Recent Watches

I usually post the things I’m watching in my favorites of the month post but I really liked the stuff I watched this month so I wanted to go more in depth with my thoughts on each of them. It’s not book-related but I think I wanted to change it up a bit. Enjoy!

Star Wars #4-6

What it’s about: People being badass in space and trying to defeat an evil Darth Vader.

My thoughts: Yeah, I’ve waited 21 years to watch Star Wars and this is coming from a girl who loves scifi. Well technically that’s not true. I did watch it once in 5th grade but I don’t remember what I ate yesterday much less what I felt about Star Wars in 5th grade. I think my favorite has to be The Empire Strikes Back although it would have been The Return of the Jedi if not for the slave Leia part *rolls eyes*.  I love how even though it was made in the 1980’s there’s still some shots that manage to awe me. I love the humor, the characters, the imagination, the soundtrack, the near perfect encapsulation of the hero’s journey. Also R2D2 > C3Po

Sleeping With Other People

What it’s about: About a woman who is a serial cheater and a man who is afraid of commitment and they fall in love (awwwwww)

My thoughts: Nothing much actually happens in this movie at least plotwise but I loved all the little conversations and the chemistry the two main characters had. Recommended if you need a little pick-me-up.

Hot Girls Wanted

What it’s about: A documentary follows a bunch of girls as they make their way into the amateur porn industry

My thoughts: It’s interesting actually seeing the faces and getting to really know the girls who work in the amateur porn industry. It was like exploring a secret underground club except porn is not exactly “secret”. Americans seem to hate porn and yet porn websites have more views than twitter and even Facebook. I wish they had explored this contradiction even more. The documentary kind of sheds a sympathetic light onto their situations and often the demeaning practices that they have to go through. And even though the documentary may not offer anything especially new to the topic, it at least offers an insightful and empathetic view on these girls’ lives.

Blackfish

What it’s about: Exploring the inhumane practice of Seaworld capturing killer whales from their natural habitat but also the inhumane conditions they live in as a performer at Seaworld

My thoughts: A documentary is suppose to unbiased but I love that this documentary can be objective but also incredibly emotionally wrenching at the same time. It’s been said that humans can get emotionally attached to basically anything if that anything displays humanlike tendencies (I mean look at Ratatouille, Wall-E, Toy Story) and I think the documentary does a good job of helping you care about the fate of these whales beyond just saying “aww, that’s sad” and moving on. It’s effective and shocking. And if you were doubting the effectiveness of this documentary, after it was released, Seaworld suffered a loss of $15.9 million and a 5% decrease in attendance at the beginning of 2013. Seaworld San Diego has also announced their plans to end killer-whale shows in November 2015. So, there you go.

The Imitation Game

What it’s about: Someone getting a plastic surgery to imitate Benedict Cumberbatch’s cheekbones. Jk. It’s a fictionalized movie about the life of Alan Turing, a famous code hacker as he tries to break the German code for the British government during WWII.

My thoughts: There are two sides of the coin to this movie that I felt kind of took away from it. In the movie, Turing (Cumberbatch) is depicted as a very socially awkward, snobby person with Asperger syndrome. In reality, it was said that even though Turing was a little odd, he definitely had a social life and good working relationships. The reason why this matters is because I feel like they tried to capitalize on the emotional side of the movie because Turing was kind of romanticized as this person with Asperger’s even though that’s not really how he was and they only made him that way so it could be more emotional. I’m surprised the film decided not to spotlight Turing’s homosexuality but I think that just made it all the more heartbreaking seeing someone who who has done so much be seen as somehow less because of his orientation. The plot was intense, the characters sympathetic, the story heartbreaking so overall, a very memorable movie.

The Intern

What it’s about: A sweet friendship that blossoms between the founder of a fashion company and a retired businessman.

A funny and very sweet feel-good movie and surprisingly very feminist which I appreciated. But then again, that was kind of tainted by the ending. Ugh the ending was so bad…

Superstore (TV)

What’s it about: A workplace comedy following a group of employees working in a store called Cloud-9 (which is very similar to Walmart lol..)

My thoughts: If you liked Parks and Recreation at all, you need to stop what you’re doing and watch this. It has the same kind of humor and eccentric characters that I’m a sucker for. Whoever had the idea of having a comedy in a retail store is a genius. Think of all the possibilities!! The writing is a little formulaic but what really makes it good are the actors, their chemistry together, and of course the jokes. This show is so funny, not even kidding, at least funnier than Parks and Rec was in season 1.

And that’s what I’ve been watching in January! Let me know if you’ve seen any of these and what you thought of them, would you watch any of them?

A quick sidenote that if you don’t see a lot of me in the next two weeks, it’s because I’m burrowing under mountains of notes that I need to study for midterms :// Joy.