RAWR

I got to pet a retired guide dog, today. So there’s a firm tick in the plus column.

I hope your day is also delightful.

The thing I am definitely seeing this weekend is Tag.

I may also get to Hotel ArtemisIncredibles 2Won’t You Be My Neighbor, and/or Hearts Beat Loud. I may also do a second go-round of Ocean’s 8.

Here are a few streaming recommendations, in case you’d rather stay in.

Netflix

Thor: Ragnarok is on Netflix streaming, if you haven’t seen it. Or indeed, if you have. It is a lot of fun. Taika Waititi is a national treasure. Of New Zealand. Not here. Maybe an international treasure. An Earth treasure? We need a phrase for this in times of increasing globalization.

If you want something kid-friendly, the goofy comedy Cats & Dogs may fit the bill. Talking animals. An international secret dog organization. Jeff Goldblum as the dad/scientist. It’s cheesy but fun.

And season 2 of Queer Eye. I will be watching all of it very soon.

Hulu

If you’ve never seen it, you may want to check out the epic Japanese animation film engaging with nuclear fear, Akira. They have both subtitled and English dubbed versions.

If that is not your speed, you may want to check out the crime classic The Untouchables (1987) or the slightly creepy kids movie Nanny McPhee.

Prime

Amazon has Lady Bird, a film that lived up to its substantial hype, as well as the comedic take on the 90s tv series, Baywatch the movie. The former is as good as everyone said it was. The latter was better than it had any earthly right to be.

For something a little different, consider the romance film Hello, My Name is Doris. I have mixed feelings about this movie, but it’s well-done and has an interesting take on the romance genre tropes. And Sally Field is freaking adorable in it.

For something more kid-friendly, there are some classic 80s movies aimed at young people on Amazon right now. There’ The Karate Kid and Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.

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That’s it for this week’s roundup, folks. See you on the flip-side.

We’re here, We’re queer…And we’re on TV

Hey all.

Let’s do some streaming recs. Summer is here. Hot weather is as good for lazing around in the shade as it is for running about. If you’re lazing by a device with streaming, this weekend, consider some of these LGBT options:

Netflix

– Paris is Burning: An amazing documentary about the drag scene in Harlem in the 80s

– Carol: Todd Haynes’ beautiful and moving drama about a married woman in the 50s coming to terms with her sexuality.

Milk: Bio-pic about gay civil rights figure Harvey Milk. Moving and inspiring.

-This Filthy World: John Waters’ speaking about his life, his career and his opinions on anything.

Hulu

-Tom Of Finland: Far-ranging bio-pic about artist Touko Laaksonen. I reviewed it here.

-I Am Divine: A documentary about John Water’s muse, fabulous Baltimore drag queen, actress and singer, Divine.

Prime

-Moonlight: Stunning drama about a gay man growing up in a harsh Miami neighborhood.

-Queer As Folk: Prime streaming includes the original British series, which, as I recall, was a bit soap-opera-y for my tastes, but well acted, etc.

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For the record, both Netflix and Hulu have LGBT sections under genre. On Amazon, you have to search, but you can search ‘LGBT’ and it comes up with quite a list. Also – all three platforms have many more queer-focused movies & shows than I’ve mentioned, here. I haven’t seen as many as I feel I should.

I don’t always mention this, but if you’re an Apple-ite, the itunes store has a bunch of queer-focused movies on sale this month for under $10. If you’re not sure what to check out, try:

-But I’m A Cheerleader: An essential comedy about young love at an absurd over-the-top orientation-change center. Hilarious and sweet.

-Priscilla, Queen of the Desert: Drag queens, a bus and just thousands of miles of Australian bush. Drama and hijinks by turns. An absolute classic.

-The Skeleton Twins: A brother and sister who haven’t seen each other for ages come back together after a suicide attempt and try to mend their lives together.

-Kill Your Darlings: Drama based on real events in the life of poet Allen Ginsburg. Daniel Radcliffe (the guy who played Harry Potter) plays Ginsburg and he’s amazing in the role.

-Grandma: Lily Tomlin stars as a lesbian grandmother in this dramedy about family and family planning. Funny and sweet.

I am in great danger of spending major $$ in this sale. JOIN ME IN PERIL! AHAHAHHAHA.

 

Pride and Prostration

The spring semester is well and truly over, here. And after it finished my department was finishing up a huge and time-sensitive job, and then I had to move out of my office, because basically my entire life is being diverted for construction this summer.

I am starting to recover from the exhaustion and just general lack-of-fucks-given that the rush times at work give me.

And it is summer! Hurrah! Happy Pride to everyone. I plan to be queering it up all over the place and have, in fact, been invited to march in Boston’s parade, which is awesome.

For a while now, I’ve wanted to talk to y’all about some films that are worth watching but which aren’t available (as far as I can tell) digitally streaming at all. Since it is pride, I’m going to start, today, with 1995’s Jeffrey.

The movie was derived from a play by Paul Rudnick that began in off-Broadway theaters in the early nineties. Rudnick also wrote the screenplay. Directed by Christopher Ashley (who primarily directs live theater) the film takes good advantage of the shift in media while still being a relatively stage-y piece.

The title character spends a lot of the movie speaking directly to the audience. His fantasies come to life on the screen. The film is hilarious and moving and romantic in spite of its central theme of a gay man in New York coming to grips with the AIDS crisis in his own, slow and bullheaded way.

Filled with a sense of magical realism, the film features Patrick Stewart as a well-to-do interior decorator living with a Broadway dancer and also features cameos by Nathan Lane and Sigourney Weaver.

You will laugh, you will cry, and you will be baffled by the repeated appearances of Mother Theresa (not the real Mother Theresa, but still).

This was the first work about the AIDS crisis with which I became deeply familiar, having watched it about a jillion times in my twenties (I had it on VHS #pretentiousOld). Steven Weber (or ‘That guy from Wings‘, as I used to know him) is fantastic in the title role and Michael Weiss is magnetic as his love interest.

This film is well worth getting your paws on, if you can. May I suggest you see if it’s available at your local library? And if it isn’t, perhaps you could buy a DVD and donate to them after you’ve watched it. Adding some gay culture to the public archive is, I think, a great way to celebrate pride.

 

Dubious classics

Hey all.

I have taken a few days off and have spent part of them watching several Bond films in chronological order.

I do not, for the record, recommend this. At least for the first several, it gets kind of grim. Like – you get through the extensive, inexplicable, grimy underwater fight scenes of Thunderball and then you make it to You Only Live Twice.

I spent the entirety of the latter saying to myself, ‘Wow. This is about as racist as it gets….oops. I was wrong, this is about as racist as it gets.’ The recursion lasted through the majority of the film. I had only seen a few of the early Bond films before. To be fair, I also spent most of Thunderball and You Only Live Twice thinking ‘Hey, I would’ve gotten a lot more out of Austin Powers if I had seen these earlier in life.’

Anyhow.

This weekend, I saw the film Book Club. It was a friend’s pick – not one I would’ve seen on my own. I’m glad I did, though. It wasn’t really heavyweight but it was enjoyable. Plenty to laugh at and a stellar cast, with genuinely sweet moments, too.

I will say (with a hint of shame) that you’re likely to get a bit more out of it if you’ve read the book Fifty Shades of Grey. Which I have. My friend had not, though, and she still enjoyed it.

It’s sweet and romantic and has many wonderful female characters with very different lifestyles and agendas. Probably kind of syrupy for some folks’ taste, but I love schmaltz.

Not a must-see in the theater, but worth a watch, IMO.

I really should watch something other than more Bond films, this evening, but honestly, I’m only halfway through Diamonds are Forever and I do kind of want to know what the effing deal is with Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd.

Friday Streaming Rec’s

The weather has finally gotten warm in the greater Boston area, and so I should spend part of the weekend outside (and may well do so).

I’m also likely to see RBG. I may also see Disobedience, Overboard and, of course, I will be seeing Avengers: Infinity War at least one more time.

It’s supposed to rain here on Sunday. Just in case that’s also true for you, here are my streaming recommendations! I’ve kind of lost track of what I’ve recommended in the past, but I’m going to try not to do repeats.

Netflix

Netflix has 2007’s Nancy Drew. The film does a great job of transplanting an old fashioned character to a modern setting without losing what makes her quintessentially her.

Rated PG, this one is fine for kids, yet still fun for adults. Liking the old books may be a bonus, but I don’t think it’s a prerequisite for enjoyment.

If you’re looking for something harder-hitting, Netflix currently has Milk, the biopic about gay rights activist Harvey Milk. If you’re just looking for something less wholesome, it has vampire flick The Lost Boys.

Also, I, personally, will be checking out John Mulaney’s new stand-up special Kid  Gorgeous that just recently went up.

Hulu

Hulu has the James Bond movies on streaming, again. If you’re not sure which ones to watch, I’m fond of The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker. The former because it’s good and the latter because it definitely is not.

I also want to put in a good word for the animated Doctor Strange film that is available there. It’s his origin story and while it doesn’t blow the world away in any direction, it’s a much better intro to the character as the comics present him than the live action movie was.

If you’re looking for something scarier, Hulu now has Nightmare on Elm Street 1 through 7 streaming. I have, as yet, only seen the first three. Each has their strengths, though 2 is my least favorite. I think three is the strongest on emotional resonance but one is a classic for the ages.

Prime

Speaking of horror classics, Amazon has the first Friday the 13th movie. This series of slasher flicks established what a lot of folks think of as laws of the horror genre. And while the beginning of the series lacks polish, it definitely has a flair all its own.

For something more fun, check out Leap Of Faith

I believe my love of Steve Martin is well-established. He’s likable even when playing a cynical, exploitative itinerant preacher.

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That is it from me this week, folks. Happy viewing!

Horror for Breakfast

Saturday morning, I got to see A Quiet Place which I’ve been looking forward to for months, because it looked like an interesting concept for a horror film.

It was amazing. I don’t think I’ve had a movie I loved so much and which provided as much emotional resonance and as much fright with so little gore since I saw the 70s Invasion of the Body Snatchers (a film which, like this one, I deeply adore).

The basic premise of A Quiet Place is that the monsters that have invaded earth have amazing hearing and if you make sounds they will find and kill you.

What sold it for me wasn’t that premise, though, it was the deep emotional life of the family the film centers on. They go through some very human, normal things in this context and the sheer normalcy of the emotions — the love, the communication and lack therof, the teenager who acts out — throws the horror of their situation into a sharp, close focus.

The film, at its core, is about family and what that means and who does what and who gets to make those choices and why they make them. It’s also about survivor’s guilt and how that plays into one’s mental state.

The result is a deeply moving and human story that I found fulfilling and cathartic — even heartwarming, in spite of the horror.

Another aspect of the story I loved was the way disability played into the plot and the individual character arcs. One of the family members is deaf. This provides the family with a unique advantage in their particular situation (they all spoke sign language before the crisis began, making their lives easier after) and also provides that particular character with a unique challenge (how can you be certain you’re not making noise if you can’t hear noise?) The disability is not particularly highlighted or harped upon. It’s just a natural part of the character – one of the many challenges she’s facing in the post-apocalypse where she finds herself.

The story is compelling, it’s captivating. The characters are relateable and very human. The threats and peril are sold very well and keeps the movie in edge-of-your-seat territory.

Despite its being a horror film, A Quiet Place spares us a lot of blood and gore, instead manipulating our feelings by making us care, deeply, about its characters and their fates. I ran quite the gamut of emotions in the watching of it. There are stretches of relief and moments of sadness and humor to temper the fear.

Because of this, it might be a horror film which a non-horror-fan could watch, though there are also genuinely scary bits.

Do not freaking bring crunchy snacks into this movie, if you see it in the theater. You will be sad as you try to suck on them so you can chew them without disturbing anyone. I’ve never been in a film where silence was cleaved to more closely by the audience.

The film makes excellent use of silence vs sound. You pay attention to the ambient noises and when the music comes in, you notice.

All the technical elements come together to build something moving, affecting and powerful. This film is a must-see for anyone who likes horror films. I may go again, myself.

T’is the day of fries.

Everyone can have some fries. Delicious fries. Or something.

I’ve spent a bunch of recent weeks inundating a friend with random fanfics then texting her to get her reactions like a creepy fanfic stalker.

Also: knitting.

THIS WEEKEND, I’m planning on seeing A Quiet Place and Isle of Dogs, and possibly also RampageLove, SimonBlockers, and/or The Death of Stalin.

I have done four or five movies in a weekend before, but not usually when I have other stuff to do, and I do, but we shall see. I’m betting on two.

If you’re hanging out this weekend, here are some recs for streaming!

Netflix

Flix has Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, a film that attempts to grasp the age of radio scifi. Drenched, as it is, in cinematography reminiscent of film classics from Metropolis to noir detective fiction, it’s a lot more about style than about substance, but I think it’s fun.

Hulu

Hulu has one of my favorite comedies, Steve Martin’s modernization of Cyrano De BergeracRoxanne.

I like it partially because the love interest is an astronomer and I am a giant space nerd and partially because of my deep and lengthy love affair with Martin’s work. It has one of the best scenes of someone standing up to a bully of all time and the characters are fun and goofy while still feeling real enough to bring the emotions home.

And, unlike the original play (spoiler!), it has a happy ending.

Prime

Amazon has oscar-winning drama Moonlight, which if you haven’t seen, you really should. It’s fantastic and so well worth watching.

Red

Guess who broke down and subscribed to an additional streaming service? This guy! I mostly did it because I was sick of being exposed to ads when I am on an endless string of watching late night comedians or youtube gamers, but they have other content, too.

One of the things streaming on youtube currently, is Kedi, a critically acclaimed documentary about cats in Istanbul.

I haven’t gotten a chance to really browse their stuff, yet, so perhaps I’ll have more to say about their streaming stuff next week!

Kids

Netflix has The Iron Giant, which is gorgeous and moving.

Hulu has The Emperor’s New Groove – not Disney’s most classic film, but a lot of fun. And, if you’re looking for something shorter (or longer, if you consider the whole show together) you might try Gravity Falls, a cartoon about siblings in a town full of spooky and wacky happenings for the summer.

Prime has animated classic The Last Unicorn, which probably everyone should see or read at least once.

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That’s it from me for this week. Regardless of whether I spend the whole weekend in a dark theater or running around and actually getting life stuff done, I hope you’ll join me again next week!

Friday streaming recs!

Hey hey hey! Happy Friday, folks. We’re getting some relatively nice days after a run of Weather(tm).  And there is a lot to look forward to media-wise, this weekend.

The new season of Jessica Jones is out on Netflix. I am planning on seeing A Wrinkle In Time in theaters. (I read that book roughly one hundred billion times as a kid, along with any of Madeline L’Engle’s I could get my grubby kid-hands on.) In general we’re creeping up on a bunch of shows starting up again and the oscar nominees are finally loosening their grip on theaters — making way for some big, explosion-based fun.

Here’s some fun stuff that’s streaming this week:

Netflix

Our old flix friend has Moon. A polished idea scifi film that I was impressed by. Sam Rockwell does a fabulous job playing the lone technician working for corporations on the moon. The film addresses some traditional scifi questions as well as digging into potential endgames for a mechanized future.

Having come out in 2009, I feel as though it was at the forefront of the wave of big-budget high-concept scifi which we (well, definitely I) have been enjoying for the past several years.

A warning – certified horrible human Kevin Spacey voices an AI in the film. Which is a fucking shame. Because it’s a really good movie.

Hulu

Hulu has the delightful Tom of Finland biopic that I enjoyed so much towards the end of last year.

Prime

Amazon has Thanks For Sharing — a film I have thrust upon many friends through the years since I’ve seen it. Brought to you by part of the creative team behind acclaimed indie film The Kids Are Alright, Sharing stars Mark Ruffalo as an addict in a twelve-step program. The story is a complex, but sympathetic look at twelve-step programs, how they work for folks and their limitations.

Kids

Netflix has made-for-tv movie High School Musical and its sequel, which are cute and upbeat.

Prime has 2005 scifi adventure Zathura.

Hulu has last year’s live-action Power Rangers, which was a pretty fun (and diversely-casted) kid-aimed action film.

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That’s all for this week! I wish you peace and pizza.

Friday streaming (and pouring) recs

It is a soggy, drenched evening here on the East coast of the U.S. It’s the kind of night that makes me bitter that “it was a dark and stormy night” is the go-to example of triteness in writing, because if you’ve been out on a dark and stormy night, you know it’s spooky and sometimes also miserable. To be barely able to see and have wind and rain whipping around your head and making creepy noises – you can see why people go there to evoke mood.

This weekend, films I may see in the theater include Red SparrowPhantom Thread, and Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story.

Here are some streaming recs for those who are (wisely, if you’re anywhere near here) staying in, tonight:

Netflix

New streaming on netflix is Wind River, a mystery thriller starring Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen. I haven’t seen this one – it was on my list and got away from me, as movies sometimes do, but the critics liked it quite a bit. I may watch it myself, this weekend.

It also has one of my cheesetastic favorites, the 2001 Tomb Raider starring Angelina Jolie.

This is not a good movie, per se, but I like it a lot. And Jolie does a bunch of her own stunts, which is impressive. Just…don’t look at the plot too much. Or at all, if you can help it.

Hulu

First let me say that I finally got around to watching the first season of Hulu’s Runaways, and it was pretty good. It might actually be more enjoyable if you’ve never read the comics and don’t know which cards are being left out of the deck, but I’ve read them and still enjoyed it.

They also have the movie Mermaids (1990). Cher and Winona Ryder star (along with an itty bitty baby Christina Ricci) in a film about mothers, daughters and romantic relationships. It has a bit of funny and a bit of moving and all in all is kind of sweet.

Prime

Prime has what I can only describe as a cancer comedy: 50/50.

It’s a buddy comedy based on the real life experiences of writer Will Reiser. It runs the gamut of emotions and feels very real and visceral in places while still being overall pretty funny.

Kids

Not movies, but Hulu has the first three seasons of Steven Universe, now, which I adore. And they also have the classic Pinky and the Brain and the series off of which it spun, Animaniacs.

Netflix has the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in its current kid movie selection.

That’s it for today. See you next week. Stay dry!

DID YA MISS ME?

Hey all! I’ve been out of commission for a while because of family visit, depression, depression, work crunch time, depression and most recently a wicked cold that had me out of work for a few days and still has me sleeping almost as soon as I get home from anywhere.

More on all that later, though. This is our typical Friday post.

THIS WEEKEND, I will be seeing Black Panther (for the third time), and, if my cold allows me time and energy, also Annihilation and possibly also Phantom Thread, Game Night, some of the Oscar-nominated short films, and/or one of the classic films in the Sidney Poitier repertory series going on at my local theater (though most of that is double features and honestly ???? I might fall asleep. Because of the cold, not the content, obviously).

Some streaming recommendations for y’all:

Netflix

Netflix is pounding harder and harder on its original shows, and I do see why, but I came to you for movies, netflix! Please don’t forget!

Epic BBC miniseries North & South is back in rotation. If you’re a fan of costume drama or Richard Armitage looking all brooding and sexy, this is a great watch. It also has some hot takes on the industrialization of Britain and the ways inequality interacts with that in the circle of capitalism’s cause and effect. Based on the novel by Elizabeth Gaskell.

Actual screenshot of Richard Armitage Brooding like a pro in period dress.

For a bit more fun and a bit less realness, both Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 and Ocean’s Eleven (2001) are up right now.

Hulu

I haven’t seen it in a while, but I do remember being *ahem* strongly encouraged to watch romance The Cutting Edge by a college girlfriend and enjoying it a lot more than I expected to.

Hulu also has Frank an indie about the intersection of mental illness, exploitation and art which has a surreality that turns on a knife edge from whimsy to something a lot more difficult. It’s very well done and a fascinating watch, but not an easy one. It stars young Magneto, General Hux, and Maggie Gyllenhaal as bitter, artistic-purist queen of my fucking heart.

Prime

Amazon has one of my favorite films of last year, Logan Lucky. It’s a heist film and a justice film and a romp and emotional and I have been known to refer to it as a lost episode of Leverage.

They also have the musical film of Little Shop Of Horrors (1986), which had spot-on delightful casting and was generally well done if you can ignore the mangling of the Broadway show’s ending to something more sappy-Hollywood. It’s funny, creepy and catchy as hell.

* * *

There we go. I’m not gonna pick out any kid-specific recs tonight because I’m honestly kind of amazed that I’m still awake.

More (hopefully lots) in the coming week.

It’s good to be back, kids and kittens.