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The moment I’ll remember Olympia Dukakis for the most comes at the end of “Moonstruck.” Her character asks her daughter if she loves the man that she’s with and gets an enthusiastic yes. The response? “Oh god that’s too bad,” with perfect weariness. Her performance makes the whole film work. “Moonstruck” is an unabashedly romantic film, in love with love but with a granite-edged clarity of the bitterness it can bring. The catastrophes love can pull down on you are everything from losing a husband too early to losing a husband to an affair. There are a multitude of great performances in the film, but Dukakis’ hurt-but-not-bitter matriarch is the secret MVP of the cast, the role that makes it all stick together.

Dukakis’ career was like that, providing a vital part of an ensemble that elevated and held together other people’s work. Starting in theater in New York City she crisscrossed from stage to movies to TV and back again. After picking up an Oscar for “Moonstruck,” she kept working right up until her death. It was a career of substance not flashiness, and one that reveals how much is lost only in reflection of it.

It was also a career that saw some of its richest rewards in her later life. Fifty years old when she won the Academy Award for “Moonstruck,” she kept playing older women of the type usually ignored at the listeners own peril, whose feistiness was only matched by their tenacity in friendship such as Claire in “Steel Magnolias.”

But it’s her Rose in “Moonstruck” I keep coming back to. Her heartache at her husband getting a wandering eye isn’t presented as part of the film’s comedy but as the profound betrayal of trust it is. In one of the best scenes in the movie she has dinner with John Mahoney, a cad she’s seen romancing multiple women. The scene is a two-hander of great actors playing off each other brilliantly. She deftly jabs every one of his excuses for his behaviour, and his “this is just how men are” bluster. They leave and return to her home, and part of the viewer wants them to spend the night together in a justifiable turnabout is fair play for how her husband has treated her. But she bids Mahoney a firm goodnight and with one of the best lines, and it’s all in Dukakis’ delivery of it, “I can’t invite you in because I’m married, because I know who I am.” 

It’s more than a simple puritanical morality of being the better person. Rose is wise enough to know having an affair in revenge won’t make her happy. What she wants more than anything is the sense of happiness in a secure relationship. And she knows herself well enough that she can’t deceive herself with anything less.

It’s why the line “Oh god that’s too bad” when her daughter tells her she loves the man she’s left her fiancée for is so funny and so achingly poignant. That to take the risk for a great romance is to take the chance your heart is going to be in pieces by the end of it. But to not risk that hurt was to live a life denied its fullness.

Her characters from the house mother of the chosen family in the “Tales of the City” TV series to the devoted-to-a-fault widow in “The Cemetery Club” lived lives of great hopes and disappointments. They created their own problems as easily as they would step in to solve everyone else’s. But they were never less than real, and lived in, and they were all in the gestures and can-size-you-up-with-one-look toughness Dukakis brought to them.

American movies are poorer for having fewer and fewer spaces for roles like this. And her loss is felt acutely the less American movies believe in the ability of actors to be the focus of the screen, their troubles just as thrilling as a wall of special effects. But, for now, there is the comfort of the body of work, and the rare quality of giving a great performance while making sure no one gets left behind. 

Original: https://www.rogerebert.com/tributes/olympia-dukakis-1931-2021
By: Jessica Ritchey
Posted: May 2, 2021, 3:40 pm

Menstruation describes the female period. The menstrual cycle begins when a woman gets her periods. The menstrual blood which leaves her body is products shed from the uterus, usually, the layer called the endometrium. During the remainder of the cycle, the uterine lining regrows. It does so in preparation for pregnancy, which occurs if the egg a woman releases about halfway through her menstrual cycle is fertilized.

When fertilization occurs, the lining stays in place to nourish the fertilized egg, forming the placenta. When fertilization does not occur the menstrual cycle continues and the uterine lining is shed marking the start of the woman’s next menstrual period.
Challenges Faced By Women During Menstruation
There are a lot of problems women face during the bleeding period. It can include abdominal pain, lower back pain, mood swings, and fatigue. While in moderation, all these are normal, unbearable pains and severe fatigue might be indicators of underlying problems they have. The color of the blood also must be red to brown and not orange or yellow. One should keep wary of those.
Stigma Around Sanitary Pads 
Most of them can’t afford to buy them. In rural women, the usage of sanitary methods is way less than in urban areas. They are almost zero access to sanitary napkins, tampons, and menstrual cups. There is a lot of stigmas attached to bleeding and periods. Women aren’t allowed into the kitchens, aren’t allowed to touch anyone, and aren’t allowed to touch pickles or staple food.
It is unfortunate that a natural biological phenomenon is treated as an impurity. Apart from all the mental and physical pain women go through, discrimination makes it even more difficult.
Read More reliefpad

"Together Together" is not just smart, it's sneaky-smart. You go into it thinking you know what you're getting into, and feeling impatient or dismissive as a result, because the movie conspicuously makes choices that seem intended to announce which boxes it's about to check off. Then it keeps confounding you—in a way that's understated rather than show-offy—until you have to accept it on its own terms. It's the perfect storytelling tactic for a movie about a surrogate mother and her patron, a divorced man 20 years her senior. The main characters don't fully appreciate each other until they quit trying to categorize their relationship and let it be whatever it's going to be, while trying not obsess over what'll happen once the baby is born. 

The rope-a-dope strategy starts in the opening sequence. A middle-aged man named Matt (Ed Helms) interviews a young woman named Anna (Patti Harrison) in what initially seems like a speed date, then a job interview (it's both, in a way). The questions are cutesy yet invasive ("What's the worst thing you've ever done?"). The solo piano score, by Alex Somers, has that yacht-cutting-through-clear-water sound characteristic of hyper-verbal indie-film comedies about well-off suburbanites muddling through existential crises. The credits font is Windsor Light Condensed, the official font of Woody Allen films since "Annie Hall," and between the the lead actors' age gap, and their self-aware yet sometimes stumbling comic banter, it seems as if "Together Together" is a try-hard wannabe that's aiming to give us the pleasures of a mid-period Woody Allen film without having to factor in, um, y'know, Woody Allen.

As it turns out, this is not the kind of film where the leads overcome the social obstacles placed in their path, fall in love, and live happily every after as husband and wife. In fact, it turns out to be a rare film about two characters you've never seen in a movie. They initially seem cut from middling romantic comedy cloth. Writer/director Nicole Beckwith and her lead actors gesture in that direction by having Matt and Anna quickly disclose shared feelings of loneliness and aloneness (different concepts) and tell secrets about their troubled pasts. Matt is the designer of a masochistic app called Loner that lets users browse profiles of other singles; they're not allowed to save profiles unless they "favorite" them, and they can only pick one to "favorite." Matt's marriage collapsed for undisclosed reasons (basic incompatibility, it seems). But he decided to have a kid anyway, using his own sperm and a donated egg. Now he's acutely self-conscious about seemingly being the only single, straight man in his predicament. Anna got pregnant in college, decided to give the baby up for adoption, and earned the double-ire of her parents, who considered her a failure both for having an unplanned pregnancy and not keeping the kid. "It seemed as if the only way they would be happy is if I was wildly unhappy," she tells Matt. What is this, discount Charlie Kaufman?

But the more time you spend with these two, the harder it is to categorize what kinds of characters they are, much less compare the film to others. or predict what'll happen to the main couple. In fact, it feels wrong to call them "a couple." They're more than friends, less than lovers. Well, not "less than," because that phrase implies that a romantic relationship is greater than friendship. Then again, is this even a friendship? Anna asks that. She's right to wonder. Matt doesn't know how to respond. 

It's complicated. Money is involved. They've held hands, but not each other. They've shared secrets, but not a bed. Anna isn't attracted to Matt, and to the extent that Matt makes overtures in that direction, they seem obligatory, as if he's been conditioned to expect a heteronormative fantasy outcome (as academics might describe it). What drives these two? What are we looking at when we look at them? Anna and Matt's predicament is like that moment when you're working on a project late at night, bleary-eyed and easily distracted, and stare at a commonplace word like "door" for a long time and think, "Is that really how it's spelled?"

The script has a three-trimester structure. In the first trimester, you wonder if Beckwith is incompetent, bad at conveying basic plot information, or just messing with your head. The characters keep ending up in situations that make you wonder if boundaries were even discussed (as when Matt is present in a room where Anna is being wanded by an obstetrics nurse, and brings Anna a gift of a human-sized teddy bear, the go-to impulse buy in unimaginative romantic comedies). By the second trimester, Matt and Anna seem to be getting along so well that you wonder if the film is going to have them fall in love and get married anyway. Matt is an unglamorous but decent man, the "good catch" in rom-coms who might end up with the lead actress after a sexier but more chaotic and self-centered man broke her heart. Matt is constantly doing little favors for Anna, and he questions himself when he inadvertently upsets her. Anna seems to crave and appreciate the sincere compliments he gives her, as well as the way he comes to her rescue in socially awkward situations. 

Boundaries are discussed in due course, as is the Woody Allen comedy and its cliches about the "natures" of men and women (and its obliviousness about age gaps). Some of the first-trimester scenes feel, in retrospect, misjudged, or at least not thought out. There should be a way to get us to appreciate the the awkwardness of characters not knowing how to behave without making us wonder if the filmmaker is imitating rom-com tropes. And a long-ish scene where Woody Allen's films are critiqued feels like a pointless detour into subtext-as-text. It's the worst thing in the movie by a wide margin because it's inorganic and discursive—a withering critical monologue that should've been saved for the PR tour.

Despite these and other missteps, "Together Together" is a sturdy film that's determined to avoid the obvious choice. Like Beckwith's feature debut, "Stockholm, Pennsylvania," it invites inattentive viewers to put it down for being something it only pretended to be, on purpose, and only briefly. Harrison and Helms are a thoughtful duo. Each has a melancholy streak. Each seems determined to surprise the other and refuse to allow simplistic choices to pass unchallenged. Mutual respect comes through in their performances. There's a scene in a birthing class that might constitute the best acting either has done to date. 

The end of the tale is the climax that the trimester structure demands. By that point you might find yourself invested in the happiness of characters whose relationship is hard to sum up. Some of the most memorable sections of the film are montages where you watch a character go about their self-involved business without noticing the other's wounded feelings. The last shot reminded me of the closing images of "The Graduate," "Big Night," "Solitary Man," and "Private Life," in that it refuses to supply answers, instead leaving viewers with a single question: Now what?

Original: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/together-together-movie-review-2021
By: Matt Zoller Seitz
Posted: April 23, 2021, 11:07 am

For a while in the post-“Twilight,” post-“The Hunger Games” days, YA adaptations were a dime a dozen. Too many novels followed a generic “Superpowers revealed, true selves explored” template, with female protagonists often mired in love triangles that obfuscated their own character development. Plots were simultaneously overly complicated and fairly predictable, and the dystopia setting was particularly worn out. As cinematic or TV adaptations, franchises either fizzled out (“Divergent,” “The Mortal Instruments”) or never got off the ground (“Beautiful Creatures,” “I Am Number Four”). All of this is to say that the YA sphere has a certain amount of baggage, and—like all other genres—certain conventions and idiosyncrasies. 

To expect anything different from Netflix’s “Shadow and Bone” would be an exercise in futility. There is a hero’s journey centered on self-confidence, and unspoken romantic feelings flying all which ways, and a nebulous evil that is destructive, sure, but also really about self-hate and fear. These elements aren’t what make “Shadow and Bone” unique; they’re clichés. Rather, Eric Heisserer’s adaptation transcends this familiarity thanks to the commitment of a pitch-perfect cast, well-stylized fight sequences, and intentional character development that makes these relationships feel nuanced and history-laden. “Shadow and Bone” doesn’t rely on surprise, but thrives on deliberation—flashbacks, breadcrumbs, and allusions that help support this dense world.

And to be true, it’s often too dense. Viewers of the show who don’t have prior knowledge of its source material, Leigh Bardugo’s popular Grishaverse series, might feel overwhelmed by the many locations, the flowery vernacular, and the various cultures. There are so many feuds! So many different types of magic, and so many different terms for the people who wield it! The main character is a cartographer, and seeing a map of this land consistently onscreen might have actually helped in piecing together all the interwoven details that “Shadow and Bone” just whizzes through! There is a tedious “Isn’t this all so different?” quality to how characters speak in “Shadow and Bone” that again, like so much of YA, is bogged down by world-building exposition. A dangerous location called the Fold, a villain called the Black Heretic, a hero called the Sun Summoner—dialogue all delivered by actors with British accents, although this entire world is influenced by the Russian culture and language. (An approach that has received criticism from readers regarding Bardugo’s consistently incorrect Russian grammar.) Premiere episode “A Searing Burst of Light” is a bit of a slog, and “Shadow and Bone” adds in new story elements in every ensuing hour in an approach that demands the same level of attention as “Game of Thrones.”

And yet: “Shadow and Bone” also knows when to rear back, and that restraint is one of its strongest assets, lessening the egregiousness of various narrative clichés. It avoids Netflix bloat with an eight-episode first season, rather than an unnecessary expansion to 10 or 13 episodes. No installment feels like filler; no episode feels padded. There is an open-door ending here, of course, but no cliffhanger so egregious that you’ll be irritated by its existence. In terms of romance, more characters don’t kiss than do, which could (understandably) irritate shippers but also benefits these relationships by leaving them room to grow. On a grand scale, and excluding the series’ fine ensemble, that final point is perhaps the best thing about “Shadow and Bone.” It establishes a universe, presents us with the (at times overly) detailed stakes, and steadily sketches the characters whose motivations will push them up against each other in questions of faith, power, destiny, and love—all while leaving space for expansion and elaboration. It sounds easy, but that aforementioned graveyard of YA adaptations proves that it’s harder than it seems, and “Shadow and Bone” pulls off the balance better than most.

“Shadow and Bone” is set in a world that is torn apart by magic. For years, a dangerous, barren location called the Fold—totally dark and dead inside, except for the winged, gargoyle-like monsters that hunt whoever attempts to pass through it—has divided the kingdom of Ravka. On one side of East Ravka, which only has access to the sea through the Fold; on the other side is West Ravka, which wants sovereignty. There are two armies who have sworn loyalty to the king of Ravka: the First Army, which includes soldiers and warriors, and the Second Army, exclusively populated by the Grisha, or individuals who can wield magic. In the First Army serve Alina Starkov (Jessie Mei Li), a cartographer, and her best friend, Malyen Oretsev (Archie Renaux), a tracker and fighter. Inseparable since they grew up in the same orphanage, there is clearly something between Alina and Mal—an exceptionally deep bond that always results in them finding their way back to each other. Is that the connection that activates Alina’s magical power during her first trip through the Fold?

Whatever the cause of it, once Alina is revealed as a Grisha, her whole world changes. Sworn to defend the whims of the kingdom, Grisha come in many forms. Heartrenders can tell whether someone is lying or telling the truth depending on their heart rate, while Healers are, well, self-explanatory. Inferni can control fire, Squallers can control air, and Durasts can manipulate materials. They all live in the Little Palace in the West Ravkan capital city Os Alta, and they all serve the formidable, foreboding General Kirigan (Ben Barnes), who can control darkness, and they are mostly hated and resented by the common people. The Grisha are rewarded for their innate abilities by the Ravkan elite, and dreaded, hunted, and killed by others in this world, such as the Fjerdan. And when Alina is revealed to have a unique, nearly mythical, power, the law of the land dictates that she must leave Mal behind and go with the General to the Little Palace for training.

That revelation, and the literal and figurative journey that Alina takes afterward, makes up the bulk of the primary “Shadow and Bone” plot. The other main plot exists in reaction to Alina’s: Crime prodigy Kaz Brekker (Freddy Carter) wins a bid to kidnap Alina for an impressive payout, and enlists two members of his gang to help: sharpshooter Jesper (Kit Young) and spy Inej (Amita Suman). They’ll have to travel through the Fold, sneak into the Little Palace, come away with Alina, and somehow sneak back across the Fold to deliver her to their employer. It’s a heist that could get them killed at any moment, but “Shadow and Bone” avoids going too grim-dark thanks to the underlying hope of its characters, and the strength of their performers.

As Alina, Mei Li is tasked with grounding this entire premise, and she does a solid job balancing the myriad emotions associated with her character’s transformation. When we meet Alina, she is used to otherness because of her biracial heritage, and has grown slightly hardened as a result of the slurs and mocking she’s received since childhood. But she’s still a young woman, and her easy comfort with Mal, her terror of the Fold, and her desire to prove herself are all relatable qualities. Mei Li demarcates Alina before the Little Place and after it with a different fluidity to her physicality and a flintiness to her expressions, while her fierce loyalty to Mal remains untouched. Barnes is another standout, bringing dark charisma and roguish sensuality to the General’s Welcome to the Black Parade aesthetic; he also delivers some of the season’s most satisfying line readings, such as the stank he puts on “you and your ... crew” when addressing a foe during a torture session. And the scenes with the Crows, who as antiheroes don’t have to be as purely chaste as Alina or Mal, tip-toe the series out of PG-13 territory: Inej’s skill with knives but uneasy relationship with her capability for violence is handled thoughtfully by Suman, while Carter and Young have a fun time with the conniving greed and amused sarcasm of their respective characters.

“Shadow and Bone” is, admittedly, a lot, and some pieces don’t always work. A tangential subplot involving waffles (yes, the breakfast food) is bizarrely out of place; a meet-cute that spins out of a witch-hunting plot is ill-advised; and some elements too obviously taken from Russian history, such as a Rasputin-like character, feel inauthentic. But the performances are steady, the episodes well-paced, and the dialogue, outside of all the world-building jargon, is sharply composed. Altogether, “Shadow and Bone” maintains a sense of interior place for the characters dealing with plot developments as varied as mean girl dynamics, geopolitical posturing, and body horror, and the well-balanced nature of this first season makes for a promising introduction into this franchise’s fantastical universe.

First season screened for review. All eight episodes of “Shadow and Bone” are available on Netflix today.
 

Original: https://www.rogerebert.com/streaming/shadow-and-bone-sets-itself-apart-from-the-ya-pack-with-welcome-restraint
By: Roxana Hadadi
Posted: April 23, 2021, 11:12 am

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