Hump Day Recommendations

Watch: “A Real Pain.”I loved this movie. It’s about two cousins who’ve lost touch and decide to go on a trip to Poland to reconnect and honor their grandmother — a Holocaust survivor. The film is largely about the challenges of confronting the past, and touches heavily on grief and generational trauma. Despite the heavy subject matter, the movie somehow manages to be incredibly funny. It’s the perfect balance of heartwarming, profound, and hilarious. — John

Read: “Atatürk: The Biography of the Founder of Modern Turkey,” by Andrew Mango. During my trip to Turkey last week, I witnessed something rather remarkable. Around 9:05 a.m. on Nov. 10, ships in the Bosphorous began sounding their horns, cars stopped in the middle of the street, and people paused their routines to stand respectfully. They were mourning the 86th anniversary of the death of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey and one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. And yet, in the US – inexcusably – he is virtually unknown. Do yourself a favor and pick up Mango’s comprehensive biography, which unsparingly cuts through Kemalist propaganda and legend to trace the story of Turkey’s rise from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire. – Matt

Watch: The 2008 Nadal-Federer Wimbledon final. As Rafael Nadal, king of clay, retires from professional tennis, take a minute — or six hours — to watch one of his best performances when he beat Roger Federer at his peak at Wimbledon. Both men gave their all, and the match was nothing less than a thriller. Nadal is finishing his career with Davis Cup play this week. – Suhani

Read: Calvin and Hobbes. Tired of the existential dread that hangs over this US election like smog? Me too. Time to revisit Calvin (history’s most imaginative cartoon boy) and Hobbes (his sardonic stuffed tiger and best pal). It’s hard to top “Something Under the Bed is Drooling” and “The Revenge of the Baby-Sat.” But for my money “Scientific Progress Goes Boink” is cartoonist Bill Watterson’s masterpiece. Enjoy. You deserve it. – Willis

Watch: “Somebody Somewhere,” a slightly under-the-radar but critically acclaimed comedy series on HBO Max, starring Bridget Everett and a cast of eccentric but endearing characters living in Manhattan, Kansas. Now in its third and final season, the show follows Everett as Sam Miller, a 40-something, single woman who moves back to her hometown following the death of her sister. This series is touching, hilarious, filled with beautiful music (Everett is an amazing singer), and won a Peabody this year for excellence in entertainment. – Tony

Watch, if you haven’t already, last week’s episode of “Saturday Night Live.” If US politics has you feeling grim or overwhelmed, this episode will be a much-needed respite. – Riley

Listen: “The Pure Sound of Mountain and Water,” by Yu Shuishan. Things are … stressful right now. Why not take a deep dive into the most relaxing, non-political album I know of in this beautiful rendition of traditional Chinese guqin music. The fretless zither has been a staple of Chinese music since Confucius was just a rowdy scholar, and Yu’s peaceful, minimalistic interpretations might be just what you need today. — Matt

Read: “Kingmaker: Pamela Harriman's Astonishing Life of Power, Seduction, and Intrigue,” by Sonia Purnell. Imagine being a young English woman with the respected ear of Prime Minister Winston Churchill during World War II. Then you go on to know, love, and frolic (often) and work with powerful men involved in nearly every pivotal geopolitical moment and scandal until your death five decades later. Was Harriman scandalous? You bet. A brilliant feminist? Jury’s still out. A cunning political operative? You decide. I loved this book, and I think you might too. — Tracy

Watch: “The Apprentice.”This Donald Trump biopic came out just weeks before Election Day. It’s an attempt to examine the forces and experiences that molded the former president as we know him today, particularly Roy Cohn, the influential lawyer who mentored Trump when he was younger. While some aspects of the movie are based on actual events, it’s still a fictional depiction of Trump at the end of the day. Trump has made it clear he’s not happy about the movie, calling the people who made it “HUMAN SCUM.” Though reviews are mixed, this film definitely has people talking, and I’d say it’s worth two hours of your time. — John

Read: “The Empty Space,” by Peter Brook. In this thin volume, first published in 1968, famed director Peter Brook divides theater into its “Deadly,” “Holy,” “Rough,” and “Immediate” forms. It’s the most important book on theater – and, by extension, art — that I’ve ever found. The older I get, the more I see that the book is also about life. You don’t have to care about theater to become fascinated by this masterpiece. – Willis

Listen: “The Anti-Trans Hate Machine,” hosted by Imara Jones for TransLash Media. Season 2 of this riveting podcast explores the violent supremacist groups that target the transgender community in the US and abroad, including Patriot Front, Proud Boys, Blood Tribe, and many more, as well as the role of local politicians and law enforcement in fostering these dangerous extremists. It’s a heavy subject, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel, as Jones explores deradicalization and healing after hate. — Matt

Watch: “The Last of the Sea Women.”This fantastic documentary focuses on the haenyeo of South Korea’s Jeju Island — intrepid women who dive into the ocean without oxygen to harvest seafood for a living. But their numbers are dwindling, and their way of life faces myriad threats, ranging from climate change to nuclear waste. It’s hard not to cheer these women on as they fight to preserve their traditions and protect the ocean. — John

Listen: The Interview’s conversation with JD Vance.This hour-long interview pushes Vance to explain how many of his views have evolved, and is a great peek inside the brain of Trump’s number two, who knows he will play an outsized role as vice president if he wins in November. – Riley

Read: Language City. More languages are spoken in New York City than anywhere else on earth. But many are endangered tongues from Asia, Africa, the Balkans, or Indigenous America, spoken by just a handful of old heads whose grandkids don’t understand a thing. A new book details the fight to preserve them. Written by Ross Perlin – a Columbia professor who co-directs the NYC-based Endangered Language Alliance – “Language City” maps Gotham’s linguistic landscape and profiles the living speakers of six dying tongues: Yiddish, Nahuatl (from Mexico), Lenape (from pre-colonial New York), Wakhi (Tajikistan), and N’ko (West Africa.) Language nerds will love it, but so will anyone interested in the way that vast sweeps of history are revealed simply by listening to who speaks what languages, and why. – Alex

Watch: “Perfect Days.” Director Wim Wenders (“Wings of Desire,” “Paris Texas,” “Until the End of the World”) returns with an Oscar-nominated film that explores the spiritual life and earthly tribulations of a man who makes his living cleaning Tokyo’s toilets. Kōji Yakusho delivers a hypnotically beautiful performance for the ages. This is the most moving and thought-provoking new film I’ve seen in years. – Willis

Watch: “Nobody Wants This.” For deprived “Fleabag” fans, this show is a great supplement (I binged it in one day). It’s funny, quirky, and most importantly, it’s where Hot Priest meets Hot Rabbi. The show explores a relationship between an agnostic sex podcaster, Kristen Bell, who usually bails from relationships at every small inconvenience, and a rabbi, played by Adam Brody, who is fresh out of a long-term relationship. Will their unique situation survive when nobody around them wants it to? – Suhani

Slide: head first into a complicated legacy. Pete Rose, one of the greatest baseball players of all time, died on Tuesday. Banned for life from the sport (and the Hall of Fame) for betting on games, Rose lied for decades about his gambling, but in recent years explored forgiveness from Major League Baseball. A new HBO docu-series, built around interviews with Rose, shows him in all his complexity: a hard-nosed, winning-is-everything superstar beloved by fans and teammates, but also a cocky, mendacious, and immensely self-destructive human being. Should he be in the Hall of Fame? – Alex