[–] 9 points 2 days ago

You don't need to know any Japanese to pretty easily navigate metro Japan. Basically everything in Tokyo that you need to read is in Japanese first and English second. The same is mostly true in Kyoto but to a lesser extent. If you have an internet connection the trains are so accurate that you don't even need to know the name of the stop you're getting off at. Google maps says "get on the 3:12 train and exit at 3:38" and it's accurate enough that you hit your stops

If you want to leave metro Japan then it gets a lot harder with less English around and the people are less accommodating but it's still pretty manageable. This was in 2018 so I would imagine there's more English around but people are probably less sympathetic to tourists

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  • [–] 3 points 2 days ago

    I was waiting for reviews to confirm what I already thought would be the case but it looks like I'll be grabbing Zelda tomorrow. GTA comes out right before my honeymoon and I never play any of those on release anyway. I have no interest in GTA's multi-player so I'm fine to wait until a later date

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  • [–] 12 points 3 days ago (2 children)

    It really depends on what you define as "make". If you count individual semiconductors as something made then that's probably what we've made the most of and those are usually 10/10 by volume because they have to be to function

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  • [–] 8 points 1 week ago (1 child)

    So a common problem with egg pasta dishes is serving scrambled eggs mixed throughout your pasta instead of having a coherent sauce. While a frittata should be a little more solid than saucy I'd definitely say you missed the mark here

    I'd recommend having your egg and cheese already beaten in a bowl, then taking your vegetables and putting them in a 2nd bowl after cooking them, finally once the pasta is finished drain the water and combine the pasta, vegetables, and egg mixture in the vegetable bowl while tossing vigorously with tongs. Yes, this uses way more dishes, however this way you're only heating the sauce using residual heat from the pasta and it's much harder to scramble your eggs

    Then once it comes together into a more solid mass you can add it back to the pan you cooked the vegetables in (probably with a lid on to cook it evenly) to crisp up the bottom. If you're trying to impress someone then you can serve it inverted on a plate for a much prettier appearance

    I also assume you have a typo when you say "cherries" and you mean "cherry tomatoes" but if not, cherry tomatoes would be great in this, cherries would be gross

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  • [–] 3 points 2 weeks ago

    I'm fully in the Nick Weiger podcast universe so I listen Doughboys and Get Played plus their weekly bonus shows. I find I don't usually go through more than 4 podcasts in a week but if I do then The Film Reroll will usually hold me over until new episodes come out

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  •  

    I watch a lot of movies, so I decided to compile all of the movies I watched in 2025. Below are my ratings and thoughts on all of them

    Link to Part 1 (2025 movies)

    Link to Part 2 (A-P)

    Link to Part 3 (R-Y)

    Best movies of 2025 (in order)

    • Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League
    • The Life of Chuck
    • Predator Killer of Killers
    • Friendship
    • Ballerina

    I was very surprised that 2 direct to streaming animated movies made it into my top 5, but holy shit did those two movies just blow me away with their quality. Likewise, I had no expectations going into Life of Chuck and Friendship and both were incredible. Ballerina is one I would have expected to be here, but it's nice that John Wick can keep going with less Keanu

    Worst movies of 2025 (from best to worst)

    • The Mastermind
    • Eddington
    • Drop
    • Jurassic World: Rebirth
    • Emelia Perez (I saw this in January in theaters)

    I go to a lot of regal's mystery movies and not all of them are winners. Both The Mastermind and Drop were mystery movies and sucked, though Life of Chuck was also one so it's not all misses. Still, sucking is one thing, offending my taste buds is another. I know it's beating a dead horse to continue to shit on Emelia Perez but that movie is full of offensive stereotypes, is factually wrong about the trans experience, and the music is awful. Jurassic World: Rebirth beat you about the head with the nostalgia hammer until you have a hard time remembering what you liked about the franchise in the first place

    On to some overall notes from the year:

    Movies that really surprised me:

    • Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League: it is shocking just how much better this is than the first Batman Ninja, to the point I'd probably recommend not watching the first one
    • The Life of Chuck: it's crazy how good this is. I know everyone hates this recommendation, but it's better to go in blind to this like I did
    • Smokey and the Bandit: the ACAB motif, the Shakespearean opening song, the crisp 96 minute runtime. It's a joy!
    • Eternity: Genuinely some of the most dynamic characters I have seen in any story in a long time

    Classics I finally saw that are worth watching: Hunt for the Red October, For a Few Dollars More, They Live, and Smokey and the Bandit

    Movies that don't hold up: Minecraft, The Predator, Eddington, Backdraft, and Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones

    Movies I watched while making this list: Sicario, Avatar: Fire and Ash, Wake Up Dead Man

    My top 2 recommendations from the year:

    • Eternity - it's a little artsier and has some very dynamic characters
    • Predator: Killer of Killers - if you're looking for something exciting and easy to watch

    If you'd like to look at all of my ratings or change the sorting, here's a link to the spreadsheet I used to make this, or a direct download

     

    I watch a lot of movies, I don’t necessarily have a yearly goal however I like keeping a record, so here is what I watched with some thoughts

    Link to Part 1 (2025 movies)

    Link to Part 2 (A-P)

    • My rating scale is .5-5, and my review philosophy is “how well does the movie succeed at what it is trying to do?”
    • Thus Pacific Rim would be rated highly, whereas Transformers would not. Obviously Lawrence of Arabia is better than Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League despite both getting 5 stars here
    • Asterisks after a title indicate how many rewatches I had this year
    • I’ll limit myself to two sentences on each movie, possibly 3 for the top 5. Mostly for brevity because apparently some of you will read this
    • This list is everything from prior to 2025, my process made it so that articles (A, The) in titles are included and frankly I can’t be bothered to fix it, expect a LOT of “The” movies
    • After I post all of these I’ll add some wrap-up thoughts

    List

    Name Year Rating Thoughts
    Raiders of the Lost Ark 1981 4 It's a classic adventure movie. However some of the attitudes in it haven't aged super well
    Redline 2009 4 Another very stylish animated movie. Also a compelling racing film, there is a trend here.
    Reno 911!: The Hunt for QAnon 2021 3 Reno 911! has been clinging onto life far longer than I would have expected. Though I would have expected that more than a P!NK music video for Caribbean Queen in the middle of this movie
    Rocky 1976 4 Is getting hit so much in the face your opponent gets too tired to defend a winning strategy? Technically, No
    Rocky II 1979 3.5 Is getting hit so much in the face your opponent gets too tired to defend a winning strategy? At least once
    Scott Pilgrim vs. the World 2010 5 The jokes are still funny and the music still rocks. Also had a lot of people early in their career
    Smokey and the Bandit 1977 3.5 I really like the ACAB themes in this movie from the 70s. Also the movie is strangely Shakespearean in structure
    Sonic the Hedgehog 2020 3 This movie walks so Sonic 2 can run and Sonic 3 can go fast
    Spider-Man 2002 3 It's unfair to be annoyed at Spider-Man's origin story being told in 2002. Yet here I am
    Spider-Man 2 2004 3.5 The best of the bunch, Spider-Man's identity crisis is compelling. It also doesn't feel as long as it is
    Spider-Man 3 2007 2.5 There's just a bit too much going on in this one. Also I watched all these because the Spider-Man MTG set came out
    Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2018 3.5 This is a really fun spin on all of the other Spider-Man movies. Plus this one has an ending
    Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones 2002 1.5 This one really gets into the Star Wars shit no one cares about. More people need to tell George Lucas "no"
    Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith 2005 3 This one at least wraps up the prequels. It's fun to have a story where the bad guys win
    Succubus 2024 1.5 Just go to whatever streaming service you last used was and look up Succubus. There's probably one on there and it's probably about as good as this one
    Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay 2018 4 Because they're using characters nobody cares about they actually get to kill them off. The weird knock-off Joker/Harley Quinn is an odd choice though
    Sunset Boulevard 1950 4.5 This would probably get the full 5 stars if I was cultured enough to get all of the references. As is, this is a very unique story
    Super Troopers 2001 3 If you're high it's pretty funny. Otherwise probably not worth it
    Superman/Batman: Apocalypse 2010 2 Would you have guessed from all of those words that this is a Supergirl movie? The stakes are also way too low considering Darksied is involved
    Superman/Batman: Public Enemies 2009 2 This one is better than the other, but not by enough to matter. On its surface it seems like it should be good but it just kinda falls short all around
    Tenet 2020 4 Don't think about it too hard and it makes sense. Also if you can't hear the plot it can't confuse you
    Terrifier 2016 2 This is less a movie and more like an art student's practical effects thesis. I'd give that a B, as a movie it sucks
    The Animatrix 2003 4 The Wachowskis clearly want to make anime and this is their adventure into it. I'm also a sucker for short film collections
    The Art of Self-Defense 2019 5 This movie just hits me right in my funny bone. I can't explain why but every part of it makes me laugh. My current favorite movie
    The Big Lebowski 1998 4.5 I'm a white man, of course I love this
    The Bourne Identity 2002 4 The sound effects are very of their time. Otherwise it's good action and a pretty solid plot
    The Breakfast Club 1985 4 It's so sad but so true when the kids all admit they won't be friends when they go back to class. They also have claimed that song from any other movie for the rest of time
    The Cabin in the Woods 2011 4.5 A nice genre/meta-commentary on horror and Hollywood. I just want the coffee cup bong as merch
    The Core 2003 3 Shut up nerd, it's about drilling not math. Also they could have saved a lot of lives by just staying in their post
    The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie 2024 3 I really want to support classic animation in theaters. This was just passable though
    The Death and Life of Bobby Z 2007 2 Too many plots. The primary one is the least plausible, yikes
    The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift 2006 3.5 The peak of the franchise. Which is concerning because there are 7 movies after this that I've seen
    The Final Destination 2009 2 One of the characters is billed as "Racist". Bad CGI and not enough death
    The History of Future Folk 2012 3.5 A really cute indie film with a lot of heart. You're either going to love "Future Folk" music or despise it
    The Hunt for Red October 1990 4.5 Did you know this is technically a Jack Ryan movie? There's a lot of testosterone flowing in this movie that I have to assume fails the Bechdel Test
    The Iron Giant 1999 4 You stay. I go... tell everyone this is not the single greatest animated movie ever made, chill out
    The Luckiest Man in America 2024 3.5 I wish they would have gotten more into the mechanics of how he cheated the system. Also they conflated a lot things into the same day
    The Man from U.N.C.L.E. 2015 3.5 I understand how you make a TV show around Napoleon Solo's charisma. Unfortunately, Armie Hammer is a fucking cannibal
    The Martian 2015 4 Competence porn is fun to watch. Yes Andy Weir, we know you were a NASA engineer
    The Mask 1994 3 Like Roger Rabbit but less funny and more horny. The music numbers are catchy though
    The Matrix 1999 5 A perfect film, what else is there to say?
    The Mechanic 2011 1 This is just incoherent at times. As is Statham
    The Princess Bride 1987 4 I watched this far too much as a child and had to take a long break from it. After a decade, I can say that it has gotten better
    The Ring 2002 3.5 The weird arthouse movie in the middle was an odd choice. Sufficiently creepy though
    The Rock 1996 4 You forget how star studded this is. Plus it's a Michael Bay film!
    The Rocky Horror Picture Show 1975 4 A yearly tradition. Though if I'm honest I don't enjoy the last 30 minutes as much
    The Saint 1997 2 "We have Mission: Impossible at home". Not the best tribute to Val Kilmer I could have chosen
    The Social Network 2010 4 Sorkin is out here Sorkin'ing it up. This is probably one of the times where you believe everyone is this goddammed smug
    The Substance 2024 5 This movie starts at a 9 and ends at a 12. I literally shouted at the screen when I saw this in theaters
    The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2023 4 Honestly this is about what you could reasonably expect from a Mario movie. Minus Chris Pratt
    The Texas Chain Saw Massacre 1974 3.5 Really, I was on Leatherface's side for most of this. You're in nowhere Texas, a creepy old man tells you to fuck off, and you break into a dudes house covered in hunting trophies, what do you expect?
    The Transporter 2002 2 This guy is a career criminal, and then he suddenly grows a conscience when he gets hired... to commit a crime? Pick a profession dude
    The Truman Show 1998 4 Imagine if you just voluntarily lived in a world likes this? Just a hypothetical
    They Live 1988 4 That fight between Rowdy Roddy Piper and Keith David is like half an hour long, Jesus Christ. The rest of the plot is still very relevant
    Thunderball 1965 3 Oh, this is what Austin Powers was parodying. A little on the slow side
    Tombstone 1993 5 Western perfection. If a movie compels me to look up latin it has to be pretty damn good
    Top Gun 1986 4.5 Look, propaganda can be fun! And sexy
    True Lies 1994 4 Every time I watch this movie I really like it, then within 6 months the plot is entirely gone from my mind. I'm not really sure what to make of that
    Under Paris 2024 1 This is stupid and interminable. What's the joke "if I had 1 day left to live I'd watch this on repeat because it'd feel like an eternity"?
    Vampire Hunter D 1985 3.5 An interesting product of it's animation time. It's also very operatic
    Waterworld 1995 1.5 I wish this was so much better than it is. The sheer amount of money put into this and yet it makes no fucking sense
    Wayne's World 1992 4 One of the better SNL movies. It's also funny to see Rob Lowe before he got his aggressively charming and friendly persona
    We're All Gonna Die 2024 4 A cute little internet indie movie. It can sometimes be easier to ignore the giant tentacle hanging over the western seaboard
    Weekend at Bernie's 1989 3 Shockingly not as offensive as I expected it was going to be. More necrophilia than I expected though, which, to be fair, is almost always zero
    Wonka 2023 4 Prequels like this are forced to justify their existence because nobody was asking for it. This one does so very well
    xXx 2002 4 There's a lot of really cool stunts and action in this. The story is actually semi-coherent
    xXx: Return of Xander Cage 2017 1.5 This is a mess of CGI action and a bunch of scenes where they clearly only had specific actors. I don't know who was clamoring for this
    Yesterday 2019 2.5 This starts out interesting to discuss if "The Beatles" would still work today. Then it becomes some dumb love story and it loses me

     

    I watch a lot of movies, I don’t necessarily have a yearly goal however I like keeping a record, so here is what I watched with some thoughts

    Link to Part 1 (2025 movies)

    • My rating scale is .5-5, and my review philosophy is “how well does the movie succeed at what it is trying to do?”
    • Thus Pacific Rim would be rated highly, whereas Transformers would not. Obviously Lawrence of Arabia is better than Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League despite both getting 5 stars here
    • Asterisks after a title indicate how many rewatches I had this year
    • I’ll limit myself to two sentences on each movie, possibly 3 for the top 5. Mostly for brevity because apparently some of you will read this
    • This list is everything from prior to 2025, my process made it so that articles (A, The) in titles are included and frankly I can't be bothered to fix it, expect a LOT of "The" movies tomorrow

    After I post all of these I’ll add some wrap-up thoughts

    Name Year Rating Description
    300 2006 3 It's a bunch of really hot dudes glistening in the sun. Do you think they use the same baby oil guy as Diddy?
    (500) Days of Summer 2009 4 I missed this somehow when it came out and was skeptical when it said it wasn't a love story. I think I took a full half star off for the pun at the end
    28 Days Later 2002 3.5 I get what they're trying to do. I just don't think it's as poignant as they do
    28 Weeks Later 2007 3 The weakest of the 3, though it gets a few points for basically predicting Brexit
    7 Days in Hell 2015 4 I really like The Lonely Island movies and I think when they realized they don't need to be feature length the movies improved a lot. Plus sports people are way funnier than you'd expect
    A Fistful of Dollars 1964 3.5 A great western, and a classic for a reason. I have a problem with the bad guys who are willing to murder innocents for profit but won't kill Clint because he's the main character, even after he kills their buddies
    Aliens 1986 4.5 It's a total genre shift from Alien but Jim is a miracle man. I know the Alien$ story is probably BS but it feels real after seeing this
    Army of Darkness 1993 4 How we went from the classic Cabin in the Woods horror to medieval monster fighting is nonsense, but very fun to watch. This furthers my thesis that horror and comedy have similar DNA
    Auto Focus 2002 3 I never knew about Bob Crane and had heard about this movie. Honestly I was surprised he was just a pervert and not a criminal
    Avatar: The Way of Water 2022 3.5 This film is just stunningly beautiful, and that's all that matters. However if you make something this beautiful, you need to work on the variable frame rate, it was actually nauseating at times in IMAX
    Back to the Future* 1985 5 I hold this to be one of the single best screenplays ever written. Every single detail in this movie has built in payoff later in the movie, there's not a second wasted
    Back to the Future Part II 1989 4 Not quite as good but continues the excellent writing to set up plot details in this movie and the next. Also making Biff into Trump is almost prophetic in hindsight
    Backdraft 1991 2.5 For the fact that this is a star studded movie about firefighters, it's not that sexy. Also there's a reason we never hear from this Baldwin brother, he's bad at acting
    Barbie 2023 4 Strangely enough I compare this movie to the anime Solo Leveling. Nothing in it feels particularly novel, but everything in it is done extremely well
    Better Man 2024 3 I didn't know much about Robbie Williams and was told this would make me cry over him. I didn't cry but it was an engaging "biopic"
    Blades of Glory 2007 2 This one is just a little too rooted in its time. Maybe there's a reason Jon Heder didn't do much else besides Dynamite
    Brokeback Mountain 2005 4.5 Just a heartbreakingly beautiful tragedy. It's one of those movies where everyone keeps making their life worse but you don't fault them for it
    Bubba Ho-tep 2002 2 On paper this sounds so much better than it is. It has a common problem I find with B-movies which is too many plots in the same movie
    Chronicle 2012 3 Pretty good for the "found footage" genre which never really got back to Blair Witch levels. Young Dane DeHann and Michael B Jordan do have good performances
    City Hunter 2024 4 Shockingly kind of the same plot as season 1 of My Hero Academia Vigilantes. Lots of style and flair
    Conclave 2024 3.5 Pope drama? Don't forget the stellar wardrobe
    "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" 2000 4.5 Hot take: if this was in English this would be more people's bisexual awakening than The Mummy. Great wire work, kung-fu, and story telling
    Death Becomes Her 1992 4 At first I was trying to understand why they were fighting so hard for Bruce Willis, then I realized this movie is bonkers. This walks so The Substance can run (spoiler for tomorrow)
    Death Race 2008 3 Basically a video game movie. It's pretty mindless action but fun to watch
    Die Hard 1988 4 Is it a Christmas movie? I say yes
    Dragon Ball Super: Broly 2018 4 Riding high on the Tournament of Power we bring back a fan favorite. I'm curious if they'll ever resolve this and Kale in the main series
    Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero 2022 3 I'm super on board with giving Gohan and Piccolo a movie and a new transformation. Otherwise pretty standard
    E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial 1982 3 I understand that they laid the foundation throughout the movie for "love saves everyone in the end". That still doesn't make it less cliché
    Elevation 2024 2.5 What if A Quiet Place, but for tall? I didn't think we were scraping the bottom of the barrel this quickly, what happened to A Quiet Place but for Smell?
    Emilia Pérez 2024 0.5 This offended me on a deeply personal level as a latina woman. And I'm a white man
    Event Horizon 1997 4.5 One of the smartest horror protagonists of all time. Also one of the few movies to understand what cosmic horror really means
    Falling Down 1993 2.5 I expected this to be about a guy having a shitty day and then snapping. A dude just going on rampage of his own making is way less fun in 2025 than I assume it was in 93
    Fargo 1996 3.5 Not the strongest Coen brothers movie. The mystery is good and the jokes are funny
    Ferris Bueller's Day Off 1986 4.5 Lots of wit and charm from all the main characters and you understand Ferris' magnetic appeal. I don't fully buy the "Ferris is in Cameron's mind" internet theory but it has legs
    Final Destination 2000 2.5 The OG Rube Goldberg of murder. Very rooted in its time
    Final Destination 2 2003 3 Who else refuses to drive near logging trucks because of this one? Less set-up helps this one
    Final Destination 3 2006 2.5 If I'm being entirely honest I don't remember much about this one. Except the sunbed cooking death (that I definitely rewound the blockbuster tape on a lot as a youth)
    Final Destination 5 2011 4 Establishing that you can "steal" from death by killing someone else is a neat twist that gives the series a more concrete villain. Personally my favorite and I'd recommend 1,5, and 6 as the watchable ones
    Flow 2024 4.5 Incredible work out of Latvia. Done entirely in Blender and without a line of dialogue and still more moving than most of its cohort
    For a Few Dollars More 1965 4 This was really good as my first in the trilogy. I appreciate the runtime
    Forgetting Sarah Marshall 2008 4 One of the better break up movies out there. Also nice hog Jason Segal
    From Dusk Till Dawn 1996 4 I want to hear the conversation where Quentin Tarantino convinced Salma Hayek to pour booze down her leg into his mouth. It's insane how quickly this movie shifts genres but the line is so clear I don't really mind it
    From Russia with Love 1963 4 There's a lot of classic Bond stuff that gets established in this and it all works very well. I have a pet theory that everyone's favorite Bond and Ghibli is the first one they saw, and anecdotally it holds up
    Godzilla 2014 3 Passable godzilla. It does set up the Monsterverse which I do think at least competes with its block buster contemporaries (Fast, Mission Impossible, Planet of the Apes, etc.)
    Godzilla vs. Kong 2021 3.5 These franchise movies are a little goofy when you know they don't have the balls to kill either of the leads. Still, monkey vs lizard is fun
    Godzilla: King of the Monsters 2019 3.5 Look at all these Kaiju! I bet I would have liked this WAY MORE in theaters
    Goldfinger 1964 4 What an absolute classic of a theme song. This is some peak supervillain shit too, "we're going to steal all the gold in Ft Knox"
    Gran Turismo 2023 4 Racing is oddly compelling to me on the big screen for how dull I find it in real life. The gamer to athlete story is also cool and the actual guy did the stunts for the movie
    Hackers 1995 4 I know people shit on this for being unrealistic but it all but stares down the barrel of the camera and says "deal with it". The music rips, the cast all make wild choices, and it all comes together in one batshit story
    How to Train Your Dragon 2010 3 It's a pretty good kids movie. I'm not the target audience but I have no major gripes
    I Know What You Did Last Summer 1997 1.5 The plot gets way too complicated way too fast for a pretty generic horror movie. If it wasn't one of the sexiest casts in horror I might not have gotten through it
    "I, Tonya" 2017 3 I think this over glamourizes some aspects, but it is an olympic ice skating movie. It turns out you can place an entire movie on Margot Robbie's back
    Iron Man 2008 3.5 I wanted to see how old marvel holds up, and it's nice that is less full of the "OMG, I recognize that thing from the place". It's still lands too much on the libertarian "good guy with a gun" motif that I can't stand
    Jaws 1975 4 Somehow my first time ever seeing this. I did have a hard time taking the U.S.S. Indianapolis speech seriously because of the WKUK
    John Wick 2014 4.5 Keanu out fucking nowhere with this absolute banger of a movie. The club scene is still one of the top action scenes of all time a decade later
    John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum 2019 3.5 This one gets a little too bogged down in the high table stuff and gets a little too goofy. The stakes also don't really make any sense in light of what happens immediately in the 4th
    Jurassic Park 1993 4.5 Proof that good artistry is far more important than technology. This still looks incredible today
    Justice League: Doom 2012 4 The DC animated movies are significantly better than the MCU. Fight me
    K-PAX 2001 3 I read the book first and this is a good adaptation. An interesting little sci-fi mystery
    Kick-Ass 2010 3.5 What if super heroes but vaguely grounded in reality? Oh, we give that up immediately, odd choice
    Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair 2006 5 The superior way to watch these movies. It's a much more cohesive experience
    Kong: Skull Island 2017 3 Look, Kong is not the strength of this franchise, it's Godzilla. It's still fine for a monster movie
    Late Night with the Devil 2023 5 I saw this in theater in 2023 and remember shouting at the screen during the ending with everyone else. It still rocks on a rewatch.
    Lawrence of Arabia 1962 5 3 hours and 48 minutes and the only thing I'd cut the is black screen orchestral opening. This is an undisputed classic for a reason and it's shocking Alec Guinness gets away with his role but fuck does he nail it
    Life of Brian 1979 3.5 Parodying the messiah is bold, but they pull it off. Fun fact, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life is the most requested song at British funerals
    Looper 2012 3.5 I view time travel movies on a spectrum from Looper to Primer in terms of how much sense time travel makes. I have a lot of respect for a movie that stares at you and says "stopping thinking to hard about it nerd"
    M3GAN 2022 3.5 I found this to be surprisingly funny. There's one joke at the end of the commercial they play for M3GAN that just absolutely kills me
    Marcel the Shell with Shoes On 2021 4 I love this little shell so goddamn much. He's so earnest and hard working that you just can't help but be on his side
    Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World 2003 3 This is a peak dad movie. Just great ship drama with a stellar soundtrack, if only I was a dad
    Miami Connection 1987 1.5 Wow, these guys do not know how to make a movie. There's a lot of heart and some good music videos but that's about it
    Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning 2023 3.5 Huh, you dropped the "Part 1" interesting. It suffers from being a lead-in to another movie but still is better than most action
    Molly's Game 2017 3.5 Sorkin writes really engaging stories. Unfortunately it makes it hard to believe anything but the core of the story is actually true (though rumor has it Player X was Tobey Maguire)
    Monty Python and the Holy Grail 1975 3.5 First shalt thou watch the movie. Then shalt thou rate it 3.5, no more, no less
    My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! The Movie 2023 2 Look, you can just say your movie isn't canon to the story, you don't have to handwave it with some bullshit. Also it's not as good as the decent show
    Ocean's Eleven* 2001 4 This is an incredible heist movie with 2 obvious flaws. The weird side plot to steal an EMP from a school, and whatever the fuck Don Cheadle is doing
    One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest 1975 4 There's a lot of great acting in this by a lot of people early in their careers. I'm not sure we need indictments of the US medical system but in '75 we probably did
    Paddington* 2014 4.5 Since I saw the first 2 of these the franchise has become comfort films for my household. That little bear might be one of the most lovable creatures to ever grace the big screen
    Paddington 2** 2017 5 This may be the greatest children's movie of all time. I cried the first time I watched it and honestly depending on the day I still come close. When I lose my grandma I'll probably watch this and bawl my eyes out
    Parasite 2019 5 Man, capitalism sucks doesn't it?
    Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl 2003 3.5 I saw this with an orchestra backing it which was a very cool way to see it. If you ever think you want to watch the others, just watch this and then the wheel fight on youtube and you'll have a better time
    Pitch Black 2000 3 Did you know this was the first Riddick movie? It's pretty clear the actors in this hadn't worked with much CGI (if any) and it suffers a little for it, but is a pretty interesting sci-fi
    Police Story 1985 4 This is some A+ Hong Kong kung-fu. There's some hiccups in the story, but really that's not what you're there for
    Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping 2016 3.5 There's some all time bangers like Bin Laden and Equal Rights in here. As I previously mentioned, these got better when they didn't try to make them feature length
    Predator 1987 4 This movie will make you a goddammed sexual tyrannosaurus. It's really effective making these elite macho commandos into the prey to really sell how strong the Predator is
    Predators 2010 1 This shit was wack as hell. It does the stupid marvel thing where it can't take anything seriously or treat it with reverence and on top of all of that is wildly offensive to the autistic community
    Prey 2022 4.5 It's a little unfair for me to like this more than Predator because it is so clearly a love letter to it. However it just gets better and better on rewatches as you see Naru internalize and grows from every mistake she makes
    Princess Mononoke 1997 4.5 Some of the most beautiful animation ever that I had the pleasure of seeing in IMAX. The themes remain persistently timely and it works in English and Japanese
    Pulp Fiction 1994 5 I already said I'm a white man, of course this is one of my favorite movies. The artistry of how all these seemingly disparate stories weave together is so incredible. The acting, music, direction, really everything is just unbelievably good
     

    I watch a lot of movies, I don't necessarily have a yearly goal but I started recording all of the movies I watched in 2023 and have wanted to post my thoughts so here they are. A few notes

    • My rating scale is .5-5, and my review philosophy is "how well does the movie succeed at what it is trying to do?"
    • Thus Pacific Rim would be rated highly, whereas Transformers would not. Obviously Lawrence of Arabia is better than Batman Ninja vs Yakuza League despite both getting 5 stars here
    • Asterisks after a title indicate how many rewatches I had this year
    • I'll limit myself to two sentences on each movie, possibly 3 for the top 5. Mainly because I doubt anyone will read all of this
    • Some of these "technically" released in other years but I count theatrical/US releases because that's where I live
    • After I post all of these I'll add some wrap-up thoughts

    Without further ado, I present all of the new releases for 2025

    Name Year Rating Thoughts
    28 Years Later 2025 3.5 I understand what these are trying to do, I just don't find them as gripping or deep as everyone else. How about that mega-cock though?
    A House of Dynamite 2025 2.5 Look, if you're going to repeat a sequence multiple times and it has a specific length, at least make it real time. Also the ending is cop-out and they know it
    A Minecraft Movie 2025 1.5 It's about what you expect. I'd say it got at least half a star for being in a crowded theater
    Ballerina* 2025 5 "Can John Wick keep working without Keanu?" Yes. Also it has the single coolest movie kill I've ever seen
    Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League* 2025 5 This movie is unironically incredible. It oozes style, is hailarious, and has a really good plot considering how stupid it is. This is going to be my hot take "best Batman" to out hot take the Lego Batman crowd
    Black Bag 2025 3 What if monogamy was really fucking hot? Oh also I guess there's a spy thriller in here too
    Black Mirror: USS Callister – Into Infinity 2025 4 Look, if TV shows are going to be movie length I'm counting it. It's pretty good anti-trek, and up there for the season
    Bring Her Back 2025 3.5 There's some really fucked visuals in this one and Sally Hawkins is compelling. The rest of the movie is pretty serviceable
    Bugonia 2025 4.5 Timely themes and knock-out performances. You truly are convinced at multiple points that Emma is and is not an alien
    Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc 2025 4.5 One of the prettier animations I've seen in a long time with a real art on beautiful "still" shots. It also has a good emotional arc to it as well
    Clown in a Cornfield 2025 3.5 Significantly better than I expected. I expected dogshit, so pretty decent was a surprise
    Companion 2025 4 Jack Quaid for best nepo baby? This is very reminiscent of Ex Machina but is definitely its own thing
    DAN DA DAN: Evil Eye 2025 4 It's 3 episodes of a TV show I like duct-taped together. Once again, well animated
    Demon City 2025 2 "We have John Wick at home." If memory serves this is not enough action, bad effects, and passable plot
    Drop 2025 0.5 This shit sucked ass. It wasn't even about the stupid fucking drop
    Eddington 2025 2 This is like Don't Look Up but for 2020 instead of climate change. It doesn't land because all of these jokes have been made and your point was tired 2 years ago
    Eternity 2025 4 Some of the most dynamic characters I have seen in a very long time. All 3 leads have great arcs and you fully end up for and against them throughout the movie
    Fight or Flight 2025 3.5 Great value brand John Wick is still pretty watchable. I appreciated having cartoon characters and not bothering to explain why they exist
    Final Destination Bloodlines 2025 3.5 It's interesting to try to tie the whole franchise together. However they got a little lost in the weeds and what I really want is Rube Goldberg for murder
    Five Nights at Freddy's 2 2025 2 I have never played the games. It's serviceable Bloomhouse garbage
    Frankenstein 2025 3 If you have to have the monster tell Victor "you're the real monster" take another pass at the script. Also to take a master of puppetry and put in Twilight tier CGI wolves as an antagonist is disappointing
    Friendship 2025 5 There was a joke in this movie that was so funny to me that I caused a chain reaction in the theater of people laughing at me and me laughing at them. You have to like Tim Robbinson's humor but this is his peak to me
    Good Fortune 2025 2.5 It's like this movie was written by somebody who understands what is relatable and timely comedy, but not why. Presumably because it was (Aziz, you shoulda shouted out Riyadh)
    How to Train Your Dragon 2025 3 It's almost shot for shot the animated movie. Idk what this adds to the would but I guess some people got paychecks
    I Know What You Did Last Summer 2025 2.5 Marginally better than the first one because it gets less bogged down in a pointlessly confusing plot
    Jurassic World Rebirth 2025 0.5 You can't just blast the Jurassic Park theme when you want me to feel happy, sad, excited, or really any emotion. There was also no reason for this film to involve children besides studio mettling
    KPop Demon Hunters 2025 3 I saw this on the early part of the hype and was mostly impressed by the visuals. I found the story pretty route for kid's media, and I just don't have the palate for k-pop, though these were decent
    Love Hurts 2025 1.5 Knock-off John Wick. I use that derogatorily
    M3GAN 2.0 2025 4 Honestly this is more like Scary Movie: Mission Impossible (Movie: Impossible?). I use that complimentarily
    Mickey 17 2025 3 I expected something with more subtly and bite from Bong Joon Ho. It's ok, but I get that Trump sucks, you don't need a metaphor to tell me
    Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning 2025 4 Honestly a pretty good end(?) to the franchise. The AI doesn't make a ton of sense but plenty of these movies don't so I'm fine with it
    Nobody 2 2025 2.5 Maybe the best "funny" John Wick. I still am not convinced funny John Wick works
    Novocaine 2025 3 Maybe the best funny "John Wick". I still am not convinced funny John Wick works
    "Oh, Hi!" 2025 3 There's two ways to interpret the end of this movie. I chose to be charitable with it but if I take the crowd consensus I'd knock off a star
    Paddington in Peru*** 2025 4 Paddington continues to be excellent. Honestly I'm fine if they just keep recasting as people have to move out if it means we can avoid another origin story
    Predator: Badlands 2025 3.5 Look, Dan Trachtenberg knows what he's doing with Predator so my hope is that he is trying to get people into the franchise so he can start making really cool movies. Dear lord, please don't make Predator knock off Star Wars
    Predator: Killer of Killers 2025 5 Absolutely stellar action, incredible characters, and bad-ass Predators. This is my hope that Dan can save the franchise
    Relay 2025 3 It's fine action with a cool premise. As someone with friends who work with confidential info I know that every Relay operator is so fucking pumped when they get these calls and they all absolutely discuss them with each other
    Rental Family 2025 5 I would never have expected "sad pudgy american" as Brendan Frasier's renaissance but fuck is he great. Another best actor nom seems almost guaranteed
    Roofman 2025 4.5 I really appreciate this being filmed on location for a lot of the important parts. Tatum does a great job at playing a very unique man and Dunst is a great southern mom just trying her best
    Sinners 2025 4 I really like this take on vampires, less sexy and more insidious. Just a great original movie
    Sonic the Hedgehog 3 2025 4.5 Honestly the best video game movie. Full of the references fans want, kick-ass music, and they make the plot better than the video game
    Superman 2025 3 I like Superman being goofy and larger than life. The camerawork really took me out of it a few times and like every live action super-hero movie, it's too long
    The Amateur 2025 3.5 Rami Malek does a decent job at "Jason Bourne but with computers instead of fists". I wonder if he'll ever escape Mr Robot?
    The Fantastic 4: First Steps 2025 2.5 Eh, it's a fine Marvel movie that seems to be fairly separate from the rest of it. It's still too long
    The Legend of Ochi 2025 3 For a movie that claims to not have used AI, its whole aesthetic is "AI generated art". You gotta give props to any novel children's media at this point though
    The Life of Chuck** 2025 5 Wow this movie just blew me away when I saw it, I know people hate to be told to go in blind but this movie really benefits from it. Full of joy, hope, and darkness while being told in a way that is very unique
    The Long Walk* 2025 4 It's hunger games for dudes. But its also pretty good
    The Mastermind 2025 1 If you want to tell a movie this centered around a character there has to be something compelling about him. Even the wife is barely in this movie despite her ostensibly being part of the planning team
    The Monkey 2025 3 It tries to walk the line between Final Destination and family drama. I'd much rather it have picked a lane, it felt like 2 movies taped together
    The Naked Gun 2025 3.5 It's a LOT of stupid goofs, jokes, gags, and japes. There's going to be everyone will find at least one thing funny in this somewhere
    The Phoenician Scheme 2025 4 Not the best Wes Anderson movie. I still like what he does now that he is less budget constrained
    The Roses 2025 4 For your typical family dramedy movie this one is more funny and endearing than most. It also takes two people who aren't traditionally portrayed as sexy in the media and gets you on their side
    The Running Man 2025 3.5 Glenn just doesn't have the juice like Arnie. The plot was also a little to convenient for him
    The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants 2025 1 Walked out 45 minutes through to watch Five Nights at Freddie's 2, maybe the score would go down if I finished it. Idk if this is what SpongeBob is like now or if my memory of it is wrong but I was not entertained
    The Toxic Avenger 2025 3.5 Funny and timely to the world we're in. It has a bit of that indie grime to it which is likely intentional and feels like Repo: the Genetic Opera, but good
    Together 2025 3 It's fine for horror but spends too much time on the relationship stuff at the beginning for how it ends. Again, don't split the difference, pick a lane
    Twinless 2025 4.5 This movie can kinda read like a horror from the description. It's not at all really, and has some really beautiful moments from some really tragic characters
    Weapons 2025 4.5 I think the trend of comedy writers making horror. I'm a firm believer that comedy and horror succeed when they subvert your expectations and boy does this subvert whatever you're expecting from it
     

    I was watching an XKCD "What-If" video recently and Randal off-handedly mentions the title fact as a given. Upon a further Google search I see explanations about why sound moves faster in liquids than gasses but nothing for my specific question. Is there an intuitive explanation for that fact or is it just one of those weird observable facts with no clear explanation

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