PopaHALLics #164 "Damaged Goods"

Damaged people make for good pop in this episode, from a Neil Diamond tribute band with trouble at the door to a widow keeping busy to cope with her son's disappearance over 30 years ago in "Remarkably Bright Creatures."

Streaming:

• "Remarkably Bright Creatures," Netflix. This movie adaptation of Shelby Van Pelt's novel stars Sally Field as a night shift aquarium worker who forms a bond with a curmudgeonly giant Pacific octopus (voiced by Alfred Molina).
• "Widow's Bay," Apple TV. A new mayor (Matthew Rhys) tries to turn his island town into a tourist destination despite its dark past in this comedy horror series. With Stephen Root and Kate O'Flynn.
• "Patience," BBC.  An autistic police archivist (Ella Maisy Purvis) helps a detective inspector (Laura Fraser) solve crimes in this Belgian/British drama.
• "Song Sung Blue," Hulu. Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson star as a Neil Diamond tribute band in Milwaukee in this heartwarming movie about the trials and tribulations of their relationship.
• "Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord," Disney Plus. Animated. The horned, red and black devilish villain from "The Phantom Menace" tries to rebuild his criminal empire and woo a Jedi apprentice to the Dark Side.

Books:

• "The Twelve LIves of Alfred Hitchcock: An Anatomy of the Master of Suspense," by Edward White. This 2021 Edgar Award-winning biography explores the famed director through 12 distinct facets of his life, such as "The Voyeur," "The Entertainer," and "The Murderer."
• "Hex House," by Amy Jane Stewart. A dark feminist horror novel set in Scotland. Hex House is a magical safe haven that turns abused women into vessels of revenge.
• "Hitchcock's Blondes: The Unforgettable Women Behind the Legendary Director's Dark Obsession," by Laurence Leamer. This book covers some of the same subjects as "The Twelve Lives," but puts the women at the center of the story, with an emphasis on misbehavior (mainly Hitchcock's) and sex (mainly them).

Music:

PopaHALLics #164 Playlist (Kacey) features selections from Kacey Musgraves' new album "Middle of Nowhere," as well as Jackman and Hudson performing Neil Diamond's hits from the "Song Sung Blue" soundtrack.

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