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Hey everybody,
I have a Netflix account (the streaming kind). I'm wondering if anyone has any good recommendations as far as movies, tv shows and particularly documentaries. I am not into any of the prison/solitary confinement documentaries as I find they depress me (sersiously). But I loved Cocaine Cowboys I and II the documentaries. I watch old CSI episodes (getting a little tired of those). I'm not really into the "legalizing marijuana" documentaries (there are a lot). I'm also not into watching anything thats too extreme or could be depressing (a documentary I watched about meth comes to mind). I love Boyz in the Hood type movies, Godfather or any Mafia type movies (keep in mind I've watched most of the mainstream ones on there), and especially documentaries. I don't really have an interest in starting a new TV show (unless its really good). Kind of all over the place, but does anyone have any recommendations?

Thanks

True Grit and Traffic

- Yi Yi (one of the most profound movies you'll ever watch)
- Pale Flower (one of the greatest noirs you'll ever watch)
- Late Spring (an introduction to director Yasujiro Ozu)
- Early Summer (who doesn't like Setsuko Hara? Another Ozu flick!)
- Late Autumn (as above)
- Tokyo Twilight (more Ozu!)
- Equinox Flower (even more Ozu!)
- No Regrets for our Youth (Setsuko Hara via direction by Akira Kurosawa)
- Pigs and Battleships (an introduction to Shohei Imamura)
- Days of Being Wild (first of Wong Kar-Wai's classic trilogy)
- In the Mood for Love (second of Wong Kar-Wai's classic trilogy)
- 2046 (third of Wong Kar-Wai's classic trilogy)
- Chungking Express (isn't Faye Wong lovely?)
- Rosemary's Baby (the Devil)
- The Human Condition (an introduction to Musaki Kobayashi)
- Sansho the Bailiff (heartrending plus an introduction to Kenji Mizoguchi)
- Ugetsu (as above)
- The Face of Another (existentialist film about identity plus an introduction to Hiroshi Teshigahara)
- Woman in the Dunes (as above)
- 2001: A Space Odyssey (making the big questions as unanswerable as ever)
- True Grit (I love Mattie Ross. The Coen Brothers version)
- Heaven's Gate (maybe it's long, but it sure is gorgeous)
- Twenty-four Eyes (I love Hideko Takamine. It's a five hanky movie)
- When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (Hideko Takamine as directed by Mikio Naruse!)
- Floating Weeds (more Ozu!)
- Yi Yi (worth mentioning again! So powerful and poignant!)

P.S. If Yasujiro Ozu's films don't suit you, take up your argument with the heaps of admiration and praise he receives from bloggers, film buffs, critics and directors out there on the Internet, and then ask yourself: "What's going on here that I might be missing?"

To be clear, the films of interest directed by Ozu would be, at a minimum:

- Late Spring
- Early Summer
- Tokyo Twilight
- Tokyo Story
- Equinox Flower
- Late Autumn
- The End of Summer
- An Autumn Afternoon
- Floating Weeds
- Good Morning
- The Only Son

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2012/08/04/national/directors-vote-yasujiro-ozus-1953-tokyo-story-greatest-film-ever-made/#.UW5WN4KDuvE

http://www.rogerebert.com/interviews/saluting-a-master-of-the-cinema-yasujiro-ozu

http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/category/directors-ozu-yasujiro/

http://www.openculture.com/2012/11/an_introduction_to_yasujiro_ozu_the_most_japanese_of_all_film_directors.html

http://www.jim-jarmusch.net/miscellanea/author_jim_jarmusch/appraisals/yasujiro_ozu.html

http://www.filmcomment.com/article/the-poetics-of-resistance-yasujiro-ozu

http://www.cinespot.com/efeatures01.html

http://www.nytimes.com/1987/04/01/movies/film-yasujiro-ozu-as-director-and-subject.html

http://www.filmschoolrejects.com/features/when-censorship-backfires-yasujiro-ozus-late-spring.php

http://www.midnighteye.com/features/the-world-of-yasujiro-ozu/

[sarcasm]
Gosh, I must say, there are just so many people in this forum who like to share movies to watch.
[/sarcasm]

Full Metal Alchemist.

Watch Barry Lyndon (directed by Stanley Kubrick).

I always like the good movies that somehow I missed at the theater. I'm not sure if it is streaming right now, but "Land of the Blind" is such a film. It even has some big names in it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0433405/

Have you ever explored films within the Criterion Collection? With the exception of four titles, every title I've mentioned is in the Criterion Collection. I can't recommend Edward Yang or Yasujiro Ozu highly enough.

Thank you guys. I will take all of your ideas into consideration and watch at least one movie each of you has suggested, as I believe us bitcoiners have to be somewhat likeminded.

Most of the films I recommended have been voted some of the greatest films ever made by the Sight & Sound Poll - the most prestigious and universal of all film polls, voted on by directors and critics from all around the world. This is among the hundred thousand or so films made in all the history of cinema. One of the films I recommended was recently voted to be the greatest film ever made. Another was voted the second greatest film ever made. Another comes in around number 15. One was voted the greatest film made in the 21st century. A few come in around number 60 or so.

I just watched Sansho the Bailiff for about the third time this evening. It's a true masterpiece, and utterly heartrending. Some of the scenes just tear you apart. Here is a trailer to the film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=076MrMynyak

Atlas Shrugged

Hey thanks man. I'm not familiar with that. I will definitely check it out!

They are films of critical acclaim, domestic and foreign, recognized for various reasons as being significant, spanning from the early 20th century to now. My eyes were opened considerably once I started exploring their selection.

If you're usual movie watching is Hollywood fare, then you might have to ease into the Criterion films. A lot of Hollywood productions analogize well to in the book world, thrillers and teen paranormal romance - i.e fun and exciting, but a little light in the literary aspects. The films I listed are very literary, which can mean they might be slower, but in the end, full of more depth.

I am by no means against summer blockbusters. I love Marvel films and all that other good stuff, but I have discovered amazing subtlety, beauty and depth within the more arthouse canon of films.

Watch this scene from Masahiro Shinoda's 1964 noir film Pale Flower (it's slow to start, but amazing): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8S4-Ge4zGI

Awesome, I cant wait to get home tonight. I do like offbeat, non-Hollywood films. It is hard to pick a favorite, but I adore Akira Kurosawa's movie "Dreams". 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100998/

I haven't seen Kurosawa's Dreams, but I want to. I have seen the following Kurosawa films:

- Seven Samurai
- High and Low
- No Regrets for our Youth
- One Wonderful Sunday
- The Idiot
- Yojimbo
- Sanjuro
- Rashomon

Other films by him that I own are:

- Scnadal
- I Live in Fear
- Kagemusha
- Stray Dog
- Drunken Angel
- The Bad Sleep Well
- Ikiru
- Dodes'ka-den

Akira Kurosawa is considered to be one of the big four, which is a list of the most beloved Japanese directors of the 20th century. The other three are Yasujiro Ozu, Kenji Mizoguchi and Mikio Naruse. They all have films on my list.

There are certain films (or directors) which I would say are absolute must sees. I would absolutely recommend the following:

1. Watch a few Yasujiro Ozu films in conjunction with reading about him online. It might be easy for someone to dismiss him without having the perspective of those who have appreciated him. But with that perspective, you'll almost certainly come to absolutely love his films and look forward to watching them over and over. His Tokyo Story has been voted the greatest film ever made by directors from around the world. The film is very powerful, but I actually prefer the following films by him: Early Spring, Early Summer, Tokyo Twilight, Equinox Flower, Late Autumn, An Autumn Afternoon, and Floating Weeds. His movies are simply sublime for reasons which are impossible to articulate. You may find the following clip from Early Summer to be quaint and old, but once you get Ozu, it's just wonderful. To get an idea of the admiration for him, read the comments below the YouTube clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cF3Gz66P2zQ

2. Watch Yi Yi by Edward Yang. It's a Taiwan film. It is absolutely one of the most powerful and poignant films you will ever watch. It's nearly three hours long, but worth every moment. Once you've watched it, you'll be screaming for the release of the recently restored film of his entitled A Brighter Summer Day as much as everyone else is. It's nearly four hours long. It was restored by Martin Scorsese's World Cinema Foundation. See link: http://worldcinemafoundation.org/films/summer

See the trailer for Yi Yi here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F6tSorwYqw

3. One of Akira Kurosawa's older films is No Regrets for our Youth. One of the reasons I adore it so much is because it stars a younger Setsuko Hara, who was a favorite of Yasujiro Ozu. After having seen a few Ozu films with her (she is such a wonderful actress to watch), you'll appreciate her in No Regrets.

Criterion's description of Kurosawa's No Regrets goes like this:

"In Akira Kurosawa’s first film after the end of World War II, future beloved Ozu regular Setsuko Hara gives an astonishing performance as Yukie, the only female protagonist in Kurosawa’s body of work and one of his strongest heroes. Transforming herself from genteel bourgeois daughter to independent social activist, Yukie traverses a tumultuous decade in Japanese history."

Here's a fan made tribute to Setsuko Hara taken from clips in No Regrets: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUGhS7t903c

4. Kenji Mizoguchi is known for his portrayal of the plight of women within a society which oppresses them. As I mentioned in an earlier post, Sansho the Bailiff is one such film. Criterion just announced another huge film by Mizoguchi entitled Life of Oharu. I can't wait to see it. See link: http://www.criterion.com/films/27705-the-life-of-oharu?q=autocomplete

For a haunting and beautiful scene from Mizoguchi's Ugetsu, watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgBHeJfnJ5s

To be continued: there's more. I haven't even discussed Wong Kar-Wai, Hiroshi Teshigahara, Masaki Kobayashi, and others.

@FirstAscent
If you like his other films you are going to love Dreams. It is vaguely autobiographical and based on real dreams he had. Different kinds of dreams are explored as well. From a child's dream to a hypothermia induced hallucination. 

I definitely have Dreams on my list. What other films have you seen by him?

I remember:
Seven Samurai
Rashomon
Ran
and Kagemusha.
I think that is all of his work I have seen. Sometime the sub-titles can be distracting in the work of such a visual director, but i found some of his films do not have a lot of dialog anyway.

Zeitgeist! :P

Andy B

Just use the Netflix rating system on movies you have seen. It will recommend movies you may like based on algorithms. It works pretty well for me. I've rated over 1500 movies so far.

That's a lot of movies! :o

Those four films provide two interesting branches to explore. The first two prominently feature Toshiro Mifune. The second two prominently feature Tatsuya Nakadai.

If you liked Toshiro Mifune in the first two, then not only should you explore the other Kurosawa films which star him, but a few other non Kurosawa films. You should absolutely watch The Samurai Trilogy, directed by Hiroshi Inagaki, comprised of the following three titles:

Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto
Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple
Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island

I absolutely loved those three films. In addition to Toshiro Mifune, they also star Mariko Okada (more on her later). Such lush color and epic plotting. You can find their respective links at Criterion's Toshiro Mifune's page: http://www.criterion.com/explore/157-toshiro-mifune

As for Tatsuya Nakadai, he's been in some of my favorite films. Perhaps the most epic is Masaki Kobayashi's The Human Condition, which is essentially a nine and half hour film split into three films. It's basically one man's tour (an war protestor and humanist) through WWII and Japan's military machine during Japan's occupation of Manchuria. Epic.

He was also in Hiroshi Teshigahara's The Face of Another, which is a semi science fiction existentialist film which explores one's identity within society. Fantastic film. Here's a trailer to it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa6BitYbhZU

Here's a lovely scene which takes place in a bar from the film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mjb44VhZzx4

He was also in Mikio Naruse's When a Woman Ascends the Stairs as a supporting actor. It's really Hideko Takamine's star power which makes that film so great.

Criterion also just released an Eclipse set featuring four of Masaki Kobayashi's earlier films. Three of the four star Tatsuya Nakadai. See it here: http://www.criterion.com/boxsets/952-eclipse-series-38-masaki-kobayashi-against-the-system

Find more films starring Tatsuya Nakadai on his Explore page at Criterion: http://www.criterion.com/explore/195-tatsuya-nakadai

I love the long choreographed camera work in Koreyoshi Kurahara's films. Watch the opening scene of The Warped Ones to get an idea (click on the gray 'Preview' button): http://www.hulu.com/watch/243413

And I could look at Ruriko Asaoka's beautiful face all day long in his film Thirst For Love: http://www.hulu.com/watch/265815

I am Cuba is a 1964 film that had some pretty revolutionary cinematography. I haven't seen it yet but it's on my list: http://mubi.com/films/i-am-cuba

A Funeral Parade of Roses is also on my list to watch. It's a very avante-garde film from the sixties. Watch the trailer. It's slow to start with a long shot of a woman's face, but then it really picks up. One might be inclined to say the trailer is NSFW, but lots of Japanese trailers are like that. http://mubi.com/films/funeral-parade-of-roses

I absolutely want to see History of Postwar Japan as told by a Bar Hostess by Shohei Imamura. Imamura is famous for quite a number of films, one mentioned by me in my first post, entitled Pigs and Battleships. Another film he's famous for is Vengeance is Mine. Info on History of Postwar Japan as told by a Bar Hostess: http://mubi.com/films/history-of-postwar-japan-as-told-by-a-bar-hostess

As mentioned in the above paragraph, Shohei Imamura made a film called Vengeance is Mine. It's based on a true story, actually. Roger Ebert called it one of the great films and gave it four out of four stars. See his discussion of it here: http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/vengeance-is-mine-2008

The trailer is here and a couple of scenes render it sort of NSFW (but that's Imamura for you): http://www.criterion.com/films/822-vengeance-is-mine

Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors is a sixties film from the Soviet Union. It's on my list of films to watch: http://mubi.com/films/shadows-of-forgotten-ancestors

Andrei Tarkovsky, Russian director, made some legendary films, such as Ivan's Childhood, Stalker, and others. On my list is his film The Mirror. There is some absolutely extraordinary cinematography in his films, and they can be haunting as well. Consider that the barn is burning while he's doing this long single camera take: http://mubi.com/films/the-mirror

This would be where someone else does any of the following:

1. Mentions some movies they like (with a little bit of info about the movie or why they like it).

2. Thanks someone for pointing out some movies they haven't heard of.

3. Engages in general discourse, dialog, disagreement, questioning, or commenting.

I'm doing number two! Wait, that didn't sound right..  :-\

I mean #2 on the list. Thanks FirstAscent. I am looking forward to working through your recommendations.

Thank you. Please share which ones you end up watching, even if you didn't enjoy them. And if you know in advance which ones you you're considering watching, please share. I named a lot of movies. I'd be curious to know which one(s) captured your attention. Even among my favorites, I have my favorites.

So did anybody watch any of the recommendations found herein?

As far as TV shows go, I've quite enjoyed:

Breaking Bad

White Collar

Always Sunny in Philadelpia

Neflix should start accepting Bitcoins!

Shouldn't everyone? :-)

They won't do it because it is a subscription service and they can't charge you automatically every month like a credit card. Perhaps providing a payment service that handles monthly billing in bitcoins would be a great business idea.

breaking bad - yep

Fringe- watching it now, pretty dang good so far, best on my list except breaking bad.

prison break - long ass series but decent

persons unknown - a rather twisted one season show, good though, very suspensul / creepy

Sherlock and Supernatural are good ones.

You should watch prison break