3/13/22: Your now-weekly Sunday Stream!
This Week: A horror movie that almost made my wife puke, and an INSPIRING STEP FORWARD.
Happy Sunday, Streamers.
You asked, so here it is - the first dispatch of the now weekly Sunday Stream. Going forward, I’ll be firing off recs every single Sunday, which I now realize makes this all a lot less confusing (you know there’s a problem when you get multiple “I didn’t get the email this week” texts).
To make this manageable for you (and more importantly me), future Streams will be shorter - just 2-3 pieces of content - so this never totals more than a five minute read and you get the quick shot of content you need to help fight those Sunday Scaries every week.
Which leads me to…
Know someone who could use the help this Sunday? Be a friend and lend a hand below.
Some other news: you can now read the Stream in the new Substack app.
With the app, you’ll have a dedicated inbox for the Stream (and any other newsletters you subscribe to), so new posts will never get lost in your email filters. Longer posts will never be cut-off by your email app, and all the fun embeds and links should all work seamlessly within the app (rather than linking out). Overall, it’s a big upgrade to the reading experience, so be sure to check it out.
Now that all the housekeeping is out of the way, let’s get to it.
Fresh
What It’s About: In this thriller-horror film, a young woman (Daisy Edgar-Jones), battles to survive the horrors of modern dating when she becomes involved with a mysterious new man (Sebastian Stan).
Why You Should Watch: For inventive horror and pure shock value.
This is one of those recs where I can’t say much without totally giving it away, so I will keep it quick. Fresh starts out as a cute rom-com, and then 30 minutes in, the rug is completely pulled out from under you when things go wrong for Daisy Edgar-Jones. Very wrong. Real-life-Ken-doll Sebastian Stan turns out to be someone entirely different than the main character thought (shocker), and proceeds to do things that had my wife hiding under a blanket on the couch for most of the runtime.
Daisy Edgar-Jones, who is quickly becoming one of Hulu’s go-to stars, is easy to root for as the clever (if maybe a little too trusting) heroine, and Sebastian Stan continues to show he has range outside of punching CGI cronies for Marvel as a fun, charming, and absolutely certifiable psychopath. It’s a wild story (you have to wonder who hurt the writer so bad she could think up such a thing), and you should absolutely give it a watch if you have the stomach for these kinds of things.
Who’s In It, and Where You Probably Know Them From:
Daisy Edgar-Jones - A British actress who recently broke out as the lead in Normal People, she also will be appearing in two high-profile upcoming book adaptations: Under The Banner of Heaven, and Where the Crawdads Sing.
Sebastian Stan - Pam and Tommy, Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier in the Marvel Universe, I, Tonya, Gossip Girl, and the 80s jock-bully in Hot Tub Time Machine.
Who Made It, and What Else Have They Done:
It’s directed by Mimi Cave, who to date has mostly done music videos (which tracks with the way many scenes and musical sequences are shot). The deranged individual who wrote this is Lauryn Kahn, who previously spent years writing shorts for Funny or Die, and most recently wrote the Netflix film Ibiza.
Where You Can Watch: Hulu
The Dropout
What It’s About: This drama, based on the hit podcast, tells the story of how Elizabeth Holmes (Amanda Seyfried) became the the world’s youngest self-made female billionaire through her now infamous company Theranos, only to lose it all when it’s revealed that she built the entire enterprise on lies.
Why You Should Watch: For the thrill of the con, workplace drama, and that uber-creepy voice.
There’s a current surplus of prestige-y tech founders-as-scammers content, but after checking out the rest I can say this is the cream of the crop. I was admittedly skeptical (after the podcast and the documentary, just how much more Theranos content did we need?) but The Dropout delivers; Amanda Seyfried puts on a show nailing both Holmes’ unnerving stare-through-your-bones-gaze and unnaturally forced-down-a-register voice, and she has great (albeit creepy) chemistry with Naveen Andrews as her mentor/boyfriend/co-executive Sunny Balwani.
Rounding out the cast is a a who’s-who of actors (seriously the next section is the longest I’ve ever done), who help fill in back story not previously covered by other adaptations, and help to paint a better picture as to why Holmes was so compelled to con everyone in the first place. Whether or not you caught this story the first couple of times around, definitely give this *Holmes-voice* inspiring step forward a watch.
Who’s In It, and Where You Probably Know Them From:
Bare with me, this cast is overflowing with can’t-quite-place familiar faces:
Amanda Seyfried - Les Miserables, The Mamma Mia franchise, a hilarious two year run of Dear John (lol), Letters to Juliet (LOL), and In Time (LOLLLL), Jennifer’s Body, Ted 2, Big Love, Veronica Mars, and of course - Mean Girls:
Naveen Andrews - Lost (!!!), and The English Patient
Anne Archer - Fatal Attraction, Cathy Ryan in the Harrison Ford-era of the Jack Ryan franchise, and Dennis and Dee’s Mom on It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia.
Michaela Watkins - This comedian has popped up in everything over the last twenty years including Saturday Night Live, but you probably recognize her from her recent starring roles in Casual and/or Transparent.
Utkarsh Ambudkhar - Tons of comedies including Pitch Perfect andThe Mindy Project, and most recently tick, tick… BOOM!
Elizabeth Marvel - Probably House of Cards, but also Homeland, Burn After Reading, Fargo (the TV series), True Grit, The Bourne Legacy, and Lincoln.
Laurie Metcalf - Most recently Lady Bird, but in her decades-long-career she has also appeared in Uncle Buck, Leaving Las Vegas, The Conners / Roseanne, The Big Bang Theory, and as Andy’s Mom in the Toy Story franchise.
William H Macy - So many, but highlights include Shameless, Boogie Nights, Fargo, Air Force One, Pleasantville, Magnolia, Thank You For Smoking, and Mystery Men (and, most importantly, Smash Mouth’s “All Star” music video by proxy). Not to mention as Felicity Huffman’s husband, so also the College Admissions Scandal (Fight On!).
Michel Gill - President Walker on House of Cards, as well as Mr. Robot and Ray Donovan.
Stephen Fry - A famous British comedian with a decades-long career, American audiences might recognize him from A Fish Called Wanda, the narrator in Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, Gosford Park, The Hobbit franchise, Bones, or from breaking your heart inV for Vendetta.
Bill Irwin - Rachel Getting Married, The Lady In The Water, or you might recognize his voice as he’s not only Tars in Interstellar, but for all you parents out there, has been Mr. Noodle on Elmo’s World and Sesame Street for the last twenty years.
Sam Waterston - Take-no-bullshit, ADA boot-knocking, break-any-rules-for-JUSTICE, New York Executive District Attorney Jack “Hang ‘Em High” McCoy!
DUN DUN.
Kurtwood Smith - Decades of being an all-around prick in Robocop, Dead Poets Society, A Time To Kill, and of course, as Red Forman on That ‘70s Show.
Who Made It, and What Else Have They Done:
Elizabeth Meriwether is the creator of the show, who most notably has brought us New Girl and No Strings Attached.
Where You Can Watch: Hulu