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Movies and series, oh my!
Aug. 7th, 2023 12:07 pmIt's amazing how much of one's time a puppy can take. Even if she'll be eight months in a couple of week. It seemed I had time to watch, though. So having finally added my comments, here's the last two months of movies and tv series.
MOVIES AND SERIES WATCHED IN JUNE
Jun 1-3 - Extrapolations (2023)
Unanticipated stories of how the upcoming changes to our planet will affect love, faith, work and family on a personal and human scale.
Creator: Scott Z. Burns
Stars: Kit Harington, Sienna Miller, Tahar Rahim, Diane Lane, Edward Norton, Leslie Uggams, Meryl Streep
Sad, sometimes downright tragic, but not as hard-hitting as I would have hoped.
Jun 3 - My Policeman (2022)
The arrival of Patrick into Marion and Tom's home triggers the exploration of seismic events from 40 years previously.
Director: Michael Grandage
Stars: Harry Styles, Emma Corrin, Gina McKee, Linus Roache, Rupert Everett, David Dawson
Interesting, though I found Marion’s actions totally incomprehensible. Such a waste of 40 years.
Jun 6 - The X Files: Fight the Future (1998)
Mulder and Scully must fight the government in a conspiracy and find the truth about an alien colonization of Earth.
Director: Rob Bowman
Stars: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, John Neville, William B. Davis, Martin Landau, Mitch Piletti, Blythe Danner
We were binge watching the X-Files and this film fits between seasons five and six. It’s actually quite good, and explains some of what’s going on with the conspiracy…though what’s actually going on is never really explained.
Jun 7-8 - The Days (2023)
Blamed by some, hailed as heroes by others, those involved with Fukushima Daiichi face a deadly, invisible threat an unprecedented nuclear disaster.
Creator: Jun Masumoto
Stars: Kôji Yakusho, Nobi Nakanishi, Yutaka Takenouchi
I was amazed at how badly they initially handled the emergency. There was a lot I hadn’t known about the situation, and the series as a whole is quite revealing.
Jun 10 - Secret Origins: The Story of DC Comics (2010)
The history of the longstanding American comic book company that launched such legendary superhero characters such as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.
Director: Mac Carter
Stars: Ryan Reynolds (narrator), Paul Levitz, Gerard Jones
Most of this I already knew, but it was interesting, anyway. And, well, Ryan Reynolds, even if it was just his voice.
Jun 10 - Super Heroes: A Never Ending Battle (2013)
A comprehensive history of the superhero comic book fantasy genre and its influence on American culture.
Stars: Liev Schreiber, Danny Fingeroth, Mark Waid, Adam West
A slightly different take, since it covered both DC and Marvel. Except for Spiderman, Marvel is a complete mystery to me, so that part was new. Not as interesting or as well done as Secret Origins.
Jun 14 - Till (2022)
In 1955, after Emmett Till is murdered in a brutal lynching, his mother vows to expose the racism behind the attack while working to have those involved brought to justice.
Director: Chinonye Chukwu
Stars: Danielle Deadwyler, Jalyn Hall, Frankie Faiso, Whoopi Goldberg
Really sad. Such a brutal outcome from whistling at a white woman.
Jun 14 - Living (2022)
In 1950s London, a humorless bureaucrat decides to take time off work to experience life after receiving a grim diagnosis.
Director: Oliver Hermanus
Stars: Bill Nighy, Aimee Lou Wood, Alex Sharp
A slow start, but really good once it gets going. Nighy, as always, is superb.
Jun 17 - Tár (2022)
Set in the international world of Western classical music, the film centers on Lydia Tár, widely considered one of the greatest living composer-conductors and the very first female director of a major German orchestra.
Director: Todd Field
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Noémie Merlant, Nina Hoss
A stange movie about a strange woman. Interesting, in an odd sort of way as you watch the character fall apart.
Jun 18 - Come From Away (2021)
7,000 passengers are stranded after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in a small town in Newfoundland, where they were housed and welcomed. Filmed live on stage at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater in New York City.
Director: Christopher Ashley
Stars: Petrina Bromley, Jenn Colella, De'Lon Grant
I loved this. I’d never thought about all those planes that were diverted after the attack, and how the people managed.
Jun 22 - Arnold (2023)
Follows the life of Arnold Schwarzenegger, from his days of lifting weights to his successes in Hollywood, his time serving as governor of California, and both the joys and volatility of his family life.
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Cameron, Ken Waller, Linda Hamilton, Danny DeVito, Jame Lee Curtis
Whether you like him or not, and I do, the film is truly interesting. He’s done a lot in his life.
Jun 22 - Below the Belt (2023)
This documentary is about women suffering with endometriosis. Endometriosis is a disease in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus.
Director: Shannon Cohn
Stars: Laura Cone, Kyung Jeon-Miranda, Emily Hatch Manwaring
I’d heard of the disease, but never knew how ill-informed the medical establishment was about it. Sort of scary. Makes me glad I no longer have a uterus.
Jun 28 - Ghosted (2023)
Cole falls head over heels for enigmatic Sadie, but then makes the shocking discovery that she's a secret agent. Before they can decide on a second date, Cole and Sadie are swept away on an international adventure to save the world.
Director: Dexter Fletcher
Stars: Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Adrien Brody, Ryan Reynolds
Sort of silly, but entertaining. One of those movies that you can pretty much figure what’s going to happen next.
Jun 30 - The Fabelmans (2022)
Growing up in post-World War II era Arizona, young Sammy Fabelman aspires to become a filmmaker as he reaches adolescence, but soon discovers a shattering family secret and explores how the power of films can help him see the truth.
Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Michelle Williams, Gabriel LaBelle, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Judd Hirsch
An okay movie. Sort of disappointing, though, after everything I’d heard about it.
MOVIES AND SERIES WATCHED IN JULY
Jul 1 - Babel (2006)
Tragedy strikes a married couple on vacation in the Moroccan desert, touching off an interlocking story involving four different families.
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu
Stars: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Gael García Bernal
An intense and compelling movie that I’d never heard of. Well worth watching.
Jul 9 - The X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
Mulder and Scully are called back to duty by the FBI when a former priest claims to be receiving psychic visions pertaining to a kidnapped agent.
Director: Chris Carter
Stars: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Billy Connolly, Mitch Pileggi
Though not released then, the film is supposed to take place between the ninth and tenth seasons. I liked that it wasn’t about the conspiracy, yet it wasn’t as good as the first movie.
Jul 10 - The X-Files: The Complete Series
Two F.B.I. Agents, Fox Mulder the believer and Dana Scully the skeptic, investigate the strange and unexplained, while hidden forces work to impede their efforts.
Creator: Chris Carter
Stars: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Mitch Pileggi, William B. Davis, Robert Patrick, Tom Braidwood, Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, Annabeth Gish
I really liked the series, though it was obvious that things were running down during the ninth season as they tried to tie up all the loose ends. They never did. To the end, the conspiracy never did make a whole lot of sense, but I loved the monster-of-the-week episodes.
Jul 13 - Stephen King’s A Good Marriage (2014)
After 25 years of a good marriage, what will Darcy do once she discovers her husband's sinister secret?
Director: Peter Askin
Stars: Joan Allen, Anthony LaPaglia, Stephen Lang
If I’ve read the short story I don’t remember it, which was probably good so that the ending remained a mystery. I liked the movie, though didn’t love it.
Jul 15 - Marriage (2022)
Follows Ian and Emma, a married couple, who deal with the ups and downs of their 30-year long marriage.
Director: Stefan Golaszewski
Stars: Sean Bean, Nicola Walker, Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Chantelle Alle
This is a really strange series about a really strange marriage. Not at all what I was expecting.
Jul 17-18 - From: Season Two (2022)
Unravel the mystery of a city in middle U.S.A. that imprisons everyone who enters. As the residents struggle to maintain a sense of normalcy and seek a way out, they must also survive the threats of the surrounding forest.
Creator: John Griffin
Stars: Harold Perrineau, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Eion Bailey
This is such a great series. I wasn’t planning on devouring the second season, but I couldn’t help myself. If you enjoy horror, this is the series to see.
Jul 20-26 - Manifest: Season Four (2018)
When a commercial airliner suddenly reappears after being missing for five years, those aboard must reintegrate into society.
Creator: Jeff Rake
Stars: Melissa Roxburgh, Josh Dallas, J.R. Ramirez, Luna Blaise, Matt Long, Ellen Tanaki, Holly Taylor
After the show was cancelled, I figured that was it. But then Netflix picked it up to finish it off. In a way, I wish they hadn’t, because the series takes off in a “god did it” path. Something of a disappointment, but at least the series did have an ending.
Jul 28-29 - Nova: The Planets (2019)
Using the latest science and the most detailed images ever produced, in combination with Academy Award-winning VFX company Lola Post, Professor Brian Cox explores the planets like never before. These stories of beauty and violence, creation and destruction, show our solar system to be not the serene and orderly system we might have thought, but an ongoing drama with characters and plot twists still unfurling around us. The histories of tragic Mars, a vibrant water planet turned barren desert, as well as the tyrannical Jupiter, which caused chaos in the solar system with its huge size, are brought to life with the latest research and effects to tell a story that has really only just begun.
Director: Stephen Cooter, Martin Johnson
Stars: Zachary Quinto (narrator)
A truly superb series, with a lot of new information. I loved it so much that I bought the DVD set.
MOVIES AND SERIES WATCHED IN JUNE
Jun 1-3 - Extrapolations (2023)
Unanticipated stories of how the upcoming changes to our planet will affect love, faith, work and family on a personal and human scale.
Creator: Scott Z. Burns
Stars: Kit Harington, Sienna Miller, Tahar Rahim, Diane Lane, Edward Norton, Leslie Uggams, Meryl Streep
Sad, sometimes downright tragic, but not as hard-hitting as I would have hoped.
Jun 3 - My Policeman (2022)
The arrival of Patrick into Marion and Tom's home triggers the exploration of seismic events from 40 years previously.
Director: Michael Grandage
Stars: Harry Styles, Emma Corrin, Gina McKee, Linus Roache, Rupert Everett, David Dawson
Interesting, though I found Marion’s actions totally incomprehensible. Such a waste of 40 years.
Jun 6 - The X Files: Fight the Future (1998)
Mulder and Scully must fight the government in a conspiracy and find the truth about an alien colonization of Earth.
Director: Rob Bowman
Stars: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, John Neville, William B. Davis, Martin Landau, Mitch Piletti, Blythe Danner
We were binge watching the X-Files and this film fits between seasons five and six. It’s actually quite good, and explains some of what’s going on with the conspiracy…though what’s actually going on is never really explained.
Jun 7-8 - The Days (2023)
Blamed by some, hailed as heroes by others, those involved with Fukushima Daiichi face a deadly, invisible threat an unprecedented nuclear disaster.
Creator: Jun Masumoto
Stars: Kôji Yakusho, Nobi Nakanishi, Yutaka Takenouchi
I was amazed at how badly they initially handled the emergency. There was a lot I hadn’t known about the situation, and the series as a whole is quite revealing.
Jun 10 - Secret Origins: The Story of DC Comics (2010)
The history of the longstanding American comic book company that launched such legendary superhero characters such as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.
Director: Mac Carter
Stars: Ryan Reynolds (narrator), Paul Levitz, Gerard Jones
Most of this I already knew, but it was interesting, anyway. And, well, Ryan Reynolds, even if it was just his voice.
Jun 10 - Super Heroes: A Never Ending Battle (2013)
A comprehensive history of the superhero comic book fantasy genre and its influence on American culture.
Stars: Liev Schreiber, Danny Fingeroth, Mark Waid, Adam West
A slightly different take, since it covered both DC and Marvel. Except for Spiderman, Marvel is a complete mystery to me, so that part was new. Not as interesting or as well done as Secret Origins.
Jun 14 - Till (2022)
In 1955, after Emmett Till is murdered in a brutal lynching, his mother vows to expose the racism behind the attack while working to have those involved brought to justice.
Director: Chinonye Chukwu
Stars: Danielle Deadwyler, Jalyn Hall, Frankie Faiso, Whoopi Goldberg
Really sad. Such a brutal outcome from whistling at a white woman.
Jun 14 - Living (2022)
In 1950s London, a humorless bureaucrat decides to take time off work to experience life after receiving a grim diagnosis.
Director: Oliver Hermanus
Stars: Bill Nighy, Aimee Lou Wood, Alex Sharp
A slow start, but really good once it gets going. Nighy, as always, is superb.
Jun 17 - Tár (2022)
Set in the international world of Western classical music, the film centers on Lydia Tár, widely considered one of the greatest living composer-conductors and the very first female director of a major German orchestra.
Director: Todd Field
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Noémie Merlant, Nina Hoss
A stange movie about a strange woman. Interesting, in an odd sort of way as you watch the character fall apart.
Jun 18 - Come From Away (2021)
7,000 passengers are stranded after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in a small town in Newfoundland, where they were housed and welcomed. Filmed live on stage at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater in New York City.
Director: Christopher Ashley
Stars: Petrina Bromley, Jenn Colella, De'Lon Grant
I loved this. I’d never thought about all those planes that were diverted after the attack, and how the people managed.
Jun 22 - Arnold (2023)
Follows the life of Arnold Schwarzenegger, from his days of lifting weights to his successes in Hollywood, his time serving as governor of California, and both the joys and volatility of his family life.
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Cameron, Ken Waller, Linda Hamilton, Danny DeVito, Jame Lee Curtis
Whether you like him or not, and I do, the film is truly interesting. He’s done a lot in his life.
Jun 22 - Below the Belt (2023)
This documentary is about women suffering with endometriosis. Endometriosis is a disease in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus.
Director: Shannon Cohn
Stars: Laura Cone, Kyung Jeon-Miranda, Emily Hatch Manwaring
I’d heard of the disease, but never knew how ill-informed the medical establishment was about it. Sort of scary. Makes me glad I no longer have a uterus.
Jun 28 - Ghosted (2023)
Cole falls head over heels for enigmatic Sadie, but then makes the shocking discovery that she's a secret agent. Before they can decide on a second date, Cole and Sadie are swept away on an international adventure to save the world.
Director: Dexter Fletcher
Stars: Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Adrien Brody, Ryan Reynolds
Sort of silly, but entertaining. One of those movies that you can pretty much figure what’s going to happen next.
Jun 30 - The Fabelmans (2022)
Growing up in post-World War II era Arizona, young Sammy Fabelman aspires to become a filmmaker as he reaches adolescence, but soon discovers a shattering family secret and explores how the power of films can help him see the truth.
Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Michelle Williams, Gabriel LaBelle, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Judd Hirsch
An okay movie. Sort of disappointing, though, after everything I’d heard about it.
MOVIES AND SERIES WATCHED IN JULY
Jul 1 - Babel (2006)
Tragedy strikes a married couple on vacation in the Moroccan desert, touching off an interlocking story involving four different families.
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu
Stars: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Gael García Bernal
An intense and compelling movie that I’d never heard of. Well worth watching.
Jul 9 - The X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
Mulder and Scully are called back to duty by the FBI when a former priest claims to be receiving psychic visions pertaining to a kidnapped agent.
Director: Chris Carter
Stars: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Billy Connolly, Mitch Pileggi
Though not released then, the film is supposed to take place between the ninth and tenth seasons. I liked that it wasn’t about the conspiracy, yet it wasn’t as good as the first movie.
Jul 10 - The X-Files: The Complete Series
Two F.B.I. Agents, Fox Mulder the believer and Dana Scully the skeptic, investigate the strange and unexplained, while hidden forces work to impede their efforts.
Creator: Chris Carter
Stars: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Mitch Pileggi, William B. Davis, Robert Patrick, Tom Braidwood, Bruce Harwood, Dean Haglund, Annabeth Gish
I really liked the series, though it was obvious that things were running down during the ninth season as they tried to tie up all the loose ends. They never did. To the end, the conspiracy never did make a whole lot of sense, but I loved the monster-of-the-week episodes.
Jul 13 - Stephen King’s A Good Marriage (2014)
After 25 years of a good marriage, what will Darcy do once she discovers her husband's sinister secret?
Director: Peter Askin
Stars: Joan Allen, Anthony LaPaglia, Stephen Lang
If I’ve read the short story I don’t remember it, which was probably good so that the ending remained a mystery. I liked the movie, though didn’t love it.
Jul 15 - Marriage (2022)
Follows Ian and Emma, a married couple, who deal with the ups and downs of their 30-year long marriage.
Director: Stefan Golaszewski
Stars: Sean Bean, Nicola Walker, Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Chantelle Alle
This is a really strange series about a really strange marriage. Not at all what I was expecting.
Jul 17-18 - From: Season Two (2022)
Unravel the mystery of a city in middle U.S.A. that imprisons everyone who enters. As the residents struggle to maintain a sense of normalcy and seek a way out, they must also survive the threats of the surrounding forest.
Creator: John Griffin
Stars: Harold Perrineau, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Eion Bailey
This is such a great series. I wasn’t planning on devouring the second season, but I couldn’t help myself. If you enjoy horror, this is the series to see.
Jul 20-26 - Manifest: Season Four (2018)
When a commercial airliner suddenly reappears after being missing for five years, those aboard must reintegrate into society.
Creator: Jeff Rake
Stars: Melissa Roxburgh, Josh Dallas, J.R. Ramirez, Luna Blaise, Matt Long, Ellen Tanaki, Holly Taylor
After the show was cancelled, I figured that was it. But then Netflix picked it up to finish it off. In a way, I wish they hadn’t, because the series takes off in a “god did it” path. Something of a disappointment, but at least the series did have an ending.
Jul 28-29 - Nova: The Planets (2019)
Using the latest science and the most detailed images ever produced, in combination with Academy Award-winning VFX company Lola Post, Professor Brian Cox explores the planets like never before. These stories of beauty and violence, creation and destruction, show our solar system to be not the serene and orderly system we might have thought, but an ongoing drama with characters and plot twists still unfurling around us. The histories of tragic Mars, a vibrant water planet turned barren desert, as well as the tyrannical Jupiter, which caused chaos in the solar system with its huge size, are brought to life with the latest research and effects to tell a story that has really only just begun.
Director: Stephen Cooter, Martin Johnson
Stars: Zachary Quinto (narrator)
A truly superb series, with a lot of new information. I loved it so much that I bought the DVD set.
