Monday, December 14, 2020

Mank (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes
Mank (2020): Biopic of Herman Mankiewicz and the writing of Citizen Kane. Has look and feel of that great movie. See that movie first. Mank is a talented alcoholic inspired to greatness by his subject matter. Movie is filled with the sharp, fast, cutting dialog you'd expect. B+

Saturday, December 12, 2020

The Prom (2020)

Rotten Tomatoes
The Prom (2020): Musical starts off wrong (Broadway divas mocking small town Indiana) but eventually settles into an acceptable groove (protecting lesbian teens from ostracism at school and home). Meryl Streep and James Corden are all in, unironically, keeping me watching. B-

Friday, December 11, 2020

Review: The Glass Hotel

From The Glass Hotel, by Emily St. John Mandel:

Open
quote Begin at the end: plummeting down the side of the ship in the storm’s wild darkness, breath gone with the shock of falling, my camera flying away through the rain—" The Glass Hotel
Amazon
A novel like shattered glass reassembled at random. Read it all the way to the end and you eventually get the full story of rootless characters whose lives seem repeatedly shattered and reassembled. Does anyone find peace in the end? Maybe a little.

Thursday, December 10, 2020

POTD: Camel Caravan

From 2019 11 19 Aswan
Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Nile River near Aswan, Egypt.

Bonus photos after the jump.

Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Dash & Lily (TV 2020)

Rotten Tomatoes
Dash & Lily (TV 2020): Lily leaves a notebook on a bookstore's shelf, with clues and dares challenging the finder to get to know her. Dash finds it and is hooked on the game, or is it a courtship? Whatever, it is a sweet rom-com. Christmas in New York never looked so inviting. A-

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

POTD: Arrested Development in Egypt

From 2019 11 19 Aswan
Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Nile River near Aswan, Egypt. As for the "Arrested Development" reference, well, you have to be a fan of the TV show.

Monday, December 7, 2020

I Hate Suzie (TV 2020)

Rotten Tomatoes
I Hate Suzie (TV 2020): So do I. Leaked sex pics ruin an actress's career and marriage. Eight episodes take her through the stages of grief (shock, denial, fear, shame, I skipped episodes 5-7, acceptance). Great acting, but more like acting exercises than an interesting story. C-