daily stream: a Pedro Pascal flick you’ve maybe never seen
2017’s *The Great Wall* leaves UK Netflix in a few days; also on Prime and Apple TV on both sides of the Atlantic
Honestly, I was only gonna recommend 2017’s The Great Wall because it’s goofy good fun and it’s leaving UK Netflix next week. But then I got reminded that everyone’s favorite Internet boyfriend of the moment, Pedro Pascal, is in it. Hooray! This is the flick that made a valiant early attempt to bridge the box-office divide between Hollywood-primed Western audiences and the cinematic juggernaut that is the Chinese blockbuster. It may not be entirely successful — Matt Damon looks a bit lost throughout — but, to quote myself:
[A]t its best, The Great Wall is Lord of the Rings meets Aliens presented with incredible imaginative grandeur.... I had the sort of plain pure fun watching this movie that usually comes with a Star Wars flick. There’s a visual loopiness here that’s more Hollywoodized than we’ve seen before from director Zhang Yimou… but is still tense and exciting in a way that feels fresh and engaging.
Some of the stuff-flying-at-you action may be lost now that you can’t see it in 3D IMAX (as I did back in 2017), but for free on Netflix — and for Pedro Pascal — it’s certainly worth your time.
US: rent/buy on Prime and Apple TV
UK: stream on Netflix through February 15; rent/buy on Prime and Apple TV
See The Great Wall at Letterboxd for more viewing options.
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