Netflix - Not bad! Qwikster - uh, never mind...

So I'm starting to consider Netflix. In the past, my problem was that I don't watch enough DVDs to justify a $17.99 per month fee (lately, it's been only a couple a month). But then I realized that if I was getting movies delivered to my doorstep all the time then I'd totally make time to watch 'em. The selection is pretty exciting, too. Should I take the plunge?

Done.

Also, word of warning - do NOT rent Wong Kar-Wai's Ashes of Time unless you want to either gouge your eyes out or gather a bunch of peeps & mock it mercilessly. It's like the DVD manufacturer burned a VHS copy straight to disc, and then used some shit-ass program to create the shape-shifting subtitle bar that sometimes fails to block the subtitles of the version they taped! And don't even get me started on the grammar, the spelling mistakes, the lack of synchronicity between the text & what's happeningm THE "(7)" THAT POPS UP HALF-WAY THROUGH. Holy fucking fuck.

(Also: if you've been wanting to see Visitor Q or The Believer or Frida & haven't gotten your copy yet, I apologize.) (BTW, don't hold your breath for Visitor Q - this is my 2nd attempt @ renting it; #1 was so scratched, the movie died 20 minutes before the end, & #2 was CRACKED.) Despite the problems detailed above, I love Netflix like a dirty hippie. Whether I'm the hippie or Netflix is, I'll let you decide.

Bryan G! Watch out for the ending of Clerks! & if Forgotten Silver is the Peter Jackson "documentary", enjoy!

Currently have:
Twentynine Palms
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg
I Am Cuba
My Life to Live
The Brood

Next handful in queue:
Fallen Angels
Branded to Kill
Tokyo Drifter
Fela in Concert
Il Grido
Salvatore Giuliano
Ikiru  
The Shop on Main Street
Soldier of Orange
Early Summer 
The Brother From Another Planet 
Frenzy
Shadow of a Doubt  
Horror Hospital 
Mystery Train
Before Sunrise
Chloe in the Afternoon
Fear of Fear

All About Eve (1950)
Making the Misfits (2001)
The Night of the Hunter (1955)
The Prince and the Showgirl (1957)
Marilyn Monroe: Memories & Mysteries / Hometown Story (1951)
Love Nest (1951)
Born Yesterday (1950)
Marilyn Monroe: The Mortal Goddess (2002)
There's No Business Like Show Business (1954)
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
Niagara (1953)
Speedway (1968)
A Place in the Sun (1951)
From the Terrace (1960)
Serial Mom (1995)
The Men (1950)
Imitation of Life: Double Feature (1934, 1959) (1934)
All That Heaven Allows (1955)
JFK: Special Edition (1991)
The Misfits (1961)
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
The Wild One (1955)
The Asphalt Jungle (1950)
U.K. Subs: Punk Can Take It (1979)
Long Day's Journey into Night (1962)
Grand Illusion (1938)
Now, Voyager (1942)
The Iceman Cometh: Disc 2 (1973)
Jubilee (1977)
Music Hall Days (2004)
Classic Albums: Elvis Presley (1956)
Depeche Mode: The Videos '86-'98: Disc 2 (1998)
The Iceman Cometh: Disc 1 (1973)
King Creole (1958)
The Last Picture Show (1971)
The Fabulous '50s (2002)
Absolute Beginners (1986)
Elvis '56 (1987)
Gerry (2002)
Pet Shop Boys: Somewhere (2000)
The Filth and the Fury: A Sex Pistols Film (2000)
Depeche Mode: The Videos '86-'98: Disc 1 (1998)
Intimacy (2001)
Bartleby (2002)
Sweet Sixteen (2002)
New Order: 316 (1981)
The Cure: Trilogy: Disc 2 (2002)
The Cure: Trilogy: Disc 1 (2002)
Death in Venice (1971)
The Cramps: Live at Napa State Metal Hospital (1981)
Night Flight from Moscow (1972)
In a Lonely Place (1950)
Bullitt (1968)
King and Country (1964)
Romper Stomper (1992)
Alice Adams (1935)
Modesty Blaise (1966)
I Could Go On Singing (1963)
Giant (1956)
Night Porter (1974)
The Collector (1965)
The Damned (1969)
Two-Lane Blacktop (1971)

here's what i've returned so far:

Irma Vep, 1996
Metallica: Some Kind of Monster, 2004
My Best Fiend: Klaus Kinski, 1999
Beau Travail, 1999
Schizopolis, 1996
Underground, 1995
Days of Being Wild, 1991
The Iron Giant: Special Edition, 1999
Election, 1999
Arrested Development: Season 1: Discs 1-3

American Splendor (M)

Barton Fink (M)

Buena Vista Social Club (G)

The City Of Lost Children (Citi des enfants perdus) (M)

The Civil War (Ken Burns) - Vol 1 (G)

The Civil War (Ken Burns) - Vol 2 (G)

The Civil War (Ken Burns) - Vol 3 (G)

Delicatessen (M)

The Devil's Backbone (MA)

Dodgeball (M)

Down From The Mountain

Fahrenheit 9/11 - Disc 1 (M)

Fahrenheit 9/11 - Disc 2 (M)

Firefly - Season 1: Disc 1 (M)

Firefly - Season 1: Disc 2 (M)

Firefly - Season 1: Disc 3 (M)

Firefly - Season 1: Disc 4 (M)

Gangs of New York (MA)

Gangs of New York - Bonus Disc (MA)

Ghost Dog - Way Of The Samurai (MA)

Laputa - Castle In The Sky (G)

Miller's Crossing (M)

Princess Mononoke (M)

Queen of the Damned (M)

Shaolin Soccer (PG)

Time Bandits (PG)

Ultraviolet - Disc 1 (MA)

Ultraviolet - Disc 2 (MA)

The Untouchables (M)

but if it's some weird conflict you have with the disc assembly, you're probably screwed either way, which is possible. e.g. my dvd/cdr combo drive refuses to recognize SACD hybrid music discs.

I give all Bond movies at least four stars!

What's really funny is that I have been rating all these films that I haven't seen since I was a kid.

"Adventures In Babysitting? That was AMAZING!"

1) Any Bond film gets at least four stars
2) Any film with Kirsten Dunst in it, even in a minor role, gets at least three stars, usually four
3) Most critically applauded debuts by young directors get less than three stars
4) Any film set or shot in the Bay Area gets at least three stars (except Patch Adams)
5) All Woody Allen films made before 1999 get at least four stars
6) Any movie about cheerleaders or girls in a band or girl surfers or evil girl neighbors/babysitters gets at least four stars
7) Most golden age Disney films get at least four stars
8) Any 80s film about gadgets or robots gets at least four stars
9) I don't rate friends or sex and the city DVDs
10) No Steven Soderbergh film gets more than two stars (maybe)