What I Watched: February 2021

Well, hello March. It’s yet another month of lockdown to go but at least the weather has taken a turn for the better. We get out of the house every weekend for our daily allowed exercise from the government and when you have a 3-year-old that means sometimes layering up for an hour of muddy football, but this weekend has been absolutely glorious.

I have to tell you something only you’ll appreciate, too. You might remember for Christmas my husband got me a Schitt’s Creek jumper, all black with the words ‘Ew, David’ on it. Well, my daughter just loves to match clothing lately and has gone on and on and on about wanting her own ‘Ew David’ jumper. She’s never even watched the show (and why would she?) but with the help of eBay, I managed to make her one. I promise you she loves it, but trying to get her still for a photo is impossible!

Anyway! I’m here to round up all the movies I watched last month, so let’s get on with it, shall we?

Next (2007) – Oh my god, this movie was corny as hell but I loved it. Nicolas Cage plays a magician with the ability to see into his own future, but only by a few minutes. The government want to hire him to stop a nuclear attack but he wants nothing to do with it. It’s as silly as it sounds and if it were anyone but Nic Cage I would be slating it, but it was entertaining. I still can’t decide whether I loved or hated that ending!

Malcolm & Marie (2021) – I’m sorry I never got around to writing more about this one. I put off watching it for a while because on paper it sounded like the equivalent of watching paint dry but I was hooked. It’s basically almost 2 hours of Zendaya and John David Washington arguing but it’s glorious. They’re both in the wrong (but he’s so much worse) and Zendaya gives one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. This movie hasn’t gotten anywhere near enough awards attention as it deserves!

Red Dot (2021) – Full Review

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021) – Full Review

Willy’s Wonderland (2021) – Full Review

To All the Boys: Always and Forever (2021) – I very nearly didn’t watch this. I haven’t read the books but I hopped on the band wagon when everyone raved about the first movie and I loved it. The second one, not so much. It was boring and I think I spent the whole time on my phone. But, you know, worldwide pandemic, nothing to do, I gave the third movie a go. It really captured the magic that made the first one so fun. I’m glad they didn’t make Peter be a jerk about LJ’ following her dreams. I’m fully on board for the fourth movie now!

Black Bear (2020) – I don’t even know how to write a review for this one. Just know that I loved it with every bit of my being. I adore Aubrey Plaza and damn, she needs to be given more roles like this. I can’t wrap my head around what actually happened in this movie but I want to watch it again and again.

Supernova (2020) – Weirdly I ended up watching this in the same week as watching Still Alice (20214) for the Hidden Gems challenge, and sadly it marred my enjoyment of it slightly. Supernova is a beautiful and heart-wrenching story of dementia but it didn’t go into the depth that Still Alice did. It’s unfair to compare them of course because they tackle the subject in different ways, but Supernova was a much quieter movie than I was expecting. Fantastic performances though, especially by Stanley Tucci.

I Care a Lot (2021) – Full Review

Monster Hunter (2020) – I knew this would be garbage but my husband is a fan of the games and so he wanted to see it. It’s got some impressive CGI  and some cool action scenes but that’s about it. There’s a fun, feline nod to the games that my husband had a little nerd moment over but that was the highlight really. The product placements for Coca Cola and Hershey’s were unintentionally hilarious, I’ll give them that.

Juliet, Naked (2018) – This has been on my watchlist forever and I don’t even remember who recommended it to me. It was probably after I raved about how much I love Chris O’Dowd, though. This was a surprisingly good rom com actually, with a bit of a love triangle thrown in there.

News of the World (2020) – I’ve been putting this movie off because I’m not a fan of westerns. Many other reviewers said that the western element wasn’t really the main genre though so that and the fact that Tom Hanks is the lead is what made me give in, in the end. I mean, when does Tom Hanks ever give a bad performance? I wasn’t a huge fan of the movie, it was too slow for me, but not surprisingly, Hanks was brilliant and that final scene really tugged on the old heartstrings.

Mother’s Day (2016) – Look, sometimes you just need to kick back on the sofa after a long day of parenting in a pandemic and watch a bit of trash with Jason Sudeikis and Jennifer Aniston in, you know? Don’t judge me! The only bad thing to come of Love Actually’s release was the copy cat movies that came afterwards. You know the ones, movies with about 20 characters in who are all somehow connected. It was nice at least to see Jennifer Aniston play an awkward character for a chance, and Jason Sudeikis…raps. So there’s that?

I also watched Clouds of Sils Maria (2014), Equals (2014), and Still Alice (2014) as part of Mettel Ray’s Hidden Gems Challenge. Last month my pick was Kristen Stewart if you hadn’t already guessed!