Women Talking

Damn Sarah Polley wrote and directed Women Talking, a searing indictment of male and female relationships and the horror of the patriarchy. The story revolves around a religious sect. Does the action take place in the 1960’s or in the 2010’s? That confusion at least for me was on purpose. The timelessness of the piece allows you to focus on how this film reflects our own culture today? How do we as a society treat the 50.5% of the population who are female? What is the power dynamic that continues to prevail in our culture, and can women alone affect lasting change? We are living these questions out right now in real time as states strip reproductive rights from women and offer no options to unwanted pregnancies. Women are still mostly expected to raise children and give up careers. Women are expected to make less money, and do more if they do work outside the home. It’s a difficult tightrope walk that’s been going on for centuries. Women Talking addresses all of this and more. There’s only one male character in the film and he’s gentle and burdened with his own issues. All the other characters represent the spectrum of reaction to the patriarchal rule of this sect. It’s a microcosm of what’s going on today. Every day. The story is deeply disturbing. The film written and directed by Polley is luminous, full of quiet beauty. The drawings throughout the film are particularly worth noting. An easy 5 out of 5. A must-see.

Women Talking is currently available for a rental free from various streaming platforms and free on disk from your local public library.

Michelle Obama’s The Light We Carry

Finished reading Michelle Obama’s new book, The Light We Carry. The audiobook is amazing, read by the author. From my Goodreads review,

I have to begin by saying I loved “Becoming.” It was easily one of my favorite books the year it released and an all-time favorite memoir. So when “The Light We Carry” was announced, I wondered if I needed another Michelle Obama book. I thought I would give it a try and see. I got on our library’s wait list and bumped it up a few times, finally beginning to listen to her and hearing how she views the world. This isn’t a cookie cutter self-help book. It’s also not another memoir. Michelle shares with the reader what she’s learned, how she lives her life and why it’s so important to keep moving forward in a positive manner no matter the hatred, bigotry, or viruses that come our way. An amazing book. Perfect timing for me to listen after losing a friend to a stroke last month. We have a choice each day we wake up. We don’t always achieve perfection. I would say I nearly never do. But if my intentions are good and if I can steer myself back after some lows, I can live my life for love and with positive intention. There is so much work to do. We don’t read this book and that’s it. We read books like this to fuel our internal fire. And then we go out into the world and share a moment of goodness with others. And each light helps the world shine brighter and makes positive change a reality. So happy I read this book. Essential.

Yes, we need another book from Michelle Obama. Read it, listen to it, and feel hopeful. 5 out of 5.

Somebody Somewhere: Season 1 (take 2)

Second time around watching this pitch perfect series. Bridgett Everett and crew create a beautiful small town lost soul experience. So much connection and so much precision. Click here or on the image for the full review.

 

The Golden Girls: Ageless

Reelz Originals presents a new documentary, The Golden Girls: Ageless on the continuing love for Dorothy, Sofia, Blanche, and Rose. Under an hour, the show talks about the reasons we still worship this perennial favorite and all the ways fans share their love these days including a Golden Girls cruise, a new book, new merch, and even a significant place at the Comic Cons table. And not so surprising – 3 of the talking heads are gay men. So much fun realizing I’m not the only stan in the house. Narrated by Valerie Bertinelli who starred with Betty White in Hot in Cleveland, I give The Golden Girls: Ageless a 3 out of 5.

Watch The Golden Girls: Ageless on Tubi.TV for free.

 

David Berlin Eye: 1960 – 2023

David Eye and Philip Bahr (Reel Charlie) at the home of Teri Gibson and Barbara Salzman. 2014.

I can’t believe I am typing this post. One of my dearest friends, David Berlin Eye died this week at the age of 62. I’m still processing this. The details I have are a little foggy. But the details of his death don’t matter as much to me as the details of his life. David experienced so much in his life from serving in the military, to working as an actor in New York City, to getting his MFA in Poetry from Syracuse University, to numerous academic jobs over the years, to singing, to a chapbook and a book of poetry, to his roles as son, brother, uncle, cousin, and friend. David had a huge circle of friends. I was fortunate to be counted among them. I was also fortunate to have had lunch with him on New Year’s Eve day on his way from NYC to Provincetown. We met at a diner in Westport, CT. A woman seated at the table next to us leaned in as she was leaving and said, “I sure wish I could have sat with you two… you were having a much better time than my table.” It took me a day to remember that. But what a memory it is. David was in such a good place – challenged (in a good way) in his new job at Ohio Wesleyan, dating and always the romantic, and just enjoying his life. Is it sad he left with so much more to live for or okay because he left on such a high note? All I know is I miss him terribly. He and I met in 2006. He was in his second of a 3 year MFA program at Syracuse. I was there for my MSLIS – library Master’s. We instantly became best buds. We had orbited around each other for years without meeting, most notably in Hell’s Kitchen during the 1990’s when we lived two blocks from each other and were both in significant relationships. David visited Dennis and me in Connecticut the week before Thanksgiving 2021. I had already put up my Christmas decorations and tree as I usually do after my mid-November birthday. He joined us and our dear friends Nina and Joe Peri for a wonderful night of dinner and conversation. David  was so tickled about the early decorations, he gave me a gift this summer – a beautiful Carol Burnett ornament for my tree.

My Reel Charlie movie memories of David include a night of us watching Metrosexuality together years ago. We laughed so hard and talked about it so often, I bought him a DVD copy. The last time we spoke he was excited to see Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Also, I was listening to Shelby Lynne’s Just a Little Lovin’ today in memory of David who turned me on to her the year the album came out in 2008. Sublime.

I want to say to my readers, my friends, my family, to anyone who orbits my world – I love you all and hope we can take a moment and promise ourselves we will live and love each day because it’s precious and filled with so much potential. I personally am going to try to not bitch as much, and wake up every morning and say to my dog Daisy, “good morning, here’s to another blessed day together.

Learn more about David and his poetry. 
David’s family wishes donations be sent to Provincetown Fine Arts Work Center where he had a fellowship. 

We’re Here: Season 3, Episodes 5 & 6

I watched the final two episodes of We’re Here: Season 3, Florida: Episodes 5 & 6. I was blown away. This show has really found its lane. This season they are clearly using drag as a transformational tool, as a political tool, and as a celebratory tool. This two-part episode is not to be missed. I sobbed through the final 20 minutes of the season finale like nobody’s business. Remarkable use of drag to combat homophobia and transphobia in one of the most fucked up states in our country – Florida. The queens travel to Orlando and help a cis gender straight female high school teacher with a trans daughter, a cis gender women and trans woman who are celebrating 50 years of marriage, a 58 year-old closeted gay man living in The Villages (shudder) near his mother, and a young queer man who is a Pulse Nightclub shooting survivor struggling with PTSD. Each one of these stories is a powerhouse call to arms for all of us to rise up, stand up, shout, vote, educate, and support our LGBTQ family, friends, neighbors, and colleagues. This show really gives me joy. 5 out of 5 for this Season 3 double-dose ender. I will go back and watch the rest, I promise.

We’re Here currently streams on HBO Max..

Sort Of: Season 2

Sabi’s back for another season of growing pains – the Toronto non-binary Pakistani-Canadian nanny/bartender who craves deeper connections with all the people they love. Sort Of follows Sabi’s often awkward journey searching for meaning, love, and their place in the world around them. I had trouble with this season because of all the awkwardness, the affection towards inappropriate people, the social malaise. It was hard for me to take in spots. But as I eased into the season, I realized we all experience moments or lifetimes of these emotions and to insert them into a complex, intelligent 20-minute television series in-between the quiet is ridiculously brilliant Also, Sabi’s sister acts as a reflection of Sabi’s remnants of male privilege which shatter during a cemetery moment where they finally shed any final embodiment of cis male. Profound and humbling to watch. Bessy and Paul continue to be a total mess. The kids are so much more mature than the parents, a true slice of modern day parenting life. 7ven who was my favorite character in Season 1 annoyed the shit out of me in Season 2. I kept wanting her to grow up whatever that means. The show certainly made me laugh in places, but what it truly did was challenge my notions of what it means to move, live, and create in this modern world when you don’t fit in. Another beautiful season of Sort Of. So happy this show exists in 2022. 5 out of 5.

We’re Here: Season 1

The third season of the docuseries, We’re Here premieres this month on HBO Max. The title refers to a chant my generation created in the 1990’s – “We’re Here, We’re Queer, Get Used to It.” You can catch the first two seasons now. The premise is familiar. Three drags queens enter a small town and transform lives with their wisdom and performance. From HBO,

Follow renowned drag queens Bob the Drag Queen, Eureka O’Hara, and Shangela as they continue their journey across small-town America, spreading love and connection through the art of drag.

I enjoyed the two episodes I watched of the first season. It’s fun, breezy, peppered with conflict from the town, and all gets wrapped up by the end of the episode. It’s the way the entire world should be. And why not dream it. If we can imagine it, then it is possible. Yes, there are more than comparisons to Priscilla and To Wong Fo. Let’s face it, this is a result of RuPaul’s success and the granddaughter of both movies combined. But that’s not a bad thing. Every generation needs a bit of glitter and transformation to thrust them forward. Bravo to the girls of We’re Here. I only stopped watching because the young man in episode 3 broke my heart. I am sure his story ended well, but I just couldn’t sit through another gay man expressing internalized homophobia by following the teachings of a church that hates gays. If anyone’s seen the episode and knows it ends well, let me know. 3.5 out of 5.

We’re Here currently streams on HBO Max.

Abbott Elementary: Season 1

It took me a long time to really give in to loving Abbott Elementary. I appreciated its intelligence and timing from the get-go. I get why it won Emmys. It’s got a style similar to Parks and Recreation, and The Office which I never connected with. I stayed with it through the entire first season and at Episode 11, I finally laughed really hard out loud. It’s half hour bites, so this one is perfect for a quick watch after a long day. Great to unwind to. Wonderful cast, excellent acting, writing, and directing. 3.5 out of 5.

Abbott Elementary currently streams on ABC, HBO Max, Hulu, fuboTV, and YouTube TV.

Only Murders in the Building: Season 2

Only Murders in the Building gets better in Season 2. Part of me may have embraced this cozy mystery come to life or maybe the scripts and delivery just got better. Whatever the reason, I laughed out loud during every episode. Was shocked by many of the reveals. And had no idea who the killer was until the shocking finale. Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez hit their stride together giving us Jessica Fletcher in on her own jokes realness. Loved so many of the secondary characters including gasp! Shirley MacLaine, Ryan Broussard, Jackie Hoffman, Michael Cyril Creighton, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Andrea Martin. Steve Martin’s character’s arc is particularly smarty pants funny as they make fun of a mediocre 80’s TV star making a comeback. Martin Short delivers potty mouth one-liners that make us sing. And Selena Gomez continues her dead pan parody of an aimless, rich, Millennial. Truly a fun way to spend a Tuesday evening. Upping my score to a 4 out of 5.

Only Murders in the Building currently streams on Hulu.