Mini Reviews: Thrash and Widow’s Bay

Thrash

In “Thrash,” a hurricane blows through a coastal town and brings with it sharks. Most of what Netflix releases is garbage, and this is one of them. The only reason I watched it was because of the 2019 movie “Crawl,” where a college swimmer goes to her father’s house during a hurricane and has to deal with crocodiles. “Crawl” was great. “Thrash” sucks. I couldn’t help but compare the two movies since they are so similar. There are a lot of characters in “Thrash,” and I could not care less about them (even the kids, because this movie did not have the gall to kill a kid). In “Crawl,” you are given a reason to care for the two characters it focuses on. “Crawl” is tense and scary, with genuine moments. between characters. “Thrash” has one good line: a woman who has just given birth says, “Mommy’s just gotta fight some fucking sharks.” The problem is, she then proceeds to fight zero sharks-she gets saved by the agoraphobe whose mother recently died. I guess what I'm saying is: watch “Crawl.” I am planning on it.

Widow’s Bay

I love it when I get surprised by a show or movie. I don’t mean in terms of my enjoyment, I mean when I have no idea a show is coming out. Take the new AppleTV show “Widow’s Bay.” It’s a Stephen King-esque story of a small New England island where some mysterious things happen. If that wasn't enough to get me to watch (and that’s all it would take), it stars Mathew Rhys, who is always great (it also reminds me I need to finish “The Americans,” I never watched past season one despite really liking that show). The first two episodes are out on Apple TV, and I am loving it so far. Rhys plays the mayor and is not as superstitious as his constituents, but is forced to deal with those superstitions as he leads the community. In the most recent episode, he was goaded into staying at the supposedly haunted hotel. To prove that the hotel is not haunted, he films himself in all the haunted locations. During the night, some creepy and unsettling things occur, and we are beginning to see that maybe the townsfolk aren’t wrong. This is a strong recommendation if you enjoy Stephen King vibes.