In this week's episode, I look back at the movies and streaming shows I watched over winter 2025/2026

Instead of Coupon of the Week, you can get SILENT ORDER: OMNIBUS ONE for free at my Payhip store at this link until March 31st:

https://payhip.com/b/lhCyU

TRANSCRIPT

00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates

Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 294 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is March the 13th, 2026 and today we are looking at my movie and streaming TV show reviews for Winter 2025 and 2026. We'll also have Coupon of the Week and an update on my current writing, publishing, and audiobook projects.

Before we get into all that, let's start off with Coupon of the Week. Actually, we are not going to have Coupon of the Week this week because originally I scheduled a Coupon of the Week for Silent Order: Omnibus One to get you 25% off it. However, I was able to get a BookBub Featured Deal to give away Silent Order: Omnibus One for free on the 17th. So instead, the episode description will just have a link to where you can get Silent Order Omnibus One for free at my Payhip store. Next week, regular Coupon of the Week will return.

Now for an update on my current writing, publishing and audiobook projects. As of this recording, I am about 51,000 words into Blade of Wraiths. I had hoped to be a little further at the end of this week, but there was quite a bit of real life stuff to do this week that took up a lot of time. I didn't make quite as much progress as I had hoped, but I did make some progress, so that's good. I'm still hoping to have the book out in April if all goes well, but we will see. I'm also 5,000 words into Dragon-Mage, which will be the sixth book in the Rivah Half-Elven Thief series (six of nine planned). That hopefully will be out in May if all goes well.

In audiobook news, the main recording on Blade of Storms (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills) is finished. Just have some proofing to do yet and then get through processing. Then hopefully the audiobook should be available on all platforms by next month. Recording is also underway for Wizard-Assassin, the fifth book in the Rivah Half-Elven Thief series. So that is where I'm at with my current writing, publishing, and audiobook projects.

00:02:00 Main Topic: Movie/TV Show Review Roundup

Now let's move on to our main topic this week, my movie roundup. Spring is near, so it's time for my Winter 2025/ 2026 Movie Review Roundup. I admit this is a bit shorter than my usual movie roundups because for a couple of months I didn't see anything I really felt like writing about. Not in a bad way or depressed sort of way, but I just didn't see anything I felt interested enough to write about, whether good or bad. The new year brought new movies to watch and now we have enough for a Movie Review Roundup. As always, the movies and shows are in order from my least favorite to my most favorite. The reviews are based on nothing objective, but only my own thoughts and opinions.

First up is Operation Fortune, which came out in 2023. This is a Guy Richie action comedy with Jason Statham in the lead, which probably describes all you need to know about it. Like if you say the phrase "Guy Richie Action Comedy with Jason Statham in the Lead", this would be the movie that popped into your head. Statham plays Orson Fortune, an elite special forces operative. When a mysterious device is stolen by terrorists, the UK government sends Fortune to retrieve it. Fortune teams up with a group of specialists and then sets out to punch bad guys and save the day. Some good action sequences, some funny bits, and Hugh Grant was hilarious as the evil arms broker billionaire, but definitely a paint by number action movie. Enjoyable to watch, but nothing deep.

Overall Grade: C

Next up is Legend, which came out in 1985. This is a very weird movie told as sort of an '80s style dark fairy tale. The premise is that the Lord of Darkness wants to destroy all light (as lords of darkness are wont to do). But to do that, he needs to kill a pair of unicorns. He sends his goblin minions to do the deed. Meanwhile, Princess Lili is in love with Jack, a forest child who lives in harmony with various elves and dwarves and other natural creatures. When the goblins kill one of the unicorns and take the other back to Darkness's subterranean fortress, Jack and Lili have to team up to rescue the last unicorn and defeat Darkness. The creature work and all the puppets and suchlike look amazing. Poor Tim Curry delivered an excellent performance under that mountain of prosthetics he had to wear as Darkness. That said, I don't think Tom Cruise had quite learned how to act yet, and I'm afraid he kind of stood around with a blank expression most of the time. So I'd say Legend is an interesting fantasy classic, but definitely very niche.

Overall Grade: B-

Next up is Anaconda, which came out in 2025. This is a very meta, bonkers, and yet nonetheless entertaining comedy movie. It kind of went off the rails while shouting "WHEEEEEE" the entire time. College friends Doug, Griff, Claire, and Kenny are entering middle age and are all dissatisfied with how their lives have turned out. Doug wanted to be a director, but instead makes wedding videos. Griff is a struggling actor. Claire is a divorced lawyer and Kenny is a "Buffalo drunk (he only drinks beer and wine and just some, but not all of the hard liquors). When Griff acquires the rights to make the next movie in the Anaconda series, the four friends jump at the chance to make it as an indie film. Scraping together their savings, they set off for the Amazon to film their snake movie.

However, they find themselves caught in the middle of a fight between illegal gold miners and the Brazilian government and there is an actual giant anaconda that is hunting both the gold miners and idealistic American filmmakers. This was very meta since the characters were making a movie in the Anaconda series…in a movie in the Anaconda series. Despite that, it was very funny and I enjoyed it, though it might be a bit too tongue in cheek for some viewers. Comedy, alas, is ever subjective.

Overall Grade: B-

Next up is Fackham Hall, which came out in 2025. Sometimes a movie is funny but dumb. Sometimes a movie is dumb but still funny, and sometimes a movie is just plain dumb. However, I'm pleased to report that Fackham Hall is the best of the three: funny, but dumb.

It's a goofy but affectionate parody of Downton Abbey and the kind of movie that isn't afraid to make jokes simply for the sake of jokes. Interestingly, halfway through the movie takes the right hand turn and becomes a parody of an Agatha Christie novel. It was pretty funny in the vein of the Naked Gun or Airplane movies, though a few of the jokes might be too raunchy for some viewers.

Overall Grade: B-

Next up is Wrecking Crew, which came out in 2026. I would say this was one part buddy cop comedy, one part noir mystery, and one part John Wick style violence. When private investigator Walter Hale is killed by a hit and run in Hawaii, both his sons (by different mothers) conclude that it was murder. Straight laced James (played by Dave Bautista) is a Navy SEAL with a stable family life, while Maverick cop Johnny (played by Jason Momoa) is frequently drunk and on the outs and on the outs with his girlfriend.

Nevertheless, both half-brothers independently realize that shady corporate interests killed their father and set out to find his killers. They must also deal with their complicated feelings with their father and overcome their deep seated resentment of each other. This was a pretty fun action movie, though the violence level is definitely John Wick level and might put off some viewers. Honestly, it made me wonder if there's a "Hawaiian Noir" mystery genre, the way that "Nordic Noir" novels were popular for a while.

Overall Grade: B

Next up is The Running Man, which came out in 2025. This is both very dark and very funny, and I think it was actually better than the original movie from the 1980s. It explores the same concept. Future America is a dystopia ruled by the Network megacorp and Glen Powell's character needs to get medicine for his daughter, but he can't afford it, so he tries out for the Network's cruel reality shows and lands a spot on the biggest one of all, The Running Man, where contestants have to stay alive and hidden for 30 days while they're hunted by mercenaries and the general public gets rewarded for informing on them.

This definitely had strong Idiocracy vibes as well and the satire of contemporary American culture was very cutting and probably quite accurate. I do think this movie deserved better than to flop at the box office like it did, but perhaps it will have a long life on streaming.

Overall Grade: B

Next up is A Few Good Men, which came out in 1992. This is a high quality legal thriller carried by Tom Cruise's and Jack Nicholson's performances. Today, Tom Cruise is largely famous for extreme stunts like driving a motorcycle cycle off a cliff (it did make for a good movie) and various personal eccentricities, but both he and Nicholson really can act and their scenes together are great. Sometime between this and Legend (which we talked about earlier), Cruise really figured out how to act on screen.

Anyway, when a Marine is killed during a hazing ritual, Lieutenant Kaffee (played by Tom Cruise), is called in to investigate, aided by Lieutenant Commander Galloway (played by Demi Moore). Colonel Jessup (who was played by Nicholson), the commander of the Marines in question, wants to cover up what really happened, and Kaffee and Galloway set out to prove that the Marines charged with murder were in fact following orders when the hazing ritual went wrong.

Of course, the ...