#its from a video a few years ago of them singing maniac for a radio station btw

[echo-rambles]

was once again reminded of changjin's height difference and I can't stop laughing

[musicdeejaysorceress]

Sensual Woman CD from 2010-2012Music Nostalgia Post 1

A Compilation of My Music Playlists Compiled From Amazon Youtube Etc.

Saturday, November 24, 2018

Sensual Woman CD from 2010-2012 Music Nostalgia Post 1As With My other posts, I am very thankful for all who visit andor view my online posts. Due to the time I need to allow myself to get ready for work, I have enough time to at least list the songs and I pledge to add further details on how I came to hear about a multiple number of these songs by Wednesday December 19, 2018 andor sooner. The Following is a playlist that I put together on a blank cd from the time period sometime from either late 2010 andor to 2012, what I do know for sure it that it was definitely sometime after December 2010 because of the feature of the Katy Perry song. One of the reasons I feel comfortable sharing on why I put together such nostalgic playlists are that as outrageous andor unconventional as it sounds, I have a feeling that both my present and future interests andor even possibly some unexpected occurences in my life that my intuition and higher self/soul are calling my attention to are hidden in clues pertaining to my music interest andor present andor future circumstances related in some way to my personal andor professional life (for instance some of the songs reminding me in some way of fun andor carefree times with my husband andor music reminding me of a cd, a writing idea andor something else that I derived benefit from later in the present andor future via either some music I bought with money from employment andor something else such as recognizing why I might have used some of these songs for fun in some of my creative writing freestyle fiction stories for instance (including more reasons etc), more of which I have faith that I am going to understand why I am following my creative intuition to post the Sensual Woman playlist within 2 to 5 years andor less from now. Due to the controversial nature of a multiple number of these songs, I am following my creative intuition to keep them recorded in some of my emails, on just my googleplus, tumblr, and wordpress feed for now

Monday December 10 2018

Sensual Woman CD 2010-2012 More details to be added later by Wednesday December 19, 2018 andor sooner

Lovergirl  Teena Marie

Teeth  Lady Gaga

Peacock  Katy Perry

I Think I Love You by  Balm (derived from the Trance Party Vol. 6 compilation mixed by the Happy Boys)

Untouched  The Veronicas

Something Kinda Ooooh  Girls Aloud

Sensitized  Kylie Minogue-Sensitized by Kylie Minogue is a distinctive club song that I have to credit finding out about around late 2007/winter timeframe from her Kylie Minogue's X collection. I just wish that it would have enjoyed more popularity here in the U.S. I think that the song's novelty was maybe ahead of its time by 2 to 3 years and that maybe it would have been more widely known if it was released andor featured more once electronic dance music because more popular on more American radio stations post 2010.

Because the Night 10000 Maniacs

Gimme Some Love   Gina G

Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover  Sophie B Hawkins

Come Go With Me  Expose

Self Control  Laura Branigan

Sexual (Li Da Di)  Amber

Possession   Sarah Mclachlan

Irresistible  The Corrs

Ride A White Horse Goldfrapp

Erotica Madonna

Saturday, November 24, 2018

Music Nostalgia Post 1

Music Nostalgia SectionTo my facebook and googleplus viewers; I appreciate all who take the time to look at my posts including my music nostalgia posts. I understand that the number of music nostalgia videos I have been sharing are multiple. However, I am following my creative intuition to finish what I started a few days ago to share some more music nostalgia posts from my 20s at least tonight for both present and future reference towards hidden creative interests through music that penetrate my soul that I also have faith/trust might uplift others as well. Additionally, I was going to finish up in sharing some more music nostalgic videos tonight because I am both intuitively and logically aware that I have some things that I must attend to around this time tomorrow evening.  Now on to the remaining nostalgia music themed videos I intend to share tonight-This dreamy pop song that is Breathless by the Corrs is a joyful type of pop tune that I unexpectedly came across in 2001 when I was still stationed in Yokosuka Japan through a Grammy Awards 2001 music compilation that I purchased from a Navy Exchange. I like how the music creatively blends with the push the envelope type of vocals.  For my googleplus and facebook sharing section-there is a fun music video to this song that seems to be an aviation component with the Corrs group singing with a plane featuring in the music video. Strangely enough I also started to listen to this song more often after I had been stationed at an aviation squadron in California from October 2003 until early 2005. Creative fiction storytelling idea; a tv andor movie commercial that shows the Breathless song by the Corrs by the year 2021 andor sooner.

I have to credit first hearing the Flip and Fill remix of Satellites by September around the 2008 timeframe from a music cd collection titled Trance Party Vol. 6 (a music collection that I purchased from a navy exchange in Mayport Florida around the 2006/2007 timeframe)by the time I was living in Norfolk Virginia. I always took this song to symbolize being careful to avoid comparing your progress to others to kind of be a best friend to yourself and just see the gift of another day as a chance to start another day. I am also reposting the comment I included about this song for a  nostalgic music playlist post tonight that I am going to start on my googleplus, tumblr, and wordpress blogs.The Flip & Fill Remix Version of Satellites by September is beyond an incredible and healing song. Another version I have heard before is also fantastic to listen to. However,I enjoy listening to this version (Flip & Fill Remix) of Satellites by September as I find it very musically and spiritually therapeutic.Creative fiction storytelling idea; an uplifting spiritual book comes out by the year 2030 based on the message of the song Satellite by September.

Like It or Not by MadonnaMy sweet husband gifted me with the music collection of Confessions on the Dancefloor by Madonna sometime around the 2005/2006 timeframe when we were both living on the Mayport Florida base. Like it or Not by Madonna was one of the unique dance songs on that I took to right away. I still have yet to make out the full meaning of this song years later yet I am taking a wild intuitive guess that maybe it is a self confidence type of anthem.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a future fictional movie of  female characters Mata Hari and Cleopatra  inspired by the Like it or Not song that Madonna creates is released by the year 2040 andor sooner.

Around the World by AquaI admit that this festive and upbeat type of tune that is Around the World by Aqua seeped into my soul/spirit after I first heard this song around the summer/autumn 2001 from a music collection that I purchased from one of the liberty ports that I visited from my time in the navy. For my facebook, tumblr, googleplus, and tumblr-I admit that I wish that I could remember with great clarity which liberty port it was because I had seen India, Dubai, and Singapore among some of the multiple stops during that time yet I am guessing and thinking that I unexpectedly discovered this song through a music collection that I bought at a shopping mall in India. I remember for sure that it was a music collection from one of those 3 places (India, Dubai, or Singapore)even though I have also purchased music cd imports from Dubai, Singapore and Hong Kong before as all three places carried music import collections from Europe.Creative storytelling idea; a food cooking show based andor inspired on the song Around the World by Aqua released sometime by the year 2029 andor sooner.

Things Can Only Get Better by Howard JonesI remember frequently hearing this song Things Can Only Get Better by Howard Jones on local radio around the 2006/2007 timeframe eerily when I would be truly making an effort to either listen to my intuition from within my soul andor see the good in what both the unexpected challenges of life and the unexpected good experiences in life were teaching me. I know it sounds strange yet it was as if my soul/spirit andor intuition was reminding me to always believe and expect that life circumstances could always get brighter andor even better than expected despite what was projected in current circumstances.  I also take this song as a healing spiritual reminder to always see the glass half full through various life circumstances.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a theater play based on Things Can Only Get Better by Howard Jones released by the year 2039 andor sooner.I admit that I have to credit hearing this song

 If You Only Knew by Shinedown via local Orlando Florida song around the 2009 timeframe. This band also has a multiple number of other good songs; Second Chance, State of My Head, Cut the Cord, Human Radio, and more. However, If You Only Knew by Shinedown shows the emotion of love in a creative and meaningful light.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a tv episode based on this song shown on tv by the year 2038 andor sooner.

Wherever You Are I Feel Love by LaavaI admit that I look at multiple online websites nowadays for news articles and to be informed andor entertained in some way (msn google yahoo Washington post Virginian Pilot and more). However, I admit to first hearing about this Wherever You Are I Feel Loved song by Laava online around the 2005/2006 timeframe through yahoo radio. I feel a colorful and mystical type of vibe with this dance/club love song.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a fictional movie, tv episode andor story on a long distance relationship, partnership, andor marriage that is released by the year 2042 andor sooner features this song as one of the songs on the music soundtrack.

I am lucky/fortunate to have first been exposed to a variation of this euphoric cheery energy song that is Come Into My Dream by Foggy via online around the 2005/2006 timeframe. For some unexpected reason, I started to enjoy this song even more around the 2008/2009 timeframe and to this day I get a joyful/take each day of life as a gift type of feeling when I hear this melody.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a futuristic movie, tv episode andor film based on andor related to/inspired by the Inception film except set in the year 2130 features this song Come Into My Dream by Foggy and is released by the year 2088 andor sooner.I always took this song Better Than Life by Ultrabeat to be about feeling good in life.

 I admit that I became aware of the Better Than Life Ultrabeat song after hearing it on a Now Dance 2005 Vol. 1 music collection after purchasing it from Amazon UK around December 2008 (when I was residing in Norfolk Virginia).Creative fiction storytelling idea; a music festival themed after the Better Than Life message organized by the year 2035 andor sooner.

I truly wish that I could remember the exact music compilation where I first heard this music gem that is True Love Never Dies by Kelly Llorena and Flip & Fill around the 2005/2006 timeframe. What I do remember is that it was a UK music compilation and I took the sign to be a symbolism of enduring love. Regardless, I enjoy the festive and upbeat energy of this song.Creative fiction storytelling idea; an enduring love song playlist includes this song.

This appealing dance/pop/club tune that is Totally Addicted to Bass by Puretone is another tune that I first heard through a music compilation and I am fortunate to remember that I first heard this unique tune (Apollo 440 mix) via the Hits 52 music compilation (a UK import) by the 2005/2006 timeframe. Still, I am glad for whoever made Totally Addicted to Bass available on youtube in this version because it is closely related to the song I heard on Hits 52 and to this day I find this song entertaining to listen to.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a futuristic computer game that is released by the year 2058 andor sooner includes this song.

This song Sky by Sonique was a tune that I remember hearing around 2001 from a music compilation titled Passion that had an image of a heart inside a red/orange like colored background (I think was a UK music import) that I purchased from a liberty port that I visited when I was stationed in Yokosuka Japan. Sky by Sonique also reminds me of a happy love song type of vibe that is similar to her other song It Feels So Good.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a song to be included in a happy love type of story andor playlist.

Babycakes by 3 of a Kind is a racy and innovative dance/club tune that I definitely first heard around December 2008/early 2009 via a UK music collection (Now Dance 2005 Vol. 1). I still have yet to make out the full meaning of this song over 9 years after first hearing the song. However, I have to admit that the theme of the group members mixing the theme of making desserts in the kitchen definitely adds a bold and creative music vibe.Creative fiction storytelling idea; Group members from 3 of a Kind combine the theme of the music video of their song Babycakes with a music collaboration with Katy Perry of Katy Perry’s Bon Appetit music video by the year 2028 andor sooner.

Black Coffee by All Saints is a romantic/pop tune that I definitely first heard by the 2005/2006 timeframe.  I wish that I could remember the first music compilation that I actually first heard this song. Fortunately, this song brings back positive memories for me because fortunately my husband and I were becoming closer to each other in our marriage when I first heard this song. Even to this day, I still have yet to make out the full meaning of this song. However, I personally take Black Coffee by All Saints to be a cautionary tale to also treasure and appreciate the one you love  and know stands by you through both challenging and good/blessed times  (whether it is a spouse, friend andor family member) even though I’m intuitively aware that this song Black Coffee by All Saints probably symbolizes so much more in a meaningful way.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a happy love story or love movie that features this song as part of one of their themes that is released by the year 2050 andor sooner.

I admit that I am probably always going to associate this edgy song Voodoo Child by Rogue Traders  to the Dr. Who Television series in a similar way that others do because that is one of my first memories of when I first heard this catchy pop/electro rock song around the 2005/2006 timeframe. My sweet husband had a significant influence on me watching the episode with him which is why I am probably going to always have a positive connection with this song regardless of the meaning of this song. I admit that I still have yet to make out the full meaning of this song. However on a positive note, the uniqueness of this song is always going to at least help remind me of one of my husband’s interests for at least the rest of my current earth lifetime (the Dr. Who tv show).Creative fiction storytelling idea; someone andor more than one person connected to the creation of this song Voodoo Child by the Rogue Traders discusses the full meaning of this song by the year 2039 andor sooner.

This song Insatiable by Darren Hayes is also another tune that I am glad is made available on youtube. I actually unexpectedly first heard this Insatiable song by Darren Hayes on television around the  2002 timeframe when I was staying at a hotel in Tokyo Japan (I think it was the New Sanno hotel). Nonetheless, the distinctive song has bold energy coupled with intense vocals and music that fits the mood of this underrated song. The music collection that this Insatiable song is on also has some other fun multiple songs included within the compilation.Creative fiction storytelling idea; Insatiable by Darren Hayes;a perfect song to go into a passionate love story andor passionate love playlist.

I like the electro and club vibe energy in this song Number 1 by Goldfrapp. I luckily first heard this song around the 2005/2006 via online.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a theater or stage play based on this song playing at some type of amusement park by the year 2050 andor sooner.

I am lucky fortunate to have heard Heaven by DJ Sammy feat. Do by the early 2000s either from a music collection andor online(somewhere between the 2002 to 2005 timeframe). Nonetheless, I enjoy this spiritually elevating type of dance/trance love song and on the bright side this song definitely makes me think of the blessing that is my husband of 14 years. I admit that hearing this song actually contributed to me also enjoy the Heaven version by Bryan Adams which makes it tricky for me to choose which version of Heaven I enjoy more.Creative fiction storytelling playlist; this song being part of a one of a kind/healing/enduring love playlist

I admit that I wish that I could remember if I first heard Live Your Life by T.I. feat Rihanna from either local Norfolk Virginia radio andor television though I do remember it was definitely by the late 2008/early 2009 timeframe. The music collaboration featuring T.I. and R.I. is both a daring and push the envelope type of ambition song with the subtle music melding from the part of the music beat from the Dragostea Din Ti song by O-Zone.Creative fiction storytelling idea; an airplane themed movie, tv episode andor book that features both the versions by T.I. and Rihanna and Ozone by the year 2041 andor sooner.

Let Me Blow Ya Mind by Eve feat. Gwen Stefani is definitely an amusing and motivational music collaboration song that appears to be a tune about persistence andor self confidence. I am definitely glad that I unintentionally discovered this song after hearing it on the Now That’s What I Call Music 7 Collection (US version that I purchased from a navy exchange in Yokosuka Japan by sometime around the 2001/2002 timeframe). The music video of Let Me Blow Ya Mind by Eve feat. Gwen Stefani is also entertaining to watch.Creative fiction storytelling idea; a movie andor tv episode pertaining to some type of house andor mansion party inspired by the music video is released by the year 2039 andor sooner.

I admit that Kylie Minogue is another musician that my loving husband had an influence in getting me to listen to her music more often after he and I unexpectedly met in 2002. By mid 2004, I started listening to Kylie Minogue’s music more often from my own free will with a multiple number of her hit songs-Red Blooded Woman, On a Night Like This, Chocolate, Come Into My World,  I Believe In You, one of her greatest hits collections,songs from her other music collections such as 2007’s X and  more.  I first heard Love At First Sight either from a music collection andor from a cd that my husband was playing by around the 2002/2003 timeframe when we were both still living in Yokosuka Japan. Regardless of when I first heard this love song, I take Love at First Sight by Kylie Minogue to be a dance/club love song to be about a special andor destined love connection that transformed into a happy type of love story and she met this love at first sight person right when she least expected it (which I can relate as I unexpectedly met my husband when I least expected it). Anyhow, I’m guessing the lyrics of the music you were playing really blew my mind to symbolize maybe their romantic connection was further solidified either via shared/common music interests andor shared spiritual energy. Anyhow, I admit that Love At First Sight by Kylie Minogue also makes me think of my husband in a meaningful way(we’re destined to be together at least in our current earth lifetimes together type of vibe).Creative fiction storytelling idea; a multiple number of Kylie Minogue’s songs are made into plays by the year 2040 andor sooner.

[weekendwarriorblog]

The Weekend Warrior 9/11/20 – I AM WOMAN, BROKEN HEARTS GALLERY, RENT-A-PAL, UNPREGNANT AND MORE!

Thankfully, we’re getting a slower week this week after the past few weeks of absolute insanity with so many new releases. This week, we also get a nice string of movies about women that are mostly made by women directors, so hopefully these won’t get lost in the shuffle of theaters reopening.

To be perfectly honest, I went into Unjoo Moon’s I AM WOMAN (Quiver Distribution) – this week’s “Featured Flick” -- thinking it was a doc about ‘70s pop sensation Helen Reddy. Imagine my surprise to discover that it actually was a narrative film with Tilda Cobham-Hervey playing the Australian singer who moved to New York in 1966 after winning a contest, expecting a record deal but only winding up with disappointment.  Once there, she’d meet journalist Lilian Roxon (Danielle Macdonald, being able to use her real Australian accent for once) and Jeff Weld (Evan Peters), the man who would become her manager and then husband. Once the couple move to L.A. with Helen’s daughter Traci (from her previous marriage), things began to pick up at the same time as Reddy starts dealing with issues in her marriage and friendship with Roxon.

Listen, I get it. To some (or maybe all) younger people, including film critics, Helen Reddy represents the cheesier side of ‘70s music. I only know her music, since I was a young kid who listened to AM Top 40 radio for much of the ‘70s, but by the end of the decade, I had already switched to metal, punk and noisier rock. As you can tell from watching I Am Woman, Reddy is a particularly interesting music personality, particularly once you realize how hard she struggled to get into the business with a husband who only feigned to support her after dragging her to L.A. for “her career.”

There were many takeaways from watching Moon’s film, but one of the bigger ones is how amazing Cobham-Hervey is at portraying a woman that few of us may have actually seen perform even on television. I’m not sure if Cobham-Hervey did any of her own singing or is lip-syncing the whole time, but it doesn’t matter because she instills so much joy into the performances, especially the two times she sings the highly-inspirational title song live.

Although there isn’t a ton of major drama in Reddy’s life, most that does exist revolves around her relationship with Wald, who is depicted by Peters as an out-of-control coke-sniffing monster. Those in Hollywood may have dealt with Wald as a movie producer or during his stint as Sylvester Stallone’s manager, and only they will know how exaggerated this performance is. Far more interesting is Helen’s friendship with Macdonald’s Roxon which would inspire her to perform the song “You and Me Against the World.”  (Seriously, if you want a good cry, throw that song on after watching I Am Woman.)

Moon does a great job with the material, whether it’s recreating New York in the ‘60s – often using music to set the tone of the period -- or by framing Reddy’s story with Phyllis Schlaffly’s fight against the ERA, as depicted in FX’s mini-series Mrs. America.  Still, it never loses track of Reddy’s journey and her role as a mother to Traci and slightly less to Wald’s son, Jordan. The movie ends with a wonderful and tearful epilogue, and I will not lie that I was tearing up more than once while watching this movie.

I Am Woman may be relatively uncomplicated, but it’s still a compelling relaying of Reddy's amazing story bolstered by an incredible knock-em-dead performance by Tilda Cobham-Hervey. It’s also one of the most female-empowering film I’ve seen since the Ruth Bader Ginsburg movie On the Basis of Sex, starring Felicity Jones.

This week’s primary theatrical release is Natalie Krinsky’s THE BROKEN HEARTS GALLERY (Stage 6/Sony), starring Geraldine Viswanathan as Lucy, a young woman who works at a gallery who is still obsessed with her ex-coworker/boyfriend Max. On the night of her  disastrous break-up, Lucy meets-cute Nick (Dacre Montgomery from Stranger Things), who later inspires her to rid of her hoarding issues by creating the “Broken Hearts Gallery.” This is a place where people who have broken up can bring the remnants of said relationship by donating the mementos they’ve maintained from their partners as sentimental value.

I’m a big fan of Viswanathan from her appearance in Blockers and TBS’ “Miracle Workers” series, as she’s clearly very talented as a comic actress, but I couldn’t help but go into this with more than a little cynicism, because it does follow a very well-worn rom-com formula that can be traced right back to When Harry Met Sally. Yup, another one.  Much of this movie comes across like a bigger budget version of a movie that might play Tribeca Film Festival, and I wish I could say that was a compliment because I’ve seen a lot of good movies at Tribeca. But also just as many bad ones.

The problem is that The Broken Hearts Gallery isn’t very original, and its roots are especially obvious when it starts interspersing the recently-heartbroken giving testimonials. It’s also a little pretentious, because rather than the real New York City that would be recognizable to anyone who lives there, it’s more of a Millennial woke fantasy where everyone is a 20-something LGBTQ+ of color.  Even so, the main trio of Lucy, Nick and Nick’s business partner Marcos (Arturo Castro from Broad City) do keep things fun even when things are getting predictable.

To be honest, I’ll be perfectly happy to see Viswanathan become the next Meg Ryan, because part of the reason why I warmed up to the movie is because I thought she was quite great in it. (I hate to say it but she’ll definitely need a simple name to remember to make that happen. I’d like to suggest G-Vis… as in G-Vis, she’s awesome!) There’s no question she’s the best part of the movie, but it also thrives from some of the other women cast around her, including Molly Gordon, Phillipa Soo and (surprise, surprise!) Bernadette Peters. (At times, I was worried Lucy’s friends would get particularly annoying, but you’ll warm up to them as well.)

Krinsky’s movie is cute, and while it certainly gets a little overly sentimental at times, there are also moments that are quite heartfelt, so basically, it’s a tolerable addition to the rom-com genre. The fact that the characters are so likeable kept me from outright hating the movie, especially once it gets to its corny and somewhat predictable ending. Another thing I like about Broken Hearts Gallery is that at least it’s making an effort to have some sort of theatrical presence, including drive-in theaters.

Next up is Jon Stevenson’s RENT-A-PAL (IFC Midnight), a rather strange and very dark horror-comedy. It stars Brian Landis Folkins as David, a lonely 40-year-old living with his elderly mother suffering from dementia, who has been using the services of a dating service called Video Rendezvous. This is the ‘80s after all, so it involves getting VHS testimonials from various women. One day, David finds a tape labelled “Rent a Pal” and he decides to check it out. It turns out to be a video of a guy named Andy (Wil Wheaton aka Wesley Crusher from Star Trek: The Next Generation) who David begins having conversations with, but once David gets his chance to have a real relationship with a nice woman named Lisa (Amy Rutledge), he’s been dragged too far down the rabbit hole with Andy’s evil urgings.

This was recommended to me by my own personal rent-a-pal, Erick Weber of Awards Ace, who saw it weeks ago. I totally could understand why he would have liked it, because it’s pretty good in terms of coming up with an original idea using elements that at least us older guys can relate to (especially the living with your Mom part which I had to do a few years ago).  I wasn’t sure but I generally thought I knew where it was going, because David’s trajectory always seemed to be heading towards My Friend Dahmer or Maniac territory. What I liked about Folkins’ performance is that you generally feel for him right up until he gets to that point. I also really liked his innocent relationship with Lisa and was hoping things that wouldn’t get as dark as where they eventually end up. I also have to draw attention to Wheaton’s performance, because as one might expect if you only know him from the “Star Trek” show he did as a kid, this is a very different role for him similar to Seann Michael Scott in last year’s Bloodline.

Either way, Stevenson is a decent writer and director who really pushes the boundaries with where Andy takes his new friend, and it’s especially great for its synth-heavy soundtrack that reminds me of some of John Carpenter’s best scores, as we watch David’s inevitable descent into madness. You’ll frequently wonder where it’s going, but for me, it just got too dark, so I only really could enjoy it up to a point.

A little cheerier is UNPREGNANT (HBO Max), the new film from Rachel Lee Goldberg, who directed the recent Valley Girl remake, although this time she’s adapting a book written by Jenni Hendricks. It stars Haley Lu Richardson (from Split and Support the Girls) as 17-year-old Veronica who discovers that her dopey boyfriend Kevin has gotten her pregnant. Since women under 18 can’t get an abortion in Missouri without a parents’ consent, she goes on a road trip with her estranged childhood friend Bailey (Barbie Ferreira) to New Mexico to get the job done.

It’s more than  little weird seeing this movie come out in the same year as a much more serious version of the same movie in Elyza Hittman’s Never Rarely Sometime Always. That aside, Goldberg and her cast do their best to make this something more in the vein of last year’s Book Smart, although that’s also a fairly high watermark for any movie.

Because this is a road trip comedy, it tends to follow a fairly similar path as other movies where they meet a lot of strange characters along the way, as they try to get a ride after being busted cause Bailey stole her mother’s boyfriend’s car for the trip. For instance, they meet a friendly couple who tend to be pro-lifers who want to change Veronica’s mind, and the best side character is Giancarlo Esposito as a conspiracy theorist named Bob.

I guess my biggest problem with the movie is that it just isn’t that funny and feels fairly standard, but at least it has a decent ending to make up for the predictability of the rest of the movie.

Now streaming on Netflix is Maimouna Doucouré’s French coming-of-age film Mignonnes aka CUTIES, a film that premiered at Sundance and then stirred up quite a bit of controversy last month due to its marketing campaign, but is actually not the pervy male gaze movie which it may have been sold as. It’s about an 11-year-old Sengalese girl named Amy Diop (Fathia Youssouf) who wants to join the school’s “cool girl” dance group, known as the “Cuties,” even though it goes against her family’s Muslim beliefs.  Amy learns to dance so she can be part of the dance team and take part in a dance competition, but you know that this decision will led to trouble.s

Cuties got a lot of backlash from for the trailer and Netflix’s decision to release Doucouré’s movie, which is about a young girl discovering her sexuality, although it isn’t really something lurid or gross but actually a very strong coming-of-age film. I haven’t seen the trailer, but I can only imagine what scene it focused on that got people so riled up, since there are dance scenes that felt a little creepy to me. Other than that aspect of the film, Cuties is as innocent as a Judy Blume book. I mean, how else do you expect kids to learn about real life than movies like this? (Unfortunately, the movie is TV-MA so young teens won’t be able to watch it.)

The big problem with the Cuties is that they’re actually kind of bratty and bullies, almost like a younger “Mean Girls” girl gang, so it’s very hard to like any of them. They’re also trying to act way older than they really are, and you can only imagine what dark places that might led, as you worry about Amy getting dragged down with them, just because she wants to have friends and feel popular.

Despite my issues with Cuties, Maimouna Doucouré is a fantastic filmmaker, and this is a pretty amazing debut, especially notable for how she’s able to work with the young cast but also make a movie that looks amazing. That said, Cuties is a decent coming-of-age film, although I feel like I’ve seen better versions of this movie in films like Mustang and The Fits.

Also from France comes Justine Triet’s SYBIL (Music Box Films), starring Virgine Efira (who appeared in Triet’s earlier film, In Bed with Victoria) as the title character, a jaded psychotherapist who decides to return to her passion of writing, getting her inspiration from an actress patient named Margot (Adèle Exarchopoulos), who she becomes obsessed with. I don’t have a lot to say about this movie other than it wasn’t really for me. As far as French films go, a movie really has to stand out from the usual talkie drama filled with exposition, and though I thought the performances by the two women were great, I didn’t really care for the script or the pacing on this one. After playing at last year’s Cannes, Toronto and the New York Film Festival, Sybil will be available via Virtual Cinema through Film at Lincoln Center and the Laemmle in L.A. as well as other cities. You can watch the trailer and find out how to watch it through your local arthouse at the official site.

Now seems like as good a time as any to get into some docs…

 Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortés’ doc ALL-IN: THE FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY (Amazon) follows Stacey Abrams through her run for Atlanta Governor in 2018, but it also deals with the laws that had been put in place to try to keep black voters from taking part in their right as Americans to be able to vote. I’m not sure what’s going on with me right now, but I generally just don’t have much interest in political docs right now, maybe because there’s so much politics on TV and in the news. I also have very little interest in Abrams or even having the racist history of the American South drilled into my head by another movie. I was born in 1965, my family didn’t even live in this country until 1960, and I’ve spent my life trying to treat everyone equally, so watching a movie like this and being preached to about how awful African-Americans have been treated in parts of the South for hundreds of years, I’m just not really sure what I’m supposed to do about it here in New York. I guess my biggest problem with All-In, which is a perfectly fine and well-made doc – as would be expected from Garbus – is that it lacks focus, and it seems to be all over the place in terms of what it’s trying to say… and I’m not even sure what it is trying to say, nor did I have the patience to find out. I thought Slay the Dragon handled the issues with gerrymandering far better, and I think I would have preferred a movie that ONLY focused on Abrams and her life and political career than trying to make a bigger statement. All-In will open at a few drive-ins (tonight!) and then will be on Amazon Prime on September 18.

I was similarly mixed on Jeff Orlwosky’s doc, THE SOCIAL DILEMMA, which debuted on Netflix this week. This one looks at the addiction people have for social media apps like Facebook and Twitter, and how the information of what people watch and click on is collected into a database that’s sold to the highest bidder. Basically, it’s your worst fears about social media come to life, but my issue with this one is that the filmmaker decided to hire actors to dramatize parts of the movie, showing one family dealing with social media and phone addiction, which seemed like an odd but probably necessary decision other than the fact that the topic is so nerdy and so over my head that maybe it was necessary to illustrate what’s being explained by programmers. Again, not a terrible doc, just not something I had very little interest in even if it is an important subject (and I’m probably spending too much on social media and essentially more of the problem than the solution).

I saw S. Leo Chiang and Yang Sun’s doc OUR TIME MACHINE at Tribeca last year, and I quite liked it. It follows influential Chinese artist Ma Liang (Maleonn) who collaborates with his Peking Opera director father Ma Ke, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s, on an elaborate and ambitious project called “Papa’s Time Machine” using life-sized mechanical puppets. I don’t have a ton to say about the movie but it’s a nice look into the Chinese culture and traditions and how the country and art itself has changed between two generations.

One doc I missed last week but will be available digitally this week is Michael Paszt’s Nail in the Coffin: The Fall and Rise of Vampiro about semi-retired professional wrestler Ian Hodgkinson aka Vampiro, who is a Lucha Libre legend.

There’s a lot of other stuff on Netflix this week, including THE BABYSITTER: KILLER QUEEN, the sequel to the Samara Weaving-starring horror-thriller, again co-written and directed by McG (Charlies Angels: Full Throttle). This one stars Bella Thorne, Leslie Bibb and Ken Marino, as it follows Judah Lewis’ Cole after surviving the satanic blood cult from the first movie.

I don’t know nearly as much about the British comedy series The Duchess, other than it stars comedian Katherine Ryan as a single mother juggling a bunch of things. Julie and the Phantoms is Netflix’s latest attempt to be the Disney channel with a movie about a young girl named Julie (Madison Reyes) who decides to start a band with a group of ghosts (hence the title). It’s even from Kenny Laguna, who is best known for the Disney Channel’s biggest hits High School Musical and The Descendants.

Other stuff to look out for this week include Kevin Del Principe’s thriller Up on the Glass (Gravitas Ventures), which is now available On Demand, digital and Blu-Ray; the Russian dogs doc Space Dogs (Icarus Films) – available via Alamo on Demand; Phil Wall’s doc The Standard  (Gravitas Ventures), and Andrei Bowden-Schwartz, Gina O’Brien’s tennis comedy All-In (on Amazon Prime and VOD/Digital) and Sam B. Jones’ Red White and Wasted (Dark Star Pictures).

Next week, more movies not in theaters!

By the way, if you read this week’s column and have bothered to read this far down, feel free to drop me some thoughts at Edward dot Douglas at Gmail dot Com or drop me a note or tweet on Twitter. I love hearing from readers … honest!