Netflix and library viewings

Source Code. 2011, 93 min.

LOVED this and not sure why I hadn't seen it before. A science fiction thriller by the director of "Moon". Air Force pilot Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes up on a communter train not knowing where he is or what is going on. A woman is talking to him and calling him "Sean". He goes to the restroom, looks in the mirror, and sees someone else's face. Some similar themes to "Moon" about how technology can be used to exploit people.

Okja. Netflix, 2017.

I didn't like this; it seemed like a message move whose message was garbled. It's a science fiction movie with poor world building and the script needed a few more edits. Okja is a "super pig" being raised by a teenage girl in the mountains of Korea. The project is run by a corporation trying to create and market new meat products that are supposedly beneficial for the environment. From the beginning it didn't make sense: why would a food animal take 10 years to mature? That would be way too expensive and is completely unrealistic. Do some research if you're going to write about meat production.

More movie notes

The Keepers - Netflix documentary, 7 episodes. 2017.

This was rough, but riveting and thought provoking. A detailed investigation into the murder of a nun in 1969, this series focuses largely on women who were her students in high school (so they are in their 60s now). There is a lot of discussion of sex abuse in the Catholic church, some discussion of possible police corruption (or at least egregious incompetence), and a strong sense of the social consequences of violence. Recommended if you like true crime stories and can handle the discussions of abuse.

Masterminds - on Netflix. 2016. comedy.

This is good if you are in the mood for a silly comedy with some gross-out humor, and which is not mean, and not violent. Zach Galifinakis plays Dave, an armored car driver who gets manipulated into doing a robbery and stealing 17 million dollars. Also stars Owen Wilson, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, and Kate McKinnon. Content note: guns go off, but no one is shot.