April 2022 Movies & More

April was not the cruelest month when it came to movies & more. I recommend a few miniseries ("The Dropout,""Bad Vegan," and "Selling Sunset") a Ken Burns gem on Benjamin Franklin and the last season of "Grace & Frankie." Numbering picks up from previous months and programs marked with an asterisk are ones I had not seen previously. The ranking go from 0-5, with 5 cans of tuna the top score.

44.  Title IX: 37 Words That Changed America* (2022, TBS) – To mark the 50th anniversary of the passage of the landmark legislation Title IX, star basketball player/analyst/Olympian/WNBA Champion Candace Parker produced an informative and interesting documentary on the law that made women’s sports viable in the US. Before Title IX, women athletes were treated like second-class citizens; remarkably, in many ways, despite the legislation, they still are. The 37 words in this bill made it illegal to discriminate against women engaged in any sport or activity sponsored by an institution receiving funding from the government. Parker traces her own story as the daughter of a woman who would have loved to play basketball, but whose high school did not field a girls basketball team. Thanks to the new rules, Candace played in high school, became the nation’s top recruit, played for legendary Pat Summitt at the University of Tennessee, won Gold Medals in the Olympics and championships in the now 26-year-old, WNBA. Interviews with key female figures in the sports world explain the significance of this change but all included here acknowledge that much remains to be done. 3 hoops.
45.  Benjamin Franklin* (PBS, 2022) – Founding Father Benjamin Franklin gets the Ken Burns treatment in this two-part look at the man who “invented” electricity and helped write the US Constitution. If that’s all you know about Franklin, you are in for a treat, because Burns trots out a parade of historians who flesh out the character and the accomplishments of Franklin. Rather than read about his career as a printer, a diplomat, a man who started a college and invented bifocals, just watch this thoughtful and informative program. Ken Burns’ programs, from the Civil War to Jazz to Baseball and the Brooklyn Bridge, will enrich your understanding of history and culture, and he has something for everyone, including this video biography of Benjamin Franklin. 4½ cans.
46.  The Dropout* (Hulu, 2022) – Elizabeth Holmes, the steely-eyed founder of Theranos, had a dream. A dropout after one year at Stanford, she envisioned creating a proprietary device that required only a single drop of blood to conduct hundreds of diagnostic tests. Adopting her version of Steve Jobs in looks and determination, she persuaded Silicon Vally investors and an all-star line-up of notable men (mostly older, powerful White guys) to back her company to the tune of $9 billion, making her the darling of Wall Street and science. But this is a tale of “fake it til you make it,” and the science could not support the Theranos claims. She stalled, insisting her machines worked, refusing to accept that the inaccurate data they collected led to the wrong results for patients. Amanda Seyfried plays Holmes brilliantly, emulating her adopted deep voice and sporting her Jobs-inspired black wardrobe. I have read a book about this case and have seen several documentaries about it, so this mini-series serves – I hope – as my last chapter of this endlessly fascinating story. I don’t think Holmes set out to defraud anyone; her device didn’t do what it was supposed to do and instead of admitting that, she put patients at risk for their health and investors at risk for their money. 4 drops of blood.
47. Under Suspicion* (2000, Netflix) – I don’t know how it is that I never heard of this movie with Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman. It is an intense triller, with high powered lawyer Henry Hearst (Hackman) hauled away from a charity fundraiser in San Juan to answer just a few questions by Police Captain Victor Benezet (Freeman) about the murders of two teenagers. What could the respected attorney have to do with these crimes, and why do his stories about them keep changing? Clearly, the wealthy attorney with his attractive much younger wife have something to hide, but is it related to these heinous crimes? Benezet keeps the pressure on and something’s got to give. 3½ cans.  
48.  Night Moves* (1975, Prime Video) – I wasn’t trying to watch a Gene Hackman film festival when I found this old gem of his, but I’m glad I did. Hackman is a seasoned private investigator named Harry Moseby who is hired by a fading actress to track down her runaway teenaged daughter Delly (Melanie Griffith in her movie debut). He follows the trail to Florida, where Delly is living with her stepfather and his current girlfriend. I would try to tell you the rest of the plot, which includes a crazy mechanic, boats, planes, shootings, the Coast Guard and lots of macho men. I felt better when I realized that Harry also didn’t know what was going on. Still, the tense mood and suspense make this drama worth trying to figure out. Hackman is so good here in a movie that he made in the prime of his storied career. 3½ cans.
49.  The Thing About Pam* (2022, NBC) – An unrecognizable Renee Zellweger (who also produced) is soda-swilling Pamela Haupp, friend to many, killer of some, in this fact-based limited series. As the best friend to dying Betsy Faria, Pam helps the process along when she stabs and kills Betsy in her home, leaving her for dead and building a credible case against Betsy’s husband Russ, who is convicted of the murder (it’s always the spouse, right?) despite his verifiable alibi. Since Pam is such a great friend, it makes sense that Betsy would have made her the beneficiary of her life insurance policy, bypassing her husband and two daughters, right? And Pam is going to set up a trust for the two girls, she insists. Do not believe everything you hear, especially out of Pam. But Betsy’s demise turns out to be only one of the crimes committed by the elusive Pam, who befriends the cops and DA on the cases until she kills off her own credibility. OK, that’s the summary, but watching this is tough because it plunges into campiness that distorts the reality of the crimes. Zellweger, a slight, spry actress, here appears in a fat suit, walking with a lumbering gait, her face distorted by prosthetics that make her look like a balloon in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. She is the face of evil, destroying everyone and everything in her wake as she goes for money from everyone. What a disgusting human being and what an odd portrayal. Still, once you start watching, it’s hard not to finish the story. 4 cans.
50.  Woman in Gold (2015, HBO) – Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds excel in this drama about the real-life Maria Altmann, whose family fled Austria in the wake of the German invasion in WWII. Before the Jews there could escape, the Nazis came into their house and stole the priceless artwork on their walls, including a portrait of Maria’s treasured Aunt Adele called “The Lady in Gold.” Years after the war, the painting wound up in Austria’s Belvedere Museum, where Adele had intended it to go, but Maria and her young California lawyer, Randy, contended that it was taken from the family illegally and should rightfully belong to Maria. Austria in more modern times became one of the countries engaged in restitution, but this painting by Gustav Klimt was considered the Mona Lisa of Austria and the museum officials refused to return it. The story of how Maria and Randy took on the seemingly impossible task is very well told, and Maria’s memories of living through that traumatic time, trying to flee Austria and remain alive demonstrate the resolve of the Jews in the face of Nazi terrorism. Kudos to Mirren, who is always good, and Reynolds, who is more known for light, comedic parts, for forming a perfect team. 4 cans.
51.  Bad Vegan* (2022, Netflix) – In yet another story of a real-life schemer, Netflix presents Sarma Melngailis, a successful New York restauranteur and cookbook author, the proprietor of Pure Food & Wine, an upscale, hot vegan restaurant. An Ivy League grad and with a degree in culinary arts, she established her restaurant, assembled a loyal staff and introduced New Yorkers like Alec Baldwin to healthy eating. Then she met Shane, an online friend of Baldwin’s, who won her over before they even met in person. And it was all downhill from there, as he convinced her that he had some magic power that would allow her and her beloved dog Leon to live forever. All she had to do was prove her trust in him – and keep wiring him large amounts of money (which she did). So maybe she was brainwashed or suffered emotional abuse by Shane, or Anthony, his other name, but at some point, she knew that large amounts of money were being siphoned off from the still successful restaurant and that employees and investors were not getting paid what they were owed. You cannot make this stuff up. I found myself yelling at the TV to get her attention. Shane/Anthony stole her passwords, set up fake personas and even swindled Sarma’s mother out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. You either like these stories or you don’t. I find them addictive and I can’t stop watching. In the ultimate irony, the couple, on the lam from authorities, are captured because he charged a pizza from a Dominos in Tennessee. Bad vegan, very bad vegan! 4 cans.
52. The Grand Seduction* (2013, Prime Video) – Relax, it’s not what you think. Tickle Head, a small harbor community in Newfoundland, needs a doctor. Not that there is an abundance of sick people, but the town is a dying fishing village and the only way to get work is to lure a plastics company into building their business in the sleepy hamlet. But the company that is considering locating there requires that a local doctor be available. So, when a young doctor (Taylor Kitch) gets into a “situation” at the nearby airport and is required to stay for a month, the townspeople, led by Murray (Brendan Gleeson) are out to win him over (hence the seduction in the title). They pretend to be fans of cricket because young Dr. Lewis loves the sport. They go to great lengths to endear themselves to the doc in hopes of getting him – and then the plastics company – to sign a deal. This is a quirky little movie with considerable appeal that reminded me of the TV shows “Men in Trees” and “Northern Exposure.” If you like odd people with a lot of heart, this one’s for you. 3 cans.
53.  White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch* (2022, Netflix) – I know so little about this brand and its retail stores that I didn’t realize they had a rise and fall. Sure, I passed their very hip-looking stores in the mall, but I never thought the preppy brand that outfitted the coolest of the cool White teenagers and college kids was for me. It turns out, it wasn’t. Using good-looking “All-American” types (as in “no people of color wanted here”) as models and staff, the brand targeted the space somewhere in between the racier Calvin Klein and the ultimate preppy Ralph Lauren with clothing that was clean, cool and not quite as expensive. CEO Mike Jeffries was crystal clear in defining the brand and restricting it to those people who fit the image. The company was taken to task for its outrageously insulting anti-Asian T-shirts that perpetuated stereotypes and later for its failure to hire Black and other minorities for positions of substance. This documentary also portrays the how homoerotic photography by renowned photographer Bruce Weber, pictures of partially clad, beautiful men that graced the walls of their stores and those huge shopping bags, helped market the clothes to heterosexual men. You can’t help cheering at the “fall” part of the story, where A&F makes token changes but never really gets the message about its racism. 3½ cans.
54.  Anatomy of a Scandal* (2022, Netflix) – I’m getting my money’s worth out of Netflix this month. I sat down and watched the entire 6 episodes of this juicy melodrama in one day. James Whitehouse (Rupert Friend) is a member of the British Parliament, a strikingly handsome man with a loving wife Sophie (Sienna Miller), young children and a charmed and privileged life. His best mate is British Prime Minister Tom Southern (Geoffrey Streatfeild), with whom he shared Brett Kavanaugh-type adventures while studying at uni. When Olivia Lytton (Naomi Scott), a member of his House staff, first reveals they had an affair and then accuses him of raping her in the “lift,” his wife doesn’t know whom to believe since she also observed some questionable behavior when they were students. Michelle Dockery plays Kate Woodcroft, the prosecuting attorney (complete with wig), who lays out a compelling case against James, but his attorney Angela (Josette Simon) is confident he can beat the rap. The layers of the onion just keep unpeeling in this intriguing tale of lust and trust. Sienna Miller is perfection as the loyal but troubled wife. 4 cans.
55.  Have You Seen this Man?* (2022, Hulu) – Chances are that you haven’t. But neither have the US Marshals or the FBI. John Ruffo looks like a man who would blend into any background, not quite the picture of a conniving thief who pulled off a heist of $350 million. Without going into the details (see the movie for that), Ruffo’s computer business and partnership with a man who purported to be a Philip Morris executive (a client of the computer company) perpetrated the swindle and, just as Ruffo was about to be jailed, he disappeared. I have got to start watching Hallmark movies or something different than these mini-series I am addicted to about con men (and women). By the way, Ruffo’s abandoned wife, who lost her home, would also like to know if you have seen him. He has been on the FBI’s Most Wanted List since he vanished in 1998. Talk about a cold case! 3 cans.
56.  Selling Sunset, Season 5* (2022, Netflix) – With episode titles like “Bad Bitches Don’t Cry” and “Sabotage in Stilettos,” this Netflix reality series is not exactly PBS fare, but it is MY guilty pleasure. I scarfed down all 10 episodes of Season 5 in a single day and now look forward to the upcoming Reunion episode on May 6. The series is about a luxury real estate agency in California, owned by twin brothers and staffed by mini-skirt-clad women in impossibly high heels who dish more dirt about each other than you will find on the manicured lawns of the properties they sell. No need for details here; and as off-putting as it is to watch women fight with each other, there’s a fair degree of sisterly support here, too. I’m not proud of this viewing choice, but I’m hooked. 4½ pairs of stilettos.
57.  The Rose Maker* (2022, movie theater) – Eve runs a failing rose business in this lovely French film. It was a family business, and though she is running out of money, she is desperate not to sell it to a competitor who thinks of the roses as only a way to make money. The blossoms are her passion. Her faithful assistant finds three people living in a shelter who Eve trains to work with her to hybridize the roses and even to do a few things that aren’t quite legal. Prepare to read the movie unless you are fluent in French (four years of high school French did me no good here). The roses are beautiful; the movie is slow but sweet. 3 roses.
58. WeCrashed* (2022, Apple TV+) – I seem to have a penchant lately for series about failing businesses (see “The Dropout,” “The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch” and even the movie listed above, “The Rose Maker”). Jared Leto looks completely different here than he looked in “The House of Gucci” as he plays egotistical Adam Neumann, who founded the fast-growing and fast-failing WeWork. The business started as a company providing shared workspace, but that was not exactly what Neumann envisioned. It grew into the largest holder of rented real estate in New York City in the last decade. Neuman wanted “We” essentially to take over people’s lives, first by offering them a shared office space, then encouraging socialization and fun – when did anyone actually do any work there? – and eventually funding the passion project of his wife, Rebekah (Anne Hathaway), who headed WeGrow, a holistic, artsy-craftsy elementary school (that lasted less than two years). Neuman could not accept any limits on the company’s growth, snapping up properties and expanding so much that huge loans from banks and investors were the only way to sustain the business. Somehow people like Neumann and Elizabeth Holmes from “The Dropout” manage to entice otherwise conservative banks to fund them, but hubris and arrogance don’t always yield profits. Like so many series I have seen lately, this story could have been told in fewer episodes. I knew the story from having watched a documentary on WeWork but it was worth seeing Leto and Hathaway in action. 3½ cans.
59.  Grace & Frankie, Season 7* (2022, Netflix) – It was bittersweet watching the last 16 episodes of this series about friendship and love among eccentric characters. Grace (Jane Fonda) and Frankie (the incomparable Lily Tomlin) start out as wives dumped by their husbands (Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston) – who have been cheating on them with each other. The women end up sharing a beach house, lots of adventures, plenty of martinis and pot, and a deep and genuine friendship. There are tangents that go off into the absurd and characters who aren’t always likeable but almost always rich in texture and experience. Season 7 is the final one of the series, but no spoilers here. I’ll just say that I would welcome these people back on the screen any time. 4 cans.

Good Friday Bits & Pieces

I wish “skinny jeans” lived up to the promise of their name.

I have succumbed to the current Wordle craze where you have to guess a daily 5-letter word. You get 6 shots at it, and the game tracks how successful you are. I think of it as a brain exercise – the same reason I watch “Jeopardy” and shout out the answers (some right, others so completely wrong). One thing I refuse to do is to bore the rest of the world by posting my score. Why do people think the rest of us care? At this stage, I need to keep my brain sharp. I know the info is in there somewhere, but with layers of useless information clogging the file cabinet of my mind (all of the lyrics for “Along Comes Mary,” for one), it is harder to pop the right answers to the forefront. Maybe this helps?

I get periodic emails from Consumer Reports telling me that I am “eligible” to subscribe. “Eligible?” As in “send us the money and we send you the magazine?” Who would NOT be eligible? Do they think I feel privileged to get this offer? No, thanks.

You know you’re getting old when, following the mandatory medical discussion that takes place every time my friends and I gather, one of the women whips out a blood oxygen-pulse meter from her purse. BTW, I have a great oxygen score. All those years of not smoking was the right choice.

How can the voicemail box at my doctor’s office be full? I called to make an appointment, was bumped to voicemail without any options and could not leave a message. This is unacceptable. I don’t like it when a friend’s voicemail box is full, but not being able to reach my doctor is dangerous.

I no sooner got home from a medical exam when the survey about my visit arrived as a text on my phone. I don’t want to do a survey on my phone, if at all. Send it to my email, where I can deal with it on a full-sized keyboard. 

I wish the doctor spent as much time looking at me and checking me out as her office spends on sending me messages thanking me for making an appointment, telling me how much she is looking forward to seeing me and then, after the appointment, thanking me for showing up. I also don’t need email, text AND voicemail reminders that my appointment is coming up.

I noticed that the doctor’s office now divides pens into two categories – clean & dirty. But the clean ones are right next to the dirty ones, and I’m thinking the germs could mingle. Besides, are the pens labeled as clean actually clean? Who cleans them? How often? Or once that collection is gone, do they just move the so-called dirty ones to the clean pile?

And finally on the subject medical issues, the idea of seeing a doctor virtually when you need to be checked out in person is ridiculous. Mine had me feeling around and looking for things I could not identify. Isn’t that her job as my doctor? 

I found a container of Turkey Hill Ice Cream in ShopRite called “Mystery Flavor.” Does “Dateline” make ice cream?

I can’t believe that my 50th college reunion is coming up in June. I still feel like I am in my 50s (except for the falling apart medical stuff), so how can it be 50 years since I left the hallowed halls of Douglass? I must be having fun because time sure did fly!

I keep seeing promos for the new Kardashians show. Since I never watched one minute of the old show, this is one I’ll skip for sure. But what is the fascination with these people? Do I actually have any friends who watch their shows? Please self-identify so we can have a discussion about what is wrong with you.

Why is it that we can be overwhelmed or underwhelmed but we are never whelmed?

Why is there a South Orange, West Orange, East Orange and Orange in New Jersey but no North Orange? There is also New Brunswick, North Brunswick, East Brunswick and South Brunswick, but no Old Brunswick, West Brunswick or just plain Brunswick.

Why are there superintendents but no intendents? How can supers be better when there is nothing beneath them?

Why do suction cups that have adhered to the wall forever randomly decide they can stick no more and fall off? 

Why is the word “brain” one syllable but the name “Brian” is two syllables?

Don’t you hate biting into a hard-boiled egg and hearing that crunchy sound because you left a tiny piece of the shell on it? 

I was feeling bad that I could not think of the word “jughandle” recently, but then two friends told me that they had to Google the word “romaine” when they couldn’t recall the name of that kind of lettuce, and I felt better.

Remember when we had to check the clock before making a long-distance phone call?  It used to be that calls were cheaper on the weekend and at certain times, so we could call my uncle in California to discuss the weather and what time it is there (do the math, Mom & Dad; it’s always 3 hours earlier in California – and sunny!).

I think Alexa and I are going through a rough patch. I fell asleep watching the men’s NCAA National Championship basketball game and woke up the next morning at 4 AM with the light and TV on, not knowing who won. So, I asked Alexa, “Who won the basketball game between North Carolina and Kansas last night?” She gave me the wrong answer – twice – which I only knew because I turned on ESPN, where I was shocked see Kansas celebrating! Then I asked her the temperature, which she promptly answered. But she neglected to tell me it was raining until I asked her, “Is it raining?” and she said it was. Come on, girl!

Alexa also has a new routine, insisting on telling me not only the weather report in the morning, but also reporting on the traffic for my daily “commute.” I don’t know where she thinks I am going, but I need to break it to her that I am retired, rarely leave the house during rush hour, and don’t know where she is sending me.

I really don’t like using the self-service checkout at the supermarket. The area is too small, I don’t like looking up the code for bananas, I always have a problem in the bagging area, etc. I generally don’t mind waiting in line for a real cashier. But I always seem to be on the line when a new register opens and the people behind me flock there (I would do the same thing), so I’m still stuck waiting. And yes, this should be my biggest life problem.

I was watching a pleasant telecast of the Oscars when a boxing match broke out. Or, more accurately put, when actor Will Smith walked up on stage and smacked comedian Chris Rock in the face for his tasteless joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett, who suffers from alopecia. I think Rock gets away with a lot because he exudes a boyish kind of charm, but Smith, noting that his wife took obvious umbrage, decided to storm the stage and then proceed to utter a stream of obscenities at Rock. The telecast went on while witnesses to the assault sat stunned in the audience and in their homes. Smith was not asked to leave and later he received a standing ovation when he won the Oscar for Best Actor in “King Richard” (well-deserved, but that’s not the point). Smith issued an apology to Chris Rock the next day, but the entire incident was so badly handled. He also apologized to everyone EXCEPT Rock in his acceptance speech. It would have been better to take a moment to cast light on alopecia and its effect of the people who live with this condition. He initially laughed at the joke and only rose up to defend his wife when she shot him a look. Violence is unacceptable in any form, and Smith’s explanation that “love makes people do crazy things,” sounds too close for comfort to excuses for domestic violence. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences subsequently stripped Smith of his membership and banned him from the Oscars for 10 years, so don’t look for him on next year’s telecast handing out the Oscar for Best Actor/Actress. I’m sure he’s chastened by his outburst, but we don’t need displays of toxic masculinity.

And one more Oscar thing – The “In Memorium” tribute to those people in the movie business who have passed away since last year was accompanied by singing and dancing that was totally inappropriate for the solemnity of the moment. They should just hire me to run the whole show.





 

March 2022 Movies & More

March is full of Madness, but there is always time for movies (and more).  All are rated on a scale of one to five cans of tuna fish (Bumble Bee only!) and the ones marked with an asterisk are ones I had not seen previously. Numbering picks up from the last month.

31.  The Gilded Age* (2022, HBO) – This may not be Jullian Fellowes’ best work, but how could he top Downton Abbey? It is before the turn of the century in New York City, when you could still buy a parcel of land and build a magnificent mansion, beautifully decorated and staffed with uniformed footmen and a French chef – and STILL not be accepted into society. Instead of upstairs and downstairs, the conflict here is with the old moneyed society people who still look down on the nouveau rich, whose resources may be greater but their lineage inferior. Christine Baranski plays the haughty Mrs. Van Rhein, a doyenne of society whose home sits across the street from the new mansion built by railroad magnate Mr. Russell and his social-climbing wife, desperate to get into the upper crust of NYC society. The “action” takes place before the turn of the 20th century (one episode included a display by Thomas Edison, lighting up the streets of New York with his new light bulbs), with horse-drawn carriages providing transportation. This was a time when the term “coming out” referred not to declaring one’s sexual orientation but for a young woman to make her debut into society at a grand soiree. As I said, it isn’t Downtown Abbey, but with the witty repartee (Baranski is the Maggie Smith of the show), those exquisite sets and costumes, this franchise is bound to have a long run. One thing I know for sure – bustles do no one any favors. 4 cans.
32.  I Want You Back* (2022, Prime Video) – Things get complicated when two couples break up. She (Jenny Slater) loves her boyfriend and isn’t taking the breakup well. He (Charlie Day) thought that his girlfriend was “the one” and resents that she has moved on with someone else. The whole thing gets more complicated through lies and it is really not worth waiting to see who winds up with whom. By the end, I was sure I never want any of these people back. 1½ cans.
33.  Colin in Black & White* (2021, Netflix) – Long before he was excoriated as a traitor to the US for voicing his opinion of racial injustice by merely kneeling during the National Anthem, Collin Kaepernick was a talented young athlete proficient in football, baseball and basketball. He dreamed of a chance to play quarterback at the top college level and go on to the NFL. This story is told from a unique perspective, with Kaepernick himself watching the portrayal of himself and commenting on the situation. Adopted by a well-meaning white couple in California, Kaepernick, who is Black, experiences every microaggression you can imagine happen routinely to Black people. It must be exhausting. This limited series takes us up to Collin’s acceptance into the University of Nevada, setting up a second season or even more so we can see how he became an outspoken activist. Kudos to Ana DuVernay and the entire production for taking this perspective and showing the world how Black people are treated. 3½ cans.
34.  Lucy & Desi* (2022, Prime Video) – Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz made history for their classic TV comedy, “I Love Lucy,” but this story is about more than that. Lucy was a tough woman, but she had a real soft spot for Desi, who drank too much, worked too much and chased too many women. One thing that was never in doubt: They loved each other until the very end, despite divorcing and enjoying long marriages to other partners. Their success includes not just their own show – which they created and developed – but their producing many other popular shows, such as “Star Trek” and “The Untouchables,” which they helmed at their Desilu Studios. Ultimately, Lucy became the head honcho, the first woman to head a Hollywood studio. But if not for Desi, none of us would be watching “I Love Lucy” 70 years after it first aired, because he was the one who insisted it be filmed so it could be preserved. Thanks for the reruns! This touching portrait of the Arnaz family was directed with love by comic actress Amy Poehler, and you can just tell she loved Lucy, too. As Desi says at the end, “I Love Lucy was never just a title.” Pass the hankies. 3½ cans.
35.  The White Shadow (1978-80) – I happened to catch a marathon of episodes of one of my favorite TV shows when the drama series aired on the Decades channel. Ken Howard plays a former NBA player who takes over as basketball coach at an inner-city high school in Los Angeles. The players lack focus and have to deal with all kinds of outside influences, but this show is more about life lessons than basketball – without being preachy. The kids are good players with dreams and problems, not all of which are solved in an hour on screen. Several of the young stars went on to be very successful directors (Kevin Hooks, Thomas Carter and Timothy Van Pattern of “The Sopranos” among them), reflecting on the creativity and skill of this cast and production. The series had not been available on air for years, so I relished seeing many of the episodes after such a long break. Besides, it’s March Madness, when all things turn to basketball! 4 basketballs and a hoop.
36.  Windfall* (2022, Netflix) – Jason Segal (no one in the cast has a name, so I’ll just refer to the actors who appeared) breaks into the stunning vacation home of a wealthy tech CEO, not knowing whose home it is, and is unexpectedly confronted by the man and his wife (Jesse Plemmons and Lily Collins). There is plenty of tension as the inept home invader more or less holds the homeowners hostage while he waits for the money promised him by the CEO to arrive. While the couple seems solid, there are underlying issues, and by the end of this slow-paced semi-thriller, you’re not sure who is the bad guy. 3½ cans.
37.  Rescued by Ruby* (2022, Netflix) – Rudy the rescue dog and Dan the cop have plenty in common. They are both lovable but a little goofy, underachievers but with good hearts and intentions. He wants to be on the K9 Squad, but Ruby is more interested in running through the house and ripping up pillows. A bunch of families have already returned Ruby to the animal shelter, but just when the end is near, Dan the Man shows up and takes her home so he can train her for the K9 squad. It turns out that he needs Ruby as much as Ruby needs him. This movie is a little more saccharine than most that I watch, but it is also sweet and earnest – and based on a true story. The plot is very easy to follow and guess, but sometimes I need a light movie that doesn’t challenge my mind. Easy entertainment. 3 cans.
38.  Deep Water* (2022, Hulu) – She likes to take on new lovers in spite of the fact that she’s married. He doesn’t seem to mind, but when they turn up dead, maybe he did mind after all? Ben Affleck is a very wealthy man with a hot wife. He wants to keep the family together despite her (Ana De Armas) peccadillos for the sake of the daughter they seem to largely ignore. When a friend (Tracy Letts) becomes suspicious of the coincidental deaths of “friends” of the wife, he starts on a dangerous mission. There is plenty of tension, sexual and otherwise, in getting to the bottom of this story. 4 cans.
39.  Four Good Days* (2020, Hulu) – Those four days are not so good for desperate drug addict Molly (Mila Kunis), who has been through rehab 13 times. But to get through her latest program, she cannot use drugs for four more days, after which time she will get an injection that will keep her from getting that high for a month. Her exasperated mother Deb (Glenn Close) has thrown her out of the house – repeatedly – but once again comes to her rescue to keep her clean for four good days, until she can get that shot. This is a harrowing picture, extremely well played by Kunis in particular, that dramatically illustrates the way addicts live their lives. Not exactly a charmer, but a good story. 3½ cans.
40.  Long Story Short* (2021, Netflix) – You have heard of someone having a short memory? Well, for Teddy (Rafe Spall), time is flying by and he has no memory of events from one year to the next. He wakes up the day after his wedding day and finds his wife planning to celebrate their first anniversary. He also finds that she is visibly pregnant, much to his surprise. Each day he wakes up and another huge block of time has gone by, and along with it, major changes in his life have taken place. He loves his wife and family and wants to slow things down and experience life with them. This movie is part time-travel, part fantasy and part feel-good – something like the opposite of “Groundhog Day” where every day is the same. Don’t be a procrastinator like Teddy: Go out there and enjoy every moment. 3 cans.
41.  The Great Debaters* (2007, Prime Video) – Tiny Wiley College was a predominantly Black college in Texas back in 1935 with an accomplished debate team, led by Professor Melvin B. Tolson (Denzel Washington, who also directed the film). The professor chose the best of the best to be on his debate team and imposed his rule on each of the students. This story has the predictable challenges, the rise, fall and rise of the team that follows other movies about competition – sports or otherwise – but this one has another major component that complicates life for the debaters. Texas was riddled with racism, not by people wearing white hoods, but by the everyday citizens who opposed and abused Black people in every possible way, including lynchings. Tolson was working behind the scenes to organize the local sharecroppers into a union, something to which the local townsfolk and law enforcement objected vehemently. To see the debaters rise above the competition is thrilling, and the lessons learned here are important ones. If you rent it, stick around for the credits to see what happened to the team members after they graduated from college. 3½ cans.
42.  The Weekend Away* (2022, Netflix) – There’s nothing like a girls weekend with your best buds. Here Beth (Leighton Meister) and Kate (Christina Wolfe) finally reunite for some much-needed time together in Croatia. Kate, divorcing her husband, just wants to have fun, while new mother Beth isn’t interested in doing anything wild. It’s all fun and games until somebody ends up dead. Beth is left to figure out what happened in a strange country where the only familiar faces are those of the landlord in the place Kate rented for them and the taxi driver who drove her there from the airport and later to a bar with Kate. This is an intriguing mystery that led down some unexpected paths. There are times you want to question some of the plot, but I overlooked the parts that were hard to accept in favor of just letting the story be told. 3½ cans.
43. The Outfit* (2022, in the movie theater) – This suspense story would make a great stage play. It is tightly constructed and the action takes place in one location. Mark Rylance is Englishman Leonard, a cutter (not a tailor, he insists), a craftsman who makes bespoke suits for gentlemen in his tiny Chicago shop. He is exacting and precise in his movements as he creates beautiful clothing and minds his own business, despite some unsavory looking men who come into the shop and drop off envelopes in a box that Leonard ignores. Rylance is quietly mesmerizing as he does his work without comment or interference in whatever this gang of well-dressed criminals is doing. But when things go wrong and two of the members of “The Outfit” end up in his shop on a desperate mission, he is forced to use guile and guts to survive, along with his receptionist (Zoey Deutch). This thriller is the opposite of the murder mystery “Death on the Nile,” with no gorgeous locations, dazzling sets or stunning clothes (though the suits bespoke for themselves, so to speak). The plot is mysterious, and each action, like each stitch in the making of a suit, is carefully made and delivered. Well crafted. 4 cans.