Gendo's 2026 Movies

[Gendo]

Here we go again! Back with more determination than ever to watch my unwatched movies. An ok start so far; only bought 1 new one so far lol.

1. The Shop Around the Corner (1940) - Pretty enjoyable. Compared to the other versions, there was less of a focus on the whole romance plot and more just dealing with the different characters and the going ons of the shop itself. A lot of good performances, especially from Frank Morgan and William Tracy.

2. South Park: Joining the Panderverse (2023) - I was a bit worried about this one; given South Park's history on certain issues. But actually it presented a very balanced view; equally going after Disney for some of their questionable decisions and those types that like to make a huge deal out of it. It didn't have the same maturity as the last couple specials; feeling a bit more like a regular episode or just not addressing something that really mattered in our society. Except for the handyman/Randy plot. I wish that had been more of the focus; as it actually felt like it was making more important points, as well as just being overall funnier.

3. South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023) - Started off very weak; with the entire joke being basically nothing but showing naked Randy. Probably doesn't help that I had actually never heard of the Prime drink before. But in the second half, it actually got quite good. It had the most series message to present, at least since Post COVID. It simply did a good job of showing the desire to fit in with current trends combined with actual sincere warning about kids and social media. Actually hard for me to imagine what it would be like to be a kid today. As a parent, I don't know what things will be like in a few years, but I'm glad my son wasn't 10-12 years old a couple years ago or now.

4. South Park: The End of Obesity (2024) - Probably the weakest of the specials; feeling the most like it could have been a regular episode. It still tackled real issues, which I guess seems to be what set all 5 of these apart from the standard show (which tackles real issues sometimes, but not in the majority of episodes or anything). The problem that it was addressing just didn't seem that relatable. Although the bits about the American health care system were excellent. And I did enjoy just how far things escalated throughout, until a completely insane climax in the final act.

That's it for South Park (I haven't been watching season 27, but I've seen all other South Park stuff now).

[Gendo]

5. 'M*A*S*H': 30th Anniversary Reunion (2002) - Also not quote a movie... but it was as long as a movie, and basically like a documentary. It was pretty good. Been a couple years since I watched M*A*S*H, and it was nice to be reminded of a lot of what I liked about it. Also watched the A&E Biography episode about M*A*S*H which was part of the same DVD set.

[Gendo]

R1. Anne of Green Gables (1985) - Rewatching because last time we never got around to watching the rest of the series. I don't remember my feelings about it previously, but I thought this was really good. A nice story with some strong performances, especially from Jonathan Crombie and Richard Farnsworth. The relationships between the characters were overall well-written. My only complaint might be that Anne was slightly too over-the-top in terms of her character traits being shown, but it was well-balanced by the other characters; including the setting itself basically being a character.

6. Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel (1987) - A strong sequel for the most part. The middle of it was focused too heavily on her time at Kingsport; Avonlea and her relationships with the people there was sorely missed. But the first episode before she leaves was great, and the strongest scenes were those between Anne and Gilbert. The actors and characters both had a great chemistry, and it still just had a surprisingly good overall quality.

[Gendo]

7. Up in the Air (2009) - I wasn't so sure about the beginning, but it got continuously better, and by the end was a pretty great film. I think as a whole I just don't like Anna Kendrick that much. . But Vera Farmiga was great, as was Clooney, even if he is just always playing himself. The writing was great, and it had a lot to say about life and love.

8. Smile 2 (2024) - Pretty average overall. An overreliance on jump scares, and not much of a fan of the whole the entire third act just wasn't even real thing. But it had a lot of well done effects and scary imagery. A bit strange how the metaphor was changed from the first one; going from being about mental health to being about drug addiction and self-consciousness I guess? Overall, not bad but probably not as good as the first one, and definitely not in the category of "great horror movie", of which there are so few.

[Gendo]

9. Nosferatu (2024) - A very well-done film, but I found myself less interested as it went on, to the point that I was mostly bored by the end. I prefer Coppola's version, despite Hault giving an obviously far superior performance to Reeves. Still, the visuals were quite impressive in all aspects, makeup, set design, camera work.