Here's what I watched and read last week:
MOVIES
A Better Tomorrow 2 (1987) is another high-octane action film from John Woo. It’s not as good as the first movie, but I still enjoyed it. I especially loved Woo’s depiction of Americans in the New York sequence—so over the top! I couldn’t stop laughing.
The Blue Gardenia (1953) is part of Criterion’s “blackout” noir theme. I read online that it’s one of Fritz Lang’s “newspaper noirs,” and I really enjoyed it. There’s a good twist at the end, and Anne Baxter gives a great performance.
Guilty Bystander (1950) was the last film I watched from Criterion’s “blackout” noir theme. I didn’t really connect with it, but I thought the subway sequence was very well done.
Badlands (1973) is a haunting and poetic film by Terrence Malick. The juxtaposition of Kit’s (Martin Sheen) violent killing spree with the sprawling Midwest landscape is deeply unsettling. Malick’s first film is one of his best.
Nouvelle Vague (2025) is an excellent and fun new film by Richard Linklater that wonderfully and beautifully recreates Jean-Luc Godard’s making of Breathless (1960). The French New Wave is one of the most significant movements in the history of cinema, and I thought Linklater did a wonderful job capturing the spirit and spontaneity of these filmmakers.
TV
We finished Death by Lightning. This was such an awesome series with great performances. I enjoyed learning about Garfield and what led to his assassination.
Welcome to Derry, episode 3. The series keeps getting better with each episode. The writers are doing a great job working from King’s book while creating new and very interesting stories. It also has a great ensemble cast. I particularly enjoyed Rose and Francis’s relationship.
I love Vince Gilligan’s new series Pluribus. The tone and style are very similar to Breaking Bad, but it’s science fiction. It definitely gave me an Invasion of the Body Snatchers vibe, but with humor. Rhea Seehorn gives an outstanding performance.
BOOKS
I am currently rereading Hilary Neroni’s book The Subject of Torture. It’s great revisiting it, and it offers some excellent insights into the fantasy of torture in media. I’ll write and post a review once I’m finished.
I halfway through Joe Hill’s book King Sorrow and loving it. This might be his best book yet.
ME NEWS
My new book, Last Stand, is now available for purchase. It is the third and final book in the Zworsky’s Children series.
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