(June 15 – 21)

I have no major writing updates this week (see last week, if you like, which is virtually identical to what this week’s update would be but without the lighting shenanigans). However, I did watch a bunch of movies that were sufficiently distinct from one another that I thought I’d share a few words on each.

Titanic 2. Yes, Titanic 2–not a sequel to the James Cameron film, but a movie about a ship called Titanic 2. I was absolutely counting on this being terrible and I wasn’t disappointed. It’s the perfect bad movie: it strives for heights of unachievable excellence only to fall crashing to the floor under the weight of the incompetence bringing it to the screen. The icing on the cake is that it tries to rip off not only Titanic, but The Poseidon Adventure and The Abyss too. And does all of it terribly. (This is available on Tubi.TV should you want to want to check it’s terribleness out for yourselves).

The Limehouse Golem. An interesting british horror/thriller with a twist. Came across a bit like it could have been the pilot for a high-caliber period-set TV detective series (bit like The Alienist), but looked gorgeous throughout. Doesn’t quite reach the high bar it’s aiming for, but worth a watch.

The Spy Who Came In From The Cold. Over the weekend I found myself in the mood for something vintage and engrossing, and managed to find this 1967 classic on Amazon Prime. It’s a superb example of the kind of thriller they rarely make any more—slow and character-driven, basically—and the movie absolutely thrives on Richard Burton’s performance as the gruff antihero. (This one’s on Prime Video).

Olympus Has Fallen. Saturday night popcorn fare. This made for perfectly good entertainment, but I was fascinated by how brutal it is. I have no problem with on-screen violence but I’ve found that it tends to come in two broad categories:the guns akimbo blockbuster style (with minimum blood); and the no-holds-barred John Wick/The Raid type of violence. This movie presents itself as a popcorn action blockbuster, but does it with R18 violence.