WeView

⭐9.5/10 This was an interesting season that made me think a lot. Where the first season was fresh and new, intriguing, mysterious, funny, tight, and all leading to a great crescendo, season 2 was a bit of a mixed bag at times. It was maybe not as consistent, with some true lulls, but the peaks of this season were so high that I wonder if it featured a few of the best moments of TV history.  It had a bit of a tough time coming off of season 1. How do you make another season where the novelty is wearing off and the audience wants answers? I'm not sure the show runners were always perfect, with a few missteps. They kinda insist on drip feeding answers, all the while creating more questions, and this was becoming a bit frustrating, a bit like cliff-hanger bait like Lost.  But rather than focusing on the mystery, I think this show did something far more interesting which was to focus on all the human elements of the sci-fi. It asked all the interesting moral questions t...

⭐7/10 This is a British spy show where all the failed spies in the British CIA are assigned to Gary Oldman's team where they are supposed to do no work and cause no problems. But when a national crisis emerges, only one team of screw ups can save the world... That last part is not actually the premise, but it's hard to talk about this show without giving anything away, and I don't want to give anything away because the twists and turns are the best part. It has a pretty basic premise to start but it evolves into much more and becomes pretty fun.  I enjoyed! But I didn't love it. The main idea is that Goldman is a curmudgeon but has some redeedming values. However, I found his character waaaay too unlikeable and it kinda ruined a lot. It felt a lot like the Office Season 1 where I can see why they thought this might be funny, but he's just consistently an ass and you're never actually rooting for him. He's also just gross and him farting or talkin...

⭐8/10 This is a Netflix documentary covering exactly what the title says. It's actually probably a little more interesting than it sounds, essentially covering the entire history of our planet. It takes a little while to get going as the interesting creatures take a little while to appear, but I thought this was a pretty sweet way to learn about prehistoric periods if that is of interest. It's beautiful of course, and features the dulcet tones of the one and only Morgan Freeman.  It's got a few issues I suppose. Along with taking a second to get going, it also has an issue where it shifts from real footage to CGI, because of course they don't exactly have footage of a T-Rex, but then shift back when they want to, say, talk about the origins of flowers (very cool btw). It's a bit of whiplash, but either way I think the footage looks amazing. I also watch these to chill out, but that final episode is about humans and our next mass extinction which is too m...

⭐9/10 This is another movie made specifically for me, and yet, despite literally winning the the highest award a movie can win, I didn't know it existed before I watched it. It's a very simple premise where an older woman has lost everything as her husband died, and the factory he worked at closed, leaving their town a ghost town, their property worthless and her sense of belonging gone. She has no money, no savings, no support. As a solution, she turns to van life, becoming an American nomad, travelling the west coast looking for gig work and scraping by.  I liked that the premise forced her into this lifestyle. She wasn't looking to find herself or anything like that, she was just trying to stretch every penny she gets from the broken American social security system. This movie has been accused of glorifying poverty, but as someone who grew up as a rural poor, I think this is pretty faithful. It highlighted the difficulties but also the glimmers of beauty that...

⭐8.5/10 I always say that the books we read in high school are perfect for me. I get to cross a classic off the list, and while these have some depth, they are simple enough to make me feel smart. Animal Farm is the most perfect because it's short, and really has no subtly whatsoever. This is basically just the story of the Russian Revolution and the rule of Stalin. Also - side note - not a bad time in history to be reading about an authoritarian takeover! On its own though, this book is a fun read. It's funny and easy to get through. It's interesting to see the steps the leaders take to make life miserable for everyone, but again, I can't emphasize enough that you can just read this book by opening the newspaper. Orwell is as ever a prophet.  I really don't have much to say. It's a good book, a classic for a reason, but I don't think it's a dazzling piece of genius. It's... well it's perfect for high school kids. 

⭐7.5/10 This is the latest from Bong Joo Ho (Parasite and others) and I really love the premise. In the future, Robert Pattinson is an expendable on a space mission, which means that when there is a job that will likely result in death, he's assigned to it, but when he dies, he is 're-printed' so he can do it again. It's similar to Groundhog Day and others where it lends itself to extremely dark humour where death is meaningless but still painful. In this movie, Pattinson is basically used for human experimentation, subject to every horror for the good of mankind.  I loved the first half of this movie. It was a cool premise, and just very funny with that signature snappy direction from Bong Joo Ho. There's a ton of great gags and silly moral dilemmas and some good performances by Pattinson and Mark Ruffalo as a Trump-esque politician. Toni Collette was also horrifically awesome.  The movie kinda lost me in the second half where there is too much going on...

⭐ 4/10 I hate to say it, but this was a movie I was completely uninterested in mere minutes after it started. I found Jim Carrey's character so boring and unwatchable, and Kate Winslet annoying and unwatchable. There was no chemistry, nothing that made me interested in their love story. And then after the first act the real movie begins. We are seeing their relationship through memories that are also kind of being deleted, so they are experiencing their relationship but also trying to cling to it through the good and the bad experiences they shared. Deep ideas in a cool sci-fi package, but I was unmoved and bored. I haven't really examined why I did not like a movie that appears to be universally acclaimed, but I will say I didn't know how beloved this was before watching.  I had heard of it, knew it was a love story, and Joe compared it to Severance once. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood.  There is certainly some David Lynch in here, but it felt messy and over engineer...

⭐ 8/10 If anything this show is consistent. I still think John is my favourite, but Roland always makes me laugh. Alexis only gets better as she has more serious adult moments. I actually think she is the star here, her brand of ditzy is so unique and funny.  I also completely buy her and David as brothers, their intonation is so well matched at this point. My main concern is that by the end of S4 Alexis and David are both with the people I presume they will end the show with.  Two seasons left, and we know from experience that people experiencing conflict in romantic relationships is less fun to watch than people finding romantic relationships. Patrick is already so patient with David in a way that makes me not understand why he is with him at all. Moira is still painful for me, and when its a scene revolving around her I often end up playing chess on my phone. She does get some funny one-liners in that stilted accent of hers though.

⭐7.5/10 Not reeeeally sure why we decided to watch this random sequel out of nowhere. I didn't remember much from when I watched it, but I think it's totally passable. Indeed, part of me wants to be bold and give it a 9 because it really was funny and had some good moments and has no true flaws. Obviously doesn't invent anything new, but iterates on an interesting world in a fun way.  There's not much to say here. One thing I kinda liked was the idea that yeah, sometimes you can't achieve your dreams even if you try very hard. An important lesson! Billy Crystal and John Goodman are also just terrific voice actors and earned the right to come back to this world.  Otherwise it's a funny movie, though no outrageous gags or anything, just clever writing throughout and some witty lines. Kinda like an episode of Modern Family or something.  Actually yeah, this is a lot like Modern Family. That's not a bad thing! 

⭐9/10 What a movie! This is usually one I neglect to mention when considering the all-time Pixar classics, and I think that's because I haven't watched it in a decade. Well that's corrected now, and this one is indeed one of the classics.  As far as originality, this probably has the most basic premise among those from that era of Pixar. A baby fish gets captured, and his dad has to travel the sea to find him. But the thing I forgot about this movie is that it is a true Odyssey remake. This is a true adventure story of our hero traversing a treacherous and mystical ocean, overcoming insurmountable odds, taking on impossible challenges. Every single encounter they have is memorable and engaging - the vegan sharks, the bouncing jellies, the Californian turtles, the whale. Awesome, awesome stuff.  And the best part? Our hero is no Odysseys, but rather an anxious dad paired with a forgetful, ditzy Ellen DeGeneres (has Ellen done much else? Amazing performance here, ...

⭐ 8/10 This is an Irish animated movie by the same team that made Wolfwalkers, a movie I really liked. Similar to that one, it deals with children who have their stories intertwined with Irish folklore, and an adventure kinda stems from that. They both feature a big, burly single dads (Brendan Gleeson this time, in place of Sean Bean) who is doing his best to raise kids, but that becomes imperiled by the adventure.  Again, beautiful story. I love this animation style, and these movies aren't afraid to tackle big themes, like grief and family. This one will definitely make you well up here and there, and has some nice emotional payoffs.  Alongside Wolfwalkers, I thought they were setting up some pretty moving stuff, and then they just don't go there. I think that's fine, but I thought this one kinda ended in a silly way, or at least a way that didn't resonate with me, similar to how lots of anime movies work. Kinda just a weird, sensory scene that isn't r...

⭐ 10/10 One of the podcasts I listen to mentions this book all the time, and even did a whole podcast around it. It took Joe reading it and buying me a copy for me to actually dive into this behemoth. Of course it was a masterpiece - I expected no less and that's what I got. One of those books that I will have sensory memories of, will always be able to recall where I was when I read certain scenes, are how certain lines made me feel.  Novels like this are hard to come by, so when you find one you need to cherish it. I read a lot of fantasy, and modern fantasy often strives to be gritty. Deal with real issues in an unflinching way. Well, what's more gritty than the story that takes place in an actual time and place, the rough land of American at the end of the 1800s. This book is all-consuming, putting you in a time and place that feels authentic, but in my mind completely unromantic. Life is rough, death is around every turn, and no one ever seems comfortable. Part of me wish...

⭐ 8.5/10 This year's Best Picture winner, and while I think the slate was a bit weaker and this wasn't my favourite of the crop, it was a unique movie that grows in my mind the more distance I have from it. I didn't really think it would clean up so many major awards like it did when I watched it, but the level of artistry and vision is clear throughout. The movie pretty cleanly divides into 3 parts.  Part one is the stripper princess story. It is fast paced, with loud music and lots of sex. Lots, in a way that is quite uncomfortable but I think effective, putting you in the world of an escort. She meets a young Russian boy whose parents are insanely wealthy, he hires her as a full time girlfriend, eventually marries her. This all happens in the first 40 minutes, and its a high octane rags-to-riches story where you are really rooting for Anora. He seemingly makes her happy, even if their lifestyle seems unsustainable. This was my least favourite act. Part 2 is like Uncut G...

I went out of my normal lane for this one because the author is the CEO of the company I work for! I have been hearing his thoughts for more than 10 years, and while I don't agree with all of them this book is a distillation of his philosophies. One of the points he has been saying for years is that Silicon Valley has lost its way. They make apps that only service consumers, many of which in ways that are unhealthy. He goes a little far, saying things like Uber or Doordash are superficial. Why have technology if its doesn't make our lives more convenient and easy? Anyways, I agree with the overall point, that many engineers waste their time pursuing things that make money over providing value. However, I disgree with basically everything after that because he thinks that the best way to provide value is to work for your country, or in this book America specifically.  Not only that, but the military should be where technology is thriving the most, just like it did in war times,...

Another month of reading a random assortment of books! Here are my favourites. This was an extremely fun and twisty horror thriller, about people living on a Scottish island and disappearing, only to reappear sometimes decades later, but the same age as when they left. It's mostly about sisters who get reunited and try to figure out what happened in the past. There's also a past timeline involved, with witches and curses! I had an amazing time. This is exactly what I look for in a memoir. Lots of interesting, personal details and stories from their life, plus reflection on what their story shows about humanity in general.  Zoe was assigned female at birth, but experiences gender dysphoria early, choosing to live as a boy when they move to a trailer park in Arizona. As they grow up and explore their sexuality and the power of writing, they can no longer pass for a boy and make an uneasy peace with being seen as female, or maybe something completely different.  Zoe is a great wr...

⭐8/10 This is the book that launched the Jurassic Park franchise, where it all began. Before they were pumping out movies that were written in one afternoon, they were a series of hard sci-fi novels where the author clearly went to great lengths to get the science right.  If you've watched the first Jurassic Park, it is pretty clear that this story is a thought-out process, and I think that's why audiences responded so well. You get a cartoony science lesson all about amber extraction and DNA splicing and stuff. The park creators talk all about the safeguards in place and you get a look at investments and motivations. It's a lesson on corporate greed and the regulation of scientific experimentation. It's a blockbuster movie with a ton of depth. After reading it was clear to me that all of this depth was created by an author with an attention to detail... In fact, he probably has too much attention to detail. While reading, I researched the author and couldn...