Articles by Christina Izzo

Technology

This Netflix psychological thriller broke my brain in the best way — and you should stream it ASAP

Meeting the parents is always a daunting prospect, but it takes on an even more heightened tension in "I'm Thinking of Ending Things," a frequently confounding and unsettling 2020 thriller from Oscar-winning writer-director Charlie Kaufman ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind"). Based on Iain Reid's novel of the same name, the surrealist psychological study centers on a young woman (Jessie Buckley) who goes to meet the parents of her new boyfriend at their family farm, despite considering breaking up with him. The movie premiered on Netflix in September 2020. And despite earning strong critical acclaim, it received a polarizing reception from audiences, who were seemingly put off by the film's offbeat pacing and unconventional structure. While "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" has a solid 82% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, its audience score is much lower at 50%. However, with Buckley as this year's frontrunner for the Best Actress Oscar off the strength of her devastating performance in the upcoming "Hamnet," we think it's high time to revisit her memorable lead role in "I'm Thinking of Ending Things." Here's why you should add the Kaufman curiosity to your next Netflix watch list. What is 'I’m Thinking of Ending Things' about? Despite having some misgivings about the future of their romance, Jessie Buckley's character — a young woman who is referred to by several names throughout the film, including Lucy, Louisa, Lucia and Ames — agrees to go on a snowy road trip with her boyfriend Jake (Jesse Plemons) to meet his parents (Toni Collette and David Thewlis) for the first time. Upon arriving at their rural, secluded family farm, however, she begins to question not only their relationship but her own identity and grasp on reality. Scenes from that awkward family dinner are intercut with footage of an elderly janitor (Guy Boyd) working at a high school, delving into the man's own internal monologue, nagging loneliness and existential dread. Eventually, those two narratives converge in a truly surprising turn, making you rethink all that came before in the film. Why you should stream 'I’m Thinking of Ending Things' on Netflix A challenging but worthy watch, "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" was recently ranked by IndieWire on its "100 Best Movies of the 2020s (So Far)" list, with David Ehrlich praising how the No. 22 finisher "takes Kaufman’s usual fixations and turns them inside out," resulting in "a surreal, erratic, and strangely moving experience that circles around a realization it dances around until the bitter end." Along with acclaim for its daring structure and deep themes, critics were also wowed by the powerful lead performances from Jesse Plemons and Jessie Buckley, the latter of whom brilliantly toggles between being the drama's grounding influence and getting swept up in its waves of anxiety, anguish and ambiguity. It's a remarkably range-stretching role, one that rightly signified plenty of superb work ahead for the actress. "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" on Netflix Follow Tom's Guide on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button! More from Tom's Guide This overlooked 2021 Netflix movie features one of Olivia Colman's finest performancesNetflix just got one of the funniest movies of 2024 — and viewers rate it 92% on Rotten Tomatoes10 greatest movies of the past decade, ranked

Technology

This underrated Keira Knightley thriller is streaming on Netflix —here's why you should watch it before 'The Woman in Cabin 10'

Two-time Oscar nominee Keira Knightley has been on a roll lately in the thriller genre, from the Hulu crime drama "The Boston Strangler" to the Netflix spy series "Black Doves" to her latest project for that streamer, the psychological mystery "The Woman in Cabin 10" opposite Guy Pearce and Hannah Waddingham. The latter film, based on the Ruth Ware novel of the same name, debuts on the streaming service on Friday, Oct. 10, but its pulpy trailer brought to mind another one of the British actress's gripping performances: the 2019 British drama "Official Secrets," based on the case of whistleblower Katharine Gun, who exposed an illegal spying operation by American and British intelligence. Giving a "focused, plausible and sympathetic performance" as Gun, per The Guardian, Knightley is supported by a star-studded ensemble that includes "House of the Dragon" star Matt Smith, "Dept. Q" lead Matthew Goode, "Game of Thrones" alum Indira Varma and the legendary Ralph Fiennes, among others. And if you need more convincing to tune into this underrated, slow-burning spy drama, here's why you should add "Official Secrets" to your next Netflix watch. What is 'Official Secrets' about? "Official Secrets" tells the true story of British Intelligence whistleblower Katharine Gun (played by Keira Knightley), a GCHQ analyst who receives an email not-so-subtly urging her to find out incriminating personal details from select UN representatives, in the guise of blackmailing them into supporting the war in Iraq. Horrified, she leaks the top-secret NSA memo, exposing a joint US-UK illegal spying operation. Once the memo hits the pages of The Observer, Gun is in hot water, with the British government breathing down her neck and threatening deportation for her Turkish asylum-seeker husband Yasar (Adam Bakri) in retaliation. With the help of veteran human rights lawyer Ben Emmerson (Ralph Fiennes), several journalists (played by Matt Smith, Matthew Goode and Rhys Ifans) and more, Gun boldly sticks to her, well, guns and stands up to political power. Why you should watch 'Official Secrets' on Netflix Though critics found the thriller to have "a familiar structure and an obvious if worthy message," they did single out Keira Knightley's performance as particularly powerful, per the critical consensus over on Rotten Tomatoes, where "Official Secrets" has a solid 82% approval rating. "It’s Knightley’s Gun you’ll remember and admire," praises Ian Freer of Empire Magazine, calling the actress's work here "steely, stirring but still recognisably human." Others applauded the authenticity of the Gavin Hood-directed drama: For FAIR, political writer and activist Sam Husseini wrote that "having followed this story from the start, I find this film to be, by Hollywood standards, a remarkably accurate account of what has happened to date — 'to date' because the wider story still isn't really over." "Official Secrets" on Netflix Follow Tom's Guide on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button! More from Tom's Guide Netflix just added one of the strangest mystery thriller movies I’ve ever watched — and it feels like a twisted fairytale7 Netflix shows and movies you need to watch this week5 new to Netflix movies with 90% or higher on Rotten Tomatoes