A Felicity Reunion
If you're looking for some late 1990s/early 2000s nostalgia, then enter the world of Felicity, filled with tape recorded messages, frizzy hair and sweaters, whispered phrases, college dorm rooms and Dean & DeLuca. This show only aired on the WB for four seasons but it gained a cult following during its time on-air and during reruns. I was introduced to the show by my mother and upon her re-watch and my initial viewing, we were both taken aback by the bold and upsetting premise of the first episode. For those who don't know, Felicity (Keri Russell) cancels her college plans after her high school crush writes that he had liked her in her yearbook and goes to join him at the fictional University of New York. I cringed a little bit typing that sentence. Once you get past the stalker-like premise, it turns out Felicity was looking for any excuse to shake up her life. All through high school, she worked incredibly hard to follow her parents, to become Pre-Med and attend her father's alma matter. Felicity's parents cut her off after she decides to uproot her life and she's forced to embrace a new plan, alone, in New York City. Sure, her love life is a large part of the show (I'm Team Noel, if you're wondering, but I truly understand the Team Ben appeal), but it also focuses on her journey of self-discovery, the influence parental pressure played on her life choices, her love of art and the life-long bonds you form with people in college. The show if filled with a wonderful supporting cast, including Amanda Foreman, who plays Felicity's scary roommate Meghan, Tangi Miller, who plays the brilliant Elena, Ian Gomez, who plays the hilarious Javier, Greg Grunberg, who plays Sean and Amy Jo Johnson, who plays Julie. Throughout the show's four seasons, it takes delves into each character's journey, as their lives weave together. The show's dialogue was often whispered (I know that sounds weird, but if you've seen it, you know what I mean), you can hear the sirens from NYC streets in a lot of scenes and you watch countless scenes of students studying, adjusting to dorm room life and looking for jobs. It has a particular tone that is both comforting, nostalgic and uncertain, and it's beautiful.
The cast reunited a few weeks ago at the ATX Festival to discuss the show and its legacy. Of course, Felicity's dramatic season two haircut came up, as did the show's ridiculous final four episodes, which featured a time traveling plot that I'd care to forget. The reunion highlighted how close members of the cast remains to this day and their love for these characters, who haven't been on TV screens for years. Do I want Felicity to be rebooted? No. Its magic exists in the nostalgia of college life and I don't need to see what these characters are doing 20 years later. But am I going to enjoy the constant ups and downs of Felicity's romantic and academic life in re-runs? Absolutely.
As Seen on Screen
I'm happy to report that my most-anticipated summer movie of 2018, Ocean's 8, did not disappoint. The heist flick is packed with an all-star cast, including Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Mindy Kaling, a delightful Rihanna, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, Helena Bonham Carter and the scene-stealing Anne Hathaway. Sandra Bullock plays Debbie Ocean, who is just out of prison and organizing a crew to steal a diamond-covered Cartier necklace that will be worn by the famous Daphne Kluger at the Met Gala. The scenario provides a very fun and interesting back drop to the movie, as the all-female crew works together to blend in at an event where everyone is trying to be seen. I'm not sure if I've ever left a movie and looked up the costume designer. Typically costumes just happen and I remember them when I'm filling out an Oscars ballot. But after seeing this movie, I could not stop thinking about the amazing outfits at the Met Gala and in pretty much every scene. Hats off to Sarah Edwards who worked hard to craft distinctive looks for each lady. While I was disappointed to see the film was directed by a man, it avoids the cliches that often accompany these situations. For example, none of the characters were obsessed with finding a boyfriend, we avoided weird, unnecessary shots of scantily-clad women and there was no in-fighting among the Ocean's crew. While some of the movie reviews have been mixed (I address that more in Required Reading below...), I found a lot of that criticism to be unfounded. Movies in the Ocean's series follow a similar scenario: Assemble a crew and plan a heist. That's what's going to happen. So I was a bit frustrated to see critics searching for this movie to suddenly become something different. These aren't comedies or ensemble films in the traditional sense. These characters interact in pairs or groups of three, with two scenes or so featuring the full group bouncing off each other, and when those situations came about, I thought the cast had great chemistry. Ocean's 8 also does a great job of nodding to the rest of the franchise and following its formula, while still adding its own surprises into the mix, creating a compelling story and unique movie experience. As the trailers played before the movie, I saw yet another commercial for the latest movie in the Mission Impossible series. Talk about a truly useless movie that follows the same plot formula, offering nothing new for viewers. I find it ironic that people claim movies like Ocean's 8 don't need to be made, without recognizing that another Tom Cruise Mission Impossible is redundant. Increased diversity on our film screens is important and is something that audiences should demand. Ocean's 8 is the perfect summer movie and will leave you satisfied and shaking your head at the haters, who are asking why this movie needed to be made in the first place.
Bonus Pick: In order to re-create the Met Gala, the film team had to get the infamous Anna Wintour on board as well. You can find out Anna's role in the production process and the details behind the Met costuming in this article from The Cut.
Haven't You Heard?
It's been a while since I gushed about NBC's The Good Place. So first let me get on my soap box and take a moment to remind you to please watch this brilliant show if you haven't already. It's one of the most consistently clever and unique shows I've ever seen, and it's on Netflix right now, so you have plenty of time to catch up before the next season. If you've already watched the first two seasons, then I encourage you to tune in to The Good Place: The Podcast. Created by NBC, the podcast is hosted by Marc Evan Jackson, who plays Shawn on the show. As it's an officially sanctioned podcast, it has plenty of insight into the creative process behind the series, interviews with cast members and writers and stories from creator Mike Schur. There are three episodes out right now and a new one is released every Thursday. While they plan to go episode-by-episode through the series, the first two conversations end up going deeper and discussing the series as a whole, so be sure you're completely caught up before tuning in. It's less of an episode introspective and more of a continuous look behind the scenes. Tune in and get your fill as the summer hiatus continues.
Required Reading
As TV shows are getting cancelled and picked-up for the 2018-2019 season, Apple is subtly making a big play for some exciting new series. While no one is entirely sure how the company's streaming services will work, the buzz is building around the shows it has signed, including Amazing Stories from Steven Spielberg, an animated musical series featuring Kristen Bell and Josh Gad, a half-hour comedy about Emily Dickinson, an anthology series about immigrant stories from Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, a dramedy with music from Sara Bareilles and much, much more. You can find a rundown of the new shows here. I don't know about you, but I'm already bracing myself to purchase another streaming service subscription.
According to a new study from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, 77.8 percent of entertainment critics are male and 82 percent of critics are white. As movies like Ocean's 8 and A Wrinkle in Time have received mixed reviews from critics, it begs the question, why doesn't the make-up of reviewers more closely resemble the make-up of movie-goers? Brie Larson is asking the same question. It's something all news organizations should consider as they hire journalists and something all of us should remember the next time we read a review that seems to miss the mark.
