Nomadland

A scenic road trip that meanders along with no real destination set.

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Here's what I've been watching and playing over the last seven days...

MOVIES

Nomadland

Movie summary: After losing everything in the Great Recession, a woman in her sixties embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling nomad. (IMDb)

Nomadland is based off a non-fiction book and, having watched it, I really think this should have been a documentary rather than a movie.

I would honestly advise anyone planning on watching this movie to treat it as a documentary and not expect and character arcs, plot or forward momentum of any kind.

Nomadland is about a group of older Americans who have fallen on hard times and taken up a - surprise, surprise - nomadic lifestyle, trying to make ends meet on the road.

And that's it.

If you want to spend close to two hours getting a taste of the life people have on the road in America, then this is great for you - if not... well, watch something else.

There are two 'names' in the cast, Frances McDormand as Fern and David Strathairn as Dave - both of whom are quietly excellent - but almost the rest of the 'cast' are genuine nomads.

These nomads not being 'proper' actors means that everything feels really real, but again makes me wish that Nomadland had been a documentary and not a movie.

Even the stunning sights shown off throughout the film don't help sway that opinion, as there's nothing stopping the most gorgeous shots from being included in a documentary either.

Ultimately, how much you'll enjoy Nomadland will depend on if you vibe with the tone and atmosphere it sets - how you feel about what you're watching after 25-30 minutes is most likely how you'll feel after two hours.

Nomadland is a well-made movie with some great performances and truly stunning shots in there, but it's far too long considering how little actually happens. [6/10]

GAMES

EA FC 26

I managed to get this really cheap and still feel like I got absolutely fleeced - I'm experimenting with the settings to see if I can improve things, but I can confidently state that the game as is when you first load it is utter, utter, UTTER garbage.

Sorcery!

I've finished part 1 at the second attempt and have started on part 2 and it's okay so far, if a little bland at the moment - not much in either part to really fire the imagination!

Tyranny

Another section done and I'm hoping I'm near the end now - how is this game supposed to entice multiple playthroughs to see what outcomes different choices have?

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

I've finished the base game for the third time and ended up with Ciri becoming a witcher herself for the third time too, and am now working my way through the Hearts of Stone DLC.

Also currently playing: Batman: Arkham City, Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020)

TV

I haven't started anything new yet since finishing Star Wars: Resistance, but I will say that it's M.O.D.O.K. next, so a return to Marvel TV if not yet a return to MCU TV.

Although would M.O.D.O.K. count as part of all the multiverse stuff? A version of him was in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania after all...

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