Noah (2014) rating: 7/10

How could I possibly like a biblical movie? This one is so absurd that you understand that the story is total science fiction!

Logan Lerman and Emma Watson are in it. And even Anthony Hopkins. You really don't need to watch it at regular speed, except for a few sections you can understand what's happening without the dialogue.

Anderson Collection at Stanford University, rating: 7/10

Difficult to argue against free. Lots of modern art in a plain, unremarkable building. The best pieces I think were the semi-translucent "Untitled" by Robert Irwin and the single Wayne Thiebaud "Candy Counter". You can see most (all?) of the works at anderson.stanford.edu .

The LA Times ran a piece on the Andersons: http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-et-cm-ca-hunk-moo-stanford-anderson-collection-20140713-story.html .

Sherlock (TV Series) Rating: 9/10

I caught wind of the Sherlock series just this year and watched the 3 episodes of season 3 sequence in almost one go, not having seen the first two seasons. I was so enamored of it, that I went back to catch seasons 1 and 2 on dvd.

It is wildly entertaining. Modern day Sherlock (Benedict Cumberbatch) lives in a flat in London and rooms/hangs out with ex-military doctor John Watson (Martin Freeman) and solves mysteries. Sherlock is brilliant, arrogant, and infuriating. A high functioning sociopath -- by his own definition -- and a complete show off. He insults almost everyone he meets, yet respects Watson who is in contrast a moral, upstanding character, but also one of few loyal friends. And the series is in a way a study in friendship of the two characters. Meanwhile it contains many great cinematic action sequences.

Borgen (2013) rating: 7/10

A Danish TV series about a female prime minister.
An interesting look at Danish life with its Northern European perspective. Like the ministry of gender equality etc.
Also, there is a bit on Greenland.

Stranger by the Lake (2013) rating: 7/10

Basically a porno mystery thriller, it doesn't get much more explicit in gay cinema than the sex here. The plot is pretty good. Camera work is fine. Protagonist is pretty okay to look at. A lot of nakedness and even some arousal (and perhaps shockingly to some, quite a bit more) shown which up until recently had been the realm of only porn and maybe the odd art-house flick.

Geography Club (2013) rating: 6/10

There is a book by Brent Hartinger and a movie based on that book. This review is about the movie. There is an attractive actor playing the protagonist. I think the ending is very anti-climatic. I didn't like the way it leaves Kevin and Russell's relationship on a very down beat matching the book. I think the film adaptation could have come up with a more dramatic and watchable storyline. The production quality and acting are pretty good for what I'm sure was not a high budget film. There are I think better movies on this theme, though again this one is fairly watchable for Cameron Deane Stewart playing Russell.

See also: LA Times Review

Out in the Dark (2013) rating: 8/10

The technical details of how Palestinians can receive passes to visit Israel, and how some are 'recruited' to spy on other Palestinians by the Mossad is actually fascinating, but all of this happens in the middle of a slowly burning gay love story between a Palestinian and an Israeli. They leads are attractive, story is engaging, production values high. Worth seeing.

David vs Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell, rating: 7/10

You will find detractors for Malcolm Gladwell, but I find that he does write well and on interesting topics.

In this particular book, I learned a few things.
 
Being disagreeable can be an indicator of success. But you don't tend to be disagreeable unless you've had some hardships in life. (You could be disagreeable because you are a spoiled brat though.)

The other thing is roughly about police state and the legitimacy of authority. When the police state has no legitimacy, you would get rioting and resistance. Gladwell spends a couple chapters on this related to Northern Ireland.

There were a few other more points made, which though I had never really thought about them, they do seem rather more obvious:

Chasing Ice (2013) rating: 8/10

About climate change. A photographer captures time lapse of glaciers retreating in Iceland, Greenland and Alaska. In a rush? Skip to about the one hour mark for some spectacular calving.

But what to do? Conserve energy. Encourage a carbon tax.

August (2012) rating: 8/10

An ex-boyfriend, Troy, shows up again after an abrupt and devastating breakup. However, Jonathan, the ex-lover is like an addict, still wanting to get back with him despite having moved on and now getting serious and almost living with his current boyfriend.

For what is probably a low budget film, there is some very good acting and dialog. The story is full of romantic angst and drama.

Middle Eastern music throughout a movie set in LA is odd. The motivation given later is when the characters visit the hooka bar, but otherwise it sort of feels too intentional as a way to the film seem more serious.

Still I did like it as a realistic study of human nature. Plus the actors are not bad to look at. There are some sex scenes, too.