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The Most Undiscovered Movies On Netflix


Wes Anderson Alfonso Cuaron Jamie Uys Stephen Dorff Antoine Fuqua Chow Yun-Fat Macaulay Culkin Diego Luna Gael Garcia Bernal

Most films on the lower rungs of Netflix occupy that position for a single reason: they’re downright terrible. The acting is at best laughable and at worst cringe-worthy, whilst the script seems to be the product of baboons who possess a slightly above average intelligence. Elsewhere, the special effects are seemingly artefacts from design software that became obsolete once Windows 98 was released and the goofs and continuity errors come thick and fast. But amongst the schlock, the horribly ill-conceived box office flops and throwaway Chuck Norris vehicles are a selection of films hardly deserving of their placement amongst the vast expanse of Hollywood detritus. We’ve all sifted through the lower echelons of the vast Netflix database, ambivalently scrolling past Beverly Hills Ninja and Death Wish 4 and laughing at the hilarity of shoe-string budget horror C-movies such as Return Of The Killer Tomatoes and Strippers Vs Werewolves. Hiding amongst the most forgettable and artistically hollow filmic endeavours are some criminally overlooked works of cinematic art. Here is a selection of filmic diamonds who have unfairly found themselves confined to the Netflix motion picture ghetto:

Rebellion

Rebellion (2011), Director: Matheiu Kossovitz

Continue reading: The Most Undiscovered Movies On Netflix

Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End Review


Good
An honest-to-God, brawling, hooting, big ball of popcorn spectacle of a movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End fully embraces its ludicrous sense of summer season overkill without succumbing to the bloated tedium that afflicted its disappointing predecessor Dead Man's Chest. Clocking in at just under three hours, it's definitely longer than necessary, but given the number of unresolved plot strands that the last film left strewn about like so much tangled rigging, it's actually amazing the filmmakers are able to tie everything up quite as nicely as they do.

Starting with its unlikely origin as an amusement park ride, the Pirates series quickly mushroomed into a sort of meta-pirate film, a vast and whirligig universe unto itself that drew in every possible nautical cliché and legend possible. Thus the first film concentrated on yo-ho-ho-ing, rum-drinking, and general pirate-y scalawaggery. The second roped in Davy Jones and The Flying Dutchman -- not to mention an excess of secondary characters and familial drama. For the third (but not necessarily last, given the teaser it ends with) entry, the bursting-at-the-seams script tosses in a raging maelstrom, an actual trip to Davy Jones' Locker, and even the sea goddess Calypso. Dead Man's Chest showed that more is not always better, with excess just leading to more excess and a general sense of lethargy -- they were just setting us up for the conclusion and marking time until then. At World's End, however, shows that Hollywood excess, when combined with the right combination of actors and an occasionally smart script, can work out quite nicely, thank you very much.

Continue reading: Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End Review

The Replacement Killers Review


Good
Antoine Fuqua tries to blend Hong Kong action fare with gritty urban sensibilities in The Replacement Killers, to mixed effect. Surprisingly, Mira Sorvino holds her own as an unlikely action star, and the shots of her ass don't hurt matters.

The Corruptor Review


Good

"The Corruptor" gets off to a shaky start --literally. The over-stylized, '70s-inspired shake-and-zoom handheld cameraworkin the establishing action scenes was enough to make me wish I had a someDramamine.

The first act of the movie mostly by-the-book ganglandcop stuff, featuring Hong Kong action king Chow Yun-Fat ("TheReplacement Killers") as a hard-boiled(naturally) NYPD detective working the gang beat in Chinatown who reluctantlytakes on Mark Wahlberg ("Boogie Nights") as his inexperienced and laughablyidealistic new partner.

Early on Wahlberg and Chow, in his trademark sunglasses,slick suits and leather duster get into the kind of bystander-endangeringchases and shoot-outs that would get a real cop suspended (if not fired),but instead they receive commendations. They rough up informants, cut dealswith mafia leaders and raise the FBI's hackles by busting an undercoveroperative. They're kick-ass Chinatown gang cops who don't play by the rulesand act like a gang themselves.

Continue reading: The Corruptor Review

Anna & The King Review


Good

Because "Anna and the King" stands on its own remarkably well, it may be unfair to begin this review with a comparison to "The King and I," the most famous film adapted from the same source material. But what I found most striking about the elegant, intelligent remake is how acutely aware it made me of the insulting Euro-centricity of its predecessors.

In the same story told in 1946 ("Anna and the King of Siam"), 1956 (from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical) and 1999 (that dreadful cartoon version), widowed English schoolteacher Anna Leonowens has always been portrayed as a much wiser, civilized woman who teaches the elaborate but backwards Asian monarch to think like a European, to waltz like a European and shapes his diplomatic policy by whispering in his ear.

The prudent but powerful screenplay for this non-musical, epic remake -- directed by Andy Tennant, who so successfully reinvented Cinderella in "Ever After" -- puts this Anna (played by Jodie Foster) and this King (Chow Yun-Fat) on very equal footing, making their relationship far more combative and compelling.

Continue reading: Anna & The King Review

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Review


Very Good

A magnificently crafted hybrid of Chinese historical epic, F/X-enhanced martial arts spectacular, mystical romantic tragedy and live-action anime, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" is a film that defies genre while embracing traditionalism.

It's an intellectually challenging story of noble warriors in feudal China, yet it's packed with eloquent swordplay and lightning-fast hand-to-hand combat. It's also the story of a burning, long-unspoken love between one warrior and the fiancée of a fallen comrade -- a woman his honor forbids him from pursuing, even years later as they fight side-by-side against a mysterious and vengeful sworn enemy.

What's more, it is an unconventional coming-of-age fable as well, about the beautiful teenage daughter (Zhang Ziyi) of a provincial governor, who longs desperately for freedom in the face of an impending arranged marriage that will surely clip her wings.

Continue reading: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Review

Chow Yun-fat

Chow Yun-fat Quick Links

News Film RSS

Chow Yun-Fat

Date of birth

18th May, 1955

Occupation

Actor

Sex

Male

Height

1.83


Chow Yun-Fat Movies

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Movie Review

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Movie Review

An honest-to-God, brawling, hooting, big ball of popcorn spectacle of a movie, Pirates of the...

The Corruptor Movie Review

The Corruptor Movie Review

"The Corruptor" gets off to a shaky start --literally. The over-stylized, '70s-inspired shake-and-zoom handheld cameraworkin...

Anna & The King Movie Review

Anna & The King Movie Review

Because "Anna and the King" stands on its own remarkably well, it may be unfair...

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Movie Review

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Movie Review

A magnificently crafted hybrid of Chinese historical epic, F/X-enhanced martial arts spectacular, mystical romantic tragedy...

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