Movie: 45 Years
This is a quiet, almost claustrophobic drama about a mostly-functional marriage in which one partner finds out the other's long-held secret on the eve of their 45th anniversary. It was very, very well done, captivating and emotionally complex, with no easy answers. I thought the writing, acting, and music were all great, as was the portrayal of the couple's quotidian actions and how they went into creating a life. And I liked the somewhat ambiguous ending much more than the audience around me seemed to, judging by the grumbling as the credits rolled, so your mileage may vary.
Availability: In theaters.
Nominated in:
Actress in a Leading Role: It's impossible to consider this, at this point, without noting that Charlotte Rampling is one of several actors who have recently said things about the Oscars that are, depending on interpretation, oblivious and tone-deaf at best or racist at worst. Her comments made me very unenthusiastic about the idea of her winning this award. That said, trying to look at her performance in a vacuum - it was very, very good. She took a quiet, self-contained role and made it compelling and realistic and fascinating, in a brilliantly understated way.
Thursday, February 4, 2016
Morning Coffee (2/4/16)
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders Intensify Efforts in New Hampshire After Iowa Standoff
One of the reasons I support her: "Nothing is certain in life, but the odds in favor of a reasonably productive Clinton administration are decently high — it just wouldn't necessarily consist of an agenda progressive activists will be especially thrilled with."
And: More Signs Of Fuzzy Math In The Bernie Sanders Health Plan
!!!!!!!! Instagram adds multiple account switching for a lucky few iOS users
This story of what happened to Melissa Harris-Perry in Iowa is horrifying.
Taylor Swift is launching a mobile game and there are zero details on what it actually is but I'm sure I will try it!
Yesterday my friend Carrie discovered that the Trader Joe's site has a what's new page and THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING.
The Useless Agony of Going Offline
This is a sad and thought-provoking story about the treatment of parents with intellectual disabilities.
The Onion, barely: ‘I Think We Still Have A Shot,’ Carly Fiorina Assures Closest Inkjet Printer
One of the reasons I support her: "Nothing is certain in life, but the odds in favor of a reasonably productive Clinton administration are decently high — it just wouldn't necessarily consist of an agenda progressive activists will be especially thrilled with."
And: More Signs Of Fuzzy Math In The Bernie Sanders Health Plan
!!!!!!!! Instagram adds multiple account switching for a lucky few iOS users
This story of what happened to Melissa Harris-Perry in Iowa is horrifying.
Taylor Swift is launching a mobile game and there are zero details on what it actually is but I'm sure I will try it!
Yesterday my friend Carrie discovered that the Trader Joe's site has a what's new page and THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING.
The Useless Agony of Going Offline
This is a sad and thought-provoking story about the treatment of parents with intellectual disabilities.
The Onion, barely: ‘I Think We Still Have A Shot,’ Carly Fiorina Assures Closest Inkjet Printer
Wednesday, February 3, 2016
Morning Coffee (2/3/16)
ICYMI, lots of posts yesterday: an Oscar Project post on Mustang, a book post on Under a Painted Sky, and an update on where things stand with Patreon.
This piece about liberal reactions to Hillary Clinton is so, so satisfying: "YOU DON'T LIKE THAT SHE PLAYS THE GAME? THAT SHE HAS TIES TO THE ESTABLISHMENT? FOR ONE THING, THAT'S HOW SHIT FUCKING GETS DONE. FOR THE OTHER THING, THE BIGGEST THING, A WOMAN DOESN'T GET THE FUCKING OPTION *NOT* TO PLAY THE GAME. NOT NOW. NOT YET."
And along similar lines: "Here is a truth about America: No one likes a woman who yells loudly about revolution."
The Republican Establishment Is Still on the Ropes
Wow: Jeb Bush spent $2,800 for every vote he got in Iowa
Heh: Cruz Victory Gives Hope To Despised People Everywhere
Oops: Santorum Precinct Chair Didn't Even Vote For Him: My Pen Ran Out Of Ink!
300 Union Plumbers Spent The Weekend Installing Water Filters For Flint Residents For Free
This brings up difficult, fascinating questions: Making a Murderer in Uganda
I haven't had time to try American Crime Story yet but I'm intrigued, not least because of Emily Nussbaum's review: "It’s a tasty Proustian cronut that makes you remember the events of not only 1995 but 2015." (I was in middle school when that happened, and it's one of the first real news stories I remember discussing with my peers.)
CHEESE CRIME UPDATE
This piece about liberal reactions to Hillary Clinton is so, so satisfying: "YOU DON'T LIKE THAT SHE PLAYS THE GAME? THAT SHE HAS TIES TO THE ESTABLISHMENT? FOR ONE THING, THAT'S HOW SHIT FUCKING GETS DONE. FOR THE OTHER THING, THE BIGGEST THING, A WOMAN DOESN'T GET THE FUCKING OPTION *NOT* TO PLAY THE GAME. NOT NOW. NOT YET."
And along similar lines: "Here is a truth about America: No one likes a woman who yells loudly about revolution."
The Republican Establishment Is Still on the Ropes
Wow: Jeb Bush spent $2,800 for every vote he got in Iowa
Heh: Cruz Victory Gives Hope To Despised People Everywhere
Oops: Santorum Precinct Chair Didn't Even Vote For Him: My Pen Ran Out Of Ink!
300 Union Plumbers Spent The Weekend Installing Water Filters For Flint Residents For Free
This brings up difficult, fascinating questions: Making a Murderer in Uganda
I haven't had time to try American Crime Story yet but I'm intrigued, not least because of Emily Nussbaum's review: "It’s a tasty Proustian cronut that makes you remember the events of not only 1995 but 2015." (I was in middle school when that happened, and it's one of the first real news stories I remember discussing with my peers.)
CHEESE CRIME UPDATE
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
State of the Patreon update!
It's February - !!! - which means that my first month of Patreon pledges are processing, and I just wanted to take a moment to thank those of you who have signed up. After fees and such, it's at a little over $30 a month, which is more than I really expected, and enough to let me buy a few movie tickets or books to review - which means enough to make a small but real difference to me. That amount means we've passed the first two goals - link posts on weekends, as you've been seeing, and a monthly book review, which will start this month. The next goal, at $50, will get you a second review each month (either another book or a movie or show or something else). Want to jump in and help? Find out how here.
And for current patrons - if you have any questions about how your payment is processing, let me know and I'll see what I can see from my end. And if you're at a level that gets you special content, it's in the works and will be coming your way by the 11th. (Oscar Project + New Hampshire primary = TOO MUCH TO DO.) Thank you again!
And for current patrons - if you have any questions about how your payment is processing, let me know and I'll see what I can see from my end. And if you're at a level that gets you special content, it's in the works and will be coming your way by the 11th. (Oscar Project + New Hampshire primary = TOO MUCH TO DO.) Thank you again!
2016 Books: Under a Painted Sky
Under a Painted Sky by Stacey LeePutnam, 2015
384 p.
Under a Painted Sky, set in the mid-1800s, is a young adult novel about the orphaned American daughter of Chinese immigrants who accidentally kills someone in self-defense and ends up on the Oregon Trail with a teenaged runaway slave, both posing as boys. I loved the concept of this book - who doesn't like a good Oregon Trail story? And I was thrilled that it focused on characters from populations so often left out of popular narratives. Unfortunately, I found it a bit slow going at times, and was frustrated with some things the characters thought/said/did that seemed out of sync with the information they had and the time in which they lived. (More in a spoilery paragraph below!) But overall it was a fun read.
SPOILERS: As I said, the girls are posing as boys, and they end up traveling with a slightly older group of boys who are really quite decent to them, and of course everyone falls in love. The main character definitely has an emotional connection with the boy she has a crush on, and of course she's hurt when he flirts with other girls, but SHE IS TELLING HIM SHE IS A BOY. She seemed to think that he should be . . . open to the idea of being attracted to another boy, maybe, in a matter-of-course way that did not seem historically realistic? It bugged me.
Oscar Project 2016: Mustang
Movie: Mustang
This story of five young sisters in Turkey trying to fight their expected fates of seclusion and arranged marriages is just captivating - enraging and heartwarming and heartbreaking and hopeful all at once. It provides a fascinating look at people caught between progressive Westernization and Islamic fundamentalism, and this all SOUNDS very dour (and parts are very, very sad) but there's a lot of love and humor, too. The five actresses playing the adolescent sisters are superb. Highly recommended.
Availability: In some theaters.
Nominated in:
Foreign Language Film: Yes! It dealt with important issues while also being a compelling piece of fiction, and it was very well-made.
This story of five young sisters in Turkey trying to fight their expected fates of seclusion and arranged marriages is just captivating - enraging and heartwarming and heartbreaking and hopeful all at once. It provides a fascinating look at people caught between progressive Westernization and Islamic fundamentalism, and this all SOUNDS very dour (and parts are very, very sad) but there's a lot of love and humor, too. The five actresses playing the adolescent sisters are superb. Highly recommended.
Availability: In some theaters.
Nominated in:
Foreign Language Film: Yes! It dealt with important issues while also being a compelling piece of fiction, and it was very well-made.
Morning Coffee (2/2/16)
ICYMI: Oscar Project posts on Son of Saul and Anomalisa
So. The Iowa Caucuses happened. We survived. Trump did not win. It's amazing what seems like a victory these days. Here are the results; I'll probably have some analysis in the links tomorrow but keep in mind that the rest of the links below were collected before we knew these results.
In other very important predictive news, the groundhog saw his shadow and Vox is on it. (No, there is seriously some interesting history of the tradition there, though STILL no one has answered my main question, which is how we are presuming to know what a groundhog actually saw. What if he was looking in slightly the wrong direction??)
Meanwhile, in New Hampshire, Bush and Kasich are fighting about robocalling rules.
Speaking of, now that the excitement is all moving here, here are some interesting statistics about the real New Hampshire electorate.
This Year’s Republican Primary Is a Gamble Seven Years in the Making
Ted Cruz’s Iowa Mailers Are More Fraudulent Than Everyone Thinks (And a bit more on that issue from Vox.)
In case this is the endorsement that matters to you: J.J. Abrams is supporting Clinton and, I just noticed, looks like he could be on MSNBC. He has the distinctive glasses/curly hair thing that a lot of them have.
A former staffer has accused Trump’s campaign of sexism. Here’s her legal complaint.
I'm sorry so many of the links were political today; please accept Gillian Anderson playing Fuck Marry Kill about famous aliens as an apology. It is truly delightful.
Kind-Hearted Reality Shows I Would Like To See
So. The Iowa Caucuses happened. We survived. Trump did not win. It's amazing what seems like a victory these days. Here are the results; I'll probably have some analysis in the links tomorrow but keep in mind that the rest of the links below were collected before we knew these results.
In other very important predictive news, the groundhog saw his shadow and Vox is on it. (No, there is seriously some interesting history of the tradition there, though STILL no one has answered my main question, which is how we are presuming to know what a groundhog actually saw. What if he was looking in slightly the wrong direction??)
Meanwhile, in New Hampshire, Bush and Kasich are fighting about robocalling rules.
Speaking of, now that the excitement is all moving here, here are some interesting statistics about the real New Hampshire electorate.
This Year’s Republican Primary Is a Gamble Seven Years in the Making
Ted Cruz’s Iowa Mailers Are More Fraudulent Than Everyone Thinks (And a bit more on that issue from Vox.)
In case this is the endorsement that matters to you: J.J. Abrams is supporting Clinton and, I just noticed, looks like he could be on MSNBC. He has the distinctive glasses/curly hair thing that a lot of them have.
A former staffer has accused Trump’s campaign of sexism. Here’s her legal complaint.
I'm sorry so many of the links were political today; please accept Gillian Anderson playing Fuck Marry Kill about famous aliens as an apology. It is truly delightful.
Kind-Hearted Reality Shows I Would Like To See
Monday, February 1, 2016
Oscar Project 2016: Son of Saul
Movie: Son of Saul
This is a very intense Hungarian Holocaust drama; it shows some pretty graphic concentration camp scenes, with more terrible detail than I'd really seen in movies before (though I am certainly not a Holocaust movie expert). This was all very, very well done. Unfortunately, I had a harder time with the plot - which I will explain with SPOILERS in the next paragraph.
The movie centered on the main character's determination to give a proper Jewish burial to a boy he thought (probably incorrectly) was his son. He consistently puts others in more danger - sometimes directly leading to their deaths - and doesn't seem to understand why people are upset about this, why people dealing with hundreds of bodies every day won't risk their own tenuous safety (and those they care about) to try to bury one child they didn't know. And I get that this is part of the tragedy of the movie, but it honestly just made me frustrated with him. Maybe I was watching it wrong.
Availability: In some theaters.
Nominated in:
Foreign Language Film: I have mixed feelings here - as I said, the portrayal of the horrors of the Holocaust was very good and very important, so from that angle I think this deserves recognition. But the specific plot just didn't work for me, and I don't think it was the best movie in this category.
This is a very intense Hungarian Holocaust drama; it shows some pretty graphic concentration camp scenes, with more terrible detail than I'd really seen in movies before (though I am certainly not a Holocaust movie expert). This was all very, very well done. Unfortunately, I had a harder time with the plot - which I will explain with SPOILERS in the next paragraph.
The movie centered on the main character's determination to give a proper Jewish burial to a boy he thought (probably incorrectly) was his son. He consistently puts others in more danger - sometimes directly leading to their deaths - and doesn't seem to understand why people are upset about this, why people dealing with hundreds of bodies every day won't risk their own tenuous safety (and those they care about) to try to bury one child they didn't know. And I get that this is part of the tragedy of the movie, but it honestly just made me frustrated with him. Maybe I was watching it wrong.
Availability: In some theaters.
Nominated in:
Foreign Language Film: I have mixed feelings here - as I said, the portrayal of the horrors of the Holocaust was very good and very important, so from that angle I think this deserves recognition. But the specific plot just didn't work for me, and I don't think it was the best movie in this category.
Oscar Project 2016: Anomalisa
Movie: Anomalisa
I had no idea what to expect from this one - an R-rated animated feature?? - but I wound up really liking it. The animation itself was the first thing that impressed me - the rendering of textiles, especially, was just amazing. The writing was clever and funny and touching and weird, and the plot and world-building just became more and more complex and thought-provoking as the movie went on. The voice actors were good, and David Thewlis especially was perfect for the role. Just a satisfying viewing experience all around.
Also, when Dan Harmon's name came onscreen in the end credits, everyone GASPED.
Availability: In some theaters.
Nominated in:
Animated Feature Film: Sure. Really impressive art, good writing, interesting philosophical points.
I had no idea what to expect from this one - an R-rated animated feature?? - but I wound up really liking it. The animation itself was the first thing that impressed me - the rendering of textiles, especially, was just amazing. The writing was clever and funny and touching and weird, and the plot and world-building just became more and more complex and thought-provoking as the movie went on. The voice actors were good, and David Thewlis especially was perfect for the role. Just a satisfying viewing experience all around.
Also, when Dan Harmon's name came onscreen in the end credits, everyone GASPED.
Availability: In some theaters.
Nominated in:
Animated Feature Film: Sure. Really impressive art, good writing, interesting philosophical points.
Morning Coffee (2/1/16)
It's February! It's Caucus Day! This year is going very quickly so far!
Me elsewhere: TV news for the week; I livetweeted Grease Live and one of my tweets made it into this Mashable story.
Very well-written and important: If You’re Liberal and You Think Hillary Clinton Is Corrupt and Untrustworthy, You’re Rewarding 25 Years of GOP Smears
This is quite the headline, but I honestly think Sanders's lack of a real foreign policy team is concerning: Sanders military adviser briefed him once
The comparisons to GamerGate are very apt: The Bernie Bros Are A Problem And The Sanders Campaign Is Trying To Stop Them
How can there have been no one to say "Hey, this isn't legal"??? It boggles the mind. ‘Carmen Sandiego’ Singer-Songwriter Issues Cease and Desist Demand to Rand Paul Campaign
GOOD NEWS: Top of the Lake season two is filming soon!
If you, like me, were wondering why everyone was talking about a John Scott who was not the Fringe character yesterday, read this. I barely knew who he was before this week and I teared up a little anyway.
The Last Days of Target is a fascinating read about what happened with Target in Canada, and of course a lot of it came down to their PIM. Of course it did.
This is a difficult but important look at the Baby Doe case in Boston and the history of child abuse.
I will admit that part of me is tempted, but the science cited mostly made me realize I should make an effort to sleep more.
The Birth of Venus: Pulling Yourself Out Of The Sea By Your Own Bootstraps
Me elsewhere: TV news for the week; I livetweeted Grease Live and one of my tweets made it into this Mashable story.
Very well-written and important: If You’re Liberal and You Think Hillary Clinton Is Corrupt and Untrustworthy, You’re Rewarding 25 Years of GOP Smears
This is quite the headline, but I honestly think Sanders's lack of a real foreign policy team is concerning: Sanders military adviser briefed him once
The comparisons to GamerGate are very apt: The Bernie Bros Are A Problem And The Sanders Campaign Is Trying To Stop Them
How can there have been no one to say "Hey, this isn't legal"??? It boggles the mind. ‘Carmen Sandiego’ Singer-Songwriter Issues Cease and Desist Demand to Rand Paul Campaign
GOOD NEWS: Top of the Lake season two is filming soon!
If you, like me, were wondering why everyone was talking about a John Scott who was not the Fringe character yesterday, read this. I barely knew who he was before this week and I teared up a little anyway.
The Last Days of Target is a fascinating read about what happened with Target in Canada, and of course a lot of it came down to their PIM. Of course it did.
This is a difficult but important look at the Baby Doe case in Boston and the history of child abuse.
I will admit that part of me is tempted, but the science cited mostly made me realize I should make an effort to sleep more.
The Birth of Venus: Pulling Yourself Out Of The Sea By Your Own Bootstraps
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