What I Watched – August 2026

Satluj: Wrote about this here.

The Agency (Season 2): Worth watching as it takes off from where it left us in Season 1.

Great Expectations (1946): Wrote about this here

Great Expectations (1998): Wrote about this here

Patriot: Malayalam cinema is slowly learning to make slick flicks. But the writing needs a lot more improvement.

DC: Despite the gory violence, I enjoyed watching this on the big screen. Loosely based on Devdas, this gangster movie was worth a big-screen watch. The company of my sister and niece made it all the more memorable.

Killer Elite: One of those random finds that turned out to be great. The movie is based on a true story which was published in a book called ‘The Feather Men’. I don’t remember watching any movie in which a major part involves Oman.

Thomas Jefferson: I’ve been reading up on the Founding Fathers and ended up sampling this Ken Burns documentary on Jefferson. Will write on him separately soon.

Thudakkam: This was tedious When a superstar’s daughter, who incidentally is also a trained kickboxer, is set to be launched, what could be the keywords to develop a potential script? Let me guess. Rural setting, seemingly innocent girl, a psychopath on the loose and the girl’s kickboxing skills to the rescue, woman’s empowerment. When a movie follows a predictable template, it no longer is art.

Raja Shivaji: Terrible stuff. Wrote about it here

Safed Sagar: We finally are checking the boxes when it comes to making high quality TV shows based on actual history. The story of the Mig 21 squadron that played a critical role in the Kargil War was well delivered. The real tragedy of this history is the obsolete equipment that our aviators had to fly. On screen, with a rousing background score thumping in the background, the cockpit visuals of the jets long past its use-by date were cognitively dissonant. We need to sort out the sad mess that our Defense Procurement is.

In the Grey: Guy Ritchie was disappointing here. The manner in which a billionaire’s fortunes are picked off with smooth operators was a bit extra smooth for me. One of those movies that you’ll forget in a week.

Spider-Man Brand New Day: I went and watched this with the kids without seeing the previous recent installments. (I was coached by my girls that the only info I needed to know was that Spidey’s girlfriend, played by the stunning Zendaya, had no memory of him). Despite this, I was impressed. Watching it, I also realized that Spider-Man movies are also love letters to New York.

Bethelhem Kudumba Unit The most talked about Onam release was watched. This feel-good, no-stress, all-ends-well format has been the staple of Girish AD. Apart from the laugh-out-loud comedy, there was nothing much to dwell upon once the movie ended. On Twitter, one reviewer’s comment that Justin’s decision to join his love in Ireland is also a sad commentary on the tragedy of the Kerala Model.

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