More Bob Ross plus happy little trees with which to chill on Netflix? Yes, please! Publicity photo courtesy Bob Ross

Chuck Norris puts up a good fight, but is stripped of his luxurious chest hair and his life by a Chinese immigrant on his home turf in Bruce Lee's "The Way of the Dragon," coming to Netflix Dec. 1. Image courtesy Golden Communications

Sure, you've had mashed 'taters for Thanksgiving, and probably for a few days after. But if you want some of them French-fried 'taters a la Sling Blade streamed on the Netflix, you're out of luck as of Dec. 1. MMMM-hmmm.

That movie, featuring a mentally challenged adult man fascinatingly portrayed by Billy Bob Thornton, has an impressive 96 percent "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Your writer highly recommends it, but now you'll need to get the DVD or watch on pay-per-view. Bonus: See if you can find the original short, called Some Call It a Sling Blade featuring Thornton with J.T. Walsh and Molly Ringwald, who did not appear in the full-length feature. Thornton wrote the short, and the full-length adapted screenplay that the short pitched to Hollywood. He took home an Oscar for his writing and a nomination for his acting.


As Karl might say: "Aight, den" ... on to more highlights from December's comings and goings in Netflix's video treasure trove (full list below):

Love Kevin Spacey? You'll cringe with his character in American Beauty (88 percent Fresh) but that rose has wilted and left Netflix streaming. Like a desperate MiG 29 trying to land on a broken Russian aircraft carrier, "Top Gun" ran out of streaming fuel on Dec. 1.


With the family all home for the holidays to argue about the election, you might consider The In-Laws a good distraction from the inevitable. Think again. This isn't the 1979 version starring Peter Falk and Alan Arkin. There's never enough Falk and Arkin – ever. The remake does have Albert Brooks, so there's that. Regardless, you won't have to worry about the remake any more – on Netflix streaming, anyway.

If you just KNOW the government is hiding something really big via coded messages known only to the Illuminati, you have until Dec. 14 to find out – that's when The Da Vinci Code disappears like so much invisible continental congressional ink.

Don't fret the losses ... a lot of cool new stuff is being added starting Dec. 1, including TOGA!!!! – National Lampoon's Animal House. And you'll be able to Netflix and Chill with Bob Ross to a greater degree than ever before ... featuring a collection of the big-haired painter's best, plus more than a few happy little trees starting bright and early Dec. 1.

Who can't use a little more Robin Williams? Barry Levinson's "Toys" joins the holiday fun Dec. 1, with awesome contributions from LL Cool J, Michael Gambon and the military-industrial complex. Critics hated it. If that doesn't convince you to watch it, try the awesome improv trailer Williams did for it:


A slew of Netflix Originals are being added as well in December. Top of that list to watch with your Facebook-fake-news-sharing uncle is Barry, a biopic about Barack Obama that arrives on Dec. 16. Perhaps not. Possible alternatives from the newly arriving list include The Way of the Dragon, the awesome 1972 kung fu flick that features Bruce Lee denuding conservative commentator Chuck Norris' chest of hair before dispatching him ... or perhaps Hitler: A Career? Both arrive on Dec. 1. There's always America's biggest patriot beating up bad dudes in Marvel's Captain America: Civil War – arriving as a big present from Netflix on Christmas Day. Maybe just put your uncle on a brony filter and play it safe with My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: Season 6, arriving Dec. 20.

Here's the full rundown:

Departing Netflix in December 2016

December 1

50 First Dates (2004)

American Beauty (1999)

Black Ops: Series 2

Camp Takota (2014)

Carmen Jones (1954)

Cats & Dogs (2001)

Curious George: Swings Into Spring (2013)

Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996)

Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)

Event Horizon (1997)

Frequencies (2013)

McConkey

Medora (2013)

Monkey Business (1952)

Myth Hunters: Series 1

Myth Hunters: Series 2

Neil Young: Heart of Gold (2006)

Paycheck (2003)

Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: A VeggieTales Movie (2008)

River of No Return (1954)

Sling Blade (1996)


Thor: Hammer of the Gods (2009)

The Great War Diary: Season 1

The In-Laws (2003)

The Out-of-Towners (1999)

Top Gun (1986)

Valley of the Dolls (1967)

World Trade Center (2006)

December 2

Legends of the Knight (2013)

The Red Baron (2008)

December 3

The Best of Me (2014)

December 5

Holes (2003)

December 14

The Da Vinci Code (2006)

December 15

High Profits: Season 1

World War II in Colour (2009)

December 16

Beyond the Hills (2012)

December 22

Dark Skies (2013)

December 26

Just Friends (2005)

December 27

Spy Kids (2001)

December 31

Hercules: The Legendary Journeys: Seasons 1-6

Arriving on Netflix in December 2016

December 1

Always (1989)

Angels in the Snow (2015)

Beverly Hills Cop (1984)

Beyond Bollywood (2014)

Black Snake Moan (2007)

Chill with Bob Ross: Collection (1990)

Compulsion (1959)

D2: The Mighty Ducks (1994)

David Blaine: Street Magic (1997)

Dreamland (2010)

For the Love of Spock (2016)

Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce: Season 2 (2015)

Glory Daze: The Life and Time of Michael Alig (2016)

Harry and the Hendersons (1987)

Hitler: A Career (1977)

Holiday Engagement (2011)

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989)

House of Wax (2006)

Hannibal (2001)

Merli: Season 1 – NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Merry Kissmas (2015)

National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)

Picture Perfect (1997)

Rainbow Time (2016)

Rodeo & Juliet (2015)

Swept Under (2016)

Switchback (1997)

The Angry Birds Movie (2016)

The Crucible (1996)

The Little Rascals (1994)

The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)

The Rock (1996)

The Spirit of Christmas (2015)


The Way of the Dragon (1972)

Toys (1992)

Uncle Nick (2015)

Waking Life (2001)

We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story (1993)

White Girl (2016)

Wildflower (2016)

Zero Point (2014)

December 2

Fauda: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Hip Hop Evolution: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Pacific Heat: Season 1 –NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 3

Lost & Found Music Studios: Season 2 - NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 5

Mad (2016)

The Good Neighbor (2016)

December 6

Blue Jay

Homeland (Iraq Year Zero): Season 1

Reggie Watts: Spatial—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

The Devil Dolls (2016)

The Model (2016)

December 8

The Cuba Libre Story: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 9

Captive: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Cirque du Soleil Junior - Luna Petunia: Season 1 NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Club de Cuervos: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Fuller House: Season 2—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Four Seasons in Havana: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Medici: Masters of Florence: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Spectral—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

White Rabbit Project: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 10

Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

Phantom of the Theater (2016)

December 11

Breaking a Monster (2016)

December 12

Ricardo O'Farrill: Christmas Special—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 13

Colony: Season 1

Killswitch (2016)

I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016)

Nobel: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 14

Versailles: Season 1 (2015)

December 16

Barry—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Call Me Francis: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Crazyhead: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

No Second Chance: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Rats (2016)

The Adventures of Puss in Boots: Season 4 —NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 19

Miss Stevens (2016)

December 20

Disorder (2015)

Gabriel Iglesias: Sorry For What I Said When I Was Hungry—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: Season 6 (2016)


Ten Percent: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

The Break: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 23

Travelers: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Trollhunters: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 25

Marvel's Captain America: Civil War (2016)

When Hari Got Married (2013)

December 27

Ajin: Season 2—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

Chasing Cameron: Season 1—NETFLIX ORIGINAL

December 28

Comedy Bang! Bang!: Season 5 (2016)

December 29

The Hollywood Shorties (2016)

December 30

The Eighties: Season 1 (2016)

December 31

Big in Bollywood (2011)

See you next month!