Watching DayBook

Watching | Movies & TV | 2024

Movies, Documentaries

1. Maestro (2023). Netflix. Bradley Cooper as Leonard Bernstein. We fought the good fight on 010324, but abandoned before the first hour was up.
2. Holdovers (2023). Peacock. Paul Giamatti in Alexander Payne’s story about a prep school at Christmas break. Watched 011424.
3. Men of Honor (2000). Apple library. Robert DeNiro and Cuba Gooding, Jr., in a fact-based story about Carl Brashear, the first Black master diver in the U.S. Navy.
4. Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band, Live from NYC. Watched again on 012024. Tom Hanks in NYT Magazine interview: “Bruce Springsteen said his rock-and-roll show is like going to church. Provided that what he does in the big shows is give you six songs in a row that are Bruce Springsteen at his absolute E-Street Bandiest. After that he takes you anywhere he wants.”
5. Killers of the Flower Moon (2023). Martin Scorsese with DiCaprio, DeNiro, and Lily Gladstone in starring roles. “What to read after watching …” (NYT). Key scene at :22. Watched over two nights beginning on 012524.
6. The Greatest Night in Pop. The story of “We Are the World.” Netflix. Watched 012424.
7. Made in Italy. Netflix. Watched 021024. Trailer. Divorce sends son to family home in Tuscany to sell it. Liam Neeson as Robert, an artist.
8. American Assassin (2017). Mitch Rapp series. Directed by Michael Cuesta. Watched again from personal library on 021224.
9. Springsteen on Broadway. Netflix. Watched it again and was moved … again. 021424.
10. The Barber of Little Rock: One Man’s Fight for a Just Economy. The New Yorker Presents documentary. Watched 021524.
11. Radical Wolfe (2023). Documentary about the author. Kind of thin, but it does report on the Updike / Irving / Mailer negative controversy. Trailer. Watched 021524.
12. The Revenant (2015). Trailer. Directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu. DiCaprio mauled by a bear. Seeks revenge for being left for dead. Watched 021624. Library. “I ain’t afraid of dying. I done it already.”
13. Navalny (2022). Documentary about Russian dissident, who died in February. Trailer. HBO Max. NYT article.
14. Oppenheimer (2023). Started 022924. Completed 030224. Slow starting and it helped that I’d read American Prometheus. But in the final hour of the 3-hour film, it comes to life, including Emily Blunt’s (Kitty O’s) scene in the “grill room” with Jason Clarke.
15. The Last Repair Shop. Documentary via YouTube. Film.
16. In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon. MGM+. 3.5 hour documentary film by Alex Gibney. Trailer. NYT story. Watched 031824 and E2 dropped 032424.
17. Origin (2024). Dargis review in NYT. Purchased ($15) from AppleTV. Watched 032124.
18. Delicious (2021). Peacock. Trailer. Directed by Éric Besnard. Synopsis: With the help of a young woman, a chef who has been sacked by his master finds the strength to free himself from his position as a servant and opens the first restaurant in 1700s France. Watched 032224. Recommended to Larry Wier.
19. Menus-Plaisirs — Les Troisgros (2023). Documentary by Frederick Wiseman. PBS. PBS preview. Dargis review in NYT. Trailer. “Small pleasures” of the Troisgros family. Started (1 hour) 032624. Dargis: “There’s individual genius in the Troisgros kitchens, no doubt, but also enormous collaborative effort, which makes the documentary a nice metaphor for filmmaking itself. “Everything is beautiful,” a visibly moved Michel says of his estate; the same holds true of this deeply pleasurable movie.” Recommended by Jo Ann Hallmark: “It’s coming to PBS at 9:00 on March 22.“Wiseman’s great subject is institutions, though more rightly the tension between organizations — with their spaces, norms and rituals — and the people moving through them.” Finished 033124.
20. Moynihan (2024). PBS, American Masters series. Trailer and film. Wikipedia. Watched 040324.
21. Steve (martin): A Documentary in Two Pieces (2024). Apple TV. Trailer. Watched 040724.
22. The Incomparable Mr. Buckley (2024). PBS, American Masters series. Trailer. Betty was incredulous over Buckley’s apparent racism, if not his politics. Sobering to see portrayed in this documentary. I was hoping for more on his intellectualism, sailing, writing, reading, lecturing, but his politics are what stand out. Watched 041624.
23. The Boys in the Boat. Directed by George Clooney. Trailer. Rented on 042024 via Apple TV.
24. Red Sparrow. Library. Watched again 042424. Larry Wier recommended Anna, via Netflix.
25. Mad Max: Fury Road. Trailer. Apple TV. Watched 042524.
26. Quantum of Solace (2008). Library. Watched 042624. Bond still smarting from losing Vesper. Tracks down Bolivia eco-criminal determined to hoard water.
27. Hostiles (2017). Watched 042724. Originally watched 122317. From A.O. Scott’s review of Hostiles: “Richard Slotkin, at the conclusion of his magisterial three-volume study of the West in the American imagination, notes that the western, appearances to the contrary, doesn’t have a fixed ideological meaning. We can use the mythology of the frontier, he writes, ‘to reify our nostalgia for a falsely idealized past,’ or we can use it as a way of ‘imagining and speaking truth.’ ‘Hostiles’ sets out to do both. It aims for epic grandeur, ethical clarity and also a measure of historical credibility. This puts the movie in a state of contradiction with itself, like nearly every other good western and, for that matter, like the United States of America.” Trailer. Library.
28. The Hollies documentary, “Look Through Any Window.” Watched 042724. Recommended by Mike Harrison. Boring at times, but perspective building. Graham Nash and Allan Clarke dominate the interviews, but I guess that’s to be expected. Not much new and very little about my favorite album, A Distant Light. Freevu on Amazon (with ads, ugh).
29. Man on Fire, Tony Scott’s (2004). HBO Max. Film featuring Denzel Washington as a wrung-out operative who is convinced (by Christopher Walken!) to bodyguard Dakota Fanning. Good cast, violent story. “He’s painting his masterpiece.” Watched again on 042824. Trailer.
30. Eye in the Sky (2015). HBO Max. Trailer. “Never tell a soldier that he does not know the cost of war.” Watched 042924.
31. Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice. Documentary. Trailer.
32. Stop Making Sense, Directed by Jonathan Demme. HBO Max beginning May 3. Watched 050924.
33. The Leonie (2010). Emily Mortimer in Japanese film via Prime. Watched 051124. Wikipedia: “The film is based on the life of Léonie Gilmour, the American lover and editorial assistant of Japanese writer Yone Noguchi and mother of sculptor Isamu Noguchi and dancer Ailes Gilmour.”
34. Planet of the Apes (2001). Directed by Tim Burton. Features Mark Wahlberg, Helena Bonham Carter, Paul Giamatti. Wikipedia. Watched 051524. Why does this franchise work? (NYT)”That reboot trilogy — “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” (2011), “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” (2014) and “War for the Planet of the Apes” (2017) — is widely considered some of the best franchise cinema ever, and I heartily concur. The trilogy posits that a cure for Alzheimer’s developed by humans had grave unintended consequences when it escaped its lab: It turned apes supersmart, but had the opposite effect on humans, killing vast swaths of the population and then mutating to turn most of humanity mute and less intelligent.” In 2024, a final (?) chapter.
35. Bridge of Spies (library). Directed by Spielberg. Tom Hanks and Mark Rylance. Watched on 051924. Last watched 030621. “Would it help?”
36. Rolling Along: An American Story. Bill Bradley’s Springsteen-esque on-stage documentary on HBO Max. It’s very good. Trailer. Watched 052024.
37. Everything Is Copy — Nora Ephron: Scripted & Unscripted (2015). HBO documentary. Trailer. Watched 052024.
38. Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011). Watched 052424. Genetically enhanced, the apes break out of their cages, cross the Golden Gate Bridge, and take up residence in the redwood forest.
39. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014). Watched 052724. San Francisco. Apes start war.
40. War for the Planet of the Apes (2017). Watched 052924. Caesar vs. Woody Harrelson. Now there’s only Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024). Trailer.
41. The Hitman, Netflix. Watched first half and abandoned on 060824. Richard Linklater, Director. Glen Powell, co-writer and lead. Wikipedia. Trailer.
42. Jerry Maguire, directed by Cameron Crowe (1996). Didn’t recall that cast includes Jann Wenner and Glenn Frey. Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger. Trailer. Watched via Apple TV (rental) on 061124.
43. Pulp Fiction (1994). Watched for the umpteenth time on 061724. I love trying to tie together the timeline. Trailer.
44. Terms of Endearment (1983). Apple TV rental. Watched 062824. Directed by James L. Brooks. Includes Shirley MacLaine, Jack Nicholson, Debra Winger, Jeff Daniels, Danny DeVito, John Lithgow.
45. An Officer and a Gentleman (1982). HBO. Taylor Hackford, Director. Watched 062924. Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Louis Gossett, Jr. Trailer.

Queue

“Never tell a soldier that he does not know the cost of war.”

TV Series

1. Walker Independence. HBO Max and CWTV. Recommended by Hunt Shuford. One episode (010224) and we’re out. Hunt said it gets better. Maybe we’ll check, but probably not.
2. Suits. Netflix. Started S1 on 010324. Completed S1 and watched S2, E1 on 011124.
3. Reacher, Prime. E7 and 8 (Jan 18 drop) wrap up S2. Completed on 011824. A lot more shooting, killing, and revenge in this one than I recall.
4. True Detective. S4, 6 episodes, set in all-day nighttime in Alaska. Started 012724. NYT article. Completed 021924. Not recommended. Final episode recap.
5. All Creatures Great and Small. PBS. S4. Started this season on 020124. Completed 020624.
6. Masters of the Air. Apple TV+. WW2 flyers, produced by Hanks and Spielberg. Started 020824.
7. The English. Amazon Prime. 6 episodes. Recommended by Hunt and Grace Shuford. Started 030424. Emily Blunt seeks revenge. Trailer. Completed 030624. Who knew about syphilis?
8. The Reluctant Traveler. Apple TV+. I owe Betty big time for this. I thought the episode on Costa Rica might stoke her desire to visit, but this was a horrible 30 minutes. No more episodes, I don’t care if Eugene Levy goes to Florence, Tuscany, and Umbria!
9. The Regime. HBO Max. Features Kate Winslet as a Euro-despot. It’s funny, Trumpian, full of palace intrigue, subtle (and not-so-subtle) political machinations. Started 031224. Website. Six episodes. Abandoned after disappointment in E4.
10. The Chosen. Amazon Prime. Article in The Atlantic. S1. Started 031324.
11. Sugar. Apple TV+. Colin Farrell, Amy Ryan. Trailer. 8 episodes eventually. Wikipedia. Started 041724. Final episode on May 17. Completed 051724.
12. Palm Royale. Apple TV+. We watched 3/4 of E1 on 041924. Abandoned. Too silly for me.
13. A Gentleman in Moscow. Paramount+. Debuts 032324. Trailer. 8 episodes. Wikipedia. Completed (and wept) on 051824.
14. A Man in Full. Netflix. Started seres on 060224. Tom Wolfe book (wikipedia). Trailer. Jeff Daniels, Diane Lane, Lucy Liu. Total of 6 episodes. Very disappointed in the ending: it’s too convenient, too tidy: Croker confronts Peepgrass in Croker’s ex-wife’s (Martha’s) bedroom. His wrist locks up as he clutches the banker’s throat, then Croker suffers a heart attack. The “man in full” turns out to be the lawyer, Roger White, and his client, Conrad Hensley. Wikipedia.

Queue

Watching | Movies & TV | 2023

Movies, Documentaries

1. The Fabelmans. Steven Spielberg. Autobiographical bildungsroman about budding film director, the creative path, and the glories and pains of family life. Watched after purchase via Apple TV on 010123. NYT review.
2. Booksellers. Documentary about antiquarian booksellers. Watched 2/3 before crashing on 010323. Completed 010423.
3. The Menu. 011423. Ralph Fiennes plays “Chef” in this foodie thriller. Shocking revelations in a cross between Agatha Christie and Stephen King and Jordan Peele.
4. Lincoln, Spielberg. Watched yet again 012423.
5. The Banshees of Inisherin, HBO Max. Martin McDonagh (In Bruges). Colin Firth and Brendan Gleeson. Watched 012523. Betty couldn’t finish. From The Guardian review: “An end-of-friendship breakup movie that swings between the hilarious, the horrifying and the heartbreaking in magnificent fashion.
6. Tar (2022). Todd Field directing, Cate Blanchett in title role (Linda Tarr). Watched 021123. | In the hands of a different actress, the portrait might well have fallen apart. “Tár” sans Blanchett is no more conceivable than “Born Yesterday” (1950) without Judy Holliday or “Erin Brockovich” (2000) without Julia Roberts. Nobody else would fit the frame. We have seen Blanchett, in previous roles, being flaky, noble, or mean, but the profusion of moods and motivations that is demanded of her here is something else. The part of Lydia is scored for hero, villain, mother, dictator, and fuckup, and Blanchett responds with perfect pitch. Her eyes are like spies, missing nothing, and her smile is a charmer’s knife. As the conductor is to the Berlin Philharmonic, so the actress is to the audience in the cinema; neither makes the grave mistake of wishing merely to be liked. If there is one gesture of hers, in “Tár,” that I didn’t entirely buy, it’s the single act of violence—of sacrilege, one might say, for it occurs in the midst of a performance—with which Lydia puts herself beyond the pale. Not so much brutal as brusque, the deed is too melodramatic for the subtle inflections that Field applies elsewhere. If you’re bent upon maleficence, as Rex Harrison demonstrated, then do it in style. (From The New Yorker)
7. Seabiscuit (2003). Watched (I don’t recall if I’d seen this before; Betty and I just finished rereading the Laura Hillenbrand book) 022123. Wikipedia.
8. Air (2023). Directed by Ben Affleck. Stars Matt Damon, Viola Davis, Chris Messina. Watched on Prime 051723.
9. Champions (2023). Bobby Farrelly. Woody Harrelson coaches group of basketballers with Down syndrome. Watched on Peacock 052223.
10. The Bourne Identity. Watched 052523.
11. The Bourne Supremacy. Watched 052623.
12. The Bourne Ultimatum. Watched 052723. Previously watched most recently in 2020.
13. A Man Called Otto. Watched 052823 via Apple TV+ via rental ($5.99). Like the book and original film, starts slow, but this one adapts to tell several other stories, including immigrant neighbors aren’t poor in any way and, through flashback, how love can change, unite, and guide those who are struggling. Tom Hanks in a role reminiscent of Forrest Gump.
14. Turn Every Page: The Adventures of Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb. Trailer. Watched / rented ($5.99) on 061223. The Atlantic review.
15. Braveheart, for the umpteenth time. Started 071923. Through the battle in Stirling, then Longshanks heaves his “gentle” son’s councilor out the window. Completed 072023. Moving, still …
16. Phantom Thread, Paul Thomas Anderson. Apparently, Daniel Day-Lewis’s final performance. Started 072023. A.O. Scott review is glowing. “What she regards as her physical flaws — small breasts, broad shoulders, wide hips — he sees as signs of perfection. She is dazzled by his ability to be dazzled by her.” Reminiscent of Hawthorne’s Rappaccini’s Daughter. “Is Alma a feminist heroine? Some version of that question is likely to fuel more than a few post-screening arguments. Your answer may depend on what you think of the mushroom omelet that is the movie’s spoiler-proof surprise. There are other things to talk about. On first viewing, the captivating strangeness of the mood and the elegant threading of the plot are likely to hold your attention, but later you can go back to savor the lustrous colors, the fine-grained performances and the romantic mystery that holds the whole thing together.” Other Paul Thomas Anderson films: Magnolia; Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood, Licorice Pizza.
17. Hal (2018). Amy Scott documentary of the work and life of Hal Ashby. Mubi. Watched 082123. Trailer.
18. Being There (1979). Directed by Hal Ashby. Watched 082323. Wikipedia.
19. The General’s Daughter (1999). Directed by Simon West. Includes Travolta as Paul Brenner. Based on Nelson DeMille’s 1992 novel.
20. Because of Winn-Dixie. (2005) Based on Kate DiCamillo book. Stars Jeff Daniels, Cicely Tyson, Eva Marie Saint, Dave Matthews (!). Dog brings people together. Directed by Wayne Wang. Wikipedia.
21. True Grit, Ethan and Joel Coen. Watched at Chez Kincaid on 093023.
22. The Firm, Sydney Pollack (1993). All-star cast, featuring Tom Cruise, Wilford Brimley, Gene Hackman, Ed Harris, Holly Hunter, David Strathairn. Wikipedia. Watched again 102523 after listening to the book via Audible.
23. Caine Mutiny Court-Martial. Directed by William Friedkin. Trailer. Paramount / Showtime. Watched 110223. Kiefer Sutherland, Lance Reddick, et al.
24. The Burial (2023). Prime. Tommy Lee Jones (Jerry O’Keefe) and Jamie Foxx (Willie G. Gary), the latter in a role reminiscent of Johnnie Cochran. Wikipedia. Trailer. Watched 110323.
25. The Retirement Plan. Rented via Apple TV+ for $3.99, and I’ve made better investments in homeless people perched with their sad signs on the side of the road. Nicolas Cage. Trailer. Watched 110523. (And never again.)
26. Nyad. Starring Annette Bening and Jody Foster. Netflix. Watched 111223. Wikipedia. I wasn’t aware of Diana Nyad’s 5x attempts to swim from Cuba to Key West, only the last several. Story of courage and age/gender defiance.
27. Courage Under Fire (1996). Directed by Edward Zwick, starring Denzel and Meg Ryan, with quite the supporting cast: Lou Diamond Phillips, Matt Damon, Michael Moriarty, Scott Glenn. Watched 120223. Wikipedia. Trailer.
28. The Equalizer 2. Antoine Fuqua directs; Denzel stars. I watched the trailer for The Equalizer, seeing enough to remember and set up #2, which I think I’d seen already. 120323. Then …
29. The Equalizer 3 (2023), immediately after. Brings his story to Sicily. Beautiful scenery, derivative (Bourne, among others) scenes, and equally — maybe more — violent. Trailer.
30. The Killer (2023). Director David Fincher. Michael Fassbender. A disappointing 2 hours. Scene with Tilda Swinton reminiscent of Michael Clayton and same actress: her comeuppance. One difference: she’s killed here (as everyone is). “[Swinton as ‘Q-Tip’] questions The Killer's motivations in continuing and lessening competency at his profession, as they partake in her "last supper" of whiskey. Proceeding outside to the park, he shoots her dead after she trips and asks for a hand, before noticing her concealed knife.” Wikipedia. (I didn’t see the knife.) Watched via Netflix on 120423.
31. Safe House (2012). Daniel Espinosa. A Netflix recommendation after The Killer. Denzel, yes, but with Ryan Reynolds. “In Cape Town, South Africa, junior CIA officer Matt Weston is serving as a "housekeeper", an operative in charge of securing and maintaining a local CIA safe house in case of an operation.” Wikipedia. Watched hour 1 only on 120423.
32. Frances Ha (2012). Directed by Noah Baumbach. Written by Baumbach and Greta Gerwig. Watched on Mubi. 120523 for about 10 min. Abandoned. Wikipedia.
33. Shampoo. Hal Ashby (1975). 120523. Watched about 30 minutes and abandoned. Seemed a lot funnier and poignant 30 years ago. Wikipedia.
34. Unforgiven (1992). Clint Eastwood directs and stars, including Gene Hackman, Richard Harris, and Morgan Freeman. Wikipedia.
35. Home Alone (1990). John Hughes directed. Watched for umpteenth time on Christmas Eve. Wikipedia.
36. Family Plan (2023). Apple TV. Wish I could get that 2 hours back. Although there are some redeeming features — Wahlberg’s film wife is stunning in a red dress and his former girlfriend mounts him in a final scene … never mind — not enough to bring this up to any standard whatsoever.

TV and Series

1. Echo 3. Apple TV+. Two former military specialists try to track down one’s wife in Venezuela and Colombia. Completed E10 on 011323. Disappointing final 2-3 episodes (of 10). Like they didn’t know how to end it.
2. 1923. Prequel to Yellowstone. Trailers, etc. Features Helen Mirren and Harrison Ford. Started 122822. Scheduled for two seasons of 8 episodes. Finished S1 on 030323. Duttons (Jacob and Cara) may lose the ranch. One nephew and his wife renew their love in light of perhaps never being able to have children. Spencer Dutton and his wife, Alexandria, are separated after a type of duel ends in a death onboard the ship taking them to London and, presumably, their return to Montana. See Wikipedia page. Series website.
3. Slow Horses. Based on series of Jackson Lamb novels by Mick Herron. Features Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas. Apple TV+. See article in TNY by Jill Lepore. Started 010723. Completed S1 — 6 episodes! — 011023. Started S2 on 012723, right after Betty finished Dead Lions. Completed S2 on 013123.
4. New Amsterdam, longish running hospital procedural series on CBS / Paramount+, and, now, Netflix. Currently watching S1 beginning 011223.
5. East New York. Picked up again on 011123 as the second half of S1 continues. Paramount+.
6. All Creatures Great and Small. Started S3 on 011923.
7. Columbo. In preparation for “Poker Face”: | Columbo's creators, Richard Levinson and William Link, originally wanted Bing Crosby for the role, but he wasn't available. The series debut, on Sept. 15, 1971, was written by Steven Bochco and was directed by none other than Steven Spielberg. After a seven-year run on NBC and then an occasional special, "Columbo" landed at ABC two seasons ago as a regular part of its "Mystery Movie" series. / Oh, just one more thing. Something's been bothering us. Whose idea was that coat, anyway? / According to a spokeswoman for the show, the famous raincoat was purchased in Manhattan by Mr. Falk himself, who misread the original script, which called for an overcoat. Mr. Falk also wore his own suits, ties and shoes in the early episodes, proving himself a highly cost-effective actor…. Also | 3 Reasons I Love “Columbo,” by Elisabeth Vincentelli (2020). Watched S1, E1 on 012123 with Betty and Kim, the latter of whom said, “This is a little slow for me, Marcus.”
8. Poker Face, Peacock. Started S1 on 020223.
9. SHRINKiNG, Apple TV+. Started with 3 episodes on 020823. Completed S1 on 032523.
10. 1883, the original prequel to Yellowstone. Features Sam Elliott, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill. Started first of 10 episodes on 021823. Wikipedia. Completed 030723.
11. Full Swing, Netflix. PGA Tour and LIV Golf in 2022. Revealing documentary into the lives and realities of golf on the tour(s).
12. Ted Lasso, Apple TV+. Binged S1 again (completed 032523) as we prepare to cram the new S3 into our viewing schedule. 30-minute episodes are a welcome change, as are the laughs and tears that come with multiple scenes, it seems, in every episode. Completed S3 on 060123.
13. Succession, S4. HBO Max. “What makes men like Logan hard to beat is that when it looks like they’re losing, they can just refuse to play … or can change the game entirely.” - From the S3 wrap-up in NYT. Started 050123. Completed 071923.
14. From the Earth to the Moon. Max. Started 060823. Completed 070323. 12-part miniseries about Apollo and JFK’s moonshot challenge. Wikipedia.
15. The West Wing. Revisiting starting 070423. S1, E1. A classic. Lord John Marbury. Completed S1 on 090623. Wikipedia.
16. Jack Ryan (Prime). Started S4 with E1 on 072123. Total of 6 episodes. Completed 072623.
17. Hijack, Apple TV+. Started with E1 on 072723. Final (no. 7) episode completed 080223.
18. Lioness, Paramount+. Showrunner is Taylor Sheridan (Yellowstone, et al.). Started on 073023. Trailer. Wikipedia.
19. Southern Storytellers, PBS. Show website. Margaret Renkl column.
20. The Newsroom, HBO Max. (12 episodes in S1.) Started 080623. More Aaron Sorkin. I wanted to see at least the first episode. We’re caught up in The West Wing (22 episodes in first season alone!), and I thought it was worthwhile to revisit this updated version. Also very interested in the collection of journalism’s best recent movies / series. HBO/Max series website. Completed S1 rewatch on 081923 with a tutorial on the “greater fool” theory. From the show. Will’s opening answer to “sorority girl’s” question.
21. The West Wing. Started S2 with E1 and E2 (gun!) on 090823. Wikipedia.
22. Vietnam, Ken Burns series. Watched E1 on 090923. Series website. Wikipedia.
23. The American Buffalo, Ken Burns 2-part documentary series. Started 101723. Completed 120823. Complemented reading of Butcher’s Crossing, novel by John Williams.
24. Lessons in Chemistry. Apple TV+. Started 101323. Completed 112223. I didn’t like the series as much as the book; it lacked the “purpose” of Elizabeth’s journey to and from chemistry.
25. All the Light We Cannot See. Netflix. Started 110623. Completed 111223.
26. The Diplomat. Netflix. Features Keri Russell as the newly appointed ambassador to The Court of St. James. Started 111423. Total of 8 episodes. NYT review. Completed 111823. Cliffhanger: Explosion by car on the street. Appears Russians nor Iranians killed the 41 souls on the British ship. Also appears the PM, Trowbridge, had a hand in it, at least in assigning the blame.
27. The Crown. Final season dropped first four episodes in November. Completed those 112223. Completed final four episodes 122323. Queen leaves church (Westminster Abbey?) after wedding celebration of Charles and Camilla, having considered stepping down from the throne. Olivia Colman and Claire Foy return.
28. Slow Horses, S3. Trailer. Started 120123 with first two episodes. From The Atlantic: “Lamb continually insults his employees—in the latest season on Apple, he tells two of them: ‘I’ve got hemorrhoids that are more fucking use than you.’” | “If Moscow rules meant watch your back, London rules meant cover your arse,” Herron writes in Slow Horses. ‘Moscow rules had been written on the streets, but London rules were devised in the corridors of Westminster, and the short version read: someone always pays. Make sure it isn’t you.’ But Lamb isn’t scheming for promotion. He knows he is a knife in the hands of the security services, and the point of a knife is to be used.” We have enjoyed reading Mick Herron (author website), then watching the first two seasons (trailer S1; trailer S2). S3 is masterful, but the final episode was full of gunfire, almost incredibly so. Gary Oldman was made to play Jackson Lamb. Completed 122823.
29. A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973). Watched 112323. Apple TV. Wikipedia.
30. High Desert (2023). Apple TV. Watched 2 of 8 episodes and abandoned. Recommended by Todd Poore. Wikipedia.
31. Lawmen: Bass Reeves. Trailer. Paramount+. Started 112823. Features David Oyelowo and Dennis Quaid. Completed 121923. NYT review.
32. The Night Agent. Netflix. Total of 10 episodes in S1. Started with first two on 121323. Trailer. Completed 121823. Some sensational plot lines, but exciting and held our interest. Vice President and Chief of Staff ear-deep in plot to kill a “terrorist.” VP believes President is soft and his ambition has him wanting to kill her in the process.
33. Reacher, Season 2. Prime. Started with E1 on 121923. Episode 8 drops Jan 18.

Watching | Movies & TV | 2022

Movies, Documentaries

1. The Lost Daughter. Maggie Gyllenhaal. Olivia Colman. Netflix. Watched 010322 and 010422. NYT review. Trailer.
2. Joe Bell. Prime Video. Watched first 30 min with Kim and Betty on 011222. They checked out so I did too.
3. The Tender Bar. Watched 012022. Coming of age story about a writer. Based on J.R. Moehringer memoir. Trailer. Directed by George Clooney.
4. Encanto. Watched 021222. NYT review. “Forget Alexa — Casita’s a smart home like no other. She speaks in a language of clapped tiles and flapping window shutters, and helps keep things in order.”
5. A Few Good Men. Rob Reiner film; Aaron Sorkin’s screenplay. Watched again on 022622 when we learned Kim had not seen it.
6. The Post. Spielberg. Watched 030222. Purchased for $8. Streep as Katharine Graham. Hanks as Bradlee. Bob Odenkirk.
7. Bending the Arc. Documentary, including Paul Farmer. Netflix. Watched 030922. “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” - Theodore Parker, Martin Luther King Jr.
8. Coda, Apple TV+. Great story about a hearing singer who is critical to a fishing family in Gloucester, MA. NYT review. Trailer.
9. West Side Story. Spielberg. Watched 0326 and 032722. Disney+.
10. Tragedy of Macbeth. Joel Coen. Started but did not finish on 040622.
11. Tick, Tick … Boom. Musical by Jonathan Larson. Andrew Garfield. Directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Watched 041122. Wikipedia.
12. 20 Feet from Stardom. Watched again on 041322. (First time: Jan 2020.)
13. Licorice Pizza. Paul Thomas Anderson. Trailer. Watched first half on 041522. Completed 041622.
14. The Godfather.
15. Pulp Fiction. | “Pulp Fiction” is sometimes described as a postmodern movie, and in its out-of-sequence chronology, it is. But it is also the most classic of American stories, recalling the promise of the country from its earliest days: a place where it remains possible for sinners and misfits to wipe the slate clean, change their perspective and their ways and find a way toward a better, happier, even holier state. Tarantino’s genius is to have delivered this quiet sermon amid a wild entertainment.” Bret Stephens on Pulp Fiction.
16. Brian Wilson, Long Promised. I’m sure I’ve seen this before, but this time, completed 051322.
17. Chuck Berry: Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll
18. A River Runs Through It. Brad Pitt as the tragic brother Paul. Tom Skeritt as father. Directed by Robert Redford. Watched 051422.
19. Jane Goodall: The Hope. Documentary from 2020. Disney+.
20. Respect. Prime. Watched 060822. Jennifer Hudson as Aretha. NYT review: “directed by Liesl Tommy from a script by Tracey Scott Wilson.” “Oddly, a showdown between Aretha and Dinah is borrowed from a confrontation Washington had with Etta James.”
21. David Byrne’s American Utopia. Spike Lee. Watched 061722. HBO Max. Watched again with Betty. Recommended to anyone who would listen.
22. Moneyball. Completed (again) 073122.
23. David McCullough: Painting With Words. 2008. Watched again on 081022.
24. Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation. 2015. Watched via Paramount+ on 081022.
25. Luck (2022). Watched on Apple TV+ with Kim on 081222.
26. The Gray Man. Longish Netflix film that will likely be expanded into spin-offs, including limited series. Watched 2/3 on 081322.
27. The Blind Side (2009). Director: John Lee Hancock. Watched in Kim’s Garden Room on 081622.
28. Full Metal Jacket. Stanley Kubrick. Watched 090522. Netflix.
29. Bruce Springsteen: Legendary 1979 No Nukes Concerts.
30. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: Live in New York City (2001). 091022.
31. Jack Reacher. More Tom Cruise. 090822.
32. Top Gun: Maverick. Watched via purchase from Apple on 091422.
33. Toscana. Danish film about chef who inherits restaurant and estate in Tuscany. Average. Predictable. Beautiful.
34. The Green Knight. Watched on 092122. Vulture explains.
35. The Big Short. Adam McKay. Watched on 092422, with great amusement and appreciation.
36. Awakenings. Revisited Penny Marshall film when Netflix said it was leaving the stream. Watched 092822.
37. Zero Dark Thirty. Again. 0928 and 092922. New photos released from Sit Room. WaPo 043023.
38. Lou. Netflix thriller with Allison Janney in retired CIA agent role. Generally implausible premise, but exciting in spots. 092922.
39. The Outfit. Graham Moore directed Mark Rylance. Watched 093022.
40. Snatch. Guy Ritchie. Watched again 100522.
41. King of Thieves. Michael Caine as aging burglar. Great cast. Heavy accents.; needed subtitles. 101722 in Kim’s Garden Room.
42. Where the Crawdads Sing. Watched 111822.
43. The Good Nurse. Watched 112522. Jessica Chastain. Eddie Redmayne.
44. Causeway. Watched 120222. Jennifer Lawrence as a member of the Army Corps of Engineers returning from Afghanistan after an IED explosion. Apple TV+.
45. Muscle Shoals. In the vein of “Wrecking Crew” and “20 Feet From Stardom.” Watched 1207 and 120822. Story of Rick Hall and his studio. Features Aretha, et al.
46. Emancipation. Will Smith in Civil War era freedom story for Haitian slave. Watched 121422. Apple TV+. | “I’ve long wanted to tell a story about the inhumanity of slavery,” the film’s director, Antoine Fuqua, said in a statement.
47. Ticket to Paradise. George Clooney and Julia Roberts in rom-com. Reminds me why the genre never appealed to me, at least since “Sleepless in Seattle” and “When Harry Met Sally.” Watched 121722 on Peacock.
48. She Said. Maria Schrader (?). Harvey Weinstein story, NYT. 121922. | Schrader takes a page from the great journalism movies — most notably “All the President’s Men” and, more recently, “Spotlight” — by paring down the narrative to its leanest, most unfussy elements. “She Said” begins with a clever misdirect, with Twohey, played with whippetlike intensity by Carey Mulligan, seeming to be talking about Weinstein when in fact the subject is Trump, who as the movie opens is a presidential candidate…. “She Said” has earned its place in the pantheon of newspaper movies, if only because the filmmakers understand a fundamental truth: You can’t get the big things right unless you get the little things right, too. (WaPo review). Maureen Dowd writes “Requiem for the Newsroom” 043023.
49. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse. Animated short film. Watched 122722.

Watching | Movies & TV | 2021

1. Don’t Look Up. Adam McKay. Streep, DiCaprio, J Lawrence. Comet headed to Earth. 100%. Watched 122721.
2. Power of the Dog. Jane Campion. Netflix. Trailer. Started 121721. Completed 121821.
3. 12 Years a Slave. Watched 120921. Story of Solomon Northup.
4. Stillwater. Tom McCarthy. Matt Damon as Bill Baker. Watched 120821. Damon plays a father trying to find out what, if anything, his daughter did. “Bill Baker, [director Tom McCarthy] explains, is a man willing to do anything for his family, even when that is no longer legal and no longer right. The way that audiences are prone to trust Matt’s characters, even when they know what he’s doing is wrong … was “interesting to lean into.”
5. The Dig. Ralph Fiennes is an excavator” at the inception of WW2. Carey Mulligan.
6. Dune, Denis Villeneuve. Started 111921. Completed 112021.
7. Best Sellers. Michael Caine as crotchety, dying author. Young woman trying to save her father’s publishing company. Watched 111321. Average, at best.
8. No Time To Die (2021) Watched 111121.
9. The Electrical Life of Louis Wain. Benedict Cumberbatch as cat illustrator. Love story extraordinary. Watched 110821 on Prime.
10. Finch. Tom Hanks in post-apocalyptic travel story. Watched 110521 on Apple TV+.
11. Old Henry, Tim Blake Nelson. 1907, OK territory, Billy the Kid resurfaces. Watched 102621.
12. Casino Royale (2002)
13. Quantum of Solace (2008)
14. Skyfall (2012). Watched 101421
15. Spectre (2015). Watched 101821
16. Hopscotch
17. Deer Hunter, Michael Cimino, 091321. Check out 1:30.
18. Spotlight. Watched 091221.
19. Worth : Michael Keaton. Post 9/11 story about paying victims. Netflix. Watched 091121.
20. Under the Volcano. The story of AIR Studios in Montserrat. George Martin’s dream studio. Watched 090121 and 090221.
21. If Beale Street Could Talk, Barry Jenkins. NYT review. Finished 082621. Hulu.
22. Die Hard. Bruce Willis. Mentioned as a “perfect movie” by Ken Burns in Kara Swisher interview. 081921.
23. MASH, Altman. Gould, Sutherland, Skerritt. Watched 081721.
24. The Killing Fields, Roland Joffe. Story of Sydney Schanberg and Dith Pran. Watched 081621. IMDb.
25. Summer of Soul (... Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Questlove. 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, now a documentary. NYT review by Wesley Morris. Hulu 070321
26. Green Zone, Greengrass (2010) 062921
27. Nobody, Bob Odenkirk 062921
28. Zero Dark Thirty 062721
29. Black Hawk Down, Ridley Scott (2002) 062821
30. We Were Soldiers Once 062521
31. Hurt Locker, Kathryn Bigelow 062621
32. Nomadland 060821
33. Without Remorse, Michael B Jordan, Tom Clancy story (Apr 30). Watched 050421.
34. Flannery : Documentary; PBS
35. Twyla Moves : Documentary; PBS. Watched 03/30 and 03/31.
36. Bridge of Spies. For a second time.

TV Series 2021/2022

1. 1883. Paramount+. Prequel to Yellowstone. Features Sam Elliott.
2. Slow Horses. Based on series of Jackson Lamb novels by Mick Herron. Features Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas. Apple TV+. See article in TNY by Jill Lepore.
3. 1923. Prequel to Yellowstone. Features Helen Mirren and Harrison Ford. Started 122822.
4. Jack Ryan, S3. Prime. Started 122022. Total of 8 episodes. Russian nuclear weapon: is it real or not. Jack sold out by higher ups. Wendell Pierce plays Greer character.
5. Echo 3. Apple TV+. Two former military specialists try to track down one’s wife in Venezuala and Colombia. Completed 010623.
6. Three Pines. Prime. Watched on 1206 and 120722. Alfred Molina in 8 episode series about a murder in Canada. Gamache played by Alfred Molina. NYT story.
7. Severance, Apple TV+. Watched first two episodes on 091022.
8. East New York. CBS. First half season in late 2022. Returns January 2023.
9. The Crown, S5. Completed 112322. Charles and Diana are divorced. Marriages everywhere at odds. Tony Blair succeeds John Major.
10. Five Days at Memorial. Apple TV. Hospital in the days after Katrina. Started 090822. Walked away from this one for its simplicity and predictable outcomes.
11. Lincoln Lawyer, Netflix. Started with E1-2 on 082722. Completed S1 on 090422.
12. The Wire, S1. Drugs. Avon Barksdale, Stinger Bell, D’Angelo Barksdale VS Lester Freeman, McNulty, Lt. Daniels … Completed 071822.
13. The Old Man. Hulu. Jeff Bridges and John Lithgow. NYT interview. Started 070522. Watched E7 on 080922.
14. Succession, S3. Started 060922 (after reviewing final two episodes from S2). HBO. Completed S3 070522.
15. Benjamin Franklin, Ken Burns. PBS. Watched 053122.
16. Boston Legal, S1. “Seasons” were 20+ episodes back in this day.
17. The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey. Samuel Jackson. Started with Kim on 030922. Total of 6 episodes. Watched 4 as of 032522. Final episode available 040822.
18. Goliath, S4. Prime. Watched E1-2 again; then forged on successive nights. Completed 0313322. Hadleyville is the town in High Noon.
19. All Creatures Great and Small, PBS. Started S2 (7 eps) on 012922. Completed 022522.
20. Yellowstone. Started S1 on 012022. Told each other on 020522 that we would abandon. Also, the prequel …
21. Young Sheldon. Started S1 on 012822.
22. Jack Reacher, Prime. Started with 2 episodes on 020522. Completed 8 episode run on 020822.
23. Ali, Ken Burns. Completed 010122. 3 episodes
24. The Chair. Sandra Oh as English Dept Chair. Netflix. Two episodes and out. Not funny. Cliched story about an English department at a small liberal arts college.
25. Your Honor. Showtime. 10 episodes. Started from treadmill on 081721. Brian Cranston.
26. Good Lord Bird (The). Ethan Hawke. Showtime. Started 082021. My reading notes: I’m reading The Good Lord Bird by James McBride. It’s “about” John Brown, and it may be the umpteenth book I’ve read or listened to having to do with the Civil War, slavery, Black Lives issues, and the like. / It’s hilarious, if in a pathetic way. Reminds me of Clyde Edgerton, Charles Portis, John Kennedy Toole, Winston Groom, maybe even a little bit of Mark Twain, if somewhat racier. “She wore a flowered blue dress of the type whores naturally favored, and that thing was so tight that when she moved, the daisies got all mixed up with the azaleas.”
27. McCartney 3 2 1. 6 episodes. Hulu. Started 072721. Story in The Ringer.
28. 1971: The Year That Music Changed Everything, AppleTV+. 8-part docu-series. Completed July 20.
29. Ted Lasso, S1 (10 episodes). We’ve watched 6 through 063021. Completed 070221.
30. Mare of Easttown, HBO Max. First two of seven episodes on 060921. Completed final episode on 061421.
31. The Mosquito Coast, Justin Theroux, April 30, Apple TV. Started with E1 on 051021.
32. WandaVision, S1. We stopped after several episodes.
33. Oliver Sacks documentary
34. Flannery O’Connor documentary
35. The West Wing. S1, E1 on 042021.
36. For All Mankind, S1
37. Hemingway, Ken Burns. Started 040721. Finished E1 0408. Two episodes to go. Done. I kind of like Andy Rooney’s opinions.