The Globes are early this year, airing January 11, 2026, which complicates things. I don’t have time for more viewing, so my review list is short. And honestly, after reading what I wrote, it’s a little crabby-sounding too. #handshrugemoji. But I’m going to leave it cause I gotta keep things real. #youvebeenwarned
The other reason for my short list is that, once again, many of the nominated movies are still in theaters. This is obviously intentional, but in the age of paid subscription streaming, it’s annoying. I get that they’re trying to push us out of our comfortable homes and to support a theater experience, but if those that are out are not even ‘free’ on one of the many platforms where I have a paid subscription, I’m going to miss even more of the shows. But then, if I want to be ready for the Globes, I’m forced to spend money to rent or buy them. Maybe I shouldn’t complain so loudly. I’m all about supporting the creative arts. Still, I don’t like feeling strong-armed into spending more money in order to watch the best of the best. Every year.
Below are my reviews with my 0-5 star ratings.
BUGONIA – ⭐
I hated this movie. I walked away regretting that I watched it. I paid $20 to rent it and felt like I’d fallen for the Emma Stone trap again. The trap being that Emma Stone is a cool actress that I really like, but after watching her movies, I often hate having done so. Poor Things, anyone? That 2023 film where she’s like a female Frankenstein obsessed with being naked and masturbation? I was sorry I watched that movie too. Now, Bugonia. Yeah, it was well done. And if you like horror, which I don’t, maybe you’ll find the super graphic violence cool. I was beyond uncomfortable with the mental illness, abuse, neglect, and usury plotlines. I was impressed with the lengthy amount of dialogue and intense acting done by the two main characters – Emma and Jesse Plemons. No spoilers here, but I will say that I thought about the movie a lot afterwards. Which is usually a good sign. Going back over scenes that made sense only when the movie was over. Still. It was too disturbing. I just felt kind of sick.
PLURIBUS ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐- Apple TV
A series. I’d been considering dumping my Apple TV subscription, but I was glad to have it so I could watch this cool show. It sucks you right in. There are nine episodes in this first season. You’re gonna want to binge watch. I think the second season will come out in 2027. Boo. I’d never heard of the lead actress – Rhea Seehorn. I guess she was in Better Call Saul – which I didn’t see. Ms. Seehorn is amazing. She’s in almost every scene. I can only imagine how exhausted she was. The tagline/synopsis for the show is listed as: The most miserable person on Earth must save the world from happiness. Which actually turned me off from wanting to watch it. Why do I want to watch something like that? What? The only reason I finally tuned in was because it was nominated for a Golden Globe. The tagline is completely wrong – the main character has to save the world from a kind of viral happiness, but I would not at all classify the character as being the most miserable person on Earth. She’s wickedly clever, intelligent, thoughtful, wise, empathetic, caring, determined, complexly human, and courageous.
SPOLIER: But I hated the final episode when Carol suddenly lost a lot of those qualities. I thought Carol was smarter. Instead, she began wasting her time and seemed to blithely ignore that every marvelous experience she had should not have been marvelous and instead should have amplified the horror of what happened to the humans. No one but her and the worker bee were on the slopes! No one in restaurants! No one enjoying the marvelous views in the dreamy locations built by humans or eating delicious food! And she had ‘saved’ her main chaperone from the harem-like existence of hanging with the Vegas guy, only to glom onto her in a one-sided and false relationship. Creepily violating. It’s a thought-provoking series though. Which is something that I love.
ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐- rented on Fandango
Wow. My hat is off to all actors, set design people, writers, etc. Watch this movie. I was squirmy at first, thinking… Whaaat? What is this? I was so uncomfortable with the opening Sean Penn scene. Get past it and keep watching. At the end, over the classic Tom Petty music (which perfectly brackets off the complex experience) my face was still twisted up, but with many more variegated emotions – horror, revulsion, intrigue, satisfaction, despair, and pride for the movie being made. I appreciated the cleverness and humor, the tight pacing, and the entire fast-paced ride. Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Teyana Taylor – they all deserve awards. Basically, the movie is about an aging, burnt-out revolutionary who lives off grid and whose past life catches up with him. But damn. What a twisted world we live in.
FRANKENSTEIN – Netflix
I didn’t give it any stars because it might be star-worthy but just not to my taste. (Like the chick who gave one of my books a one-star review because it wasn’t a paranormal. It was never described to be such. She probably gives Mexican restaurants one-star ratings because she doesn’t like tacos. Or doesn’t tip her waitress because she’s a vegan dining at a steak joint.)
Sorry.
I shouldn’t have tried to watch the movie because I don’t like horror movies and I’ve never been a fan of Frankenstein. Even as a little girl, I recall sobbing for the monster and feeling horribly confused after watching the black-and-white version. This latest movie kind of sticks to the story, albeit with the advantage of super cool computer-aided visuals and set design, but when Frankenstein started torturing his creation, it felt like familiar territory that I did not want to reimagine or explore. I turned it off.
NOUVELLE VAGUE ⭐ Netflix
Nooo. Don’t make me watch this! It’s not even in English! I hate subtitles. I rolled my eyes at Hollywood’s esoteric pick then settled in to watch. It was sooo noir French and in black and white filled with chain smoking, sunglasses wearing, angsty filmmakers and artists. Pretty much what I expected. Going in cold, I didn’t understand that it was about the making of a successful film from 1960 called Breathless. Breathless was groundbreaking for its jump cuts and other elements of film design and creative use of storytelling that I would need a doctoral interpreter from film studies to explain. It was not interesting to me. Go ahead, mumble a garbled and pretentious French slur my way for my unsophisticated blasphemy. I’m an American mutt. I don’t care.