West Side Story early reactions are in
And acclaimed Hulu show to end with season 2
What to know
Early reactions praise Spielberg’s West Side Story… The early reactions are in for West Side Story and they are glowing! As always, take early reactions with at least one grain of salt — but I’d say this is cause for celebration. Spielberg has been hit or miss lately and a lot could have gone wrong here, so it’s encouraging to see so many positive reactions to this year’s big Christmas ticket! 🎶
Spider-Man: No Way Home scores biggest pre-sale numbers since Endgame… Have you heard about this new Spider-Man movie? Sounds like it’s going to be a big deal. Meanwhile, scalpers are trying to sell opening-night tickets on eBay for absurd prices. All of this mania is making me more and more worried about being spoiled. 🕸
Pen15 and Kevin Can F**k Himself to both end after season 2… I guess raunchy titles only get you two seasons these days? I never did check out Kevin, but I will miss Hulu’s Pen15 once it’s gone. I’m glad Anna and Maya are getting to tell the story they want as they want. Do check this show out if you can handle honest middle school cringe comedy. 📚
Why you can’t hear movie dialogue… Finally someone investigated this! It is not just you, movie and TV dialogue has become harder to hear in the last decade. /Film talked to a number of Hollywood sound artists and learned the cause ranges from intentional choices by filmmakers, productions prioritizing picture over sound, poor set ups in theaters and at homes, and more. A really fascinating article about a frustrating issue for cinephiles. 🔊
John Wilson reflects on season 2 of How To… The best comedy-documentary series you’re not watching, How to With John Wilson, is back. Its visionary creator is reflecting on his miraculous finds and getting more personal in season two over at The Ringer (what a great website). Check it. 📹
Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Sex and the City revival drop new trailers… Single gals making it in the city — 70 years apart 🗽
For more pop culture news, discussion, and what-to-watch recommendations subscribe to my pals over on the Kickball Friends podcast. 🎙
What’s new this week:
The Power of the Dog — Dec. 1 Netflix drama film | 🍅 95%
Zoey’s Extraordinary Christmas — Dec. 1 Roku Channel musical film | 🍅
Annie: Live! — Dec. 2 NBC live musical | 🍅
A Clüsterfünke Christmas — Dec 4 Comedy Central comedy film
What to watch:
Would you like a true mindfuck of a TV show? Something like Lost, but a little more messed up and time-twisted? Get yourself to Netflix’s Dark, a 26-episode German sci-fi drama that is not kidding around. This beautifully dense, sky-high concept series starts as a small-town-missing-kid show, not unlike the Mare of Easttowns and Broadchurches of the world, and then slowly but surely unravels its sinister magic. Brace yourself for time travel shenanigans and themes of choice vs. destiny, because there are lot of both. Families, selves, and generations intertwine in disturbing and shocking ways. Your jaw will drop multiple times thanks to some mind-blowing plot reveals — but the real brilliance of Dark, much like Lost and Squid Game, is that it never loses sight of the characters and their relationships. Even when things go deep into the cave of timey-wimey-ness, the show works because of the humanity at its core. Dark is out there and won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but also know that it doesn’t get as experimental nor inaccessible as Twin Peaks and its sequel. That might be a plus or a minus, depending on what side of the weird TV spectrum you fall on. Netflix has a rich library of foreign series waiting to be explored, after Lupin and Squid Game, give Dark some time — just be mindful of how much.
For all past ‘what to watch’ recommendations, see the full list here!