Month: May 2026

Straight to Hell–The Devil Is in the Details

Written by Diana Paul on May 31, 2026. Posted in Series.

Straight to Hell (Japanese: Jigoku ni ochiru wa yo) is a 2026 drama about Kazuko Hosoki, Japan’s most famous psychic, and her highly controversial and questionable tactics. The title Straight to Hell is taken from her notorious warning: “You’re going straight to hell”. [Are there echoes here of another TV celebrity’s questionable persona...

The House of Spirits (2026)–Karma and Magical Realism

Written by Diana Paul on May 25, 2026. Posted in Series.

In this screen adaptation of the award-winning novel by Chilean author Isabel Allende, La casa de los espíritus, opens with Alba Trueba (Rochi Hernández), the granddaughter of a powerful, extremely wealthy landowner and mining magnate, grieving over her beloved grandmother, Clara del Valle Trueba (Dolores Fonzi). Spanning over half a...

The Cleaning Lady–Doctoring Crime

Written by Diana Paul on May 18, 2026. Posted in Series, Unhealed Wound.

In this four-season series based on an Argentine drama, The Cleaning Lady is not what she seems. Rather, she is an undocumented Cambodian doctor, Thony de la Rosa (Élodie Yung), a casino cleaner in Las Vegas. Not able to find other US employment to pay the medical costs for her young son’s autoimmune disease, she is living a very tenuous...

The Housemaid–Cleaning Up the Mess

Written by Diana Paul on May 11, 2026. Posted in Unhealed Wound.

Based on the titular blockbuster novel by Freida McFadden, The Housemaid opens with Millie (Sydney Sweeney of “Euphoria”) being interviewed by the uber-wealthy, perfectly coifed and shellacked Nina Winchester (Amanda Seyfried), in her perfectly immaculate mega-mansion. A homeless but romantic young ex-con on probation, Millie...

Imperfect Women–Embroidered Friendships

Written by Diana Paul on May 4, 2026. Posted in Series.

Based on the book of the same name by Araminta Hall, Imperfect Women stars a powerhouse trinity of actors: Kerry Washington (“Scandal) as Elaine, Elisabeth Moss (“Handmaid’s Tale”) as Mary, and Kate Mara (“House of Cards”) as Nancy. This is a murder mystery wrapped up in the fragile and torn package of friendship–one of the three...