Anyone who knows me, is aware that Summer is my least favorite season. I will admit we have had some glorious days with no humidity that were absolutely perfect. But, they are too few and far between the hot, humid bad hair days. So, I have spent several afternoons and evenings in the cool dark venue of a movie theatre which is my favorite place to be in this heat.
Some of the movies I have seen:
Infinite Polar bear-stars Mark Ruffalo stars as a bipolar man attempting to rebuild a relationship with his daughters and wife. It is superb. Loved it!
Love and Mercy-stars John Cusack, Paul Dano, and Paul Giamatti. Another movie focusing on psychosis! This is the story of Beach Boys leader, Brian Wilson. Most of my friends loved this movie. I did not. It was just ok. Good on demand feature for home.
Gallows-stars Cassidy Gifford (Frank Gifford and Kathie Lee's daughter), which was my purpose for viewing it. It was a supposedly scary movie. It was a bad take on the Blair Witch Trial. Thumbs down-DRECK.
Irrational Man-stars Joaquin Phoenix (who is screwy to begin with) as a philosophy (which is a weird subject to boot) professor with an alcohol problem. Emma Stone and Parker Posey both have the hots for this loser and ultimately, he commits an act which turns his life around. Allen's movie is Dreck. However, he is a master with conversation and for that alone I will tell you, it might be
worthwhile.
Southpaw-Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a light heavyweight boxer. I adore boxing and boxing movies. That being said the plot is ridiculous and unconvincing. Gyllenhaal's body transformation is pretty amazing though. Dreck.
Mission Impossible-Tom Cruise stars as Ethan Hunt. The plot is fun and action packed. The stunts are amazing. It is a thrill a minute. Although, I am not a fan of Cruise, he looks great, and plays the part extremely well. Lots of fun to watch. Loved it!
Ricky and The Flash-stars Meryl Streep and her daughter. To quote A.O. Scott, "a gentle-hearted baby boomer guilt-trip family drama." Meryl Streep performs song covers throughout the movie and is believable and pretty mesmerizing in every scene. Loved it! She's worth the price of admission.
When not seeking refuge from the dog day afternoons of summer, I can be found either reading or watching shows on demand in the wee hours of the night. Some particularly entertaining shows this summer have been ones you probably haven't ever heard of or have ever seen.
HUMANS-on AMC. A science fiction series where the newest must have gadget is a "Synth". A Synth is a robot servant which looks and acts exactly as Humans do. The plot line raises very interesting issues and is written well. William Hurt is awesome and Gemma Chan is a magnificent looking robot. I am not usually a fan of Sci-Fi, but this series is worth a look. Chilling...
WAYWARD PINES-M. Night Shyamalan's show about a secret service agent sent to Idaho to locate two missing federal agents. He is unable to leave alive once in this town for a variety of spooky reasons. Matt Dillon stars with Carla Gugino. At first, this show had promise, but it fell short and lost my interest quickly. DRECK-don't bother.
YOUNGER-A single mom decides to lie about her age so she may reboot her career. Great Cast with Sutton Foster, Hillary Duff and Debi Mazar. Watch it on TV Land-geared to a younger audience, but I thought it was really well done. LOVE IT!
SEX,DRUGS,ROCK & ROLL-Denis Leary and John Corbett star in this FX series about a middle aged rock and roller who never achieved fame and fortune. Super Fun-I recommend it!
GRACE AND FRANKIE-For all of us who loved Lily Tomlin on SNL, you must watch this series. For all of us 50 and Older, you must watch this series! Jane Fonda looks amazing. Lily is fabulous and the subject matter is hysterical. Watch it on Netflix and laugh out loud!
PLAYING HOUSE-stars two women I am unfamiliar with. Comedy about two best friends raising a baby. Not Dreck but after several episodes, I am weary. Don't waste your time.
BALLERS-Dwayne Johnson "The Rock" (my favorite!) stars in a series about football players and their agents. Love this show! On HBO.
THE BRINK-a geopolitical satire focusing on the crisis in Pakistan. Tim Robbins is super fabulous and Jack Black is also very good. Excellent fun to watch. On HBO
RAY DONOVAN-what can I say? Possibly the best show on t.v. Liev Schreiber is a HOT MESS and Jon Voight is phenomenal as his out of control father. On SHO.
Ok-so I have only read two books recently. The first being The Girl on The Train by Paula Hawkins. I felt this was exactly like Gone Girl and a rip off. Very fair read. However, if you liked Gone Girl, you will also like this.
The Second Book was Harper Lee's Go Set A Watchman. I also thought this was just fair, but it raises some relevant racial issues and I feel it should be required reading along with To Kill a Mockingbird (which was an all time favorite.)
Finally, some skin care recommendations since I am so concerned about avoiding sun and maintaining nice skin.
These are all recommendations: Any products by Jurlique, Roc, Nutrabisse, and Skinn (from evine t.v.). All of these produce nice, noticeable transformations in skin appearance.
Not Dreck but not my Favorites either: Peter Thomas Roth un wrinkle serum, Genius Algenist anti aging vit c serum, ZoSkin Heath by Zen Obagi. I see little change from these products although they are highly rated.
Now, I want to leave you with a smile on your face. Watch the best commercial on television. You can catch it on You Tube. It is Our Song Commercial/ United Health Care.
Check it out-it's hysterical, I promise!
Enjoy the rest of the summer. As Countess LuAnn de Lesseps says from The Real Housewives of NYC, " Be Cool. Don't be all, like uncool." (ok-I know I should be quoting Shakespeare or Longfellow or some actual literate human - don't shoot me)
