Watching

My TV and film watchlist.

Currently watching

• 

  Pluto

Watched

• American Fiction

  “Biting satire with a twist. Heartfelt performances that had me guessing where the caricatures began and ended. Had me squirming and laughing throughout.” says middle-aged middle-class white guy. Oh wait, hand on a minute…

  Trigger warning
  Themes may be triggering for some people; dementia, loss, death, racism.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-24
  • Rating: ★★★★☆
  • Origin: 🇺🇸 United States

  

  📺 Sofa

• Avengers: Age of Ultron

  I’m so sick of the Marvel cash cow and all of the actors associated with it. Event the Spider-Verse seems to be disappearing up its own stylistic wormhole. Don’t let me down Deadpool 3!

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-24
  • Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
  • Origin: 🇺🇸 United States

  

  📺 Sofa

• Grand Sumo – 2024 March Basho

  Watching mostly on catch-up but occasionally live, this was the most entertaining and nail-biting basho yet. So much upset and surprise!

  • Type: TV
  • Watched: 2024-03-24
  • Rating: ★★★★★
  • Origin: 🇯🇵 Japan️

  

  📺 Sofa

• Inception

  Mind-bending epic from Christopher Nolan. A practical effect goes a long way. I might have to re-watch the South Park parody now.

  Trigger warning
  Themes may be triggering for some people; suicide.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-16
  • Rating: ★★★★☆
  • Origin: 🇺🇸 United States

  

  📺 Sofa

• 🏆 Top Pick

  🇯🇵 怪物, Kaibutsu

  aka Monster

  Hirokazu Kore-eda’s modern-day Rashomon masterpiece. Utterly speechless.

  Trigger warning
  Themes may be triggering for some people; child abuse.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-15
  • Rating: ★★★★★
  • Origin: 🇯🇵 Japan️

  

  🎦 Cinema

• Dune: Part Two

  Harkonnen would live in a house like this? My Fitbit says I slept through the entire 3 hours, I was most definitely awake. Desperately seeking closure on the trilogy… please tell me its only a trilogy!

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-10
  • Rating: ★★★★☆
  • Origin: 🇺🇸 United States

  

  🎦 Cinema

• 🇯🇵 海がきこえる, Umi ga Kikoeru

  I Can Hear the Sea, aka Ocean Waves

  A lesser known Studio Ghibli coming-of-age romantic drama, recalling the long-forgotten frustrations of youth. Worth a watch for the evocative animation of Japan’s everyday beauty and wonder.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-08
  • Rating: ★★★☆☆
  • Origin: 🇯🇵 Japan️

  

  📺 Sofa

• Europa Report

  Well executed slow-burn sci-fi disaster movie in the found-footage style. A firm favourite I keep coming back to.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-07
  • Rating: ★★★★☆
  • Origin: 🇺🇸 United States

  

  📺 Sofa

• 🇯🇵 カタクリ家の幸福, Katakuri-ke no Kōfuku

  aka The Happiness of the Katakuris

  Shallow Grave meets Sound of Music. As ludicrous as it sounds, a wonderful absurdist tale of family, death and deceit. From the twisted mind of Takashi Miike, expect over-the-top song and dance numbers, claymation and surreal cut scenes.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-06
  • Rating: ★★★★☆
  • Origin: 🇯🇵 Japan️

  

  📺 Sofa

• The Fifth Element

  Luc Besson’s absolutely nails our not-too-distant future with extraordinary attention to detail. This viewing I couldn’t help but connect Chris Rock’s Ruby Rhod character with the vacuous and shallow personas of today’s Youtubers. I still find the hip-hop-era scene a bit cringy though.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-03-01
  • Rating: ★★★★★
  • Origin: 🇺🇸️ United States

  

  📺 Sofa

• Perfect Days

  Wim Wenders’s mediative film about personal perspective and the pursuit of happiness. Exploring themes of class, acceptance, routine and change. Beautifully shot with elements of wabi-sabi weaved into its visual storytelling, especially the komorebi themed dream sequences. Perfect indeed.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-02-24
  • Rating: ★★★★★
  • Origin: 🇩🇪🇯🇵 Germany, Japan

  

  🎦 Cinema

• The Hunger Games

  Muttering “It’s no Battle Royale!” to myself throughout. Some interesting blending of new/old aesthetics though. Meh, wouldn’t watch again.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-02-16
  • Rating: ★★☆☆☆
  • Origin: 🇺🇸️ United States

  

  📺 Sofa

• My Neighbour Totoro

  Exceeded all of my expectations. An absolute treat for any Totoro or Ghibli fan. Worth every penny if you can afford the price tag. Pure magic.

  • Type: Theatre
  • Watched: 2024-02-10
  • Rating: ★★★★★
  • Origin: 🇬🇧️ United Kingdom

  

  🎭 Theatre

• Avatar

  Ethically and loyalty-challenged veteran bumbles between a scientist-military-bigCorp-indigenous love-hate tree-felling trapezium of grand proportions. The CGI still hold up strong in 2024.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-02-09
  • Rating: ★★★☆☆
  • Origin: 🇺🇸️ United States

  

  📺 Sofa

• 🇯🇵️ チェンソーマン, Chensō Man

  aka Chainsaw Man

  The first four arcs of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s splatterfest manga Chainsaw Man leaps off the page an onto the screen. MAPPA studio did a fantastic job on the animation. Season two will be released as a film, I can’t wait!

  Trigger warning
  Themes may be triggering for some people; gore, violence, death.

  • Type: TV
  • Watched: 2024-02-09
  • Rating: ★★★★★
  • Origin: 🇯🇵️ Japan️

  

  📺 Sofa

• 🇯🇵️ 竜とそばかすの姫, Ryū to Sobakasu no Hime

  The Dragon and the Freckled Princess, aka Belle

  A visually stunning and at times hard-hitting retelling of Beauty and the Beast in the digital age. Mamoru Hosoda masterfully navigates themes such as childhood, identity, social networks, AI, accompanied by a moving soundtrack.

  Trigger warning
  Themes may be triggering for some people; loss, death, child abuse.

  • Type: Film
  • Watched: 2024-01-28
  • Rating: ★★★★☆
  • Origin: 🇯🇵️ Japan️

  

  📺 Sofa