P.S. But Did You See October's New Titles?

Aubrey Plaza, Liam Aiken in Ned Rifle

I know I said I was done. But with more classic titles arriving this month than have all year, I couldn't in good conscience look the other way. Props to Netflix—they've actually given me reason to end things on a positive note (just when I thought I was out, they keep pulling me back in). So, consider this a bonus post.

Not too much to note among new releases—not until later in the month, anyway—but there is Hal Hartley's latest, Ned Rifle (2014), which I can heartily recommend for fans of the director's work or anyone curious to see how his Henry Foole trilogy winds up. (Aubrey Plaza fans will likewise be pleased.)

But as is evident in the lists below, the real attention grabbers are some high-quality returns (Glengarry Glen Ross! The Impostors!), a few surprisingly distinguished debuts (Boogie Nights! Million Dollar Baby! Risky Business!), and enough new and returning classics to partly make up for the dearth (and disappearance) of so many pre-1982 titles throughout the year. Be still my beating heart: are those two Stanley Kubrick films (two of his very best)—2001: A Space Odyssey and A Clockwork Orange? Is that really Grace Kelly in High Society, and Gene Tierney in the sublime Laura? How about all those Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra movies? And are we really seeing the return of many Nova, Nature, and other PBS programs? Color me impressed.

No idea how long any of these will stick around, but kudos to Netflix for not (yet) entirely abandoning those of us who enjoy a little vintage cinema with our blockbusters.

Okay, that's it, this time for real. Goodnight, folks! (And yes, I'm still canceling in November.)

New in October, Pt. 2: Something for Everyone

Now that we've gotten all those Woody Allen titles out of the way, what about the rest of this month's arrivals? They're actually a pretty extensive—and diverse—group and include a number of welcome returnees, some of which snuck back onto Instant in the final days of September. Among those are 1994's tear-jerking basketball doc, Hoop Dreams; arguably the best of the Merchant-Ivory productions, A Room with a View (1986); and the less well-remembered (except by avid '80s cable watchers), The Wild Geese (1978), a satisfyingly virile action yarn from director Andrew McLaglen, starring the Stallone, Statham, and Schwarzenegger of their day: Richard Burton, Richard Harris, and Roger Moore.

Harris, Burton, Moore

As fun as it violent and cool-headed, The Wild Geese is filled with real men doing manly things, and doing them the way God intended—without computer effects. See all those figures parachuting down into enemy territory? Those really are guys in parachutes, jumping out of real airplanes. And the explosions? Actual on-camera fireballs. I mean, yeesh, kids today with their fancy computer-generated men and airplanes and clouds and water that's never quite convincing. We're talkin' old school here, okay? Back when stars could actually be expendable. None of this mamby-pamby digital blood, or worse, fake animals (hire a deer wrangler already!) or talking dogs, or...

Sorry, um, where was I?

New March Titles: Exiles' Return (2014)

So many new and returning titles this month! Whether by accident or design, Netflix seems to be making up for some of its recent deletions. Already back from the January 1 "great purge" are a number of classics including Easy Rider (1969), Roman Holiday (1953), Serpico (1973), and True Grit (1969), along with popular favorites The Bad News Bears (1976), Dirty Dancing (1987), and As Good As It Gets (1997). Fans of the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman will also be pleased to see Capote (2005) return to the fold.

Also returning: a veritable slew of Robert Altman films, from the good to the great to the misguided, bringing the director's total number of streaming titles to an impressive nine. No telling how long they'll stick around this time, but must-sees are The Long Goodbye (1973) and Thieves Like Us (1974); should-sees are Streamers (1983), a stark, underappreciated adaptation of David Rabe's play, and the Tim Roth tour de force, Vincent & Theo (1990). In the "misguided but rarely seen" category is O.C. & Stiggs (1985), Altman's satirical attempt at a teen comedy that remains fascinating despite its flaws. This intermittently funny oddity is worth watching for Dennis Hopper alone, who seems to be reprising his stoner-photographer character from Apocalypse Now, complete with a "Ride of the Valkyries" attack. Martin Mull, Ray Walston, and Jane Curtin also join the fun. Bizarre? Entertaining? Misunderstood? I can guarantee you at least two.