16 Comments

Now do the criterion channel, please! 😊

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Aug 2, 2021Liked by Ty Burr

A heck of a lot of movies on my saved list are on your list. A heck of a lot of titles on your list, I made it my business to see. I just saw a little movie from 2013 called Doctor Bello that I thoroughly enjoyed. You should check that out.

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What’s the business model behind all those made for TV fils that have never seen theatrical release?

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Thanks Ty. Very useful.

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Thanks so much Ty, this should be a rolling list updated monthly! (Or

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(Whoops - couldn’t finish; or however often it is that Netflix arbitrarily drops and adds movies….)

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Two major omissions: A Monster Calls (7.6 Rotten Tomatoes Average Rating, 7.5 IMDB) and Nocturnal Animals (7.0, 7.5).

A bunch of mostly obscure indie sci-fi films, with my score followed by the RT / IMDB consensus.

Both have been upgraded to match DVD.Netflix's more generous predictive algorithm.

^ Foreign

* (after rating) arthouse styling

^PK, 90 / 85 (hugely popular Indian satire of organized religion)

^The Soul, 89 / 77 (twisty, a bit arthouse)

Synchronic, 90 / 71 (from the writer/directors of The Endless)

The Batch Batch, 91 / 63* (hugely misunderstood followup to A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night)

Prospect 84 / 72 (transplanted Western, but really solid)

^Cities of Last Things 84 / 69 ** (cinematically, best of the bunch)

See You Yesterday 85 / 70 (Spike Lee production)

The History of Future Folk, 80 / 78 (modest delight)

Flawed but worth your time if you're a fan:

Freaks, 82 / 74 (tremendous setup, too-familiar follow-through)

^The Platforn, 82 / 76 (parable for wealth inequality that maybe makes the wrong points)

It Comes at Night 79 / 68* (gripping arthouse horror that makes no sense)

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Unfortunately, DVD service is declining in usefulness as well as customers. You might wait months to receive, e.g., The Band Wagon, Charlie Wilson's War, 'Round Midnight, The Testament of Dr. Mabuse and Revolutionary Road

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Aug 3, 2021Liked by Ty Burr

Who even knew the DVD/mail-at-home version of Netflix even still existed? It doesn’t seem that long ago that you suddenly didn’t have to go to Blockbuster and you could get that red-sleeved DVD in the mail, like magic, ha! It is curious that the Netflix movie content seems so random, given their heritage. Thanks for helping us navigate Ty.

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Aug 4, 2021Liked by Ty Burr

This explains so much... It explains why I can spend an hour looking on Netflix for something to watch and throw my hands up in frustration wondering why there is nothing to watch. Your list is a good one, but truth be told, I've seen most of them. I'm always on the quest for the holy grail movie that is wonderful but I never heard of it... I'm hoping that your review of the other platforms will be more fruitful resource for me. I watch "I Am Love" last night on Prime... it seems to link to some worthwhile possibilities. Fingers crossed.

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Jacob’s Ladder?

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Jacob’s Ladder

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