Films 🎞️

I saw 9 movies this month including 6 first viewings and 3 rewatches. Of the films I was watching for the first time I think Sinners (2025) ★★★★½ was the standout feature with Little Women (2019) ★★★★½ coming in a very close second. Greta Gerwig’s Little Women is a sleek adaptation of the Louisa May Alcott’s novel. This film has a remarkable cast filling out the March family with Saoirse Ronan as Jo, Emma Watson as Meg, Florence Pugh as Amy, Eliza Scanlen as Beth and Laura Dern as the matriarch Marmee March. I thought it was interesting that Greta had the foresight to cast Florence Pugh as both younger and older Amy March; most previous adaptations had used two actresses in this role. It’s clear to me that Greta has great affection for Amy and the source material with the 2019 adaptation taking the often bratty character of Amy and humanizing her as a practical young woman trying to have both love and the safety of a good marriage. Amy’s still the contagonist to Jo but the development of the character really strengthens this adpatation.

I not really the biggest fan of horror movies so for Sinners a movie that wears the trappings of that genre to take my top honor really surprised me but Sinners is a film that defies most genre label you could try to pin on it. Writer-director Ryan Coogler’s film deftly blends elements from period dramas, backstage musicals and vampire films into a artful tapestry representing the full breadth of the African American experience in 1932 Mississippi. I really enjoyed the way Coogler used vampires to explore themes of heritage, assimilation and freedom. The way the musical elements are folded diegetically into the film, building into these elaborate song & dance numbers where the characters are celebrating their culture is truly transcendent. Don’t miss one of the best movies of 2025.

Of the 3 films I rewatched this month, the highlight was seeing Casablanca (1942) ★★★★★ on a movie theater screen. I caught a repertory screening and was lucky enough to an audience full of fellow cinephiles who all hanging on every memorable line of the all-time classic. I also rewatched Predator: Badlands (2025) ★★★★½ and The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) ★★★★ this month. The former was a fun reminder of why Predator: Badlands was one of my best movie theater going experiences and the latter was a fun revisit of a classic movie with my friend Todd would had never seen it.

On Saturday, February 7th, 2026, I was looking to ease my troubled mind and ended up programming a little movie marathon featuring Blue Moon (2025) ★★★★, Little Women (2019), and the 2024 documentary Jim Henson Idea Man ★★★★½. The Ron Howard directed documentary on the life of the brilliant entertainer Jim Henson was a delight for a Muppets super fan like me. It was a wonderful and artistic celebration of Jim’s genius.

I finished out the evening with a viewing of Blue Moon which is a delightful showbiz drama set at the afterparty for the opening night of the Broadway musical “Oklahoma!”. Our story sees us following the lyricist Lorenz Hart throughout the party, as he struggles to cope with the fact that composer Richard Rodgers has left their partnership and found greater success in his new endeavor with new lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein. As an avid fan of The Oscars, I try to watch all the movies nominated in the major categories which is how Blue Moon initially got onto my watchlist. Ethan Hawke is nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal of Lorenz Hart; Ethan masterfully embodies the lyricist and Hawk’s performance of the infamous imbiber and romantic is full of wit, mirth and pining. Lorenz Hart was only 5-feet tall and the way the Cinematographer Shane F. Kelly and Director Richard Linklater us forced perspective camera work to create the illusion that Ethan Hawke is much shorter than he is was remarkable. I love the way Richard Linklater directs dialogue scenes in his films. Andrew Scott turns in a great performance as Richard Rodgers and you can really see the care he has former partner and the pains he has gone to to try and save their friendship. Blue Moon is enjoyable film and a special treat for theater fans.

There other two first watches this month we’re Wuthering Heights (2026) and Crime 101 (2026). I took them in together as a double feature at my local multiplex on February 14th, 2026. Here are my reviews:

Wuthering Heights ★★★★ – Emerald Fennell’s oeuvre of tantalizing taboos and sizzling sexuality continues to delight me. The last two films she has directed are so good at capturing the feeling of longing for love. This adaptation of Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights” is not particularly faithful to the original story. It feels more like the audience is watching Fennell’s fanfic filmed for our enjoyment. It’s a bit of a tawdry take but I think that it certainly captures the forbidden love from the original story.

Linus Sandgreen’s cinematography is absolutely breathtaking and definitely worth seeing on the big screen. Charlotte Dirickx’s set dressing and Jacqueline Durran’s costuming are working in tandem to create a heightened, epic-romance aesthetic that feels like drawn right from the covers of so many tawdry romance novels.

Crime 101 ★★★★ – Crime 101 is stylistically a real throwback to older heist movies like The Getaway (1972) and The Driver (1978) with a methodical pacing that is more focused on the ethos of the criminals and what makes them tick rather than the heists themselves. 

Director Bart Layton returns to the crime genre after the success of his breakout film American Animals.  The star-studded cast really elevated Bart’s screenplay with solid performances. Barry Keogan’s Ormon is unhinged and reckless  criminal, serving perfectly as The Shadow archetype to Chris Hemsworth’s Davis who is calm, calculated and focused on separating his marks from their valuables without harming them.

The cinematographer Erik Wilson uses lots of long takes which really helps heighten the tension during the standoffs. The intricate driving choreography was a standout with great work by the stunt team. Like many heist before it Crime 101 uses Los Angeles as more than a setting really folding in the city as one of its characters. Loved some of the beautiful shots of Highway 101.

Music 🎶

This has been a good month for my music listening habits because I’ve actually slowed down enough to sit down and take in some new albums. The first album that I would like to share with you is Asleep In The Garden Of Infernal Stars by Seven Lions. This sophomore electronic album is excellent at building sonic soundscapes that echo through your head and get you moving your body.

via GIPHY

In a similar vein, I’ve also been really enjoying Odyssey by Illenium. This album is great blend of Illenium’s signature melodic bass hooks and feature numerous interesting collaborations for the vocals like Kid Cudi, Bring Me the Horizon and Bastille. The last album I wanted to bring your attention this month is I Used to Go to This Bar by Joyce Manor. This seventh studio album sees this beloved melodic pop-punk band drawing from wider basin with many songs showing a willingness to experiment with their signature sound. Of the variety of musical styles Joyce Manor added to the mix, I was particularly fond of some of the keyboard-driven tracks that feature a power pop sound musically akin to Weezer. On the singles side, I’ve also really enjoying some of the songs Charli xcx contributed to the Wuthering Heights soundtrack like Chains of Love. I’m really excited for the upcoming Metric album Romanticize The Dive, especially after hearing it’s lead single Victim of Luck which I’ll leave you with as I wrap up this music section.

Gaming 🎮

The month of February saw me engaging in with a smaller selection of games between my social gaming, daily windup gaming, and my primary focus game. My primary focus game continued to be Hades 2 which I rolled credits on after around 65 hours and 148 night runs in-game. I know I talked about a bit last month, so I’ll spare you more Hades 2 details here, especially because I’m working on a full review for this one. On February 28th I started my next primary focus narrative game in Demonschool. I’m not to far into Demonschool yet but I’m loving it’s unique take on the familiar tactical RPG tropes which are heightened by blending in a puzzle element with time limits that kind of reminds me of the Disgaea series if it were more chill and approachable.

I’ve continued playing Battle Chef Brigade but if I’m being honest the story is not really hooking me. I still enjoy the game’s mechanical blend of 2-D side scrolling adventuring and cooking mini games and I’ll probably finish it but it has definitely drifted into daily windup game category. There’s nothing like a good roguelike run to give the brain a good workout and I played through quite a few runs in this month’s other mental calisthenics games: Ball x Pitt w/ The Regal Update, Slay the Spire, Ring of Pain and Insider Trading. I did a short review of Insider Trading for the blog which can be found here but in short it’s an interesting take on Balatro’s signature mechanics in a cheeky send up of the finance industry.

I’m practically bursting with excitement over the looming Slay the Spire 2 on March 5th, 2026 so I’m sure you’ll be hearing about that game next month. Slay the Spire never had any narrative aspirations, but the sequel is promising story elements and a multiplayer component.

For social gaming this month I squadded up with some coworkers for a few rounds of The Finals. We had a great time gaming and hanging out. I hope we get to play some more together soon.

Hope you enjoyed catching up with what I’ve been up to and maybe even found a recommendation to enjoy the next time you unwind with some quality screen time.