Off-Netflix - Personal Favorites

So for the first piece for Off-Netflix (click here to see the initial plan for this series) I just want to share some of my personal favorites. Movies that I couldn't count how many times I've watched over the years since finding them. So there is no real rhyme or reason to these. Just strictly movies that I wanted to share. After this I'll try to theme these lists more so they could be used for a themed movie night.

Before I move on to the list though, I want to tell you of a movie you can find on a subscription service. Interstate 60 is a wonderful movie written and directed from Bob Gale, who some might know as the creator of “Back to the Future”, starring James Marsden. From what I can tell this is where James Marsden got the road trip type of movie bug, but instead of being partnered with some CG animal character he has Gary Oldman as one of my favorite characters ever, O.W. Grant. I really thought I would be able to add it to this list but it happens to be available currently on Amazon Prime. So check it out it's a lot of fun and I think deserves just as much credit as the “Back to the Future”

Enough of that now, lets move on to my three movies I recommend that are not available through a subscription service at this time.

Poolhall Junkies

• Release Date: 2002
• Director: Mars Callahan
• Genre: Sport Drama
• Budget: 4 Million
• Runtime: 1 Hour 40 minutes
• Cast: Mars Callahan, Allison Eastwood, Chazz Palimenteri, Michael Rosenbaum, Rick Schroder, Rod Steiger, Chritopher Walken
• Availability: Physical Copy Only

Upon viewing this movie recently I can see that this isn't a masterful piece of cinema but it holds a close place to my heart because how they treat pool. I've always loved pool since I was knee high to a duck. My father had been taking me to bars since I was six years old and I would always be begging for quarters to get some games in on the table. (Also a side note its really easy to get on a pool table when you're six and it's like 2 in the afternoon in a local dive bar.) So every time I watch this movie it makes me want to go out a shoot some pool. The biggest reason to watch the movie in my opinion is the pool games themselves. This is one of the only movies that I know of that actually focuses on the shots. They use minimal camera tricks to mask the pool shots, most of them you will see from beginning to end, including trick shots. So that reason alone is a good reason to check this movie out

Now as a movie it's a basic story of small city pool hustler, Johnny Doyle, who wants to be a pro pool player, but grows up to be a hustler. After realizing that his long time backer is the reason he was never able to move on to playing in tournaments, he tries to give up the game. The story then goes how you would expect with events that force him into an important game and forcing Johnny to accept who he is. The actor's do feel like they are giving it their best, especially Christopher Walken. He gives his usual energy and some interesting line read choices that stick with you. I can not think of the phrase, “Shoot it all,” without hearing his line read in my head to this day. It has some side character plots that are used for comedic relief that often don't feel like they fit into the movie but does seem fitting from my experience with small town pool halls. Fortunately they don't take much time due to the very fast pacing of the movie. Usually these moments fit a crude humor you would expect from like an old National Lampoon's movie but it does kind of give a pallet cleanser from the main story line. The final game of the movie is worth sitting through the whole movie for. The game and hustling is just phenomenal plus it has the Christopher Walken motivational speech about lions.

Overall I would recommend this movie for the feel of the poolhall. It's been years since I've being in a legit poolhall and watching this movie again has reminded me how much I miss it. It's not a deep story with grade A acting in it but I do think it is worth a watch and kept from being forgotten.

R.S.V.P

• Release Date: 2002
• Director: Mark Anthony Galluzzo
• Genre: Dark Comedy
• Budget: 1 Million
• Runtime: 1 Hour 40 Minutes
• Cast: Rick Otto, Lucas, Babin, Glenn Quinn, Brandi Andres, Jason Mewes,
• Reno Wilson, Majandra Delfino
• Availability: Amazon Prime Video – with a MovieSphere Channel subscription Physical Copy

This movie always stood out to me because it's a whodunnit style movie, but from the perspective of the murderer. Even when you are watching the murders happening on screen there is still a sense of curiosity of how he is going to get away with it and set up the next murder. I really enjoyed how they turned the whodunnit model on its head where instead of raising the tension on who dies next, it's done with who is going to figure out what's going on.

The whole plot of the story revolves the idea of one guy killing all of his friends in one night without getting caught. The film clearly takes inspiration from Alfred Hitchcock's film “Rope.” The main character's plan is inspired by the acts of convicted murderers Leopold and Loeb. This film benefits from the low budget of the film. They definitely had to get creative with how they put this film together. They don't use licensed music, the editing is clever but very basic, and they use dialogue to keep you invested in the plot. The strongest aspect of the movie would have to be the dialogue it. It's full of foreshadowing that you notice on a second viewing and is very bouncy. The character's really seem like a group of people getting together to celebrate something, and each character is unique. It's not setup like you have a room full of bankers. Each of the characters do come off as individuals without necessarily being tropes themselves. All this comes together as a back and forth with a fun party atmosphere and calculated murder.

This one gets my recommendation because it does balance between between two worlds. At some points it's just people getting drunk and high then straight into honestly complex thoughts. Since the beginning it asks the question, “Why did the quick brown fox jump over the lazy dog?” While the answer is simple I find it satisfying and a good reminder for real life application. Though I don't recommend murder for a pastime

Lucky Number Slevin

• Lucky Number Slevin
• Release Date: 2006
• Director: Paul McGuigan
• Genre: Mystery Thriller
• Budget: 27 Million
• Runtime: 1 Hour 50 Minutes
• Cast: Josh Hartnett, Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsly, Lucy Liu, Stanley Tucci, Bruce Willis
• Availability: Amazon Prime Video VOD - $3.99

This movie makes my list today because it was such a shock to find out it wasn't available on any streaming subscription. I found this movie when I was on a Bruce Willis kick once and just found this movie fun. The cast is phenomenal. I'm not huge on specific actors, but who doesn't know the caliber of these people, Morgan Freeman and Ben Kingsly as mob boss types. Bruce Willis as the best hitman. Even Josh Hartnett not being known for this type of film knocks this performance out of the park. Like RSVP it's another film that you notice more on multiple viewings.

Coincidentally this film is also inspired by an Alfred Hitchcock film, “North by Northwest” and hinges on a case of mistaken identity. You follow the main character, Slevin, who is mistaken for someone who owes a lot of money to two feuding mob bosses. This leads to demands for favors and money heading to a major twist, though a little predictable if looking for it. Even if predictable the reveal is filmed and edited so well that it still gratifying to watch it unfold. The dialogue really keeps the movie engaging. It has some wonderful banter with rhythm almost like jazz. I even noticed how masterful they conceal what's going on my most recent viewing. The major thing that is used to conceal the plot is the comedy that's evenly peppered throughout the story. It's a very snappy and clever banter between all characters. Most of it centers around how much of a wonderful asshole Slevin is. Even when getting his ass kicked he has a quip to lighten the mood.

I wanted to share this movie with people because it's just so fun to watch. Again I have no idea why no streaming subscription has this available. Unlike the other two movies this was a big budget Hollywood movie with some of the biggest names in it. So I don't know why this gets to be a casualty for the streaming wars. Luckily you can find this available as a VOD still. So since we have the time right now I highly recommend this movie for a movie night as the easiest to get into out of this list.

Conclusion

So there it is, the first installation of Netflix. I have decided it won't be a scheduled thing, because I'm still not sure what I'm doing quite yet with my workflow. I'm still trying to decide on what to do for the first actual themed list I don't know if I want to start with genre or an actor night. Keep an eye out and hopefully soonish I'll have another list of movies for you to check out that you may have missed during these days of quarantine.