Category: Media Diary

Here’s some stuff I’ve experienced lately (and not necessarily only new releases):

Star Trek: Picard (TV): So incredible to have the gang back together

Triangle of Sadness (Movie): Unexpected and enjoyable

We Were Three (Podcast): A heartbreaking COVID-era tale

Hello Tomorrow! (TV): Love the concept and the “Diet Glengarry” vibes

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Movie): It’s getting weak reviews, but I enjoyed it, especially compared to some of the recent Marvel slogs

Cunk on Earth (TV): I could watch this every day

Babylon (Movie): Pretty much a mess, but something you kinda have to see once

Shrinking (TV): Took a few episodes to warm up, but I’m generally into it

She Said (Movie): I’m always a sucker for “reporters in action” films

Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence (TV): What a wild story

The VelociPastor (Movie): Cannot recommend this enough

Gunther’s Millions (TV): Our dog is a huge fan

Pamela: A Love Story (Movie): Was great to get her side of the story

M3GAN (Movie): Pretty much exactly what I wanted it to be

Want free weekly recommendations? Hop on, friend.

Here’s some stuff I’ve experienced lately (and not necessarily only new releases):

Poker Face (TV): Love her, love the style, love the format

The Whale (Movie): I thought it was fantastic, and his performance was truly remarkable

Feral Ministries (Podcast): Love her TikToks, love this podcast even more

The Last of Us (TV): Super gripping right out of the gate

Armageddon Time (Movie): A powerful and truly heartbreaking look at (in)justice in America

Slate Academy: Fascism (Podcast): Loved learning (and shuddering) about fascism’s roots and modern parallels

Tár (Movie): Loved being dropped into this world, and thought the ending was painfully real

Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches (TV): We’ll see where it heads, but as an Anne Rice fanboy in my youth, I’m in

The Fabelmans (Movie): The cameo at the end is worth the entire price of admission

Paul T. Goldman (TV): Truly a journey

The Menu (Movie): A delight, and I’d honestly join a Hong Chau fan club

Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street (TV): Fascinating to hear all the crazy details

White Noise (Movie): Still not sure what I thought about it, but I’ll watch anything Noah Baumbach makes

Secrets of the Chippendales Murders (TV): Great companion to the recent series

Fire of Love (Movie): If you’re gonna go out together, I guess go hard

Don’t Pick Up The Phone (TV): I’d heard about one of these cases before, but didn’t know how widespread it was

Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical (Movie): Super fun, and Emma Thompson absolutely crushed it as Trunchbull

The Pale Blue Eye (Movie): Not life-changing, but was into the vibe and performances

Pumping Iron (Movie): Hadn’t seen this in forever, and had to tap back in now that I’m a total jock that’s been going to the gym for three weeks

Call Me Miss Cleo (Movie): OK, now I’m up to speed on all things Cleo

Perhaps most importantly, my wife, her cousins and I continued our momentum from last month and spent some serious time in the DJP extended universe (there may or may not also be a secret DJP review podcast now in existence, let me know if you want access).

These movies are all of course terrible and highly-problematic in their own special ways, but I’ll add my thoughts on each in emoji form:

Best Friends Genetically Modified (Movie): 🩺🙃

Love Waits (Movie): 🙅‍♀️🍆

Mission Improbable (Movie): 😴🔫

The Unexpected Bar Mitzvah (Movie): 🕎😬

Old Rugged Cross (Movie): 😴🔫

Right To Believe (Movie): 🏳️‍🌈😬

Gramps Goes To College (Movie): 👴🤦‍♂️

In Gramps’ Shoes (Movie): 👴👟🔫

Hearts Are Trump (Movie): 🤮

I’ll definitely slide in some more year-end viewing in over the holidays, but here’s some stuff I’ve experienced lately (and not necessarily only new releases):

Avatar: The Way of Water (Movie): Generally compelling, but easily the most visually mindblowing thing I’ve ever seen in a theater

Welcome To Chippendales (TV): Fun all around

Glass Onion (Movie): Loved it, I hope he makes these forever

Wednesday (TV): She’s fantastic, and the whole vibe is solid

Amsterdam (Movie): Messy but interesting

Willow (TV): Not quite as good as I’d hoped, but still entertaining

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Movie): They did a great job with a terrible situation

God Forbid (Movie): Obviously right up my alley

Branson (TV): I somehow wasn’t aware of the crazy balloon ocean crossings

Orgasm Inc: The Story of OneTaste (Movie): People never cease to surprise me

Mythic Quest (TV): Glad it’s back, though sadly without ol’ F. Murray

Aftersun (Movie): Made me sad (I guess in a “good” way?)

The Watcher (TV): Started strong, ended poorly

Bullet Train (Movie): Goofy and generally enjoyable (my son’s recommendation)

Crime Scene: The Texas Killing Fields (TV): Hadn’t been familiar with this tragic string of murders

Best Friends Eternally (Movie): My wife and cousins are starting to go deep on this guy’s “impressive” body of work…

Best Friends Recycled (Movie): …and a dedicated podcast may result from it, be warned!