Welcome to the first installment of Netflix Now, the weekly column that sorts out all the latest films tossed onto Watch Instantly so you know what’s actually on there. And believe me, quite a bit is dumped on there on a weekly basis, more bad than good. Or should I be generous and say more “meh” than good? Eh, close enough.
My personal highlight this week is Zombie Strippers, a movie with a title that explains itself. What you might not know is that it’s actually a loose adaptation of Eugene Ionesco’s classic play Rhinoceros, an absurdist commentary on the rise of Communism, Nazism, and other Isms in which the townspeople turn into rhinos, gradually choosing to conform for various reasons until there is only one human left. The difference is, of course, that instead of French villagers turning into rhinos, the characters are strippers turning into zombies. And there are boobs. And it’s totally cheesy. And totally awesome.
Continuing to explore the bizarre side, Tomcat: Dangerous Desires looks like a campy thriller about a guy turning into a cat monster after an unconventional medical treatment. I’d like to also mention Passport to Treason not because it’s particularly interesting, but because of the over-the-top title. I can see the trailer now, broadly proclaiming that when the main character got on a plane, he had to show them his passport…TO TREASON! DUN DUN DUN!
If you’re looking for something that might actually be worth watching though, The White Ribbon caught my eye. A 2009 German film, it concerns a type of ritual punishment in a small rural school in 1913 and its repercussions through not just the German school system, but also the rise of fascism. It seems to be an incredibly dark but engrossing film, receiving an Academy Award nomination and winning a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. Might be one to check out.
- Bob the Builder: Trains and Treehouses
- Easy Money
- Edge of Doom
- Fame (2009)
- Frankenstein (2004)
- Gentle Giant
- Gentlemen in White Vests
- A Girl Named Tamiko
- The Glory Stompers
- Harlan: In the Shadow of Jew Süss
- Heart of the Rockies
- Hideout
- Highball
- The Highwayman
- Inferno: The Making of The Expendables
- The Jewel of the Nile
- Joe the King
- John Q
- The Keep
- To Kill For
- King of the Avenue
- King of the Newsboys
- Madhouse
- The Nun
- Passport to Treason
- Plunder Road
- Surf School
- Smash His Camera
- Starz Studios: Skyline/Unstoppable/For Colored Girls
- Tom and Jerry Meet Sherlock Holmes
- Tomcat: Dangerous Desires
- Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself
- Walking Tall: Part II
- Waxwork
- The White Ribbon
- Zombie Strippers
