Another couple of months have flown by, we are now in the final quarter of the year. It means it's time for me to share what I've been watching lately. The summer actually ended up being a fairly tame viewing period for me, compared to my previous posts in this series. As always, I'll be going through the TV Shows and Films separately.
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| Taken from Google Images |
TV
Mrs America
First on my list is Mrs America, a miniseries from HBO. This came from the creative team behind Mad Men, which is a favourite show of mine. It follows a movement in the 1970s about the Equal Rights Amendment. This was a proposed bill to get women equal rights in America. It follows both sides of the argument, the women who were for and against it. Each episode was based around a different woman in the series. I found it to be a really engaging show, especially in today's climate, with the ERA only just having passed in America. If you're interested in feminism and politics, I'd recommend. Plus it has a phenomenal cast and crew behind it.
Lucifer Season Five Part One
Next, is another favourite of mine and that is the most recent series of Lucifer. I have been banging on about Lucifer since I first watched in 2016. Compared to season four, which has been my favourite so far, this season was okay. It still had that enjoyable Lucifer vibe. I am looking forward to part two, especially the musical episode. My favourite was the 1920s noir episode, they just had too much fun with that and made it really enjoyable.
Avatar the Last Airbender
Since rewatching Legend of Korra in April/May, I had been in the mood for Avatar. I then started seeing lots of people on Twitter rewatching it and that was all I needed to decide to rewatch it. Like LoK, I haven't watched it fully in about four years. This a childhood favourite of mine and it still stands as being a great show for me as an adult. My favourite character is Zuko, he's so dramatic and he goes through one of the best redemption arcs in the history of TV. I've now started reading the comics as I've been meaning to read them for years. If you haven't seen Avatar, I'd highly recommend it as it's so good.
Umbrella Academy Season Two
A show I was very excited for was the second season of Umbrella Academy. My uni housemates and I had binged the first season back in 2019. I loved it so much. However, I ended up not being the biggest fan of this season. I just didn't find it as engaging as the first season. It also felt like it was falling into that trap where it's difficult to top the first season. I think I'm in the minority as most people I've spoken to enjoyed season two. I will continue watching season three when it comes out, but I don't think I'll be going into it with as much excitement as this season.
Fosse Verdon
This is a show I watched for university. I've been meaning to watch it for a while as I'm quite interested in Broadway theatre. It tells the story of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon, a married couple in the Broadway theatre industry. They worked together on projects such as Cabaret and Chicago. It follows their lives from before they met to the end of their lives. It was told in a non-linear narrative, which I really enjoyed. The performances were solid and the crew behind it were also great. I would highly recommend it.
His Dark Materials
Another show I watched for university was His Dark Materials. It's been on my radar for a while and when it ended up being an example of something I could watch this year, I had to choose it. After the first couple of episodes, I found I was fully invested. The world building was a little bit clunky for a BBC adaptation. I would like to have had a bit more explanation at times. Again, it was another show with a solid cast and crew behind it. I know they've filmed a second season and that it's coming out soon. I'm quite excited for it and I'll have to finally read the books as I never read them as a child.
The Capture
I had started watching The Capture this time last year, but I had to return to university so I couldn't finish it. It was about to vanish from BBC iPlayer so I decided to watch it. The show had such a promising premise, about how you can't always trust modern technology and how we're advancing as a society. However, the delivery was a bit clunky and just didn't work for me. I think it was the scripts that didn't work as the central performances were very good. I did not like the ending at all and was sadly quite disappointed by this show.
Euphoria
The last TV show on my list is Euphoria. I had wanted to watch this since it dropped and was getting a lot of hype. I finally watched it this past week and man, it's so good. I'd compare it to Sex Education with it tackling issues to teens/young people and making them realistic. It doesn't diminish any of the issues and this show felt very realistic. As I keep on saying, it had a solid cast and crew behind it. I really enjoyed the writing style. The soundtrack was also incredible. I'm very excited for season two after the finale.
Films
In Bruges
If you're a long time reader of my blog, then you will know one of my favourite films is In Bruges. I have seen it six times in the last year. I just adore it. Last year, my family and I went to Bruges. Obviously, this year we couldn't go to Bruges so we decided to rewatch the film. I've seen it so many times I can quote it and I've read the screenplay. I will always adore Martin McDonagh's work and this is no exception.
Aladdin (2019)
While my family had Disney+, we decided to watch Aladdin. None of us had seen it in the cinema. It was enjoyable, but I feel it was missing something from the original. I did like the addition of Jasmine's song, but I found Jaffar to be an underwhelming villain. It certainly had some impressive visuals.
Beauty and the Beast (2017)
Sticking with the Disney train, I rewatched Beauty and the Beast. I have a controversial opinion and that is I prefer this to the original cartoon. It gave it that slight modern update it needed. It also had a bit more humour to it than I remember the original having. I really enjoyed this and will continue to enjoy it when I rewatch it every now and then.
Inglorious Basterds
A very different film I watched is Inglorious Basterds. I am slowly starting to watch more Tarantino films. I had wanted to watch this for a while and it actually ended up being a film I watched for university. I didn't realise that Tarantino films were that long. It was not what I was expecting when I went into it, but then I have no idea what I was actually expecting from it. I did enjoy it and it had that trademark Tarantino level of violence. I would consider watching more Tarantino films as I've enjoyed the two I watched.
The Invisible Man
I'm not one to normally enjoy horror or psychological thrillers, however I did enjoy The Invisible Man. A new adaptation of the story of the same name by HG Wells and countless film adaptations over the year. This one had a more modern and clever approach to it. Elizabeth Moss gave a stellar performance. You really didn't know if you could trust what you were seeing. A surprising film for me, I may consider watching more in this genre in the future.
Thor Ragnarok
You can't go wrong with a Marvel film. You especially can't go wrong with Thor Ragnarok. This is a favourite for me and my family. There's not much I can say except that I enjoy the humour in it and the performances. It's a solid film.
Jojo Rabbit
After watching Thor, we had to rewatch Jojo Rabbit. We saw it on New Years Eve last year and all loved it. I was desperate to watch it again as I had had some issues with my hearing when we saw it and had missed half the jokes. It rightly deserved an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. It managed to make quite a dark topic funny without it being offensive. It's a film I see myself coming back to time and time again.
Black Panther
With the sad passing of Chadwick Boseman at such a young age, we decided to watch Black Panther in his honour. I know a lot of people find this film empowering and it's sad it took so long to see a black superhero on our screens. It is an amazing film. I was devastated by his passing, but glad he was able to make such a profound impact on the film industry during his time.
Amelie
On my birthday, I decided I wanted to watch Amelie. I have fallen head over heels with the musical and needed to rewatch the original. I think it's on its way to becoming a favourite film of mine. I love the story and the characters. The music is also incredible. I haven't really seen a film like it. It just reaffirmed my love for Paris and French films. It's one I would highly recommend.
Cabaret
As I mentioned earlier, I watched a TV show about the original creator of this film. I had gotten some of the lyrics stuck in my head so we decided to watch it. It's a surprisingly good film and works as one of the best musical films out there. It has inspired me to pick up works by Christopher Isherwood, who wrote the book the film is based on. Plus some of the songs are absolute ear worms.
Wreck it Ralph
My friends were horrified to hear I hadn't seen Wreck it Ralph, so we watched it. I found it to be an okay Disney films, not the best I've seen but by no means the worst. I've heard interesting things about the sequel. It was enjoyable and that's about as much as I have to say about it.
Basil the Great Mouse Detective
A favourite Disney film of mine is Basil the Great Mouse Detective. This is essentially a Sherlock Holmes retelling but with mice. I've loved it since childhood. It's probably where my love of Sherlock stems from. It's a hidden gem of a Disney film and not many people have seen it. If you have Disney+, then I would really suggest watching it as it's a beautiful Disney film.
The Rescuers
My friends were then horrified to hear that I had never seen The Rescuers, which is considered to be a classic Disney film. Again, I found it to be okay. I have no interest in watching the sequel at the moment. Maybe if I had been a child, I would have enjoyed it but as an adult it just wasn't for me.
Joker
Joker was a film I had mixed feelings about. I wanted to watch it but I was also not that fussed about it. I finally watched it with friends. I can see why so many people find it enjoyable. I'm not sure where I stand on it. I think the writing and acting were great. I'm just not sure why we needed a Joker origin story. I would consider watching the sequel though.
Enola Holmes
Finally, I watched Enola Holmes. As I've already mentioned, I do love a Sherlock inspired story. I found this to be enjoyable. I can't help but agree with the comments online that it would have been better as a TV show. It had a solid cast and creative team behind it. I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had been a bit younger, say closer to Enola's age. It is nice that there is a strong female detective young women can look up to.
And that concludes all the things I've watched recently, what have you been watching recently?
Carenza :) x
