When it comes to streaming movies, there’s no shortage of options. Everything from the Xbox 360 perched under your boyfriend’s 32-inch HDTV to the iPad you got for Christmas last year is capable of running streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Instant Video or Hulu. But even the almighty Netflix has its limits. And when it comes time to host movie night at your place, you don’t want to be caught with nothing to watch because of a Wi-Fi malfunction or lack of selection. Here’s a few movies you’ll want to keep handy for when you have company. Whether you screen them on DVD, Blu-Ray or VHS is totally up to you.

Halloween, 1978

Rob Zombie’s 2007 remake of John Carpenter’s classic was a serviceable tribute to the original, but there are fewer films that give you as much film cred as having 1978’s Halloween on your bookshelf. Whether you want to snuggle up with your boo or just have people over for a fun horror movie night, you’ll want to make sure to watch this one with the lights turned off.

Back to the Future, 1985

Everybody likes Back to the Future  — you’d be hard pressed to find a soul that doesn’t enjoy watching its iconic DeLorean travel through time. In fact, Marty McFly may be responsible for an entire generation of Pepsi loyalists. The original was born of a time when nearly anything Steven Spielberg was attached to shone as the best of Hollywood. Robert Zemeckis’ Hill Valley may ooze ‘80s and ‘50s sentiment, but the story and humor never get old. Just ignore the urge to call all of your friends “butthead” after the movie’s over.

The Goonies, 1985

Remember what it was like to be a kid? To dream of finding a pirate ship in the cove behind your house and discover oodles of treasure along with it? Well, you can relive all of that with this 1985 classic, which was filmed right here in Oregon in the city of Astoria. The movie’s sentiment even served as the inspiration of The Ataris 2003 album, So Long, Astoria. Ever wonder what Big Brothers Big Sisters’ annual Truffle Shuffle race was named after? Well, after the first 10 minutes of this movie you’ll have more questions than answers.

The Breakfast Club, 1985

While The Goonies served to remind of you the days when getting home before the streetlights came on was your biggest worry, The Breakfast Club is a similar take on the ol’ high school days. This John Hughes classic could easily be labeled “The Real World: The High School Library.” It’s the story of five strangers, picked to serve a Saturday detention to see what happens when people stop being polite and start confessing about the cigarette burns inflicted upon them every Christmas. Don’t forget to dance along at the halfway mark.

Kindergarten Cop, 1990

Yet another cinematic classic filmed on the shores of Astoria. Everybody needs that one campy joke movie in the collection and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Kindergarten Cop is about as good as it gets. With such classic lines as “Where did you learn this game? Did your daddy teach you?” and “It’s not a tumor!” you’ll be quoting Arnie for days with your friends, all the while wondering where you went wrong with your own life.

The union that represents the University of Oregon’s classified staff will decide on Sept. 9, 10 and 11 whether or not to go on strike.

SEIU Local 503 on Monday announced that contract negotiations with the Oregon University System, a body governed by the State Board of Higher Education of which the UO is a member, have reached an impasse. Contract negotiations will continue.

The bargaining group laid out a list of reasons for the strike authorization vote. Among the concerns the group has voiced:

• OUS proposals leave 1,200 classified employees eligible for food stamps — SEIU says the university system shouldn’t be a “poverty-wage” employer.
• Raises and step increases have been lackluster over the last four years.
• The OUS should recover lost income from banks that practice “misleading and fraudulent financial practices” rather than from students and faculty.
• The OUS should allocate more resources to faculty and students rather than “high-salaried” administrators.

Earlier this month, Oregon State’s Daily Barometer reported that classified staff at the school had left chalk messages in front of the OSU student union that read, “Sorry students, fall term might be delayed,” and “The university may force staff to walk out on strike to get a fair contract.” Administrators there assured students that school would start on time.

SEIU members also protested at the UO back in June in the midst of contract negotiations.

Bargaining continues Thursday and Friday at Oregon Tech and the UO’s SEIU members will vote on the strike authorization Sept. 10 and 11 in Columbia 150.

Editor’s Note: It should go without saying, but there are MAJOR spoilers ahead for the fifth-season episode of Breaking Bad, “Buried.”

Last week’s mid-season premiere of Breaking Bad answered a lot of questions, then raised just as many. Tonight’s “Buried” didn’t so much set out to answer those questions as much as it drew a clear line in the sand. On one side of it stand Hank and Marie. On the other it’s Walt and Skyler.

Immediately after Hank and Walt’s showdown in the Schraders’ garage, each man reaches for the one person they know can help get him what he wants: Skyler. When Hank gets to her first — damn those pesky landlines, eh Walt? — Skyler meets with him in a diner, where he lays all of his cards out on the table: He knows who Walter White really is and he needs her help to prove it.

Too bad Hank goes after Skyler entirely too aggressively, first by insisting she abstain from hiring a lawyer and then by getting Marie involved. After an extended — and cringe-worthy — showdown at the White residence between Skyler and Marie, everyone has their sides.

The episode’s title is, as always, as fitting an indicator of the circumstances each of these characters must endure in both the short run and the long run. In the short run, there are stacks of cash buried in the New Mexico desert, possibly near a cow house. In the long run, all four members of the Schrader-White family are inundated with choices and the resulting fallout of those choices.

Should Hank present his buddies at the DEA what he believes is the origin of the Sky Blue they’ve been chasing for the last year and a half — as is strongly hinted when Hank asks Gomie to schedule a conference call upon his return to the offices — there goes his career. His wife, on the other hand, is saddled with confusion and anger at Skyler for keeping Walt’s horrible acts a secret and ultimately leading to Hank’s hospitalization.

Both Walt and Skyler, burdened with the choices they’ve made over the same time period, have a dangerous course to navigate, which amounts to — as Hank so eloquently put it — running out the clock. The cancer’s back, as is proven to Skyler when Walt collapses in the bathroom upon returning from his expedition to bury all the cash he’s earned in the desert. And because of her meeting with Hank immediately after the confrontation with Walt, Skyler says Agent Schrader has his suspicions and nothing more, providing all the motivation she and Walt need to wait until the latter bites the bullet, pun totally intended.

With six episodes left, there are still a ton of moving parts in Breaking Bad. Tonight’s episode reminds us that the kids are still a major element of Hank and Marie’s and Walt and Skyler’s motivations — the former couple wants to remove the children from a volatile environment while the latter wants to make sure the kids gain the benefits of Walt’s drug peddling.

Even though Walt’s out of the manufacturing game, his legacy lives on and blood is still being shed because of it as evidenced by Lydia’s coup against Declan and his men out in the desert.

And what about Jesse? Last week we talked about loose ends and, as much as we’ve loved (or hated) Walt’s continual efforts to save his now-former partner, Jesse Pinkman seems to have outlived his usefulness. And we all know how Walt likes to deal with loose ends.

Stray observations:

This guy. I tuned in tonight expecting great TV. Little did I know I’d be introduced to the greatest mustache known to man.

Is anyone else looking surreptitiously at Lydia’s feet to see if her shoes match every time she appears on screen?

For four seasons and throughout a good part of the fifth, Skyler held on to her clunker of a car as Walt upgraded his ride. The shiny new vehicle — red, of course — in the Whites’ driveway is a good indicator that she’s gotten a bit comfortable with all of this.

Scrooge McDuck? Thank you, Huell and Kuby, for laying on that pile of money as we all wished Skyler and Walt would have back in “Gliding Over All.”

Editor’s Note: It should go without saying, but there are MAJOR spoilers ahead for the mid-season premiere of Breaking Bad, “Blood Money.”

Well, it’s all out on the table.

“Blood Money” picks up the moment “Gliding Over All” ends, with Hank stepping out of the Whites’ bathroom, Leaves of Grass in hand and the knowledge that his brother in law is one of the most prolific meth slingers the Drug Enforcement Administration has ever known. What happens over the next hour is a fast-paced run up to a series of choices both Walter White and Hank Schrader must deal with over the final six episodes of Breaking Bad.

The minute that Hank discovers Gale Boetticher’s handwriting in the Walt Whitman anthology in the final seconds of the mid-season closer, he’s put all the pieces together: The extravagant spending, the gambling winnings, the recent family trouble. And that’s what makes it so easy to sympathize with Hank Schrader: Unlike Dexter’s Deborah, he’s put the pieces of the puzzle together for himself and pulls no punches when it comes time to fulfill his duties as a DEA agent.

The Whites are none the wiser as all this goes down, with Walt suggesting to Skyler that they expand the car wash operation with another location in order to launder that much more money.

But it seems that Walt’s deceptions are catching up to him.

In an effort to convince Jesse to keep the $5 million from the proceeds of selling Blue Sky in the Czech Republic, Walt tells his former partner that Mike made it out of town alive and well. But Jesse’s definitely not having it. Jesse knows that Mike would have been a liability, what with Walt having orchestrated the murder of 10 of his close friends, and that’s something the man known as Heisenberg wouldn’t be comfortable with.

Walt’s interactions with Hank and Jesse set up what looks like the A story for much of the rest of the season.

There’s definitely going to be a few loose ends that need to be tied up, so how’s Walt going to proceed? Hanks gotta be dealt with for obvious reasons, and with Jesse tossing stacks of cash into front yards all over Albuquerque, something’s must be done. And the way Skyler deals with Lydia at the car wash isn’t exactly discreet, not to mention the latter’s penchant for taking things a bit too far in order to get what she wants.

Every main character’s primary motivations are complicated by major dilemmas. Hank needs to catch the monster he’s been chasing for the better part of a year, but what will that mean for the nephew, niece and sister-in-law he sees as innocent casualties? What’s the point if Walt dies before he’s convicted? And as far as Walter goes, how does he deal with two threats he’s gone to great lengths to protect in the past?

All in all, this is another superb episode in a series that’s held consistent quality from the outset. We’ll just have to strap in and prepare for the ride that Vince Gilligan has planned out in the next six weeks. There’s little doubt that it’ll be worth it.

Stray observations:

•You can’t help but love the callbacks to Gus Fring in Walt’s actions throughout the episode — the way he deals with Lydia in the car wash is incredibly reminiscent of Walt’s meetings with Gus in season three. And Walt laying the towel in front of the toilet after he’s about to retch reminds us that, as much as he thinks he’s got everything figured out, Walt’s got nowhere near the same level of chops for the illicit drug trade as his former employer.

•With so many other recurring character and visual cues, was anyone else concerned that Hank’s neighbor would have yet another RC car trampled by a vehicle in the episode’s final minutes?

•As much as I hate doing math, something doesn’t add up here. Episode 5.9 takes place about six weeks after Walt’s 51st birthday. He’s still alive on his 52nd. So was he lying to Hank when he said he had six months to live or did the cancer go back into remission by the time his neighbor drops her groceries in the teaser?

Editor’s Note: It should go without saying, but there are MAJOR spoilers ahead for the mid-season premiere of Breaking Bad, “Blood Money.”

Well, it’s all out on the table.

“Blood Money” picks up the moment “Gliding Over All” ends, with Hank stepping out of the Whites’ bathroom, Leaves of Grass in hand and the knowledge that his brother in law is one of the most prolific meth slingers the Drug Enforcement Administration has ever known. What happens over the next hour is a fast-paced run up to a series of choices both Walter White and Hank Schrader must deal with over the final six episodes of Breaking Bad.

The minute that Hank discovers Gale Boetticher’s handwriting in the Walt Whitman anthology in the final seconds of the mid-season closer, he’s put all the pieces together: The extravagant spending, the gambling winnings, the recent family trouble. And that’s what makes it so easy to sympathize with Hank Schrader: Unlike Dexter’s Deborah, he’s put the pieces of the puzzle together for himself and pulls no punches when it comes time to fulfill his duties as a DEA agent.

The Whites are none the wiser as all this goes down, with Walt suggesting to Skyler that they expand the car wash operation with another location in order to launder that much more money.

But it seems that Walt’s deceptions are catching up to him.

In an effort to convince Jesse to keep the $5 million from the proceeds of selling Blue Sky in the Czech Republic, Walt tells his former partner that Mike made it out of town alive and well. But Jesse’s definitely not having it. Jesse knows that Mike would have been a liability, what with Walt having orchestrated the murder of 10 of his close friends, and that’s something the man known as Heisenberg wouldn’t be comfortable with.

Walt’s interactions with Hank and Jesse set up what looks like the A story for much of the rest of the season.

There’s definitely going to be a few loose ends that need to be tied up, so how’s Walt going to proceed? Hanks gotta be dealt with for obvious reasons, and with Jesse tossing stacks of cash into front yards all over Albuquerque, something’s must be done. And the way Skyler deals with Lydia at the car wash isn’t exactly discreet, not to mention the latter’s penchant for taking things a bit too far in order to get what she wants.

Every main character’s primary motivations are complicated by major dilemmas. Hank needs to catch the monster he’s been chasing for the better part of a year, but what will that mean for the nephew, niece and sister-in-law he sees as innocent casualties? What’s the point if Walt dies before he’s convicted? And as far as Walter goes, how does he deal with two threats he’s gone to great lengths to protect in the past?

All in all, this is another superb episode in a series that’s held consistent quality from the outset. We’ll just have to strap in and prepare for the ride that Vince Gilligan has planned out in the next six weeks. There’s little doubt that it’ll be worth it.

Stray observations:

•You can’t help but love the callbacks to Gus Fring in Walt’s actions throughout the episode — the way he deals with Lydia in the car wash is incredibly reminiscent of Walt’s meetings with Gus in season three. And Walt laying the towel in front of the toilet after he’s about to retch reminds us that, as much as he thinks he’s got everything figured out, Walt’s got nowhere near the same level of chops for the illicit drug trade as his former employer.

•With so many other recurring character and visual cues, was anyone else concerned that Hank’s neighbor would have yet another RC car trampled by a vehicle in the episode’s final minutes?

•As much as I hate doing math, something doesn’t add up here. Episode 5.9 takes place about six weeks after Walt’s 51st birthday. He’s still alive on his 52nd. So was he lying to Hank when he said he had six months to live or did the cancer go back into remission by the time his neighbor drops her groceries in the teaser?

•As another reader has pointed out, the math seems to add up here. It’s been five months or so since Walt’s 51st birthday at this point. That means the M-60 in his trunk might be there as part of a last stand of sorts (a theory that’s been circulating fan communities since “Live Free or Die” premiered.) Still, the power of those flash forward scenes puts immense pressure on the seven remaining episodes. How exactly will we get there?

No matter what you major in, there’s just no escaping numbers. Journalism majors dread the two economics classes they’re required to take. Allied Arts and Architecture students will undoubtedly marvel at just how much the 16-ounce Chai in their building’s café just cost them. And math majors, well, the less we know, the better. Here are some of the most interesting figures relating to your college experience we could drum up:

4

The number of officially recognized resting places within a one-mile radius of the UO campus. Pioneer Cemetery near MacArthur Court is home to many of Eugene’s most notable former residents and Pre’s Rock stands as a memorial to track and field legend Steve Prefontaine. The Eugene Masonic Cemetery can be found near 25th Avenue and University Street and Laurel Hill Cemetery is just east of campus. The Masonic and Pioneer cemeteries are known as great places for afternoon walks — just be wary of travelling near either once the sun sets.

12

The number of places on the one block of 13th Avenue directly across from the UO’s west entrance where you can grab a cup of joe or an entire meal. Of course, if Quizno’s still occupied the building it shared with Starbucks, it’d be 13, but no — that would be too perfect. Turn the corner on 13th and Alder heading north and this number nearly doubles.

510

If a class met in Columbia 150 and there was a butt in every seat, this is how many people would be attached to said posteriors. This is, by far, the largest classroom on campus. Professor Professerson once made the mistake of filling this lecture hall with a discussion section for Paradigms of Human Memory. Things did not go well (and I sincerely hope you assumed the previous sentence was a lie. But, seriously, how horrible would that experience have been?)

81 and 35

The number of miles allocated to bicycle lanes on Eugene’s streets and of dedicated bike trails in the city, respectively. Funny enough, it’s faster to ride your bike from the UO campus to Alton Baker Park than it is to drive — one of five bicycle/pedestrian bridges spanning the Willamette make it an easy commute.

$21,000

This is the average value of a University of Oregon’s student loan debt upon graduating as of 2011, the most recent year for which figures are available. So it’s decision time: Do you really want that degree or would you rather pony up the dough for a 2013 Dodge Dart?

105

The number of miles between you and the city known for its residents’ penchant for putting birds on things. During your time at the UO, you’ll definitely want to check out the only city in the state that boasts a larger population than Eugene’s. Find out for yourself if everything you saw in “Portlandia” is true.

155

This is the number of sunny days Eugene experiences on average. Sounds good enough, right? Unfortunately, if you’re a Duck who likes to migrate home for the summer, this number will decrease drastically for you as the majority of Vitamin-D soaked afternoons occur between early July and late September.

139

The average calendar year will yield 139 days of precipitation, whether it’s a light sprinkle prior to a big Duck game or a torrential downpour that shuts down entire streets due to flooding concerns. They say real Oregonians don’t carry umbrellas but that’s incredibly misleading — most everyone who says this wears his or her umbrella, and it’s usually Columbia brand.

Zero

What’s the sales tax in Washington right now, 80 percent? What about California, Montana or Colorado? When you’re in Eugene, it really doesn’t matter because Oregon is one of the few states in the union without a sales tax. So when fast food places advertise a $1 value menu, it really means your tiny cheeseburger will only cost you a buck (and maybe a slight dip in your sense of self-worth.)

54,000

The number of bodies that Autzen Stadium can hold at full capacity. If the university ever required all of its students to take one class simultaneously, this would be the place to do it. Heck, if Lane Community College, located just over the hill on 30th Avenue, wanted its students to do the same, there’d be room to spare as well. In comparison, Matt Knight Arena holds 12,364.

DuckLife is the Emerald’s magazine for incoming freshmen, made available during IntroDucktion. This story has been reprinted from the magazine in its original form.

The $68 million Oregon football performance center that has garnered national attention over the last few days finally has an official name: The Hatfield-Dowlin Complex.

Named for Lola Hatfield and Dorothie Dowlin, Phil Knight’s mother and mother-in-law, respectively, the structure is the second large-scale project named after members of the Knight family in recent years — Matthew Knight Arena, which opened  in 2011, is named after the Nike co-founder’s son and cost $227 million to construct.

GoDucks.com’s Rob Moseley reports that both women the facilities are named after worked throughout the Great Depression — one as a telephone operator, the other as a factory worker — and married lawyers before starting a family. Knight’s mother influenced his decision to run track at Cleveland High School in Portland and later the University of Oregon.

Knight Library and the William W. Knight Law Center are the two other buildings located on the University of Oregon campus named for the family.

You know your football program is in a good place when a missed kick means you have to settle for a Rose Bowl appearance instead of a second berth at the national championship game. But the 2012 game against Stanford wasn’t the first time — nor will it be the last — that a margin of three points or fewer decided an entire football game. Over the last eight seasons, there have been at least 10 games, the Nov. 17, 2012 matchup against Stanford included, that could have been swayed by a field goal.

The stats below beg the question: What’s happening in November that causes so many close games? Half of the games that were decided by three points or fewer in the last eight years happened between Nov. 12 and Nov. 24. Is it the colder temperatures? The constant rain in Eugene? Or the fact that Thanksgiving is just around the corner?

In 2011, USC also beat Oregon at Autzen by a three-point margin, robbing the Ducks of a perfect Pac-12 season. That was the second time the Ducks had to settle for a Rose Bowl appearance, beating out the Wisconsin Badgers 45-38 in Pasadena a month and a half later. A November matchup against Cal (15-13) in 2010 could have also turned out differently if the opposing team had scored field goal.

Two contests in 2009, a pre-season game against Purdue at Autzen on Sept. 12 (38-36) and Nov. 21 at Arizona (44-41) could have fostered different results had it not been for a field goal. In the case of the game against the Wildcats, it was a successful three-pointer by Arizona in double overtime that Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli countered with a successful touchdown attempt that earned the Ducks a win.

During a pre-season win in 2006 against Oklahoma (34-33), the Ducks may have been repaying the Sooners for the Holiday Bowl loss from the previous season that ended in a 14-17 loss for Oregon. Later that year, the Ducks lost to Oregon State 28-30 in the first of two consecutive Civil War losses Oregon would suffer before winning four contests in a row.

Before falling to Oklahoma at the end of the 2005 season, the Ducks defeated Fresno State 37-34 at Autzen in the pre-season and later lost to the Cougars 34-31 at Washington State on Nov. 12, proving again just how important a fine-tuned special teams section is.

Four mutants.

From my count, James Mangold’s The Wolverine had four mutants who were essential to the plot, a far departure from what we’ve come to expect from the X-Men franchise. These films are usually brimming with folks either coming to terms with the fact that they have superpowers or otherwise showing them off, a fair motivation for most entries in the series thus far.

But The Wolverine takes a different route. Instead of emphasizing superpowers, this X-Men film focuses more on the relationships between its cast. Well, as much as you can expect any of this summer’s superhero flicks to do so.

The 1982 Wolverine limited series forms the basis for this story, which has Logan, portrayed for the seventh time by Hugh Jackman, traveling to Japan in order to say goodbye to a former Japanese soldier he saved during the Hiroshima bombing. In the years since his encounter with Wolverine, the young Yashida becomes one of the most wealthy men in Japan and offers his savior the opportunity to lead a normal, mortal life.

It’s a solution to the problems Wolverine has suffered since the events of X-Men: The Last Stand. Riddled with guilt over the death of Jean Grey, this is Wolverine’s opportunity to die honorably and join her in the afterlife. This reunion after nearly 70 years sets the stage for the rest of the film.

At its core, The Wolverine is an exploration of the titular character’s vulnerability, not as a superhero or a mutant, but as a human being with a desire for a bit of normalcy. Dream sequences in which Logan visits with the ghost of Jean Grey drive this point effectively, even if they’re overused from time to time.

Even though Wolverine features fewer callbacks to older films than other entries in the X-Men franchise, it’s definitely for the better. The problem with Logan’s previous solo venture was that it was rife with predictability. It’s not overly hard to guess how the story in the new film will unfold as you watch, but the execution here is much better and the set-piece action sequences stand out much more than they do in many other superhero flicks.

One particular fight atop a Japanese bullet train is demonstrative of the film’s visual style: it’s quick, it’s frantic and it’s meticulously constructed. There isn’t a single fight between two characters that feels like a filler set-piece battle, even if some of the action is over the top to the point of absurdity (Then again, in a universe where a man’s skeleton can be replaced by indestructible metal, what else can you expect?)

Newcomers to the X-Men film franchise, particularly Rila Fukushima as the mutant Yukio, fit in quite nicely. And even though Jackman is the only recognizable face throughout the film for those who reserve their comics consumption to the silver screen, those familiar with the source material will recognize much of the cast, even if a few roles are repurposed.

If you were disappointed with Wolverine’s last standalone film, let this be the one to convince you Jackman’s indestructible man is worthy of his own film. And just in case you were planning on leaving as soon as the credits start — you should know better by now — don’t leave before the credits flash a title card. You won’t regret it.

Freshman football player Tyree Robinson, 19, pleaded not guilty against a misdemeanor harassment charge earlier today. The charge stems from an incident earlier this month in which Robinson allegedly slapped a woman on the rear end in an attempt to get her to leave a house near campus.

Robinson was not jailed after the July 7 incident, which occurred on the 1400 block of Orchard Street in Eugene. The woman was in a relationship with another man at the house, police said.

Robinson and his twin brother, Tyrell, are recruits for the Ducks’ coming football season and both played for Lincoln High School in San Diego’s team in addition to playing basketball for the school.

A trial date has not yet been set for the case and Robinson is represented by Dan and Jeff Koenig of Eugene, who also represented wide receiver Josh Huff during an intoxicated driving case in which Huff was ultimately acquitted.