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Hump Day Recommendations
Lap up: Smart detection. We could all use a bit of guilty TV-watching pleasure. “High Potential” to the rescue. This drama series on Hulu, which is based on the French show “HPI,” features a single mother who’s a cleaner-turned-detective with a 160 IQ. She solves crimes and imparts random facts that will leave you feeling a bit smarter – and wanting another episode. – Tracy
Watch (and read): The fourth and final season of “My Brilliant Friend.” Based on the wildly popular and trailblazing series by pseudonymous Italian author Elena Ferrante, this series is available now on HBO. The novels are extraordinary, depicting decades of the conflicted friendship of two exceptional girls in post-war Naples. The television series is equally dazzling. If you haven’t watched it, what are you waiting for? – Ellen
Read: the “strong gods.”What explains the resurgence of populist nationalism in the US?Ultraconservative writer N.S. Lyons sees it, approvingly, as an overdue rejection of the West’s post-World War II pursuit of an “open society” in favor of the more exclusionary “strong gods” of religion and nationalism. It’s a provocative take, and there’s a lot to take issue with, but Lyons is an influential thinker who I think taps into something real about the zeitgeist. Read the essay here. For an alternative view, here’s a very good response from liberal commentator Noah Smith. – Alex
Read: Isaac Saul’s take on “Columbia University’s funding cut and Mahmoud Khalil’s arrest.” Protests at Columbia have proven to be such a polarizing issue, intersecting with people’s identities and deepest-held beliefs. Saul breaks down both sides but concludes that Khalil’s deportation is a free speech issue. I’m sure many won’t agree with him, but I think he makes a valiant effort to bridge the divide.
– Riley
Listen: Ten Things I Don’t Want to Hate About You. The latest This American Life episode was poignant, moving, and deeply cultural – as more and more of us know friends and loved ones who fall prey to conspiracy theories online. The episode follows the true story of a son trying to reach his father who has been transformed by online conspiracy theories – to the point of destroying his marriage and facing financial ruin – through a bet on the political events he expects to happen in 2024. It made me cry listening to it on the subway. – Riley
Read: “The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions.” This book by Jonathan Rosen combines true crime and a psychological thriller with the coming-of-age tales of two friends, Rosen and Michael Laudor, who grew up in New Rochelle, NY, in the 1970s. Both were intellectuals and aspiring writers who studied at Yale. They were competitive, and everything seemed easy for Laudor – until he developed schizophrenia and watched his dreams go up in the hallucinatory flames consuming his mind. His mental illness would end up costing everyone in his orbit – one tragically so – and the book poignantly describes how helpless those around him felt. The book details how little support there is for the families of schizophrenia sufferers – and the huge challenge these people face in carving out stable, safe, and rewarding lives. – Tracy
Watch: “The Brutalist.” The older I get, the more I want to see films that were made for reasons other than to entertain an audience and make money. “The Brutalist” is a strikingly original film. The Oscar-nominated performances of Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, and (especially) Felicity Jones give the movie its “hard core of beauty,” and I don’t care thatAI was used to tweak the Hungarian accents of its stars. I’ve seen “special effects” before. – Willis
Read: TL;DRussia. Sam Greene, the Russia expert who writes this weekly-ish Substack newsletter, always gives a thoughtful, nuanced look at Russian politics and geopolitics. I’ve always found Sam to be adept at cutting through hype and anxiety about Russia’s place in the world, while also making it clear that there’s simply a lot we can’t know, and that conjecturing isn’t that helpful. If you’re ready for a Russia deep dive, I’d start here. – Ellen
Watch: “North of North.” Coming soon to Netflix, currently streaming on CBC Gem and APTN in Canada, this delightful comedy follows the travails of a young Inuk woman, Siaja, who after a very public breakup with her seal-hunter husband Ting, finds her purpose, inspires her community, and learns a shocking family secret. Set in the fictional Arctic town of Ice Cove, the show was filmed in Nunavut and features spectacular scenery, colorful characters, great lines, and a unique window into the Innu world. A must-watch – and hoping for a season two. – Tasha
Face: the greatest. Some records will never be broken. During his 27 seasons as a flamethrowing Major League Baseball pitcher, Nolan Ryan struck out more than 5,000 batters, twirled seven no-hitters, and tossed more 1-hitters, 2-hitters, and 3-hitters than anyone in history. The documentary “Facing Nolan” tells the story of how the “Nolan Express” went from clunky beginnings all the way to the Hall of Fame. No Oscar nominations here, but it’s a fun doc that tells you what you want to know about Big Tex and has some great interviews with Ryan at his cattle ranch as well as former teammates, opponents, and his ride-or-die wife Ruth. And yes, of course, the Bo Jackson split lip and the Ventura headlock are in it. – Alex
Watch: “Prime Target.” I only started watching this Apple TV series starring Leo Woodall because a close friend of mine works for St John’s College at the University of Cambridge, where much of it was filmed. She told me all about the stars being on campus, so I had to give it a look. The premise is a bit silly, and the baddies are a bit corny, yet I’m finding myself looking for the next installment each week. You might too. – Tracy
Read: “Factory Girls,” by Leslie T. Chang. If you are like me and like to learn about the recent histories of other countries through a good humanizing story, check this out. The book follows two young women navigating life in China’s factory cities, revealing a world where switching factories ends friendships and English classes change social statuses. Chang illuminates the largest human migration in history – made up of a majority of women under the age of 30 – while painting a portrait of modern China and the workers creating the shoes, electronics, and appliances that make the world go round.
– Riley
Watch: “Flow.”OK so hear me out. It’s a 90-minute-long animated movie about a cat that gets caught in a flood. It has no dialogue. It has no people. But it does have a capybara, a quasi-magical bird, and some questionable dogs. It’s from Latvia and it was nominated for an Oscar, and it’s completely hypnotic. At some moments, the animals’ expressions and motivations feel vaguely human, at others they are veiled by a kind of basic and impenetrable natural mystery. You can watch it here. – Alex
Read: “The Cross of Redemption: Uncollected Writings,” by James Baldwin. First published in 2010, this collection of Baldwin’s previously unpublished work reveals again the elegantly expressed outrage and provocative musings of a great American writer. – Willis
Listen: "The Blueprint with Jen Psaki." If you’re a fan of Jack Schlossberg’s social media antics and have been wondering what on Earth is going on with him, you need to check out Jen Psaki’s latest episode, “Why are we so Cautious? With Jack Schlossberg.” JFK’s grandson tells Psaki about his social media experiments — he taunts, teases, and dances a lot, for the uninitiated — and compares his approach to how Republicans use social media while noting that Dems need to be far more daring. Did he really get dumped? Nope. Is he Justin Baldoni’s lawyer? Nah. Is he studying ballet? Yep, and he’s poking holes in the notions surrounding masculinity with every twirl. Does he have a bigger project brewing? Listen to find out. – Tracy
Read: “You Dreamed of Empires,” by Álvaro Enrigue. This book is an amusing and, at times, hallucinatory romp (magic tomatoes, anyone?) that reimagines Hernán Cortés’s arrival at the lake city of Tenochtitlan (present-day Mexico City) and the fall of the Tenochtitlan Empire under Moctezuma. — Alex Gibson, Senior producer, GZERO World
Read: “The Handmaid’s Tale,” by Margaret Atwood. Sure, you may have seen the series (now streaming on Hulu), but Atwood’s crisp prose brings home the full horror of a theocratic American autocracy where women’s rights have been stripped away, people of color are deported, and a wealthy elite lord it over everyone else. Atwood is my favorite Canadian author for many reasons, including that she is always ahead of her time (the novel was published in 1985). – Tasha
Read: “Gold Diggers,” by Sanjena Sathian. Having worked with Sathian, I can attest to her writing ability on everything from foreign affairs, pop culture, and now — thanks to her debut novel from 2021 — fiction. This is a coming-of-age tale peppered with magical realism starts in Sathian’s hometown, Atlanta, and centers on the Indian-American writer’s idea of belonging. Worth a read before it hits TV (comedian Mindy Kaling is reportedly adapting it). — TracyWatch: Groundhog’s Day. No, not the Bill Murray movie. But the actual livestream of the Groundhog’s Day ceremony at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Seeing the Groundhog Club’s Inner Circle (a bunch of men in top hats) speak Groundhogese and raise the majestic rodent into the air is well worth waking up early on Sunday morning. Plus, if you don’t, how will you know what season it is? – Riley
Watch: “Black Warrant.” Ever wondered about life inside India’s largest prison? Based on a book of the same name, this Netflix series revolves around stories out of Tihar Jail in Delhi, India, from the 1980s. An unlikely officer, Sunil Gupta takes up a job as a jailer (present-day correctional officer) to handle one encampment of the prison. While everyone around him is corrupt, Gupta is trying to improve the twisted system all while managing relations with his subordinates and his supervisor. Each episode recounts a different tale while the show builds on characters. The kicker: Each episode is based on a true story. – Suhani
Read: “Americans need to party more.” In a very clever article in The Atlantic, author Ellen Cushing offers a prescription for America’s epidemic of loneliness: a good old-fashioned party. It’s not as trite as it seems: Cushing notes that in 2023, only 4.1% of Americans attended or held a social event on an average weekend or holiday, a 25% drop since 2004. This decrease in get-togethers parallels the rise of smartphone use and the decline in mental health. The best part is that reversing it is within our control! So send out the invites, break out the bubbly, and open your home to your friends. Who knew therapy could be so much fun? – Tasha
Watch: “Nosferatu.” I am usually not one for horror films, but I make an exception for Robert Eggers. This beautifully shot remake of the archetypal vampire film recontextualizes the original German expressionist masterpiece to focus much more on Ellen’s agency, highlighting the ambiguity of her sexual relationship with the dark lord Nosferatu. As always, Eggers nails the period outfits and sets, but his real genius comes in setting the mood — a creeping sense of dread and doom. — Matt
Meet: The Monarchist. The controversial one-time blogger and intellectual Curtis Yarvin thinks democracy is a sham and that countries should be run by monarchs who act like CEOs. Hear him out, because he’s influential in right-wing and tech circles these days, and his work has been cited approvingly by none other than Vice President JD Vance. Whether you agree with him or not, his ideas and ambitions are worth understanding. This lengthy New York Times interview with him is a good place to start. – Alex
Listen: The Beaches are a queer indie all-girl band from my hometown of Toronto whose smart lyrics and cool vibe have propelled them to stardom both in Canada and around the world. This article details their rise to fame and how a catchy breakup song (uploaded to TikTok, of course) became the key to their success – and made the lead singer’s ex famous as well. Check out their latest single, “Jocelyn,” here. – Tasha