While other sites are telling you what you should be watching while the country huddles around the TV, we here at Psycho Drive-In decided instead to share what we’re watching to keep us from thinking about the potential end of the world as we know it.
In this installment, Jessica Sowards returns to share another eclectic collection of shows and movies that have been filling her days and nights!
Television Binge Buffet
Undone Season 1 (2019) Amazon Prime Video
Undone is Amazon’s first original animated series and is also the first non-short television series to use rotoscoping animation for every episode. The fact that this is a groundbreaking show aligns perfectly with the plot that bends time and space.
Alma (Rose Salazar) gets into a near fatal car crash and is reunited with her father (Bob Odenkirk) who has been dead for years and tasks her with discovering the truth behind his murder. Alma struggles to figure out the past while still navigating her present relationships and work life. The rotoscoping is so flawless that it is easy to forget that you are watching animation and not the life actors, but it adds to the surreal nature of the show. It was recently greenlit for a second season and I cannot wait to see what happens next!
Star Trek: Picard Season 1 (2020) CBS All Access
As a Star Trek fan, I know one truth to be clear. I cannot get enough of Captain Picard OR Patrick Stewart! I was delighted when I heard that Star Trek’s newest offering would return both to me, but I knew it would be awhile before I would shell out the money for the streaming service. Luckily, CBS All Access gave new subscribers a free month of service during the quarantine. I did not need a month; 3 days is all I needed!
14 years after his retirement from Starfleet, Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) is sought out by a mysterious young woman, Dahj (Isa Briones) who insists she needs his help. I do not want to give anything besides this is essential viewing for any Star Trek fan! It is choked full of Easter Eggs and references. It features a few Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) cameos and, even though I would love to catch up with other characters from the series, I am glad the cameos were done sparingly. The writing is done intelligently, and it is controlled. As a fan, I have cravings, but the show operates with the idea that less is more and a subtlety worthy of its titular character. A lesson that its rival franchise, Star Wars, learned the hard way back in the late 90’s.
The Conners Season 2 (2019-2020) ABC
This is a spin-off of Roseanne (1988) after Roseanne’s death from an opioid overdose. Roseanne (1988) was a staple for me when I was growing up and I hated the last season and the series finale. Like many other fans, I was excited, but nervous when the show was coming back. After a few episodes, I just could not get back into the groove of the show. I was curious once again after Roseanne was fired and the show was turned into a spin-off to see how the other characters coped after the death of the Roseanne character. I kept meaning to revisit the show and spin-off, but never got around to it.
I found myself in front of the television, scanning my options, chasing a high after finishing Picard (2020), and needed a comfort show. I found the second season of The Conners (2018) on demand and I got curious. I must admit, it took a few episodes, but either the show found its rhythm, or I warmed up to it. The show will never be as good as the first few seasons of Roseanne (1988), but it is okay. It is familiar and works, for now.
I cannot help but feel like something is missing, but I felt that void even when it was the “new” episodes of Roseanne (1988). Dan (John Goodman) and Jackie (Laurie Metcalf) really keep the show together, but the writers are careful not to turn the show into Dan or Jackie. Many of the lines or parts of the episodes that would have been fitting for Roseanne seem to have been passed to Becky (Alicia Goranson) and, new character, Louise (Katey Sagal) with motherly heart-to-hearts and some wise cracks mixed in saved for Darlene (Sara Gilbert).
Movie Munchies
Swallow (2019) Amazon Prime Video
Hunter (Haley Bennett) seems to have the picture perfect marriage to wealthy Richie (Austin Stowell). When she becomes pregnant, she becomes obsessed with eating dangerous objects. Hunter must face her past and the dark secrets that fuel her compulsion.
Visually, this film is beautiful. Hunter and Ritchie’s home along with Hunter’s costumes are gorgeous and look like they have been pulled directly from magazine spreads. Writer and first time director, Carlo Mirabella-Davis brilliantly uses these visuals to reinforce the idea of Hunter’s perfect life. She has everything and should not have anything to worries. Hunter develops pica, a psychological disorder characterized by an appetite for non-nutritive and non-edible substances or objects. It is most commonly seen in pregnant women. When I first saw Hunter give in to her compulsion, I thought it had to do with her pregnancy or a vitamin deficiency. As the movie progresses, it is revealed that she is haunted by her past which threatens to destroy her marriage. The movie delivers and quickly sucked me in. It kept me guessing and I was invested in Hunter’s life from the beginning.
Hustlers (2019) Fandango
This one was not my choice and a little out of my taste, but I enjoyed it, overall. It is not an earth-shattering film, but it was an enjoyable rental. It is based on a real story and the New York Magazine article “The Hustlers at Scores” by Jessica Pressler. Writer and director Lorene Scafaria tells the story of a crew of former strippers who drugged and stole money from rich CEO’s and stock-traders they enticed to visiting a strip club.
Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu, Lili Reinhart, and Cardi B portray the criminal strippers with hearts of gold. It is a bit of a cliché premise. It shows how a group of women would do anything to make ends meet for themselves and their children, while sticking it to some men that seem to be, at best, sleazy and fine with exploiting women as sexual objects. Despite how you may feel about Jennifer Lopez, she DEFINATLY demands respect for having the confidence, talent, and muscle for how she performs on a pole in this movie! She takes what could be seen as a skeevy performance and transforms it into an athletic and graceful art. Interestingly enough, former stripper, Cardi B has actually admitted to illegally drugging and robbing men early on in her career! Other notable mentions include a cameo by Usher and we get to see Buzz McCallister (Devin Ratray) all grown up.
Judy (2019) Fandango
This rental was obviously my choice and I was not disappointed! Fair warning, if you watch any type of a biopic about Judy Garland, it is not going to be a feel good romp. If you are already depressed, you should go with The Wizard of Oz (1939). If you are already in a bummed out mood because of the pandemic, go with fiction and Garland’s beautiful pipes!
Judy (2019) looks at Garland’s 1968 series of concerts in London during the last year of her life and is based on the Tony nominated Broadway play End of the Rainbow.
Finding herself broke despite performing her entire life, Judy Garland (Renee Zellweger) travels to London to make some money and a comeback of sorts. A lifetime of performing and prescription drug use and alcohol eventually get the better of her and she becomes less and less dependable, eventually dooming her own career abroad as she had in the United States. Zellweger channels Garland and her performance is spectacular! It is a cautionary reminder of the price of fame and a look back at the big studios that used and abused their performers for profit during the reign of Louis B. Mayer. Not only is Garland a legend in her own right, the film is topical today as we watch the rise and fall of Hollywood and sports elite in social media and in the news.