Squid Game

Last night, I just wanted to catch a glimpse of the Korean TV series that everyone is talking about and I couldn’t stop watching until two in the morning. I am hooked on the concept of adults playing the children games. If they win the money goes into the jackpot. If they lose, they get shot in the head. It is pretty wild what human beings would do for money out of desperation. I’ve always enjoyed the over-the-top violence in Korean’s films and this one is no exception.

Dave Chappelle: The Closer

In The Closer, his last special for a minute, Chappelle continued to push his comic as far as he could on the stage. He went hard as fuck on the LGBTQ+ communities. Whether you agree or disagree with his jokes, you have to admit that he is the GOAT, as he rightly claimed to be in this special. Did he cross the line with the Jews? Probably. I’m not mad at him for comparing Asian people to the coronavirus. The punchline fell short. I had to rewind it again to understand the reference. I’ll definitely going to miss him though.

Britney vs Spears

In her latest Netflix documentary, Erin Lee Carr reveals the horrid truth behind Britney Spears’s conservatorship. Britney has been suffered for too long. It’s time to set Britney free from her controlling father. It’s crazy how money can turn a family into foes.

Phil Wang: Philly Philly Wang Wang

I have not heard of Phil Wang until I watched his latest Netflix’s special, “Philly Philly Wang Wang.” Phil is half Chinese, half White. He covered topics including Covid, Asian masculinity, and accent. He has decent materials with one-liners to keep the audience entertained for an hour. I enjoyed his dry sense of humor. I wish he pushed it a bit further.

Skater Girl

An uplifting film about bringing skateboarding to a small village in India. Skating gives kids, especially young girls, an opportunity to do something out of the ordinary, like getting an arranged marriage. As someone who has a passion for skating, I find the film a bit too dramatic, but still inspiring. I am not going to start skateboarding anytime soon, but I appreciate the art of the sport. I am glad the film endorses helmet and guards for skaters.

Joker

It’s a fucked-up joke on mental issues. I worry that the glorified violence in this film could motivate real-life shootings, particularly the white supremacists. Having said that, I greatly enjoyed Joaquin Phoenix’s performance.

The History of Swear Words

The first season of History of Swear Words is enlightening as fuck. Shit, I love to use profanity, but I stayed away from that word bitch. I just don’t want to be a dick. Pussy is another word that I’ll be damned to use. I can’t wait to learn more in the next season.

#Alive

Il Cho’s #Alive dials up the pandemic to the horror level. The virus turns humans into violent, blood-sucking zombies. Once infected, the zombies would look for more humans to attack and spread. This virus makes COVID-19 seems much milder. With COVID-19, you can wear mask and stay home peacefully. It’s a comic relief for quarantining.

Cuties

Maïmouna Doucouré’s Cuties is a coming-of-age film that has been mistaken for underage sexualization due to Netflix’s botched promotion. It is uncomfortable to watch eleven-year-old girls dancing erotically in their skimpy outfit, but that is the point Doucouré tries to make.

Amy (Fathia Youssouf), an eleven-year-old Senegalese, has the responsibility of looking after her two younger brothers and she must obey the Muslim tradition. Her father is about to marry a second wife and his first wife and kids must welcome them back into their house with a wedding celebration. Amy rebels her family by joining the dance group. She befriends Angelica (Médina El Aidi-Azouni) who is the group’s leader with the resemblance of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Because her parents always busy working at the restaurant, Angelica is left on her own and she is troublesome.

It is about immigrant children growing up in housing apartments. With lack of support from teachers and guidance from parents, they get their influence from the pop culture. It is an eye-opening film that reminds me of Larry Clark’s Kids in the 90s. I hope that Netfilx is not going to pull it.

Street Food: Asia

I enjoyed watching Street Food: Asia with my kids, particular my eight-year-old son who likes to cook. In addition to the mouth-watering dishes, the stories behind the chefs were inspiring. They sold food to survive. They showed up and worked hard everyday. The perfected their craft over the years. Seeing people enjoying their food brought them joy. I definitely biased, but the episode in Sài Gòn, Việt Nam was my personal favorite. I loved snails and enjoyed different dishes of snails.