march30–april12, 2020 | newyork 77
STREAMING ADVENTURE
Mystic River
The
Hudsucker
Proxy
( free on HBO Now, rentable on
Amazon Prime, Google Play,
iTunes, Vudu, YouTube)
Mystic River co-star Tim Robbins
also stars in this satire from the
Coen brothers. I admit this film
popped into my head first because
of Paul Newman’s striking turn.
Harper
(rentable on Amazon
Prime, Google Play, iTunes,
Vudu, YouTube)
A forever beguiling Newman stars
as detective Lew Harper, hired by
a yearning wife (played by Lauren
Bacall) in search of her husband.
Written
on the Wind
(available on DVD)
Bacall also stars in this
emotionally extravagant
and overheated Technicolor
masterpiece by Douglas Sirk.
The Big
Sleep
(rentable on Amazon
Prime, Google Play, iTunes,
Vudu, YouTube)
Nestled in this 1946 noir starring
the inimitable Humphrey Bogart
and Bacall is a sexually charged
and flirtatious scene between
our detective and a bookstore
clerk played with cunning
wit by Dorothy Malone ...
Wild Things
(rentable on Amazon
Prime, Google Play, iTunes,
Vudu, YouTube)
... That in turn led me to
think about this very different
sexually charged thriller. An utterly
unrepentant, glorious piece of trash,
this neo-noir sizzles with over-
the-top sexual situations you can
only take half-seriously. Starring
Neve Campbell, Denise Richards,
Matt Dillon ... and Kevin Bacon.
Mystic River
976-EVIL
( free on Crackle, rentable on Amazon
Prime, Google Play, Vudu, YouTube)
Mystic River screenwriter Brian
Helgeland works on semi-reputable
stuff like Spenser Confidential
these days, but he got his start in
horror movies like this one, Freddy
Krueger actor Robert Englund’s
directorial debut about a premium-
rate phone line ... to Satan.
Who’s
Afraid of Virginia
Woolf?
(rentable on Amazon Prime, Google
Play, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube)
Sandy Dennis, who makes one
of her last appearances in 976-
EVIL, will forever be best known
for playing the part of Honey in
Mike Nichols’s epic adaptation of
Edward Albee’s legendary play.
Toy Story
( free on Disney+, rentable on
Amazon Prime, Google Play, iTunes,
Vudu, YouTube)
The recent, Laurie Metcalf–led
Broadway revival of Virginia Woolf
was shut down, but there’s (sigh)
no canceling Pixar’s talking-feeling-
toy series—and she’s been voicing
Andy’s mom since it began in 1995.
The Usual
Suspects
( free on Hulu, rentable
on Amazon Prime, Google Play,
iTunes, Vudu, YouTube)
That first Pixar feature nabbed an
Oscar nomination for Best Original
Screenplay, but the prize ended up
going to Christopher McQuarrie for
this twisty heist-gone-wrong thriller.
A Few Good Men
(rentable on Amazon Prime, Google
Play, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube)
Comedian turned actor Kevin Pollak
played a member of the criminal crew
of The Usual Suspects, but he was a lot
more straitlaced as a Navy lawyer in
this Tom Cruise–starring hit, in which
he acted alongside, yes, Kevin Bacon.
Mystic River
You Can
Count On Me
(rentable on Amazon Prime, Google
Play, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube)
One of the craziest performances in
Mystic River belongs to Laura Linney,
playing Sean Penn’s wife. For a more
restrained and realistic Linney turn,
check out this Kenneth Lonergan film,
which should have won her an Oscar.
The Mend
( free on Vudu, rentable
on Amazon Prime)
Josh Lucas gets a solid supporting
sleazebag turn in You Can Count
On Me, but his best work remains
this remarkable no-budget indie
drama about two very different
brothers who are thrust together
in a small New York apartment.
My Cousin Vinny
( free on Hulu, rentable
on Amazon Prime, Google Play,
iTunes, Vudu, YouTube)
Both The Mend and this Joe Pesci–
Marisa Tomei courtroom-comedy
hit feature one of our most cherished
character actors (and legendary
drama teacher), Austin Pendleton.
The Final Days
(rentable on Amazon Prime,
Google Play, YouTube)
Vinny includes another great American
character actor, Lane Smith, who
got the role of a lifetime in this long-
unavailable TV-movie adaptation
of Woodward and Bernstein’s book
about the last days of the Nixon
administration. Smith remains the
best onscreen Tricky Dick ever.
Apollo 13
( free on Hulu, rentable
on Amazon Prime, Google Play,
iTunes, Vudu, YouTube)
And oh, look, there’s young Gary
Sinise in a supporting role in The Final
Days. With him, we move on to Ron
Howard’s historical space drama (and
eternal Dad Classic) about resilience
in times of crisis. Starring America’s
Dad, Tom Hanks, and America’s
Cool Older Brother, Kevin Bacon.
ANGELICA JADE BASTIÉN ALISON WILLMORE BILGE EBIRI
