I've been known to say some pretty harsh things about Netflix, things like "They bury their original movies with no marketing or theatrical release," or "80 original films planned for 2018? I look forward to hearing about six of them," or "How is this a sustainable business model?!"
But now, even with all of those complaints, I must eat my words, as Netflix utterly and completed redeemed itself with its freshly released lineup of new movies and TV shows coming to the streaming service in November.
Our national nightmare is finally over: "Chappie" is coming to Netflix.
For those who don't remember – but really, how could you not? – "Chappie" was a 2015 sci-fi action drama about a cop robot with a soul that turns into a criminal gangster because its parents are South African rap duo Die Antwoord. The film, directed by Neill Blomkamp, asks a lot of fascinating questions that still haunt viewers today, like, "What if 'Short Circuit' and 'RoboCop' had a baby?" "Who dressed the villainous Hugh Jackman in shorts and a mullet?" and "Who greenlights these things?" Its inevitable Criterion release hasn't been announced yet, but in the meantime, it'll at least be on Netflix starting on the first of November.
If, for some odd reason, you have no interest in "Chappie," Netflix's list of new additions has plenty of other noteworthy movies and TV shows coming next month. Horror movies like the very under-appreciated "Oculus," "Silent Hill," "Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed" and the 2017 Milwaukee Film Festival pick "Killing Ground" will arrive just in time for Not Halloween season, while Oscar winners and nominees like "Michael Clayton," "The Reader" and "The Pursuit of Happyness" will be around for the rare times that you don't feel like watching "Chappie" again.
Baseball season may be coming to a close, but the Jackie Robinson biopic "42" and the father-son classic "Field of Dreams" will keep America's Pastime on your screen. But the big story – and will likely be so for most Netflix announcements from here on out, considering the company's continued emphasis – is the originals headed to the streaming service in November. Netflix must be jealous of Hulu's Emmy haul for "The Handmaid's Tale," because now the Big Red TV Giant is getting in on the Margaret Atwood business with a TV adaptation of its own, "Alias Grace," about an 19th century Irish immigrant and housemaid imprisoned for the murder of her employer.
The biggest day, however, will come later in the month – Nov. 17, to be exact – when Netflix drops the Jim Carrey/Andy Kaufman doc "Jim & Andy," the much anticipated premiere of Marvel's latest superhero show "The Punisher" and "Mudbound," Netflix's first big Oscar play since its first release, "Beasts of No Nation." Will it live up to the festival hype? Will it capture the attention of voters even with no theatrical release planned?
And, most pressing, will voters have time to watch it in between their 16th and 17th revisitings of "Chappie"?
Only time can tell. In the meantime, here are all of the movies and TV shows headed your Netflix account's way in November:
Nov. 1
"42"
"The Bittersweet"
"Casper"
"Chappie"
"Charlotte's Web"
"Field of Dreams"
"Men in Black"
"Michael Clayton"
"Oculus"
"The Pursuit of Happyness"
"The Reader"
"Scary Movie"
"Silent Hill"
"Stranger" season 1
"To Rome With Love"
"Under Arrest" season 7
"Undercover Grandpa"
"Where the Day Takes You"
"The Whole Nine Yards"
Nov. 2
"All About the Money"
"It's Not Yet Dark"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Ten Percent (aka Call My Agent!)" season 2
Nov. 3
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Alias Grace"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "The Big Family Cooking Showdown" season 1
"Eventual Salvation"
Nov. 4
"Williams"
Nov. 5
"The Homesman"
"The Veil"
Nov. 6
"The Dinner"
Nov. 7
"Dizzy & Bop's Big Adventure: The Great Music Caper"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Fate/Apocrypha: Part 1"
"The Journey Is the Destination"
"Killing Ground"
"P. King Duckling" season 1
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Project Mc2: Part 6"
Nov. 10
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Blazing Transfer Students" season 1
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Dinotrux Supercharged" season 1
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Glitter Force Doki Doki" season 2
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "The Killer"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Lady Dynamite" season 2
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Mea Culpa"
Nov. 12
"Long Time Running"
Nov. 13
"Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary"
"Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed"
Nov. 14
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "DeRay Davis: How To Act Black"
"Hickok"
Nov. 15
"Lockup: State Prisons" collection 1
Nov. 16
"9"
Nov. 17
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "A Christmas Prince"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond - Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Longmire: Final Season"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Luna Petunia" season 3
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Marvel's The Punisher"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Mudbound"
"Red, White, Black, Blue Odyssey"
"Santa Claws"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Shot in the Dark" season 1
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Spirit: Riding Free" season 3
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Stretch Armstrong & the Flex Fighters" season 1
Nov. 20
"Piranha"
Nov. 21
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Beat Bugs: All Together Now"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Brian Regan: Nunchucks and Flamethrowers"
"The Case for Christ"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Saving Capitalism"
Nov. 22
"The Boss Baby"
"Cherry Pop"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Godless"
"Tracers"
Nov. 23
"Deep"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "She's Gotta Have It" season 1
Nov. 24
"Bushwick"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Cuba and the Cameraman"
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Frontier" season 2
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "The Many Faces of Ito" season 1
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Trailer Park Boys: Out of the Park: USA" season 1
Nov. 27
"Broadchurch" season 3
"Darkness Rising"
"My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic" season 7, part 2
Nov. 28
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Glitch" season 2
NETFLIX ORIGINAL: "Good Morning Call" season 2
"The Queen of Spain"
Nov. 29
"Guerra de Idolos" season 1
Nov. 30
"The Details"
"Winning"
As much as it is a gigantic cliché to say that one has always had a passion for film, Matt Mueller has always had a passion for film. Whether it was bringing in the latest movie reviews for his first grade show-and-tell or writing film reviews for the St. Norbert College Times as a high school student, Matt is way too obsessed with movies for his own good.
When he's not writing about the latest blockbuster or talking much too glowingly about "Piranha 3D," Matt can probably be found watching literally any sport (minus cricket) or working at - get this - a local movie theater. Or watching a movie. Yeah, he's probably watching a movie.