El Marginal—No Boundaries
A tortuous viscous and extremely violent Argentine prison drama: well-crafted and attention-getting.
Month: July 2022
“Shining Girls”—A Time Machine
Shining Girls, an Apple TV+ thriller series, is based on the 2013 novel The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes. Totaling eight episodes, Shining Girls (released on April 29 of this year) also can be classified under the science-fiction genre.
In the opening scene a little girl, sitting on the front stoop of her house, is approached by a twenty-something adult male — a bit sinister and suspicious-looking — who engages in conversation. A beady-eyed cocky man with an easy slouch and a bloodless dead gaze, he leaves her with a small painted...
“The Staircase”—Entryway into Murder?
The Staircase (HBO Max released May 2022), loosely based on the 2004 French documentary by the same name, (see my October 2017 review of the Netflix documentary mini-series) dramatizes the death of wife Kathleen Peterson (Toni Collette), and the subsequent indictment and conviction for her murder by her husband, the novelist Michael Peterson (Colin Firth). All the features of a murder mystery are here: deflection, denial, confession, and motive.
Viewers who are fans of the true-crime genre will find this “inspired by a true story” mini-series to be even...
“Good Luck to You, Leo Grande”–Full Exposure
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, (Hulu, released on June 17), a two-actor comedic drama set in a hotel room, tells their story while having sex. There’s nothing fussy, nothing to distract. Human interaction of the most intimate kind–emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, and sensually– is the main theme here.
Nancy Stokes (Emma Thompson), a sixty-three year old, recent widow, has never had an orgasm in her 31-year marriage. Fearing that this may be her last chance to find out what she has been missing, she hires a young 24-year-old male...