Netflix’s First Set-Top Box
Netflix has released the first set top box which will allow you to live-stream movies to your television on demand. The first unit is produced by Roku for only $99, and all you need is a netflix subscription to use it. I think I’m more excited about this device than anyone else I know. It’s clearly the future of how we’re going to watch movies. And while the Roku box has a lot of things right: The price, HDMI output, standard video quality, Wifi connectivity, and easy set-up/installation, it is still appears to be an early product.
The problems: Only 10,000 of the 100,000 DVDs are available for instant stream. That’s not to say there aren’t some great selections. Here is a sampling that Roku lists on their website:
- 30 Rock (2007; TV)
- The Good German (2006)
- La Vie en Rose (2007)
- Weeds (2006; TV)
- Absolute Power (1997)
- Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
- Heroes (2007; TV)
- Letters from Iwo Jima (2007)
- Blade Runner (1982)
- The Office (2006; TV)
- 2 Days in Paris (2007)
- Mean Girls (2004)
- The Sum of All Fears (2002)
- Misery (1990)
- The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)
For the most part it seems like classic catalog titles and recent independent/mini-major releases. There is probably enough to keep me going for years. Especially their television show selection. And the offered selection is always growing.
The biggest problem I have with the unit is that it doesn’t allow you to choose a movie directly from the set-top box. You need to first go to your netflix account on a computer and add the instant watch titles to your netflix queue. And apparently you can have over 500 titles in your instant watch queue to choose from while sitting on your couch. But having to first add the selections to your account on the website is one extra set which seems unnecessary. I wonder if they have to do this to get around On demand exclusivity deals.
But imagine the possibilities. Imagine having 50,000 movies and tv shows to choose from. Imagine when a big company like Apple or Sony makes a set-top box for the service, how much better the functionality could be. Basically, imagine being able to rent a netflix movie when you want, and watch it instantly from the comfort of your couch, for not one cent more than your standard netflix description. It’s going to happen, but this unit is clearly for the early adopter (a group I usually belong to). And for only $100, it’s not a huge investment.
Find out more on Roku.com.
Sam Raimi to revive Jack Ryan
After getting Dragged to Hell, Sam Raimi plans to develop and direct a series of films based on the popular Tom Clancy-created Jack Ryan book series. Paramount is hoping to release the first film in Summer 2010.
Alec Baldwin first took the character to the big screen in John McTiernan’s 1990 The Hunt for Red October. Harrison Ford took over the character for Phillip Noyce’s 1992 film Patriot Games and 1994 film Clear and Present Danger. Ben Affleck played a younger Jack Ryan in Phil Alden Robinson’s 2002 film The Sum of All Fears, which was heavily criticized for deviating from the novel and cannon of the Ryan story in order to insert more action into the plot. From what I understand, the Jack Ryan character in the books is a lot less action orientated, which is somewhat played off due to his age.
Raimi plans to develop a series of new films featuring a younger Ryan at a “more formative point in his career than previously depicted.” I’m sure this new direction will further anger fans of the series. Variety says: “One invention the studio is considering is to set the film in the present, with the action triggered by a global threat.”
“While Clancy is completing another Ryan novel, the studio hasn’t read it and so hasn’t decided if it will use the new book or come up with an original story. Paramount controls rights to the Ryan character, and gets first look at the new novel.”
Discuss: What’s the point of even calling this a Jack Ryan film? It sounds like they’re just looking for a young Bourne or Bond like series, but don’t want to invest in an original concept/story.