Whatcha Watchin'?

[hepcat]

This happened to pop up on Hulu:



Mads Mikkelsen as a soldier returning home to care for his daughter after wife dies in a train accident. The accident, however is not an accident and now it’s time for revenge. And did I mention it has Mads in it? Getting revenge? Helped by a very quirky group of guys?

I completely forgot about this until today when I was looking at my long ignored movie watchlist on Hulu and it popped up. Watching it now. It’s really good. It’s like the Coen brothers doing Taken….with a slightly deranged Liam Neeson as the dad. I’ve laughed out loud a few times, which I was not expecting.

And done. This movie is an absolute gem. Funny, violent, and heartbreaking. I had no idea it would end up being about grief and not vengeance.

[Rumpy]

I found myself wondering just when Disney lost its magic and became the creatively bereft, regurgitating charlatan it is today. I want to say the mid-90s, but I know there's some bias given that Disney's renaissance coincided with my childhood. Still, even the less lauded 80s Disney had a charm that their modern productions lack. And I know I'm being a little too hard on them; I haven't seen a lot of what they or even Pixar have put out recently. It's still very high quality, and their primary audience is of course children. I'm also a grumpy cynic. But no amount of good will I can summon could transform this into a good time.

Might have something to do with the fact that they now have a streaming service and they're making stuff to justify the service, so then it becomes quantity over quality? It's the impression I got when my Mom told me she tried watching it with the grandkids, but that even the grandkids weren't interested in it. She tried again without the kids and she only made it through a few minutes.

[Skinypupy]

We saw the new David Bowie biopic “Moonage Daydream” on IMAX last night. It’s a remarkable piece of work, telling Bowie’s story through footage, interviews, and live performances interspersed with complete random art, visuals, and sound clips. It reminded me a bit of the crazy, random, frantic quick-cuts in a movie like “Natural Born Killers”, jumping around between any one of a hundred different semi-related things at a moment’s notice. I happen to really enjoy that style, but it’s incredibly frantic and a lot to take in at once.

As a Bowie superfan, I thought it was absolutely incredible. Mrs Skinypupy (as not a huge fan of either Bowie or the visual style) found it to be somewhat overwhelming. If you are a fan though, it’s an absolute must-see.

The biggest compliment I can think to give it is that I’m sure Bowie himself would have loved it as a compelling piece of art.

[hepcat]

How did I miss this? I'm also a huge Bowie fan. Now I need to go looking for this one! Thanks for the heads up!

[Isgrimnur]

How did I miss this? I'm also a huge Bowie fan. Now I need to go looking for this one! Thanks for the heads up!

Moonage Daydream

[hepcat]

I think I confused that with the horribly reviewed Bowie film from a while back. I think it was called Stardust. It was lambasted pretty badly.

But this one sounds great. I'm in!

[Skinypupy]

How did I miss this? I'm also a huge Bowie fan. Now I need to go looking for this one! Thanks for the heads up!

Go see it on IMAX if you can, it’s truly a feast for the senses. The producers got access to archive footage from Bowie’s estate, so there’s likely lots here you’ve never seen before.

If you know about Bowie’s different periods (I.e. Ziggy, Berlin, plastic soul, etc) and are familiar with his non-mainstream artwork and videos, you’ll be in absolute awe of this (I know I was). If not, it doesn’t hit nearly as hard…Mrs Skinypupy thought it was “loud and confusing”.

Only gripe is that I wish I brought some earplugs, as it was easily the loudest movie I’ve ever seen in a theater. That was probably just this particular theater though, as the trailers were super loud too.

[hepcat]

Definitely. Looking now!

[Smoove_B]

I know it's been widely praised, but I'm finally getting around to watching Sex Education on Netflix. It starts off a bit slow in terms of plot building, but I'm just about done with the second season (of 3) and I am really impressed with the writing. Not just that, but the two main actors that play Otis and Maeve are quite good in their roles. The supporting cast is also excellent as well. I was highly suspicious the show was just popular because of the subject matter, but it's really quite good.

[Rumpy]

Yeah, it's a great series. It's not only great due to the acting, but in the way the subject matter is handled. It reminds me a lot of the Degrassi series from the 80's and 90's.

[Kraken]

I started "Dark" last night and the first episode didn't really draw me in. IDK if I'll stick with it or bounce to something else. I know it has a good reputation.

[Jaymann]

I started "Dark" last night and the first episode didn't really draw me in. IDK if I'll stick with it or bounce to something else. I know it has a good reputation.

I watched the first season and maybe a couple eps of season 2, but lost interest.

[hepcat]

I watched a few episodes but didn't return to it. I should one day as I always hear how good it is. I think it's one of those shows you just have to be in the right mood for.

[Skinypupy]

I know it's been widely praised, but I'm finally getting around to watching Sex Education on Netflix. It starts off a bit slow in terms of plot building, but I'm just about done with the second season (of 3) and I am really impressed with the writing. Not just that, but the two main actors that play Otis and Maeve are quite good in their roles. The supporting cast is also excellent as well. I was highly suspicious the show was just popular because of the subject matter, but it's really quite good.

Probably my second favorite Netflix show, behind Arcane.

While I’m not crazy about what they did to him story-wise, Eric is one of my favorite characters ever. And Gillian Anderson is brilliant.

[Kraken]

I watched a few episodes but didn't return to it. I should one day as I always hear how good it is. I think it's one of those shows you just have to be in the right mood for.

Yeah, maybe someday. There are too many other shows that I'd probably enjoy more. It doesn't help that one has to choose between dubbed or subtitled. I switched back and forth and wasn't especially fond of either version.

[Jaymann]

This happened to pop up on Hulu:



Mads Mikkelsen as a soldier returning home to care for his daughter after wife dies in a train accident. The accident, however is not an accident and now it’s time for revenge. And did I mention it has Mads in it? Getting revenge? Helped by a very quirky group of guys?

I completely forgot about this until today when I was looking at my long ignored movie watchlist on Hulu and it popped up. Watching it now. It’s really good. It’s like the Coen brothers doing Taken….with a slightly deranged Liam Neeson as the dad. I’ve laughed out loud a few times, which I was not expecting.

And done. This movie is an absolute gem. Funny, violent, and heartbreaking. I had no idea it would end up being about grief and not vengeance.

Watched it. Good but not great. But Mads = badass.

[hepcat]

I loved it because it wasn’t what I expected. It plays with the revenge movie genre in ways that made it fresh. If you go into it wanting Taken 2 and that’s all you want, you’re going to be disappointed. But if you enjoy a bit more depth, this movie shines. It really is great.

[Jaymann]

One thing I liked was:

Spoiler:

They acted on what seemed like incontrovertible evidence but were totally wrong.

[hepcat]

That was crucial in order to

Spoiler:

move the film from a standard revenge tale to one that explores what grief does to people. It was also a balancing act they did well. If they'd made the people Mads killed innocent, then the audience would have been more focused on that instead of the intended theme. But by making them awful people that just happened to get in the way of the loaded gun that is Mads' character, they let the audience look past the fact that he was slaughtering people who were innocent when it came to his wife's death.

[Skinypupy]

I was in the mood for something mindless, so I watched the latest Mortal Kombat reboot from last year.

Holy shit, that was a terrible movie. I came in expecting absolutely nothing, and was somehow still wildly disappointed.

[Torfish]

I was in the mood for something mindless, so I watched the latest Mortal Kombat reboot from last year.

Holy shit, that was a terrible movie. I came in expecting absolutely nothing, and was somehow still wildly disappointed.

Sounds as good as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre reboot from this year. Terrible and unnecessary. Everyone involved should never do a movie again.

[hepcat]

As a rule of thumb, if I see a “C” replaced with a “K” in a name, I immediately assume it was written by a moron.

-hepkat

[Jaymann]

At the recommendation of Moid of Media Death Cult, I watched on HULU:



It's by (Brandon, son of David) Cronenberg and has Sean Bean. You can guess the rest. Although:

Spoiler:

There's no way Sean Bean survives that poker attack. It's almost done merely so as to say, "At least he didn't die!"

[Jeff V]

We saw the new David Bowie biopic “Moonage Daydream” on IMAX last night. It’s a remarkable piece of work, telling Bowie’s story through footage, interviews, and live performances interspersed with complete random art, visuals, and sound clips. It reminded me a bit of the crazy, random, frantic quick-cuts in a movie like “Natural Born Killers”, jumping around between any one of a hundred different semi-related things at a moment’s notice. I happen to really enjoy that style, but it’s incredibly frantic and a lot to take in at once.

As a Bowie superfan, I thought it was absolutely incredible. Mrs Skinypupy (as not a huge fan of either Bowie or the visual style) found it to be somewhat overwhelming. If you are a fan though, it’s an absolute must-see.

The biggest compliment I can think to give it is that I’m sure Bowie himself would have loved it as a compelling piece of art.

There's a concert coming soon -- Todd Rundgren and Adrien Belew doing an all-Bowie show. I bet it will be superb (I've seen them both before).

[Jeff V]

I watched the Sound of 007 tonight. First I thought it might be a biopic of Spies Who Surf, a California Surf Punk band I saw in the early '80s (they did well with the James Bond theme AND Peter Gunn. But it was about the popular film series.

James Bond and music fans ought to watch this, it was very well done. While the closing credits went out with Carly Simon's "Spy Who Loved Me," I wish they would have interviewed her and Paul McCartney (Live and Let Die is my all-time favorite Bond theme, Spy Who Loved Me is second best). They did interview Simon LeBon (Duran Duran -- probably my 3rd favorite) and spent some time on Adele (that young lady might amount to something). Jack White was an excellent interview, and they played clips of Louis Armstrong. There's many I didn't know were involved or being considered (like Radiohead). Since the James Bond series started the year I was hatched, I always thought it would be fun to have all the theme songs played at my exit ceremony. Hopefully there's a few more songs to come.

[Sudy]

Side note... there is a new Beavis and Butthead movie, apparently. And the critics gave it 95%....

The movie and the new season are sharper and more hilarious than they have any right to be. I'm halfway through the latter and I think episode six, Virtual stupidity/Locked out is the best so far.

I wasn't a fan in the early days, taking the series and its humour only at face value. But I became one as of the 2011 revival. The thick lines of the CGI animation take some getting used to, but I compared it to a season four episode and the quality improvement is amazing (even if some of the charm is lost). These days the duo is commenting on YouTube videos and the like in addition to music videos.

[hepcat]

I have to agree. I’m really enjoying the return of Beavis and Butthead. It has made me laugh more than once.

My favorite so far is Butthead on meds, and Beavis’ ensuing confusion over a coherent, kinder Butthead.

[hepcat]

Avenue 5 is back for season 2 on HBO Max. Season 1 started off slow, but really kicked in for me about halfway through. And season 2 is firing on all cylinders right out of the gate.

“That’s quite an ensemble you’re wearing. Are you trying to flummox predators?”

[Rumpy]

Yeah, I quite liked Avenue 5. The humor was a bit more subtle, and it had some pretty good concepts going for it. Glad to see it survived to get a second season.

[Sudy]

I put off watching Scorsese's Silence (2016) for some time because it looked like a tough watch. Well, it's a tough watch. But I found it to be a very rewarding one. It offers no clear answers or interpretations, which I think is why I found it to be so personally relevant as someone who's been wrestling with questions of faith, doubt, skepticism, existentialism, and nihilism in recent years. If it did offer neat and clean answers, its value would be vastly diminished and it would lose almost all authenticity. (This is not a Hollywood-style film. One notable character's arc is to repeatedly seek forgiveness for repeated betrayals. In the end, both his fate and the meaningfulness of his journey are frustratingly but realistically unclear.) There's some major stuff under the hood here.

Beyond the challenge of its story and themes, it's an incredibly beautiful film visually.

[Kraken]

We're already 2/3 of the way through Derry Girls (Netflix) because a season consists of just six 23-minute episodes. If you liked Kim's Convenience and/or Schitt's Creek, you'll probably like Derry Girls. I have to watch it with subtitles on, though.

[Jeff V]

Trying to get the kids to eat dinner early so they have time to go to the playground before dark and I can seize control of the remote from my daughter.

[Kraken]

Finished Derry Girls tonight. That was one of the best series-ends ever. All three seasons only comprise a little over six hours, and there were a lot of smiles and LOL moments along the way. I wish there were more, but there won't be.

[Sudy]

Episode "Freaky Friday" of the new season of Beavis and Butt-Head is the funniest thing I've ever seen. I never thought I'd laugh at someone hitting themselves in the nuts with a broken broom handle nine times. I have been smoking though, so my review may be suspect.

[hepcat]

And Avenue Five is continuing to make me laugh out loud every episode. Seriously, this show is a keeper. If you liked Veep (the creator’s precious HBO show), or…hell, just good comedy, you’ll love this.

Episode 3 of season 2 has an incredibly dark bit about beagles that had me almost crying from laughter….and then feeling awful for laughing at it.

…and then there’s the whole pedophile in a hamster ball bit. And no, not figuratively.

[Rumpy]

One downside IMHO, is Josh Gad. I find him incredibly annoying. But that may just be me.

[Isgrimnur]

One downside IMHO, is Josh Gad. I find him incredibly annoying. But that may just be me.

You should just let it go.

[hepcat]

I normally find Gad a bit grating...but not in this. In Avenue 5 his brand of physical comedy and over the top mannerisms work perfectly.



Also, any scene with Suzy Nakamura (Iris) and Zach Woods (Matt) is comedy gold. Those two are incredibly underrated comic actors.

[Rumpy]

One downside IMHO, is Josh Gad. I find him incredibly annoying. But that may just be me.

You should just let it go.

I see what you did there!

[Isgrimnur]

The Princess

Wife and I watched this one today. Decent popcorn flick, nothing too deep on the menu, but good fight choreography. Just don't go in expecting much of a plot. Or even as much of a plot as Disenchantment.