Watching

My TV and film watchlist.

Currently watching

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    Can't Get You Out of My Head

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    Jujutsu Kaisen

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    Kaiju No. 8

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    Fooly Cooly

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    Takane no Hana-san

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    Pluto

Watched

  • HyperNormalisation

    Adam Curtis’ documentary that explores how we have come to exist in a ‘post-truth’ world.

    • Type: Film
    • Watched: 2024-07-03
    • Rating: ★★★★★
    • Origin: 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
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    📺 Sofa

  • All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace

    Adam Curtis’ documentary series that explores technology and its impact in how we perceive and interact in the world.

    • Type: TV
    • Watched: 2024-06-27
    • Rating: ★★★★★
    • Origin: 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
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    📺 Sofa

  • 🇯🇵️ リバー、流れないでよ

    River, Don't Flow, aka River

    More two minute time-loop fun from the people responsible for the excellent Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes.

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

    • Type: Film
    • Watched: 2024-06-16
    • Rating: ★★★★☆
    • Origin: 🇯🇵️ Japan️
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    📺 Sofa

  • Good Omens

    A cameo-packed extension of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett’s original masterpiece novel. It had a lot of Pratchett’s humour, more than the first season from what I remember. But at times it did feel like a spin-off sitcom, possibly a result of the flat and featureless audio and sound design.

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

    • Type: TV
    • Watched: 2024-06-15
    • Rating: ★★★☆☆
    • Origin: 🇺🇲🇬🇧 United Kingdom, United States
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    📺 Sofa

  • The Days

    A graphic dramatisation about the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and resulting near reactor meltdown at privately owned TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. A story about the desire for absolutes while in a context of ambiguity, the facade of public performance and back-channel truths. I hadn’t appreciated the amount of symbolism in Shin Godzilla reflected the events of this disaster, definitely time for a re-watch. As far as I’m aware, neither of these examples speak to the natural disaster simulation test results TEPCO were sitting on.

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

    • Type: TV
    • Watched: 2024-06-14
    • Rating: ★★★★★
    • Origin: 🇯🇵 Japan️
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    📺 Sofa

  • Grand Sumo – 2024 May Basho

    Another wild basho! Swooned as always by Ura, I thought this was his basho toward the end of week one but sadly not. An amazing performance by Midorifuji too, he’s so feisty!

    • Type: TV
    • Watched: 2024-05-26
    • Rating: ★★★★★
    • Origin: 🇯🇵 Japan️
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    📺 Sofa

  • 🇫🇷🇵🇱🇨🇭 Trois couleurs: Bleu / Trzy kolory: Niebieski

    aka Three Colours: Blue

    An astonishing visceral piece of cinema. The play of light and sound was sublime!

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

    • Type: Film
    • Watched: 2024-05-17
    • Rating: ★★★★★
    • Origin: 🇫🇷🇵🇱🇨🇭 France, Poland, Switzerland
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    📺 Sofa

  • Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

    Another fucking Marvel film? Why do I do this to myself‽ …for my family that’s why! I mean it was okay, better than the rest of the Marvage (see what I did there?) being churned out. Awkwafina was the only thing that kept me watching.

    • Type: Film
    • Watched: 2024-04-28
    • Rating: ★★★☆☆
    • Origin: 🇺🇸 United States
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    📺 Sofa

  • The Fabelmans

    My second time watching this after seeing it in at the cinema. Very well acted and some great moments of humour. A refreshing film that doesn’t take itself too seriously.

    • Type: Film
    • Watched: 2024-04-28
    • Rating: ★★★★☆
    • Origin: 🇺🇸 United States
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    📺 Sofa

  • 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 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
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    🎦 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
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    🎦 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 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
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    🎦 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
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    📺 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
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    🎭 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 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
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    📺 Sofa