'Ask Dr. Ruth' A Review

Ask Dr. Ruth is a documentary about the life of sex therapist Ruth Westheimer. The film follows Dr. Ruth as she fulfills her myriad of obligations and connects with friends and family cut with present-day interviews as well as archival footage and animated sequences that delve into her childhood in Europe around WWII, post-war time in Israel, and her move to the US and the development of her career.

Anyone aware of Dr. Ruth knows about her infectious positivity and boundless energy but this portrait delves deeper into her tragic and challenging background and into her sexual and social progressiveness. Much like last years Won't You Be My Neighbor? this is a sincere and honest film about a cultural icon who made a point of doing good and helping others and has succeeded, and in this case continues to. Amongst the many aspects of her life and work that are impressive so is her stamina and ability at 90, still busy and seemingly fully scheduled.

An inspiring, moving, bio-doc celebrating a cultural figure for their courage, openness and foresight with sexual health and politics. Advocating not for polarization but for self-love and understanding.

See It.

'Meeting Gorbachev' A Review

Meeting Gorbachev is a documentary by Werner Herzog, a series of conversations between Herzog and final president of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev cut with archival footage of his life and political career.

Although not particularly flashy cinematically and without the typical roiling existential insights of Herzog's documentaries the film still delivers something unique and refreshingly open-minded. It is a relatively straightforward and positive portrait of one of the most prominent leaders of the late 20th century that has mostly been sidelined, demonized, and/or diminished by the industrial West.

Herzog brings the same openess and curiosity he brings to all his subjects and Gorbachev is amiably game to share his prospective of and vision for the Soviet Union as a nation and within the geo-political community. And the result is fascinating and certainly offers a balm, blue print, and implicit warning regarding our current international political situation.

Not a rousing piece of cinema but an engaging one and perhaps required viewing given our current political situation.

See It.

Ever-Shifting Success

At 13 my highest achievement
was scoring a goal in soccer

At 15 it was surreptitiously
borrowing my parents car

At 17 landing the lead
in the school play

At 20 the rare occasion
of getting laid

At 24 ascending
the vaulted improv comedy ladder

At 26 avoiding the mounting legal
and personal troubles begat by unchecked addiction

At 30 sobriety

At 34 friends, family,
simple pleasures, and responsibilities fulfilled

'Long Shot' A Review

Long Shot is a romantic comedy about Secretary of State Charlotte Fields(Charlize Theron) who after being told by President Chambers(Bob Odenkirk) that he will not seek reelection and endorse her candidacy embarks on an international environmental treaty tour that she plans to culminate in her resignation and candidacy announcement. At the same time Brooklyn journalist Fred Flarsky(Seth Rogen) quits his job at a local newspaper after it is bought by corrupt media mogul Parker Wembly. His best, significantly more successful, friend Frank(O'Shea Jackson Jr.) takes on him on a conciliatory night out and the two, who knew each other as teens, reconnect at a charity event. Charlotte hires Frank as a speech writer and the two reconnect and a romance kindles.

Theron brings her customary charm, magnetism, and breadth of emotion and her typically underutilized comedic chops which are substantial. Rogen plays a version of the affable-fast-talking-stoner archetype which he helped create and it works as it almost always does to a degree. He is, as always funny, but with his age he's able to bring some maturity and dimension to this character which we have mostly seen before. The big surprise is the chemistry the two have, easy and disarmingly heartfelt, and the real issues that the story has the burgeoning couple contend with. There is some actual catharsis and romance in there between some pretty over the top hilarious scenes, traded between both Theron and Rogen at their center, arguably the best scene is an extended party sequence with the two which culminates with Theron, high on moly, in a hostage negotiation. The supporting cast are all exceptionally solid with some real fun pops of character, most notably Jackson as Rogen's exuberant, infectiously positive best friend and June Diane Raphael as Theron's delightfully dry and skeptical chief of staff.

Like many comedies the cinematography doesn't appear to be a top priority however there are a number of sequences that really stun- a montage at the beginning showing Charlotte's overwhelming schedule, the club sequence, and an insurgent attack, among others. That coupled with an absolutely incredible soundtrack with some juicy nostalgia tracks and some current hits all weave together seamlessly to create something captivatingly modern.

The narrative also includes some political satire and gender commentary which feel somewhat understated but because of that feel particularly effective. There are some critisisms that, once again, we have a beautiful women and a scruffy man as romantic partners however at the very least some typical tropes have been swapped. Theron's character is older and successful, Rogen's character is the defacto manic-pixie-dream-girl. This plays more like a funnier and more ambitious gender swapped The American President rather than something regressive.

Startlingly funny, stylish, with impeccable leads.

See It.

'Wild Nights With Emily' A Review

Wild Nights With Emily is biographical comedy about the life but more so the love of poet Emily Dickinson and her sister-in-law Susan Dickinson. The film uses a lecture by Mable Todd(Amy Seimetz), editor of Emily's work posthumously, as a framing device to cut back to Emily's life as a teen and how her and Susan fell in love with the bulk of the story showing Emily(Molly Shannon) and Susan(Susan Ziegler) as adults.

This film in general is an interesting companion piece to the substantially more reserved and straightforward A Quiet Passion, but it is even more intriguing to put Shannon's driven yet playful, opinionated yet approachable version of Emily up against Cynthia Nixon's more tragic and austere portrayal. They functions as sides of the same coin, as do the two films in conjunction, framing the life of the famous poet in different ways: one a yearning isolated woman-out-of-time and the other a mostly happy independent lesbian woman semi-closeted by the time in which she lived. Shannon gives an incredible amount of heart, wit, and grace to the role conveying the writing of and obsession with poetry very effectively given how difficult and vague that can be, giving one of the best performances of the year and the latest in her late career renaissance. Ziegler also gives a steady and grounding sense of reality to this woman and to the relationship which she's in. Seimetz as the other sizable role is fun, funny and manipulative, and justly, isn't given as much dimension as the couple at the center of the narrative.

The real triumph of the film though is it's multifaceted and melodic tone- moments of hilarious absurdity and abstract artistry are perfectly balanced with an overall grounded reality that is engaging and believable and never steers into the typical period piece trap of distant formality. Clearly on a small budget the cinematography is mostly serviceable but there are a couple moments of awkward framing and editing but overall the film has such vitality that is easily are overlooked. There are also a number of clearly fake props but this is mostly played for symbolic and comedic effect, at times it is unclear what is intentional, and this far from being distracting plays into the delightful chameleonic personality of the film.

Many of the Dickinson's poems are shown as text on screen, recited between characters, or in a few sequences conceptually performed. It's an inspiring celebration of poetry and one of it's greatest practitioners as well as an elegant portrait of a 19th century feminist icon.

Don't Miss It.

Engagement

When I heard people say
"I love them more every day"
I thought it hyperbolic
or even outright fabrication
but after years I discover
a truth more poignant than fiction
love is not a line
straight, uniform and rigid
but a flowing, blooming, looping thing
that crests and ebbs
but always grows
and from time to time wonder
like a flash of lightening
reveals a previously uncharted
reservoir of feeling
and these revelations compound
each one upon the last
and I realize, yes
I love you more every day
and that is not platitude or flattery
but bone-deep and resonate certainty.

Boundless Content

The problem with streaming
are it's two greatest assets-
convenience and limitlessness-
the intent is not to entertain,
excite, or enthrall
but to maintain
that thin layer of feeling
that resides just above boredom
in perpetuity.

The question is never why
but why not
as episodes automatically play
one after another after another
inevitable, like gravity
subsuming hours
in unintended lethargy.

But we are, as yet,
still in control of the box
and the outside is still just outside.
Ambition and inspiration not dead
but perhaps more elusive.