BEST PICTURE NOMINEES—Heartwarming and Otherworldly
CODA (Apple TV+)
I hadn’t seen or read much about CODA until it won several awards from the Screen Actors Guild. I then noted it was also a Best Picture Oscar nominee which really brought it to my attention. It’s a wonderful story, poignant and compelling. Ruby, a high school senior, is the only hearing member of her family (mother, father, older brother). She assists the two men in their fishing livelihood, the family’s means of support, and is the resident interpreter for their interactions with the outside world. Ruby loves to sing, but at school, she is teased and bullied. When she signs up for the school choir, she begins to find herself and to gain respect and positive regard from her classmates.
This film is groundbreaking with three of the principals in the cast all being played by deaf actors. One, Marlee Matlin as the mother Jackie Rossi is a familiar face, but the other two are not. They are so expressive in their signing that they carry the film. As Ruby, Emilia Jones embodies teenage angst coupled with loyalty and determination. Her music teacher, Mr. V. (played by Eugenio Debez), is both demanding and supportive in the best way. For those who don’t know (and I didn’t), CODA stands for Children of Deaf Adults. The entire film has embedded captions. Highly recommended!
Dune (HBO Max + other sources)
The Chief Penguin was more interested in seeing this film than I was. I knew of Frank Herbert’s award-winning science fiction novel but had never read it. Dune, the movie, is long (2.5 hours) and full of special effects including amazing spacecraft for interplanetary travel. The plot is complex and involves several different worlds and a young man who is seen as the savior of his people.
Suffice it to say that I didn’t love or hate the film and watched it to its end. I would be surprised if it didn’t win Academy awards for sound or cinematography. Recommended for sci fi fans.
BASKETBALL & POLITICS ON STAGE
The Great Leap by Lauren Yee at Asolo Repertory Theatre
The Chief Penguin and I just saw The Great Leap, and it’s my favorite Asolo production this season! Ostensibly a story about a basketball game and a Chinese boy’s coming of age, it’s more significantly a political tale highlighting the contrast between free expression in America and constraints in China. Set in 1971, coming out of the Cultural Revolution, and then in 1989, against the backdrop of Tiananmen Square, two coaches, one from San Francisco and the other from Beijing come together with their competing philosophies. Each is determined to win this special game.
The play is brash, funny, powerful, and thought-provoking. Having visited China three times in the 1980’s, we watched the events of Tiananmen Square unfold on TV and worried for our Chinese friends there.
Standouts in this performance were Greg Watanabe as Wen Cheng, the Chinese coach, and Glenn Obrero in the role of Manford. The play runs through April 2, so there’s still time to see it.
FOOD DRAMA
Delicious (Acorn)
I read one mention of this Acorn series and decided to try it. The setting is beautiful Cornwall and a luxury hotel and restaurant made famous by Leo Vincent, its chef. It isn’t giving away too much to say that Leo dies early on, and his ex-wife and his widow are left to manage the enterprise. Gina Benelli, his first wife, is a talented chef in her own right, while Sam, his second wife and widow, gave up her career when she married Leo and doubts her own considerable management abilities. Add in Leo’s children: Teresa, Gina’s adult daughter, and Michael, Sam’s 18-year-old son, plus Leo’s mother Mimi, and you have conflicts of all sorts among these wildly different personalities.
Most everyone lies or has a secret about something, and when these truths are revealed, sparks fly. At its heart, Delicious is more about female friendship than heterosexual love (although there’s plenty of sex about). Some might find Gina and Sam’s clashes tiresome after a bit, but I watched all three seasons and stayed engaged. The scenes of delicious food are mouthwatering, and Sheila Hancock as Mimi is both tart and loving. Delicious is lighter fare with an occasional serious message.
Header graphic of couple watching TV courtesy of elements.envato.com
