Grant Watson
@fictionmachine.bsky.social
Rotten Tomatoes-accredited film critic. Award-winning playwright. Noted international education analyst. Serviceable theatre director. Has multiple sclerosis.
www.fictionmachine.com
www.fictionmachine.com
"Man, I had a tough week, my job is crazy."
(Meanwhile, in the Taiwanese Parliament.)
(Meanwhile, in the Taiwanese Parliament.)
February 13, 2026 at 4:03 AM
"Man, I had a tough week, my job is crazy."
(Meanwhile, in the Taiwanese Parliament.)
(Meanwhile, in the Taiwanese Parliament.)
NEW REVIEW! Ozu Yasujiro's first talking picture sees the director emerge effectively fully-formed in terms of style, tone, and content. It's a modest and heartfelt family drama.
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/12/r...
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/12/r...
REVIEW: The Only Son (1936)
Ozu Yasujiro’s The Only Son – his first talking picture – is an efficiently composed, modest gem. It tells a short, simple story but tells it very well. One can see the artist tha…
fictionmachine.com
February 12, 2026 at 9:54 PM
NEW REVIEW! Ozu Yasujiro's first talking picture sees the director emerge effectively fully-formed in terms of style, tone, and content. It's a modest and heartfelt family drama.
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/12/r...
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/12/r...
What's the difference between a Looney Tunes and a Merrie Melodies cartoon, you may ask.
Warner Bros owned a very large catalogue of musical works. Merrie Melodies were set up to exploit this catalogue, while Looney Tunes were established for more generic animated short films.
So now you know.
Warner Bros owned a very large catalogue of musical works. Merrie Melodies were set up to exploit this catalogue, while Looney Tunes were established for more generic animated short films.
So now you know.
February 12, 2026 at 1:41 AM
What's the difference between a Looney Tunes and a Merrie Melodies cartoon, you may ask.
Warner Bros owned a very large catalogue of musical works. Merrie Melodies were set up to exploit this catalogue, while Looney Tunes were established for more generic animated short films.
So now you know.
Warner Bros owned a very large catalogue of musical works. Merrie Melodies were set up to exploit this catalogue, while Looney Tunes were established for more generic animated short films.
So now you know.
This is why I always ask two questions of any film I watch:
1. What is the filmmaker attempting to do, and do they succeed?
2. Is it good?
If Question 1 is not "make a 100% faithful adaptation", then clearly the filmmaker can't have failed.
1. What is the filmmaker attempting to do, and do they succeed?
2. Is it good?
If Question 1 is not "make a 100% faithful adaptation", then clearly the filmmaker can't have failed.
February 11, 2026 at 11:38 PM
This is why I always ask two questions of any film I watch:
1. What is the filmmaker attempting to do, and do they succeed?
2. Is it good?
If Question 1 is not "make a 100% faithful adaptation", then clearly the filmmaker can't have failed.
1. What is the filmmaker attempting to do, and do they succeed?
2. Is it good?
If Question 1 is not "make a 100% faithful adaptation", then clearly the filmmaker can't have failed.
NEW REVIEW. To an extent, James Vanderbilt's Nuremberg is just another glossy Hollywood courtroom drama, but a series of small moments and a blunt, factual representation of Nazi horrors elevate it to a higher quality.
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/11/r...
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/11/r...
REVIEW: Nuremberg (2025)
James Vanderbilt, who wrote the screenplay to Zodiac (2007), has now written and directed the historical drama Nuremberg (2025). It actually makes a lot of sense, and I feel one can sense both film…
fictionmachine.com
February 11, 2026 at 10:50 PM
NEW REVIEW. To an extent, James Vanderbilt's Nuremberg is just another glossy Hollywood courtroom drama, but a series of small moments and a blunt, factual representation of Nazi horrors elevate it to a higher quality.
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/11/r...
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/11/r...
RIP James Van Der Beek.
February 11, 2026 at 8:35 PM
RIP James Van Der Beek.
I love Dern, but it has to be said she was taking advantage.
February 11, 2026 at 12:46 AM
I love Dern, but it has to be said she was taking advantage.
It's been really divisive among anime fans.
February 10, 2026 at 11:17 PM
It's been really divisive among anime fans.
May I suggest each episode cliffhanger using *this* theme, specifically from 1:28.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSYS...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSYS...
Doctor Who
YouTube video by Geoff Love & His Orchestra - Topic
www.youtube.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:12 PM
May I suggest each episode cliffhanger using *this* theme, specifically from 1:28.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSYS...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSYS...
Given how good the Darabont film of The Mist is, this new adaptation is honest-to-god a waste of everybody's time. Flanagan's, King's, the audience's. Everybody's.
deadline.com/2026/02/step...
deadline.com/2026/02/step...
Mike Flanagan & Stephen King Back In Business With ‘The Mist’ Movie For Warner Bros
Warner Bros is reuniting frequent collaborators Mike Flanagan and Stephen King on a new adaptation of The Mist, based on King's 1980 novella.
deadline.com
February 10, 2026 at 11:07 PM
Given how good the Darabont film of The Mist is, this new adaptation is honest-to-god a waste of everybody's time. Flanagan's, King's, the audience's. Everybody's.
deadline.com/2026/02/step...
deadline.com/2026/02/step...
NEW REVIEW! "Series Acclimation Mil" is a near-perfect episode of Starfleet Academy in every respect bar timing.
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/10/t...
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/10/t...
TV REVIEW: Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, 1.5 “Series Acclimation Mil”
First broadcast 5 February 2026. I have sat on writing this review for longer than usual, because “Series Acclimation Mil” is easily – for good or bad – the most interesting…
fictionmachine.com
February 10, 2026 at 10:42 PM
NEW REVIEW! "Series Acclimation Mil" is a near-perfect episode of Starfleet Academy in every respect bar timing.
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/10/t...
fictionmachine.com/2026/02/10/t...
I have literally done the training courses, baiting cadets to prepare them for real life.
February 10, 2026 at 8:52 AM
I have literally done the training courses, baiting cadets to prepare them for real life.
I'm not quite sure this means entirely what you think it means, Nuremberg.
February 10, 2026 at 8:48 AM
I'm not quite sure this means entirely what you think it means, Nuremberg.
I have this specific response to JMS' writing where I think his dialogue is terrible but his monologues are masterful.
February 10, 2026 at 2:20 AM
I have this specific response to JMS' writing where I think his dialogue is terrible but his monologues are masterful.
I have a very complicated relationship with B5. Quite liked it, then weird harassment from some fans led me to despise it, after a complete front-to-back rewatch a few years ago I think it's a weird mixture of genius and hack-handed terribleness in equal measure.
February 10, 2026 at 1:04 AM
I have a very complicated relationship with B5. Quite liked it, then weird harassment from some fans led me to despise it, after a complete front-to-back rewatch a few years ago I think it's a weird mixture of genius and hack-handed terribleness in equal measure.
This rather misleading headline neglects to include that the cases were dismissed because they were filed in the USA but the alleged crimes occurred in New Zealand.
www.theguardian.com/books/2026/f...
www.theguardian.com/books/2026/f...
US judges dismiss lawsuits accusing Neil Gaiman of sexual assault
Former nanny Scarlett Pavlovich filed suit in three US states alleging author assaulted her in New Zealand in 2022
www.theguardian.com
February 10, 2026 at 12:58 AM
This rather misleading headline neglects to include that the cases were dismissed because they were filed in the USA but the alleged crimes occurred in New Zealand.
www.theguardian.com/books/2026/f...
www.theguardian.com/books/2026/f...
"Not telling the full truth" honestly sounds like I'm being deliberately deceptive! "Is an old man with a literal brain condition affecting his memory" is more accurate.
February 10, 2026 at 12:30 AM
"Not telling the full truth" honestly sounds like I'm being deliberately deceptive! "Is an old man with a literal brain condition affecting his memory" is more accurate.
Quickly Googling around, I note I did forget that "Into the Fire" was intended to be a two-part story, and that according to JMS the original Season 4 ending episode was going to be "Intersections in Real Time". So three episodes got shifted to Season 4, not two. Apologies.
February 10, 2026 at 12:28 AM
Quickly Googling around, I note I did forget that "Into the Fire" was intended to be a two-part story, and that according to JMS the original Season 4 ending episode was going to be "Intersections in Real Time". So three episodes got shifted to Season 4, not two. Apologies.
Oh the loss of Claudia Christian absolutely shatters any chance the Season 5 telepath stuff had of being interesting. (IMO.)
February 10, 2026 at 12:22 AM
Oh the loss of Claudia Christian absolutely shatters any chance the Season 5 telepath stuff had of being interesting. (IMO.)
I was originally referring to "Endgame" and "Rising Star" as the two episodes shifted from the start of Season 5 to the end of Season 4 when it looked like Season 5 wasn't happening.
February 10, 2026 at 12:18 AM
I was originally referring to "Endgame" and "Rising Star" as the two episodes shifted from the start of Season 5 to the end of Season 4 when it looked like Season 5 wasn't happening.
My understanding has always been that "Deconstruction" was only made because the renewal for Season 5 meant they needed a new final episode for Season 4, and they came up with "Deconstruction" very late in the day and shot it as the first episode on the Season 5 schedule.
February 10, 2026 at 12:16 AM
My understanding has always been that "Deconstruction" was only made because the renewal for Season 5 meant they needed a new final episode for Season 4, and they came up with "Deconstruction" very late in the day and shot it as the first episode on the Season 5 schedule.
Season 4 wasn't sped up as much people think. They lost two episodes. (Which worryingly means Season 5 was always going to be that anticlimactic and boring.)
February 9, 2026 at 11:29 PM
Season 4 wasn't sped up as much people think. They lost two episodes. (Which worryingly means Season 5 was always going to be that anticlimactic and boring.)