NOW WATCHING

I've been watching a bunch of stuff to catch up with the mainstream and I've been pleasantly surprised by most of it.

Finished House, I'm glad I did, my favorite seasons were the ones where he's in the psych hospital and in prison. The new environment was a nice change of pace. I wasn't entirely happy how he kept roping in the same three idiots to work for him, but then again, they were the only ones willing to put up with his shit. All and all a good show.

Similar to House I watched the Mentalist, same shit different smell, much more charismatic lead in Simon Baker as Patrick Jane. I feel they stretched out a few things a little too much. It's odd, really. After they warp up the main storyline, he's "recruited" by the FBI and continues to solve cases for like 2 more seasons.... why? They could've wrapped up the main story line a season or two earlier and him do exactly that anyway for 3 more seasons. Also a good show.

Currently watching Monk, yup I like the mystery solving shows. House is a savant asshole, Patrick Jane is a charismatic, con-man asshole. Monk has severe OCD, among a plethora of other phobias and ticks. Halfway through the show.

Also watched season 2 of That 90s Show. The highlight continues to be Red and Kittie, but looks like the kids are starting to settle into their characters. I felt it was an improvement from season 1 and I'm curious to see where they take it if they don't cancel it. Many "classic" shows like Cheers, Seinfeld, Friends, had subpar first seasons, some took 3 to really get going, so as long as they keep growing should end up an ok show.

As far as movies, watched The Beast wars Transformer's movie thinking it was going to be stupid fun and ended up being good fun, got teary eyed with the fist bump at the end between Mirage and the human. Interesting how the best Transformers movies are the spin-offs since the mainline series took a dive since the third one.

Also watched Blue Beetle. I initially wasn't going to watch it, but the lead is played by the same kid that plays "Miguel" in Cobra Kai so I gave it a shot. Ended up loving it, even made my mom watch it and she liked it too. She's not much for Fantasy, Sci-Fi and "Superhero" movies, but she enjoyed this one. I'm extra picky about how we're represented in media as they always fuck something up. Like whenever white people go to "Mexico" and come back with sombrero with a straight rim with little colored balls hanging from them. NOWHERE in Mexico are those hats worn. It's the same thing that happened with Robert Rodriguez's Once Upon a Time in Mexico and the last 007 movie where for whatever reason they insist we have Day of the Dead parades. Before the 007 seven movie we didn't. Turns out the people that participated in the movie liked it so much now we do, but we didn't before. Same reason I refuse to watch Coco or Encanto. I'm tired of Latin American culture being stuck in the late 19th early 20th century or sepia tones or Narco culture.
All that to say Blue Beetle got it right, the Mexican, the Mexican-American, the swearing, historical references (the grandma letting her braids down to look like a Soldadera from the revolution LOL), just on point.

Also watched Atlas with JLo. VERY pleasantly surprised, damn good movie. I find her best work is when she isn't doing shit from her wheelhouse like romcoms or she plays a supid singer or dancer. To me, her most memorable roles were The Cell and Angel Eyes, this one is another one. A movie about the dangers of AI. She plays a very smart, but very damaged, analyst. Good set-ups and payoffs, nice call backs, it looks great. Highly recommend it.
 
Onhell said:
Finished House, I'm glad I did, my favorite seasons were the ones where he's in the psych hospital and in prison.
Click to expand...

I really tried to rewatch  House after watching The Good Doctor - same showrunner - and while it has the same kind of overall general beats and story structure, I felt the latter did everything so much better. The early seasons of House were great when they aired, but now?

Convince to watch the later seasons, I haven't seen them.
 
Maturin said:
Convince to watch the later seasons, I haven't seen them.
Click to expand...
I also recently rewatched all of House, and it really does hold up well as the rational absolutist power fantasy cartoon that it’s written to be. They were pretty fearless when it came to mixing up the status quo, and the “whatdunnit” mystery structure with elements of body horror and very dry comedy is still a refreshingly different blend of flavors, IMO.

The later seasons repeatedly shake up the main cast, sometimes going into some major venue detours too, and House’s relationship with his leg pain keeps evolving over time in interesting ways. They also take some big swings with House’s two major interpersonal relationships in the final seasons. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
 
715+UFIAfHL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg

I’ve probably watched this show more times than any other, but I’m watching it again, this time on Blu-Ray (got a good discount on Prime Day), and it still holds up. Great writing, great acting throughout.

Interesting to watch it on Blu-Ray, as the original DVDs are 4:3 (at least for the first 5 seasons or so) and have a bunch of extra film grain noise to make the show look grittier, while the Blu-Ray presentation is 16:9 and the image is pristine. Honestly, I think I prefer the clean 16:9.
 
Earlier I'd occassionally watch movies in a while but since last year I have somewhat developed an interest in it and even in a few web series. Below are my watched movies/series from January till now (July):

Movies:

Batman Begins - My favourite from The Dark Knight trilogy. Possibly the best superhero origins film. Great casting, great acting. Really liked the more realistic theme and specially the atmosphere.

The Dark Knight - The second part generally gathers all the praises and I agree, for all the right reasons. Again, great job by the entire cast. Joker (played by Heath Ledger) steals the show in this one.

Dark Knight Rises - This one is more in the lines of comic book-storytelling, compared to the previous two films but still a top notch movie. I noticed that Christopher Nolan in his Batman films, has kept the villians at the centre

The Batman - I found this one, a bit of a slow burner as compared to The Dark Knight. Atmosphere is just perfect, similar to Batman Begins and Batman Returns. Its actually a bit different (but previously unexplored) take on the main character's backstory. Good performances by the cast.

The Matrix - I remember watching some random action scenes from the Matrix trilogy on TV from childhood. First time watched it completely. Interesting how the subject matter of AI and its possible (still a bit far fetched) implications on humanity was explored so long ago. I liked it.

Mission Impossible I - Just decided to watch because of Tom Cruise. Won't call it brilliant or anything but still good enough. Cruise shines throughout. Notable scenes being the the chip stealing scene and the climax train roof fight, if you are into action films.

8MM - Thriller/Mystery film. Netflix was continuously recommending it so I watched. Nicolas Cage as the protagonist and also Joaquin Phoenix in a small role. Starts off pretty well, maintaining a suspenseful atmosphere but storytelling pretty much looses its charm as it moves further. Just an okay movie for me.

Inside Man - I've had heard some praises before and getting to listen a popular Bollywood song during the intro was a nice surprise. Even though having a strong cast of actors, the movie overall doesn't do much for me. Decent at best.

Shawshank Redemption - I really wanted to see the film and was definitely pleased to watch. Great acting, great storytelling and with a really good message. I used to think Hollywood is all about superheroes and blockbusters but films like these is what I long for. One of my favourites for sure!

The Green Mile - A very unique story. Takes place in the backdrop of the great depression of 1930s, shows how human emotions work and even goodness has ultimately a price to pay. Again, a very good cast of actors.

Cast Away - Really liked it. A good point I found is that, the movie is so well paced considering the middle and the main act of the film could have been easily stretched for long but they kept the quality intact. Good story and theme as well.

Forrest Gump - By now you would have guessed that Tom Hanks is one of my favourites! This film again displays his chops and his ability to handle different characters. Really liked the story, the characters and the story adapting to real life historical events. Definitely a must watch!

Seven - I'm aware of David Flincher's unique storytelling and having watched Fight Club before, really wanted to see this. Builts great atmosphere for a mystery film, few really intact details throughout the film and Brad Pitt-Morgan Freeman's duo is just awesome.

Panic Room - Another film by David Flincher. A slow-burner type mystery film but honestly, not that great or anything, in my opinion. Just a decent movie.

Series:

Breaking Bad - First series I ever watched. Just awesome! Based on the effects of 2008 economic shutdown. Casting is very good, great depth in charactes and storytelling, as far as I'm concerned, is really well-paced.

Dark - German series but also dubbed in English. Time-travel concept is explored. Versions of main characters are seen through different timelines and the casting pretty much nailed it. Interesting but a bit slow paced series with many small details to be noticed throughout.
 
Siddharth said:
Batman Begins - My favourite from The Dark Knight trilogy. Possibly the best superhero origins film. Great casting, great acting. Really liked the more realistic theme and specially the atmosphere.
Click to expand...
I agree wholeheartedly with this, but it appears to be a very minority opinion for some reason. I thought it was pitch perfect, especially in its pacing, in a way that The Dark Knight just wasn’t.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top