Netflix - What I Watched in November

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Hi!

I recently subscribed to Netflix - I'm probably one of the last people in the country to do so, but my data package was terrible up until this Summer, when I fought tooth and nail for a decent increase. I got it, and now that I have a decent allowance, I can finally indulge in some good old fashioned binging!

Here's what I watched in November.

The True Cost (Documentary)

I put this off for so long, it's a documentary about the true price paid for 'fast fashion' - cheap clothes from cheap shops with a high turnover. The social, economic, and health implications are all covered and it doesn't make for pretty viewing - it definitely made me think about the number of mindless cheap clothing hauls I make for no reason other than boredom or a desire to spend money, so it's something I have definitely cut down on, I used to go to Penneys on a weekly basis.

Food, Inc. (Documentary)

This was scary! It's about how a very small number of big multinational companies control the entire food industry, and the effects that has on the quality of food, the health of the people eating the food and the lives of farmers. There's such a high demand now for convenience food that drastic measures are being taken, from growing supersized chickens to creating genetically modified food-like substances.

Happy Christmas (Movie)

Anna Kendrick! Melanie Lynskey! Christmas! What could be more fun? I thought this would be a cute, festive affair with two great female leads, but in reality it was a very low-budget, unpolished, mostly unscripted indie movie about a pot-smoking heavy-drinking sister (Kendrick) who moves in with her brother's family to help lighten the load for her sister-in-law, who is trying to raise a child and have a writing career from home. It was fine, the low-key, improvised, almost-documentary style acting was great etc, it's just not my type of film. Lena Dunham also stars (I'm not a fan).

American Horror Story Season One: Murder House (Series)

I've never seen any of American Horror Story, so I was delighted to find it on Netflix. I've been recording the new series (Hotel) on TV but I haven't watched any of it yet because I like to save up a whole series' worth of stuff before I binge - I watched the first season (Murder House) over a weekend, and I LOVED it. Jessica Lange is unbelievable! In case you haven't seen it, it's about a therapist, Ben Harmon, who is caught cheating on his wife Vivien. Together with their daughter Violet, they move across country to 'The Murder House' - a house with a lot of strange forces at work. It was creepy and atmospheric and I couldn't stop once I started. Brilliant!

American Horror Story Season Two: Asylum (Series)

Naturally, I moved on to the second series right away. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy it, I found it too dark (literally, I had to keep tilting the laptop screen) and pretty gory. I don't mind gore, but I felt some of it was just gratuitous and leant nothing much to the story. It's the story of a group of 'inmates' at an asylum with a lot of gory crap going on. I have to say, Chloe Sevigny was amazing in it but I'm a huge fan of hers anyway. I stopped watching about 6 episodes in, but my husband finished the series and preferred it to Murder House.

American Horror Story Season Three: Coven (Series)

The third series, Coven, was by far my favourite so far. Jessica Lange plays Fiona Goode, a Supreme Witch who is in charge of a coven but facing increasing threat from both inside and outside of her circle. Lots of Supernatural stuff, lots of Fleetwood Mac and proof that Angela Bassett has been drinking from the Jared Leto Fountain of Youth because the woman HAS NOT AGED.

Burlesque (Movie)

The movie 'Burlesque' was released in 2010, I have no idea why I haven't seen it. It's essentially Coyote Ugly if Violet had self confidence and Maria Bello was Cher. Christina Aguilera (who has inexplicable hair) plays Ali, a smalltown girl who wants to be on stage. She moves to L.A. where she finds a Burlesque club ran by Tess (Cher) and sings her way to a job. The club is in danger of closing, there's a bit of romantic drama thrown in, a lot of amazing Burlesque numbers, and I LOVED IT.

How to Get Away With Murder: Season One (Series)

Viola Davis plays Annalise Keating, a Professor who teaches a class called 'How to Get Away With Murder'. Every year she chooses a number of promising students to come and work with her at her law firm. There are different cases to solve, but there are also two storylines running through the series - the disappearance and murder of a student, and the murder of Annalise's husband. I'm a big fan of anything Shonda Rimes does, and I was happy that this didn't disappoint. It was recommended to me on Snapchat, so thank you!

Jessica Jones (Series)

A Netflix exclusive, Jessica Jones is a character from the Marvel universe and this is a 13 part series about her trying to get rid of a baddie from her past. Starring Krysten Ritter as Jessica, a former Superhero turned Private Investigator and David Tennant as mind-control baddie Kilgrave, I really enjoyed this series. It was recommended to me by Sinéad from Minnie Mélange and it was brilliant, I especially loved Jessica's former child star friend Trish (played by Rachael Walker). It is dark though, very dark.

Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (Movie)

I prefer Home Alone 2 to Home Alone by a mile. I think it's because I was much the same age as Kevin in the movie when it was released, so I remember it better - but also because of the beauty of New York City in it. I'm pretty sure this contributed with my obsession for all things American as a child - who didn't want to go and see the city at Christmas? I've actually no idea why I watched this online when I own it on DVD and Video, but anyway.... watch it! It's brilliant.

And that's it! A ridiculous amount of programming to get through in a month, but that's what happens when you give me a better data package. Can't wait to dig through the site for December and see what I find!

Any recommendations? I'm not into anything involving drug cartels or politicians.