Years and Years, Why Women Kill and The Terror:Infamy

My Top Three This Week 

Greetings to all my semi-constant readers. I have bee taking some time off this summer to travel and see shows and just enjoy the summer. Some of my top picks were Hamiliton (finally) and Patti Lupone one woman show " Don"t Monkey around with Broadway" , Robyn and the amazing Troye Sivan and in Deer Vally Utah the incredible Kristin Chenowith featuring songs off her upcoming album. And to top it all off Shanghai Disneyland. What a summer it was!

1) Years and Years on HBO is one of the most terrifying series on television now. This  limited years is a magnifying glass set on the not too distant future and it is an entirely too real . The story opens in 2019 with an unusual family  (the Lyons) in Manchester England and follow them for around 15 years that flip rapidly on screen. The events that seem to start  with the introduction of Viv Rook ( Emma Thompson ) who becomes a political figure that divides the nation not unlike Trump. The Lyons family struggles with gay marriage, deportation and the fall of financial institutions and a looming war. This feels like the events that we as a nation are running toward as we speak. Technology in this was a believable jump from today's. The cast featuring  Rory Kinnear, Lydia West, Maxim Baldry , Anne Reid and the amazing Russell Tovey will make you weep and laugh. A British series that I cannot praise enough.

2)  Why Women Kill streaming on CBS All Access is a little Desperate Housewives and Dynasty with a twist of Disney in technicolor . The series is a multi generational tale following three story lines  of three unhappy marriages from  the 60s, 80s and 2019. The wardrobes are fabulous, the set design- divine and the three actresses portraying the ladies in question are in every way ready to snap in the best possible way. Lucy Liu, Ginnifer Goodwin and Kirby Howell Baptiste are each the embodiment of their era as they deal with cheating spouses. And the men are perfect foils without being obvious villains. This is a fun watch

3) The Terror - Infamy is the second installment of this acclaimed series on AMC from Ridley Scott and this installment is even more interesting than the last to me. Set in 1940s California prior to Pearl Harbor and and the aftermath in small fishing village - Terminal Island in California where Japanese Americans lived peacefully until the infamous attack in 1941. The horrors that follow are not only because of World War II but a ghostly presence is inhabiting the villagers and on to the internment camps they are moved to. Based on true events with a supernatural twist. Our main character Chester Nakayama (Derek Mio) is in trouble with a college girl and his trouble escalates when his father gets interned following the Pearl Harbor attack. Something else is wrong- a spirit seems to be killing people - an Obake based on Japanese folklore. The cast is superb featuring The George Takai who also helped in an advisory fashion as well. The sense of dread that follows each scene is enhanced by the music and incredible cinematography .

Tales of the City, Pose and Wig

My Top Three This Week - PRIDE  Edition

Greetings to all my semi-constant readers. It is that time of year again. Pride season. And this special edition will highlight some of my favorites for 2019. Happy Pride everyone! Remember that it is not all rainbows and glitter. Many of us have lived through horrific decimation of our gay logical families and understand that everything we have been given can be taken away at any time. So as you are out there celebrating take a moment of those that are no longer with us. 

1) Armistead' Maupin's Tales of the City  screening on Netflix is a beautiful continuation of a most beloved series of books (and a personal favorite of mine) and the mini series that started it all on PBS. Mary Ann Singleton ( national treasure Laura Linney) is back at Barbary Lane for the 90th birthday celebration of Anna Madrigal (Olympia Dukakis). New characters are introduced and our favorites are brought back as Michael Mouse and Mary Ann and Brian and Shawna try to reconnect. And of course there is a mystery (there is always something mysterious surrounding Anna Madrigal! ) One of the most interesting is how Anna arrived at Barbary Lane and the beginnings of the first trans woman introduced into main stream tv.The San Francisco we see at that time was not an accepting place for trans folks and the Compton's Cafeteria Riot that preceded Stonewall by three years. Ellen Page as Shawna Hawkins is fantastic and Murray Bartlett as the newest incarnation of Michael seems to be the perfect fit. Watch them all and then watch this to see the perfect Tales of the City.

 2) Pose on FX should be considered the biggest jewel in Ryan Murphy's crown. This is the must see series for every community. Now in its second season it still soars when it portrays the lives and loves of the beautiful community in the underground balls in New York's bars. The separate houses vie for trophies for realness and all the categories of the lives they are unable to live out in the real world. Season two brings world of balls to a somewhat mainstream society via Madonna's smash hit Vogue. Embraced by everyone in straight bars and gay bars alike , Madonna owned it and it opened up doors for this dance sensation. The cast  ( Billy Porter, MJ Rodriquez, Dominique Jackson, Indya Moore and a host of others are the heart and soul  of this show. The real surprise should be no surprise is that Sandra Bernhard is stealing scenes as  Nurse Judy. Category Is : Family Realness.

3) Wig on HBO is the perfect documentary for the summer of a 50th anniversary of Pride. Based on the annual celebration of Wigstock which ran for 20 years. The legendary Lady Bunny started it all with a friend in 1984 and it ran for years. Look for all the footage of a very young Rupaul and a baby faced Bunny. It is a great snapshot of wonderful drag community and New York. And Bunny is bringing it back  for Wigstock 2.0 with a lot of the contemporary queens out today who have brought life into the New York scene . Lady Bunny has always been the heart of Wigstock and of New York in my opinion. I was lucky enough to dance with her when she deejayed at the Monster for Tea Dance recently. Watch closely and you sill see Varla Jean, Bianca Del Rio and all of your favs.

Pride Bonus: Euphoria on HBO is a darkly twisted story of a young Rue Bennett (Zendaya ) fresh out of rehab who befriends a young trans girl (Hunter Shafer) as they both grapple with their demons and the real hell of high school. The cast is all excellent including a young Maude Apatow, Eric Dane, Jacob Elordi and Angus Cloud. It ffeels like a darker more twisted 13 Reasons Why without a morality side tale. The characters just are they are with no apologies. It is hard to watch sometimes and hard to turn away.

Ma, NOS4R2 and Greta

My Top Three This Week

Greetings to all my semi constant readers! This going to be a great summer and a lot of favorites are returning and there is going to be some highly anticipated horror as well with IT and Midsommar. But until then i have a few of my new favs to share.

1) A crazy Octavia Spencer ! I am there! A crazy Octavia Spencer out for revenge - I am there with a bucket of popcorn! Ma out in theaters now has all the ingredients of a fast paced unpredictable thriller. The backstory can be a bit murky but I never minded one bit. A group of high school kids looking to buy liquor connect with a kindred spirit Sue Ann (Spencer) who not only supplies them with booze but offers her basement as party central. And they even call her Ma.The only big restriction is they must never go upstairs. Sounds too good to be true? It is. The terror builds as Ma starts stalking the kids and their parents for reasons that are slowly revealed. Great casting includes Allison Janney , Juliette Lewis and Missi Pyle. Jump scares and some true hand over the eyes moments make this the most satisfying film.

2) NOS4R2 a weekly series on AMC is already creeping me out and it has just started.Based on the fantastic book  of horror by Joe Hill ( who just happens to be Stephen King's son). The story begins with a young Vic McQueen ( Ashleigh Cummings) is struggling with her embattled parents. Her only way to deal is to hop on her motorbike and ride. During her rides she discovers a mysterious covered bridge. As she enters it she comes out in a different place each time and and in one instance,  she tries to find her dad's lost watch the bridge shows her where it is. A sort of interdimensional shortcut. Each outing leaves her weak and disturbed by her new powers. In this same time zone children are disappearing in many different towns and their parents are being murdered. Zachary Quinto is the elderly evil Charlie Manx who lures the missing children into his 1933 Rolls-Royce Wraith filled with Christmas presents and like our young Vic he crosses the shortcuts into other dimensions into place he stores the children called Christmasland where the children turn into  frightening creatures an Charlie Manx gets younger and younger looking with each kidnapped child.  He somehow senses that there is another traveler inhabiting his strange byways and that is how our story really takes off as young Vic and Charlie begin the battle. There is

nothing more frightening than turning the most sacred children's holiday into a horror story.

3) Greta yet another evil being is available for rent A young woman Frances ( Chloe Grace Moretz ) finds a purse on the subway train and delivers it to its owner- a lonely widow ( Greta) played perfectly by Isabelle Huppert. The two seem to form a mother daughter bond much to the chagrin of France's flatmate. She starts spending all her time with Greta , cooking and watching movies and as she becomes closer she starts to feel uneasy and discovers a cabinet full of identical purses to the one she found. She tries to sever ties with Greta. But SHE WILL NOT BE IGNORED ( sound like another famous stalker?)  The suspense builds as Greta quickly unravels . Such a taut thriller with a satisfying ending.

Dead to Me, What/If and Chambers

My Top Three This Week

Greetings to all my semi-constant readers. It is the ending of  an  era ( GOT) and the beginning of a yet undecided new one. Yet one thing remains constant and that is change. These may not change your life but a few hours of entertainment is worth a lot.

1) Dead to Me  screening on Netflix is probably one of the best series I have seen in months and  a dramatic side of Christina Applegate that we have yet to see. A recently widowed Jan Harding ( Applegate ) still mourning the death of her husband from a hit and run driver meets a friendly face at a grief support group ( Linda Cardellini) who breaks down her barriers and befriends her. All is not what it seems and neither are these two terrific leads as the story peels layers . James Marsden is also terrific as the smarmy ex fiance. #DeadtoMe

2) What/If is also a Netflix bingeworthy offering from the wonderful folks who brought us Revenge. Starring Renee Zellweger as the sinister investor of a young startup company in the medical stratosphere let by Lisa Donovan ( Jane Levy). The only caveat for this investment is for Donovan's young husband Sean ( Blake Jenner) to spend a night with The investor Anne Montgomery. Part Revenge and part Indecent Proposal this soapy thriller is a fun watch for the summer. #What/If

3) Chambers is another guilty pleasure. Netflix keeps churning them out. A young girl Sasha has a heart attack while having sex for the first time with her boyfriend and miraculously receives a heart transplant from a young girl miles away who dies under mysterious circumstances.The girl's parents played by Uma Thurman and Tony Goldwyn take Sasha under their wing with a scholarship and a car because they see a way to be closer to their daughter Becky. But along with all these gifts Sasha discovers she is developing some new personality traits. The eerie Arizona dust storms, Navaho mysticism and a sinister organization called The Annex run by the talented Lili Taylor seems to control the residents of Crystal Valley. Great actors in this surprisingly original series include Sivan Alyra as Sasha  and Marcus LaVoi as her uncle Big Frank and Kyanna Simone Simpson as her best friend Yvonne. #Chambers

Bonus : Wine Country on Netflix as well  is a dream cast and music soundtrack that could be the Summer of 2019 mixtape. Not the best use of the talent but I would watch anything that includes this supreme comedy troupe. #WineCountry

Fosse/Verdon, Game of Thrones and Special

My Top Three This Week

Greetings to all my semi constant readers. It has been a bit of a dry spell for entertainment but it seems the weather has changed and lots of good stuff coming in the pipeline. Here are a few highlights.

1) Fosse/Verdon on FX is a master class of acting with Michelle Williams as Gwen Verdon and Sam Rockwell as Bob Fosse as they take us through their very tumultuous  working and personal relationship, while making some of the classic films we know and love such as Cabaret. This series is influenced in part by executive producer  and their daughter Nicole Fosse . This gives an insider's view of the pain of creating art on film and theater. The genius of Bob Fosse the choreographer seems to have been greatly assisted by famed dancer Verdon during the filming and editing of Cabaret yet she remains uncredited while he goes on to win an Oscar. 

2) Game of Thrones. Final Season on HBO. I am savoring each episode like the tasty morsel that it is. I am on a GOT Fantasy League and I am anxious to see how it all ends. It is great as the first couple of episodes bring the characters together at Winterfell. One of the highlights is Jon finding his true birthright , Brienne of Tarth being knighted and Arya ... welll lets just say that she is no longer a virgin...

3) Special is not like anything else on Netflix. A semi-autobiographical series  written by and starring Ryan O'Connell as a young gay man with Cerebral Palsy as he finds a new job writing for an online publication and initiating his independence from his mother poignantly portrayed by the extremely talented Jessica Hect. O'Connell is hilarious and heartfelt often in the same scene. Shout out on of my favorites Punam Patel as his best friend and the most annoying boss ever Marla Mindelle.

Bonus: Bonding on Netflix is not for the feint of heart. The story of two best friends Tiff and Pete (Zoe Levin and Brendan Scannell) a post graduate who is moonlighting as a dominatrix who makes her shy broke best friend as her assistant. The results and the clients are hilarious and cringe worthy at the same time. a binge watch.