Sure-Fire Streaming: Mad Max: Fury Road, The Card Counter, and more
By Jordan Parker
https://parkerandpictures.wordpress.com/
The best in TV and film from your living room.
Mad Max: Fury Road – Available On Netflix
One of the most visceral, ambitious film experience in two decades, Mad Max: Fury Road is one of the best action movies I've ever seen.
Writer-director George Miller – known for the Mel Gibson incarnations – returns here and helms an absolutely incredible affair.
The post-apocalyptic thrill-ride follows a woman who rebels against a terrifying rules as she tries to find her homeland. She has female prisoners in tow, as well as a drifter named Max.
The performances from leads Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron are unforgettable, and Nicholas Hoult, Zoe Kravitz, and Hugh Keays-Byrne are all fantastic as well.
It's one of the very best genre films I've ever seen, and one of my favourite flicks of all time.
The Invisible Man – Available On Netflix (Saturday)
Based on the timeless H.G. Wells novel, this is a terrifying twist on the classic tale.
Writer-director Leigh Whannell has been terrifying audiences since her wrote Saw in 2004, and Insidious, Upgrade and more have come from is mind.
With The Invisible Man, he takes another interesting step forward, and breaks new ground with a concept I thought had been done to death.
It follows Cecilia, a fragile woman who escapes her abusive ex, only to find out weeks later he's committed suicide and left her all his money. But she doesn't believe he's actually dead.
She soon comes to think he's made himself invisible and is haunting her in grotesque ways.
Elisabeth Moss is perfection as Cecilia, and the film truly doesn't work without her commitment to the role. She really brings her all here.
Invisible Man has so many twists and turns, and if the frights don't get you, it's a worthy showcase for Mad Men alum Moss nonetheless.
The Card Counter – Available On Prime Video
Writer-director Paul Schrader is the man who penned Taxi Driver, and has been an icon in the film world for decades.
The last five or so years have seen him very much go his own way, and directing his own screenplays, to mixed results.
He was incredibly successful with Ethan Hawke-starring First Reformed, and repeats here with Oscar Isaac-fronted The Card Counter.
It's a story of redemption following William, ex-military interrogator who is now a gambler. He's haunted by his past as he tries to plot revenge and takes on a young protege.
Isaac is joined by Tiffany Haddish (in a deep dramatic turn), Tye Sheridan and Willem Dafoe, and they all do a fantastic job.
It's a haunting little film, and though it doesn't always hit the mark, there's no way you'll forget it.
Source Code – Available On Netflix
One of the best sci-fi films in recent years, this flick took me by absolute surprise, and refused to let me go.
It follows a soldier who wakes up in another body and figures out he's being used in an experimental government program to find a bomber on a commuter train.
Trapped in a time-loop, it's high-stakes Groundhog Day, and he only has eight minutes to solve the puzzle and save lives.
Director Duncan Jones – known for Moon and Warcraft – makes the best film of his career here.
Jake Gyllenhaal is fabulous, as are leading ladies Michelle Monaghan and Vera Farmiga.
It's a genre movie that transcends, and one of the hidden gems of the 2010s.
Kevin Can F… Himself - Available On Prime Video
FX’s pitch-black satire of popular Kevin James sitcom Kevin Can Wait is hilarious, poignant and a perfect skewering of the genre.
It follows a woman who cooks, cleans and works full-time to sustain the habits and hijinks of her silly, buffoon of a husband and his friends & family.
Her husband Kevin is, frankly, clueless. And as she despairs to escape her life, Allison plots to kill her him.
Annie Murphy – of Schitt’s Creek – is great here, as are Raymond Lee, Eric Petersen and Mary Hollis Inboden.
It’s a bit tonally off, but it’s renewed for a second season. This show is definitely worth catching up on.