I’m Dying Up Here.

Paul and Elgin check out #ImDyingUpHere:

Showtime’s I’m Dying Up Here, created by David Flebotte and Jim Carrey, and starring Melissa Leo, Ari Graynor, Al Madrigal, and Andrew Santino, plus Sebastian Stan (a.k.a. the Winter Soldier, in just the pilot).

Is this new Showtime show about the 1970s comedy club scene in LA worth giving a shot? Elgin raises concerns about anachronisms, while Paul focuses on Leo’s mannered performance. Both talk about the comedy sets, which present creative challenges like the musical performances in HBO’s Vinyl did.

Twin Peaks: The Return, plus quicker takes on Wonder Woman, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and GLOW.

Elgin and Paul review #TwinPeaks:

Twin Peaks: The Return (21:27) by David Lynch and Mark Frost and starring Kyle MacLachlan (as three characters) and many actors from the original series and/or longtime Lynch collaborators. Is this Showtime series — airing around 25 years after the early ’90s network phenomenon that asked and answered the question, Who killed Laura Palmer?, and its movie prequel Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me — a challenging follow-up from a master or a classic case of an emperor having no clothes? One thing we’re agreed on: It’s not an easy nostalgic revival.

Mommy Dead and Dearest.

Paul and Elgin review Mommy Dead and Dearest from HBO Documentary Films:

The HBO true-crime documentary Mommy Dead and Dearest, directed by Erin Lee Carr.

This film centers on the events surrounding the 2015 murder of Dee Dee Blanchard — who had subjected her daughter, Gypsy Rose, to unnecessary medical treatments and lied about her child’s health in order to get attention and charity. A victim of Munchausen syndrome by proxy, Gypsy Rose was sentenced to ten years in prison for her involvement in the murder. We examine the choices the filmmakers made (e.g., using re-created text message exchanges between Gypsy Rose and her boyfriend) in constructing this documentary and then open up the discussion to the merits and foibles of the true-crime genre more generally:

http://archive.org/download/ScreenStuffPodcast58/ScreenStuffPodcast58.mp3Download Podcast (right click and select Save as …)

The Handmaid’s Tale.

Elgin and Paul check out #TheHandmaidsTale:

Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, based on the novel by Margaret Atwood, showrun by Bruce Miller, and starring Elisabeth Moss, Yvonne Strahovski, Alexis Bledel, and Joseph Fiennes.

This new show — perhaps the strongest original programming yet from Hulu — is set in the theocratic dystopia that is the Republic of Gilead (formerly the United States of America). We talk about the smart, deft world-building by Atwood, Miller, and other collaborators, as well as the moving performances of Moss (Offred/June) and Bledel (Ofglen). We also discuss how the show seems to reflect the anxiety experienced by some segments of American society following the election of Donald Trump.

Alien: Covenant, plus quicker takes on Mikey Chen on YouTube, Desus & Mero, Great News, I Love Dick, American Gods, and the latest seasons of The Leftovers and Master of None.

Paul and Elgin review #AlienCovenant:

Alien: Covenant (35:17), directed by Ridley Scott and starring Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Demián Bichir, and Danny McBride. What does the follow-up to Prometheus (and the latest installment in the Alien franchise) have to offer that’s new or interesting? We discuss the dual performances of Fassbender and the film’s many missed opportunities, such as the character development from this cut scene (not the short film prologue).

Win It All.

Elgin and Paul check out (and check-raise) #WinItAll:

Netflix’s Win It All, directed by Joe Swanberg and starring Jake Johnson and co-written by them both.

Neither your standard Hollywood fare nor a mumblecore independent film, Swanberg’s latest Chicago-based collaboration with Johnson is about the charming man-child Eddie, who tries to kick his poker habit after falling for Eva, a single-mother nurse (played by Mexican film star Aislinn Derbez). Along the way, his GA sponsor played by Keegan-Michael Key tries to help him out.

We debate the climactic scene (without spoiling it), compare this film with gambling classics such as Owning Mahowny, and consider whether or not going straight to Netflix is good for “small films” like this one.