What To Watch Tonight

Three more movie recommendations. All available for instant view on Netflix.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) –
Your silent recommendation for this round is a classic, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Yes, it’s maybe the seminal early Expressionist film, and yes, it’s an important milestone in film history. But more importantly, it’s just so interesting. The twisted, asymmetrical visuals are sort of proto-Burtonesque, and some shots are haunting in how long they stick with you.

The plot has to do with a carnival and a somnambulist, insanity and murder. But really, if you’re into films like, say, Inception, you really need to check out the story in this film and shiver at how prescient it was. I may rewatch this one myself. Also, it’s only 72 minutes, so if you’ve got other things to do, it’s less than 2 episodes of most television dramas – without commercials.

The Third Man (1949) –
Literally one of my very favorite movies. The Third Man never gets old for me. I love its cinematography, and its screenplay, and its kicky little zither theme. I love Joseph Cotton as the protagonist who doesn’t know to quit, and I love the post-war Vienna setting.

It’s based on a Graham Greene novel, and follows Cotton as an unemployed novelist who finds out his friend Harry Lime died under mysterious circumstances. In grand movie tradition, the novelist just has to know what really happened, despite people telling him he might be better off not knowing. Enjoy your first viewing; it’s a movie I’d dearly love to be able to see again for the first time.

Excalibur (1981) –
Though I saw Camelot first, this remains my seminal childhood version of the Arthurian legend. (Funny, because it’s a fairly hard R in both sex and violence, but… whatever.) It’s full of 80s bling and Wagner and very hammy performances from actors great and small.

Highlights include: Gabriel Byre’s Uther, who takes Ygraine while wearing his full plate, and in front of tiny!Morgan. Liam Neeson as a very blustery Gawain. Patrick Stewart. Helen Mirren. And more fog than you can shake a stick at. It may not be a very good movie, but a fun riff on the Camelot legend.