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TV: Diddy Documentary E1

Better doc than I expected.

TV: Haunting of Hill House E2

Well done.

Free Money

These Trump accounts are dumb. $250-500 to every child. The dummies (most folks) will gamble it on bitcoin, sports cards, film school, or timeshares. The smart folks will put into target date funds or VTI and will make money, but they will have made money anyway and don't need it.

High Comedy

So in addition to Quentin Tarantino and Barak Obama, now Olivia Nuzzi releases her favorite paranoid thriller films from the 70s. Why not?

Thanksgiving Weekend in California

Two semi-local news stories: a shoot out at a kids birthday party in Stockton and a shootout at a Santa Clara mall. Both targeted, but horrific. Just a glimpse into Gavin Newsom's California. I simply don't see how anyone thinks this guy has done a good job as either mayor or governor. Does anything matter to Democrats other than "electability."

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Film: Caught Stealing 

A film right up my alley. Crime film set in 1998, centered around an ex-baseball player, made by an auteur filmmaker, terrific cast. And I enjoyed the film, but nevertheless felt like it missed the mark. How? Tone. Meant to be darkly humorous and none of the comedy worked. I didn't laugh even though I could tell the moments were supposed to be funny. I found it a bit odd for Aronofsky to be doing a sort of Guy Richie impersonation. I'm all in favor of filmmakers evolving their style and so I support the effort, but I can't really say it landed for me. Some nice shots but tbh, I'm not sure I could've identified it as an Aronofsky film without the credits. 

AI or Not?

I cannot tell if this press conference with Josh Shapiro passing a law about hair discrimination is AI or not. 

2022

Reading some random screenplays from 2022's blacklist for a student assignment and damn, what a gloomy mood people were in.

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TV: All Her Fault miniseries

By the end, this show becomes unintentional Trump propaganda. Because the majority of Americans would rather live in our actual 2025 world with Trump as Pres than the world this show imagines. Could've been a satire of middle aged female madness, but instead takes itself seriously. Beyond being bad on every dramatic level, the key thematic takeaway of the show is it is perfectly morally acceptable to steal babies, murder husbands, and participate in corruption to get your kid into fancy private schools . The "peaceful resolution" of the show - is two middle aged women sitting together drinking wine - having jettisoned their husbands in different manners. For all the decades of investments in female empowerment, this is the big beautiful worldview they can come up with? Drinking good wine and sitting together with a bestie. Shit, the Sicilian ladies in Godfather had it better than these women - at least they had more people to sit around with and a better view. 

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Film: Sirat

Three terrific elements here: faces of the cast, location filming, music. A few sequences - shots - that were incredible. But the movie? Disinterested in the characters or telling a story which makes it hard to enjoy. I mean people aren't avatars for ideas - especially not very interesting ones. 

TV: All Her Fault

Ridiculous, terrible, laughable, but somehow watchable. Even engaging. Should be studied why this shit sometimes works.

TV: The Chair Company

Makes me laugh.

Book: Adventures of Pinocchio the original book

One of the best children's books I've read. Dark, weird, full of wonderful lessons about life. 

Exactly

No, NYC is not a city of international law. It is America. 

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Film: Frankenstein

There is a sequence in the film when the monster picks up Paradise Lost to read and that's when I turned to my wife and said, "let's turn this off" and she agreed. 

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Was this GDT's idea? Or Netflix's? Hey guys - I was thinking here we could do a sequence where the monster goes around helping on a farm and learns to become an English professor. Good?

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The two new and era defining genres of the last 10 years: Middle Aged Woman Wanders Around and Aktschually,  the Monster Is The Good Guy.

This Is Called Stalking

The quest by an unknown Hollywood actor to cancel an unknown Hollywood actress.