‘The Sympathizer’ Fractures Identity into a Knockout Kaleidoscopic Tale
The mini-series adaptation of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s kaleidoscopic tale The Sympathizer is a knockout account of colonialism, war, and (the loss of) identity.
mini-series
Shane Warne Biopic ‘Warnie’ Is Not Quite Scorsese-Like
Although it imitates some Scorsese methods, rather than giving us an insight into the real Shane Warne, Warnie instead gives us a series of showreels of the controversies in his life.
‘The Crowded Room’ Has Too Many Angles Crammed Into It
The Crowded Room tries to be a psychological drama, a coming-of-age story, and a law procedural culminating in courtroom maneuvers and meltdowns – all angles that crowd its premise.
‘Fleishman Is in Trouble’ Nails Middle-Age Malaise in the Tinder Age
Middle age is inherently bleak in ‘Fleishman Is in Trouble’, and there’s no easy cure for the early-40s blues, but Tinder takes a swipe at it.
The Limits of Cultural Revisionism in Hulu’s ‘Pam & Tommy’
Mini-series Pam & Tommy seeks to bring depth and humanity to its oft-ridiculed titular leads. But it nonetheless revels in their mythology.
Marvel’s ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ Fails to Capitalize on a Strong Premise
Marvel’s Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney+ follows the legacy of Captain America in the MCU, but its timely racially and politically charged plot lacks focus.
Marvel’s ‘WandaVision’ Echos Our Lasting Pandemic Grief
Addressing pandemic-induced topics such as loss, grief, and mental illness, Marvel’s ‘WandaVision’ serves as a metaphor for life in the time of COVID.
Netflix’s ‘High on the Hog’ Is an Overdue Celebration of African American Cuisine
Entertaining and informative, High on the Hog disrupts the Eurocentrism entrenched in the culinary world that tends to devalue so-called ethnic foods.
WandaVision’s Grief Is America’s Grief
To cope with her grief WandaVision‘s Wanda reverts to a comforting but false alternate reality set in idealized 1950s America. Sound familiar?