Here are capsule reviews of a few Netflix movies that are currently popular and/or trending, assuming that you can take the streaming service at its word.

Spoilers Follow

  • Emily the Criminal: Starring Aubrey Plaza of Parks and Recreation and White Lotus fame, Acts 1 and 2 are of Emily the Criminal are generally quite interesting and tense as the mechanics of the credit card fraud ring unfold. One of the ringleaders — who is supposedly very crafty but turns out to be really dumb — takes a personal interest in Plaza’s character Emily, a woman who is in desperate need of Biden’s student loan debt relief. The romantic relationship turns out to be a disaster, however, and validates the old saying, “don’t get your honey where you get your money.” Emily the Criminal is also one of those movies where the filmmakers seemingly were unable to come up with an ending. Instead, Act 3 presents an implausible, violent set piece. The one scene with Gena Gershon as a haughty fashion executive is a highlight of the movie as it winds down, though. By the way, no employer would grant someone an interview after running a background check that revealed disqualifying information.
  • The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker: The true-crime documentary is about vagabond Kai who made headlines in 2013 as a hero prior to his “deep downward spiral”– as Netflix described it. The 1.5 hour film provides compelling viewing, but viewers might be left with the feeling that it could have probed deeper into what happened.
  • Nocturnal Animals: With Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Michael Shannon (who was nominated for an Academy Award as best supporting actor in his role as a police detective), this drama has three timelines. Most of what occurs in the film consists of a dramatization of a disturbing book manuscript. Unfortunately, there is no payoff in Nocturnal Animals, which likely will leave you wondering what’s the point. Fake Texas accents don’t help much, either. It might have been an intriguing and movie-saving twist if the victim in the novel turned out to the the aggressor in “real life,” but that’s not how it played out. As one IMDB user noted, “A film replete with unpleasant chargers, excessively violent action, and an ending that resolves none of the film’s dramatic questions.”
  • My Name is Vendetta (Italy): Boring, routine revenge movie filled with, as usual in this genre, a gang of hapless crooks whose sole function is as cannon fodder for the protagonist.

      Parenthetically, a sequel to the engaging Netflix original Murder Mystery is coming in March, if you’re a fan Adam Sandler comedies.