5 Netflix Picks is our weekly list of random movies we recommend you move to the top of your queue, from comedy to romance to horror and everything in-between.
With winter full on keeping most huddled inside by the proverbial fire, we’re all looking for something to keep us entertained through these cold nights. Fortunately, Netflix has plenty on their digital shelves to choose from and for this week, we’ve put together another great collection that will make your Monday through Friday a fun movie experience. From a classic comedy with a Hollywood icon to a cool sci-fi story to a quirky heist and an emotional boxing story (is any other kind?), you’re gonna love your time on the couch. Let’s get the week rolling with a stylish romp down in the heat soaked beaches of Florida …
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MONDAY: The Birdcage
MONDAYBased on the 1978 film La Cage aux Folles, this adaptation stars Robin Williams as Armand Goldman, a gay man and owner of a drag club in South Beach, Florida. His star attraction is Albert (Nathan Lane), a flamboyant drag queen who is also his life partner. Armand does have son however, from a one night fling in his youth. Val (Dan Futterman) is well-acquainted with his father’s lifestyle and isn’t at all worried about it until he plans to bring home his fiance Barbara (Calista Flockhart) and her parents, a very conservative senator (Gene Hackman) and his wife (Dianne Wiest). Think that will go well? Not really, especially when Val wants his dad and Albert to play it straight. Very funny, and with plenty of great direction from Mike Nichols, including a fantastic opening shot.
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TUESDAY: Logan’s Run
TUESDAYLogan’s Run is a sci-fi thriller and now cult classic from director Michael Anderson that has stood the test of time despite it having really no right to. Cheesy and wedged to a degree into the flairs of the 1970s, the story follows the remains of human society living well into the future who survive in a sealed community run by an elaborate computer system. Everyone is implanted with a device that tracks them to their 30th birthday, where upon they will be sent to their next ‘life.’ However, not all belief this ‘truth’ and go on the run. Logan (Michael York) is a ‘Sandman’ who chases these runners until he makes a strange discovery on the body of one he catches. Everything changes and now he’s the one being hunted. Look for Farrah Fawcett as Holly 13.
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WEDNESDAY: Masterminds
WEDNESDAYAdmittedly, this absurd comedy from Jared Hess is for a certain type of fan, but we’re guessing you’re one of them. Starring Zach Galifianakis as David Ghantt, a dull-ish sort of eccentric and armored car driver with a thing for coworker Kelly (Kristen Wiig). She is with Eugene (Owen Wilson), the pair scheming to rob one of the trucks and use David to make it happen. Naturally, it goes off without a hitch. Or rather, not at all. After David forgets to collect all of the CCTV tapes, it’s a manhunt with all kinds of comedic shenanigans. Based on a real life incident, this offbeat take to the story is purposefully awkward yet works wonders thanks to the great cast, whose timing and delivery are keep this right on beat.
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THURSDAY: The Fighter
THURSDAYBoxing movies are never about the boxing, only the characters behind the fights, and that’s exactly what David O. Russell‘s 2010 film is all about. It stars Mark Wahlberg as Micky Ward, a solid boxer with a promising career, managed by his mother (Melissa Leo) and Mickey’s older brother and former fighter Dickey (Christian Bale), a guy now strung out on cocaine. Meanwhile, an HBO documentary team is on hand filming Dickey, which he thinks is about a possible comeback, but is actually about drug abuse, and after Mickey suffers a tough loss, falls in love with bartender Charlene (Amy Adams). Bale earned an Academy Award for his efforts, the film a genuinely moving story based on true events. A powerful and emotionally-affecting watch.
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FRIDAY: Ant-Man and the Wasp
FRIDAYSure, you many have already seen this superhero movie recently in theaters, but come on … in your home? With all the comforts therein? Yes. This second story featuring the endlessly charming Paul Rudd as Scott Lang and Evangeline Lilly as Hope van Dyne aka Ant-Man and the Wasp, is another wildly inventive experience that takes full advantage of the cool powers these characters have, with things shrinking and expanding to great action and comedic effect. If you liked the first film, and you know you did, then there’s no reason not to sign up for a second time, making this Marvel entry a perfect Friday night feature.