April Wilson

This is a show about contemporary teenage life in Any-town, U.S.A., but it’s not for teenagers. It’s for adults, a frightening vision of what life might be like for their kids, a terrifying critique of adults’ powerful yet powerless effects on their children’s lives. One prays that this depiction of high school in the United States is nowhere near reality, as it depicts high school life as brutish, deeply exploitative, and morbidly oversexed, with a huge helping of addiction culture. Fittingly, there are few classroom scenes. There are, however, football scenes with cheerleaders shaking their stuff in sexy little bits of clothing and full makeup. Mostly it’s drug buying, drug taking, boozing, going to hospitals, going to group therapy, going to wild parties, traumatization via social media, and many sex scenes. Lots of nudity. Sure, there are plusses; in their society racial, orientational, and even gender equality seems to have been more or less achieved within the tattered remnants of the white patriarchy. You care about this group of people, all of them, but they’re so sadly off the rails, all except the wondrous trans girl, you feel she might escape this hell. Euphoria’s one real virtue is its gallows-level dark humor, I have to give it that. Very fine acting and production values, as expected of HBO.

The basic story of regret and desperately sought after redemption is really good, very compelling. IMO, this is the best C-drama since “The Untamed.” The characters all act reasonably considering their positions, which makes it impossible to identify a pure villain—everyone is villainous sometimes when their actions are motivated by wrath, greed and lust for power, but good at other times, when they care for others, just as in real life. So, the story is gem, but the production values drag this show down. I watch a lot of non-English shows, and the subtitles in this one are basement-level bad, with American replacing Chinese idioms, untranslated dialogue, and the subtitles frequently flashing by in fractions of seconds. No one could read them that fast, so we’re forced to either guess what was said or endlessly break the story’s flow to roll it back to get all the dialogue. I think most people just guess, which is why some reviews out there are filled with errors about the content. Speaking of content, why is Max Productions working with Chinese censors to screw up the original source material, which was about “transmigration” not coma dreams? (Totally screwing up the ending, btw.) Transmigration is a common fantasy vehicle in Chinese web novels, so what’s the problem? Maybe they don’t want people to get the idea that they can unilaterally make choices that determine their future, but that’s a tenuous argument at best; the censors’ problem with transmigration mystifies me. Also, the Chinese government banned “palace dramas” last year, and this is clearly a palace drama that has been forced to fit into China’s ubiquitous big business genre to please the censors. Why the latter is any more righteous than the former according to Chinese party dogma escapes me. What a bunch of insufferable busybodies those censors are: this is fiction people! Finally, it’s obvious from the voluminous plumes of frozen breath billowing out of the actors’ mouths that they’re often working in unheated sets. Maybe that’s why the acting is sometimes a little stiff. And how can the audience be immersed in the story when they’re constantly reminded that these are actors freezing their butts off on set? Max Productions should be ashamed for helping to turn what should have been an outstanding show into a confused mess.

Netflix’s new true crime series is straight-up a “Law and Order” knock off. It’s intentional and it works, too well. Don’t watch this before bed unless you enjoy sleeplessness. Actually, this ought to be classified as horror because nothing in that fictional genre comes even close to being as scary as the true events that are told by the medical examiners, detectives, prosecutors and other professionals in this series. The streets of New York, are truly concrete jungles, hellscapes scarier than anything I’ve seen in the exorcist or alien. The things people are capable of doing to one another are so evil. It’s an extremely well done series.

OMG This show is bomb af! It’s like a live action Miyazaki story with its quiet mix of wonder, innocence and a tiny bit of menace. Notice the street scene with the bubbles! I am in love with the writers, actors, producers, all the people that made this show. It’s so perfect: the sound design, the sets, the clothes, the photography. It’s witty and whimsical, the characters so surprising. Especially the male lead. He starts out childlike and upbeat, but he becomes aggressively more insistent that she acknowledge her love for him, and then he reveals how not innocent at all he is. It should be really creepy, but it’s not. The actor brings this to life so intriguingly; he is flat amazing. I recommend you listen to this with a good pair of HifiMan headphones because the music is superb. Note the actual Japanese classical music! Thank You! The Western music is also top-notch. Enjoy!

What is it about a woman wielding a sword that feels soooo satisfying? And what a great dragon! Graceful little glowing slugs, an idyllic castle in a mountain dreamscape, a good stepmother for once, and an integrated cast! This movie does its best to turn over stereotypes, and it’s exciting and beautiful to look at. Is it great? No. Is it near-great? No. But it is very entertaining. A solid 3 stars, imo.

This movie wishes it was “Diner” (1982), or “American Graffiti” (also 1973). Its not. The sets, costumes, and hair styles are spot-on period perfect (1950s Flatbush), so it’s got some great elements, but the acting and sound are high school level. It’s really slow; not much happens, which is the point, I guess. Sylvester Stallone is a first class ham; he’s all but unwatchable.

Claes Bang’s Dracula is Bond, James Bond, after losing his soul; it’s the most seductive yet vile Dracula to date, imo. Best line: as he surveys the contents of a modest 21st century home he remarks to its doomed resident, “I knew the future would bring wonders; I did not know it would make them ordinary.”

“The Player” meets “The Fly”. Dirtbag Hollywood producer shafts the wrong aspiring director; intense body-horror follows. Some humor eases the gross-out factor. Great acting all around. Fabulous sets manage to feel both cozy and sinister. This series has some legs. It’s a shame they didn’t make a second season.

This is a self-portrait, an autobiography of sorts. Breathtaking architecture, spatial scope, and colors spoke to me. Miyazaki's trademark contrast between very small and very large, the quiet and the loud, thrills. Wonder animates reality and fantasy. The plot and characters are classic Miyazaki. The breathtaking collapse of the fantasy world and its ancient architect at the end, isn't that a self portrait about the end of his career and coming death? See the excellent Ebert review. But I think the reviewer didn't quite get it. Yes one must choose reality, but dreams and fantasies aren't useless. The boy worked through his problems with fantasy, but chose to live in reality. He chose normality over creative genius. I think Miyazaki might be saying that he has no successor.

YA supernatural murder mystery series about friendship, loyalty, trust, and overcoming betrayal, with characters that you will care about. Very touching drama, well done all around. Surprise ending that I did not see coming but should have. If you want a YA ghost drama set in a high school with a “Breakfast Club” ensemble cast, this is for you.