with them was that 1 was excellent, and 2 was awful.

1 was good and 2 was better, in my opinion. The found-footage thing constrains a lot of options but I like the anthology format a lot.

Abu5217 wrote:

My contribution was going to be Sinister, but the free one is not the one you want.

I'd like to see that one and Insidious. I should probably budget a monthly amount for APV expenditures.

muraii wrote:
Tanglebones wrote:
Dr_Awkward wrote:
muraii wrote:

I have been on a tear through horror movies looking for the creepiest experience I can find. I've exhausted most of the decent found-footage movies, which I like generally...

I thought that the V/H/S movies were fun. Looks like 1 and 2 are on Prime.

Kittylexy's recent experience with them was that 1 was excellent, and 2 was awful.

1 was good and 2 was better, in my opinion. The found-footage thing constrains a lot of options but I like the anthology format a lot.

Abu5217 wrote:

My contribution was going to be Sinister, but the free one is not the one you want.

I'd like to see that one and Insidious. I should probably budget a monthly amount for APV expenditures.

Yeah it was a good year for adjective-based films.

I finished up all episodes of Constantine. It appears that it was canned, so no season two. It was a slow burn for me, but I grew to be interested just enough so that the cancellation now grates. I'll need to check out Grimm or Supernatural to replace that particular itch.

I am still chugging through Heroes season three. One was great. Loved it! Two was not so good. It had an awful beginning that went on and on, and on. It introduced some drab characters. It done nothing of note with Sylar. Then it ended. Three came along and has been up and down. It has improved as the season motors on. I am close to the finale.

I'm sticking with it out of hope that it can recapture some of that season one glory. Four has to be better. It has to be.

Thank goodness for Sylar and Parkman. They usually have something of interest going on. Noah Bennet, and Elle, too.

Gutted that Angel and Buffy got yanked from Prime. I was about to see out Angel season three, and Buffy season six. I was hoping they'd return, but it has been a long while now.

My wife and I grew to really enjoy Constatine. It was a nice ride, but I'm not surprised it was cancelled.

Buffy and Angel are on Hulu.

Re: Constantine. He's supposed to make an appearance in Arrow this season, FWIW. Same actor and everything. Kinda bittersweet, especially when you think about how awesome of tie-ins they could have had with Sandman and Lucifer (and the subsequently god-awful-looking version of Lucifer that's supposed to air soon), but a little more Constantine is better than no Constantine at all.

WipEout wrote:

Re: Constantine. He's supposed to make an appearance in Arrow this season, FWIW. Same actor and everything. Kinda bittersweet, especially when you think about how awesome of tie-ins they could have had with Sandman and Lucifer (and the subsequently god-awful-looking version of Lucifer that's supposed to air soon), but a little more Constantine is better than no Constantine at all.

With Constantine being on NBC and their great work with Hannibal i was really expecting something great from that show. What we got was some drab sh*t that was the thinnest shell of what i was expecting.

Grenn wrote:

Buffy and Angel are on Hulu.

Excellent! Thanks for the heads up.

Woo, John Adams.

RnRClown wrote:

I'm sticking with it out of hope that it can recapture some of that season one glory. Four has to be better. It has to be.

Ahhh, should someone tell RnR?