WeView

⭐7/10 This is a TV series that I kinda like while acknowledging that it has serious flaws. I said the same for season 1, and I think the second season has the issue even worse; the highs might be higher, but the flaws even more glaring. It's a terrific mystery box of a show, but the writing is so incredibly weak that it kinda ruins the whole thing. The budget is there, the costumes are great, the setting looks terrific, and the story is genuinely engrossing. But man, when I am rolling my eyes at lines by Tim Robbins or Rebecca Ferguson or Iain Glen or Harriet Walter, then you know you have a problem.  This show has all these terrible writing quirks that I hate. There are multiple speeches about class solidarity in the start, and they are lame every time. Young rebel: "The leaders don't care about us!" Audience: "But what about the children? You are risking our children!" Wiser, older rebel: "Ha ha ha. This is so classic. This is what the lea...

⭐ 10/10 As a kid I was obsessed with DDR, and I find rhythm games to be the most satisfying style of video games. This is the peak version of that, swinging a light saber to slice blocks while crazy songs are playing. I am reviewing this game, but I am by no means done. My PC has felt like a designated Rocket League machine for 10 years, and now my VR headset is a designated Beat Saber machine. I beat the campaign, which was quite challenging, and now going through songs and trying to beat the next difficulty level for each has got me hooked. It makes you feel like a god, your brain completely turns off and you enter this flow state where your body is moving and the blocks are being sliced and you couldn't verbalize how your brain is possibly reacting to these things flying at you. I am getting pretty good, and the only downside is that even when you cast the headset its hard for others (my wife) to watch and be impressed by my powers. I'm sure I look like a dork playing it, b...

⭐ 10/10 This is the game that made me believe in VR, and its 9 years old! From the moment I stepped in I was completely immersed.  The mechanic of time stopping if you don't move is so brilliant and works perfectly for VR, especially a shooter.  The first time I caught something flying at me and threw it back I felt the thrill of a young video gamer experiencing 3D Zelda for the first time. A revolutionary experience, one that makes me feel like the potential for VR is incredibly high, even though this game is still pretty old. There are many unforgettable moments in this unfortunately short play through. I almost fell over multiple times, hiding behind barriers and leaning out, or reaching to grab a gun.  The difficulty here is perfect too, completing a segment on your first try is satisfying, but many require a couple attempts, and when you strategize correctly you feel smart. All other games I play in VR will be measured against this one.

⭐8.5/10 I watched this and Paddington in the theatre back to back. These are both kids' comedies, but it's very funny to examine how incredibly different they are. Paddington has a super British sensibility with charming writing and cute characters. In Dog Man, everyone is hideous, the jokes come every two seconds, and if it's not a fart joke, then it's probably a burp joke. The ultimate American production.  And I loved it! It was genuinely hilarious. I kid about the fart jokes - I actually think there are some very clever jokes here. The animation and slapstick humor is always great, and there are plenty of dog gags which I'm always receptive to. This movie also has a bit of a cute message about family, and while I didn't shed a tear, I do think it was a nice counterpart to the frantic humour.  This felt a lot like some modern movies I like such as The Mitchells, TMNT, or even Puss in Boots. It's maybe a bit more childish than those, and I prob...

⭐7.5/10 I really love this series. These are just easy watches and the humor is exactly what I like in kids' movies. They are distinctly British, like something Tolkien would write if he were alive today. I love the physical comedy, I love the continued gags with marmalade. These are good and I hope they keep making them. This one also features really funny performances by Olivia Colman and Antonio Banderas who were made for these exact roles. I love how they pull a pretty big name every movie that is not usually a name for a kids movie but they make it work. Last movie was Brendan Gleason who I distinctly remember being great.  Anyways, this one didn't get me quite like the last ones. It was nice, but I was nodding off at the theatre here and there. Good like the others, lots of funny jokes, but I'll probably forget this one as fast as the others.

⭐7.5/10 No new insights really. I agree the stuff with Haley has been lame and they don't really seem to know what to do with that character. But the goods are still here, just a little less so. I do enjoy the episodes where they point out that the Pritchets really are a douchey family, and ya, I think this show would not lose much by losing them. I think Jay kinda made things go earlier, but that's not really the case anymore.  Anyways, it's still nice viewing, but I'm ready for a new show. Only 40 more episodes to go...

⭐10/10 This is a David Lynch movie, and I have never seen anything by David Lynch, but by my understanding this is nothing like his other movies. But when he died, this movie popped up on my feed, and I truly cannot think of a movie that was so specifically made for me. That is Richard Farnsworth (Matthew from Green Gables) who wants to visit his ailing brother, but has to drive a lawnmower across the Midwest to do so. So what we have here is a wholesome performance by one of my favorite people (he essentially plays Matthew in this movie), Midwestern country vistas, beautiful music, and a meditative film about relationships, aging, and what matters in life. Absolutely my jam.  This is a very slow paced movie and not a ton happens. Every once in a while, Straight will run into a quirky character or funny event, impart a little old man wisdom, and be on his way. All the side characters are cute and charming, everyone talks a little funny because they are all rural Midwest...

⭐6/10 This was our Valentine's choice, a classic I had never actually seen. Weird one for sure. Much of this hasn't aged well at all. Gosling threatens suicide if she won't date him. They have a terrible, toxic relationship that includes physical violence. They also both cheat on their partners with each other, but my goodness that just seems to be the norm in Hollywood romance movies...  I thought this movie was mostly bad. Terrible writing, incredibly cheesy, over dramatic. Still, I couldn't help be be compelled by the romance at times. When he's all like, I wrote you 300 letters! Yeah, I felt that. I think their performances aren't amazing, but they definitely help out a pretty terrible script. Also, how well did they age Gosling up? That was impressive . But yeah I think it's just easy to be compelled by a handsome stoic man and a wildly horny girl.  As often as I wanted to like this movie, I just couldn't believe how dumb it was at times...

⭐5/10 I feel like 5 is the absolute maximum that anyone could give this movie, and I'm giving it. This one is truly bad, just complete nonsense with few redeeming factors. It's about... honestly who can say. There are mad scientists trying to take over the world? There are dinosaurs in the real world but also in a new Jurassic Park? Also everything takes place where it's cold?? I'm no paleontologist, but isn't a thing that's very well known about dinosaurs is that they existed when the world was much warmer? Anyways, not much to add here. I think it's cute that they brought back the old cast, especially Jeff Goldblum who is amazing in everything he's in, but I'm sad they were put in such a bad movie. This also has some funny Chris Pratt moments where he does a Jason Bourne impression. I dunno. It's one of those movies where you are constantly asking "wait why would they do it that way?"  And yet? Dinosaurs. The setups for th...

⭐6/10 I'm a huge fan of Jurassic Park and monster movies, but not even I have had much interest in revisiting the Jurassic World movies. But I'm currently reading the OG book, and with the news of the new movie, I guess it was time...  I didn't mind this one. It's not good, and it's crazy where this franchise has gone, from a smart movie about the perils of unregulated science to... this. You feel dumber for watching it, and yet by the end I was like, let's get the next one going!  This movie makes zero sense. All of the characters are so stupid, and the solutions they present always make the problem a hundred times worse. These dinosaurs that were bred for military use are being sold to oligarchs? Let's release them into society! It's funny because I had seen this movie before, not even all that long ago, and I remembered almost nothing from it.  But in the end there are dinosaurs on my screen and they are scary and chasing people. What more...

⭐ 9/10 Something that is inescapable about this movie is that it is clearly trying to be an all-time masterpiece.  The runtime, the cast, the novel filming style. It is following in the footsteps of all the great American epics, and going into a movie expecting that gives it some baggage. This movie is certainly breathtaking at moments, telling a sweeping tale of a genius and his patron, how art gets made and who funds it, and ultimately how art is remembered and who gets to give art meaning. That's a lot. I think there is subtlety, especially in the ending which I think is a middle finger and says out loud what I think is the opposite of the meaning of the movie. The more I think about the ending the more I like the movie actually, and a comparison I have been going back to is Tar. A very different movie, but I think they are hitting on a bunch of similar things. This is also an immigrant story, a man fleeing horrors in Europe comes to America to make a living, and who is also tr...

⭐ 8/10 Looking through the archives, there are 11 reviews for this show on WeView! From the little I had seen I didn't think I would enjoy this, but it is pleasant! I think 3/4 of the family members are funny, and the dynamic with the towns people is great.  I especially love when the dad is at the garage with the older guy who owns it, some real dry humour that I think they pull off well. Moira is the only real downside of this show. She is not funny at all, and while I think she is zany in a unique way it is very rarely funny. The premise of the show is great, rich family stuck in a small country town, and I've liked all the little plots they've done. Another nitpick is that the older generation in the town are all funny looking, but everyone David and Alexis' age is really good looking.  The men especially, what is in the water there? Mutt's beard is Oscar Isaac level perfection. Speaking of Alexis, is she my favourite character?  I feel its like her mother, whe...

⭐5/10 This is a bad movie that I knew was bad, but one of my clients has been telling me to watch it and who am I to say no to an 80 year old anxious woman? We also watched it for Marilla's birthday which was a terrible choice because seeing dogs on screen had Marilla back in 'Nam and she was mostly barking at the screen for two hours straight.  So this is like a Hallmark movie about a dog who is reincarnated throughout the movie, playing a different role in people's lives. It's a sweet enough premise, I guess, but it got oddly dark at times, as you see puppy mills, animal abuse, and witness dogs die like 4 times. That's exactly what I never want to watch.   Still, if you like dogs, it's just hard to resist disliking a movie where you see dogs do wholesome things, and only those without a soul will have dry eyes during those scenes where the dogs are being put down. It's silly and manipulative most of the time, but genuinely sweet at others.  Jos...

⭐6/10  I guess I forgot to review this one a few weeks back. I didn't love it. It's a movie about two opposite cousins travelling to Poland to rediscover their roots, visiting the concentration camp that their grandma survived. The thrust of this movie seems to be that yes, Kieran Culkin is annoying, but he just has that irresistible sparkle that we all wish we had! No. I absolutely loathed Culkin's character at all moments, even when he was not having a childish meltdown. I think the actor does too good a job of being petulant, and indeed when I watch his interviews, I'm kinda like, oh, maybe he's just like that... I do think this was a good movie. I think it was a good idea, and there is some nice writing. In fact, I liked Eisenberg in this, and loved his stuff about how we all have pain, so why does Kulkin get to burden others with it? Honestly it was cathartic and I wanted to strangle Kulkin while shouting this in his face. So I guess this movie got ...

New year, same reading habits! Here were my favourite books of the month. Canadian author alert!  Jolene, who is Iranian-Canadian, is depressed and hates her job and coworkers, but when the new HR guy makes a tech mistake, she can suddenly see everyone's emails and messages. She decides to use her spying abilities to keep her job, and chaos ensues.  P erfectly portrays the highs and mostly lows of corporate work, where you have to spend most of your days in close proximity with people you don't like! It's critical of the corporate world and the systems within it, but is  more optimistic than most typical "sad girl lit fic" I've read. It's clever and funny and I adored it. Douglas is a middle-aged man about to travel Europe with his wife and teen son, when his wife announces she's thinking of leaving him after the trip. Douglas is intent on changing her mind, but of course the trip goes off the rails.   The stories of cis white men usually don't com...