It’s cold out and some of you hug the Netflix when it’s lower than 30 degrees. Or you may be home sick with an awful chest infection (me) and bored out of your gourd.
At any rate, I thought I’d start randomly posting about films on Netflix that I enjoyed and think you should give a shot to if you’re hovering above that “play” button, unable to decide whether to push it. I, however, watch almost anything once if it piques my interest so let me help you.
This is a new thing so I’m just gonna be succinct, review one film and give a list of the others. If you want to hear more about why I liked something, comment below.
Chef (2014)
This Jon Favreau flick stars him alongside John Leguizamo, Bobby Cannavale, Scarlett Johansson, Sofia Vergara, Oliver Platt, Dustin Hoffman, and Robert Downey, Jr. (who’s hard to distinguish from his Tony Stark persona in this film but still enjoyable).
Favreau is a talented and creative chef whose vision is stymied by his “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” boss, Hoffman. After a verbal altercation with a restaurant reviewer, Platt, goes viral on the internet, he challenges the reviewer to a do-over. Hoffman doesn’t allow him to serve the menu he originally wanted to use, so he quits his job on principle and eventually finds his way to serving his own fare on a food truck. In addition to this, he’s also balancing trying to be a good father to his son.
Key points: the passion and talent that Favreau’s character puts into his food as well as the honesty in how he communicates with his son are really wonderful, in my opinion. The wit in the dialogue is timed well, and the storyline moves along entertainingly.
It’s a film about being honest and true to yourself and with others. I gave it a Netflix rating of 4 stars. If your girlfriend isn’t into the Iron Man or Avengers films [dump her. I’m KIDDING! Sheesh], this is something you can watch together and enjoy.
Other films I enjoyed are:
- Last Weekend (4 stars) Slice of life about a family’s last weekend in their family vacation home. It’s a little #RichPeopleProblems, but I love Patricia Clarkson’s character in it.
- Patton Oswalt: Tragedy Plus Comedy (4 stars) Stand up. Patton on point.
- Iliza Shlesinger: Freezing Hot (3 stars) Stand up. I loved her “War Paint” more (also still available on Netflix) but this is still worth watching
- The Strange Color of Your Body’s Tears (4 stars) Bizarre (in a good way) thriller/horror foreign film. If you liked “Into the Void” you might dig this. The art nouveau set design is a win in my book.
- Best Man Down (4 stars) Comedy-drama wherein the over-the-top drunk best man dies the night of the wedding reception and the married couple learn more about his humanity in death than they knew in life.
Stay warm, Albany. And if there’s something you’re curious about seeing, comment above and I’ll give you my opinion. If I haven’t seen it I’ll be your test monkey.