'Beasts of No Nation' a captivating Netflix gamble

Netflix isn’t content with being the most prominent streaming company in the business. They want a big, heaping slice of the Hollywood machine.

With “Beasts of No Nation,” the streaming service’s first original fiction film, Netflix hopes to punch a ticket to the Oscars. The film, based on a novel by Uzodinma Iweala, is a harrowing drama about child soldiers in an unnamed, war-torn country in West Africa. It co-stars Idris Elba as the monstrous general who teaches orphaned children how to be ruthless killers, and the director is Cary Joji Fukunaga, fresh off his acclaimed run on the first season of HBO’s “True Detective” (he had nothing to do with the show’s poorly received second season).

In addition to releasing the film on its streaming service last Friday, “Beasts” also played in a handful of movie theaters, designed mostly as a qualifying theatrical run for Oscar consideration.

Predictably, the movie didn’t make much money, but Netflix probably didn’t care much about the box office performance. Having “Beasts” alongside its exclusive television series (“House of Cards,” Orange is the New Black”) and Oscar-nominated documentaries (“Virunga,” “The Square”) is just a way for the service to hook more monthly subscribers.

Sidenote: Is there anyone still without a Netflix subscription?

Some of the nation’s largest theater chains aren’t too happy about Netflix’s push into feature film distribution, or with the growing number of movies that now debut simultaneously in theaters and Video on Demand (VOD) services. I can understand their fear of losing audiences, though they might consider dropping the price of popcorn as an alternative way to maintain patronage.

I’m also pretty comfortable watching movies at home, especially since three little children have most of the control over my schedule these days. A movie like “Beasts of No Nation” is unlikely to screen in North Idaho anyway, at least not without securing multiple Oscar nominations beforehand.

From the filmmakers’ perspective, the Netflix model is one of the best ways to reach an audience. A movie with such challenging subject matter can be a tough sell, but I bet more people are willing to give “Beasts” a chance if they can take that chance from their living rooms. Having the film right there on the Netflix home page automatically makes it a mainstream release.

As for the movie itself: “Beasts of No Nation” is gorgeously shot and anchored by captivating and believable performances, especially by Abraham Attah as Agu, the boy at the center of the story. “Beasts” is Attah’s film debut, and the performance steers far away from the false-preciousness you often see from child actors.

While Attah anchors the movie, Idris Elba is likely the best candidate for Oscar attention. Known as the “Commandant,” Elba creates a captivating and terrifying creature who forces his young soldiers into committing horrifying acts. The film doesn’t just treat Commandant as an antagonistic boogieman either, as Agu and his fellow soldiers see their leader try and fail to rise above his rank and become a more influential figure in the regime.

Even though “Beasts of No Nation” is available to a mainstream audience, the violence and depravity in the film won’t be for everyone the story is not based on any specific events or people, but the horrors are derived from the realities of recent conflict. It isn’t a spoiler to reveal that Agu becomes a killer. His humanity, however, is tested until the final frame.

Back to the Present

Those still excited about what happened on Oct. 21, 2015, in “Back to the Future Part II” can continue the nostalgia with the documentary, “Back in Time,” now available on Netflix streaming. The film looks back at the making of the trilogy and features interviews from Michael J. Fox, Robert Zemeckis and all the other primo players you’d expect.

Amazon Prime also has the entire “Back to the Future” trilogy on its streaming service.

And remember, Cubs fans: You’ll always have a happy 2015 somewhere.

Tyler Wilson can be reached at twilson@cdapress.com.