Mmmmmm..... Netflix

Garry Shandling: Renegade Angel

I was sick for most of last week, really bad allergies and whatnot, so I stayed confined to my bedroom most of the time taking 24 generic Claritins. Last time I took the pills for a week I did nothing but play Tetris and have crazy dreams. I also must have lost ten pounds from having absolutely no appetite.

This time was a little different. I missed out on the appetite loss and I never had stretches of sleep long enough to even begin dreaming. Most nights I just tossed and turned, sweating and talking to myself or imaginary people I thought I heard breathing in the room with me. I obsessed over songs and phrases I heard during the day. The most bizarre was the night I couldn't stop thinking about how the words "Climb" and "Limb" were spelled so similarly, but were pronounced completely different. With all this time on my hands being insane not sleeping, I turned to my red envelopes for help. Netflix was already feeding me Xavier: Renegade Angel and It's Garry Shandling's Show, so I went ahead with the program.

I wasn't really into Garry Shandling when it originally aired back in late '80's. We were an HBO family, and Shandling's Show was on Showtime. Eventually it ran on Fox, but I usually fell asleep by the first commercial break. Of course that meant hearing the amazing theme song that played over the opening credits, but not much else. I did enjoy The Larry Sanders Show years later on HBO, so I knew Shandling had the ability to make me laugh, something that's not very easy. It wasn't until 2009 that It's Garry Shandling's Show made it to DVD and once it hit Netflix, I added its four seasons to my queue. 

I've always been a big fan of Wondershowzen's absurdist humor, and I've most recently been immersing myself in Tim & Eric's Awesome Show Great Job!, so I decided to take a second crack at Adult Swim's Xavier: Renegade Angel. I watched the first episode years ago when X:RA first came out in 2007 (at the insistence of Kirk, who is begging for the credit), but I had a really hard time dealing with the CGI animation style (I hadn't yet made my brief foray into Second Life). Plus I was still morning the loss of Wondershowzen (by the same creative team, PFFR) and wasn't ready to invest my time in another series. I typically don't watch any television shows as they unfold anyway. Instead, I wait until seasons or series to finish completely so I can watch everything at once on DVD. X:RA was something I just kept forgetting to come back to, but eventually, Netflix picked up the save.

I usually don't divide my attention, televisually, but in my pseudoephedrine haze, I went back and forth every night watching both. It turns out that these two programs from different generations are somehow cut from the same loin cloth. They are both postmodern powerhouses. Shandling's Show constantly makes you aware that you are watching a television show--he walks between set pieces, defers to the script, talks to the audience, and hums along with the theme song. One of my favorite moments is when he is sitting on a couch and is suddenly pummeled with 14 rolled up newspapers--we are fast-forwarding two weeks, he explains.  

Xavier's meta comedy of pseudomysticism is even more of a rapid-fire assault because it only has 11 minutes to get its story finished. A truck speeding by with the word "FORESHADOWING" written on the side of it is probably the most straightforward of things that happen. The fact that the show is 100% CGI makes it much easy for them to twist the screen until it breaks. It is pretty much a nonstop mindfudge, and much like Wondershowzen, by the second season the bizarre bar is set so high you either have to be high or stop at a bar to mind the fudge at the seasonal bazaar, even for a second. I watched so many of episodes multiple times and I'm positive that I still haven't caught the majority of what's actually happening onscreen, and I look forward to diving in again from a different angle in the future.

Eventually, I started to feel better enough to stop taking the generic Claritin, but there was still to be a final blow to my fragile body. On the third disc of It's Garry Shandling's Show, there is a scene where Garry takes some Chinese food out of this oven. He starts to put on a pair of oven mitts, then abandons them in favor of another pair, then turns to the camera to talk to me...

SNAKE HANDS!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

MINDFUDGED!

One Friday on Netflix

One Day in September - Tag im September, Ein (1999) R

In 1972, eight Palestinian terrorists interrupted the Munich Olympics by taking 11 Israeli athletes hostage. Besides footage taken at the time, we see interviews with surviving terrorist Jamal Al Gashey and various officials detailing how the German police, lacking an antiterrorist squad and turning down help from the Israelis, botched the rescue operation. Michael Douglas narrates this fascinating documentary.

Two Days in April (2006) NR

Four pro-bound college football players go for gridiron glory in this behind-the-scenes look at the NFL draft. Follow the intense training and all the nerve-wracking emotions that accompany the four young men on their journey to draft day, when their million-dollar dreams are intercepted by reality. Peeking into the secretive, fiercely competitive, often brutal process of creating NFL players, this documentary hits as hard as the athletes it depicts.

Two Days in October: American Experience (2005) NR

In October 1967, a U.S. regiment walked into a Vietcong ambush that killed 61 soldiers -- and raised doubts about whether the war was winnable. Meanwhile, University of Wisconsin students were protesting the presence of Dow Chemical recruiters on campus; the demonstration soon spun out of control, marking the first time a protest became violent. Told by those who took part in the events, the film offers a window into a defining American moment.

A Few Days in September - Quelques jours en septembre (2006) NR

On Sept. 1, 2001, 10 days before the events that shook the world, CIA agent Elliott (Nick Nolte) disappears. With the help of Elliott's son David (Tom Riley), French agent Irène Montano (Juliette Binoche) scours Venice and Paris to find him, with a bizarre, poetry-reading assassin (John Turturro) on their trail. The clock ticks toward the fateful day, as the information Elliott holds threatens to keep him hidden permanently.

Four Days in July(1985) NR

Indie director Mike Leigh chronicles two Belfast couples who exist on opposite sides of a fissure that defines nearly everything in the lives of the people of Northern Ireland. Catholics Collette (Brid Brennan) and Eugene (Des McAleer) and Protestants Lorraine (Paula Hamilton) and Billy (Charles Lawson) prepare for the births of their firstborn in this 1985 character study, which Leigh infuses with his signature offbeat humor.

Four Days in September - O Que É Isso, Companheiro? (1997) R

Based on a true story, this is the moving account of the September, 1969, kidnapping of the American ambassador to Brazil (played by Alan Arkin). A group of young idealists plans the terrorist act -- their only perceived means of voicing their dreams and visions in a military regime. The film delves candidly into their lives and emotions as they begin to question both the depth of their allegiance to the group and the motives of their comrades.

Gumball 3000: 6 Days in May(2004) NR

Some of the most amazing cars ever built race across Spain and head south into Africa in the 6th Annual Gumball 3000 Rally. This film captures the 2004 race, which featured Ferrari Enzos, Hummers, Caterhams, Aston Martins and other rare autos driven by an eccentric mix of skateboard pros, supermodels, Saudi royals and billionaires. The thrills abound as racers evade the law to be the first to cross the finish line at the Cannes Film Festival.

Six Days in June
Six Days(2007) NR

Using battle footage, interviews with the protagonists, re-creations and recently declassified archives, this PBS presentation tells the story of the six days in June 1967 that forever changed the face of the Middle East. Shot on location in Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Moscow and Washington, the tightly edited film also documents the days leading up to the Arab-Israeli conflict and the evolution of the region in its aftermath.

Seven Days in May(1964) NR

Military aide Kirk Douglas stumbles across a plot by his boss (Burt Lancaster) to overthrow the U.S. president (Fredric March), who has just negotiated a controversial peace treaty. Douglas' dilemma: Follow orders and remain silent, or betray his boss. Director John Frankenheimer demonstrates the same mastery that made The Manchurian Candidate a classic, and Lancaster gives an effective performance in an unsympathetic role.

7 Days in September
(2004) NR

With help from almost 30 filmmakers, director Steven Rosenbaum turns the tragic events of September 11, 2001 -- the memories of which are forever jarred in our psyches -- into a moving portrait of emotion, loss and even kindness. Although the film uses footage of the horrific attacks on the World Trade Center and the resulting catastrophic loss, it also hones in on New York City's tremendous ability to rebuild, through will and compassion.

Speaking of months and Netflix... if you made it this far, and you aren't a Netflix member yet, here's a free 1-month trial offer. Normally the trial period is just two weeks, but this is the RoBeast Bonus. The offer expires on June 15th. Fuck those zealots over at Blockbuster and sign up. If you are already a Netflix nerd like me, add me as a friend and spy on my dirty viewing habits.