Month: December 2023
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Black Cake review: Outstanding family saga
Black Cake shines as an excellent family drama full of secrets, surprises, and engaging characters. The story travels through years of the main characters lives. The well-written narrative uses the device of a woman finally telling all her secrets just before she dies. The story unfolds with multiple flashbacks as the recordings left behind by…
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Norma, who finds herself in mid-life
Norma comes from Argentina. It’s a charming drama about how Norma transforms herself in mid-life. The life she was leading is stifling. She can’t breathe, she’s prone to panic attacks, she can’t sleep. She needs a change and doesn’t know it. When she realizes that things need to be different she makes huge changes that…
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The Buccaneers, another period drama about the necessity to marry well
The Buccaneers joins the list of popular period pieces with lavish costumes and sets (think Bridgerton or The Gilded Age) to become another series about the importance of marrying well. This one is set in the 1870s. It was created by Katherine Jakeways based on an unfinished novel by Edith Wharton. In this one, a…
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Maestro, the intimate side of Leonard Bernstein
Maestro tells the story of Leonard Bernstein’s marriage and family and of his relationships with men. It’s intimate and inward. It acknowledges his genius and his iconic status in American life. It’s more about relationships than music. The directing and acting in the film were brilliantly done, but the overall feel and impact of the…
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Julia: S2.E8 Lobster Américaine, the season finale
Julia: Lobster Américaine is the season 2 finale. I’m already missing the weekly joy of seeing Sarah Lancashire embody the iconic Julia Child in this marvelous series. So far no word on whether there will or will not be a third season. I know there’s plenty more story about Julia Child and her career on…
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A Nearly Normal Family, a mystery series of moral puzzles
A Nearly Normal Family, a limited series from Sweden, asks many questions about legal right and wrong vs. moral right and wrong. It looks at what parents will do for their children. The story uses suspense to keep the tension going to the very end.
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Three Days of Christmas, Spanish family drama set at Christmas
Three Days of Christmas (Días de Navidad) tells a soapy melodrama about a family with lots of secrets. The story is told in 3 episodes set at Christmas time, each episode years apart. It’s a family saga, but shortened to three snippets of their lives.
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Friends and Family Christmas, a lesbian holiday romcom from Hallmark
Friends and Family Christmas is a Hallmark holiday romcom, remarkable because it’s about two women. It’s a first for Hallmark. It’s a typical bright and cheerful Hallmark holiday romcom in every way. There are spoilers ahead because telling you it’s a romcom is a spoiler.
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A Storm for Christmas: delightful holiday series from Norway
A Storm for Christmas is set mainly in the Oslo airport during a storm that grounds all the flights. It’s one of the best holiday offerings I’ve seen in a long time. The cast is diverse, there’s a polyglot mix of languages and characters, and a story long on love and connection.
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Julia: S2.E7 Shrimp and Grits
Julia: Shrimp and Grits is my all time favorite episode of Julia. It tells a clear story about women’s role in the world and the almost invisible ways they’ve had to wield influence over the years. Episodes like this one are the reason I keep writing about women. There are spoilers ahead.