Two big new sections arrive on the site today, both excuses for me to review more — and more different kinds of — movies:
• on Netflix globally
• movies for the resistance
I’ve been thinking about both these ideas for quite a while, and finally the time seemed right to introduce them. The Netflix page is a purely practical move: Netflix has moved into film production and distribution in a big way this year, and has very quickly changed the movie ecosystem, and I had been missing out on serving you, my lovely readers, by not covering Netflix movies.
I’m talking here about Netflix Originals, of course, the films Netflix produces or acts as primary distributor of, not the releases of traditional Hollywood studios it snaps up for home viewing. (Keeping track of which movies from all sources end up on Netflix would be far too big a job for just one person to do.) Mostly, these will be movies that are available on Netflix all over the world, but occasionally there will be movies that aren’t streaming everywhere, as when The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society went straight to Netflix in the US (and possibly in other territories; this information can be difficult to find) while it had a regular theatrical release in the UK. The opposite happened with Annihilation, which was released theatrically (not by Netflix) in the US while the rest of the planet (I think) got that film on Netflix. I’ll include such films at on Netflix globally when I’m aware of them.
Movies for the resistance, on the other hand, springs from a more philosophical place. It has felt for the past few years that all the many interconnected issues facing the world — predatory capitalism; racism, sexism, homophobia, and transphobia; global warming; rising fascism — are starting to come to head, which is, I think, why so many of us have been talking about “the resistance.” Because we know that we are at a crisis point — Donald Trump; Brexit — beyond which things are going to snowball and get even worse unless we do something about the whole big mess. Now, of course, merely watching movies and talking about movies is not gonna save the world, but there’s certainly value to be found in stories that explore the problems we have created for ourselves and the ideas and attitudes that might begin to counter them, and that offer inspiration along the way. So that will be my focus in this section.
I would love for readers to help me pick which movies in both sections I’ll review next. So I will post occasional polls at my Patreon in which patrons will be able to vote. This will likely start in the new year: I have a few more films already lined up for each section, which should take us through the holidays. So you’ve got time to become a patron if you aren’t already!
(A note for my current PayPal donors regarding the Patreon rewards…)
I’m not sure if it qualifies as resistance, but the Doctor Who showrunners have been making an effort to include people who are not white men, both on the screen and behind the scenes. That feels very significant today, because the Golden Globes are clearly not making the same effort.
I’m wondering if you’re planning to write about your reaction to the current series, and to Jodie Whittaker. I’m even tempted to join Patreon and request a lengthy recap, but I expect to be somewhat low on funds until after the holidays.
I still have seen only the first episode of the new DW. I really want to catch up and maybe write something about the season as a whole. I hope to get to that very soon.
That’s not what I’m thinking about with Movies for the Resistance. The stories have to actually be about the issues we’re facing, even if only obliquely. Merely having a diverse cast and crew is not enough… though of course such steps are absolutely invaluable and necessary.
Will you be reviewing just the Netflix Original movies, or would you consider series as well? I know I haven’t had the best track record in recommending animated shows you’ve liked — :-) — but the new She-Ra and the Princesses of Power is a delight, and a huge step forward for women’s and LGBT representation, both onscreen and in the creative team.
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-shera-writers-20181116-story.html
https://www.them.us/story/she-ra-princesses-power
The problem with series is they take so much longer to watch, and require a somewhat different sort of mindset to think and write about critically. There’s six and a half hours of *She-Ra* so far. That would demand a far bigger investment of time and effort than watching and reviewing a movie would… and movies take more time and effort than people probably realize.
Maybe I’ll set goals or tiers at Patreon regarding reviewing series… but readers will *really* have to step up if they’re going to make it worth my while.
I really hate making this about money, but there are only so many hours in a day and only so much work I can pound out, and I have to make a living.
Understood. (I guess Queer Eye was the rare exception.) Then I would just recommend it as something to check out sometime, for your own entertainment. :-)
Given your Patreon subscribers are paying for your thoughts specifically on a show rather than general coverage, one thing that might help a show get reviewed is that there is not necessarily any pressing deadline. So perhaps will that in mind, subscribers could pay for the content on an episode-by-episode basis.
At this point in time, I’d be willing to settle for an open thread so I can find out what regular posters who aren’t MaryAnn think about a certain TV series but I can readily understand why MaryAnn has chosen not to do that.
Any suggestions how I could decide which shows should get open threads? There’s a LOT of TV happening…
The most obvious candidate would be the new season of Doctor Who. IMHO, of course.
Well, Patreon works either on a pay-per-thing basis, or a pay-monthly basis. You can’t combine them. I don’t know logistically how I could organize getting people to pay on an episode-by-episode basis. And there’s SO MUCH episodic TV that I would need some serious evidence that there would be enough people willing to pay for my thoughts on any single given show.
I really would rather be writing about movies (and TV) rather than figuring out how to get people to pay for my writing. :-(
I would pay to read your recaps of either series, to the degree that my budget permits.
I’m also wondering if there are enough Whovians or She-Ra fans in my neighborhood to support a viewing party at my library. If there are, I might be interested in commissioning discussion guides for selected episodes, like “Rosa” and “Vincent and the Doctor.”
one good resistance movie, with women as the main characters, is “Julia” with jane fonda and vanessa redgrave.
Thanks, I’ll check it out.
Can’t wait until you get to Shirkers.
Interesting list. Some day soon I hope to be fortunate enough to find out why some movies are on the list and some aren’t. It’s not the type of list I would make if I were making a list of resistance movies — but then it’s not my site. ;-)
I never said it was a definitive list, and I’m open to suggestions for other films to be added to it.
We keep saying this about stories that are 20 or 50 or 90 years old, but I wonder if we should be surprised at all. After all, we still say (approvingly) that Shakespeare is still relevant, or Homer, or the Greek plays. Tribalism and corruption and Underdogs Fighting the Power will probably always be with us, and so stories about those things will probably always feel like they speak to us on some level.
“Those who cannot remember the past…” I forget the rest.
That’s the thing, though: Even when we DO remember the past (through all our millennia of stories), we still seem bound to repeat it. Because those stories were told by humans, and we’re human still.
I’ve added *Do the Right Thing* and *Roger and Me* — great suggestions — but *They Live* was already there!
I’ve been thinking that Les Miserables would be a perfect film for the Resistance list. It asks us to look with compassion on the struggles of the working class/poor and the hard choices they’re forced to make; blasts the lack of good government (“Where are the leaders of the land? Where are the swells who run this show?”); reminds religious folks that religion should be about grace and kindness rather than pious self-righteousness; offers up rousing anthems of revolution; honors the courage of the young who will lead the charge; and unflinchingly shows the cost of that courage — fighting for change is slow and hard and sometimes lonely, and there will be bodies along the way.
The Valjean-vs-Javert dynamic resonates today too, as we debate issues like the carceral state and what to do with undocumented immigrants; the film comes down emphatically on the side of love, forgiveness, and second chances, rather than a heartless obedience to the letter of the law that leaves no room for compassion and human decency.
I’m not sure if this counts as a Netflix Original but I would be very surprised if MaryAnn hasn’t already heard about this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFpgwyHHQTA
I’m not sure if it makes up for last year’s Bad Samaritan but … we’ll see.
I am aware of it, but it’s not a movie.