For reasons that various outlets insist are “mysterious,” this film was never fully released in the U.S. That’s a major shame because it’s absolutely magical. I loved it to pieces, even before I read that director Mark Osborne (Kung Fu Panda) chose a little girl as protagonist thanks to statements from the Geena Davis Institute of Gender Media about the gender disparity in animated films. Me, I bawled like a baby through this thing, it was so touching and beautiful. I’ve loved The Little Prince for decades. I didn’t want to see yet another version of the book. I wanted to see an amazing new approach to the story, and this film delivers it in spades. It has a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and you can watch it on Netflix. I give it five hearts.
Stepping continents away from children’s movies, Happy Valley is possibly the best thing to come out since The Wire. A Netflix original TV series for those who love dark and gritty crime stories, this show follows sergeant Catherine Cawood played by Sarah Lancashire. Straight up, the writing, directing and acting on this show is so brilliant, it makes me weep. Lancashire is so convincing as the super tough-with-tender spots Cawood that I have to keep reminding myself that she isn’t a real person. Making this even more realistic is Lancashire’s robust physique. Unlike every female cop on American TV, Lancashire looks like she could really bust a skull and her body is totally appropriate for her age (which is over 50, by the way). I love this character so much, I can’t even. She’s been through the worst and we watch her go through even more terrible events — not perfectly, mind. She makes plenty of believable mistakes yet I love her all the same. The realism of this series is brutal in ways network TV can’t portray.So, if you’re at all a delicate flower, you might want to avoid this series. I give it five switchblades.
This puzzle game is maddeningly addictive. I even have dreams about it. Every time I think I’ve had it and I’m going to stop playing, I stumble past the blocks and keep going. I’ve been playing it on my iPad, although you might enjoy it on your phone all the same. I’m in the 500s now level-wise, but I think my good pal Scott Edelman is all the way to the end. I’ll catch up! You’ll see! ::shakes fist:: I give it five squares. (You’ll just have to play to find out what I mean.)