Maymunah İbrahim
Binge-watching might as well be America’s favorite past time. There is never a day that goes by where I don’t have the television on laying some show that I am barely paying attention to while I scroll down Instagram or, occasionally, do my homework. There are some moments when I am genuinely interested in watching something new or intriguing. If you’re like me and use Netflix, (because cable is boring) you’ll be excited to hear about these exciting titles coming this month. So sit back, relax, grab some popcorn if that’s what you’re craving, and turn one of these new (or new to Netflix) titles on.
[Side bar: in this article, I’m mainly focusing on classics that have just been put on Netflix, not ones that have been there for some time.]
1. Inception (2010)
I’ve seen Inception about three times and I still can’t tell you what it’s really about. To summarize, we are taken to a futuristic period where people can enter someone’s dream and take ideas from them. Yet a team of thieves use their expertise to plant an idea into the mind of someone using a dream. They create a dream while already in a dream and continue to go down what are known as dream levels to avoid getting caught, but if they go down too far they could be trapped in a dream forever and die in reality. Whew, I got a headache just trying to piece that all together. Just think of time travel but with dreams, okay?
2. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 & 2 (2004)
Okay, can I just say that Kill Bill is the best ‘he cheated on me, so I’m getting revenge’ film of, like, all time. I mean, think about it: The Bride (Uma Thurman in all her blonde glory) seeks revenge from Bill (some balding white guy) who, along with a list of accomplices, killed her husband, unborn child, and get this, her entire wedding party. Can you smell the jealousy radiating off this guy? Let me tell you, it reeks. My home girl, being the former assassin that she is, basically kills everyone that took four years of her life away. (Did I forget to mention that while Bill was trying to kill her, he put her into a coma? Oops, must’ve slipped my mind.) She leaves so much blood in her path, we could probably fill the Grand Canyon with it. And don’t get me started with the technique she uses to finally bring the title to life. All I’m going to say is nobody better try me like this, I’ve seen this film enough and am pretty confident in my ability to mimic her moves.
3. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
This entire movie screams senioritis. In this film about cutting classes and faking sick days, a soon-to-be high school graduate aims to live one more day of his life to the fullest before college and career send him into adulthood. The fourth wall breaks are ridiculously entertaining as we see Ferris take his best friend Cameron and his girlfriend Sloane on a wild day out in Chicago. And he does all this while avoiding his father, and by the grace of God beating his mother and sister home before the dean of his school can prove that he was never really sick at all. The best scene hands down is the epic race Ferris partakes in (on foot) comically reacting with those in the front lawns of which he runs through. He snatches a man’s beer out of his hands, stops to have a ‘friendly’ chat with two teenage girls suntanning in bikinis, and even runs through a house alerting everyone that “dinner’s ready.” I mean, what more could you ask for in a closing high school film?
4. Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
I’m pretty sure Willy Wonka was on something strong, because there is no way that he could single-handedly create all those crazy places and contraptions in his factory while being sane. You’re probably wondering what places and contraptions I’m talking about. Well, Charlie Bucket, the poorest boy in America in the 1970s always wanted to buy candy like kids his age. He hears about Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory from his grandpa Joe who, along with his wife, live with a widowed Ms. Bucket. This is around the time that Charlie hears about Wonka leaving five gold tickets in random chocolate bars and allowing each recipient to join him on a tour of his factory. A bunch of prissy children (demons, if you ask me) along with Charlie receive the tickets and run into issues that resulted from them breaking Wonka’s rule of not touching anything. Charlie and his guardian grandpa Joe are the last ones standing and, because of a morality test, Charlie ends up inheriting the entire chocolate factory. Yeah, that is jealousy you’re hearing. Or should I say reading?
5. Free Willy (1993)
Is it just me or are orcas the cutest whales ever? Like their cow colors just make them look so fun and they are the most playful whales. Well, if you like orcas, or really just animals in general, here’s a movie just for you. In this 1990s classic, a boy named Jesse is caught vandalizing an aquarium wall and is sent to live with foster parents while also volunteering at the aquarium as probation. Jesse gains a relationship with an orca named Willy who was captured and separated from his family. Jesse teaches Willy tricks and Dial, the aquarium owner, aims to make money off of this, but Jesse has his heart set on sending Willy back home into the ocean where he belongs. Come on now, tell me this doesn’t bring a tear to your eyes. A troubled child fixes his ways after being influenced by a new and unlikely friend. In simplest terms the plot seems like something ripped right out of a National Geographic’s article, but it will never be outplayed. So grab your box of tissues because this one might just break your heart—again.
6. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
This movie gives me the chills, but in a really great way. I mean, it’s pretty much the most unique spin on the Spanish Civil War that I’m sure you have ever seen. The movie cuts in with the princess of the underworld Moanna visiting the human world, gets blinded by the sun which in turn erases her memory, and dies after being turned mortal. Her father creates labyrinths (portals to the underworld) because he believes that her spirit will return. Orfelia’s pregnant mother, Camren, marries Captain Vidal, a republican rebel hunter. While in Vidal’s house, Orfelia meets a stick insect who is actually a fairy and leads her down a labyrinth where she meets the faun, a human-goat hybrid who believes she is the reincarnation of Princess Moanna. He gives her three tasks to complete in order to ret8urn to the underworld. Throughout the story we see Orfelia completing magical tasks and trying to stop her step father’s ruthless behavior. The ending is one that you will not believe. The movie had my mind on a completely different level, I had to watch it twice in order to understand it. I even read a plot summary and still can’t understand how that ending made sense. Seriously, you guys have to watch this.
7. The Ring (2002)
What a better way to end this list than with a horror film? The 2002 film paved the way for other English adaptations of Asian horror films. The movie begins with a legend of a home video that causes watchers to die within a week. A girl named Katie mentions that she watched the film a week ago with some friends before she died gruesomely in front of Becca. Katie’s mother gets her sister Rachel to investigate the terrible death Katie endured. Rachel learns that all of Katie’s friends died just the way she did. Going to the inn that Katie and her friends shared, Rachel finds the cursed video and watches it, getting a call that alerts her of her death in seven days once the video ends. Rachel adds her ex-boyfrined Noah to the film’s list and they investigate the strange images in the film together, leading them to learn of the suicide of a horse breeder named Anna. With some further digging, they learn that Anna had an adoptive daughter who was able to project images into the minds of people and animals. Anna killed Samara, her daughter, who uses the tapes to project her suffering onto others. This movie was the creepiest thing I have ever seen, I had nightmares for weeks after watching this. I never wanted to watch another video as long as I lived and I swear I ran up the electric bill because I would not let anyone turn off any lights.
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Television is probably the best invention in the world. I mean, I was watching TV while writing this. It’s everywhere and it’s on at all times. However, don’t forget to take time out of your life to spend with your family. You could even pull up one of these 7 titles to watch during family movie nights. They’re all such amazing films that I recommend watching them all at some point. You won’t regret it.