What I’m Watching
I love movies, both good and bad. Shows are also included as well as some things from YouTube (linked) if they’re particularly good.
The Guardians of the Galaxy: Holiday Special
Not amazing, but short enough to not feel like I wasted too much time. Basically, just watch this if you’re a fan of both Kevin Bacon and Marvel.
2.5/5
Bullet Train
I really liked this movie. Unique story, style, concept. The writing is great and character development is really good. Definitely one to rewatch later.
5/5
Andor
Really great Star Wars show—second favorite to Mandalorian. Hoping for more!
4/5
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
This is THE movie whether you’re a true Nick Cage fan or an ironic Nick Cage fan. Great in its annoying self-awareness.
4.5/5
Enola Holmes 2
Entertaining, definitely worth watching. The style is used quite a bit in the various Holmes movies, but it still works and doesn’t feel like it's getting old.
4/5
Weird
Loved this. If Weird Al made a movie, this would be it…and it is it. It’s Weird Al encapsulated in movie form. A parody of his own life. Amazing.
5/5
Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio
Very good and unique. More of a kids movie than I was expecting for Guillermo Del Toro, definitely adult themes. Dark but also kid friendly.
4/5
Alone
Low level entertaining, good for mindless watching while doing other things.
3/5
Glass Onion
Again, great movie, love the style. Will watch all of these and rewatch as soon as I forget how the mysteries were solved.
4/5
Inside
LOVED this. So great. Bo Burnham continues to get better and better. Amazing and nuanced commentary coming out of the worst of Covid times.
5/5
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Entertaining and somewhat unique. Maybe watch again. Nothing particularly noteworthy.
3.5/5
Spiderman: No Way Home
Pretty good—I didn’t mind the fan service as much as some of my friends. Felt a bit too long near the end though. Probably not worth future re-watches.
3.5/5
Thor: Love and Thunder
Thor Ragnarok is my favorite Marvel movie because of Taika Waititi’s directing, among many other things…but this was just way too slapstick and self-aware (in a bad way) to be enjoyable. Disappointing because of how much I love Ragnarok.
2.5/5
Obi-Wan
I was REALLY hoping this was going to be better than it was. It felt like the just exploited the excitement around the characters and didn’t actually do them justice.
3/5
Pachinko
Great adaptation of the book—looking forward to future season.
4.5/5
The Gray Man
Good style, not particularly memorable. Better than average for the genre, would watch again.
3.5/5
Hocus Pocus 2
Not great. Not worth the watch.
2/5
Hocus Pocus
A classic that seems to be aging less and less well, unfortunately. Still worth a watch maybe once per decade at Halloween.
3/5
Love on the Spectrum
Incredibly humanizing and great storytelling. I was hesitant to watch at first because (1) it’s not my type of show and (2) it seemed like it might be trying to take advantage of people with autism…but that’s the furthest from what they’ve done. Very much worth watching.
5/5
Top Gun: Maverick
Absolutely incredible follow up to an absolute classic. Perhaps even better than the first…the only other thing I’ve felt similarly about is Breath of the Wild vs. Ocarina of Time.
5/5
Top Gun
Classic. Not much more to say about Top Gun than that.
5/5
Encanto
Good movie, not in my favorite style (i.e., CG animated). Great for kids, of course.
3/5
Floor is Lava
Horrible show, ironically entertaining after a heavy/intense movie.
1/5
Keep Sweet Pray and Obey
Holy shit. So fucked up. Hard to describe how wrong this all is. But an entertaining watch, and not too many episodes. Manages to keep from completely dragging you down the whole time despite how disturbing the content is.
3.5/5
Barry
LOVED the first season, later seasons are still good but not amazing.
3.5/5
The Witcher
Love this show and Henry in it. He’s the perfect choice to portray the character and he’s surprisingly hilarious in it as well.
4/5
The Sopranos
We had never watched this and it really, really holds up. Certainly the origin of many of the more cinematic shows these days. Worth watching all the way through.
5/5
Knives Out
LOVED the style of this film, the story is great, and I hope to see many more like this and Glass Onion in the coming years. A great new IP.
4.5/5
The Alpinist
The most extreme climbing film ever made about the most extreme climber. Puts Free Solo to shame (though I still love that movie, of course). Marc-André Leclerc was an absolute beast.
5/5
Everything Everywhere All at Once
It’s A LOT to take in and I liked (not loved) it while watching it. I’ve come to like it more and more since my first watch and I’ll likely watch it again soon.
4/5
Murderville
HILARIOUS. Incredible. Kumail Najiani’s episode is the absolute best. So amazing.
5/5
Prey
Good, not amazing. Worth watching, but nothing to write home about.
3.5/5
Book of Boba Fett
Basically a continuation of The Mandalorian after the first handfull of episodes. Very good.
4/5
Prank Encounters
Maybe the worst show on any streaming service…and that’s why I’m giving it a 5/5. It’s basically bad in every way and therefore extremely enjoyable.
5/5
The Great British Baking Show
Great feel good show that’s perfect for a wind down after a more intense movie/show.
5/5
Only Murders in the Building
I was completely not expecting to enjoy this as much as I do. Selena Gomez is surprisingly great, and of course Steve Martin and Martin Short are great, as expected. I’m not historically a huge fan (nor do I dislike) Martin Short, and this is perhaps his best role imho.
5/5
14 Peaks
Nirmal is a beast. Watch this. Not the best storytelling, but it kind of doesn’t matter because of how great the source material is.
4.5/5
Moonfall
Not an incredible film, but definitely entertaining enough to warrant a casual watch with pizza! Maybe slightly better than average end of the world movie.
3.5/5
Don’t Look Up
Meh. If I had guessed what all the jokes would be before watching the movie, I would have guessed right. Not particularly imaginative. basically like watching 24 hour news networks at the time, but with different names/genders for the characters.
2/5
The Rescue
The best account of an incredible story. Definitely worth a watch.
4/5
In the Heart of the Sea
When in the mood for the genre, does a great job at scratching the itch. Dark sea movie with decent enough story, concept, and acting.
3.5/5
The Rehearsal
Anything Nathan Fielder does is amazing, and this is his best yet. The level of depth and self referential-ness (without being overly self-aware) is unbelievable.
5/5
Severance
Holy shit. Insane. Can’t wait for the next season. Took 3-4 episodes to get into it (during which time I was seriously considering not continuing) and SOOO worth it.
5/5
Dune
It’s very well made, though I thought it was a bit self-indulgent in its “check out how chill I can be” style. Looking forward to the next.
4/5
Red Notice
Nothing particularly unique or memorable, but entertaining enough for Friday night pizza night. Not worth a re-watch.
2.5/5
Minari
LOVED this film and I’d love if this won best picture (not just because it’s about Koreans in the US). Extremely nuanced storytelling that’s relatable to anyone who has or has had dreams they care about.
5/5
Pop Star
Not the kind of movie I thought I’d give a 5, but it feels like a stupid comedy made for comedians who appreciate stupid comedy—the density of jokes is just unreal. And some Lonely Island songs I hadn’t actually heard…the Bin Laden one is absolutely brilliant.
5/5
Going in Style
An decent enough heist movie that’s just different enough from other heist movies to make it interesting and worth watching—mostly about relationships and getting older. More nuanced commentary than I was expecting.
3.5/5
Star Trek: Beyond
Also really like this one, but slightly less than the previous two. Feels like the storytelling gets a little overwhelmed by the action, but still good overall.
4/5
Star Trek: Into Darkness
Also great, like the first—feels pretty influenced by Next Generation in terms of storytelling structure (starts off feeling episodic like the show).
4/5
Star Trek
Great modern Star Trek movie with tasteful tie-ins to the rest of the Star Trek universe. Probably my favorite of the three.
4.5/5
Greenland
An apocalypse movie from a slightly different perspective. Better than the average action/blockbuster apocalypse movie and definitely worth a watch, but certainly not life-changing.
3.5/5
On the Rocks
A well made movie, Bill Murray and Rashida Jones elevate pretty good (but not amazing) writing. Nuanced at times, and worth a watch, but it could have been truly great with a bette script…there’s only so much Bill and Rashida can elevate the writing.
3.5/5
His Dark Materials
Almost finished with season 1: really entertaining and well-made. I haven’t read the books, so I can’t speak to the fidelity, but it’s just a high quality show.
4/5
Parts Unknown
The best, not much more to say.
5/5
White Tiger
A very very good story. Nuanced and goes in directions that you wouldn’t predict. A surprise great movie.
4.8/5
Ted Lasso
Such a great show—although each of the characters are sort of caricatures, somehow they’re deep and nuanced enough for them not to feel like caricatures. Great writing, acting, and character development. A must watch.
5/5
What We Do in the Shadows
Classic Taika Waititi—hilarious as any watch and the New Zealand humor just doesn’t get old.
4.5/5
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Henry Cavill pretty much singlehandedly saves this movie. Ben Affleck should never have been cast as batman. DC superhero movies (with the exception of Cavill’s superman) are just unfortunately not as well written as Marvel.
3/5
The Banker
Very well acted and well written. Very interesting true story. A pretty straightforward movie but definitely worth the watch.
4/5
Call of the Wild
Pretty good, actually…better storytelling than I expected with an animated/anthropomorphized dog. Worth a watch for the interesting commentary on relationships, humans+nature, and getting older.
3.5/5
A Knight’s Tale
Classic Heath Ledger. Silly, dramatic, entertaining.
5/5
The Dig
Entertaining and interesting movie—nuanced storytelling about social dynamic and relationships in a very thoughtful way. Interesting take/commentary on expectations, balancing humility and ambition, etc.
4/5
Ken Burns: The National Parks - America’s Best Idea
A great telling of a complicated story of how this section of North America’s wild places came to be (sort of) protected.
5/5
Stranger Things
Avoided this for a long time for a couple reasons…but holy shit it’s great. Watched the first season and a half in roughly 24 hours one weekend.
5/5
Fireball: Visitors From Darker Worlds
Werner Herzog documentary on meteorites. Like a good handful of his documentaries…his (often hilarious) nihilism doesn’t quite fit the subject of the film, so it feels a little forced at times. However, there are some GREAT Werner Herzog quotes in this that sent us down a rabbit hole of hilarious Werner Herzog clips like this one.
3.5/5
Hot Ones
One of my favorite interview shows—not just because of the food factor. Sean Evans (the host) is a really great interviewer…sort of a more accessible Nardwar. Very surprisingly, a great episode to start with is his interview with Shia LeBeouf.
5/5
Kiss the Ground
Great documentary about real solutions that can reverse climate change. The summary: a mass shift to regenerative agriculture could reverse warming and have a net cooling effect within 20 years.
5/5
WandaVision
Watched the first episode and I really don’t get it…I mean, I get the idea, but I don’t get it. Decided to wait til the whole season is up then watch it together.
TBD
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Classic comedy of its genre. Was on in the rare occasion of having actual TV at a cabin one night. Always worth a watch as a semi-on-in-the-background movie.
4/5
Soul
Great movie, especially as someone who almost went on to become a professional jazz musician after high school. Really identify with the main character and really appreciate how they weave the lessons of jazz throughout the story (even when it’s not directly about jazz).
4.5/5
Molly’s Game
Very entertaining and quite an interesting true story. Jessica Chastain and Idris Elba (who is just such a badass in anything he’s in) are really great. Also love the Colorado connection here.
4.5/5
John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum
Rewatching the series. Extraordinarily great fight choreography. Keanu at his finest.
5/5
John Wick: Chapter 2
Rewatching the series. Great film. Builds on the mythology in very cool ways.
5/5
John Wick
Rewatching the series. Love the mythology building and the action is super high quality.
5/5
Wonder Woman 1984
Entertaining but not the highest quality writing or acting.
3.5/5
Wonder Woman
Quite good and definitely better than 1984. I generally find Marvel to be better written than DC, but this is definitely one of the better of the DC films.
4/5
Miracle on 34th Street
Classic John Hughes take on an older classic. Nice comfy movie.
4.5/5
Home Alone
Not much needs to be said. Great film. Some of the best of John Hughes.
4.5/5
The Queen’s Gambit
Smart and super interesting show. Very unique art style that’s both vintage and modern. Great storytelling, writing, and acting.
4.5/5
Schitt’s Creek
Great character development over the seasons and definitely entertaining on a per-episode level. Great acting and lovable/hate-able characters.
4.5/5
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
The epic conclusion to one of the best trilogies ever. Hard to criticize.
5/5
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
They're taking the hobbits to Isengard!
5/5
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Crazy epic film. Fun to start a trilogy binge. These are great Christmas movies.
5/5
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Tricia’s not a huge fan, but The Hobbit was such a formative book for me growing up that I don’t mind the less than ideal pace and storytelling in these movies. This one feels a bit long, but is still great.
4.5/5
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Tricia’s not a huge fan, but The Hobbit was such a formative book for me growing up that I don’t mind the less than ideal pace and storytelling in these movies. Awesome to see Smaug brought to life after living in my childhood imagination for so many years.
4.5/5
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Tricia’s not a huge fan, but The Hobbit was such a formative book for me growing up that I don’t mind the less than ideal pace and storytelling in these movies. Favorite film of the Hobbit trilogy because it probably does the best job communicating the sense of childhood wonder of reading this book. Love the dwarves Misty Mountain song. These are great Christmas movies.
5/5
The Mandalorian
It’s like a short Star Wars movie every week (only shorter)! I know some people feel like the ending of the second season ruined it for them…but I think that’s just silly. I like what they did, just not a huge fan of how they did it. That said, it’s a very minor part of the series as a whole, which I love.
5/5
Robot Chicken
Basically a whacked out and obscene claymation Adult Swim sketch comedy show. Like most sketch comedy (imo), some hilarious sketches make up for the majority of mediocre ones.
4/5
Greyhound
Intense and epic sea warfare. Tom Hanks is great in this.
4/5
Always Be My Maybe
Pretty good movie overall—great to actually have another big Hollywood movie with mostly Asians. Keanu’s part is absolutely incredible.
4/5
Jojo Rabbit
LOVE this film. Smart, funny, sad commentary on growing up and finding your own voice and beliefs. Must watch.
5/5
Hunt for the Wilderpeople
Taika Waititi is such an awesome director. Very unique movie. You won’t be disappointed if you make this your Friday night movie.
5/5
Mulan
Pretty good take on a classic, though not mind blowing. Would have liked the classic songs to have been incorporated, but I appreciated that they didn’t try to copy scene by scene.
3.5/5
Mulan
Absolute classic. One of the very few Asian-centric movies growing up, so not much critical to say about this one.
5/5
Nathan For You
Brilliant awkward comedy. Must watch if you haven’t seen it.
5/5
Meru
The most insane climbing film out there. Yeah, Free Solo (also Jimmy Chin and Chai Vasarhelyi) is crazy in other ways, but Meru is far more inspiring and a much more difficult accomplishment.
5/5
Ender’s Game
Great adaptation of a super epic favorite book from childhood. Fun time, good action.
4.5/5
Doctor Strange
Entertaining, interesting, different than much of the rest of the MCU.
4/5
Enola Holmes
Really interesting and entertaining take on the Sherlock Holmes universe. Fun characters and plot.
4/5
Downhill
Not great, pretty predictable. A few funny parts.
2.5/5
The Illusionist
Classic. Gotta be in the right mood, but when I go through phases of wanting to watch movies about magic (yes, that’s a thing), the is always part of a binge watch.
4.5/5
Free Solo
Insane accomplishment by an incredibly disciplined climber. It’s pretty much impossible to communicate to non-climbers how insane this accomplishment was…it’s not just the crazy position he’s in, but the style of climbing and difficulty. Nuts.
5/5
The Dawn Wall
More of a climber’s climbing film than Free Solo, and an absolutely amazing accomplishment from a living legend (Tommy Caldwell). Like Meru, also more challenging of an accomplishment than Free Solo in many ways, but say that not to diminish Honnold, but because fewer people recognize the magnitude of Caldwell’s accomplishment on the Dawn Wall.
5/5
Kingsman: The Golden Circle
A great time, super entertaining and unique action movie.
4.5/5
Kingsman: The Secret Service
The start of a great movie franchise. Really fun, smart, and interesting action. Not predictable like so many spy-type movies.
4.5/5
The Gentlemen
Interesting, smart, fun heist movie. Would definitely watch again, though it’s not super memorable.
4/5
Black Panther
Super epic. Badass heros, badass villains, complex and much needed message.
4.5/5
Spectre
Fun and entertaining story throughout Daniel Craig’s time as Bond. Not much unique to say, but worth a good binge of all these movies every couple years.
4.5/5
Skyfall
Fun and entertaining story throughout Daniel Craig’s time as Bond. Not much unique to say, but worth a good binge of all these movies every couple years.
4.5/5
Quantum of Solace
Fun and entertaining story throughout Daniel Craig’s time as Bond. Not much unique to say, but worth a good binge of all these movies every couple years.
4.5/5
Casino Royale
Fun and entertaining story throughout Daniel Craig’s time as Bond. Not much unique to say, but worth a good binge of all these movies every couple years.
4.5/5
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
Great continuation of an interesting story from the first film. Fun and interesting take on action/mystery.
4.5/5
Sherlock Holmes
Smart, very stylistic, very cool film making, brilliantly acted. I’d love this franchise to be longer (it will be) so we could watch more of them back to back.
4.5/5
What We Do In the Shadows
Early brilliance from Taika Waititi. Fake vampire documentary. Hilarious.
4/5
Thor: Ragnarok
One of the best films of the MCU. Taika Waititi’s direction is brilliant and Jeff Goldblum is pure…gold.
5/5
Eighth Grade
Extremely smart, interesting commentary on middle school. Hilarious and very Bo Burnham. A must watch.
5/5