The Covid-19 Film Festival

Now that we're over three months into this pandemic and just now realizing the size and the scope of the first wave of infection, I've found yet another diversion to keep my mind occupied, and to keep my ass on the sofa in this pile of bricks on a hill instead of going out.

I've seen lots of lists of the "100 Best Movies on Netflix" or the "75 Must-See Science Fiction Films of the 2010s," but lists that large aren't actually helpful.  No one's going to watch 100 movies straight, and the list just becomes another random data dump.  It doesn't compel you to "watch this first, then that."  

Between Xfinity, Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube and other outlets, I have such an immense menu of options from which to choose, that I can't select anything, other than the occasional mini-series and OCD re-watching of all four seasons of Mr. Robot.  Paralysis by analysis.  And as noted above, playlist suggestions are usually so massive (or so banal) that they're not actually helpful.

Until late last month.  The always reliable NY Times ran a list of recommended movies that would be leaving Netflix during the month of July, including the weekly dates they are last available.  Watch these now, or lose your chance to see them again any time soon.  Most of the films are indie or art flicks, too, so that's a double bonus.  I've been enjoying the series   It's the best list I've sen in a long time.

Now that we're almost halfway through July, here's what I've seen so far, along with the shortest of thumbnail reviews:

Blue Valentine - Possibly the saddest film I've ever seen.  The dissolution of a marriage shown in a series of out-of-sequence vignettes.  The most depressing part is there's no dramatic betrayal and no one cheats on the other, they just get bored and disillusioned with their partners.  In other words, too much like real life, but brilliantly acted and scripted. I recommend it, but don't watch with a romantic partner that you want to keep around

Under The Skin - Possibly the strangest film I've ever seen, and I've seen lots of David Lynch movies.  Scarlet Johansson as an alien in disguise luring random Scotsmen to their deaths.  I think. She might be luring them to some sort of spa, it's hard to tell.  The movie is so alienating and bizarre and unafraid of being boring, and even after an hour I still couldn't understand most of the Scottish accents.  I'll put it this way - it's got to be some sort of artistic achievement to make a movie so off-putting and weird that Scarlet Johansson doing a full-frontal nude scene is not only not sexy, it's soporific. I bet it's great watching this one on morphine.

Locke - Tom Hardy in a one-man movie, consisting entirely of him driving in a car and talking on his cell-phone as his life unravels.  Very theatrical (it could probably be made into a play) and very cerebral, and rewarding if you're willing to put the effort in  and willing to go without a car chase scene.

The Spectacular Now - "Not your typical young-adult/high-school film" the critics say, but it sure seemed like one for the first 30 minutes or so.  But these waters run a little deeper and soon it deals with issues like the troubling alcoholism of the party-boy lead character, the way this girlfriend hides her self-loathing by pretending not to care, and the long-term effects of a failed fatherhood.  By the time the movie's done, you feel like you really know some real persons, not mere young-adult archetypes.

Enemy - Jake Gyllenhaal has an identical double, even down to his voice and surgical scar, and bad things can only result from that.  The movie's directed by Denis Villeneuve (Arrival, Blade Runner) so you know it's going to take some interesting turns.  Most of those are in the form of outrageous symbolism, including the most WTF final shot in any movie I'm likely to see this year.  

Room - Sad, uplifting, disturbing, and life affirming all at the same time.  An abducted women is kept in single-room captivity, giving birth to and raising her abductor's son.  The movie hits it stride in the second half, though, after they escape, and the five-year-old boy marvels at the spectacular and complex outside world he only barely imagined and the mother begins to unravel from the psychological trauma she endured.  

So as you can tell, these aren't your typical Marvel super-hero or car-chase films, but if you're looking for something more involving and more cerebral, these might be the films for you.  Here's the rest of July's playlist, sorted by the dates the movies will leave Netflix:

July 18

Obvious Child (no idea, never heard of it - probably watch it tonight)

Laggies (no idea, never heard of it)

A Most Violent Year (heard of it, think it got good reviews?)

July 21

Inglorious Basterds (Tarantino's WWII flick - fun!  Seen it a few times already but it will be comforting to watch it again after all the other unfamiliar movies)

July 25

Mississippi Grind (no idea, never heard of it)

Ex Machina (seen it once before, and agree it fits with the rest of this list)

July 28 

Her (see blurb above)

July 29

The Incredibles 2 (Pixar animation - I enjoyed 1, expect 2 will be fun as well)

July 31

The Edge of Seventeen (never seen it, but apparently another "atypical" high-school film)

Searching for Sugar Man (never seen it, but a music documentary about a "lost" performer.  Read a lot about him and this film and have been meaning to see it)

So anyway, that's what I'm doing with my quarantine evenings while I ride this first wave out.  I hope you find something on the list to spark your interest or even make you decide to watch the whole remaining series with me (while socially distanced, of course).