Netflix and Kill

What would Macbeth's best friend Banquo have on his Netflix playlist? Banquo, during all of his time not spent being betrayed or stabbed to death, has a very particular taste in cinema. Here are the top 4 things on Banquo's Netflix queue that he would recommend to a friend.

1. Do The Right Thing
Banquo initially picked Spike Lee's 'Do The Right Thing' not based on its content but by its name (way to judge a book by its cover Banquo) however after watching it he really related to the character Radio Raheem. In 'Do The Right Thing' racial tensions mount on a hot summer day as Radio Raheem leads a protest against a local pizza place run by an Italian family for not having any black celebrities on its wall of fame. His protest turns violent and when the police show up he is martyred because of it. Banquo related to Radio Raheem because he too knows what is like to be killed because of his difference in belief with someone in power.

2. Captain America: The First Avenger
Besides Chris Evans totally being Banquo's man crush, there are a lot of reasons why Banquo loves this movie. In 'Captain America: The First Avenger' a small, weak, man named Steve Rogers tries to enlist in the US army to fight against Germany in WW2. He is rejected multiple times but is enlisted under the umbrella of a super solider experiment where he is genetically modified. Steve grows taller and more muscular, and later leads a powerful military charge against an evil Nazi affiliated organization called Hydra. This movie resonated with Banquo because of Steve Rogers benevolent and honest nature, one that Banquo believes he possesses. Banquo is also awed by the transformation Steve makes from weak to tall and muscular and he wishes he could get his hands on some super soldier serum before spring break.

3. Trumbo
Banquo has always been a cinephile (Macbeth just calls him a film nerd) so Trumbo was a clear must watch. 'Trumbo' is a look into the communist blacklist enforced in Hollywood during the 1950s-1960s and follows the story of the writer Dalton Trumbo. Dalton Trumbo and his communist friends are persecuted by the US government and barred from writing films, so Trumbo goes underground and ghost-writes films which win Academy Awards under pseudonyms. Banquo appreciates the story of Dalton Trumbo, but he recognizes the parallels between him and Macbeth. Dalton Trumbo starts the film as a recognized and benevolent character who stands up for his belief in communism, but ends the film only interested in awards and recognition for his writing prowess. Dalton Trumbo's friend Arlen Hird is more in line with Banquo's sensibilities. Arlen constantly calls Trumbo on his hypocrisy and resents him for his material wealth, which is against the principles of communism. Ultimately Hird loses out and dies of lung cancer later on in the film. Banquo related deeply to Arlen Hird's honestly and ultimate demise because it reminded him so much of his own experience with Macbeth.

4. The Grudge
Again with the titles, Banquo? Not that he is bitter about being killed by someone he regarded as his best friend or anything, Banquo frequently watches 'The Grudge' and thinks about Macbeth. 'The Grudge' is about a curse left behind from a death entailing extreme rage or sorrow. A married couple in a Tokyo suburb lived happily until the wife Kayako Saeki fell in love with her professor Peter Kirk and wrote about it in a diary that her husband found. Her husband brutally murdered her and his son out of rage, and the result was the curse. An unsuspecting American family moved into their house years later and was then plagued by the curse. While unsettling, Banquo feels intense catharsis watching murders unfold and fondly remembers crashing Macbeth's dinner party as a ghost.