Horses are good company -- The Witcher

Media report!

Went to a matinee of "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" with my friend Rebecca. She noticed this showing had open captions and thought I might like that, and I did! I guess this movie is popular enough to warrant such a showing. It was just us and 2 other people in the theater.

I liked the film a lot, but felt it was too long at 2 hours 41 minutes. I've said it before, they should bring back the intermission. Let me have a bathroom break and get some snacks without missing the movie!

It was very beautiful to watch, and I especially liked that most of the characters in it are Black women.

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I listened to the "Overinvested" podcast about my current fav, Andor.
https://soundcloud.com/overinvestedpodcast/ep-271-andor

I don't know that I learned much from this podcast ep particularly, but it was very nice to hear people enthuse about the show. I disagree with something Gavia Baker-Whitelaw said, a minor point really, but this is often why I find pop culture pod casts frustrating: who is there to listen to me argue? It's too one-sided. I have a lot of opinions about media! So I suppose I'll write it out here. Spoilers for Andor under the cut.

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Hustlers - I watched this via library DVD.

Destiny (Constance Wu) is a new stripper looking for a mentor, and finds one in Ramona (Jennifer Lopez). This film is largely about their relationship as they gradually go from "making an honest living" to scamming men by drugging them and running up their credit cards. It's a more realistic and empathetic "Breaking Bad" kind of story. They live in a seedy and corrupt world, surrounded by Wall Street brokers who treat them like objects, so making choices that cross ethical lines isn't a stretch. Ramona eventually gets greedy and pushes things too far; maybe not Just like the Wall Street men she's robbing, but in the same vein. There's a gradual descent, and it's easy to see how these particular people fell into these choices.

I found this movie uncomfortable to watch, but I feel like I was supposed to. It was very well done and thought-provoking.

Content notes: vomiting, drug use (some non-consensual), sex work, alcohol, cheating, character death.

The Two Princes - podcast. I listened to this on Spotify.

A fantasy gay romcom! It's like an old-timey radio play! This was very silly and fluffy, easy to follow, with great voice acting. There are 2 seasons; the episodes are about 22 minutes long. Some may find this too silly for their tastes or mood.

Rupert is a 17-year-old prince concerned about the evil forest threatening the Western Kingdom. His mother is in denial about the danger, so Rupert escapes and ventures into the forest to try and solve the issue on his own. There he meets Amir, Prince of the Eastern Kingdom, sworn enemy of the Western royal family. Rupert lies about who he is to save his own life, saying he's a thief, and the two of them go on an adventure into the wild forest. They become friends and and then boyfriends!

The second season involves Amir getting amnesia, and Rupert's quest to find items for a magic potion to restore Amir's memories and save the realm. I didn't enjoy the premise of this season as much, because Amir acted like a jerk and Rupert was constantly stressed, but it was still fun to listen to.

Content notes: snakes and spiders.

My roommate and I enjoyed watching "Coco" on netflix. It's a Pixar/Disney movie about a boy and his family. He wants to play music and sing, but due to an old family wound, music is not allowed. On the Day of the Dead, he travels to the afterlife and ultimately is able to heal this old wound. It has bright colors, lovely music, and a very nice story. There is a Spanish-language version on netflix, which I will watch at another time.

I really enjoyed listening to this podcast, "Your Mixtape," with guest Anthony Oliveira (meakoopa. He talks about songs that are deeply important to him, and about queer community, and about Steven Universe.
https://www.megaphonic.fm/mixtape/15