Friday, July 17, 2009

Stream at Your Own Risk

Sometimes having Netflix with "streaming video" can be a gift and a curse. On the upside, it is a way to find movies you're never going to think to look for. Periodically Netflix will offer something that makes you say "neat. I had no idea that existed," and I'll add it to the instant queue, only to forget about it later.

The downside is that, periodically, they'll offer something like the 1992 remake of Night and the City. Regular readers will note that the original Night and the City, with Richard Widmark, Herbert Lom, and Gene Tierney, is one of my all time favorite film noirs. I had no idea anyone had tried to remake it, or why they'd bother, but sure enough, there it is.

Robert DeNiro is playing the Widmark role and Jessica Lange is the Gene Tierney substitute. I didn't stick around in IMDB long enough to find out who was the Herbert Lom "Kristo" role, but the remake does feature Eli Wallach. Instead of wrestling, Harry Fabian (DeNiro) schemes to get even with a boxing promoter, but I'm guessing it pans out the same way.

The Night and the City remake has "so-so" reviews, but curiosity demands that your Cap'n check it out. Odds are I'll regret the whole experience, but it does mean a new movie to file into the "So You Won't Have To" drawer. Look for the gory details some time in the next, uh, two or three months.

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Speaking of "So You Won't Have To" or, should I say, "Because We All Need To", I'm moving forward on the threat to actually watch Street Fighter: The Somethingorother of Chun Li. The Cap'n let his "trash savant" title sit alone on the shelf for too long, and it's gathering dust in preparation for someone to take it. That can easily be corrected, so maybe I'll share the glory of Chris Klein's return to filmed entertainment before I move.

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Off to check out Dune for potential herky-jerky motion issues. Don't get into any trouble, or I'll rescind my promise to never share the terrible, horrible secret from Summer Fest. You know what it is...

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