12/16: Monthly Recap

This is the last post for the year! 2016 has been a year of...I'm thinking of anything positive to say but I don't think I've had as much headaches as I did this year. It was a good year personally, but environment-wise, it was not. Maybe 2017 should be about staying positive and surviving, and fighting for justice. There's a lot of darkness in the world, and hopefully the goodness of humanity shrines through. 

December has been an average month for movies. This is also the month where I should catch up on this year's releases before movie lists roll out. While I keep a ranked list, I don't think I'll be doing a top films for 2016 list because it wasn't a good movie year for me. I wasn't very passionate about most of the movies I've seen, so it's not ideal to make a list where I only genuinely adore 5 movies I've seen that were released this year. Looking forward to other people's lists, though. With that, here are the movies I've seen this month.

What I've Read So Far (4Q)

This is my book round up for the last three months of the year, selecting three books per month to share with you. I started October in a reading slump; nothing I was trying read was grabbing my attention. November started and ended with some pretty good books. December was a pretty good month too, but I mostly kept to series. Here are some of the books I’ve read during the last few months of the year.

Blind Spot Series 2017

The Blind Spot Series is a yearly event hosted by Ryan of The Matinee. Despite my failure to complete my viewing list this year, I am going to give it another go, but I’m going to play to my strengths this year...whatever it may be. Here is my list for this year’s blind spot. 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The first time I watched this film back in 2012, I wasn’t the biggest fan of it. To be honest, I wasn’t over the moon with the book as other people were, so the whole ordeal was just an ‘okay’ for me. Fast forward to 2016, when I gave this film another shot, and developed a deeper appreciation for it. A lot of things have changed in those years, and when you’re someone whose diet has been of safety and security behind the walls of your education, there’s a need to dig a little deeper to the reality that’s going to claw its way into your views and principles once you’re out that gate. My worldview isn’t so jaded now, and I think that change in perspective is what garnered this film a new sense of appreciation for me.

11/16: Monthly Recap

As the year is coming to an end, I’ve been slowly evaluating my interests in terms of movie viewings, and to an extent, writing about it. I usually try to get a good number of movies per month but other things are happening and I’m fine with it. I haven’t seen a lot than I’d like, and that’s ok. I haven't written much either, but it's all right. That just means there are more great movies to look forward to. This month is certainly no different. Here are the movies I’ve seen this month.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is the latest movie to grace the Harry Potter Universe. Focusing on the adventures of Newt Scamander, this installment introduces a magical world outside the London world that we’re used to, opening the doors to a new realm of magic. Set in New York in the 1920’s, Newt Scamander arrives to America for his own reasons, only to have some of his creatures accidentally set loose in the city, threatening the exposure of wizarding folk. 

Kubo and the Two Strings

Kubo and the Two Strings is a tale where past meets the present. The movie opens with a voiceover narration and a woman trapped in the middle of the sea during a thunderstorm. The approach on storytelling makes it seem that the narrator is simply passing on the story of the woman, but it is when the titular character is introduced, an eye already missing from his face. At present day, it is later revealed that Kubo has quite a past, and must now journey to protect himself, learning about his roots and source of power along the way.

Trailer: Beauty and the Beast

I don't think I've been as this excited for a Disney live action movie as I am right now with Beauty and the Beast. I've struggled to find a performance of Emma Watson's that I liked beyond her years in Harry Potter, and based on this trailer she looks like she's going to do great. The set also looks fantastic. 

Doctor Strange

Doctor Strange is Marvel Studio’s newest addition to their universe, introducing characters and stories that deal with the mystical realm. The new superhero is in the form of Stephen Strange, a bright neurosurgeon whose life takes a turn when he loses his abilities due to an accident. He goes and seeks for a way to heal, leading him to the door of The Ancient One, and his journey to becoming the next superhero. Note: this review contains spoilers.

10/16: Monthly Recap

Happy Halloween! I'm not really much of a halloween person so the only thing I am looking forward for the week is that rare midweek break - which happens to be tomorrow. October was a so-so month for my movie viewing. I have yet to watch Doctor Strange (and avoiding reviews) but maybe I'll get to it sometime this week. Here's what I did end up watching this month. 

Terminator Genisys

Terminator: Genisys is the recent attempt to reboot a franchise that has earning power is in need of a reboot due to the decline of the previous attempts. This installment is a means to rewrite the Terminator franchise events in hopes to launch a new take on the series. Unfortunately, there were factors that cannot be overlooked that led to the dismissal of the revival.

Blind Spot: The Rocky Horror Picture Show

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is one of those popular movies with a huge following but I know nothing about the plot. The only person I knew in this movie was Tim Curry, and that’s because his face is usually plastered when this movie comes up in conversations. When I started my viewing, I immediately understood why this has such a big following; it was really fun.

Train to Busan

The movie opens to a checkpoint area by the highway. Men wearing protective gear patrol the area. A delivery truck passes by and stops, the men checking the contents, and allows the truck to pass through. In a fluster over the checkpoint, the driver accidentally hits a deer and decides to drive off instead of tending to the dead animal. A short point passes by and the deer springs back to life, but instead of the eyes being its normal color, it has changed into light blue.

Swiss Army Man

I wasn’t sure what to make of this movie. It’s a weird fantasy-type movie where a man encounters a dead body, which turns out to be more than a dead body. This body can produce drinking water, and limbs that can be used as cutting tools. But more than the surrealism of the whole thing, the movie’s events speak a lot about the character’s self-actualization.

Fall 2016 TV Part 1

Fall TV season is finally here! A lot of the shows I watch are returning sitcoms/dramas, so I don’t have much of a TV void to fill. Still, I ended up watching a few pilot episodes this month and here are my thoughts about them!

Thursday Movie Picks: Halloween Edition - Witches/Warlocks

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. Every October for the past years, themes are centered around Halloween. For this Thursday, it is about witches and warlocks in film. Here are my picks for this week.

What I've Read So Far (3Q)

The third quarter of my reading year is rolling to a close, and compared to the first two quarters, I’ve been diving more into the graphic novel/manga territory. I was consistently on a hunt for a really quick read and they fill my desire for it. Nonetheless, here are some of the non-graphic novel books I’ve read for the months of July until September. I have included links that would take you to their respective Goodreads page.

09/16: Monthly Recap

By my standards I got to watch a decent number of movies, although I have been pacing myself. Though it doesn’t mean that a good chunk of them were amazing; a lot were a bit so-so to good. Nothing massively disappointing. With that said here are the movies I watched this September!

A Conspiracy of Faith

The third installment of the Department Q movies, it immediately launches into the case at hand as a bottle washes up on shore with a note dating from six years ago. Since it is an unknown case, it was sent to Department Q, a police branch that handles unsolved cases. This leads Detectives Carl Morck and Assad on a manhunt whom has been kidnapping children from religious sects, with two children falling privy to his hands.

Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong

A movie built on conversation isn't unusual anymore, nor does a city playing a role in the movie's atmosphere. This is the case for Emily Ting's Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong, starring real life couple Bryan Greenberg and Jamie.Chung. The film spans out in 2 separate days, and follows two people around the city of Hong Kong.

Sunshine Blogger Award

Getter from Mettel Ray and Katie from She Likes Movies have kindly nominated me for the award. I don’t think I’ve done these in a long time, but now’s probably a good place to start. 

Rules: 

Post the award on your blog 
Thank the person who nominated you 
Answer the 11 questions they set you 
Pick another 11 bloggers (and let them know they are nominated!) 
Set them 11 questions 

I’m going to skip the last two, as I think the people who I am going to nominate have already done this post (sorry!).

Me Before You

Prior to reading the novel earlier this year, my interest in the adaptation wasn’t much – it won’t hurt to miss it, or go ahead and watch it. Needless to say, after the novel (and countless loops of the trailer – thanks, bookstore), the expectations for the movie were a bit high. Emilia Clark and Sam Claflin looked perfectly cast for the role. I ended up anticipating this, and instead I was left with mixed feelings.

08/16: Monthly Recap

August went by a little slower than the previous months! This month’s wrap up also includes movies I’ve seen in July. Here’s what I’ve watched in July and August!

Gladiator

When Gladiator was released (and eventually won the Best Picture Oscar), everyone I knew wanted to watch it. They heard it was epic and grand, something expected of a historical film like this. I would have probably liked it as much if I had seen it during that time. This was not the case.

Thursday Movie Picks: Scandanavian Language Movies

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. The themes for the year are already posted in her site, so it’s never too late to join in. The last Thursday of the month is dedicated to movies in the Scandinavian language. The Scandinavian region is made up of several countries in northern Europe. I don’t watch a lot of their films so my choices this week is rather limited. A common theme for these films (beside their region) is that I’ve reviewed them all in the blog. Here are my picks for the week:

Against the Crowd Blogathon

Wendell from Dell on Movies is back with the Against the Crowd blogathon, and this time he’s co-hosting it with KG of KG’s Movie Rants. The blogathon runs until August 26, so head over to their sites for the rules (and join in!). I haven’t joined in any blogathons recently, and I had fun participating last year, so I’m definitely in for this one.

Thursday Movie Picks: Movies About Writing/Writers

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. For themes and entries of other participants, head over to her site and join in! This week is about writing and writers, but we can’t use real life writers – so no biographies! Here are my picks for this week.

Amelie

I was clearing out my drafts folder (I'm one of those people with impossible inboxes) when I unearthed this old review of Amelie I wrote a few years ago and never got around to publishing. I did end up editing this a bit, but I wanted to preserve my original thoughts on the film, so here is a slightly updated version of the review.

Thursday Movie Picks: Summer Camp

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. This week is about summer camp movies. The concept of summer camp that I’m familiar with are only in the movies – the sleep-away type with cabins and such. Here are my picks this week.

Thursday Movie Picks: Female Ensembles

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. This week is about female ensemble casts. I used up most of the movies I’ve seen in previous weeks, so it’s slim pickings for this week. Which just means I need to watch more women-centric films. Here are my picks this week.

Thursday Movie Picks: Single Location Movies

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. For this week’s theme (and future themes!), head over to her site. This week is about movies set in a single location. Here are my picks this week:

06/16: Monthly Recap

So that was June. This month has gone by really fast! I've only watched four movies this month, by far the lowest for the year. I've been preoccupied with so many things, and I don't think things will change anytime soon. With that, here are the four movies I've seen this month.

What I've Read so Far (2Q)

With multiple waves of reading slumps, I’m surprised I’m able to have this list at all. I’m glad about my reading progress, but compared to last quarter’s, the selections aren’t that memorable. I’ve mostly stuck to graphic novels during those reading slumps but I am hoping to make a transition to longer books because I’ve acquired new titles and I have to be on the mood to read those. Like the last entry, I’ve chosen three books per month (making a total of nine per quarterly list), and I’ve linked them to their respective Goodreads page and provided my rating for them as well. Here are some books I read during the months of April to June.

Thursday Movie Picks: School Competition

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. For more themes and entries of other participants, head over to her site! This week’s theme is about school competitions, but not sporting competitions. Here are my picks for this week.

Thursday Movie Picks: Store/Supermarket/Mall Movies

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. This week is about store/supermarket/mall movies. My choices this week is mostly set in a store. Here are my choices for the week.

05/16: Monthly Recap

It's already mid-June...and I'm just writing my May wrap up. The past few weeks got away from me. I went on a quick holiday with my family, and have been busy with work recently, so I'm only finding time now to write this. This space will be a bit quiet for now; I have been thinking about the blog and the direction it's going to. Stepping away from doing anything blog-related has been great, but that just means there's a lot of stuff to catch up on.

Thursday Movie Picks: Wedding Movies

It’s Thursday, which means it’s time for Thursday Movie Picks! This is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. For themes and other entries, and if you want to participate, head over to her site! This week is about wedding movies. I love attending weddings, though participating in them (like part of the entourage or something) is something else. Here are my picks this week:

Thursday Movie Picks: Alien Movies

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. To see the future themes for participation, as well as posts from other bloggers, head over to her site! This week’s theme involves aliens, specifically alien movies. Here are my picks this week.

The Family Fang

The opening sequence immediately throws the audience in the middle of the story – the disappearance of Caleb and Camille Fang, two artists known for their eccentric experimental art. The movie is then partly told in a series of flashbacks and interviews in order to understand the world that Caleb and Camille have perpetuated, and the kind of world their children, Annie and Baxter have tried to distance themselves from.

Thursday Movie Picks: Non-English Language Movies - Spanish

Thursday Movie Picks is hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. This is a weekly event where she provides us with a theme, and we give three movies that fit said theme. This week's theme is Spanish movies. Here are my picks this week:

Our Little Sister

When the father of sisters Shachi, Yoshino and Chika passed away, they went to the funeral despite having not seen their father for ages. They also meet their half-sister, Suzu, his daughter from his second marriage. On a whim, they ask Suzu to live with them, which she agreed to. 

The Martian

The Martian was one of my favorite books read last year. It’s funny; it’s adventurous and would definitely make a great film. Despite the influx of space-related flicks as of late, it was a good piece to adapt. I had a bit of doubt about it, particularly due to Matt Damon being casted as the lead character, and that his character might be reminiscent of his earlier astronaut character in 2014’s Interstellar. Nonetheless, the movie didn’t disappoint.

04/16: Monthly Recap

Things basically went south on the blogging front. I haven't had the time to watch any new movies, hence another small movie count. I have caught up with Blindspot and the second season of You're the Worst, as well as binge-watched season 2 of Kimmy Schmidt. It's not as good as the first season, but I cannot wait for the third one. I think the first few days of May will still be a bit busy on my end, but I am looking forward for some actual downtime to watch (and hopefully review) movies.

Thursday Movie Picks: Affairs

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly event hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. Head over to her blog to check out the entries of other participants. This week's theme is about affairs. Here are my picks for the week.

What I've Read So Far (1Q)

As seen with my dwindling movie-watching count, it has been replaced with copious amounts of reading. So while I'm getting to tackle some of the books on my never-ending TBR pile, I thought I'd share with you some of the books I've read for the first quarter of the year.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

I’m not even going to try to sugar coat it, but Batman v Superman was awful. Despite the critical slams, I went ahead and watched it just to see how terrible people are making this out to be. I was disappointed, because there were good parts and ideas, but the sum of all these parts just made one terrible production. I hope this will be remedied in the future movies if the DC franchise wants to survive in the cutthroat world of superhero movies. This review contains spoilers.

03/16: Monthly Recap

March certainly flew by. I was hoping to watch a lot more movies this month before things got busy, but to no avail. On the plus side, I think I'm almost out of the slump. So here are the movies I've seen this month.

Mockingjay Part 1 & 2

Mockingjay is the third book in the Hunger Games series and frankly my least favorite one. So it made no sense (besides financial reasons) for the third book to be split to two. I had to wait for a while before watching the two movies, and I will be reviewing them as one. Each movie was a bit lengthy and it could have trimmed down a few scenes, but I thought the movies were good in a general sense.

Blind Spot: Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Monty Python is a famous British comedy group primarily known for their show Monty Python’s Flying Circus. This was their second motion picture, focusing on the Arthurian legend in where Arthur and his knights are on the search for the Holy Grail. For someone unfamiliar with their work, anything is to be expected. While I loved the way that the group tackled the legend, and had some favorite funny bits, I think this film was not for me.

Thursday Movie Picks: Intersecting Stories

Thursday Movie Picks is a weekly meme hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. This week's theme is about intersecting stories - so an ensemble cast with different story arcs that are somewhat interconnected with each other. Here are my picks for this week.

NY Times By The Book Tag

I've been a bit bookish lately, checking out blogs/vlogs of the book community. There's a lot of tags going on out there, but one that caught my attention was the NY Times By The Book Tag. This was created by Marie Berg, and this looked fun and interesting and I wanted to participate, so here we go!