Ginny and Georgia: Season One Recap and Reaction

I have tons of problems with this show even though it brings attention to some issues that are seldom shown on TV shows.

This show portrays a young mother with a shady and devastating background and her two children, Ginny (Antonia Gentry) and Austin (Diesel La Torraca), as they arrive in a new, ritzy town. Sure, she just killed her second husband for inappropriately touching Ginny and if you poison someone, you really should burn the plant you used, but she doesn't do that.

Now, while they portray two characters who have issues with self-harm, Ginny burns herself while her friend, Abby (Katie Douglas) probably has an eating disorder and duct tapes her thighs and there is a deaf character and God knows that there isn't enough of them in TV shows or movies, not to mention Max (Sara Waisglass) is a lesbian and has a true, realistic relationship and despite the great acting performances, the show was riddled with problems.

First of all, if Georgia (Nikki Roumel as a teenager and Brianne Howey as an adult) took her pregnancy test in the summer, then Ginny wouldn't have been born in November. The re-election campaign for Paul Randolph (Friday Night Light's Scott Porter) has a crazy timeline. 

And then, Paul's opponent, Cynthia Fuller (Sabrina Grdevich) is the stock character, nagging, overprotected and shrill and how in the world is she able to break in to the mayor's office and get into Georgia's computer to attempt to prove that Georgia's been skimming the books which is true for the record and yet, she gets away with it. And then, the plot spins, leaving the viewer feeling sympathy for her as her husband is a quadriplegic. 

Then there's Ginny's twisted love triangle and while Hunter (Mason Temple) is a good guy, we are rooting for the hurt Marcus (Felix Mallard) but then after his motorcycle accident, he loses his phone and can't find it for days and it still has a charge, please. I can't believe that would be the case. 

Still, the characters are unique and well-developed but petty, quite petty. Still, I've be livid if my friend was secretly in love with my brother while dating a mutual friend. 

But the ending of Ginny learning the truth, that her mother's a murderer and went to the most extreme measures to handle the issue when perhaps a conversation could have resolved the problem, she escapes running away on some random motorcycle with Austin in tow. Where's she going? And where in the world did she find the motorcycle? It can't be her father's (Nathan Mitchell) as he left and Marcus's must have gotten damaged in his accident. Before that, surely Georgia would have notified for all the school Austin was ditching. 

So, yeah, there's plenty of plot holes and problematic lines (more than just the barb at Taylor Swift), but still, I needed to see what would happen. Georgia has both my pity and rage as she has her great moments when she's truly a good mom and person but while she's trying very hard and succeeding at rising above her unacceptable childhood where she was abused in all the ways possible but she cheats constantly. Ginny's childhood may have been better but she's still paying for the sins of her mother. Children always suffer for the sins of their parents. 

But back to the show, and while there were numerous issues, the acting was solid, characters well-formed and the mechanics of the show were largely good, down to the song choices, and I needed to see what would happen next, and it was somewhat unpredictable which is nice. Yet, I cannot overlook the countless problems which kept the show from being as good as it could have and should have been. Grade: B

Side Notes:

-I need to mention Joe (Raymond Ablack) who owns what apparently is the only restaurant and bakery in town. He's yet another love interest for Georgia. She has three of them in the first season alone. And they're all pretty decent men, which for her is a change.

-No wonder my high school life was very dull, I rarely went to any crazy parties and even drank or attempted drugs. 

-I would kill for a guy to sing a song in my honor. 

-My favorite character, other than Joe, was probably the neighbor, Ellen Baker (Jennifer Robertson). She's droll but overall, a solid human being while others are not. 

Promising Young Woman (2021)

 Well, this movie was certainly something.

After a devastating incident in college, when despite the pleas, they were not just kids, Cassie (the brilliant Carey Mulligan) drops out of medical school. Flash forward to present day and Cassie is still miserable, sitting at home, working at a coffee shop but at night, she comes alive. She may act comatose and drunk out of her skull, but she's completely with it, telling off the men, some are nicer than others, calling them out for having the audacity to acquaintance rape her, when she's too drunk to say no. 

Then, she runs into an old acquaintance from medical school, Ryan Cooper (Bo Burnham) who seems like a genuine human being, a pediatric surgeon. And she genuinely likes him but this stirs everything she dealt with in college and causes her to want to get revenge on those who harmed her best friend, Nina who has killed herself since the incident though it is never explicitly stated. So, after seven years, she finally gets revenge on the friend, Madison (Alison Brie) who refused to believe Nina's drunken pleas, Dean Walker (Connie Britton) who didn't believe Nina's story but it actually the dirty lawyer, Jordan Green (Alfred Molina) who finally regrets his role in the process, knowing that he shouldn't have pressured Nina into dropping charges.

And then, there's the actual rapist, Al Monroe (Chris Lowell) and Cassie exacts her revenge on him also and even though it goes wrong, she has a back-up plan which drops just after Al says his vows. So the ending is utterly crazy, and quite frankly, painfully sad. Sure, revenge is finally had but everyone loses, especially Cassie and Nina which is terribly sad. 

Now, just when you think this film is a love story, it isn't. Turns out Ryan was a lot closer to Nina's rape than Cassie realized and she can't forgive him and quite frankly, I don't think I'd be able to forgive him. 

Fortunately, the film is pretty flawless, except for the old phone holding a charge for a million years, holding the video that should have been crucial evidence but was rather laughed at and hidden away. Yet, Madison never deleted it. That should tell you something. 

Despite that little quibble, this film was brilliant with a tight and clever screenplay from Emerald Fennell, Patsy from Call the Midwife, and the performances are truly brilliant, of course Mulligan is a stand out, deserving of all the awards she has and will hopefully get. And this film tells you how you always have to be on guard, and you do, as even your friends are capable of the deepest betrayal. Grade: A

Side Notes:

-The film is just packed with talent. Clancy Brown and Jennifer Coolidge are Cassie's parents. Laverne Cox is Gail, Cassie's slightly horny boss at the coffee shop, and then there are the 'victims': Adam Brody, Sam Richardson and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. Max Greenfield is one of Al's dumbass friends. 

-I liked how it was unexpected that the lawyer regretted his actions while the two females didn't. 

-Sure, it's got to be a man's worst nightmare of being accused of rape but that is nothing compared to the woman's worst nightmare of actually being raped. 

-This film highlights how disgustingly horny men are. 

-It is weird seeing Bo Burnham in front of the camera as he directed 2018's brilliant Eighth Grade. 

-The ending is sadly polarizing, but I liked how twisty and unpredictable the whole film largely was.

-This film contains the best use of Paris Hilton's one-hit wonder song, 'Stars are Blind'. 

-At least Ryan didn't rape anyone, but in this case, he's nearly just as guilty. 

Bombshell (2019)

 This was a good film, starring basically ever single white person in Hollywood. 

Beginning just as the 2016 Presidential campaign kicks into gear, with Trump shockingly pulling ahead of the pack, FOX news anchorwoman, Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron) confronts him on the issue of how he treats women. This is just the beginning of her long descent on Fox News. 

It is also the story of disgruntled Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman) who is upset that she has a show in an undesirable timeslot. So when she's fired, she's prepared and sues the CEO Roger Ailes (an unrecognizable John Lithgow) personally and slowly but surely other people, women come forward. Megyn is reluctant to do so even though it happened to her. Newcomer Kayla (the brilliant Margot Robbie) is also reluctant, loving FOX news and wanting to be on TV but scared that she would be ruined and her secret would be revealed, that she slept with a woman. 

But tons come forward Megyn urges them to do so even as her popularity dwindles and finally after an independent investigation comes forward, she goes and talks to the lawyers but never answers if her refusal truly affected her career. And Gretchen opts to settle out of court, but Ailes is removed as he certainly should have been. Gretchen was the smartest of all, she recorded their conversations managing to even leave his wife, Beth (Connie Britton) stunned. 

Still, the ending leaves me chilled. While Fox paid out the victims $50 million but they paid out more in severance paid to Bill O'Reilly (Kevin Dorff) and Ailes. That being said, the women won, at least this battle. 

While there is a giant cast of characters but the printed introductions help vastly, and the performances are brilliant, Theron, Kidman and Robbie all deliver great work. And the screenplay is tight. And while the environment is disgusting, this film captures the true newsroom feel. Grade: A-

Side Notes:

-Pay attention to the packed supporting cast: Jennifer Morrison, Rob Delaney, Kate McKinnon, Allison Janney, Malcolm McDowell, Richard Kind, Ahna O'Reilly, Eve Hewson, Mark Duplass, Holland Taylor and Lennon Parham. Yeah, it's a cast packed with talent. 

-It is true that having nice legs are a requirement.

-I can't believe that Ailes needed to make Kayla stand to determined that she had good legs, I would think it would be obvious. 

Funny Girl (1968)

The film where Barbra Streisand is in an unhealthy relationship take two, although technically The Way We Were came up second. 

Here, Streisand shines as Fanny Brice a great singer but mediocre at everything else but is nevertheless determined to be a star. And she's funny, despite her obvious lack of talent at roller skating, she still has the audience eating out of her hand. She catches the eye of gambler Nick Arnstein (Omar Sharif) whom she falls in love with immediately but after he catches adventure for a year before re-entering her life, she makes him pay before falling into bed with him. 

Still, all is not well in paradise. Not long after their daughter is born, Nick runs into trouble and is broke and is unable to deal with Fanny as the breadwinner. She's the bigger star by this point. And instead of letting her help him, Nick does something stupid which lands him in prison and ends the marriage. 

So, all that happens and some songs are sprinkled in, highlighting Streisand's immense, well-rounded talent though I thought her best number was actually the finale, the oddly placed 'My Man'. Still, despite the solid plot, it was an odd musical and I actually think it would have worked better if some of the songs were removed because Streisand and Sharif were excellent, not to mention the unique cinematography and costumes. This film was truly a showcase for Streisand and was practically custom written for her. She's great and did deserve her Oscar. Grade: B+

Side Notes:

-Kudos to Kay Medford who is Fanny's mother and she's a hoot in her small role.

-Fanny is forever obsessed with her looks when she's truly pretty.

-Another shout out to Walter Pidgeon as Florenz Ziegfeld. He's always brilliant.

-This is yet another film in which William Wyler directed his leading lady to an Oscar victory. 

The Way We Were (1973)

 While this film is billed as a love story, it is rather problematic.

Katie Morosky (Barbra Streisand) might be incredibly opinionated and self-righteous but she worships the ground WASP Hubbell Gardner (Robert Redford) walks on. Sure, Hubbell's quite talented but he could be even better and she pushes him to be better, trying to shape him to become her most utterly perfect man and when he finally gives in to the status quo, she wants him to leave her, despite being pregnant with his child, so yeah, there's that. 

But neither of them are perfect. Katie thinks she's perfect and certainly Hubbell's friends make too many inappropriate jokes, but Katie doesn't even try to get along with them nor does she take into consideration what Hubbell actually wants to do and she's a pusher. Hubbell, on the other hand, lacks motivation, is somewhat lazy and cheats on Katie, while she's pregnant no less. 

While Katie is a strong, unique character, with extreme though valid opinions, I really wish she hadn't crawled into bed with a sleeping Hubbell. While she doesn't really do anything, he's the one who rolls on top of her, it is not a scene that would fly these days and if it was the other way around, well, that would be incredibly problematic. And she nearly forces into the relationship by not letting him leave until she's cooked him dinner, though there is a definite attraction between the two. 

However, the biggest issue I have is that despite being completely happy apart, Hubbell just lets someone else raise his child? I cannot abide. 

Still, despite the problematic overall plot, the dialogue is still good and the characters have development and Streisand and Redford deliver exceptional performances. And the title song is just brilliant. Grade: B+

Side Notes:

-Pay attention to James Woods as Katie's college love interest. 

-They never show the proposal or marriage between Katie and Hubbell and there is barely any evidence that they are married though Katie does wear a ring but Hubbell does not. 

Champion (1949)

 While the Hays Code may have been in full effect, I found this film to have a satisfying ending.

Michael 'Midge' Kelly (Kirk Douglas) and his brother, Connie (the underrated Arthur Kennedy) are basically bums, broke and desperate. And Midge is hungry for fame. After getting too frisky with the boss's daughter, Emma (Ruth Roman), they hoodwink him into marrying her, but Midge leaves her at the altar, not in the traditional sense, he leaves directly after putting the ring on her finger. Instead, he decides to become a boxer and he does well. 

However, he refuses to purposely lose a fight to Johnny Dunne (John Day), he is nearly blacklisted and leaves his dedicated trainer, Tommy Haley (Paul Stewart) and joins with the high roller, Harris (Luis Van Rooten), falling in love with both Harris's mistress, Grace (Marilyn Maxwell), who has expensive taste and his wife, Palmer (Lola Albright) who is a genuine human being. But, at the end of the day, money is Midge's only love. 

And he's manipulative, persuading his brother and wife to support him for his last big fight, once again against Johnny Dunne (he's won several other major matches in the interim) and he's getting pounded but he rallies, refusing to be called a loser. At the end, it appears Johnny's in bad shape, and Midge is hurried out of the ring where he later dies in the dressing room, brain damage from all those nasty punches he endured. This leaves it open for Emma to end up with Connie, the far nicer of the two brothers. 

While Midge is a arrogant jerk and an asshole toward women, he is the underdog and sometimes you just have to root for the underdog. However, I was actually rooting for Connie, who stumbled (literally) around throughout the film, trying to find his purpose in life. Connie ends up winning. Sometimes,  the good guy wins. Douglas's performance is electric and Kennedy is great in his understated role. Though this film may not hold up entirely well, it doesn't hold up as badly as many others and again, I found the ending solid, albeit somewhat predictable. Grade: A-

Side Notes:

-It is a miracle that Midge doesn't knock up any of his three love interests as it is heavily implied he had sex with all of them.

-Toward the end, it is strongly implied that Midge assaults Emma as he refuses to leave when she wants him to. 

-It is never explained why Connie had a limp, when the actor didn't, nor does it ever mention what Connie is short for, though I suspect Conrad.

-Though Midget was placed in an orphanage for a time, he is still far more loyal to his mother than his wife.  

Sound of Metal (2020)

 While this film was brilliant, there were also some plot holes and the film felt oddly incomplete.

Ruben Stone (the brilliant Riz Ahmed) and his loving girlfriend, Lou (Olivia Cooke) are also nomads, living in a converted horse trailer as they tour the country with their heavy metal band. Then, quite suddenly, Ruben's hearing deteriorates. 

Naturally, this news devastates him but getting a cochlear implant will cost a whole ton of money, $40,000 minimum. Yikes. Though he's reluctant at first, he eventually settles in to a rehab center for the deaf, run by Vietnam vet, Joe (Paul Raci). And it seems that he seems to be doing okay there, learning sign language and especially doing well with the children. However, on the other hand, he does miss his old life and Lou and who wouldn't? 

Still, I feel that he takes advantage of them, selling every last possession he owns to get the implant surgery, gets kicked out of his place and then struggles to get use to his implants as he didn't do enough research as he can hear again, but everything is so distorted, and he expected his hearing to return when that's not what the implants do.

In the end, he doesn't have a job, and ends things with Lou as he stresses her out. Her plot point doesn't get much attention but she's a scratcher. She apparently scratches her skin raw when she's under stress and now that he's returned, she starts again. Without anything, Ruben has no choice but to embrace the silence, something he refused to do earlier. 

Now, while I don't understand how Ruben was able to gather the money for a plane ticket to Paris when he's homeless, and while he seems to be doing fine with being deaf, he refuses to settle and just wants his old life back when that is impossible, I still found the film excellent, showing the viewer what Ruben's hearing is like, transforming throughout the film. Ahmed's performance is brilliant and Raci and Cooke provide excellent support, I just wish the screenplay had been slighter tighter. That being said, this film shines light on those with addictions and the deaf community, which never gets enough attention. And it forces you to think about what would happen if you found yourself in Ruben's shoes. Grade: B+

Side Notes:

-I'm upset that Nyle DiMarco didn't make a cameo appearance. That would have been great.

-We never learn why exactly Ruben's hearing disappears so quickly, whether it's his lifestyle or something hereditary.

-He really should have done more research before selling his house to get the surgery.

-I feel that the others in the rehab facility should have had more fleshed out personalities. 

-No reason is given as to why they had to make Lou's father French. 

The Queen's Gambit: Recap and Reaction

 Anya Taylor-Joy gives a brilliant performance in this limited series, easily her best which is saying something as she's been excellent in everything I've seen her in (though it sadly hasn't been much). 

Here she shines as Elizabeth Harmon, a young orphan who discovers chess and tranquilizers at the ripe old age of nine at the orphanage. But it isn't until she's adopted by the well-off but grieving and boring couple (Marielle Heller and Patrick Kennedy). Though Allston doesn't want to be around, Alma takes to having a daughter better and once she realizes how much money Beth can earn, supports her in her chess journey, not understanding how influence Beth truly is to several generations of women. 

Sure, Beth has issues. She's an addict and a bit cold to all of her potential love interests, which are numerous but she's brilliant on the board and after a few stumbles (falling back to her previous addictions), she defeats the best Soviet chess player of all time. All the men will have to take a backseat as chess is her main love. 

And the acting is sensational. The set decoration is also great, completely realistic to the 1960s so you feel as though you are transported back to that time, and while I say that plenty of times, it never ceases to amaze me. The screenplay was also tight and flowed together beautifully. Hands down, this was certainly one of the best mini series of all time. Grade: A

Side Notes:

-It cost a lot to travel to the Soviet Union back in the 60s and she got her own personal FBI agent to accompany her.

-I adored the happy but semi-opened ending of this series though I'm not sure how well she's ended her addiction. 

-Jolene (Moses Ingram) is probably my favorite character. 

-I couldn't believe that the orphanage gave the children pills (both uppers and lowers), It is a miracle that more of them didn't develop an addiction. 

Bridge to the Sun (1961)

 While this film had its offensive parts, it was actually still a solid film.

Southerner Gwen Harold (Carroll Baker) falls in love with Japanese diplomat, Hidenari Terasaki (James Shigeta) during a visit to Washington DC in 1935 and despite their differences, her indifferent aunt and the Japanese ambassador's objections, they marry anyway. 

While Gwen finds the Japanese traditions ridiculous, the two are still largely happy and have a daughter together, but their happiness is short-lived thanks to Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor. Unwilling to leave her husband, Gwen returns to a starving Japan where they remain throughout the war, narrowly escaping death several times. 

After the war is finally over and Gwen believes that they can be happy again, Terry's health deteriorates and he refuses (as is tradition) to let his wife see him die so he sends them both back to the US. She goes, albeit reluctantly, after their tearful farewell.

Baker does a good job with a difficult role and while the story is strong, I do think that parts are quite offensive, like when Gwen hosts a dinner and wears not only a kimono but also a wig so her hair can look like everyone else's, which is just wrong. But the film still shows how wretched the war was in Japan and how cruel America was to them and it also depicts the traditional Japanese way of life so while the film has issues, it is also groundbreaking. This is actually one of the few films that I hope gets a remake because while this film had the potential to be really great, I wished it would have been more intimate and had given the budget material like that deserved as this could have been far more of an epic love story than what it was. Grade: B+

Side Notes:

-It must have been very difficult for little Mako (Emi Florence Hirsch) in both countries, as they were literally at war with the each other.

-While Gwen's parents are mentioned several times, their reaction to her marriage is never shown. 

-It is ironic that Gwen attends a show and returns home before learning of Pearl Harbor. 

-It is never said what Terry dies of but I suspect cancer. 

-And I have to say it, Terry doesn't have his cane on the boat while saying his farewells but as he waves good-bye on the ground, he does which makes no sense. 

I Care a Lot (2021)

 Rosamund Pike has never been better (though to be fair, I refuse to watch Gone Girl), shining brightly as the manipulative Marla Grayson who, along with her team, manages to convince a judge that older people are unfit to care for themselves forcing them into assisted living facilities and becoming their legal guardian, striping them of their legal assets and preventing their family members from having any contact with them.

Basically, she's a cold-hearted bitch and just when she thinks she's stumbled into her biggest cash cow, she's wrong. Jennifer Peterson (Dianne Wiest) appears to be a little, simple old woman with slight memory issues but her secret is uncovered early on with a safe deposit box containing a little bag of diamond. Turns out that Jennifer isn't a real person but rather someone connected with the Russian mob and her son (Peter Dinklage) is out looking for her. So Marla's life gets complicated real quick and despite being warned, she lets it happen. Her life becomes incredibly difficult and she nearly dies, her house blows up and her lover, Fran (Elza Gonzales) is also nearly killed and one of their doctors is actually killed, so yeah, you should have heeded that warning. 

But it gets crazy and she gets her revenge on the son, all so she can get tons of money because she hates being poor (who enjoys it?) but instead, after she finally has him completely dependent on him, they opt to go into business together, but she gets shot in the end anyway by a toss away character from the beginning, livid that she's keeping his mother away from him and now, she died alone. I wish I could say I was sorry for Marla, but I wasn't. 

Now, despite the ridiculous legal system, I couldn't believe that Marla's cases kept getting heard by the same judge (Isiah Whitlock, Jr), who is clearly a strong ally of hers. Surely he would think the amount of people she's guardian to is a bit ridiculous, but whatever. And when they go to burn the car, where does the gasoline come from? And how does Alexi (Nicholas Logan), one of the minions, figure out where Jennifer was taken to? Still, despite these ponderings, it was still a solid, bizarre take on a thriller and was at least slightly unpredictable. The acting was solid, with Pike delivering a brilliant, chilling performance with not a hair out of place. It was so ridiculous, it was great. Grade: B+

Side Notes:

-Alicia Witt and Chris Messina deliver brilliant supporting performances. 

-Some of the moves and powers Marla has are completely unethical and should be absolutely illegal. 

-While I didn't wish for Karen (Witt) to get killed, she certainly should have lost her medical license.

-Marla's trick of putting her tooth in milk and then having the dentist place it back in her mouth is something that actually works.