Watched and Read - January 4, 2026

 

Happy New Year! 

Here’s what I watched and read last week…

 

 

MOVIES

The Lost Bus (2025), directed by Paul Greengrass, is an intense survival narrative. Matthew McConaughey is excellent, and the film’s special effects are awesome. I’m not sure whether the film is eligible for Academy Awards, since I don’t think it had a theatrical release, but it is definitely worthy of some nominations. Greengrass previously directed United 93, a film I don’t think I could ever watch again, but he clearly knows how to create tension and suspense.

The Mastermind (2025), directed by Kelly Reichardt, is a slow-paced story about an art thief played by Josh O’Connor. The film has a touch of Robert Bresson’s influence and reminded me of Pickpocket and L’Argent. A good film overall.

Once Upon a Time in China (1991) features martial arts sequences that are much stronger than the story. If nothing else, it’s worth watching to see Jet Li, who is amazing.

City on Fire (1987), directed by Ringo Lam, is one of the better Hong Kong action films I’ve seen recently. This is the film that influenced Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs. Definitely worth checking out.

The Big Sleep (1946), directed by Howard Hawks, is one of the most complex stories in the film noir canon. If film noir is defined by its labyrinthine plotting, this may be the ultimate example. I won’t even try to summarize the plot, but I agree with Roger Ebert’s view that the film isn’t about solving the mystery so much as experiencing the process.

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TV

Stranger Things. The fourth season was one of my favorites, but I also enjoyed the fifth and final season. I particularly liked the last episode and thought the Duffer Brothers did a nice job wrapping up the story. There are always going to be complaints about series finales—the only one I can think of that avoided this was Breaking Bad.

One of the things that impressed me most was how well the Duffer Brothers mapped out the characters. Stephen King is one of their major influences, and it’s worth noting that his epic novels—’Salem’s Lot, The Stand, Needful Things, and Under the Dome—all feature ensemble casts. King is great at weaving a complex tapestry of characters without confusing the reader, and I felt the same way about Stranger Things. It will be fun to watch the entire series straight through.

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BOOKS

James Patterson’s Return of the Spider is one of the top books in the Alex Cross series. I think the novel works best for longtime fans of the series rather than for readers who have never read a Cross book. That said, newcomers shouldn’t avoid it altogether. Having read all of the Cross novels, I found this one especially effective as a backstory.

Understanding Lacan’s Objet A by Juan Pablo Lucchelli is an excellent book on how Lacan developed the concept of objet petit a—the object-cause of desire. For Lacan, the subject is always divided between consciousness and the unconscious. Once one becomes part of the symbolic order, one becomes a subject of desire, which means the subject must tarry with lack for the rest of their life. This is what Lacan terms the barred or split subject. However, Lacan also argues that there is a remainder—what he calls objet a, the lost, impossible object. If you want to read about objet a in more detail, check out my blog post. Another great example is Slavoj Žižek’s analysis of Coca-Cola in The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology.

 

Top Books of 2024

There were a lot of great reads this year, so many that I thought I list the books I really enjoyed. No particular ranking. A lot of them were horror books.

Not a novel, but this short story is really good. I've read almost everything by Hill and cannot wait for his next novel. Definitely give this one a read.

 

 

Chizmar's Chasing The Boogeyman was one of my favorite reads last year. His new book is very good. He writes great characters. Don't know why, but when I read his books, I think of the films of Richard Linklatter.

This was an incomplete book by Crichton which Patterson finished. A fast paced thriller. I also learned a lot about volcanoes, particularly lava tubes!

I really enjoyed Tremblay's new book. It was not what I expected. I'm not sure if I would even call it horror in the traditional sense, but I like the tone and feel of it. The Disappearance at Devil's Rock and Head Full of Ghost are also worth checking out.

I've read all of King's books, and I love his short stories. There are some great ones in this collection.

 

I read Fever House and The Devil By Name back to back. Devil By Name has a different feel from Fever House's noir vibe, but it's really good. Both are page tuners. Definitely worth checking out.

 

I think this is one of those books you either like it or you don't. I thought it was really cool and a lot of fun. I guess you could put this one in the fantasy territory. I think Koontz called it a spooky screwball comedy.

I've been reading of lot of Koontz lately and I love they way he creates his villains. And this book has some big baddies.

Very intense and dark read. The story reminded me of John Carpenter's The Fog. I'm looking forward to reading more by Malfi.

A great coming of age story. Carson nailed the 1990s. I felt like I was in a time machine. There were some very scary moments. And then there were times where I was laughing out loud. Probably one of the best books I read this year. Also check out The Chills by Carson.

 

Another one of my favorite reads of 2024. Very scary, and very engaging. A fast read. I enjoyed the themes explored in the book, particularly the loss of innocence. The format took  some time to get used to. But it's really effective in telling the story.
 

 

If you love horror and sci-fi movies, this is a must read. Nashawaty explores movies of the summer of 1982: Tron, The Thing, E.T., Star Trek: Wrath of Khan, Road Warrior, Blade Runner, Poltergeist and Conan The Barbarian. I love the way he structures the book. It reminded me of Peter Biskind's From Easy Rider to Raging Bull.

 

I got to see Alex Van Halen speak at LA Talks this past fall. Still can't believe Eddie Van Halen is no longer with us. Great read about Van Halen up to the 1984 record. Also check out Eruption - a book of interviews with Eddie Van Halen.

 

Ian Nathan has written a bunch of books for this series. A number of them I have read, such as Guillermo del Toro and Wes Anderson. His newest book on Spielberg is very good. There are some movies he only devotes a few pages too. Some of the stuff I already knew about Spielberg, but I really enjoyed the pictures and layout of the book. And great price!