Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
@gavia.bsky.social
Film and TV critic. Co-host of the Overinvested movie podcast, co-editor of the Rec Center newsletter.
Bylines: TV Guide, Inverse, Vulture, Boston Globe, Atlas Obscura, Empire, etc. she/her
Bylines: TV Guide, Inverse, Vulture, Boston Globe, Atlas Obscura, Empire, etc. she/her
Pinned
Ep. 328: Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein — OVERINVESTED
Sticking closer to Mary Shelley's novel than most other adaptations, Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein is the culmination of a lifelong dream. But does this movie measure up to GDT's past hits? Steffa...
www.overinvestedpodcast.com
Out now on Overinvested: Our review of Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein!
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
Paying danegeld pre-emptively has always worked out remarkably well for the appeaser. Don't look it up.
This is the most alarming story I’ve read today. Giving up the fight before it’s started
November 30, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Paying danegeld pre-emptively has always worked out remarkably well for the appeaser. Don't look it up.
thrilled to receive a holiday card from a gay couple whose names I always mix up, providing solid proof that they also don't know MY name ("gavvy"). equal footing for once.
November 29, 2025 at 2:40 PM
thrilled to receive a holiday card from a gay couple whose names I always mix up, providing solid proof that they also don't know MY name ("gavvy"). equal footing for once.
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
“Cancellation limbo”: when you’re definitely not cancelled but not as celebrated as you used to be. This is one reason why “cancel culture” discourse is so tiresome: a lot of people are using it to mean “my life was affected in some negative way by my actions”
www.newyorker.com/culture/crit...
www.newyorker.com/culture/crit...
November 29, 2025 at 1:21 PM
“Cancellation limbo”: when you’re definitely not cancelled but not as celebrated as you used to be. This is one reason why “cancel culture” discourse is so tiresome: a lot of people are using it to mean “my life was affected in some negative way by my actions”
www.newyorker.com/culture/crit...
www.newyorker.com/culture/crit...
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
Has my favourite piece of IMDb trivia: “Trains Magazine voted The Train #1 in its special issue ‘The 100 Greatest Train Movies’.”
November 29, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Has my favourite piece of IMDb trivia: “Trains Magazine voted The Train #1 in its special issue ‘The 100 Greatest Train Movies’.”
only watched good movies this week 🙏
November 29, 2025 at 11:49 AM
only watched good movies this week 🙏
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
“My novels have been influential and popular in Britain, where I am among the bestselling literary authors of the last decade. The disappearance of my work from bookshops would mark a truly extreme incursion by the state into the realm of artistic expression.”
www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...
www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...
Sally Rooney says she will be unable to publish books in UK while Palestine Action banned
Irish author Rooney says her books could disappear from UK stores altogether
www.irishtimes.com
November 27, 2025 at 6:56 PM
“My novels have been influential and popular in Britain, where I am among the bestselling literary authors of the last decade. The disappearance of my work from bookshops would mark a truly extreme incursion by the state into the realm of artistic expression.”
www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...
www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
if you want a podcast to listen to while cooking today!
Out now on Overinvested: Our review of Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein!
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
Ep. 328: Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein — OVERINVESTED
Sticking closer to Mary Shelley's novel than most other adaptations, Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein is the culmination of a lifelong dream. But does this movie measure up to GDT's past hits? Steffa...
www.overinvestedpodcast.com
November 27, 2025 at 3:41 PM
if you want a podcast to listen to while cooking today!
if you want a podcast to listen to while cooking today!
Out now on Overinvested: Our review of Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein!
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
Ep. 328: Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein — OVERINVESTED
Sticking closer to Mary Shelley's novel than most other adaptations, Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein is the culmination of a lifelong dream. But does this movie measure up to GDT's past hits? Steffa...
www.overinvestedpodcast.com
November 27, 2025 at 3:41 PM
if you want a podcast to listen to while cooking today!
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
I once asked a bookseller at a large indie store how many people would have to buy a book for it to get the attention of the store buyer and cause an additional order and they said: Three.
I see some book piracy discourse, and, to make a positive argument in favor of buying books, your marginal ability to influence what books get published and support the careers of writers you like is massive compared to most other forms of media.
November 25, 2025 at 11:07 PM
I once asked a bookseller at a large indie store how many people would have to buy a book for it to get the attention of the store buyer and cause an additional order and they said: Three.
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
she's right... the best way to make tarte tatin IS to do all the apples in a big skillet and then assemble the pie in a smaller skillet. smittenkitchen.com/2019/11/perf...
perfect apple tarte tatin
Together with my neighbor Susan Spungen, we’ve created what I hope will be the last apple tarte tatin recipe you’ll ever need, where the apples taste like they drank a cup of caramel an…
smittenkitchen.com
February 14, 2025 at 9:01 PM
she's right... the best way to make tarte tatin IS to do all the apples in a big skillet and then assemble the pie in a smaller skillet. smittenkitchen.com/2019/11/perf...
ALSO Morgan and I are doing our annual book review podcast for patreon. 💕
the next two eps of Overinvested are going to be on PREDATOR: BADLANDS (very fun movie!!) and THE SHINING!
November 25, 2025 at 10:45 PM
ALSO Morgan and I are doing our annual book review podcast for patreon. 💕
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
Watch if you wish of course, but anyone watching should know about this background... as should fans of Wong's work in general.
The fact that the person accusing him of exploitation has a degenerative disease makes this whole story especially gruesome and upsetting. Truly repulsive behavior.
The fact that the person accusing him of exploitation has a degenerative disease makes this whole story especially gruesome and upsetting. Truly repulsive behavior.
November 25, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Watch if you wish of course, but anyone watching should know about this background... as should fans of Wong's work in general.
The fact that the person accusing him of exploitation has a degenerative disease makes this whole story especially gruesome and upsetting. Truly repulsive behavior.
The fact that the person accusing him of exploitation has a degenerative disease makes this whole story especially gruesome and upsetting. Truly repulsive behavior.
extremely grim report about Wong Kar-wai's treatment of a young writer on his new TV series. www.whatsonweibo.com/the-wong-kar...
The Wong Kar-wai Scandal Explained: The Dark Side of ‘Blossoms Shanghai’
Whenever reports surfaced about the harsh conditions on Wong Kar-wai’s sets, mainstream media and fans often brushed off his tyrannical habits as the quirks of a genius. This time, it feels different.
www.whatsonweibo.com
November 25, 2025 at 6:26 PM
extremely grim report about Wong Kar-wai's treatment of a young writer on his new TV series. www.whatsonweibo.com/the-wong-kar...
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
November 25, 2025 at 9:26 AM
I wish I didn’t have to share this. But the BBC has decided to censor my first Reith Lecture.
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
They deleted the line in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.” /1
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
My aunt who famously can’t cook tried to make a pumpkin pie. She didn’t know what cloves were, so she put garlic cloves in it. Whole.
November 24, 2025 at 11:59 PM
My aunt who famously can’t cook tried to make a pumpkin pie. She didn’t know what cloves were, so she put garlic cloves in it. Whole.
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
We've got a great essay but from the great @gavia.bsky.social about how hagsploitation made a surprising comeback in horror this year www.inverse.com/entertainmen...
2025's Biggest Horror Trend Is A Regressive Step Backward
With two of the biggest horror movies of the year, the "hagsploitation" genre made a big comeback. But is it the one we wanted?
www.inverse.com
November 21, 2025 at 2:55 PM
We've got a great essay but from the great @gavia.bsky.social about how hagsploitation made a surprising comeback in horror this year www.inverse.com/entertainmen...
back in the news
November 24, 2025 at 10:16 PM
back in the news
the next two eps of Overinvested are going to be on PREDATOR: BADLANDS (very fun movie!!) and THE SHINING!
November 24, 2025 at 6:16 PM
the next two eps of Overinvested are going to be on PREDATOR: BADLANDS (very fun movie!!) and THE SHINING!
whenever i get bored and cut my hair off with kitchen scissors, there's always a moment about 48 hours in when i look at myself in the mirror and think, "my god, i've given myself The Beethoven again."
November 24, 2025 at 4:22 PM
whenever i get bored and cut my hair off with kitchen scissors, there's always a moment about 48 hours in when i look at myself in the mirror and think, "my god, i've given myself The Beethoven again."
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
I don't understand how anyone can watch how blatantly Grok is manipulated to answer the way ownership desires it to and then act like the other LLM chatbots couldn't possibly be similarly but less obviously compromised to produce responses in whatever way corporate interests and priorities dictate.
November 23, 2025 at 7:13 PM
I don't understand how anyone can watch how blatantly Grok is manipulated to answer the way ownership desires it to and then act like the other LLM chatbots couldn't possibly be similarly but less obviously compromised to produce responses in whatever way corporate interests and priorities dictate.
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
Out now on Overinvested: Our review of Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein!
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
Ep. 328: Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein — OVERINVESTED
Sticking closer to Mary Shelley's novel than most other adaptations, Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein is the culmination of a lifelong dream. But does this movie measure up to GDT's past hits? Steffa...
www.overinvestedpodcast.com
November 19, 2025 at 10:49 AM
Out now on Overinvested: Our review of Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein!
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
THAT WAS THE REAL MAYOR OF ALBUQUERQUE??
November 21, 2025 at 11:46 PM
THAT WAS THE REAL MAYOR OF ALBUQUERQUE??
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
Man, I love Pluribus. Absolutely buzzing with thoughts and questions after every ep.
In Pluribus, the unhappiest woman in the world is a romantasy author. @gavia.bsky.social discusses how the sexy pirates in Carol Sturka's Bloodsong of Wycaro shape her experiences with art and sexuality against an alien hivemind.
Pluribus and Romantasy: Art at the End of the World - Reactor
What is culture in an apocalypse like this one?
reactormag.com
November 20, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Man, I love Pluribus. Absolutely buzzing with thoughts and questions after every ep.
Reposted by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
Excellent episode! I recommend listening to Overinvested's prior episode on Frankenstein before the movie, and coming to this one after.
Out now on Overinvested: Our review of Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein!
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
As someone who usually loves GDT's work, I found this one unexpectedly disappointing. Gorgeous props and costumes, paired with thin characterization and a narrative that simplifies the darkness of the novel.
Ep. 328: Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein — OVERINVESTED
Sticking closer to Mary Shelley's novel than most other adaptations, Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein is the culmination of a lifelong dream. But does this movie measure up to GDT's past hits? Steffa...
www.overinvestedpodcast.com
November 20, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Excellent episode! I recommend listening to Overinvested's prior episode on Frankenstein before the movie, and coming to this one after.