february

Wow, two months down! 2021 is moving at a brisk pace, and I’ve fallen deep into the bicycle content hole, while indoor cycling. There’s no Formula 1 racing right now, but inexplicably there is cyclocross and road racing on GCN+, so that took a lot of my typical movie watching time. Book-wise much of the month was eaten by the rather long KSR novel I read. I hope I can whittle down my queue in March. Lots to look forward to on my shelf.

Books

No One is Talking About This

A hilarious and brutally sad book about the internet and loss. I think this book perfectly captured what using Twitter is like for those who use it to find the funny things.

‌The Ministry for the Future

This was less of a novel then a series of essays somewhat thinly held-together by a so-so plot. I enjoyed bits of this, but it felt very long. I do love a good airship and a good eco-anarchism.

Worldwired

A satisfying conclusion with a few pretty interesting action scenes. I don’t think this necessarily delivered on the ideas behind climate sci-fi, but generally it was a fun trilogy.

Scardown

An interesting take on a ecological crisis sci-fi. It’s wild that this sort of climate disaster sci-fi was written 15 years ago, and I really enjoyed the AI component and the idea that the US had completely blown itself up before the books begin.

Movies

Barb and Starr Go to Vista Del Mar

My friend texted me to say he was cackling watching this–it was ok funny, but I didn’t know it would be a “silly” musical. I don’t really know what this kind of comedy is called, but it’s not my thing. It’s like Ace Ventura meets Marshall’s with some real Paul Blart 2 vibes.

The Little Things

I don’t know if I can ever take the sheriff from True Blood seriously, or even Rami Malek. Denzel, as usual, is an imposing figure who oozes charm while methodically saving a crime.

The Thing

The remake isn’t the same level of incredible that the original was, but it’s still a pretty great alien film. I loved seeing a bunch of folks who went on to be in lots of TV shows and other things I hasn’t seen when I originally saw this film.

Monster Hunter

I don’t know what I expected from a movie based on a game with no plot. The three stars are solely bc I love jovanovich and also every action scene was absurd and delightful.

Minari

A gorgeous, sad, and brutal portrait of trying to make family and a dream work out. The cinematography and soundtrack were a perfect pairing to one of the cutest kids in cinema, and an outstanding performance by Yuen and Youn Yuh-jung. This movie was so good it conquered my Texan’s dislike of Oklahoma.