What to Stream: 3 Movies That Capture the Dog Days of Summer
We’re in the middle of August, folks, so you know what that means. It’s hot. How hot is it? So hot. So instead of smearing yourself in sunblock, why not watch some movies that capture the heat of the season from the comfort of your air-conditioned home? Here are three movies set in the dog days of summer you can stream right now.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
This 1958 classic stars Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor. Newman plays Brick Pollitt, an alcoholic has-been high school athlete. When Brick and Maggie, a couple in a loveless marriage, go to his father’s estate, relationships strain over the suicide of Brick’s friend (and most likely lover) Skipper, his father’s terminal illness, and Brick’s own alcoholism. All of this is made worse by the searing summer heat of Mississippi. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is available to rent on iTunes.
Do the Right Thing
Let’s move forward in time to 1989 and the film that put director Spike Lee on the map. Set on a brutally hot day in New York, a Brooklyn community descends into turmoil when racial tensions boil over. As the United States still grapples with police-community relationships, this film’s perspective has earned it acclaim as a culturally and historically significant moment in cinema history. Do The Right Thing is available to stream on YouTube.
Falling Down
We head off to 1993 and another part of the country for this funny, dark, and often violent thriller. Michael Douglas plays William Foster, a man at the end of his rope in Los Angeles. After being laid off and facing a restraining order from his ex-wife, Foster snaps when he spends too much of a hot L.A. day stuck in traffic. Sweeping across the city committing crimes against those he feels have aggrieved him, Foster winds up being chased by a retiring police officer played by Robert Duvall. Falling Down is available to rent on Amazon.
Simon Helberg rented an Airbnb to practice piano for Florence Foster Jenkins:
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