What I'm Watching... January 2023

The Winter is well and truly here which means it's a great time to snuggle up under a blanket and binge watch the latest Netflix series! Here's a round up of the latest movies and TV shows I've been enjoying (or not enjoying so much) over the festive season....

The Watcher -Netflix

This one is a corker! Based on real events this series follows the story of the Brannock family and the bizarre creepy letters they begin to receive after moving into their dream home... Super twisty and super addictive viewing.

The Traitors - BBC iPlayer

We binged this series between Christmas and New Year. What a great concept for reality TV! Not sure if it'll have the same impact if they make a second series because half the joy came from the twists and turns along the way. UPDATE: I've just discovered the US version hosted by the amazing Alan Cummings is coming to the BBC soon - exciting stuff!

The Teacher - Netflix

Imagine you are a teacher and a student accuses you of improper behaviour - but you were too drunk to remember what happened on the night in question. Add Sheridan Smith into the mix and you've got an excellent premise and a brilliant performance. All to be let down at the very end by a poorly written ending. Shame. 

The Crown (Season 5) - Netflix

I was looking forward to the new season of the Crown but this one fell a bit flat for me. Very much felt like a filler series leading up the dramatic season 6 which will include Diana's death.  I was not a fan of Jonathan Pryce as Prince Phillip as his voice is just too distinctively his own. Elizabeth Debecki does an uncanny Diana, but the standout performance for me was Jonny Lee Miller as John Major. 

Echoes -Netflix

So Netflix tells me I watched this but I'm struggling to remember it... which probably says a lot about the show. Now I've looked up the storyline I remember being confused the whole way through this series. Identical twin sisters Lenu and Gina swap lives but the reasons why and how are all far too far fetched and the whole thing is rather ridiculious. 

The Rings of Power - Amazon Prime Video

I'm just gonna say it despite hearing from every corner of the web that this prequel this was a disaster I actually quite enjoyed it. Perhaps due to the fact that my expectations were so abysmally low. Husband thought it was slow which it was.  

Dahmer - Netflix

This is one of the creepiest programmes I have ever watched - and it's all true. A really distrurbing glimpse into the world of serial killer Jeffery Dahmer. Evan Peters' performance is outstanding (and super freaky)

The Following - Seasons 1-3 - Freevee

Serial killers, cults, 5 murders in the first 5 minutes... this is no Footloose. The Following stars Kevin Bacon as a washed up, alchoholic ex-FBI agent, Ryan Hardy,  hunting escaped serial killer Joe Carroll. It's complete carnage from the very beginning, I don't think I have ever watched a show with so many stabbings, it's basically a teen slasher movie but seeing as it was created by the writer of Scream this shouldn't be a surprise. It's actually really easy to watch as everyone is pretty much a stereotype and it all moves so fast you don't really have tome to examine the plotholes and terrible dialogue. Easy to watch while doing the housework but just don't let the kids anywhere near it.

The Peripheral - Amazon Prime Video

The Peripheral is the new Sci Fi series from the maker of WestWorld based on the William Gibson novel of the same name. Flynn Fisher is a young woman struggling to cope with a broken family who takes a job playing an experimental sim where you don a headset and are transported to a virtual world where you complete tasks for rich people. Only you aren't actually in a sim, you are in the future. This is hard sci fi so it's an effort to keep up but if you liked WestWorld I am pretty sure you'll enjoy this.

Glass Onion - Netflix

Glass Onion is the follow up to the brilliant Knives Out and sees the return of eccentric detective Beniot Blanc accompanied by Daniel Craig's 'interesting' deep south accent. We knew the kids would love this whodunnit so to set the scene we watched Knives Out with them then followed up immediately with Glass Onion. What struck me was how much funnier Glass Onion was compared to the original Knives Out.  Really entertaining and kept us guessing just like the first movie.

Avatar: The Way of Water - Cineworld

The original Avatar was the first movie I ever saw in 3D and the visuals it blew me away. The storyline wasn't particularly special but the visuals were a feast for the eyes. The only movie I think 3D has ever worked better for is Gravity which was just mind blowing in 3D. The sequel to Avatar has been a long time coming and returns us to Pandora more than a decade after we left Scully (as a Na'vi after transferring permanently to his avatar) and Neytiri in the forest. And we find them happy with a growing family, including their adopted daughter Kiri, who has been born from Grace's avatar (yes Grace died in the last movie) and this immaculate conception combined with her ability to connect with Ewya (mother nature) suggests she's potentially some kind of christ like figure... but we'll draw a line under that for the moment. The rest of the movie felt a bit like a remake of Avatar but in water. Lots of battles scenes with yhe same man vs nature theme. Husband fell asleep then actually left half way through to get a coffee in Starbucks downstairs. The kids absolutely loved it - which perhaps speaks volumes. We saw this movie in Screen X which isn't 3D but has screens on the sides of the cinema so you get this panoramic style experience which worked really well for the underwater  experience. I wouldn't rush back to see a film in Screen X but the novelty factor was good. I also won't necessarily be rushing back to see the next Avatar installment unless the kids beg me!

What are you currently watching?