Google’s Street View cameras are touring museums and taking weird selfies by accident.

The Crying Game. I think contemporary eyes will guess The Big Twist like I did, and it doesn’t matter because the story and characters are good enough to keep you hooked. Strange turns and odd narrative devices abound.

The Firm. Better than I remember! I like that the early parts stay upbeat while maintaining the foreshadowing. You can be ominous without being dark. Good momentum through the whole thing. An even better Sydney Pollack film is Three Days of the Condor.

War of the Worlds (2005). I love the opening hour or so. I think the big weakness is that the aliens are kinda boring. I like their throwback design and effects, but something is missing there. The basement scene also drags on waaaaaayyy too long. Spielberg is still a genius, though.

I read Kathryn Davis’ Duplex, but I didn’t finish. There’s some neat stuff in here – robots! sorcerers! – but the writing was a bit opaque for me this go-round. Readers with a bit more patience who are willing to re-read will probably be rewarded. (More recent reading.)

Martha Marcy May Marlene. I loved it the first time I saw it. Now I’m even more convinced that it’s pretty special. We have the privilege of seeing all sides, and how hard it is for each to understand the other. Another awesome movie that explores the gap between what one person feels and what others experience is Take Shelter, which has been on my re-watch for way too long. Watch that one, and this one.

Watchmen. I don’t know why I do this to myself.

Hide Your Smiling Faces. Two brothers wrestle with death in their midst. Not amazing, but not bad at all. They found some ridiculously great locations, and I appreciate the emotional modesty. If you’re looking for other movies starring two adolescent boys growing up before your eyes, I recommend The Return and highly recommend Mud.

Sound of My Voice. Two idealistic journalists join a cult to expose it from the inside. Hijinks ensue. This one was alright, but it makes me curious to see The East, as this seems to be something of a first draft or starter’s kit for the ideas developed in that bigger feature. Brit Marling also does good work in Another Earth and the very excellent Arbitrage.

I read Ryan Holiday’s The Obstacle Is the Way, at least to the point that I realized it’d be better to peck at it here and there, else the pile-on of stories and reminders would become tedious just chugging straight through. If you’ve been paying attention to Holiday’s must-subscribe reading newsletters, you’ll see many of those works and people and themes resurface here. I’ll keep it nearby to knock off a few more chapters as needed.

I read Ursula Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness because it’s regarded as one of those high points in the scifi canon. It’s about an envoy on an ambisextrous planet, which is a great start. I wish the political intrigue hadn’t been derailed by a particular journey toward the end, but still enjoyed most of it.

I read Amy Hempel’s Tumble Home. The title novella didn’t do much for me, but the short stories were so crisp and weird and vivid. From page 21, one of my favorite images of the year: “the halved-apple faces of owls”. Short and sweet.

Edge of Tomorrow. THIS. This is the kind of genre action film we need. Superheroes can suck it. The best Cruise performance in a good while, and his character has a great arc from coward to competence (always likeable, though). I love the film’s learning curve, too. Just enough to string you along, while not weighing you down with unnecessary repetition. For 2014 releases, I have to put this up there with The Lego Movie and The Grand Budapest Hotel.