The Chestnut Man is an excellent Danish noir suspense and mystery series streaming on Netflix. A great length for binge watching with 6 episodes, the series takes the lead character, a woman police detective, through several crimes in the chase for a serial killer.
Continue reading “Review: The Chestnut Man, Danish noir mystery”Category: Streaming
Review: Maid, layered and outstanding
Maid is a layered and nuanced look at poverty, domestic violence, mental health, and American laws and systems that both help and hurt people struggling with these problems. A brilliant performance from Margaret Qualley takes the material to a level that will make the series an awards contender for 2021. The series is on Netflix.
Continue reading “Review: Maid, layered and outstanding”Review: Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It
Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It puts the decades in perspective in the documentary story of Rita Moreno. From her humble beginnings in Puerto Rico to her legendary and iconic status now, her life unfolds with love and affection in this documentary.
Continue reading “Review: Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It”Review: The Starling, in which Melissa McCarthy gets serious
The Starling needs a pro vs. con scoresheet for its uneven story. The pros come in the form of a really lovely cast who make the material as good as possible. The cons are that the story is overly sentimental and employs knock-you-over-the-head symbolism to tell the tale. It’s streaming on Netflix. There is a big spoiler ahead.
Continue reading “Review: The Starling, in which Melissa McCarthy gets serious”Two interesting short films: Rosa and Beef
HBO Max is showing a variety of short films directed by women now. I want to share two of them. Rosa is the longer at about 30 minutes. Beef is a mere 11 minutes. These films give you a preview of interesting women directors to watch for.
Continue reading “Two interesting short films: Rosa and Beef”Review: My Name is Pauli Murray
My Name is Pauli Murray is a revelation. I was today years old when I found out how much influence she/they (more on gender in a bit) had on American life and on women and people of color. She was a trailblazer, a fighter, a visionary, a poet, a lawyer, a priest. Everyone should watch this documentary. It’s streaming on Prime Video.
Continue reading “Review: My Name is Pauli Murray”Review: The Planters, oddest movie you’ll ever love
The Planters is an eccentric indie movie made by two women working with no crew or help. It’s a story about socially lost outcasts who find each other and human connection. It’s streaming on Amazon.
Continue reading “Review: The Planters, oddest movie you’ll ever love”Review: Dear White People, season 4
Dear White People, season 4, stayed meaningful to the end with a musical wrap up of senior year for several of the main characters. Creator Justin Simien worked with a number of storylines and time jumps with his big ensemble cast of college students.
Continue reading “Review: Dear White People, season 4”Review: Back to Life, comedy from the UK, seasons 1-2
Back to Life tells a serious story in the British comedy style. It’s about a woman who spent 18 years in prison. She is trying to get her life back to normal. I saw it on Showtime, but I think it’s available elsewhere, too.
Continue reading “Review: Back to Life, comedy from the UK, seasons 1-2”Review: Good on Paper, liar liar
Good on Paper is a true story about a liar. The film comes from comic Iliza Shlesinger, who apparently experienced the liar in question. The film is a stand up routine about the guy, interspersed with a full movie illustrating the story in the stand up routine. That’s a new approach to storytelling, as far as I know. It’s available on Netflix.
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