One Movie and a Few Series

Looking back at the past month , I am astonished (and a little embarrassed) at how much I have seen. Even though viewing is limited to the evening and after two hours I’m done, I have still managed to cram in a lot. The problem with posting once a month is that there is a lot to share and an increasingly smaller memory to call upon. The other challenge: do I review mid series or post series?? As you will see I haven’t made a decision on that front.

Completed: “Ted Lasso” (Apple) “The Bear” (Hulu)

In some ways these two are polar opposites. “The Bear Season 2” caused me to up my heart meds and probably was not a good before bedtime choice. Nonetheless, I watched it and loved the characters, the acting (all fabulous but Jamie Lee Curtis above and beyond), and the story. As I queried in my review of Season 1 —why would anyone deliberately choose to own or work in a restaurant? The series seems to ask the same question and does a great job of exploring the answer through plot and characterization. Protagonist Carmy’s love interest could use a bit more complexity and one or two episodes feel a bit forced, but overall I am looking forward to what seems like a set p for Season 3.

The world of “Ted Lasso” is a lot less complex and much more calming. Ted Lasso is a panic attack prone Buddha with a twang. I want to live in Ted Lassoland, where people are kind and decent and bad guys get their comeuppance. Good writing that rarely veers into sentimentality, excellent acting, a plot that made me want to watch the next episode, all add up to a good watch before bedtime, providing the reassuring escapism that I need in a world that is actually much more like that of The Bear.

Mid Series: “Dear Mama” (Hulu) “The Glory” (Netflix)

“Dear Mama” is Allen Hughes’ documentary about the life of rapper Tupac Shakur, his brilliant Black Panther activist mother Afeni Shakur, and the people and forces who shaped their short lives as well as the people whose lives they impacted. I hesitate to comment much more because I have only watched two extremely compelling episodes of the five. I really want you Readers to watch it too so we can have a conversation. All I will say is that at this point we see Tupac as an extraordinarily beautiful, talented and charismatic boy with strong opinions and social awareness. Does this change and why–comes in subsequent episodes that I am looking forward to.

I was pulled right away into “The Glory”, a K- drama that draws on that a persistent theme in Korean cinema- the casual cruelty of the rich and the resentment of the poor. Privileged and sadistic teenagers have tortured our protagonist throughout her high school years. Now, twenty years later she is prepared to avenge this abuse. The teens are so thoroughly horrible that we are rooting for her all the way. I enthusiastically relished each of the five episodes I watched. But then I found out that there are around 20 more and that’s only Part 1 !!! Oy. I was up for a satisfactory resolution but not sure I have the patience. Let me Know what you think.

Real Movies

“You Hurt My Feelings” (theaters) I needed something light and amusing but didn’t feel like getting dressed and driving, so I uncharacteristically splurged (20$) and rented the latest Julia Dreyfus comedy. It’s the kind of movie to watch if you are recovering from CoVid–totally unmemorable and undemanding. Upper middle class people living in New York City with small problems. Tobias Menzies plays an inept therapist and his wife Dreyfus is a writer. It’s a little like an episode of Friends. Next time I will go get a good book and donate the $20 to a charity that helps people with real problems.