Netflix Instant: TV and Movie Picks

It's a pretty light week at the movies, and many people's Spring Break is coming to an end. If you need to detox this weekend and rest up before going back to school or work, here are some great films and a TV series for you to enjoy.

Netflix Instant: TV and Movie Picks

I think the snow is finally thawing down here in Dallas, and Spring Break is about to start. Perfect timing. There are loads of great titles to catch up on, and if you need a break from House of Cards, like me, here are some great titles for you to enjoy to help you procrastinate on spring cleaning. 

Netflix Instant: TV and Movie Picks- Documentary Edition

Let's face it. There's not much out this weekend in terms of movies. Yes, there is the latest installment of Transformers from Michael Bay, but if you're like me, I'm a little worn out from all the explosions and bad editing. Instead, I say stay in and enjoy some awesome documentaries I have picked for this week!

WE CAUSE SCENES: THE RISE OF IMPROV EVERYWHERE
Improv Everywhere is a group whose mission is to bring smiles and joy to people through various "flash mob" type of activities. Whether it's not wearing pants on the subway or having 100 people freeze in a train station, this group is all about creating memories for people. This film shows how this group started off small but ended up making headlines around the world. 

30 FOR 30: SOCCER STORIES

World Cup has pretty much taken over all social media whether you like it or not. I'm not the biggest soccer fan, but I always enjoy a good sports story. The 30 for 30 series has never disappointed me, so I plan to check out some of these while futbol fever is still going on.

STORIES WE TELL
This was a film I've been wanting to check out for a long time. In this documentary, director Sarah Polley takes a look at her family history and discovers untold secrets that completely changes how she views her past. I've heard nothing but wonderful things about this film, and I'm eager to check this off my "missed films" list of last year. 

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Netflix Instant: TV and Movie Picks

If you're having trouble filling out your Oscar ballot for the party you're going to on Sunday, put in one of these films to clear your mind before you have to pick which Best Live Action Short..which we all know can absolutely ruin your ballot.

30 FOR 30: THE PRICE OF GOLD

This is the latest documentary from the 30 for 30 series that, as you can tell from previous Instant posts, I'm a tad obsessed with. This one takes a look at ice skating's most infamous scandal, the feud between Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan. 

BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR

This film made waves when it won the Palm d'Or at Cannes this year. But then rumblings came out about how unnecessarily sexually graphic it was. If you shuffle through the people who can't handle those sorts of movies, all the reviews around the film state how raw and truthful this depiction these girls' relationship was. This was on my list last year to see, but never got around to it. Thankfully, I can watch it now.  

C.O.G.
I haven't heard much of this film but it has two aspects I thoroughly enjoy: actor Jonathan Groff and the script is based on a David Sedaris short story. 

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For Funsies: 30-FOR-30 SPACE JAM "Documentary"

SPACE JAM is a terrible. ESPN's 30-FOR-30 documentary series is not. It gets non-sportsball fans like myself actually care about the athletes and stories at the center of each entry. Today we have a clip of what would happen if 30-FOR-30 chose to cover the legendary human/cartoon animal/cartoon alien match. Thanks to the Wrap for the heads up, you can check it out after the break.

Netflix Instant TV and Movie Picks- Hope and Documentary Edition

It's been a tough week. Between the Boston Marathon bombings and the explosions in West, Texas, the news is one of the last things we want to watch. However, I know I can't tear myself away from the
TV when tragedy strikes. For the Netflix picks this week, I decided to find a few documentaries that bring some hope and maybe some inspiration to this crappy news week and to help with escaping a bit.

Netflix Instant TV and Movie Picks

It's about to get crazy around here starting next week. The Dallas International Film Festival will be starting up, and then the elusive summer season of movies will begin. If you are lucky enough to be enjoying a three day weekend, here are some films to keep you company on your day off. If you are working today, then, here's some titles to look forward to once you're off work!

HOLY MOTORS

This film needs another chance. I watched it in the middle of Fantastic Fest when the lack of sleep and copious amounts of beer was beginning to set in. I didn't understand all the praise. Not that it's a bad film, but I wasn't sure why it made tons of "Best of" lists. I realize now that I need to give this film another chance when there's ample time to focus on it. 

COSMOPOLIS

I had no interest in seeing this film until my cohort wrote about it for his top ten films of the year, and it spiked my interest. Even though I'm still weary of watching a film with Robert Pattinson, I can always use a good film that comments on the state of modern culture. 

30 FOR 30: PONY EXCESS

This was my first taste of the ESPN series, 30 for 30. It's a fantastic look at the year the SMU football team got the "death penalty" from the NCAA for serious rules violations. It's heartbreaking to see this team go from one of the top football teams to absolute bottom. 

Javi will be back next week with some awesome themed column!

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Netflix Instant: Cool TV and Movie Picks

Happy Friday everyone. Today we are lucky enough to be part of a group from Dallas traveling to Austin to check out the Alamo Drafthouse Theatre. As you know, there will be an Alamo Drafthouse opening up here in Dallas next year, and they want to bring some of us down to show us the workings of the theatre in Austin. Pretty awesome experience, and we're excited to go. We will have a full report next week with all the details of what we learn.

But for now, here are my Netflix Instant picks for this week.

Netflix Instant - Cool TV & Movies: Sportsball Edition!

So if any of your cats and kittens know me in real life, you know I have no clue what the hell sports are all about. It's ironic, really. My dad was a linebacker in college, you'd think I would've picked up some of that passion from him. Nope, my rebellion was learning guitar and listening to Pantera instead. In the interest of learning new things, I was actually pretty excited when I heard that ESPN's 30 FOR 30 documentary series hit Netflix Instant. A lot of legitimately great directors have been involved in this series and the topics all seem to be a hell of a lot more interesting than most ESPN programming. Below are my 3 picks that I will be checking out this weekend:

30 FOR 30: KING'S RANSOM

Wayne Gretzky is a name I know mostly from the SNES games that were named after him but this story about his contract negotions sounds intense.

30 FOR 30: JUNE 17TH, 1994

C'mon, the OJ White Bronco fiasco through the eyes of the sports world? That sounds interesting!

30 FOR 30: THE BIRTH OF BIG AIR

I was never too much into Mountain Dew or XTREME!!! sports like BMX or any of that, but seeing Spike Jonze's name attached to this documentary

So that's it for this week. If anyone of your more sports oriented types know of any other good installments of this series, please let me know. I'm up for checking them out.

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