Category Archives: Unusual

1999, Acceptable Trash, AIDS, B-movie, Basically Sad, Crude Talk, Disturbing Image, Dysfunctional Lives, Explicit sex, Gay theme, Gloomy, Imperfect, Love Story, Mediocre, Sex Scenes, Unusual

The Velocity of Gary (1999)

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From NetFlix:

Though they’re rivals for the love of a bisexual porn star named Valentino, an aimless hustler and a volcanic waitress must find a way to set aside their differences as Valentino gradually succumbs to the AIDs virus.

If you are a Vincent D’Onofrio fan, then you are already used to abnormal behavior. In this poorly written film you get to see known stars at an early stage in their careers: VinceD’Onofrio (“Law and Order: Criminal Intent”), Thomas Jane (“Hung”), Salma Hayek (“Desperado”), and Ethan Hawke (“Gattaca”).

This review of a poor film is NOT a recommendation. But if you really want to see D’Onofrio and Jane engaging in French kissing, be my guest. Who would have thought?

1996, Abduction, British, Detective, Mental Illness, Serial Killer, Sex Scenes, Stalker, Suspense, Unusual

The Cold Light Of Day (1996)

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From NetFlix:

A troubled former cop uses an innocent young woman as the unsuspecting bait in his plan to catch a serial killer. A well-crafted thriller featuring gripping performances from a talented cast.

Once again I stumbled onto this off-beat serial killer film offered under NetFlix streaming. While not as professionally smooth as mainstream films, the plot, details, and acting is not bad (or should I say, has the feeling of an indie film).

Filmed in the Czech Republic, the actors speak with British accents. Subtitles are available. (By the way, that is currently one advantage of NetFlix streaming over Amazon – only NetFlix offers subtitles.) None of the actors are familiar to me. Anna, the child character, is acted very well by a child actress. Also the serial killer (whom we see throughout the film) is really creepy.

My only complaint is that a bad policeman who bullies innocents into confessions never gets his comeuppance.

Not at all a complete waste, just different from the usual styles.

1996, British, Explicit sexual discussion, Love Story, Motorcycles, Nudity, Sex Scenes, Transexual Theme, Unusual, Wonderful acting

Different for Girls (1996)

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From NetFlix:

Karl Foyle (Steven Mackintosh) and Paul Prentice (Rupert Graves) were boyhood friends back in the 1970s, but when they run into each other in present-day London, they learn that a lot has changed. For starters, Karl has become Kim and has no desire to go back to her past. As for Paul, he’s just an aging punk with no future. The two rekindle their friendship and are surprised to find their relationship becoming much deeper than they expected.

NetFlix Watch Instantly almost never offers mainstream films but instead has a catalog of rejects, failures, second rates, and an occasional find. If you look up Rupert Graves in IMDB you will find his appearance in 75 productions. For example, he was DI Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes TV series. Now try to find a film with Rupert Graves in NetFlix Watch Instantly. Voila! Now you are a kid in a candy store. Just for the fun of it choose “Different for Girls”. Talk about different!

Probably you have never seen a film as unusual as this well-done British gem. For those of you with delicate sensitivities, beware. Not only is this an eventual love story between a straight man and a male-to-female transsexual, but there are anatomical discussions and instances of explicit nudity and intercourse. Having been warned you should now ignore the warning because this film is a non-prurient story of an admittedly unusual relationship.

As I watched the performance of the transsexual character Kim, I sensed a slight bit of masculinity, but SHE was a beautiful and very feminine young woman. In IMDB I could not find the woman playing Kim until it hit me. SHE is played to perfection by Steven Mackintosh whose own resume listed 94 entries. Steven Mackintosh was Winston in Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998).

During filming Rupert Graves was 33 and Steven Macintosh was 29.

If you are in the mood “and now for something completely different” (quoting from Monty Python), go no further.

1994, DO NOT MISS, Drama, Flirting, Gay theme, Love Story, Optimistic, Unusual, Vulgar, Wonderful acting

The Sum Of Us (1994)

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From NetFlix:

In this Australian comedy based on David Stevens’s stage play, Jeff (Russell Crowe) is a young gay man living with his widowed father, Harry (Jack Thompson). Although Harry has always accepted the fact that his son is openly gay, his acceptance is challenged. Jeff brings home a potential lover one night, and in turn, when Harry gets involved with Joyce, a divorcée, she and Jeff can’t see eye-to-eye.

“Comedy” is not an apt description of this unusual, well-made, gay-themed film. If anything, it is a touching, warm-hearted drama. Filmed in the Sydney (Australia) from a time that reminds me of our own country before the United States became ancient Rome, the anti-gay sentiments portrayed therein are probably similar to our attitudes here in the USA 18 years ago.

Russell Crowe was born in New Zealand in 1964. So he was a young pup of 30 years when he starred in this film. Jack Thompson, who played Jeff’s father, has been in many films. For example, he was Maj. J.F. Thomas in “Breaker Morant” (which you should see!). John Polson (the potential lover) also has a respectable film resume. In this production the acting is excellent.

One device used in the film is that throughout both Jeff’s father and Jeff speak to us directly as a running commentary.

Lest you be hesitant to watch a gay-themed film, I assure you that the most explicit sexual activity portrayed is a kiss. However, the conversation is something else: off-color comments and very explicit discussions abound!

Every now and then I felt I was watching pro-gay propaganda because of the father’s attitude. How rare was it in those days to have such an understanding and accepting father? If there is a theme to this film it is: You have not lived if you have not loved.

Going out on a limb, I will say DO NOT MISS!

Could Be Hard To Watch, Could Be Sad, Crime, Crude Talk, Disturbing Image, DO NOT MISS, Drugs, Explicit sexual discussion, French, Gangs, Gay theme, Grim, Limburgish, Nudity, Police Story, Psychological Drama, Race Relations, Revenge, Unusual, Violent

Bullhead (2011)

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From NetFlix:

Tortured by his past and despairing of his stultifying present life, Belgian cattle farmer Jacky becomes entangled in a violent web of deceit involving local mobsters and determined policemen after he uses illegal growth hormones on his herd.

Belgian actor Matthias Schoenaerts is the perfect choice to play the sadly damaged character Jacky Vanmarsenille in this film spoken in Limburgish and French. His facial expressions capture Jacky’s shame, longing, loneliness, shyness, and rage. To say why he feels these emotions would be a major spoiler. Through a series of flashbacks you learn his past history. Expect some very violent scenes.

Although you may find all the crime details confusing, they really are not very original or important. Jacky is important along with those characters associated with his tragic life.

Much of the violence stems from traditional racial hatreds between the many distinct communities, each with its own language.

Bullhead was on the 2012 list of Best Foreign Language Film of the Year.

In retrospect, the ending chosen for the story is quite probably the only possible conclusion.

If you can accept the sadness, violence, and somewhat brutish characters,

DO NOT MISS THIS FILM!

2011, Could Be Hard To Watch, Crude Talk, Drama, Gloomy, Mayhem, Medical Theme, Psychological Drama, Sex Scenes, Unusual, Violent

Perfect Sense (2011)

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From NetFlix:

After sparks fly between a newly single epidemiologist and a charming chef, a puzzling patient — a truck driver who’s lost his ability to smell — drastically alters the couple’s budding relationship in this sci-fi thriller.

To call this science fiction is entirely misleading. Basically it is a meditation on the importance of our senses and a “what if” assuming we lose those senses one by one.

Humanity without exception experiences an epidemic in which each person goes through a series of sense loses and negative emotions. Central to this story is the experience of a woman epdemiologist Eva Green and a chef Ewan McGregor as they go through these stages. Our hope is that they can withstand all these personal disasters and still succeed as a loving pair. I cannot give away the ending, but getting to that end could be somewhat harrowing.

Not for everyone, but a very original film.

2002, Basically Sad, Drama, Feel Good Not For Children, Love Story, Magic Realism, Quiet, Redemption, Sex Scenes, Slow, Unusual

Till Human Voices Wake Us (2002)

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From NetFlix:

Dr. Sam Frank is haunted by his first love, an unforgettable romance that ended in loss and terror. Years later, he’s become an expert in the psychology of repression but remains a loner. Then, a beautiful stranger on a train changes everything.

At the end of this quiet, slow, sad love story, do not expect everything to have made sense. Just appreciate the parallel between Sam’s boyhood first love and his encounter as an adult with Helena Bonham Carter. Expect a semi-happy ending of acceptance with a bit of magic realism thrown in.

2011, Drama, Drugs, Dysfunctional Lives, French, Italian, Nudity, Sex Scenes, Unusual, Violent

Unforgivable (2011)

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From NetFlix:

This moody drama follows the increasingly chaotic life of Francis, a crime novelist who moves to Venice to write his next book. After starting an affair with a young beauty, Francis suspects her of cheating — even as his own daughter goes missing.

“Unforgivable” is spoken in French and Italian with subtitles. Its other name is “Impardonnables”.

What a crazy mixed-up bunch of dysfunctional people! Not a single character would classify in my book as “normal”, whatever that means.

Nor are all the subplots entirely believable. We start with Francis who was a womanizer that left each woman if she confronted him about his multiple affairs. At this point he is probably in his sixties. He is in Venice and visits a rental agency looking for an apartment to rent. Lo and behold the rental agent, Judith, is the former Chanel model Carole Bouquet who just happens to be “drop dead beautiful”. You may not believe it, but during the filming she was 54 years old. At any rate she shows Francis a house on one of the Venetian islands and during that house inspection he asks her to live with him in this island house and she, of course, accepts. For me, seeing an older man having sex with a younger beauty was a first. Needless to say Judith is bi-sexual.

And the plot continues on its bizarre path. We get to meet fatherless sons finishing prison terms for violent tendencies, Judith’s former (woman) lover who is dying of cancer, Francis’ married daughter who is currently on leave from her husband in order to pursue a young Italian drug dealer, etc.

You probably get the idea by now. Not that the film was boring, just weird. Good luck!

2011, Dark, Explicit sex, Explicit sexual discussion, Kidnapping, Medical Theme, Mostly About Sex, Not Recommended, Nudity, Plot Twist, Rape, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Spanish, Unusual, Violent

The Skin I Live In (2011)

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From NetFlix:

Brilliant plastic surgeon Robert Ledgard seeks to overcome the grief of his late wife’s disfigurement in a fiery car crash by inventing skin that’s impervious to injury. But his experiments on a living woman hasten his descent into madness.

Only Almodóvar could dream up such a weird film. Of course, sexual ambiguity is his specialty. An aging Antonio Banderas plays a somewhat expressionless jack-of-all-trades surgeon who does creepy things with his scalpel. Half way through the story there is a plot twist that I did not expect. This twist (a bit tough to experience) changes whatever you thought you understood. For me the ending was like a METRO bus that just came to the end of the line, i.e. it just stopped.

Expect to see two rapes, much nudity, and a story that is not for everyone.

2011, Could Be Hard To Watch, DO NOT MISS, Mental Illness, Psychological Drama, Unusual, Wonderful acting

Take Shelter (2011)

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From NetFlix:

Michael Shannon stars in this thriller as a small-town family man who, determined to protect his wife and deaf daughter from impending disaster, builds an impenetrable storm shelter in the safety of his own backyard.

Because the film is so true to life in the U.S., I found watching this film a very wrenching experience. What you experience is a devoted family man’s gradual descent into the clutches of paranoid schizophrenia. Perhaps I should not have told you this but soon enough you would guess the truth. This film is not science fiction nor a horror film. But in fact it is a horror film in the sense that you sit there powerless to prevent this good, well-meaning man from following the dictates of a mental illness even while he knows he has the disease (his mother developed the same illness when she was 30 and abandoned the family in a journey to the streets). In fact this is the first time I have seen portrayed the difficulty of realizing that a mental illness is directing your life and figuring out how to fight back (with the help of a professional over probably what will be a long period of time).

Three aspects of Americana that makes this film so hard to watch are things like: the difficulty in getting and affording a competent psychiatrist, the perilous way in which so many middle-class American families live just on the edge of bankruptcy and the damage that losing a job and its health benefits does to a family.

Only toward the end of the film do his wife and associates begin to understand that he has a mental illness. Meanwhile his actions cause all kinds of trouble for himself, his wife, his company, and his friends. Watching a climactic breakdown at a supper for parents of deaf children (his daughter is deaf and needs a cochlear implant) is a horror show in itself.

Michael Shannon is agent Nelson Van Alden in the TV series “Boardwalk Empire”. His acting here is phenomenal: understated, sadly driven, and possibly violent.

Be prepared for a tough but worthwhile trip.