October media diet

James by Percival Elliott | Thoroughly enjoyed this Pulitzer Prize-winning work of fiction, which reimagines Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by letting runaway slave Jim narrate the story and exact some revenge on all the racists.

Room on the Sea by André Aciman | I’m still working my way through some backlogged books I would have reviewed for the AP, but now just summarize here in a few sentences for family and friends. This one was three novellas with a loose theme of obsession and regret tying them together.  The author also wrote “Call Me By Your Name,” the novel that helped launch Timothée Chalamet’s movie career in 2017. 

One Battle After Another — Theatrical | I don’t think it was PTA’s finest film (that honor goes to “Boogie Nights”), but it held my attention even with its 2:42 run time. Loved the cinematography of the chase scene at the end, and it was nice to see both DiCaprio and Penn still chewing scenery after all these years. 

Ibiza: Love Drunk — Netflix | This Will Ferrell/Adam McKay movie missed me on release in 2018, but it was perfect on Columbus Day morning. Beautiful people doing funny things. 

All Of You — Amazon Prime | A not bad rom-dram (new word?) starring the tough guy from Ted Lasso (Brett Goldstein) and Imogen Poots. As a man who fell in love with a deep belief in the concept of soulmates, I didn’t respect certain elements of the story, but the acting was great.

Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning - Amazon Prime | Finally got around to watching the capstone of Tom Cruise’s eight-film run as Ethan Hunt, and pretty much found the finale the same as the other seven: Awesome action set pieces, an indecipherable plot, and a great theme song.

Play Dirty — Amazon Prime | Didn’t expect great things from this straight-to-Amazon movie starring Mark Wahlberg, but rather enjoyed it. It had a Bond-like feel, right down to the stylized opening credits, fitting since Amazon now owns that franchise. Marky Mark for 007? Good heist movie that delivers action and laughs.

Weapons — Amazon Prime | Really thought this was a horror movie about school shootings, but it’s not. It was oddly satisfying though, even with a supernatural plot that is never explained.

Eleanor the Great — Theatrical | NINETY-FIVE-YEAR-OLD June Squibb stars in this tear jerker, which played at our $6 cinema on a Tuesday. It’s a story about friendship and grief. All the feels.

The Diplomat, S3 | Aaron Sorkin meets Shonda Rhimes in season 3 of this Keri Russell-led sexy thriller. It leaned a little too heavy on the “who’s sleeping with who?” plots this season, but it’s always fun to imagine a world where smart people are in charge of global affairs. You know, fantasy.

Invasion, S3 — Apple TV | This series lost its way a couple years ago, but I’m a completist (or a sadist?) and want to see how it ends. At this point, I don’t know if the aliens who have obliterated most of Earth are actually good or evil, and the show’s characters are divided into pro- and anti-alien factions. Google tells me Season 4 will wrap it all up.

Slow Horses, S5 — Apple TV | Still chugging along after five seasons, this one has started to get a little rote, with Gary Oldman’s character always three steps ahead and refusing to give his merry band of disgraced Mi5 spies the barest of compliments, even when they deserve them. The season finale gave me some hope that it might go a little deeper next season though.