Month: November 2023
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See You on Venus, an unusual romance
See You on Venus is definitely not a romcom. But it does contain a story about two young people falling in love. It contains much more than that, however, and has many other thematic elements.
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Lessons in Chemistry: Brie Larson shines in this one
Lessons in Chemistry uses interesting, unique characters and powerful themes to tell a story of love and science. It isn’t the usual kind of storytelling – one episode is told from a dog’s point of view – but it works to create a series worth watching. There are spoilers ahead.
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Faraway Downs makes something new out of Australia
Faraway Downs is a project director Baz Luhrmann undertook during the time when everyone was stuck at home due to COVID. Luhrmann was the director of 2008’s film Australia. He had miles of film in his garage from the making of that film. Much of it hadn’t been in the film. He re-cut and re-edited…
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Julia: S2.E4 Chocolate Mousse
Julia: Chocolate Mousse brings Julia Child (Sarah Lancashire) back to Boston to begin filming the second season of The French Chef. She arrives to find that much has changed in the 4 months she was gone. Now Julia is the one wishing nothing would change. There are spoilers ahead.
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Everything Now, a vivid portrait of mental illness
Everything Now centers around a British teen, Mia (Sophie Wilde), who is coming out of 7 months in a treatment center. She has anorexia. Her struggles to get better are the heart of the series. Around her are her friends, each with their own problems, and her troubled family. It felt like a realistic picture…
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Annika, season 2, with more surprises
Annika left us with a cliffhanger at the end of season 1 that is resolved in the most unexpected way in season 2. The new season then winds its way to another huge cliffhanger, again involving Annika’s personal life and relationships.
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Julia: S2.E3 Pressed Duck
Julia: Pressed Duck is episode 3 of season 2 of this far reaching representation of Julia Child’s life, career, and influence. The story moves to Paris where Julia had attended Le Cordon Bleu and where Paul had memories of work he did as a diplomat after WWII. There are spoilers ahead.
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Julia: S2.E2 Fried Chicken
Julia: Fried Chicken, episode 2 of the second season of Julia, involves a high stakes cookoff, several famous names, and a still uncertain list of recipes for the cookbook. Are Julia Child (Sarah Lancashire) and her cookbook co-writer Simca (Isabella Rossellini) loving sisters or jealous enemies? There are spoilers ahead.
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Julia: S2.E1 Loup en Croûte
Julia: Loup en Croûte begins season two of Julia with Julia Child (Sarah Lancashire) and her husband Paul (David Hyde Pierce) in France. They are staying at the Provence home of Julia’s cookbook partner, Simca (Isabella Rossellini). They’ve been there three months and the two cooks have yet to agree on a single recipe for…
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May It Please the Court, K-drama looks at justice and the law
May It Please the Court is a complicated legal drama from Korea. Two excellent lead characters pull viewers along with a story about righting wrongs, seeking revenge, and the quest for justice. There are 12 episodes of an hour or more each. Plenty of time for keeping secrets, revealing surprises, and finding a path to…