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INCOMPLETENESS encourages introspection and self-humor < Back INCOMPLETENESS encourages introspection and self-humor 355 Productions, 2023 45 minutes Creator: David Ash Reading Time: 7 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, David Ash INCOMPLETENESS Warmth and Wonder (KYIMEPVPAOSPKG1R) 00:00 / 07:59 Ginger Thought-provoking movies and TV shows Honeybush Nonfamily dramas with strong adult and/or socioeconomic themes Reba Chaisson 2024-02-29 Note: This series contains strong content and sensitive subject matter. INCOMPLETENESS is a hilarious, though not comedic series, that centers Alex, a talented 30-something video editor recently diagnosed with a serious illness. Typically, shows focusing on a main character who is sick spend a lot of time in medical settings, with the person confined to a hospital bed, undergoing procedures, and interacting with staff who, sadly, understand the patient’s fate. But in INCOMPLETENESS , Alex’s illness is a backstory that gives us context for interpreting the conversations and behaviors of the characters in the show. Alex’s diagnosis envelops the show in a seemingly quiet backdrop, emanating a sense that the characters exist rather than exuberantly live their lives. It is as if they have all been gut-punched and are trying to figure out how to breathe again. Their process leads to numerous but subtle moments of fall-on-the-floor hilarity that both forces us to sit in the silence of their lives and question the meaning of our own. Exemplary of these funny but introspective moments is the way Alex, played by Matt Bailey ( Set It Up , The Path ), handles news of a promotion at work. Many of us typically respond to such announcements like Taylor Swift winning her fourth Grammy for Album of the Year - with wide-eyed excitement, a mouth drop, and tears of joy. Alex’s response is slow, tame, and subdued. After a time, he shows a controlled smile and simultaneously thanks his boss, expressing his appreciation. He then promptly returns to his office and continues his work as if it’s just another day, leaving us laughing and wondering, “What? Really?” This scene, though, makes us pause and consider how we have been socialized to manage our emotions. It makes us realize there are situations where we don’t want to display exuberance, such as when being applauded after a piano recital. It makes us realize there are occasions where we don’t want to cry, such as when a friend hurts our feelings, or a boss humiliates us. In Alex’s case, his response to his promotion makes us question whether it is something he values at this point in his life. Alex’s best friend is Paul, played by Clarence Wethern ( Twin Cities , Theater People ). The two friends collaborate on a movie, with Alex as the director/editor and Paul as the writer. Alex is never satisfied with the drafts of Paul’s script because he feels they lack conflict. His level of frustration on this issue is high, as evidenced by the script edits he sends to Paul in all caps and the frequent arguing between the two on set. For Alex, it is as if his life depends on this essential story element. His frustration with this issue is palpable and beckons us to ponder the function of conflict in our lives. To what degree, for example, does being in conflict with ourselves and/or others make us feel alive? INCOMPLETENESS is a slow burn that stirs my memory of the late 1980s series, Thirtysomething , with Ken Olin, Timothy Busfield, and Patricia Wettig. The Emmy-winning show is about a group of 30-something year-old friends experiencing life in different ways. Some are married with children, two are business partners, one is a professor, and another a local politician. The dialog on the show is witty and occasionally intense, mirroring what happens in close relationships, thus making the characters relatable for the audience within their age demographic during their era. Like Thirtysomething , the characters in INCOMPLETENESS are similar in age, socioeconomic status, and wit. There is little overlap in their relationships, however. Alex and Paul, for example, are close friends, but there is no on-screen connection between Alex’s wife Jodi, played by Bethany Ford, and Paul. Similarly, Paul’s girlfriend, Kayla, has not met anyone in his life. And outside of shooting their film, Alex and Paul are not shown together socially. Also central to INCOMPLETENESS are Chelsea (Christine Weber) and Michael (Juan Rivera Lebron), the two lead actors in Alex and Paul’s movie. Other than their limited interactions with Alex and Paul on set, Chelsea and Michael have no relationship with any of the other characters in the series. Thus, unlike Thirtysomething , INCOMPLETENESS presents the three couples as having detached existences, making their lives, to this point in the series, feel siloed. The characters in INCOMPLETENESS seamlessly infuse advanced jargon and abstract thought into their everyday conversations. I love that director David Ash does not shy away from this, given the characters’ backgrounds. Both Alex and Paul are college-educated, and in addition to being a writer, Paul is a gifted STEM professional. We observe one of their abstract exchanges when Alex approaches Paul in a rustic, quiet, and sparsely populated coffee shop with ideas (or demands) about revising his script — again . Paul veers into a philosophical diatribe about how we lack true free will and that all of life’s outcomes are predetermined. With a deadpan look, Alex patiently listens but nonchalantly disagrees, reiterates the changes he wants to the script, and leaves. The hilarious moment is one of many throughout the series, which makes us curious to know what situation will arise next. The scenes in the show are not interconnected but layered in like a puzzle for the audience to see through to a complete story. In the meantime, what we experience from INCOMPLETENESS , is something moving, challenging, and desperate that stems from each of the characters, who all seem to want something other than what they have. Ash makes use of indoor silence and natural outdoor sounds in the series. Wind and rustling leaves serve as background music for outdoor scenes, and sunshine, trees, and bodies of water provide a landscape that combined seem to breathe fresh air into the show’s space. The series adopts filming techniques similar to Netflix’s 2023 movie, Missing , with Tim Griffin, Nia Long, and Storm Reid. It is about an 18-year-old, played by Storm Reid, who uses technology to track down the whereabouts of her missing mother. Much of the movie presents a frontal view of Reid’s character, panicked and frantically typing away on her computer, with occasional shots of her manipulations on the computer screen. NCOMPLETENESS does the same with Alex, as he occasionally uses his computer to film himself talking and then subsequently edits his recordings. It presents the same focal points with Paul writing and revising the script for their movie, all while developing a program for what he believes to be a cure for human disease, “so not one of us ever has to die.” I like the originality of this series. It slowly peels back the layers of the characters to reveal their imperfections and eccentricities, making them realistic representations of ourselves complete with our doubts, fears, and even regrets. It forces us to rest in the characters’ exchanges, facial expressions, and body language – spending time with them to learn about ourselves through them. What we learn is that we carry some level of unhappiness and dissatisfaction within us, making us incomplete. This leaves us with the lingering question: What are we going to do about it, particularly since our time is not guaranteed? INCOMPLETENESS is currently being shopped to streaming services. To receive updates on its availability, please inquire on the show’s website at www.incompletenesstheseries.com . Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Pose highlights the gay and trans community comprising the ballroom culture in 1980s New York. < Back Pose highlights the gay and trans community comprising the ballroom culture in 1980s New York. Color Force, 2018-21 59 minutes Creator: Steven Canals, Brad Falchuk, and Ryan Murphy Reading Time: 3 minutes 📷 : Pixabay Pose Fearless (MKJOZQUC9NFWSH3I) 00:00 / 04:09 Dandelion Movies and TV shows with heavy subjects Honeybush Nonfamily dramas with strong adult and/or socioeconomic themes Chris Chaisson 2021-10-15 Pose , created by Ryan Murphy ( Glee , American Horror Story ), highlights the gay and trans community comprising the ballroom culture in 1980s New York. The series centers particularly around Blanca, a Trans woman who sets out to start her own house after being diagnosed with HIV. Blanca takes in several youngsters to mentor, including Damon, Lil Papi, Ricky, and Angel. Their performing arts skills are varied, but Blanca strives to instill them all with confidence, discipline and most importantly, self‑esteem. The most striking aspect of Pose is how it highlights the multitude of angles from which the Black Trans community receives vitriol. In one particular episode, Blanca tries to get served at a predominantly White gay bar. She is not only asked to leave but on one occasion is physically removed and arrested. This and other storylines expose the glaring truth that many communities are simultaneously oppressed and oppressive. In addition to shining a spotlight on institutional injustice, Pose provides a glimpse into the strife surrounding the characters’ personal relationships. Pray Tell, the regular emcee for the nightly ball competitions, struggles through hospital visits one after another in support of his boyfriend, who has contracted AIDS. Angel meets a married Wall Street exec (Evan Peters) and mulls over how she feels being his secret mistress. Candy debates getting genital reconstructive surgery and how her longtime partner will view her new anatomy. Though the particulars of their issues seem specific to the Trans community, their interpersonal relationships and the emotions involved remain universal. As one might expect, a series about ballroom culture includes plenty of ballroom scenes. Normally the more joyous scenes in the show, the members of the various houses walk the floor in their outfits as music blares over the sound system. Pray Tell comments on their getup before turning it over to the five judges, who each put up a number from one to ten. At the end of the night, grand prize and runner-up trophies are awarded. While the vibes are celebratory, the commentary between competitors can be blunt and deep-cutting, with Pray Tell roasting ensembles that are not on point. The culture amongst the ball participants is one of no-holds-barred criticism, making the dialogue harsh and the insults frequent. The subtext of these biting exchanges is that the members must have thick skin due to the flagrant disrespect and threats they face when they leave the community. While the conflict is legitimate, there is an element of tough love to how the ball members speak to one another. The lynchpin of the show is without a doubt Blanca, who exhibits leadership and strong decision-making. From the Bronx, she embodies toughness and displays the ability to be confrontational. The way she handles everything thrown her way is reminiscent of a high school principal, such as Principal Harper (Chi McBride) in Boston Public . Having been shunned by her family, who insists on calling her by her masculine birth name, Blanca strives to teach all her house members how to stand on their own two feet as she has learned to do. Her major character flaw of stubbornness drives much of the show’s conflict but makes her as relatable to the audience as her strengths. Overall, Pose grants viewers the opportunity to see Trans characters as more than victims or fleeting storylines, but rather three-dimensional characters who have goals, strengths, weaknesses and most of all, gumption. Their struggles provide insight to those not frequently exposed to members of the trans community, and the ways they handle those struggles allows the audience to feel an emotion necessary for all to possess -- empathy. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Beef illustrates the snowball effect of insecurity and stubbornness < Back Beef illustrates the snowball effect of insecurity and stubbornness A24, 2023- 30 minutes Creator: Lee Sung Jin Reading Time: 5 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Netflix Beef Heist (BRYFFHN6ZQAN9Q4K) 00:00 / 04:50 Chamomile Family dramas White Movies and TV shows that make you laugh, or involve urgency, like chase scenes or other physical activity Chris Chaisson 2023-04-18 “It is selfish for broken people to spread their…brokenness.” Few experiences encapsulate displaced anger as clearly as road rage incidents. Whether they act on it or not, most people see a road rage incident in the news and can recall being that infuriated. I’ve always perceived this anger as being confined to that specific moment. Driving a vehicle is the most dangerous activity most of us ever do, and a close call due to someone’s negligence can bring that to the forefront of our minds. As I get older, I realize that the close call itself is likely the straw that broke the camel’s back. Sometimes, frustration from our personal lives boils over, and we use a stranger who (in theory) we will never see again as the outlet. Cooler heads usually prevail, but every now and then pettiness wins. Danny (Steven Yeun, Blue Bayou ) and Amy (Ali Wong, Big Mouth ) in the new Netflix series Beef show us the catastrophic results of such an instance. Beef ’s inciting incident, a close call in a parking lot, serves as a gravitational pull into a game of one-upmanship for the two protagonists. After unsuccessfully attempting to return supplies to a department store, Danny nearly hits Amy’s SUV as he reverses out of his parking spot. She honks and flips him the bird before heading off. It is clearly the wrong day for Danny, who pursues her for no apparent reason other than sheer frustration. After a dangerous back-and-forth of trying to run each other off the road, they go their separate ways without having caught a glimpse of each other. Unbeknownst to either of them, the incident was caught on tape and goes viral. What ensues is a series of escalating pranks and sabotage attempts between the two that begin to involve loved ones, culminating in darker and darker consequences. Danny and Amy play off each other perfectly, as they do not appear to have anything in common. Amy is a wealthy business owner in Calabasas with her own family, on the precipice of a deal that will make her even richer. Danny is a single, down-on-his-luck contractor taking care of his aimless younger brother Paul (Young Mazino, Fish Bones ). He resents Amy’s financial status, profiling her and going on several tangents about what he assumes her background to be. As it turns out, they both have similar frustrations with how their lives are going. Danny is strapped for cash and cannot seem to impart his wisdom or work ethic onto Paul. Amy feels disconnected from her husband, her plant business and a wealthy potential investor (Maria Bello) that she must continually schmooze to win her over. The repressed anger and depression of both characters fuel their childish pranks and quests for vengeance on one another. After a few episodes, Beef makes it obvious that the back-and-forth between Amy and Danny provides each with a strange catharsis. Even though they are both engaging in juvenile and, at times, criminal behavior, it grants them a departure from what is unsatisfactory about their personal lives. Their petty endeavors are not only selfish but eventually begin to put their loved ones in harm’s way. Neither of them is wise to the repercussions because they have gotten swept up in their own adrenaline rushes. In a way, Danny and Amy have developed a contentious, unorthodox romance. Beef consists of a predominantly Asian cast, with Danny and Amy playing Korean characters while Amy’s husband is Japanese. The series differs from many others in its representations of such characters by allowing them to be individualistic, angry and petty. Often, Asian characters are depicted as docile and adhering to a collectivist mindset. For many decades, Asian-Americans have been referred to as the “model minority,” a back-handed compliment that subtly characterizes them as being subservient. Beef deliberately depicts Danny and Amy as selfish and fueled by an inner rage, showing that diverse representations do not always have to be based around positive attributes. The protagonists are not perfect, endearing or admirable; they’re simply flawed in a way that we are not used to seeing. While not a TV series, the project most similar to Beef from a premise standpoint is the early 2000’s thriller Changing Lanes . Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Affleck play two members of a road rage incident who let a feud develop between them. Though it does not hit on the same class, gender, or race differences as Beef , both involve flawed characters who let petty emotions take them down dark paths. The message in both stories is to always let go of your fleeting road rage before it devolves into a much bigger issue. Or just Uber everywhere (shrug). Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

The Accident cautions about the danger of losing perspective < Back The Accident cautions about the danger of losing perspective Mar Abierto Productions, 2024 45 minutes Creator: Leonardo Padrón Reading Time: 7 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Netflix The Accident Emotive Shadow 00:00 / 08:34 Barley Movies and TV shows with a lot of dialog Masala Chai Movies and TV shows about toughness and athletic competition Reba Chaisson 2024-09-18 The Accident is a 10-part Netflix series about five families who are close friends, relatives, and/or business partners when a fatal event occurs during a child’s birthday party. Set in Santa Cruz, Mexico, the series stars Sebastian Martinez ( Pa' Quererte , Rosario Tijeras ) as Emiliano, an affluent lawyer who, along with his partners, is excited about the prospect of landing a 40-million-dollar deal from White developers, or “gringos,” in the U.S. to build an amusement park in Santa Cruz. On the day Emiliano expects a decision, he and his wife, police detective Daniela Robles, played by Ana Claudia Talancón ( A Circus Tale & a Love Song , El Galán. La TV cambió, él no ), are throwing a lavish outdoor birthday party for their 8-year-old son, Rodrigo. When Daniela tells Emiliano they are running out of ice, he rushes over to Moncho, his helpful gardener played by Silverio Palacios ( The Thin Yellow Line , Welcome al Norte ), and directs him to go to the store. Emiliano takes over the set-up from Moncho when his cell phone rings with the anticipated call, so he heads into the house to speak privately. While celebrating the good news with his partners, a strong gust of wind picks up and carries off the inflatable bounce house, resulting in the deaths of three children playing inside it. This tragic inciting incident leads to more than the families mourning their unimaginable loss. Over the next ten episodes, we see the fracturing of a once tight knit social network. At the center of the breakdown is the families’ insatiable appetites for vengeance and their obsessive need to hold someone accountable. What is interesting to observe throughout the series is how quickly relationships evaporate and the individuals’ space for reason is extinguished. For example, the U.S. investors express concerns about the investigation’s potential to disrupt the project’s timetable and consider canceling their contract with the firm. To avoid this, Emiliano and his partners offer money to Moncho and his family to take the fall despite knowing he is not the true culprit. Also exemplary of this fracturing and unreasonableness is Charro, a man who comports himself like a mobster by operating on intimidation. Before the accident, Charro, played by Alberto Guerra ( Ingobernable , El Señor de los Cielos ), observes a man at the party admiring his wife from a distance. Charro walks up to the man and says, “She’s so f***in hot, right? But if you mess with her, I’ll put a bullet between your eyes.” So, when Charro learns through the rumor mill that Moncho is responsible for the accident, even his wife challenges him to “take care of it.” On one level, The Accident is a story about class, as Moncho is blamed, beaten, and jailed for not staking down the inflatable. Thus, the initial response is levied at the person with the lowest rank in social class, the fewest resources, and the least perceived credibility. Contrast this with Charro, who is detained for severely beating Moncho and setting his house on fire with his kids inside, yet never sees the inside of a jail cell. His wealth, cocky confidence, and ever-present lawyer combine to ensure his detention never goes beyond the desk of the local sheriff. On another level, The Accident is about the potential corruptibility of greed. Emiliano and his law partners are so determined to maintain their contract with “the gringos” that they offer Moncho and his family money for him to take the fall. The matter of his innocence or guilt is not a concern. Their goal is to simply end the investigation into the matter at Emiliano’s home and cover up his true culpability in the bounce house incident. So, greed distorts the law partners’ ability to do what is just. The irony here is they are the ones actually sworn to be defenders of the law and advocating for those who cannot advocate for themselves. The Accident also helps us see how grief can cloud perspective. Angry and grief-stricken over the loss of their children, partners cheat on their spouses because they can’t fix the hole left in their hearts, and opportunistic individuals take advantage of their vulnerability. Even the estranged parent of the sole surviving child returns home not to console her child, but to seize upon the media attention her child is garnering from her story of survival. As the Santa Cruz police investigate, they reveal that bounce house incidents are not uncommon, and that children are injured and killed each year when sudden gusts of wind carry the inflatables away. Researchers documented 132 cases of wind-related bounce house incidents that occurred worldwide over a 20-year period. They found that people suffered 479 injuries and 28 deaths because the inflatables were not properly staked and reinforced with sandbags, and the weather not monitored for wind shifts, something researchers indicate is needed to ensure safety. These facts should have made The Accident a heart-wrenching story from beginning to end. We would expect, for example, this series to have a feel equivalent to that of Dandelion and/or Yarrow tea. Dandelion tea is a tag COTC assigns to shows with difficult or heavy subjects. I am challenged to imagine anything more difficult than losing a child, yet this series evokes very little of this emotion. It should be yanking at the heart strings and leaving tear tracks on the face, but it does not. Yarrow tea is for shows with illness or that are set in hospitals. In The Accident , the children are at once playing and then gone. Their loss is sudden, not gradual. Their lives don’t linger over a period of time. In the absence of these elements, the show is left only with depictions of blame, anger, and fighting, making it more akin to a Masala Chai tag which signals toughness and competition. So, the show lacks the emotion fitting of the magnitude of this travesty, which is needed to connect with the audience. Despite this, though, The Accident contains salient themes and ethnic representations that challenge the prevailing depictions of Mexican people in films made in the U.S. Indeed, what I like about this series is that it depicts Mexican families as educated professionals with large, sprawling homes and upscale lifestyles. This portrayal contrasts sharply with the films produced in the U.S. frequently depicting Mexican families as poor, working class, and living in high density, violent communities in apartments too small to accommodate their large families. The Accident teaches us about the price we can pay for rushing to judgment, something we are much more prone to do when experiencing the excruciating pain of loss, unbearable weight of guilt, and desperation. Reason gets clouded and distorted, and much like a rabid dog or any wounded animal, we do a disservice to ourselves and those we care most about. It is only when we come close to losing someone else that we return to our senses and realize what we have done and who we are in danger of becoming. Despite the missed opportunity to imbue the series with a compelling emotive element, The Accident ’s thematic material and unique representations offer some appeal to those craving a Masala Chai-type story. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Frankie highlights the difficulty of finding your voice and standing up for yourself. < Back Frankie highlights the difficulty of finding your voice and standing up for yourself. Red Seed Films, 2020 11 minutes Director/Writer: James Kautz Reading Time: 2 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Red Seed Films Frankie Skeptical (JNOPSEQC5DDSCMWJ) 00:00 / 02:37 Ginger Thought-provoking movies/shows Dandelion Movies/shows with heavy subjects Chris Chaisson 2022-09-25 “Do you have any idea what it’s like holding back who you really are ‘cause of someone else’s fears?” Frankie opens on the title character, a trans man, crashing his partner’s all-male support group meeting to vent his frustrations at him. The other members treat him with much hostility, as they feel their safe space to heal is being invaded. Though one might assume his scorn is at being rejected, Frankie’s true gripe is over his partner’s refusal to accept his new identity. Amidst the heckles and jeers of the other group members, he recounts the details of the fight that ended their relationship. The meeting serves as a microcosm of many individuals’ emotional experience in the midst of a transition. As they try to find their voice and discover their true identity, they frequently get silenced or shouted down. There is a constant battle to get others to see them as who they are, not who they were. Frankie reveals that to be cruel, his partner dead-named him (a modern term for calling a trans person by the name they used before transitioning). Throughout his soliloquy, his partner will not even look him in the eye, a gesture that would signify acceptance of his change. Director James Kautz does a brilliant job of using sound to create tension. It begins with Frankie in the hall outside the door, debating whether or not to go through with his plan. We can hear the other support group members’ echoing laughter on the other side of the door. Once Frankie enters, silence fills the room, and this contrast conveys their overwhelming discomfort. The group moderator uses a gentle tone, but the other members speak more sharply as they attempt to shoo him away. When Frankie is finally allowed to vent, a non-diegetic, quickening drum pattern accompanies the rise in his anger level before he stands up and yells. The emotional depth of this short may bring to mind feature-length films such as 500 Days of Summer , Juno , or even The Story of Us . All three deal with a drastic change throwing relationship dynamics in flux. We see the protagonists processing their anger and confusion while simply trying to be heard. Available on Film Shortage Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Queen Sono brings a spy thriller from a different part of the world < Back Queen Sono brings a spy thriller from a different part of the world Diprente Films, 2020 43 minutes Creator: Kagiso Lediga and Karabo Lediga Reading Time: 6 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Netflix Queen Sono Adrenaline Rush (0F2JDLS3MEXST1KL) 00:00 / 07:04 Masala Chai Movies and TV shows about toughness and athletic competition Matcha Mysteries or whodunnits Reba Chaisson 2023-10-30 Cinematic representations of spies are usually of U.S., European, or Israeli descent, predominantly male, and between 40-60 years of age. Think Eric Bana as Avner in Munich , Gary Oldman as George Smiley and John Hurt as Control in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy , George Clooney as Bob Barnes in Syriana , and Leonardo DiCaprio as Roger Ferris in Body of Lie s . There are a handful of female spies but unlike the subtlety of their male counterparts, they are usually presented as action characters with a lot of sass and pop. Think Helen Mirren as Victoria in Red , Angelina Jolie as Evelyn Salt in Salt , and Charlize Theron as Lorraine Broughton in Atomic Blond . Queen Sono presents an interesting departure from these stories and depictions. First, rather than a film, it is a six-episode Netflix series. Second, the story is set in South Africa and features a little-known Black actress, Pearl Thusi ( Quantico , Catching Feelings ), as Queen Sono, a South African spy who kicks her antagonists’ tails as she gathers intel from countries like Kenya and Zimbabwe. Queen Sono is the daughter of Sofia, a celebrated militant and activist who was killed when “Q” was a child, an event which haunts her to this day. Raised by her scrappy paternal grandmother, Mazet, and supported by Dr. Sidwell Isaacs, intelligence director and close friend of her mother’s, Q joins the government’s security agency (SOG) with aspirations of doing field work. She becomes a part of the South African president’s secret service detail and eventually moves into the country’s intelligence ranks. The story contains parallel plot lines, one of which consists of Q’s private mission to learn who was behind her mother’s assassination and hold them responsible. This operation allows us to see beyond Q’s tough veneer, exposing the deep hurt she masks from the loss of her mother. It makes her actions appear reasonable, as she uses her elusiveness to enter a prison to confront the man accused of the crime, and later takes on a fictitious identity to gain access to a family to casually extract information she needs. The other storyline involves Q’s legitimate job, which is to dismantle an organization headed by eKaterina Gromova. Played by Kate Liquorish ( Still Breathing , Eye in the Sky ), eKaterina is a ruthless corporate leader from Eastern Europe who wants to take over the security and communications infrastructure for all the African governments. While Q has many occasions to show off her fighting skills, she bleeds a few times during her physical confrontations and even loses one of them. Combined, the two storylines make the character a realistic portrayal of a spy – making her human versus automaton-like. One of the things I like about the series is it forces us to distinguish the countries in Africa. Too often, we view Africa as a monolith rather than a continent of 54 nations, each with its own set of languages, customs, cultures, sociopolitical systems, and economic challenges and priorities. In media, women and children in Africa are typically depicted as poverty-stricken, malnourished, and without shelter or living in huts. The preponderance of the images leads us to generalize this reality to all countries on the African continent. In Queen Sono , people live in homes and apartments in urban areas, not huts in rural areas at the edges of towns where movies about Africans tend to be set. And as we see in the series, even countries rife with problems have spectacular views of forestry and waterfalls. But urban areas and landscapes are rarely if ever depicted in Western cinema set in African nations. So, in this sense, Queen Sono is an exception. The scenes across several African countries help us to appreciate the distinct systems, cultures, and even problems of each. Although Black people have been in the U.S. for over 400 years, our past and present experiences continue to shape our sense of belonging in the country that has been our home longer than most Europeans and all people of color, except Indigenous Peoples. It is interesting to see so many patriotic Black people in South Africa who take ownership of it and view it as “[theirs] to protect.” For example, they carry a high level of disdain for President Malunga, the current leader of the country, because of the depths of his corruption and greed. Yet, they still respect him because he is the elected president. This mix of commitments comes through as Q’s aunt, Nana, played by Connie Chiume ( I Dreamed of Africa , Black Panther ) who is well-connected and active in politics, hosts a luncheon for the president at her home. Before carrying a tray out to the patio, she says to her daughter, “It’s not every day we get to host a president. Let’s go and put on a show for that a***h***.” This thread runs throughout the show as we observe “Q’s” commitment to her role at SOG to “keep South Africa safe.” We also see it in her lover, Shandu, played by Vuyo Dabula ( Invictus , Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom ), who is vocal and active in his commitment to freeing Congolese, South Africans, and others on the continent from being exploited by white diamond miners, other outside groups, and the corruption of political leaders like President Malunga. Queen Sono is similar to the 1970s films, Coffy and Foxy Brown , each about a Black woman pursuing vigilante justice. Both films feature Pam Grier as an early 30-something African American woman who seeks revenge for an attack on her sister ( Coffy ) and boyfriend ( Foxy Brown ). The films contain a lot of action for a time when it was rare to see Black women on screen as leads, let alone in such strong and active roles. The Queen Sono character is a modern-day blend of Coffy and Foxy Brown. Each work is even named for the lead characters. It is refreshing to be presented with a strong lead character of color from a part of the world we rarely get to see so broadly and extensively. Queen Sono is a substantive piece about a woman dealing with a personal struggle while fighting publicly sanctioned battles. The presentation passively breaks down our ideas of countries in Africa as similarly impoverished and rife with instability, and of the people who live in them as poor and apathetic. While I understand the pandemic interrupted Netflix’s plans to continue this series beyond the first season, my hope is that the company revisits this decision with the goal of completing the narrative. It is a visually entertaining presentation bolstered by a solid story. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

The Neighbors’ Window puts a melodramatic spin on its genre < Back The Neighbors’ Window puts a melodramatic spin on its genre Marshall Curry Productions LLC, 2019 21 minutes Director/Writer: Marshall Curry / Diane Weipert and Marshall Curry Reading Time: 3 minutes 📷 : Licensed from Shutterstock The Neighbors' Window Home Inside (IAPD4ZHMI2KGRI5V) 00:00 / 03:29 Chamomile Family dramas Dandelion Movies/shows with heavy subjects Chris Chaisson 2023-06-07 Many “peeping tom” movies fall into the suspense/thriller genre. The voyeuristic protagonist in question either witnesses a crime ( Rear Window, Disturbia ) or becomes obsessed enough to commit a crime themselves ( One Hour Photo ). On occasion, a film opts for the dramatic angle, providing a moral beyond “mind your dang business.” Such is the case in the Oscar-winning short film The Neighbor’s Window . Marshall Curry’s award-winning short stars Alli (Maria Dizzia, Funny Pages ) and Jacob (Greg Keller, Jane Wants a Boyfriend ), a middle-aged married couple with kids, who become entranced by the lives of a twenty-something couple in the curtainless apartment building directly across from them. Observing their celebratory nature, including their sex life, Alli and Jacob clearly become envious of the couple’s youthful ways. Their jealousy leads to increased stress and arguing over matters such as Alli feeling that Jacob does not help out enough with parental duties. One day, Alli notices a shift in the vibe between the young couple they have been observing. Their life appears much more somber, making Alli reconsider her previous assumptions about their joy and bliss. At the outset of this Oscar-winning short, it seems that we are headed for a standard “peeping tom” story arc, where someone holed up in their apartment passes the time by spying on others only to witness something heinous. After a humorous exchange between Alli and Jacob in the opening scene, the story seems pointed in the direction of the couple shaking up their routine by blasting music or smoking pot. However, the short film bypasses any such inciting incidents and heads in a completely different direction. Instead, the young couple unknowingly burrow their way into Alli and Jacob’s arguments, as the two now gauge their own happiness relative to complete strangers. Despite having healthy children and a spacious, upscale apartment, the two long for the youth and spontaneity their counterparts still have. The middle of the short, in a strange way, feels like the aftermath of a double date where one couple had way better chemistry than the other. As has been said many times, comparison is the thief of joy. Once the young couple experiences their dramatic shift, Alli stops viewing them as a fantasy of what her life and relationship should be. She instead views them as the three-dimensional beings that they are. Regardless of how anyone’s life looks at a glance, their emotional states ebb and flow, and any unexpected news can cause a sudden change. Through watching her neighbors, Alli realizes the fragility of happiness, and it hits her like a ton of bricks. When you’re stuck in the doldrums, it can be tough to count your blessings. Alli not only gets a reminder of all the good in her life but also how quickly things can take a major turn. The Neighbors’ Window provides less of a high-flying, escapist plot that we see in other spy/peeping tom stories and instead delivers an important reminder about what not to take for granted. Available on Film Shortage Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Sunrise Meets Sunset shows the turmoil that threatens the gift of music < Back Sunrise Meets Sunset shows the turmoil that threatens the gift of music Makenna Guyler, 2022 7 minutes Director/Writer: Aram Atkinson Reading Time: 3 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Aram Atkinson Sunrise Meets Sunset Power (13UR2T1Z0YUK42MZ) 00:00 / 03:43 Dandelion Movies and TV shows with heavy subjects Ginger Thought-provoking movies and TV shows Reba Chaisson 2022-10-08 “Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.” ( Victor Hugo , early 19th century) Centering around a small, predominantly Black British jazz group, Sunrise Meets Sunset takes place during a time of racial civil unrest in 1960s London. The outside forces spill over into the group and risk tearing apart the members’ potentially promising musical careers. Starring Durassie Kiangangu as Ray ( Imperial Blue , False Men ) and Sanchez Brown as Nile ( Game Over , Malachi ), the film brings the outside turmoil up-close and personal when Ray arrives late to a rehearsal badly beaten and bruised on the day of a show. With telling dialog and footage, Sunrise Meets Sunset parallels the same historical period in the United States where, like the UK, it was in a battle over the struggle for civil rights and racial justice. The story brings to mind the film Green Book , based on the life of piano virtuoso Dr. Donald Shirley. With Mahershala Ali in the titled role, the movie depicts the high level of disruption to Dr. Shirley’s routine and badly needed rest as he travels the Deep South during the Jim Crow era of racial segregation. Black people, including famous artists, were not permitted to stay in some hotels or eat in upscale restaurants. This widespread discrimination forced them to drive extra hours to find accommodations listed in what was known as “ The Green Book ,” a guide to establishments for Black people. Ray and Miles Ahead are two additional movies that come to mind. In the former, Ray Charles arrives in Georgia for a performance and suddenly cancels, stating that it is wrong to play to segregated audiences. A story about Miles Davis, Miles Ahead does not contain scenes from the South, but it does depict the actual event of the artist’s beating and arrest by New York City police in 1959 for standing in front of the jazz club where he was performing. So, despite their celebrity, wealth, and musical talents, Black artists did not escape the touch of racism during that tumultuous period. Although only seven minutes, Sunrise Meets Sunset poignantly displays the frustration among band members and the enormous degree to which racial strife weighs on them, both individually and as a group. Some may ask how artists endured given these pressures, how the show went on. My response is that we will never know the count of those who cut short their musical careers because the stress took such a toll on their lives. For the ones we do know about (i.e. Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, B. B. King, and others), we can only surmise that they persisted because they loved bringing their music to us more than they could tolerate the often brutal treatment of authorities and the disrespect of proprietors in the ”hospitality” industry. Perhaps it is this resolve that explains what is meant by music being a gift from the heart and of the soul. And oh, what a gift it is! Available on Film Shortage Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Lupin navigates class relations in the quest to seek justice < Back Lupin navigates class relations in the quest to seek justice Gaumont Television, 2021- 45 minutes Creator: George Kay Reading Time: 5 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Netflix Lupin St. Nick’s Workshop (WOE0XPRRLUP5YIZF) 00:00 / 05:45 Ginseng Suspenseful and intense thrillers White Movies and TV shows that make you laugh, or involve urgency, like chase scenes or other physical activity Reba Chaisson 2022-06-04 Based on a series of novels written by the late 19th/early 20th century French writer, Maurice Leblanc, Lupin is about a man who seeks justice by borrowing strategies from the fictional character, “Arsène Lupin,” in Leblanc’s books. Often described by fans of the books as a gentleman burglar and a master of disguises, Lupin uses costume and sleight of hand to navigate French high society and elude the authorities. A contemporary show dubbed in English, Lupin is set in the cobblestone streets and architectural landscape of France, with the 19th century feel of Harry Potter . There’s even a surreal scene that celebrates an event of the period, where people gather on the beach in black top hats, wearing capes and carrying canes. On the surface, Lupin weaves an entertaining, fantastical tale about getting justice for the wrongs done to a family. Underneath, the series is a story about navigating class relations to get your way, whether you’re situated in the bottom, the top, or somewhere in the middle of the hierarchy. In 19th century Europe though, class lines were thickly drawn. Gatekeeping was strongly maintained with written rules and laws (as well as unwritten understandings) enforced by authorities and those directly employed by the wealthy class. Penetrating the upper echelons of society required guile. Enter Lupin. Assane Diop, the title character, played by Omar Sy ( The Intouchables , Jurassic World ), approaches his Lupin-like exploits with seeming joy, but his mission is quite serious. He sets out to expose the wealthy family and corrupt official who framed his father, Babakar, for a jewelry theft, which ultimately led to his imprisonment and death. The events set the trajectory for the young teenager’s life. While he maintains his father’s values to respect self and rules, he develops a distrust and disrespect of people with wealth, power, and authority who don’t do the same. So, stealing a necklace from the Musée du Louvre and “borrowing” a violin for his White girlfriend when the merchant refuses to rent to her because he is Black is not wrong; it’s justice. The chief antagonist, Monsieur Pelligrini, played by Hervé Pierre, is the snobbish patriarch who casually uses his influence to steal lives and livelihoods to secure and insulate his wealth and power. Even so, this could not be done without the help of authorities in the middle class. In exchange for favors, Detective Gabriel Dumont, played by Vincent Garanger ( A Cat in Paris , The Traveller ), ushers through the big lie about Babakar from arrest to imprisonment, and tops it off by handing young Assane to social services. The show moves in and out of fantastical drama to dark suspense as shady characters are introduced and commit heinous crimes. It also moves in and out of Assane’s experiences as a youth, from the time he realizes his attractiveness and charm to girls to the brashness these qualities breed even as a teen in boarding school. An avid reader of the Lupin novels, his mastery of the character’s tactics to unravel the mystery and circumstances of his father’s death is no surprise. He seems to realize the confidence is there; he only needs the strategy. Most stories like this depict a loner wallowing in anger and taking revenge, wantonly inflicting injury on others. Far from a loner, Assane is amicably separated from his wife, Claire, played by Ludivine Sagnier, and very close to his teenage son, Raoul, played by Etan Simon. He is, however, obsessed with completing his mission, which keeps them from being together as a family. There is also Benjamin, his loyal, best friend from childhood. Played by Antoine Gouy, Benjamin is both Assane’s confidant and a constant in his life, also sharing a fascination for Lupin stories. In many ways, the show is similar to The Avengers . No, not the Marvel movie. I am referring to the British spy television show that ran for eight years between 1961 and 1969. The series featured Agent John Steed, played by Patrick Macnee ( A View to a Kill , The Howling ), and Mrs. Peel, played by Diana Rigg ( Game of Thrones , Doctor Who ). The duo battled odd but wealthy, sci-fi like criminals with British grace while surrounded by the trappings of Britain’s wealthy class. Steed, always donning a suit, derby hat, and umbrella, frequently used these as weapons during his fighting escapades. Like the Avengers , Assane wears the persona of the wealthy class, and he seamlessly moves in and out of high society spaces as needed to zero in on the culprits. Sometimes, getting a glimpse of other cultures allows us to see our own objectively. For viewers who haven’t been to France, the series gives us a look inside the Louvre and a sense of what it’s like to have a seat on the Seine River. Although a work of fiction produced for pure entertainment, Lupin also allows us to see the lasting damage that can occur when power and influence go unchecked, and corruption is allowed to fester. In addition to its virtual sightseeing and underlying themes, Lupin can be a fun watch. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Living with Yourself rocks the boat using the doppelganger trope < Back Living with Yourself rocks the boat using the doppelganger trope Jax Media, 2019- 30 minutes Creator: Timothy Greenberg Reading Time: 4 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Netflix Living with Yourself Dialogues (NQ3OCH3UGSK9611V) 00:00 / 04:23 Ginger Thought-provoking movies and TV shows Coca Movies and TV shows about drugs or with disorienting presentations Chris Chaisson 2021-10-15 Human beings have an uncanny ability to adapt to their circumstances. While we typically associate this with people of modest means, the same holds just as true for the haves as it does the have-nots. Many family dramas with an element of fantasy in them choose to highlight characters who take their living situations for granted. Taking an ungrateful character and turning their world upside down paves the way for many hijinks, especially when this change includes the arrival of a new character. Such is the case in the 8-episode Netflix series Living with Yourself . Created by Timothy Greenberg ( The Daily Show ), Living with Yourself follows Miles (Paul Rudd, Ant-Man ), a suburban husband experiencing a rut who visits an obscure spa in order to rejuvenate himself. Upon arrival, he is cloned and buried alive. When he escapes his burial and encounters the clone, he must figure out how to coexist with his doppelganger and whether or not to keep his dual existence a secret. Though Miles is a regular suburbanite, his character flaw jumps out at the viewer right away: he does not appreciate his wife or job as much as he should. The show begins with him entering a work meeting unprepared for his presentation, but not terribly bothered by it. He then resents his coworker (Desmin Borges, You’re the Worst ) for being more engaging and likeable to the team. The next morning, he shares a rather contentious breakfast with his wife. The particular issue causing friction between himself and Kate (Aisling Bea, This Way Up ) is his reluctance to go to the fertility clinic. Their major want as a couple is to start a family, but they are struggling to conceive and Miles drags his feet in seeking consultation, frustrating Kate. Miles comes across as a sort of Ebenezer Scrooge before his trip to the spa. It’s not that he’s unlikeable; on the contrary, his emotions can be relatable to anyone who feels their daily routine becoming monotonous. Miles desperately needs to shake things up, and rather than go on a vacation with Kate or put his head down and strive for a promotion, he badgers his coworker for some secret remedy. This sets the table for the show’s inciting incident and Miles’s eventual transformation into a more appreciative husband and employee. Of course, like in many other clone/twin stories, Miles cannot resist the urge to coerce his counterpart into doing all the boring tasks that he is sick of, such as: going to work; hosting a dinner party; etc. There is one issue with Miles’s plan, which is that his clone is very much his superior at all these tasks. Kate takes more of a shine to the clone, appreciating his new attitude. The clone also outperforms the colleagues that Miles had been previously lagging. Rather than be introspective, Miles is consumed by jealousy and insecurity, leading to much conflict, twists and turns throughout the eight episodes. Not only does Miles experience a character arc, but Kate goes through a change in her own perspective. While she appreciates the clone’s demeanor, she realizes that Miles’s imperfections, while frustrating, make him human in a way that the clone could never be. Living with Yourself is of course not the first movie or show to utilize the concept of a main character getting cloned. While its predecessors provide the easiest comparisons, the series brings to mind other dramadies that had an element of fantasy in them, like The Family Man (2000), where a wealthy bachelor gets a glimpse into his life had he married his college sweetheart. Both present a main character who has essentially become numb to their surroundings. Though Jack in The Family Man was more content than Miles, he had still lost an appreciation for how the people around him enriched his life. The roller coaster ride that Miles’s clone takes him on brings him to appreciate the stability and support he can always count on from his significant other and his profession. If you enjoy escapist narratives with the backdrop of an average suburban lifestyle (and a Tom Brady cameo), Living with Yourself will surely quench your thirst. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Full Circle deals with the pitfalls of desperation < Back Full Circle deals with the pitfalls of desperation HBO Max, 2023 60 minutes Creator: Ed Solomon Reading Time: 7 minutes 📷 : Licensed from Shutterstock Full Circle Mystery (ZAO6TMJ2PEKED1UZ) 00:00 / 07:59 Dandelion Movies and TV shows with heavy subjects Ginseng Suspenseful and intense thrillers Reba Chaisson 2023-08-02 A common view of our mistakes is that they are inevitable, that we should learn from them and apply the lessons to our lives going forward. On the other hand, some of us believe what goes around comes around. Like karma, past mistakes come back to haunt us, making us desperate to set things right. If we’re not careful though, such desperation can render us susceptible to guile. Full Circle places this scenario front and center, in a six-episode series about the pitfalls of desperation. Savitri Mahabir loses yet another family member at the hands of a rival organization. She is convinced that her family’s string of deaths can be traced back to a decades-old curse due to her late husband’s activities in Guyana that resulted in a murder. Desperate to end it, she reaches out to the deceased’s family members, who arrive in New York and give her strict instructions for lifting it. “Miss Mahabir” is determined to follow them to their minutest detail. Coincidentally, Louis arrives in New York from Guyana to join his sister, Natalia, and best friend, Xavier. Awaiting the excited twenty-something men are jobs with Natalia’s employer, Miss Mahabir, who, unbeknownst to the boys, heads a crime organization. Natalia, played by Adia ( The Midnight Club ), is a reluctant employee who serves as the boss’s massage therapist and personal assistant. We realize the depths of the organization’s unsavoriness when Miss Mahabir’s underling and the young men’s new boss, takes Louis and Xavier’s passports, promising to give them back after each has worked off $50,000. Played by CCH Pounder ( NCIS: New Orleans , Avatar: The Way of the Water ), Miss Mahabir never meets with Louis and Xavier. This renders them invisible to her and facilitates their treatment as tools with a specific utility. Her instructions for them involve kidnapping Jared Browne, the teenage grandson of a wealthy family. They are to take Jared to the chalked circle in the park, where his family must bring the ransom money by exactly 1:11 AM or he will be killed. Louis, Xavier, and Natalia’s predicament speaks to the lack of options available for today’s immigrants to become productive citizens and realize the dream they imagined from their arrival on U.S. soil. This disappointment and dismay are especially visible in Louis’s body language and facial expressions, as he goes from a happy and excited young man to displaying looks of concern, worry, and desperation to survive and get back home. But as with Miss Mahabir, this repeatedly leaves him gullible and vulnerable to deceit. How can immigrants’ circumstances in a land touted for its opportunity become so bad that they want to go full circle, even when the prospects for a better life are nonexistent back home? With no history of criminal behavior, Louis and Xavier are confused about the kidnapping, the significance of the circle, and the unusual timeframe. Why this kid? And why 1:11, rather than 1:00 or 1:30? Nervous and reluctant to become involved in murder, Louis and his sister, Natalia, devise a plan of their own to save Jared’s life. But things go off the rails when the wrong child is kidnapped. When Jared suddenly arrives home safe and sound, his family must decide if they want to pay ransom for a child who is not theirs. Full Circle brings to mind the 2006 feature-length film, Miami Vice , starring Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx as Detectives Crockett and Tubbs, respectively. This excellent movie, which captures the essence of its 1980s television series namesake, includes a scene where Crockett and his team recruit a known drug dealer as an informant. He is reluctant because of the danger it poses, but Crockett and his team threaten to send him back to jail if he doesn’t help them. Frustrated and flustered, he rhetorically asks, “Why is this happening to me?” Detective Trudy Joplin, a member of Crockett’s team played by Naomie Watts, responds, “Because you live a life of crime.” Such truths can be hard to swallow. Shot using dark cinematography and a graininess similar to that of Miami Vice , Full Circle gives you the feel of being mired in a shady world where it is tough to see things clearly. This is fitting for a series that depicts truth as something hard to face and tough to swallow. Rather than believing that her family members are killed because they live lives of drugs and violent crime, Miss Mahabir prefers to believe a curse is the reason for their deaths. At the opposite end of the spectrum are Jared’s parents, Derek and Samantha “Sam” Browne, who insist on playing victim. They repeatedly assert that they know nothing about why Jared was kidnapped and what any of this has to do with Guyana. Determined to gain clarity on the Guyana connection and uncover family secrets is Detective Harmony, played by Zazie Beetz ( Atlanta , Joker ). Smart, witty and deeply cynical, her character feels like a breath of fresh air in this dark and eerie tale. She nonchalantly and repeatedly breaks decorum, showing up unannounced and asking the Brownes pointed questions at the wrong time and place. Just as Miss Mahabir is desperate to save her family, so is Sam Browne, played by Claire Danes ( Homeland , The Hours ), who obfuscates at every turn. Her husband, Derek, played by Timothy Olyphant, does the same as he maintains a subdued but curious demeanor throughout the ordeal. Detective Harmony is convinced the Brownes are not forthcoming, and she is determined to get it out of them even under the threat of losing her job, “I know you’re hiding something. What are you hiding?” We tend to assume wealthy people are innocent. A recent study designed to assess trust revealed that an individual’s economic status is related to their perceived trustworthiness. The authors concluded that “people are more likely to trust strangers with a high income, compared with individuals with a low income.” Another study found that conservative Supreme Court justices “rarely vote to reverse convictions of poor criminal defendants, [but show] a clear sympathy for rich ones.” So this latent bias has ramifications even for the notion of accountability. It allows people with wealth to garner our empathy when bad things happen in their lives. In Full Circle , this ingrained presumption of innocence makes it easy to see the Brownes as victims – until Detective Mel Harmon comes along and shatters this view. This bias also leads us to think of immigrants of color as undignified not only because many lack means, but also because unflattering media images show them at their worst, after they have desperately crossed borders for a better and safer life. Conflating desperation, though, with lack of dignity leads to knee-jerk assertions that void people of their humanity rather than explain their experiences with exploitation and other challenges. While Louis, Natalia, and Xavier are desperate for economic opportunity, they still possess a deep moral sense of right and wrong that centers them and makes them unwilling to cross what they view as a thick line to get it. Some of us believe that giving in to temptation inevitably comes back to haunt us, like karma or a curse. For others, the fact that the deed is so egregious is enough to reverse course. Full Circle is a cautionary tale, reminding us that if we are not careful, our desperation can lead to a loss of our moral center. Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!

Mad Lib Pixie Dream Girl offers biting satire of sexism in male writing. < Back Mad Lib Pixie Dream Girl offers biting satire of sexism in male writing. Garden Road Pictures, 2018 11 minutes Director/Writer: Kylie Murphy Reading Time: 2 minutes 📷 : Used with permission, Kylie Murphy Mad Lib Pixie Dream Girl Imaginative Play (ITJ3BJSP4CWIKENA) 00:00 / 02:28 Oolong Movies/shows that make you laugh or involve physical activity like exercise/dance Chris Chaisson 2022-09-25 An old saying goes, “There is a grain of truth in every joke.” Such is the case in Mad Lib Pixie Dream Girl , a clever comedy short poking fun at an all too common media trope. For those unfamiliar, many creators of sci-fi and romantic comedies tend to write heavily infantilized female characters, often referred to as manic pixie dream girls. The character may be a mermaid, alien, ghost, or simply a recluse unfamiliar with civilized society. When she comes across the protagonist, typically male, he introduces her to a life she’s never known. Coincidentally, the manic pixie dream girl is often inexperienced in dating, sex and relationships (in other words, easy to manipulate). This trope character, and the works that contain it, are often viewed as the male writers living out their fantasies through their scripts. Writer/director Kylie Murphy’s short satirizes this trope by jumping between the real world setting of two male writers finishing their script and the fictional world that they are creating. Their main character experiences a breakup and meets the dream girl in question. The writers finish their script by using a book of mad libs to create the setting, dialogue and many other clichéd details that appear in many such comedies. The dream girl widens her eyes, sucks on a lollipop and plays her folk band CD for the protagonist, humorously highlighting the unrealistic nature of their interactions. These moments are clearly meant to poke fun at films such as Garden State , Splash , and Along Came Polly . While the short mocks this formulaic approach, it also brings into focus the influence media can have on the thinking of young impressionable minds. Writers are certainly responsible for their own work, but they draw inspiration from what appears to have been successful in the past. Mad Lib Pixie Dream Girl is well worth the watch and the discussion. Available on Film Shortage Previous Next Sign-up for new reviews, exclusives, deep dives, and more First name Last name Enter your email here I agree to the terms & conditions Sign-up Thanks for joining us!