# The Ledger

Single source of truth for the whole site. Everything on nkhola.github.io/popculture is generated
from this file. Edit it by hand, run the build, push. Nothing else needs touching.

## How an entry works

Every entry starts with `## Title` and is followed by `key: value` lines in any order.
Unknown keys are ignored, missing keys are fine. Blank line ends the entry.

    kind      film | tv | book                      (required)
    region    indian | world                        (required)
    by        director, author, creator
    year      release / publication year
    status    now | done | shelf
                now   = currently watching or reading, shows on the front page
                done  = finished
                shelf = owned or queued, not started yet
    must      yes | no                              (membership of Must Watch / Must Read)
    rating    essential | strong | decent | unrated
    tags      comma separated, drives all browsing and grouping
    imdb      filled by fetch_scores.py, do not hand edit unless you want to
    rt        filled by fetch_scores.py
    mc        filled by fetch_scores.py
    art       filled by fetch_art.py
    note      your review. One line in the file, as long as you like.
    flag      anything you want to correct later. Renders nowhere, greps easily.

Ratings are a three point scale on purpose. Since almost everything here was chosen
deliberately, `decent` is the floor, not the middle.

    essential   the reason the site exists
    strong      genuinely good, recommend without hesitation
    decent      watchable, readable, not a waste, not a landmark
    unrated     not consumed yet, or no opinion recorded

Every `note:` below is a placeholder written in your voice. Overwrite freely.

---

# CINEMA / WORLD

## Se7en
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 1995
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: fincher, thriller, neo-noir, serial-killer, 90s, bleak
note: The ending is still the most ruthless thing a studio has ever let through, and nothing since has earned its darkness half as honestly. Fincher invented his entire visual grammar here, all rain and rot and things you only half see.
art: img/art/se7en-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt0114369
imdb: 8.6
mc: 65
rt: 84

## Fight Club
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 1999
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: fincher, satire, cult, 90s, unreliable-narrator
note: Everyone quotes it for the wrong reasons, which is sort of the joke and sort of the tragedy. Watch it again past thirty and it stops being cool and starts being sad, which is the better film.
art: img/art/fight-club-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt0137523
imdb: 8.8
mc: 67
rt: 81

## Zodiac
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2007
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: fincher, thriller, procedural, obsession, true-crime
note: A film about the case never closing, so of course it refuses to close. Probably his best, and the one people skip because there is no payoff, which is the entire point.
art: img/art/zodiac-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt0443706
imdb: 7.7
mc: 79
rt: 90

## The Social Network
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2010
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: fincher, drama, tech, sorkin, dialogue
note: Dialogue at a hundred miles an hour and every single line lands. Aged into a documentary without changing a frame.
art: img/art/the-social-network-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt1285016
imdb: 7.8
mc: 95
rt: 96

## Gone Girl
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2014
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: fincher, thriller, marriage, twist
note: The nastiest film ever made about marriage and it is having a great time being nasty. That mid film turn is structurally perfect.
art: img/art/gone-girl-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt2267998
imdb: 8.1
mc: 79
rt: 88

## The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2011
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: fincher, thriller, remake, procedural, cold
note: A remake nobody asked for that turned out better than it had any right to be. Freezing, methodical, and that title sequence is its own short film.
art: img/art/the-girl-with-the-dragon-tattoo-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt1568346
imdb: 7.8
mc: 71
rt: 86

## Panic Room
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2002
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: fincher, thriller, single-location, craft
note: One house, one night, and a camera that goes wherever it likes. Minor Fincher, but minor Fincher is still better built than most people's best.
art: img/art/panic-room-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt0258000
imdb: 6.8
mc: 65
rt: 76

## The Game
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 1997
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: fincher, thriller, paranoia, 90s
note: Works completely the first time and collapses a little if you think too hard afterwards. Worth it for the ride and for Douglas slowly coming apart.
art: img/art/the-game-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt0119174
imdb: 7.7
mc: 63
rt: 77

## Alien 3
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 1992
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: fincher, sci-fi, horror, troubled-production
note: The studio broke it before he ever finished it, and you can see the better film underneath. The bleak monastery-in-space idea deserved a director with final cut.
art: img/art/alien-3-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt0103644
imdb: 6.4
mc: 59
rt: 43

## The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2008
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: fincher, drama, fantasy, prestige
note: Beautiful and strangely weightless, like an award ceremony that lasts three hours. The one Fincher where the technique is doing all the feeling for you.
art: img/art/the-curious-case-of-benjamin-button-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt0421715
imdb: 7.8
mc: 70
rt: 72

## Mank
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2020
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: fincher, drama, black-and-white, hollywood, slow
note: The black and white Gary Oldman one, and the only Fincher I would call boring. A film made for his father rather than for anybody watching.
art: img/art/mank-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt10618286
imdb: 6.8
mc: 79
rt: 83

## The Killer
kind: film
region: world
by: David Fincher
year: 2023
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: fincher, thriller, hitman, process
note: Two hours of a man being extremely good at a job while narrating nonsense to himself. The gap between what he says and what he does is the whole film.
art: img/art/the-killer-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt1136617
imdb: 6.7
mc: 73
rt: 85

## Mulholland Drive
kind: film
region: world
by: David Lynch
year: 2001
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: lynch, surreal, mystery, hollywood, dream-logic
note: The best film ever made about wanting something so badly you rewrite reality to get it. Do not try to solve it on the first pass, just let it happen to you.
art: img/art/mulholland-drive-david-lynch.jpg
imdbid: tt0166924
imdb: 7.9
mc: 87
rt: 83

## Lost Highway
kind: film
region: world
by: David Lynch
year: 1997
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: lynch, surreal, neo-noir, identity, dread
note: A Mobius strip about guilt where the man literally becomes somebody else rather than admit what he did. That video tape sequence is the most frightening thing Lynch ever shot.
art: img/art/lost-highway-david-lynch.jpg
imdbid: tt0116922
imdb: 7.6
mc: 53
rt: 70

## The Departed
kind: film
region: world
by: Martin Scorsese
year: 2006
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: scorsese, crime, thriller, remake, boston
note: A remake of Infernal Affairs that is louder, meaner and somehow better paced than the original. Everybody in it is lying and every scene is a rat looking for a rat.
art: img/art/the-departed-martin-scorsese.jpg
imdbid: tt0407887
imdb: 8.5
mc: 85
rt: 91

## Shutter Island
kind: film
region: world
by: Martin Scorsese
year: 2010
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: scorsese, thriller, psychological, twist, gothic
note: Scorsese doing full gothic horror and clearly enjoying himself. The last line is the whole film and it reframes everything you just sat through.
art: img/art/shutter-island-martin-scorsese.jpg
imdbid: tt1130884
imdb: 8.2
mc: 63
rt: 69

## Reservoir Dogs
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 1992
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: tarantino, crime, heist, dialogue, debut, 90s
note: A heist film that never shows the heist, made for the price of a decent car. You can hear a whole decade of cinema starting in the opening diner scene.
art: img/art/reservoir-dogs-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt0105236
imdb: 8.3
mc: 81
rt: 90

## Pulp Fiction
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 1994
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: tarantino, crime, nonlinear, dialogue, 90s, formative
note: Rearranged what I thought a film was allowed to do with time. Still the high water mark for making people talking in a room more tense than a shootout.
art: img/art/pulp-fiction-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt0110912
imdb: 8.8
mc: 95
rt: 92

## Jackie Brown
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 1997
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: tarantino, crime, elmore-leonard, slow-burn, blaxploitation
note: His most patient and most adult film, and the one that will age best. Pam Grier carries an entire con on her face in the mall sequence.
art: img/art/jackie-brown-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt0119396
imdb: 7.5
mc: 62
rt: 88

## Kill Bill Vol. 1
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 2003
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: tarantino, revenge, martial-arts, stylized, anime
note: Pure style with the throttle stuck open, and the anime detour is the best part. The House of Blue Leaves fight is choreography as showing off, in the good way.
art: img/art/kill-bill-vol-1-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt0266697
imdb: 8.2
mc: 69
rt: 85

## Kill Bill Vol. 2
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 2004
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: tarantino, revenge, western, dialogue, slow-burn
note: The talking half, and the better half. Pai Mei and the Superman speech justify the whole two film gamble.
art: img/art/kill-bill-vol-2-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt0378194
imdb: 8.0
mc: 83
rt: 84

## Death Proof
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 2007
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: tarantino, grindhouse, car-chase, pastiche
note: Half of it is people chatting in a bar and half of it is the best car stunt of the century. Lopsided on purpose, still lopsided.
art: img/art/death-proof-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt1028528
imdb: 7.0
rt: 66

## Inglourious Basterds
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 2009
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: tarantino, war, revisionist, suspense, multilingual
note: That opening farmhouse scene is a masterclass in stretching a conversation until it snaps. Landa is the best villain he ever wrote and it is not close.
art: img/art/inglourious-basterds-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt0361748
imdb: 8.4
mc: 69
rt: 89

## Django Unchained
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 2012
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: tarantino, western, revenge, revisionist
note: A spaghetti western aimed straight at American history with no interest in being polite about it. Runs long in the last act but the dinner table scene earns the ticket.
art: img/art/django-unchained-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt1853728
imdb: 8.5
mc: 81
rt: 87

## The Hateful Eight
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 2015
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: tarantino, western, single-location, whodunit, snow
note: A locked room mystery shot in 70mm, which is a joke only he would commit to. Slow, mean, and better on a rewatch when you stop waiting for it to move.
art: img/art/the-hateful-eight-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt3460252
imdb: 7.8
mc: 68
rt: 74

## Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
kind: film
region: world
by: Quentin Tarantino
year: 2019
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: tarantino, hollywood, hangout, revisionist, 60s
note: A hangout film about being washed up, and then the ending arrives like a slap. The most affectionate thing he has made.
art: img/art/once-upon-a-time-in-hollywood-quentin-tarantino.jpg
imdbid: tt7131622
imdb: 7.6
mc: 84
rt: 86

## True Romance
kind: film
region: world
by: Tony Scott
year: 1993
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: tarantino-written, crime, romance, 90s, cult
note: Tarantino's script with Tony Scott's heart on top, which turns out to be the perfect trade. The Hopper and Walken scene is the best five minutes either of them ever had.
art: img/art/true-romance-tony-scott.jpg
imdbid: tt0108399
imdb: 7.9
mc: 59
rt: 93

## Nightcrawler
kind: film
region: world
by: Dan Gilroy
year: 2014
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: thriller, media, sociopath, la-noir, formative
note: One of the few films that genuinely got under my skin and stayed there. Gyllenhaal plays a man with no inside, and the film is smart enough never to explain him.
art: img/art/nightcrawler-dan-gilroy.jpg
imdbid: tt2872718
imdb: 7.8
mc: 76
rt: 95

## Fargo
kind: film
region: world
by: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
year: 1996
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: coens, crime, black-comedy, snow, 90s, formative
note: Everybody is polite and everybody is doomed, and the film finds that hilarious right up until it does not. Marge is the only decent person in it and she wins by simply doing her job.
art: img/art/fargo-joel-coen-ethan-coen.jpg
imdbid: tt0116282
imdb: 8.1
mc: 88
rt: 95

## Obsession
kind: film
region: world
by: Curry Barker
year: 2025
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: horror, thriller, romance, recent-watch
note: The recent one, and it commits hard to its premise. Nasty, funny in places, and it does not lose its nerve at the end.
art: img/art/obsession-curry-barker.jpg
imdbid: tt37287335
imdb: 7.9
mc: 77
rt: 94

## Searching
kind: film
region: world
by: Aneesh Chaganty
year: 2018
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: thriller, screenlife, mystery, family, technical
note: Technically brilliant and emotionally tense, told entirely through screens without ever feeling like a gimmick. The format should not work this well and it does.
art: img/art/searching-aneesh-chaganty.jpg
imdbid: tt7668870
imdb: 7.6
mc: 71
rt: 92

## Baby Driver
kind: film
region: world
by: Edgar Wright
year: 2017
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: edgar-wright, heist, music, visual-storytelling, editing
note: Visual storytelling at the highest level, every cut married to the beat. Wright showing off and earning every second of it.
art: img/art/baby-driver-edgar-wright.jpg
imdbid: tt3890160
imdb: 7.5
mc: 86
rt: 92

## Shaun of the Dead
kind: film
region: world
by: Edgar Wright
year: 2004
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: edgar-wright, cornetto-trilogy, comedy, horror, visual-storytelling
note: Wright's visual grammar arriving fully formed, with the jokes built into the cuts rather than the lines. Funnier on the fourth watch once you start noticing the setups.
art: img/art/shaun-of-the-dead-edgar-wright.jpg
imdbid: tt0365748
imdb: 7.8
mc: 76
rt: 92

## Hot Fuzz
kind: film
region: world
by: Edgar Wright
year: 2007
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: edgar-wright, cornetto-trilogy, comedy, action, visual-storytelling
note: An action parody that is a better action film than the ones it parodies. The editing does more of the comedy than the script does.
art: img/art/hot-fuzz-edgar-wright.jpg
imdbid: tt0425112
imdb: 7.8
mc: 81
rt: 91

## The World's End
kind: film
region: world
by: Edgar Wright
year: 2013
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: edgar-wright, cornetto-trilogy, comedy, sci-fi, visual-storytelling
note: The last Cornetto and the saddest of the three, which sneaks up on you. Same visual precision, much heavier heart.
art: img/art/the-world-s-end-edgar-wright.jpg
imdbid: tt1213663
imdb: 6.9
mc: 81
rt: 89

## John Wick
kind: film
region: world
by: Chad Stahelski
year: 2014
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: action, john-wick, choreography, revenge, gun-fu
note: Brilliant action, choreographed so you can actually see it, which almost nobody bothers with anymore. Thin on everything else and it does not matter.
art: img/art/john-wick-chad-stahelski.jpg
imdbid: tt2911666
imdb: 7.5
mc: 68
rt: 87

## John Wick: Chapter 2
kind: film
region: world
by: Chad Stahelski
year: 2017
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: action, john-wick, choreography, sequel, gun-fu
note: Bigger, and the world building starts getting silly in the right way. Still the cleanest action shooting around.
art: img/art/john-wick-chapter-2-chad-stahelski.jpg
imdbid: tt4425200
imdb: 7.4
mc: 75
rt: 89

## John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum
kind: film
region: world
by: Chad Stahelski
year: 2019
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: action, john-wick, choreography, sequel, gun-fu
note: The horse sequence and the knife room justify the whole film. Plot is now openly an excuse and everybody involved knows it.
art: img/art/john-wick-chapter-3-parabellum-chad-stahelski.jpg
imdbid: tt6146586
imdb: 7.4
mc: 73
rt: 89

## John Wick: Chapter 4
kind: film
region: world
by: Chad Stahelski
year: 2023
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: action, john-wick, choreography, sequel, gun-fu
note: Three hours of set pieces and the stairs sequence alone is worth the ticket. The best looking of the four.
art: img/art/john-wick-chapter-4-chad-stahelski.jpg
imdbid: tt10366206
imdb: 7.6
mc: 78
rt: 94

## The Batman
kind: film
region: world
by: Matt Reeves
year: 2022
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: batman, noir, detective, cinematography, pattinson, must-watch
note: Brilliant and genuinely cinematic, the best looking comic book film anybody has made. The only real problem with it is how far away the sequel still is.
art: img/art/the-batman-matt-reeves.jpg
imdbid: tt1877830
imdb: 7.8
mc: 72
rt: 85

## Caught Stealing
kind: film
region: world
by: Darren Aronofsky
year: 2025
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: crime, thriller, new-york, production-design, recent-watch
note: Gritty production design and real ambience, it genuinely gives you the Lock Stock feeling. Aronofsky loosening up and clearly enjoying himself.
art: img/art/caught-stealing-darren-aronofsky.jpg
imdbid: tt1493274
imdb: 6.8
mc: 65
rt: 85

## Snatch
kind: film
region: world
by: Guy Ritchie
year: 2000
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: guy-ritchie, crime, british, comedy, ensemble, must-watch
note: Ritchie at his sharpest. The plot is a watch mechanism and every single part clicks into the next one, and it has not aged a day.
art: img/art/snatch-guy-ritchie.jpg
imdbid: tt0208092
imdb: 8.2
mc: 55
rt: 74

## Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
kind: film
region: world
by: Guy Ritchie
year: 1998
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: guy-ritchie, crime, british, comedy, debut, must-watch
note: The one that started all of it, made for nothing and still funnier than anything that has tried the same trick since. You can watch the whole British crime revival begin here.
art: img/art/lock-stock-and-two-smoking-barrels-guy-ritchie.jpg
imdbid: tt0120735
imdb: 8.1
mc: 67
rt: 75

## Sherlock Holmes
kind: film
region: world
by: Guy Ritchie
year: 2009
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: guy-ritchie, detective, action, victorian, entertainer
note: A perfectly good time, and Downey and Law have real chemistry. Style over substance and it never pretends otherwise.
art: img/art/sherlock-holmes-guy-ritchie.jpg
imdbid: tt0988045
imdb: 7.5
mc: 57
rt: 69

## Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
kind: film
region: world
by: Guy Ritchie
year: 2011
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: guy-ritchie, detective, action, victorian, sequel, entertainer
note: More of the same, slightly bigger, still fun. A two and no complaints.
art: img/art/sherlock-holmes-a-game-of-shadows-guy-ritchie.jpg
imdbid: tt1515091
imdb: 7.4
mc: 48
rt: 60

## Memento
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2000
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: nolan, thriller, nonlinear, memory, must-watch
note: The structure is the story, and no one has done the trick better since. Built backwards and it still lands emotionally, which is the hard part.
art: img/art/memento-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt0209144
imdb: 8.4
mc: 83
rt: 94

## The Dark Knight
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2008
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: nolan, batman, crime, ledger, must-watch
note: Obviously. A crime film wearing a cape, and Ledger rewrote what the role could be.
art: img/art/the-dark-knight-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt0468569
imdb: 9.1
mc: 85
rt: 94

## Batman Begins
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2005
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: nolan, batman, origin
note: A solid two. Does the hard work of making the origin believable so the next one could fly.
art: img/art/batman-begins-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt0372784
imdb: 8.2
mc: 70
rt: 85

## Inception
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2010
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: nolan, sci-fi, heist, dreams
note: The dream inside a dream one. Impeccably built, a bit cold, and the rules take up more room than the feeling.
art: img/art/inception-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt1375666
imdb: 8.8
mc: 74
rt: 87

## Interstellar
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2014
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: nolan, sci-fi, space, score
note: Gorgeous and overreaching in equal measure. The docking scene and the score do most of the lifting.
art: img/art/interstellar-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt0816692
imdb: 8.7
mc: 74
rt: 73

## Tenet
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2020
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: nolan, sci-fi, time, puzzle
note: Technically astonishing and emotionally inert. You spend the whole film solving it rather than watching it.
art: img/art/tenet-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt6723592
imdb: 7.3
mc: 69
rt: 70

## Dunkirk
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2017
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: nolan, war, survival, tension
note: The war one. Three timelines squeezed into one long held breath, more experiment than drama.
art: img/art/dunkirk-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt5013056
imdb: 7.8
mc: 94
rt: 92

## Insomnia
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2002
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: nolan, thriller, remake, alaska
note: Mid. Pacino and Williams are worth watching and the film around them never quite wakes up.
art: img/art/insomnia-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt0278504
imdb: 7.2
mc: 78
rt: 92

## Oppenheimer
kind: film
region: world
by: Christopher Nolan
year: 2023
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: nolan, biopic, history, shelf
note: Not watched yet.
art: img/art/oppenheimer-christopher-nolan.jpg
imdbid: tt15398776
imdb: 8.2
mc: 90
rt: 93

## It Follows
kind: film
region: world
by: David Robert Mitchell
year: 2014
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: horror, indie, score, carpenter, must-watch
note: Amazing, and the score is half of why. A Carpenter tribute that stands entirely on its own legs.
art: img/art/it-follows-david-robert-mitchell.jpg
imdbid: tt3235888
imdb: 6.8
mc: 83
rt: 95

## Let the Right One In
kind: film
region: world
by: Tomas Alfredson
year: 2008
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: horror, vampire, swedish, childhood, original, must-watch
note: The Scandinavian original, and brilliant on visuals. Unsettling and genuinely beautiful about bullying and childhood at the same time.
art: img/art/let-the-right-one-in-tomas-alfredson.jpg
imdbid: tt1139797
imdb: 7.8
mc: 82
rt: 98

## Talk to Me
kind: film
region: world
by: Danny Philippou, Michael Philippou
year: 2022
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: horror, australian, modern, stylish, must-watch
note: A great way to make a horror film. Slick, stylish, modern, and it never coasts on the gimmick.
art: img/art/talk-to-me-danny-philippou-michael-philippou.jpg
imdbid: tt10638522
imdb: 7.1
mc: 76

## Bring Her Back
kind: film
region: world
by: Danny Philippou, Michael Philippou
year: 2025
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: horror, australian, grief, unsettling, must-watch
note: The follow up, and properly unsettling. More of a two than Talk to Me but still worth your time.
art: img/art/bring-her-back-danny-philippou-michael-philippou.jpg
imdbid: tt32246771
imdb: 7.1
mc: 75
rt: 89

## Audition
kind: film
region: world
by: Takashi Miike
year: 1999
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: horror, japanese, slow-burn, unsettling, must-watch
note: Massively unsettling, and it earns it by making you wait. The first hour is a different film entirely, which is the trap.
art: img/art/audition-takashi-miike.jpg
imdbid: tt0235198
imdb: 7.1
mc: 70
rt: 81

## Oldboy
kind: film
region: world
by: Park Chan-wook
year: 2003
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: korean, thriller, revenge, unsettling, must-watch
note: Just as unsettling and just as good. The corridor fight, the ending, all of it still lands.
art: img/art/oldboy-park-chan-wook.jpg
imdbid: tt0364569
imdb: 8.3
mc: 78
rt: 82

## Hereditary
kind: film
region: world
by: Ari Aster
year: 2018
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: horror, aster, grief, dread
note: A two. Extremely well made and it never quite justifies how unpleasant it is.
art: img/art/hereditary-ari-aster.jpg
imdbid: tt7784604
imdb: 7.3
mc: 87
rt: 90

## Midsommar
kind: film
region: world
by: Ari Aster
year: 2019
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: horror, aster, folk-horror, daylight
note: Same as Hereditary, a two. Beautiful to look at and much too long for what it has to say.
art: img/art/midsommar-ari-aster.jpg
imdbid: tt8772262
imdb: 7.1
mc: 72
rt: 83

## Parasite
kind: film
region: world
by: Bong Joon-ho
year: 2019
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: korean, class, satire, thriller
note: A two. Immaculately built and a little too pleased with the metaphor.
art: img/art/parasite-bong-joon-ho.jpg
imdbid: tt6751668
imdb: 8.5
mc: 97
rt: 99

## Memories of Murder
kind: film
region: world
by: Bong Joon-ho
year: 2003
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: korean, procedural, true-crime, open-ended
note: Good technique, low on the entertainment quotient. Zodiac is open ended too and is the better film.
art: img/art/memories-of-murder-bong-joon-ho.jpg
imdbid: tt0353969
imdb: 8.1
mc: 82

## Don't Breathe
kind: film
region: world
by: Fede Alvarez
year: 2016
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: horror, thriller, home-invasion, entertainer
note: A great entertainer. One house, one very bad idea, and it moves.
art: img/art/don-t-breathe-fede-alvarez.jpg
imdbid: tt4160708
imdb: 7.1
mc: 71
rt: 88

## Don't Breathe 2
kind: film
region: world
by: Rodo Sayagues
year: 2021
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: horror, thriller, sequel
note: Still entertaining, just not worth the time. A one.
art: img/art/don-t-breathe-2-rodo-sayagues.jpg
imdbid: tt6246322
imdb: 6.0
mc: 46

## Sisu
kind: film
region: world
by: Jalmari Helander
year: 2022
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: action, finnish, war, cinematography, grit, must-watch
note: Brilliant action, and worth it for the cinematography alone. Beautiful Finnish grit and almost no dialogue.
art: img/art/sisu-jalmari-helander.jpg
imdbid: tt14846026
imdb: 6.9
mc: 70
rt: 94

## Sisu: Road to Revenge
kind: film
region: world
by: Jalmari Helander
year: 2025
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: action, finnish, sequel, cinematography, must-watch
note: A two rather than a three, and still shot beautifully. Same grit, slightly less surprise.
art: img/art/sisu-road-to-revenge-jalmari-helander.jpg
imdbid: tt31844586
imdb: 6.8
mc: 76
rt: 93

## The Silence of the Lambs
kind: film
region: world
by: Jonathan Demme
year: 1991
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: thriller, serial-killer, procedural, must-watch
note: Obviously a three. Thrilling and visceral, and it rewards going back again and again.
art: img/art/the-silence-of-the-lambs-jonathan-demme.jpg
imdbid: tt0102926
imdb: 8.6
mc: 86
rt: 95

## Heat
kind: film
region: world
by: Michael Mann
year: 1995
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: michael-mann, crime, heist, la, stylish
note: Remarkably modern for its age. Mann shooting a city at night better than anyone before or since.
art: img/art/heat-michael-mann.jpg
imdbid: tt0113277
imdb: 8.3
mc: 76
rt: 84

## Manhunter
kind: film
region: world
by: Michael Mann
year: 1986
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: michael-mann, thriller, serial-killer, stylish, lecter
note: The same remarkable modernity, and the first Lecter on screen. Cold, blue, and years ahead of itself.
art: img/art/manhunter-michael-mann.jpg
imdbid: tt0091474
imdb: 7.2
mc: 75
rt: 90

## The Bourne Identity
kind: film
region: world
by: Doug Liman
year: 2002
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: spy, action, thriller, bourne, must-watch
note: The one that reset the whole genre. Grounded, fast, and it still holds up.
art: img/art/the-bourne-identity-doug-liman.jpg
imdbid: tt0258463
imdb: 7.8
mc: 68
rt: 84

## The Bourne Supremacy
kind: film
region: world
by: Paul Greengrass
year: 2004
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: spy, action, thriller, bourne, sequel
note: The middle one, and the weakest. A one.
art: img/art/the-bourne-supremacy-paul-greengrass.jpg
imdbid: tt0372183
imdb: 7.7
mc: 73
rt: 81

## The Bourne Ultimatum
kind: film
region: world
by: Paul Greengrass
year: 2007
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: spy, action, thriller, bourne, must-watch
note: Back up to a two and the best set pieces of the three. Waterloo station alone.
art: img/art/the-bourne-ultimatum-paul-greengrass.jpg
imdbid: tt0440963
imdb: 8.0
mc: 85
rt: 92

## My Cousin Vinny
kind: film
region: world
by: Jonathan Lynn
year: 1992
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: comedy, courtroom, rewatchable, must-watch
note: Immense rewatchability and a brilliant, brilliant film. Essentially a textbook on how feel good movies should be made. What a movie.
art: img/art/my-cousin-vinny-jonathan-lynn.jpg
imdbid: tt0104952
imdb: 7.6
mc: 68
rt: 85

## The Big Lebowski
kind: film
region: world
by: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
year: 1998
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: coens, comedy, cult, rewatchable, must-watch
note: The same immense rewatchability. Nothing happens and every scene is quotable.
art: img/art/the-big-lebowski-joel-coen-ethan-coen.jpg
imdbid: tt0118715
imdb: 8.1
mc: 71
rt: 79

## Good Will Hunting
kind: film
region: world
by: Gus Van Sant
year: 1997
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: drama, boston, williams
note: A two. Williams is genuinely great and the rest is more sentimental than it admits.
art: img/art/good-will-hunting-gus-van-sant.jpg
imdbid: tt0119217
imdb: 8.4
mc: 71
rt: 97

## Argo
kind: film
region: world
by: Ben Affleck
year: 2012
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: thriller, true-story, entertainer
note: A good entertainer, not worth the time. A one.
art: img/art/argo-ben-affleck.jpg
imdbid: tt1024648
imdb: 7.7
mc: 86
rt: 96

## The Vanishing
kind: film
region: world
by: George Sluizer
year: 1988
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: dutch, thriller, disturbing, visceral, original, must-watch
note: One of the truly disturbing films, and visceral in a way almost nothing else manages. The ending is the most frightening thing I have sat through and there is no violence in it at all.
art: img/art/the-vanishing-george-sluizer.jpg
imdbid: tt0096163
imdb: 7.7
rt: 96

## The Gentlemen
kind: film
region: world
by: Guy Ritchie
year: 2019
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: guy-ritchie, crime, british, comedy, ensemble, must-watch
note: Also good, and a must watch. Ritchie back on home turf after a long detour, with a cast clearly having a great time.
art: img/art/the-gentlemen-guy-ritchie.jpg
imdbid: tt8367814
imdb: 7.8
mc: 51
rt: 75

## Incendies
kind: film
region: world
by: Denis Villeneuve
year: 2010
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: villeneuve, drama, mystery, war, disturbing, canadian, must-watch
note: Disturbing, and it does not let you off at the end. The kind of film you sit with in silence for a while afterwards.
art: img/art/incendies-denis-villeneuve.jpg
imdbid: tt1255953
imdb: 8.3
mc: 80
rt: 91

## Prisoners
kind: film
region: world
by: Denis Villeneuve
year: 2013
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: villeneuve, thriller, mystery, kidnapping, moral-ambiguity, must-watch
note: A great mystery, patiently built and genuinely hard to call. Everybody in it is compromised and the film refuses to tell you who to side with.
art: img/art/prisoners-denis-villeneuve.jpg
imdbid: tt1392214
imdb: 8.2
mc: 70
rt: 81

## Sicario
kind: film
region: world
by: Denis Villeneuve
year: 2015
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: villeneuve, thriller, crime, cartel, cinematography, performances, must-watch
note: Brilliant for the performances and the camera work above all. Del Toro and Blunt pulling opposite directions, and Deakins shooting the border like a war zone.
art: img/art/sicario-denis-villeneuve.jpg
imdbid: tt3397884
imdb: 7.7
mc: 82
rt: 91

## Arrival
kind: film
region: world
by: Denis Villeneuve
year: 2016
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: villeneuve, sci-fi, language, first-contact, must-watch
note: A two, and still a must watch. Science fiction that is actually about grammar and grief rather than spaceships.
art: img/art/arrival-denis-villeneuve.jpg
imdbid: tt2543164
imdb: 7.9
mc: 81
rt: 94

## Enemy
kind: film
region: world
by: Denis Villeneuve
year: 2013
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: villeneuve, thriller, surreal, doppelganger, gyllenhaal
note: A two, not a must watch. Deliberately opaque, and the last shot is the only thing most people remember, fairly.
art: img/art/enemy-denis-villeneuve.jpg
imdbid: tt2316411
imdb: 6.9
mc: 61
rt: 73






---

# CINEMA / INDIA

## Iratta
kind: film
region: indian
by: Rohit M. G. Krishnan
year: 2023
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: malayalam, thriller, crime, police, twins, slow-burn, recent-watch
note: Two brothers, one uniform, and a film that refuses to raise its voice even once. Malayalam cinema doing in two hours what Hindi thrillers cannot manage in three.
art: img/art/iratta-rohit-m-g-krishnan.jpg
imdbid: tt25406500
imdb: 7.7

## Titli
kind: film
region: indian
by: Kanu Behl
year: 2014
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: hindi, crime, family, realism, delhi, brutal, recent-watch
note: The most honest film about an Indian family I have seen, and it is horrifying. No score, no relief, just people trapped in a house doing damage to each other.
art: img/art/titli-kanu-behl.jpg
imdbid: tt3019620
imdb: 7.5
rt: 93

## Ratsasan
kind: film
region: indian
by: Ram Kumar
year: 2018
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: tamil, thriller, serial-killer, procedural, original
note: Watch the Tamil original, the remakes all sanded off the edges. Genuinely tense, properly plotted, and it does not cheat you at the reveal.
art: img/art/ratsasan-ram-kumar.jpg
imdbid: tt7060344
imdb: 8.3

## Drishyam
kind: film
region: indian
by: Jeethu Joseph
year: 2013
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: malayalam, thriller, family, original, perfect-plot
note: The original Malayalam one, everything after is a photocopy. A perfect machine of a script where an ordinary man out-thinks the entire police force using only what he already knew.
art: img/art/drishyam-jeethu-joseph.jpg
imdbid: tt3417422
imdb: 8.3
rt: 78

## Drishyam 2
kind: film
region: indian
by: Jeethu Joseph
year: 2021
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: malayalam, thriller, sequel, original, slow-burn
note: A sequel nobody needed that justified itself completely, which almost never happens. Spends an hour on ordinary life before you realise the trap was being built the whole time.
art: img/art/drishyam-2-jeethu-joseph.jpg
imdbid: tt12361178
imdb: 8.4
rt: 88

## Maharaja
kind: film
region: indian
by: Nithilan Swaminathan
year: 2024
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: tamil, thriller, revenge, nonlinear, recent-watch
note: The timeline trick is doing a lot of work but it works, and Vijay Sethupathi is very good at looking like a man holding something in. Wobbles in places, sticks the landing.
art: img/art/maharaja-nithilan-swaminathan.jpg
imdbid: tt26548265
imdb: 8.3
rt: 83

## Thudarum
kind: film
region: indian
by: Tharun Moorthy
year: 2025
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: malayalam, drama, thriller, mohanlal, recent-watch
note: Decent. Mohanlal is excellent and the film around him is only fine, which is a fair trade for two hours.
art: img/art/thudarum-tharun-moorthy.jpg
imdbid: tt31969600
imdb: 8.1

## Dhurandhar
kind: film
region: indian
by: Aditya Dhar
year: 2025
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, action, spy, recent-watch
note: Part one of two, and a solid two on craft. Goes big when it should go quiet, which is the standard Hindi problem.
art: img/art/dhurandhar-aditya-dhar.jpg
imdbid: tt33014583
imdb: 8.3

## Khosla Ka Ghosla!
kind: film
region: indian
by: Dibakar Banerjee
year: 2006
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: dibakar, hindi, comedy, satire, delhi, middle-class, realism
note: Good rather than great, a Delhi middle class comedy built out of real people. Anupam Kher's small dignified fury is the best thing in it.
art: img/art/khosla-ka-ghosla-dibakar-banerjee.jpg
imdbid: tt0466460
imdb: 8.2

## Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!
kind: film
region: indian
by: Dibakar Banerjee
year: 2008
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: dibakar, hindi, comedy, crime, delhi, class, realism
note: A thief film that is really a class film, and it is funny enough that you barely notice. Paresh Rawal playing three men who are all the same man is the joke of the decade.
art: img/art/oye-lucky-lucky-oye-dibakar-banerjee.jpg
imdbid: tt1292703
imdb: 7.7

## Love Sex Aur Dhokha
kind: film
region: indian
by: Dibakar Banerjee
year: 2010
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: dibakar, hindi, found-footage, satire, experimental, media
note: Made in 2010 and it predicted the next fifteen years of Indian internet culture. Formally braver than anything Bollywood has attempted since.
art: img/art/love-sex-aur-dhokha-dibakar-banerjee.jpg
imdbid: tt1608777
imdb: 7.1

## Shanghai
kind: film
region: indian
by: Dibakar Banerjee
year: 2012
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: dibakar, hindi, political, thriller, adaptation, realism
note: A cold, unsentimental political thriller that assumes you are paying attention. Emraan Hashmi is a genuine surprise and the ending refuses to comfort anyone.
art: img/art/shanghai-dibakar-banerjee.jpg
imdbid: tt2072227
imdb: 7.2

## Detective Byomkesh Bakshy!
kind: film
region: indian
by: Dibakar Banerjee
year: 2015
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: dibakar, hindi, detective, period, calcutta, style
note: 1940s Calcutta rendered better than the plot deserves. Overstuffed, and I still want the four sequels we never got.
art: img/art/detective-byomkesh-bakshy-dibakar-banerjee.jpg
imdbid: tt3447364
imdb: 7.6
rt: 67

## Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar
kind: film
region: indian
by: Dibakar Banerjee
year: 2021
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: dibakar, hindi, road-movie, class, gender, realism
note: Did not land for me. Interesting on paper, a one in practice.
art: img/art/sandeep-aur-pinky-faraar-dibakar-banerjee.jpg
imdbid: tt7094488
imdb: 6.3

## Black Friday
kind: film
region: indian
by: Anurag Kashyap
year: 2004
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: kashyap, hindi, crime, true-story, bombay, procedural, realism
note: The best Indian procedural ever made and it took three years to get past the courts. That foot chase through the chawls is the single best sequence in Hindi cinema.
art: img/art/black-friday-anurag-kashyap.jpg
imdbid: tt0400234
imdb: 8.4
mc: 76
rt: 90

## Gulaal
kind: film
region: indian
by: Anurag Kashyap
year: 2009
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: kashyap, hindi, political, rajasthan, tragedy, piyush-mishra
note: Messy, operatic, furious, and the songs are doing half the storytelling. Piyush Mishra wrote and performed his way into a film that is still underseen.
art: img/art/gulaal-anurag-kashyap.jpg
imdbid: tt1261047
imdb: 8.0

## Dev.D
kind: film
region: indian
by: Anurag Kashyap
year: 2009
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: kashyap, hindi, adaptation, music, delhi, neon
note: Genre defining and still ahead of its time. Devdas rebuilt for people who find Devdas insufferable, and Amit Trivedi's soundtrack is the actual protagonist.
art: img/art/dev-d-anurag-kashyap.jpg
imdbid: tt1327035
imdb: 7.9

## Ek Hasina Thi
kind: film
region: indian
by: Sriram Raghavan
year: 2004
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: raghavan, hindi, thriller, revenge, debut, noir
note: A lean revenge thriller with no fat on it, made before anyone knew who Raghavan was. Urmila is genuinely frightening in the back half.
art: img/art/ek-hasina-thi-sriram-raghavan.jpg
imdbid: tt0352314
imdb: 7.5

## Johnny Gaddaar
kind: film
region: indian
by: Sriram Raghavan
year: 2007
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: raghavan, hindi, neo-noir, heist, homage, twist
note: The purest genre film India has produced, a noir with no interest in a message. Every plan goes wrong in a way you could have predicted and never do.
art: img/art/johnny-gaddaar-sriram-raghavan.jpg
imdbid: tt1077248
imdb: 7.9

## Agent Vinod
kind: film
region: indian
by: Sriram Raghavan
year: 2012
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: raghavan, hindi, spy, action, homage
note: The one that did not come together, though the single take Raabta sequence is worth the price alone. Ambitious in a way that failing is still interesting.
art: img/art/agent-vinod-sriram-raghavan.jpg
imdbid: tt1395025
imdb: 5.2
rt: 40

## Badlapur
kind: film
region: indian
by: Sriram Raghavan
year: 2015
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: raghavan, hindi, revenge, moral-ambiguity, dark
note: Technically brilliant, and a revenge film where revenge slowly turns the hero into the worse man. Nawazuddin walks off with it and the film knows it.
art: img/art/badlapur-sriram-raghavan.jpg
imdbid: tt3678782
imdb: 7.4
rt: 92

## AndhaDhun
kind: film
region: indian
by: Sriram Raghavan
year: 2018
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: raghavan, hindi, black-comedy, thriller, twist, pune
note: A black comedy thriller that keeps escalating past the point where any other film would stop. That last shot is an argument you can still have with people.
art: img/art/andhadhun-sriram-raghavan.jpg
imdbid: tt8108198
imdb: 8.2
rt: 100

## Merry Christmas
kind: film
region: indian
by: Sriram Raghavan
year: 2024
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: raghavan, hindi, thriller, one-night, bombay, romance
note: One night, two strangers, and Raghavan patiently doing his thing while everyone waits for a twist. Slower than the marketing promised and better than the reception suggested.
art: img/art/merry-christmas-sriram-raghavan.jpg
imdbid: tt15392282
imdb: 6.9
rt: 84

## Animal
kind: film
region: indian
by: Sandeep Reddy Vanga
year: 2023
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, action, drama, technical, screenplay, editing
note: Technically brilliant, excelling in screenplay and editing, whatever you make of the rest of it. The craft is not the part that is in question.
art: img/art/animal-sandeep-reddy-vanga.jpg
imdbid: tt13751694
imdb: 6.2
mc: 33
rt: 26

## Dhurandhar 2
kind: film
region: indian
by: Aditya Dhar
year: 2026
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, action, spy, sequel
note: A bit lengthy, and it spends real time whitewashing demonetisation. Still a two on craft alone.
art: img/art/dhurandhar-2-aditya-dhar.jpg
imdbid: tt39139925
imdb: 8.5

## Laapataa Ladies
kind: film
region: indian
by: Kiran Rao
year: 2023
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, family, gentle, rural
note: A nice family friendly film, warmer than it is sharp. Pleasant, well made, and nobody gets hurt.
art: img/art/laapataa-ladies-kiran-rao.jpg
imdbid: tt21626284
imdb: 8.3
rt: 100

## Bareilly Ki Barfi
kind: film
region: indian
by: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
year: 2017
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, romance, small-town, entertainer
note: A nice entertainer with a light touch and good small town texture. Does exactly what it sets out to do.
art: img/art/bareilly-ki-barfi-ashwiny-iyer-tiwari.jpg
imdbid: tt6967980
imdb: 7.5
rt: 73

## Vicky Donor
kind: film
region: indian
by: Shoojit Sircar
year: 2012
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, delhi, entertainer, debut
note: A passtime, and a good natured one. Ayushmann's debut and still one of his easiest films to sit through.
art: img/art/vicky-donor-shoojit-sircar.jpg
imdbid: tt2317337
imdb: 7.7

## Ugly
kind: film
region: indian
by: Anurag Kashyap
year: 2013
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: kashyap, hindi, thriller, bleak
note: Kashyap at his most punishing, and not in a way that earns it. A one, and I have no interest in going back.
art: img/art/ugly-anurag-kashyap.jpg
imdbid: tt2882328
imdb: 7.9
rt: 60

## Aamis
kind: film
region: indian
by: Bhaskar Hazarika
year: 2019
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: assamese, drama, romance, transgressive, poetic, imagery, must-watch
note: Super poetic, with imagery that stays with you long after. A film that could easily have been lurid and instead handles its subject with real delicacy.
art: img/art/aamis-bhaskar-hazarika.jpg
imdbid: tt9010522
imdb: 7.8
rt: 88

## Bhoothakalam
kind: film
region: indian
by: Rahul Sadasivan
year: 2022
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: malayalam, horror, mental-health, performances, recent-watch
note: Brilliant in its performances, and in how it finds horror in ordinary daily life. The portrayal of mental health is the real subject and it is handled well.
art: img/art/bhoothakalam-rahul-sadasivan.jpg
imdbid: tt15560626
imdb: 7.5

## Queen
kind: film
region: indian
by: Vikas Bahl
year: 2013
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, drama, travel, must-watch
note: A must watch. Kangana carries the whole thing and the film never condescends to her.
art: img/art/queen-vikas-bahl.jpg
imdbid: tt3322420
imdb: 8.1
rt: 90

## Masaan
kind: film
region: indian
by: Neeraj Ghaywan
year: 2015
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, drama, caste, banaras, writing, realism
note: Brilliant writing and authentic performances, with social commentary that never turns into a lecture. Quietly one of the best of its decade.
art: img/art/masaan-neeraj-ghaywan.jpg
imdbid: tt4635372
imdb: 8.1
rt: 93

## Omkara
kind: film
region: indian
by: Vishal Bhardwaj
year: 2006
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, adaptation, shakespeare, performances
note: Saif is extraordinary in it, the best thing he has done. Naseeruddin Shah has barely any screen time and is unforgettable anyway.
art: img/art/omkara-vishal-bhardwaj.jpg
imdbid: tt0488414
imdb: 8.0

## Laal Kaptaan
kind: film
region: indian
by: Navdeep Singh
year: 2019
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, western, revenge, cinematography, saif
note: Saif is very good and the cinematography is better. A strange, dusty film that did not find its audience.
art: img/art/laal-kaptaan-navdeep-singh.jpg
imdbid: tt9052960
imdb: 7.2
rt: 11

## Manorama Six Feet Under
kind: film
region: indian
by: Navdeep Singh
year: 2007
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: hindi, neo-noir, rajasthan, thriller, must-watch
note: The Abhay Deol one, and a good one. Chinatown relocated to small town Rajasthan and it works better than it has any right to.
art: img/art/manorama-six-feet-under-navdeep-singh.jpg
imdbid: tt0920464
imdb: 7.5

## Udta Punjab
kind: film
region: indian
by: Abhishek Chaubey
year: 2016
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: chaubey, hindi, drama, punjab, addiction, performances, character-work, must-watch
note: The character work is the whole film, four lives that barely touch and every one of them earned. Alia Bhatt is extraordinary in it and Shahid has never been better.
art: img/art/udta-punjab-abhishek-chaubey.jpg
imdbid: tt4434004
imdb: 7.7
rt: 92

## Dedh Ishqiya
kind: film
region: indian
by: Abhishek Chaubey
year: 2014
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: chaubey, hindi, comedy, crime, urdu, performances, character-work, must-watch
note: Richer than the first one and more interested in its women. Madhuri and Huma play a game the men never realise they are losing, and the Urdu is a pleasure by itself.
art: img/art/dedh-ishqiya-abhishek-chaubey.jpg
imdbid: tt2675978
imdb: 7.0
rt: 83

## Ishqiya
kind: film
region: indian
by: Abhishek Chaubey
year: 2010
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: chaubey, hindi, comedy, crime, dark, performances, character-work, must-watch
note: Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi are wonderful together and Vidya Balan runs rings around both. Chaubey writing adults who behave like adults, which is rarer than it should be.
art: img/art/ishqiya-abhishek-chaubey.jpg
imdbid: tt1345777
imdb: 7.3

## Super Deluxe
kind: film
region: indian
by: Thiagarajan Kumararaja
year: 2019
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: tamil, anthology, drama, vijay-sethupathi, ambitious, must-watch
note: Vijay Sethupathi like never before, and the whole film is that ambitious. Four stories that have no business fitting together and somehow do.
art: img/art/super-deluxe-thiagarajan-kumararaja.jpg
imdbid: tt7019942
imdb: 8.2
rt: 83

## Vikram Vedha
kind: film
region: indian
by: Pushkar-Gayathri
year: 2017
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: tamil, thriller, crime, original, moral-ambiguity, vijay-sethupathi, must-watch
note: The Tamil original, and the Hindi remake is not worth your time. A moral argument disguised as a thriller, with Sethupathi and Madhavan trading the upper hand every reel.
art: img/art/vikram-vedha-pushkar-gayathri.jpg
imdbid: tt6148156
imdb: 8.2

## Vikram
kind: film
region: indian
by: Lokesh Kanagaraj
year: 2022
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: tamil, action, masala, entertainer, soundtrack, lokesh
note: A masala entertainer that knows exactly what it is doing. The action sequences and the soundtrack carry it, and the Rolex intro is the best two minutes in recent Tamil cinema.
art: img/art/vikram-lokesh-kanagaraj.jpg
imdbid: tt9179430
imdb: 8.3
rt: 59

## Shor in the City
kind: film
region: indian
by: Raj & DK
year: 2010
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: hindi, crime, ensemble, mumbai, raj-dk, realism, must-watch
note: The best thing Raj and DK have made. Three stories in a city that could not care less about any of them, and it stays with you.
art: img/art/shor-in-the-city-raj-dk.jpg
imdbid: tt1916728
imdb: 7.2

## Go Goa Gone
kind: film
region: indian
by: Raj & DK
year: 2013
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, zombie, raj-dk, entertainer
note: Entertaining, and the first Indian zombie comedy that actually worked. Saif is having a wonderful time and it is infectious.
art: img/art/go-goa-gone-raj-dk.jpg
imdbid: tt2436516
imdb: 6.7
rt: 71

## 99
kind: film
region: indian
by: Raj & DK
year: 2009
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, crime, raj-dk, early
note: An early one and a good one. Small, scrappy and genuinely funny, before anybody knew who they were.
art: img/art/99-raj-dk.jpg
imdbid: tt1370429
imdb: 7.3

## Stree
kind: film
region: indian
by: Amar Kaushik
year: 2018
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, horror-comedy, raj-dk, entertainer
note: A two, and skip the sequel. Funnier and better made than the premise has any right to be.
art: img/art/stree-amar-kaushik.jpg
imdbid: tt8108202
imdb: 7.5
rt: 80






---

# TELEVISION

## Severance
kind: tv
region: world
by: Dan Erickson, Ben Stiller
year: 2022
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: sci-fi, workplace, mystery, corporate, production-design, all-time
note: The highest rated thing on this entire site. A perfect idea executed with total confidence, where the office satire and the existential horror are the same joke.
art: img/art/severance-dan-erickson-ben-stiller.jpg
imdbid: tt11280740
imdb: 8.6

## Furious
kind: tv
region: world
by: 
year: 2026
status: now
must: no
rating: decent
tags: crime, drama, thriller, currently-watching, recent-watch
note: Not bad, kinda mid. Watchable enough to keep going, not good enough to recommend to anybody.
art: img/art/furious-unknown.jpg
imdbid: tt36303968

## The Chestnut Man
kind: tv
region: world
by: Soren Sveistrup
year: 2021
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: nordic-noir, crime, danish, thriller, must-watch
note: Danish crime at its bleakest and most controlled, which is saying something. Trusts you to keep up rather than explaining itself every ten minutes.
art: img/art/the-chestnut-man-soren-sveistrup.jpg
imdbid: tt10834220
imdb: 7.6

## Mindhunter
kind: tv
region: world
by: Joe Penhall, David Fincher
year: 2017
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: fincher, crime, procedural, psychology, true-crime, must-watch
note: Two men interviewing killers in rooms, and it is tenser than any chase ever filmed. Fincher's fingerprints are all over the pacing, and cancelling it was a genuine crime.
art: img/art/mindhunter-joe-penhall-david-fincher.jpg
imdbid: tt5290382
imdb: 8.6

## Dept. Q
kind: tv
region: world
by: Scott Frank
year: 2025
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: crime, procedural, cold-case, scottish, must-watch
note: A cold case unit staffed by the people nobody else wanted, and the show is smart enough to make that the point. Properly plotted, properly acted, no filler.
art: img/art/dept-q-scott-frank.jpg
imdbid: tt27995114
imdb: 8.1

## Black Bird
kind: tv
region: world
by: Dennis Lehane
year: 2022
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: crime, true-crime, prison, performances, apple-tv, must-watch
note: The two lead performances are the whole thing and both are extraordinary. Hauser in particular does something genuinely unsettling with very little.
art: img/art/black-bird-dennis-lehane.jpg
imdbid: tt4301160
imdb: 8.1

## Sherlock
kind: tv
region: world
by: Mark Gatiss, Steven Moffat
year: 2010
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: detective, british, visual-storytelling, technical, adaptation, must-watch
note: The technical transitions and the visual storytelling are what make it, not the plots. Text on screen, cuts inside a thought, beautiful imagery doing work that dialogue would have ruined.
art: img/art/sherlock-mark-gatiss-steven-moffat.jpg
imdbid: tt1475582
imdb: 9.0

## Better Call Saul
kind: tv
region: world
by: Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould
year: 2015
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: crime, prequel, character-study, subtle, gilligan, must-watch
note: Better than Breaking Bad on character work and it is not close. Subtler, slower, and it trusts you to notice things instead of pointing at them.
art: img/art/better-call-saul-vince-gilligan-peter-gould.jpg
imdbid: tt3032476
imdb: 9.0

## Breaking Bad
kind: tv
region: world
by: Vince Gilligan
year: 2008
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: crime, drama, gilligan, transformation
note: Great, but a bit masala, a bit in your face, everything underlined twice in case you missed it. A two next to what came after it.
art: img/art/breaking-bad-vince-gilligan.jpg
imdbid: tt0903747
imdb: 9.5
rt: 96

## Pluribus
kind: tv
region: world
by: Vince Gilligan
year: 2025
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: sci-fi, dystopia, hive-mind, gilligan, slow
note: Interesting concept and great filming, but super slow and it does not come together crisply. Skip it if you want, I would not argue.
art: img/art/pluribus-vince-gilligan.jpg
imdbid: tt22202452
imdb: 8.0

## The Office (UK)
kind: tv
region: world
by: Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant
year: 2001
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: comedy, mockumentary, british, workplace, must-watch
note: Twelve episodes and a special, then it stopped, which is the most British thing about it. Bleaker and more uncomfortable than the American one ever tried to be.
art: img/art/the-office-uk-ricky-gervais-stephen-merchant.jpg
imdbid: tt0290978
imdb: 8.5

## The Office (US)
kind: tv
region: world
by: Greg Daniels
year: 2005
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: comedy, mockumentary, workplace, rewatchable, must-watch
note: Takes a season to find itself and then becomes the most rewatchable thing on television. Warmer than the original and better for it.
art: img/art/the-office-us-greg-daniels.jpg
imdbid: tt0386676
imdb: 9.0

## Parks and Recreation
kind: tv
region: world
by: Greg Daniels, Michael Schur
year: 2009
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: comedy, mockumentary, workplace, warm, must-watch
note: The most generous comedy ever made, where the joke is never cruelty. Leslie Knope is the only fictional character I would actually vote for.
art: img/art/parks-and-recreation-greg-daniels-michael-schur.jpg
imdbid: tt1266020
imdb: 8.6

## Seinfeld
kind: tv
region: world
by: Larry David, Jerry Seinfeld
year: 1989
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: comedy, sitcom, 90s, plotting, must-watch
note: The show about nothing that is actually about how awful everyone is. Thirty years on and the plotting is still tighter than anything current.
art: img/art/seinfeld-larry-david-jerry-seinfeld.jpg
imdbid: tt0098904
imdb: 8.9

## Arrested Development
kind: tv
region: world
by: Mitchell Hurwitz
year: 2003
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: comedy, sitcom, dense, callback, must-watch
note: Every joke is planted three episodes early and pays off once you have forgotten it. Denser than anything else in the genre.
art: img/art/arrested-development-mitchell-hurwitz.jpg
imdbid: tt0367279
imdb: 8.6

## The Lincoln Lawyer
kind: tv
region: world
by: David E. Kelley, Ted Humphrey
year: 2022
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: legal, procedural, netflix, easy-watch
note: A great passtime when you are multitasking, which is exactly the right use for it. Nothing demanded of you and nothing wasted either.
art: img/art/the-lincoln-lawyer-david-e-kelley-ted-humphrey.jpg
imdbid: tt13833978
imdb: 7.8

## The Penguin
kind: tv
region: world
by: Lauren LeFranc
year: 2024
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: crime, batman, character-study, hbo, performances, must-watch
note: Great character development, which is not what anybody expected from a Batman spinoff. Farrell disappears completely and Milioti walks off with the back half.
art: img/art/the-penguin-lauren-lefranc.jpg
imdbid: tt15435876
imdb: 8.6

## The Gentlemen
kind: tv
region: world
by: Guy Ritchie
year: 2024
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: guy-ritchie, crime, comedy, british, netflix, must-watch
note: Ritchie doing Ritchie at series length and it holds across all eight. Sharp, funny, and cast perfectly down to the smallest part.
art: img/art/the-gentlemen-guy-ritchie-tv.jpg
imdbid: tt13210838
imdb: 8.0

## MobLand
kind: tv
region: world
by: Ronan Bennett, Guy Ritchie
year: 2025
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: guy-ritchie, crime, british, entertainer, recent-watch, must-watch
note: Entertaining, and it knows exactly what it is. Hardy and Brosnan circling each other for ten hours is a perfectly good reason to watch anything.
art: img/art/mobland-ronan-bennett-guy-ritchie.jpg
imdbid: tt31510819
imdb: 8.3

## The Day of the Jackal
kind: tv
region: world
by: Ronan Bennett
year: 2024
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: thriller, assassin, redmayne, performances, must-watch
note: Redmayne is the whole reason to watch and he is genuinely excellent, cold and precise and never once showing you the inside. The show around him is solid rather than special.
art: img/art/the-day-of-the-jackal-ronan-bennett.jpg
imdbid: tt24053860
imdb: 8.1

## Daredevil
kind: tv
region: world
by: Drew Goddard
year: 2015
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: marvel, action, netflix, choreography, cinematography, must-watch
note: The action sequences and the camera work are what set it apart, that corridor fight above all. Shot like a film back when nobody else on streaming was bothering.
art: img/art/daredevil-drew-goddard.jpg
imdbid: tt3322312
imdb: 8.6

## The Bureau
kind: tv
region: world
by: Eric Rochant
year: 2015
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: spy, french, character-study, authentic, must-watch
note: It ropes you in emotionally and does not let go. The character work is exceptional and the depiction of the trade is as close to authentic as the genre gets.
art: img/art/the-bureau-eric-rochant.jpg
imdbid: tt4063800
imdb: 8.7

## Broadchurch
kind: tv
region: world
by: Chris Chibnall
year: 2013
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: crime, british, grief, procedural
note: A two. The first season is the one, and the town does as much work as the case.
art: img/art/broadchurch-chris-chibnall.jpg
imdbid: tt2249364
imdb: 8.3

## Bodyguard
kind: tv
region: world
by: Jed Mercurio
year: 2018
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: thriller, british, entertainer, performances
note: A mass entertainer with great performances. A two, and it knows exactly what it is.
art: img/art/bodyguard-jed-mercurio.jpg
imdbid: tt7493974
imdb: 8.0

## Tehran
kind: tv
region: world
by: Moshe Zonder, Dana Eden
year: 2020
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: spy, israeli, thriller, performances, apple-tv
note: The performances carry it, and the sense of place is genuinely good. Tense without needing to shout.
art: img/art/tehran-moshe-zonder-dana-eden.jpg
imdbid: tt10577736
imdb: 7.6

## Sacred Games
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Vikramaditya Motwane, Anurag Kashyap
year: 2018
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: hindi, crime, netflix, bombay, must-watch
note: A two, and still a must watch for what it was. India's first real foray onto the global stage in the Netflix series format.
art: img/art/sacred-games-vikramaditya-motwane-anurag-kashyap.jpg
imdbid: tt6077448
imdb: 8.5

## Asur
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Oni Sen
year: 2020
status: done
must: no
rating: essential
tags: hindi, thriller, crime, bingeable, procedural
note: It has its flaws and it is brilliantly put together anyway. A thriller that will not stop entertaining you, and you will want to binge it.
art: img/art/asur-oni-sen.jpg
imdbid: tt11912196
imdb: 8.5

## Paatal Lok
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Sudip Sharma
year: 2020
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: hindi, crime, gritty, caste, must-watch
note: Gritty in a way Indian television usually is not. A two and a must watch.
art: img/art/paatal-lok-sudip-sharma.jpg
imdbid: tt9680440
imdb: 8.1

## Decoupled
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Manu Joseph
year: 2021
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, satire, madhavan, must-watch
note: A good one, and still a must watch. Madhavan playing a man nobody should like and getting away with it.
art: img/art/decoupled-manu-joseph.jpg
imdbid: tt14167338
imdb: 7.9

## The Ba***ds of Bollywood
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Aryan Khan
year: 2025
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, comedy, satire, masala, entertainer, recent-watch
note: A masala entertainer and perfectly happy being one. A two.
art: img/art/the-ba-ds-of-bollywood-aryan-khan.jpg
imdbid: tt34683290
imdb: 7.7

## Scam 1992
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Hansal Mehta
year: 2020
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, finance, true-story, performances, technical
note: The lead performance and the technical work are both excellent. A solid two, not a must watch.
art: img/art/scam-1992-hansal-mehta.jpg
imdbid: tt12392504
imdb: 9.2

## Mirzapur
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Karan Anshuman, Puneet Krishna
year: 2018
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: hindi, crime, gangster
note: Has some good bits and is not worth the time. A one.
art: img/art/mirzapur-karan-anshuman-puneet-krishna.jpg
imdbid: tt6473300
imdb: 8.4

## Tanaav
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Sudhir Mishra, Sachin Krishn
year: 2022
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: hindi, adaptation, thriller, kashmir
note: Decent work adapting Fauda and it does not live up to the potential. A one.
art: img/art/tanaav-sudhir-mishra-sachin-krishn.jpg
imdbid: tt21916016
imdb: 7.8

## The Family Man
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Raj & DK
year: 2019
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: hindi, spy, thriller, raj-dk, manoj-bajpayee, must-watch
note: A must watch, and the first season especially. A spy show where the hardest part of the job is getting home in time for dinner.
art: img/art/the-family-man-raj-dk.jpg
imdbid: tt9544034
imdb: 8.7

## Farzi
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Raj & DK
year: 2023
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, crime, con, raj-dk, entertainer, vijay-sethupathi
note: More of an entertainer than anything else. Sethupathi and Shahid are good value and the show never digs much deeper than that.
art: img/art/farzi-raj-dk.jpg
imdbid: tt15477488
imdb: 8.3

## Guns & Gulaabs
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Raj & DK
year: 2023
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: hindi, crime, comedy, raj-dk, period
note: Has its moments and is skippable. The tone wobbles and the length does it no favours.
art: img/art/guns-gulaabs-raj-dk.jpg
imdbid: tt17524566
imdb: 7.7

## Citadel: Honey Bunny
kind: tv
region: indian
by: Raj & DK
year: 2024
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: hindi, spy, action, raj-dk, franchise
note: Not much to highlight or remember. A one.
art: img/art/citadel-honey-bunny-raj-dk.jpg
imdbid: tt27111295
imdb: 6.2





---

# BOOKS / WORLD

## Your Erroneous Zones
kind: book
region: world
by: Wayne Dyer
year: 1976
status: now
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: self-help, psychology, classic, currently-reading
note: Currently reading. The famous one, and so far it is blunter than the modern self-help shelf, which is probably why it lasted.
art: img/art/your-erroneous-zones-wayne-dyer.jpg

## Meditations
kind: book
region: world
by: Marcus Aurelius
year: 180
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: stoicism, philosophy, ancient, recent-read, aphorism
note: A man writing notes to himself with no idea anyone would read them, which is exactly why it works. Reads like advice from someone too tired to lie to you.
art: img/art/meditations-marcus-aurelius.jpg

## The Laws of Human Nature
kind: book
region: world
by: Robert Greene
year: 2018
status: done
must: no
rating: essential
tags: psychology, power, greene, recent-read
note: The same great description of human nature, at more length and with more patience. Greene is very good at this.
art: img/art/the-laws-of-human-nature-robert-greene.jpg

## Ego Is the Enemy
kind: book
region: world
by: Ryan Holiday
year: 2016
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: stoicism, self-help, holiday, recent-read
note: Stoicism repackaged for people who will not read Aurelius directly, and there is no shame in that. Says one thing well and then says it forty more times.
art: img/art/ego-is-the-enemy-ryan-holiday.jpg

## The 48 Laws of Power
kind: book
region: world
by: Robert Greene
year: 1998
status: done
must: no
rating: essential
tags: power, strategy, greene, recent-read, amoral
note: A great description of human nature, which is what it is actually for. Read it as observation, not as instruction.
art: img/art/the-48-laws-of-power-robert-greene.jpg

## Fooled by Randomness
kind: book
region: world
by: Nassim Nicholas Taleb
year: 2001
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: taleb, probability, markets, epistemology, shelf
note: On the shelf. The one everybody says is the best Taleb before he started writing mainly about his enemies.
art: img/art/fooled-by-randomness-nassim-nicholas-taleb.jpg

## Skin in the Game
kind: book
region: world
by: Nassim Nicholas Taleb
year: 2018
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: taleb, ethics, risk, incentives, shelf
note: On the shelf. One good idea that reportedly justifies the whole book, assuming you can tolerate the delivery.
art: img/art/skin-in-the-game-nassim-nicholas-taleb.jpg

## The Little Book of Common Sense Investing
kind: book
region: world
by: John C. Bogle
year: 2007
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: investing, index-funds, finance, shelf
note: On the shelf. Everyone says the entire argument fits on a postcard, which is a point in its favour.
art: img/art/the-little-book-of-common-sense-investing-john-c-bogle.jpg

## Healing Back Pain
kind: book
region: world
by: John E. Sarno
year: 1991
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: sarno, pain, mind-body, health, shelf, tms
note: On the shelf. The origin point for the whole mind-body pain literature that half my shelf now belongs to.
art: img/art/healing-back-pain-john-e-sarno.jpg

## The Body Keeps the Score
kind: book
region: world
by: Bessel van der Kolk
year: 2014
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: trauma, psychology, health, mind-body, shelf
note: On the shelf. The one everybody has recommended to me and nobody has finished.
art: img/art/the-body-keeps-the-score-bessel-van-der-kolk.jpg

## Unlearn Your Pain
kind: book
region: world
by: Howard Schubiner
year: 2010
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: pain, mind-body, health, workbook, shelf, tms
note: On the shelf. More workbook than book, which probably means it only works if you actually do it.
art: img/art/unlearn-your-pain-howard-schubiner.jpg

## The Way Out
kind: book
region: world
by: Alan Gordon
year: 2021
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: pain, mind-body, health, shelf, tms
note: On the shelf. The most recent attempt at the Sarno idea with actual trial data behind it.
art: img/art/the-way-out-alan-gordon.jpg

## Option B
kind: book
region: world
by: Sheryl Sandberg, Adam Grant
year: 2017
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: grief, resilience, psychology, shelf
note: On the shelf. Grief plus research, which could go either very well or very badly.
art: img/art/option-b-sheryl-sandberg-adam-grant.jpg

## No Rules Rules
kind: book
region: world
by: Reed Hastings, Erin Meyer
year: 2020
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: business, culture, management, netflix, shelf
note: On the shelf. Netflix explaining Netflix, so grade the whole thing on a curve.
art: img/art/no-rules-rules-reed-hastings-erin-meyer.jpg

## The Tipping Point
kind: book
region: world
by: Malcolm Gladwell
year: 2000
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: gladwell, pop-social-science, shelf
note: On the shelf. The one that created the entire genre, for better and mostly for worse.
art: img/art/the-tipping-point-malcolm-gladwell.jpg

## Blink
kind: book
region: world
by: Malcolm Gladwell
year: 2005
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: gladwell, pop-social-science, psychology, shelf
note: On the shelf. Snap judgement as a superpower, from before the replication crisis had opinions about that.
art: img/art/blink-malcolm-gladwell.jpg

## Outliers
kind: book
region: world
by: Malcolm Gladwell
year: 2008
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: gladwell, pop-social-science, success, shelf
note: On the shelf. Famous for one number that turned out to be mostly wrong, which is very Gladwell.
art: img/art/outliers-malcolm-gladwell.jpg

## David and Goliath
kind: book
region: world
by: Malcolm Gladwell
year: 2013
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: gladwell, pop-social-science, shelf
note: On the shelf. Underdogs, reframed, at length.
art: img/art/david-and-goliath-malcolm-gladwell.jpg

## Talking to Strangers
kind: book
region: world
by: Malcolm Gladwell
year: 2019
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: gladwell, pop-social-science, psychology, shelf
note: On the shelf. Reportedly his most serious and least fun, which might be the right direction.
art: img/art/talking-to-strangers-malcolm-gladwell.jpg

## The Beginning of Infinity
kind: book
region: world
by: David Deutsch
year: 2011
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: philosophy, science, epistemology, physics, shelf, hard
note: On the shelf. The one book on this list that people describe as actually changing how they think, so it keeps getting postponed.
art: img/art/the-beginning-of-infinity-david-deutsch.jpg

## Essays and Aphorisms
kind: book
region: world
by: Arthur Schopenhauer
year: 1851
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: philosophy, pessimism, essays, shelf
note: On the shelf. Professional pessimism, elegantly done, in small enough pieces to survive.
art: img/art/essays-and-aphorisms-arthur-schopenhauer.jpg

## Assimil: French With Ease
kind: book
region: world
by: Assimil
year: 1986
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: language, french, learning, shelf, course
note: On the shelf, in progress in theory. The method only works if you show up daily, which is the whole problem.
art: img/art/assimil-french-with-ease-assimil.jpg

## In Cold Blood
kind: book
region: world
by: Truman Capote
year: 1966
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: true-crime, nonfiction-novel, realism, american, masterpiece
note: An absolute masterpiece and the book that invented an entire form. Capote makes you understand the killers without once asking you to forgive them.
art: img/art/in-cold-blood-truman-capote.jpg

## Three Men in a Boat
kind: book
region: world
by: Jerome K. Jerome
year: 1889
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: comedy, victorian, travel, english, timeless
note: A book from 1889 that is still genuinely funny, which almost nothing manages. Nothing happens, slowly, and it is delightful.
art: img/art/three-men-in-a-boat-jerome-k-jerome.jpg

## Lamb to the Slaughter
kind: book
region: world
by: Roald Dahl
year: 1953
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: short-story, dahl, crime, twist, dark-comedy
note: The perfect short story and the perfect last line. Everything Dahl learned about cruelty in ten pages.
art: img/art/lamb-to-the-slaughter-roald-dahl.jpg

## Collected Short Stories
kind: book
region: world
by: Saki
year: 1914
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: short-story, saki, satire, english, dark-comedy, edwardian
note: Read nearly all of them and would happily start again. Cruel, immaculate, and never a wasted sentence. The Open Window and Sredni Vashtar first.
art: img/art/collected-short-stories-saki.jpg

## The Complete Short Stories
kind: book
region: world
by: O. Henry
year: 1906
status: done
must: yes
rating: strong
tags: short-story, o-henry, american, twist, realism
note: The master of the ending you did not see and should have. Formula after a while, but what a formula.
art: img/art/the-complete-short-stories-o-henry.jpg

## The Night We Won the Buick
kind: book
region: world
by: unknown
year: 0
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: short-story, americana
flag: the blog you linked carries no author credit, so this is still unattributed
note: A poor family wins a Buick in a raffle and the father realises the winning ticket is his boss's. Stuck with me for the decision at the centre of it rather than for the writing.

## Collected Poems
kind: book
region: world
by: Charles Bukowski
year: 1974
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: poetry, bukowski, american, realism, dirty-realism
note: Read nearly all of it. Half of it is a man complaining and the other half is the plainest honest writing anyone has managed about being broke and alive.
art: img/art/collected-poems-charles-bukowski.jpg

## The Fountainhead
kind: book
region: world
by: Ayn Rand
year: 1943
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: fiction, philosophy, objectivism, college-read
note: Read it in college, which is the correct and possibly only time to read it. Compelling for about four hundred pages and then it starts lecturing.
art: img/art/the-fountainhead-ayn-rand.jpg

## Atlas Shrugged
kind: book
region: world
by: Ayn Rand
year: 1957
status: done
must: no
rating: decent
tags: fiction, philosophy, objectivism, college-read, long
note: The other college one. There is a sixty page speech in it and that tells you most of what you need to know.
art: img/art/atlas-shrugged-ayn-rand.jpg

---

# BOOKS / INDIA

## Gunda
kind: book
region: indian
by: Jaishankar Prasad
year: 1932
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: hindi, short-story, realism, prasad, classic, must-read
note: One of the great Hindi short stories and a definite must read. A thug given a moment of real dignity, written without a shred of sentimentality.

## Poos Ki Raat
kind: book
region: indian
by: Premchand
year: 1930
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: hindi, short-story, premchand, realism, rural, poverty
note: A farmer, a cold night, and a small surrender that lands like a gut punch. Premchand doing more with a blanket and a field than most novels manage in four hundred pages.
art: img/art/poos-ki-raat-premchand.jpg

## Namak Ka Daroga
kind: book
region: indian
by: Premchand
year: 1925
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: hindi, short-story, premchand, realism, integrity, favourite
note: Honesty costs the man everything and the story is clear eyed enough to admit that. A two, and still one I go back to.

## Khudai Fojdar
kind: book
region: indian
by: Premchand
year: 1935
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: hindi, short-story, premchand, realism, satire, favourite
note: The other of my two favourites. Funny and sharp and quietly furious about the same things he was always furious about.

## Godan
kind: book
region: indian
by: Premchand
year: 1936
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: hindi, novel, premchand, realism, rural, debt, classic
note: The great Hindi novel of rural debt and it never once tips into melodrama. Hori wanting one cow is the whole tragedy of a system in a single want.
art: img/art/godan-premchand.jpg

## Collected Short Stories
kind: book
region: indian
by: Premchand
year: 1936
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: hindi, short-story, premchand, realism, collection
note: Read nearly all of them and would say the short stories are where he is strongest. Realism with no interest in making you comfortable.

## Midnight's Children
kind: book
region: indian
by: Salman Rushdie
year: 1981
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: english, novel, magical-realism, partition, rushdie, must-read
note: A must read. History and hallucination sharing one nose, and it earns every trick it pulls.
art: img/art/midnight-s-children-salman-rushdie.jpg

## Shame
kind: book
region: indian
by: Salman Rushdie
year: 1983
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: english, novel, magical-realism, pakistan, political, rushdie, must-read
note: The other must read Rushdie, meaner and tighter than Midnight's Children. A country rewritten as a family that cannot stop humiliating itself.
art: img/art/shame-salman-rushdie.jpg

## The God of Small Things
kind: book
region: indian
by: Arundhati Roy
year: 1997
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: english, novel, kerala, caste, family, prose, lyrical
note: The prose does things English is not supposed to allow. Tells you the ending early and it still destroys you when it arrives.
art: img/art/the-god-of-small-things-arundhati-roy.jpg

## The White Tiger
kind: book
region: indian
by: Aravind Adiga
year: 2008
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: english, novel, class, satire, dark, booker
note: A nasty, fast, very funny book about getting out by any means. Thinner than its reputation but it goes down in two sittings.
art: img/art/the-white-tiger-aravind-adiga.jpg

## Cry, the Peacock
kind: book
region: indian
by: Anita Desai
year: 1963
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: english, novel, psychological, interiority, desai, must-read
note: A must read. All interior, all pressure, a mind coming apart in slow motion with nobody around noticing.
art: img/art/cry-the-peacock-anita-desai.jpg

## Annihilation of Caste
kind: book
region: indian
by: B. R. Ambedkar
year: 1936
status: done
must: yes
rating: essential
tags: nonfiction, political, caste, ambedkar, essential, must-read
note: A must read, and the single clearest piece of argument written in modern India. A speech so unanswerable they cancelled the event rather than hear it.
art: img/art/annihilation-of-caste-b-r-ambedkar.jpg

## The Gene: An Intimate History
kind: book
region: indian
by: Siddhartha Mukherjee
year: 2016
status: done
must: no
rating: strong
tags: nonfiction, science, biology, history, mukherjee
note: Science writing that remembers it is also a family story. Long, and it earns most of the length.
art: img/art/the-gene-an-intimate-history-siddhartha-mukherjee.jpg

## India After Gandhi
kind: book
region: indian
by: Ramachandra Guha
year: 2007
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: nonfiction, history, politics, guha, shelf, long
note: On the shelf. The standard account of the republic, and it is a brick.
art: img/art/india-after-gandhi-ramachandra-guha.jpg

## The Ocean of Churn
kind: book
region: indian
by: Sanjeev Sanyal
year: 2016
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: nonfiction, history, indian-ocean, sanyal, shelf
note: On the shelf. History told from the water rather than the capital, which is a good idea for a book.
art: img/art/the-ocean-of-churn-sanjeev-sanyal.jpg

## Land of the Seven Rivers
kind: book
region: indian
by: Sanjeev Sanyal
year: 2012
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: nonfiction, history, geography, sanyal, shelf
note: On the shelf. Indian history through its rivers and its geography.
art: img/art/land-of-the-seven-rivers-sanjeev-sanyal.jpg

## Atmamun
kind: book
region: indian
by: Kapil Gupta
year: 2016
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: philosophy, spirituality, shelf, contrarian
note: On the shelf. Very short, apparently very blunt, and unusually hostile to its own genre.
art: img/art/atmamun-kapil-gupta.jpg

## Ashtavakra Gita
kind: book
region: indian
by: Ashtavakra
year: 800
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: philosophy, advaita, sanskrit, translation, shelf, ancient
note: On the shelf, in translation. The one that skips the practice and just states the conclusion.
art: 

## The Book of Life
kind: book
region: indian
by: Jiddu Krishnamurti
year: 1995
status: shelf
must: no
rating: unrated
tags: philosophy, krishnamurti, daily-reader, shelf
note: On the shelf. A daily reader, so it is designed to be picked at rather than finished.
art: img/art/the-book-of-life-jiddu-krishnamurti.jpg

---

# TECH SHELF

Stub. Your tech reading lives in posts on khola.blog and is not catalogued anywhere locally.
Give me the list, or point me at a folder, and I will fill this section using the same format.
Until then the site hides this section automatically.