Oddball Cinema

Many popular movies about flying machines bear the title “Drones,” but this isn’t one of them. No, this is a little-known gem about love in the workplace possibly leading to the destruction of planet Earth. Witty writing, solid acting, and slick direction all work together in this movie like bees in a hive, which coincidentally is the point of the title. The cubicle-bound employees of a vast corporation attend to their various tasks, each contributing to the productivity of the whole. But wait – is one of these workers not like the others? And if so, what is this person’s true agenda? When the answers to these questions arrive, the story gets hilariously crazy. The R rating is earned strictly by occasional rude language in this dialogue-driven production, and bluntly your host thinks PG-13 would have been sufficient.

■ Title — Drones
■ Director — Amber Benson, Adam Busch
■ Cast — Angela Bettis, Jonathan M. Woodward, Samm Levine
■ Rated R for language
■ ©2010 | 1h 38m | Comedy, Fantasy
■ Distributed by Quiver Entertainment

Five directors present five interwoven stories mostly set in a nondescript bar. The characters are anything but nondescript, with their diverse interests and intentions colliding in strange ways. What they drink, why they drink, and how they drink are all part of the stories, with fate, coincidence, and even a touch of the supernatural weaving their way into the mix.

■ Title — Life on the Rocks
■ Directors — Joanna Bowzer, Tim Gagliardo
■ Cast — Zach Alden, Bonnie Bedelia, Jasmine Hester
■ Unrated, suitable for teens and adults
■ ©2021 | 1h 30m | Drama

■ Watch it free with ads on Fandango:
https://athome.fandango.com/content/browse/details/Life-on-the-Rocks/1747115
■ Watch it free with ads on Fawesome:
https://fawesome.tv/movies/10678832/life-on-the-rocks
■ Watch it free with ads on Tubi:
https://tubitv.com/movies/707549/life-on-the-rocks
■ Available free without ads to Hoopla subscribers:
https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/18367241
■ Available free without ads to Amazon Prime members:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/amzn1.dv.gti.2039b5da-fb1c-4c8e-b29b-1f498db26285

■ As with most of our online features, you can watch this one whenever you like. Members who watch at the scheduled time may enjoy exchanging comments with other members on this page. If you post a comment before the show, please avoid spoilers. Comments posted after the show may contain any content, but Oddball Cinema encourages members to always avoid spoilers unless there’s some particularly important details you need to mention.

■ Many of the movies on our online events from as far back as March 2020 are still available for viewing. However, titles sometimes move from one streaming service to another. If you find that the links on an old event no longer work, you can search for the current providers of any title here: https://justwatch.com

Why do women do what they do and think what they think? Dr. Louann Brezindine, researcher, clinician, and professor at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), wanted to know. She’s co-writer of the screenplay for this movie, which suggests that the experiences of the main character, a neuropsychologist, reasonably reflect her own. The process and results of her research are dramatized here by co-writer, director, actress, and stand-up comedian Whitney Cummings, so this feature will definitely not be a boring lecture. While classified as a comedy, the movie isn’t filled with laughs but instead with awkward encounters and strained relationships. Along the way, the electrochemical causes and effects of various actions between several couples are explained – with diagrams!

■ Title — The Female Brain
■ Director — Whitney Cummings
■ Cast — Whitney Cummings, Toby Kebbell, Beanie Feldstein
■ Unrated, suitable for teens and adults
■ ©2017 | 1h 38m | Comedy, Science
■ Distributed by IFC Films

This production earns high Oddball marks for both style and content. Structured as if it’s a series of short films, each with its own title, it nonetheless tells the bizarre but coherent story of a scientist who invents a device that can “sterilize” or “cancel” atomic bombs. Apparently this means it renders them inert, although the specifics are never revealed. Daniel Emilfork, who was born to play mad scientists (he was Dr. Krank in The City of Lost Children), is the inventor, and after announcing his achievement, he retreats to his fortified villa and disdains any further contact with the outside world. Spies from various countries attempt to steal the plans with chaotic and often humorous results.

■ Title — The Unknown Man of Shandigor
■ A.K.A. — L'inconnu de Shandigor
■ Director — Jean-Louis Roy
■ Cast — Marie-France Boyer, Ben Carruthers, Jacques Dufilho
■ Unrated, suitable for general audiences
■ ©1967 | 1h 36m | Action, Drama, Sci-Fi

■ Watch it free with ads on Fawesome:
https://fawesome.tv/movies/10530132/the-unknown-man-of-shandigor
■ Watch it free with ads on Tubi:
https://tubitv.com/movies/100008681/the-unknown-man-of-shandigor
■ Available free without ads to Kanopy subscribers (details below):
https://www.kanopy.com/en/product/13193753
■ Available free without ads to Hoopla subscribers:
https://www.hoopladigital.com/title/16368348

■ Kanopy streaming service is available free to holders of DC library cards. DC libraries will issue cards to residents of Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax, and other nearby areas. Visit any branch to obtain your card. Kanopy is also provided free to Loudoun County library card holders who live, work, or study in Loudoun County.

■ As with most of our online features, you can watch this one whenever you like. Members who watch at the scheduled time may enjoy exchanging comments with other members on this page. If you post a comment before the show, please avoid spoilers. Comments posted after the show may contain any content, but Oddball Cinema encourages members to always avoid spoilers unless there’s some particularly important details you need to mention.

■ Many of the movies on our online events from as far back as March 2020 are still available for viewing. However, titles sometimes move from one streaming service to another. If you find that the links on an old event no longer work, you can search for the current providers of any title here: https://justwatch.com