Movies:

Don’t Look Up

With a star-studded cast bigger than the comet headed for Earth, Don’t Look Up is a masterclass in political satire. Don’t Look Up follows the story of scientists Dr Randell Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence) as they try to warn the world of the oncoming extinction-level threat of a meteor, on course to collide with earth.

When working with a cast of some of Hollywood’s biggest names, ( Leonardo DiCaprio, Meryl Streep and Timothée Chalamet) many critics expected the next Nomadland or Titanic, but that’s not what this movie was made to be. Hidden behind layers of comedy and exaggerated satire are deep, well thought out characters with aspirations and follies. The unique level of personality and emotion squeezed into every character in such a short space of time is what for me turns this from ‘just a good movie’ to something great.

You can watch Don’t Look Up on Netflix here

Eternals

Chloé Zhao’s first dive into the MCU, following critical acclaim for Nomadland gives a glance at what the future could be for Marvel. Choosing Chloé Zhao to direct Eternals is a risk for Marvel, a director who at a glance has one successful movie; an alternate and fresh take on the usual Oscar-winning movies, and far from the ‘copy and paste’ mass production of modern superhero films. But not only does it show the power of a company with the money and power to take risks, but it also proves Marvel can still shake up the cinematic formula for the better.

Eternals had big boots to fill, introducing a team of ten new heroes, with lesser-known names and releasing during a pandemic, the biggest problem for many Marvel films released in the last 2 years. However, despite some backlash from critics and audiences, the film has managed to relatively well conquer all challenges to produce a fantastic and fresh movie.

While Scorsese may claim Marvel is “not cinema”, Eternals proves that Stan Lee’s legacy can still shake up the genre in a cinematic movie criminally underrated with the possibility of becoming a cult classic in years to come.

You can watch Eternals on Disney Plus here

The Grand Budapest Hotel

With its variety of changing aspect ratios and nonsensical camera shots, the Grand Budapest Hotel is filled with all the grandeur and brilliance now iconically associated with Wes Anderson Films.

However, despite the comedic genius, my biggest takeaway and surprise was the amazing acting from the film’s lead actor Ralph Fiennes. While I’m more familiar with Fiennes from his role in Daniel Craig-era Bond films, The Grand Budapest hotel has me excited to see what he does next.

Besides, any film with Tilda Swinton, Willem Dafoe, Bill Murray and Jeff Goldblum was always destined for greatness.

You can watch The Grand Budapest Hotel here On Disney Plus

TV shows:

The Witcher (season 2)

The first season of the Witcher was a brilliant yet flawed product. Despite negative feedback from critics, the show gained overwhelming support from fans. However, even for the biggest fans, the show wasn’t without problems.

Season two not only perfectly builds on the story of season one but also fixes issues in the show, from minor changes like the colour of Triss’ hair to calling out the messy and confusing 3 timelines of the first season in a tongue in cheek breaking of the 4th wall.

Producers of The Witcher are clearly listening to fans, and now the show has taken its place in history next to Tolkien and Phillip Pullman’s all-time great fantasies, their dedication to fan service is clearly working.

You can watch The Witcher on Netflix here

Music:

The Killers- Pressure Machine

When I first heard The Killers new album late last year I thought it to be yet another typical concept album, allowing the artist to try a new idea before returning to the same rinse and repeat release schedule until they retire. However, upon recollection, The Killers – Pressure Machine breaks this tradition as the band readies for a new direction to their discography.

Based on the childhood memories of bandmember Ronald Vannucci Jr. Pressure Machine takes a more mellow approach to rock. As indie folk starts to creep into mainstream music, The killers follow in the footsteps of Taylor Swift and her recent albums ‘Folklore’ and ‘Evermore’. For fans of The Killers older more ballad-like songs like ‘Human’, I would highly recommend checking Pressure Machine out.

Despite my original, more critical thought on the album, in retrospect Pressure Machine is one of if not the best indie album of 2021.

You can listen to Pressure Machine on Spotify here

Books:

When the Sky Falls- Phil Earle

‘When the Sky Falls’ tells the story of life at war, from the forgotten voices of those not fighting in the trenches. Set in a London Zoo, the novel follows Joseph as he adjusts to life in war-torn London, and discovers friendship in unexpected places (particularly a Silverback Gorilla named Adonis)

"But there were no bombers. There was no siren. 
Yet still, the sky fell." - Phil Earle, When the Sky Falls

While I try to steer clear of any major spoilers in Bite-Sized Reviews, it would be an injustice if I didn’t talk about Joseph’s dyslexia. As the book progresses, Joseph admits to “words dancing” when he reads and even refers to his dyslexia as “psychosis” at one point. In the afterword for the book, Phil Earle apologises for the lack of a satisfying ending for Joseph’s dyslexic subplot. However, In WW2 era London, there would have been little public knowledge of dyslexia and ironically despite never referring to Joseph’s dyslexia by name, I found the novel’s depiction of what life with dyslexia is like to be both informative and entertaining than anything I’ve read before. In his afterword, Earle also mentions his lifetime of work with dyslexic children, and it shows through his outstanding quality of writing and storytelling.

You can listen to all music referenced in this article here or you can read the previous Bite-Sized reviews here