Boy, Summer is almost over now that we’re already in August! But hey, given how hot it’s been this Summer, I think we’ll have a warm autumn. I do love fall; it’s the season that follows that I’m dreading. 😆
JULY VIEWINGS ON LETTERBOXD
So I didn’t watch a lot of new movies this past month… Summer is always a slow movie-watching time for me. There are just a lot of activities overall, and Summer is so fleeting here in MN, so I’d rather be outside when temps aren’t ridiculously high.
(What I watched in July – ranked based on my rating)
FULL REVIEWS
Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass
ICYMI
Ludwig Göransson’s Best Film and TV Scores 🎵 🎶
TRIBUTES
Unfortunately, I had to post a couple of tributes this past month… It’s heartbreaking that we lost Sam Neill AND Glen Hansard in July! 🥹 Rest in peace, Sam and Glen!
UPCOMING REVIEWS
One Night Only | TONY | Late Fame | MidWinter Break
TV WATCHES
My hubby and I were watching CITADEL season 2, which we managed to get more than halfway through, when an ad for this came on. At that point, we’d gotten so tired of its pointless violence and overcomplicated plot, not to mention the poor acting by the billionaire villain (can’t even be bothered to google his name). So we actually stopped watching midway through episode 5 and switched to watching this instead. I’m surprised the second season got better reviews; I actually enjoyed Season 1 more.
Ride or Die (Prime Video)
Debbie discovers that her friend of 20 years, Judith, is secretly an assassin. After a hit goes wrong, they go on the run while being targeted by a mysterious enemy, forcing them to confront the secrets between them.
I absolutely love Hannah Waddingham in Ted Lasso, and she’s perfectly cast as a badass assassin, Judith. At first, I was a bit unsure about Octavia Spencer being cast as Debbie, but it’s really fun to see her in a comedy and stepping out of her usual roles. Their chemistry on screen is the highlight of the show, and I can totally believe they’d be best friends in real life.
Although the show kicked off with a bang, Ride or Die struggles with inconsistent writing, action scenes, and character motivations. The showrunner, Tessa Coates, a British writer and comedian, brings in some dry and irreverent humor, but the thriller elements don’t always hit the mark. Ed Skrein and Bill Nighy are quite memorable in their supporting roles, with Nighy bringing a sense of weight to his role as Judith’s boss, despite his limited screen time. Dutch actress Sylvia Hoeks, known for her role in Blade Runner 2049, is genuinely terrifying as Judith’s ruthless adversary.
I genuinely believe this show had the potential to be a classic if the writing had been more polished. The mix of silly comedy and intense violence can feel a bit off at times; the blend of these different tones isn’t seamless. The buddy-comedy moments are enjoyable, although they ask for quite a bit of suspension of disbelief. Personally, I think the Interpol storyline is the weakest part. I just didn’t connect with the French ex-couple working for Interpol, especially the actress who made me cringe every time she was on screen. I really wish we could have seen more of the mysterious Mrs. Williams (Cathy Tyson), Judith’s ally and a former assassin, along with her daughter Queenie (Savannah Steyn).
Some episodes are more watchable than others, but the last two really made up for it. All in all, it was a breeze to binge and definitely worth a watch if you’re in the mood for something entertaining. The finale hinted at a sequel, and I’d be totally on board if the two leads return. Fingers crossed we get to see more of Queenie and Bill Nighy’s character as well!
52 Films By Women – 2026 Challenge
I am once again participating in this challenge. Per Women In Film (WIF) organization, the basic rules are simple: watch 52 films directed by women within one year and share what you watched on social media, using the hashtag #52FilmsByWomen to spread the word and get more people talking about the women filmmakers that don’t always get attention.
Per my mid-year recap I did last week, I added 5 new movies this month, so I’ve completed 37 out of 52, so there are only 15 more to go until the end of 2026.
JULY MOVIE OF THE MONTH
THE ODYSSEY
It’s tough to come across a more epic film event than The Odyssey. This is yet another amazing achievement for Nolan, and it’s sure to get him and his team some Oscar nods. No doubt, it’s another massive box office success for Nolan; it has already made over $727 million globally in just 12 days and is expected to wrap up its worldwide theatrical run near $1.5 billion. Defy the gods? Nolan once again shows he can hush the critics with this spectacular piece of entertainment.
I only saw 2 short docs this month as I spent much of my time watching the FIFA World Cup. The best thing I did see is the new season of King of the Hill that has one of the best season finales and a PERFECT ending.
Are you happy with how the FIFA World Cup turned out, with Spain winning, I mean?
Pretty much as they were the better team that only conceded one goal in the entire tournament. Plus, our dumbass dictator HATES Spain so that is a plus. I have a lot more to say about the World Cup when I finish my post-mortem.
I’m kind of getting depressed that the year is almost over, as usual, every year is going way too fast the older you get. Lol!
Since I saw it twice already, maybe I’ll see it again for the third time, The Odyssey is the movie of month for me. I liked it a lot better the second time around. I’ve been trying to see it again on IMAX but all of the showtimes are constantly sold out, I can get an early morning showtime but I don’t want to see a film at 9am. Ha ha! Then I watched Project Hail Mary, I liked it a lot. I started watching Master of the Universe and I couldn’t get into it, I stopped watching about 30 minutes.
I watched a few older films that came out on 4K disc. Fight Club, I still think it’s a great film but I have conflicting feeling about it now. The film was basically about the early days of manosphere, the men in that film didn’t blame women and minorities for their failures, they blame the system. But of course, now these losers look up to monsters like the Tate Brothers and the current Sleepy President and blame everyone else for their failures in life. Then I finally saw Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair. I wanted to go see it in theater last winter but I didn’t want to sit in a theater for 5 hours! Then lastly, Arnold’s late 90s action cheesefest Eraser finally came out on 4K blu-ray and it’s still a blast watching Arnold’s last good action film.
As usual, I watched a bunch of TV series. I know I watched Citadel season 2 a couple of months ago but I don’t remember anything about it. Finished the remake of Cape Fear, it’s good but the last episode kind of pissed me off. Half way through season 3 of Silo, which is much better than season 2. I started another new show on Apple TV called Lucky and so far so good. But the series of the month was Netflix’s Unfamiliar, a spy thriller from Germany.
Hey Ted, Fall is still quite warm, so I’m not depressed yet, LOL!
That’s cool that you like The Odyssey the second time around. Was there a scene that you loved more the second time you saw it? I might rewatch it once it’s on streaming, not gonna pay the IMAX price, ahah.
Project Hail Mary is great, I might rewatch that again soon. Another one I can’t wait to rewatch is The Sheep Detectives.
Oooh I actually like Eraser quite a bit, that’s the one with Vanessa Williams right? It’s not the greatest but enjoyable!
I haven’t even heard of Unfamiliar, but I usually like European spy series, so will give that a shot!
I looked all around the city here and other states, the IMAX showtimes are all sold out. There’s new IMAX theater in Lakeville that has the biggest IMAX screen in MN and that theater is booked for several weeks. Of course you can get an early showing but I don’t want to watch a film at 9am. Lol. I think the scene at the beginning with the Trojan horse really hooked me and then the massacre of Troy really hit me hard. Mostly because Nolan kind of saying, if our current politicians don’t clean up all messes that’s happening, this empire called the United States will fall like the Romans did. I know that some people didn’t like it when Odysseus confessed that he regret creating the Trojan horse and he’s the reason why that empire failed.
Yup, Vanessa Williams was the female lead in Eraser. A film that Warner Bros. hoped would turn into a franchise for them. But it didn’t earn as much as they had hoped and then Arnold starred in Batman & Robin the next year and that was that. Lol!
Unfamiliar was more of a character driven spy thriller with some sprinkle of action. I hope there’s another season, apparently it did quite well when it streamed back in February of this years.
We watched the entire first season of Citadel but were not moved enough to sample this new one, and I suspect we will not. I have heard good things about Ride Or Die and may put that on the watch list. Wasn’t drawn to it by its premise, but I do like both of the stars.
Hey Bruce! I like the first season of CITADEL and S2 showed some promise, but I got more and more bored with it. Ride Or Die is fun despite it being uneven; the two female stars make the show watchable.
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Summer is always a slow movie time for me too. I just want to be outside. I love that Lugwig is your music break! He ends up on my Spotify most played every year. Love his work.
Ludwig is amazing! I love how dedicated and innovative he is, as his scores sound so different from one another.
As you know it’s been all TV for me last month, with only a few movies in the line up.
There is a movie category in the EMMY line up, but I have only watched Remarkably Bright Creatures, as it is also up for Outstanding Costumes for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie.
I have watched all costume nominees in all categories, and have moved on to Best in all Categories.
So, this week I’ll be watching the other 4 movies: Heads of State, Miss you Love you, Jack Ryan Ghost War and People We Meet on Vacation.
I got hooked on DTF St. Louis and just binged All Her Fault, which was written by a woman and directed by 2 women. It’s really great on many fronts.
LOL.. you asked what we watched.
Adore this wrap up post, thank you so much Ruth! Won’t watch Citadel… Ride or Die…maybe.
Okay, off to read the tribute for Glen Hansard!
~~ ★❅ ꧁❄︎🌹❄︎꧂ ❅★ ~~
I know you’ve been busy watching lots and lots of TV!
Did you get to see all the four TV movies? I’ve seen Heads of State which is pretty funny (I like Cena and Elba), Jack Ryan Ghost War is terrible, and People We Meet on Vacation is decent, just not that memorable. Not sure what Miss you Love you is about…
You got me curious about DTF St Louis; I like the cast but is it raunchy? The trailer is definitely intriguing!
Yeah, skip Citadel, but Ride or Die is pretty fun.
Thanks for your kind support, as always!! Love ya… happy TV watching!
⊹₊˚‧꧁ 모˙✧˖° 📺🖥️˙✧˖°📺 ⋆。˚모 ꧂‧˚₊⊹
TV…EGADS!!!!!
No, got distracted wallowing in the costumes (taking pics off the tv) WOW! It’s not just the fashion, it’s ALL of the costuming. I think they can win this year. I’ll mail you tonight or tomorrow about the guest post. I have a couple of questions… no big deal.
NO DTF St. Louis is not raunchy. There are a few “love” scenes, but they are tasteful, needed for the plot and definitely not gratuitous. Please watch it! It is a great who done it.
Okay… movies this weekend!
One tonight, for sure. Not looking forward to Jack Ryan!
LOL!
Lovin’ the TV emoji line-up!
~~ ★ ꧁❦❆ 🌹 𝕽𝕬𝕿𝕳 🌹 ❆❦꧂ ★ ~~
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