Sure-Fire Streaming: Hardball, The Mustang, Hard Eight, and more!
By Jordan Parker
https://parkerandpictures.wordpress.com/
Hardball – Available On Netflix
There are few sports movies that will tug at your heart the way Hardball has for me all these years.
Keanu Reeves stars as a boozing gambler who needs a bridge loan. His friend offers him one, but in return he wants him to coach a Little League team from Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago.
This sports tilt is adorable, hilarious and has a big beating emotional core. It’s chalk full of real, genuine moments.
Reeves, Diane Lane, John Hawkes and a young Michael B. Jordan all turn in great performances, and this is one for the books.
The Mustang – Available On Netflix
This story of redemption and justice was one of the most affecting movies to come out of 2019.
It centres on a rehabilitating inmate who tries to deal with his violent predilections by doing a program training wild mustangs.
As Roman connects with the horse, he begins to find some soothing for the pain inside.
Director Laure de Clermont-Tonnere creates an evocative, truly beautiful film, and it’s a sight to behold.
Matthias Schoenaerts is absolutely fantastic in the lead role, allowing us to become sympathetic to the character.
With Bruce Dern, Jason Mitchell and Gideon Adlon all supporting, it’s a wonderful gem of a film.
Hard Eight – Available On Prime Video
I can’t even believe I hadn’t seen this film before last weekend. Paul Thomas Anderson’s early work in on par with even his best, including There Will Be Blood.
It revolves around professional gambler Sydney, who picks up young John outside a restaurant and teaches him about cards.
But when John falls for down-on-her-luck cocktail waitress Clementine, both of their lives begin to spiral out of control.
The performances – across the board – are stunning. Philip Baker Hall gives a career-defining turn, a young Samuel L. Jackson is terrifying, Gwyneth Paltrow shows unfamiliar range, and John C. Reilly is far from the jokester he plays with Will Ferrell.
It’s a taut, slow-burn thriller that absolutely hits the mark.
Air Force One – Available On Netflix
One of my favourite action movies of all time, Air Force One is an absolute classic.
Harrison Ford – playing the U.S. President – is pitted against terrorists on Air Force One when they take hostages and control of the plane.
It’s a slam-bang genre film with a ton of brains, propelled by some really great set-pieces and fun one-liners.
The cast is, in a word, exquisite. Ford, with Gary Oldman as the baddie, and Glenn Close as the Vice President working from the ground, take hold of this film.
It will draw you in start to finish, and you’ll love every second you spend.
American Animals – Available On Prime Video
This little indie flick came out of nowhere and made my day.
Four guys at a prestigious university decide to pool together and pull off a huge heist of rare books, but things don’t go according to plan.
This is a real-life story of men who thought they were smarter than the institutions and government, and they fought the law and lost.
Interviews with family, friends, and with the real-life perpetrators themselves are used documentary-style to provide more evocative storytelling, and it actually works really well.
The cast, led by young actors Evan Peters, Blake Jenner, Barry Keoghan and Jared Abrahamson is top notch. Ann Dowd also makes an appearance, and she’s consistently fantastic.
It’s a bit out there as far as heist movies go, but you’ll have no trouble getting wrapped up in it.