Movie Review: Him

Directed by Justin Tipping, written by Skip Bronkie, Zack Akers and Tipping. Produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions. Starring Marlon Wayans, Tyriq Withers and Julia Fox.

If you go see Him anticipating a sports movie featuring plenty of gridiron action peppered with horror movie tropes, you’ll either be surprised or disappointed, depending on your willingness to forego prior expectations. It isn’t a standard sports genre narrative but an alternate version of Faust through the lens of modern allegorical fantasy: Jungian in its archetypal personae, and Lynchian in its dreamlike connections to not-quite reality. Some of the trappings of sports movies are there—the brutal physicality, the driving ambition that leads to untold riches, toxic fandom, moral reckoning—but presented in a way that plays more art house than multiplex.

As a child, Cam Cade begins as one of the San Antonio Saviors’ greatest fans, cheering on the team from the floor of the family living room, surrounded by loving parents, warm encouragement and Saviors memorabilia, including references to his football hero Isaiah White. During exciting televised plays, Cam chants Isaiah’s name with his dad, willing future success: “I’m Isaiah White! I’m him!”.

Cam (Tyriq Withers) grows up to be an incredibly talented star quarterback himself: disciplined and driven but also kind, humble and ever-mindful of the promise he made to his now late dad that he will pursue the dream they shared, with all of his heart. As an elite player, when Cam is asked whether he’ll go on to be the next G.O.A.T., he hesitates to claim that mantle for himself, knowing he still has to earn it.

While training for the league combine, Cam is attacked by a lone person in a goat costume before leaving the empty stadium one night, sustaining a potentially career-ending head injury. As he recovers, dealing with the news that another injury could result in permanent brain damage, he grows more reflective, emotional and prone to fleeting hallucinations, deciding not to participate in the combine after all. The dream chases him down, however, when his agent calls with an incredible opportunity for Cam to train with the G.O.A.T. himself. Isaiah White, mulling retirement, has invited Cam out to his desert compound to see if Cam has what it takes to inherit the crown.

To get to Isaiah’s place, Cam’s chauffeured S.U.V. passes a gauntlet of die-hard (literally) fans, from shamanic face-painters trembling with awe to the ones full of white-hot hatred . “We don’t like you,” a feral female face-painter flanked by mute, pale, barely-dressed minions hisses, before spitting on the window. A shapeless mop of a pink mascot wearing a cowboy hat mingles aimlessly on the edges of the volatile, motley group. Fandom is only one given in the life of star player, and “Are you a fan?” is only one of the loaded questions waiting to explode throughout the simmering narrative. The weirdness prior to Cam’s arrival is a preview of more to come as Cam enters the impressive minimalist/modernist mansion that closer resembles a lonely museum than luxurious residence with its own training field.

Though Isaiah (Marlon Wayans) seems like an all-right guy when he first appears, engaging in his hobby of taxidermy (“I like to live off the land when I’m out here,” he tells Cam), warnings flash as Cam’s training gets underway and Isaiah goes from fairly easy-going with a quirky sense of humor to mysterious and intense in a way that keeps Cam constantly off-balance. Isaish has a “trophy” wife, Elsie (Julia Fox), to match his many glass-encased trophies, championship rings and jerseys. She’s something of a “sexual wellness” entrepreneur who’s obviously and unabashedly had lots of “work” done, and has her own work to do trying to get Cam to loosen up. She and Isaiah don’t seem to spend much time together, but she has her “girls” that she hangs out with while Isaiah spends time with former players, and a personal doctor, who’s something like a “team” doctor, only there’s no team, just guys that act as sparring partners for Cam to train with, and who seem completely willing to sacrifice their bodies to the cause of building Cam into an undisputed champion.

Cam is measured, poked, prodded and pushed to the limit repeatedly, all the while receiving mysterious injections, infusions and ice baths. Certain plays on the training field show bodies from the inside, highlighting the brutality in a photo-negative way that visually suggests jagged pain, peering through flesh at anonymous skeletons in hand-to-hand combat (which oddly recall vintage photographs of myriad stacks of animal bones Cam saw when he entered Isaiah’s “hobby room”). As Cam continues to train and receive ongoing treatment for his earlier head injury as well as the fresh abuse his body is taking, more loaded questions are put to him by Isaiah, such as “Would you rather never get tired or never get injured?” Questions that on the surface seem rhetorical become less so as the training intensifies, and Cam’s relationship with Isaiah becomes more fraught.

I think of the Bible story of David and King Saul, wherein Saul at first is fond of David but then becomes so jealous that he seeks to destroy him. There are many biblical allusions throughout this film: quotes, references and one striking tableau referencing a famous work of art. I’ve seen the “What is this movie really about?” posts online, and all I can say is that it’s complicated, multi-layered, and many-faceted. Trying to explain it is difficult; it’s a film to see and think about. To say it’s about football is like saying Breaking Bad is about making meth. Yes, it’s about that, but also much more, revealing hidden currents in American culture and illuminating the not-so-hidden in a different light.

Him is filmed in New Mexico, so there are visual echoes of Breaking Bad from time to time, as well a recurring theme about what one is willing sacrifice for the sake of family. According to Isaiah, players sacrifice themselves to take care of the family, and whatever costs incurred to that end are worth it.

In Breaking Bad, when Walter White discovers he has cancer, he goes from mild-mannered high school chemistry teacher to international meth kingpin to provide for his family; at least that’s the reason he gives for ultimately embracing his darkest impulses, until he’s willing to admit the truth. Isaiah doesn’t seem to have much of a family, and not even much of a marriage. The people around him act more as paid functionaries than old friends and teammates, and the physician who signed up to heal players sits on the sidelines in a bored stupor as one of Cam’s training partners is pounded to a pulp by a jugs machine run by a silent ex-player who seems unaware of the blood oozing from his own head. Like the re-animated crew of the Ancient Mariner, they fulfill their purpose and then seem to disappear from whence they came. It’s like their destiny is to help Cam fulfill his, and his is, like Isaiah’s and the earlier champion players whose jerseys hang in a special room, to be the next G.O.A.T.—or so it would seem.

This film has received some harsh reviews, but I refer you to Marlon Wayans’ reaction and remarks about critics and the nature of art. I agree that in spite of an initial negative response from some, people should see this film and make up their own minds. It’s “not everyone’s cup of tea,” as my former creative writing professor used to say, but to quote one of my fellow authors, DuVay Knox, it’s definitely “worth a peep.”

I’m not particularly a horror nor sports movie fan, but I am a cinephile and student (and teacher) of film. I was drawn to Him because it intrigued me, and now that I’ve seen it, I’m still intrigued. I think any film that bears thinking about long after the initial viewing is one worth seeing.

What I Learned From Listening to the Cocaine Air Podcast

When I started a blog, one of the first things I wrote about was life lessons learned from films that I’d watched many times with my classes over the years. With each group of students, hearing their reactions, getting their perspectives and sharing my own with them was like seeing each film through a new and different lens. Since then, I’ve thought and written about favorite TV shows old and new, but have yet to give new media such as podcasts a close examination, though I love hearing stories told on the radio, and am a longtime fan of spoken word performances.

Being on the road a lot this summer has provided me with time to listen to my favorite radio stations, playlists (especially ones that provide musical inspiration for my novels or other works in progress) and yes—podcasts. Having run across a “Week’s Best” mention in the UK Guardian about Johnathan Walton’s Cocaine Air podcast, I decided to have a listen. It’s a series of interviews with T.J. Dominguez, one of the world’s most successful drug smugglers who flew shipments of cocaine from Columbia to the U.S. for former drug mega-kingpin, Pablo Escobar.

For Gen Xers out there who once caught Miami Vice on TV before going out Friday nights in the 1980’s, listening to T.J.’s adventures in the drug trade might evoke nostalgia for a stylistic era of sleek sportscars, speedboats and shady characters exchanging drugs and money to a Michael Mann soundtrack. Though that was the heyday for T.J.’s endeavors, T.J.’s account of his own journey in his talks with podcaster and author Johnathan Walton reveal a by-the-bootstraps/ backstage view of that world where things are not as they seem, actions speak louder than words, and real stand-up guys are very hard to find.

It's a challenge to write about this podcast without dropping spoilers, so I’ll focus on the things that resonated with me about T.J.’s incredible story, and life lessons from it that I take to heart.

1.      Don’t ask permission.

One thing that stayed with me long after I heard the first couple of episodes was when T.J. makes the decision to begin smuggling drugs—marijuana, at first—and has a heartfelt conversation with his late father about his plans. 

T.J., playing by the rules, already tried to secure funding for a legitimate business venture his dad wanted to build before he died, and it’s only after getting conned more than once that T.J. decides to get the money himself, any way he has to. He informs his dad’s spirit of his intentions one night under a starry sky, stating he’ll do whatever it takes, even if that falls outside the realm of legality: “I’m not asking for your permission,” he says with conviction during the course of this pivotal conversation.  He knows what he wants to do wouldn’t sit well with his dad, but T.J. is determined to fulfill this promise that involves realizing his father’s most cherished dream.

In a world where taking action without consulting someone else first, or even getting a whole range of opinions before making a move can be seen as transgressive, this phrase rings often in my head when my past conditioning or a (possibly) well-meaning someone admonishes me for doing something that I wanted to/ needed to/ knew that I must do. T.J.’s commitment is a reminder that worrying about what other people might think, and letting others decide what you should or shouldn’t do (even those you love) is a recipe for unhappiness.

Whether you agree or disagree with T.J.s actions, his decision to quit seeking funding from outside sources (after having the rug pulled out from under him time and again) and make his own money, playing by his own rules, is empowering. When it comes to something that’s really important, seeking outside permission, approval or validation cedes power, putting others’ opinions, concerns and agendas above your own.

In other words, don't ask; just do it.

2.      Don’t pretend to know it all.

In spite of his phenomenal success as a drug smuggler, T.J. has the humility not to try and impress others by pretending to know more than he really does. He doesn’t masquerade as an expert, and realizes that in order to take his operation to the next level, he’ll have to put his own tools in place to make real money.

First, he needs an airplane, so he gets one: a tired old shell that will eventually transform into “Gigi,” his vehicle for moving shipments of marijuana and later cocaine from Columbia, to the Bahamas, to south Florida. At first, he doesn’t know how to fly a plane, but he finds someone who does until he acquires the skills to do it himself. T.J.’s gradual mastery of all the moving parts that make up the well-oiled machine of his smuggling business is most impressive. He also runs several successful non-smuggling businesses that are quite legit, including a cell phone company and the largest Lamborghini dealership in the world.

That list grows, along with his stellar reputation in the smuggling game, which is what gets the attention of Pablo Escobar. Well aware what his experience and expertise is worth, T.J. drives a hard bargain, negotiating a better deal for himself than Escobar is initially willing to offer. T.J. has the nerve to do this because his confidence is grounded in hard-won wisdom gained through trial and error, and refining his efforts through patience and persistence. Those things, while priceless in themselves, make T.J.’s services ultimately worthwhile to Escobar, and make T.J. a millionaire many, many times over.

That T.J. remains a stand-up guy who takes care of his workers, believes in fair play and treats others the way he wants to be treated is a testament to his management skills and work ethic. He’s a great boss, keeps his word, and finds success in a business not known for its commitment to integrity by having personal integrity, a strong moral code, and by not being a poser.

In other words, if you’re in the smuggling business (and if you’re not a thief), you want to work for T.J..

3.      Focus on solutions.   

When something unexpected happens to throw a wrench in the plan, there are always those who melt down, get angry, fire people willy-nilly, or quit in frustration. T.J. is not one of those people.

When problems occur, T.J. doesn’t dwell on the problem, but on solving it, and how to do better next time, which is a more effective use of time, energy and brain power. Whether it’s finding the best way to thread through Miami traffic in a vehicle loaded with cocaine (what if you get into a fender bender? A traffic stop? Something else you never would’ve thought of?),  T.J. thinks ahead about how to prevent such things, and if it happens, there’s a plan for it. Another way T.J. educated himself in seeking solutions was by looking at mistakes other smugglers made and figuring out ways in advance to avoid those, analyzing what a better approach might have been.

You can’t anticipate every problem, but if you’re prepared, you can flip the script in your favor, and that’s what T.J. does.

4.      Keep your cool.

Granted, sometimes you’re not prepared for every eventuality, and don’t have the luxury of brainstorming solutions when life blows up in your face.

For example, when all manner of law enforcement surrounds the house where you’re storing tons of unadulterated contraband and it might only be seconds before a knock at the door precedes said door being broken down, what do you do? Argue with your companions about who could’ve tipped off the fuzz? Get down on your knees, ready to give yourself up? Cry?

For T.J., none of the above. It’s in such moments of testing that a meltdown is not the answer. If the worst happens, it happens. But don’t help it along by giving up, giving in and letting your fears and doubts crowd out any chance of overcoming a very bad situation. In these moments, it pays to take one step out of the center of the universe, and see what happens before you do something precipitant.

In other words, sometimes it’s not all about you, dog.

5.      Don’t let fear of failure stop you.

The fifth and final lesson is integral to success, because if you do let this fear stop you, you’re preemptively taking yourself out of the game when there are already enough forces against you; don’t be against yourself. Fear is quite real, but letting it derail your efforts is a big mistake if not a downright tragedy.

During the course of Cocaine Air, T.J. faces loss, disappointment, death threats, betrayal, incarceration and more, but none of those things dampen T. J.’s enthusiasm for life, his natural curiosity, nor his desire to keep moving forward with unshakable optimism.

According to T.J., even if you do fall down, ‘falling forward’ means you’re a couple steps closer to succeeding next time. I personally like this idea because it takes the pressure off. The potential for failure is always there, but so is the prospect of success, if you don’t let fear keep you from trying. Also, it helps to keep in mind that even a seasoned pro was once an absolute beginner, and, I can say from my own experience, you don’t know what you don’t know until you try—then you know!

It's not a spoiler to mention that T.J.’s conversations with Johnathan Walton occur immediately after T.J.’s release from thirteen years in prison. It happened, but T.J.’s attitude about his time on the inside doesn’t involve bitterness, anger, nor self-pity.

T.J.’s great story-telling ability, charm and engaging style make this podcast compelling, and Johnathan’s insightful questions and comments bring it all together into a memorable listening experience.

Johnathan Walton is also host of the podcast Queen of the Con, about how he got swindled out of a small fortune by his best friend, and which inspired his new book, Anatomy of A Con Artist.

Con artists seem to be everywhere these days: a fact of life, in person and hiding in the technology we use every day.  Is there an upside to this inescapable state of affairs? After all, it was through getting conned (twice) that T.J. decided to take matters into his own hands and make his own money, and, having been conned himself, Johnathan now hunts con artists, investigating and exposing them to the world. If there’s any upside to getting conned, scammed or grifted, maybe it’s the fact that it forces one to choose whether to take it or fight back.

Johnathan and T.J. fought back, leading to life-altering results, and both survived and thrived.

There must be hope for all of us!

Top 10 Foods from the Eucalyptus Lane Novels--with Recipes!

The Eucalyptus Lane series is a trilogy set in Palo Alto, California that blends crime fiction and romance into a pulpy Silicon Valley soap opera. The series begins with Poser, wherein failed drug dealer Ambrose, following advice from his crush (and co-worker at his day job), Bennie, hides out in her sister's guest house posing as a Stanford grad student to avoid being roughed up by his thuggish connection. Maintaining a fake identity has its perils, and Ambrose runs squarely into trouble–only not in the way he would've ever expected. For fans of serial drama, the novels Poser, Cracker, and Baller offer a world of transgressive fiction and neonoir romance set in the Bay Area’s “back alleys and bedrooms.”

 While the Eucalyptus Lane novels explore the grittier flip-side of upscale suburban life, one thing about this series that stands out to many readers is the emphasis on good food and drink. The following is a list of the Top Ten meals, desserts and treats featured in the novels, and why they’re significant, along with recipes. If you're looking for a new series with quirky, broken characters to fall in love with, a spicy book club selection that'll get folks talking over appetizers and cocktails, or a nightstand companion sure to keep you awake into the wee hours, read on to whet your appetite.

1.   The Birthday Dinner Pompano: Mike, tech-mogul-by-marriage, promises Jessica he'll be home early. Against her better judgment, she chooses to believe him and prepares a fabulous dinner for the two of them, the highlight of which is pompano in papillote, a specialty she took classes to learn how to prepare, just because she knew he liked it. Waiting for him to come home as the hour grows later and later and texts go unanswered, Jessica's optimism about their future together grows colder along with the fish. Before she finally gives up, the pompano she so lovingly prepared meets an ignominious fate. For a taste of what might have been, try this similar dish for a more deserving spouse or lover–or just for yourself.

2.   Rajit’s Homemade Indian Dinner: Renegade techie Rajit is Bennie's neighbor from the apartment down the hall–at first, before she develops a crush on him and things get complicated fast. Before that, Rajit creates a homecooked dinner to thank her for all she's done for him. Bennie sips wine while Rajit whips up a spicy Vegetable Korma, red Lentil dal, and bhindi–just like his mother and grandmother used to make back in Mumbai. Intoxicated by the fragrant Indian spices including freshly ground cardamom that laces the kheer for dessert, the wine, and the closeness they share while dancing to his musician friend's demo reel. Bennie finds herself falling hard ahead of the crash that arrives the next time they have dinner at her place. In the meantime, she allows herself to be swept away, body & soul, learning what it means to live in the moment and lean into possibility, wherever it leads. Create your own vegetarian nirvana and add as much frame (or spice) as you like, beginning with these recipes for vegetable korma, fried bhindi and refreshing kheer, perfect for seduction or a penultimate date. But then, all things happen for a reason. Right?

3.   Russian Tea Room Borscht: Intrigue often swirls at the Russian Tea Room in the Richmond District, where owner Alexei has lunch at the back booth nearest the kitchen. Whether plotting with his right-hand man and bodyguard, Dimitri, getting briefed by his surveillance and chief logistics expert Lev, or consulting with and giving orders to his legal counsel, business manager and flamboyant younger brother Maxim, Alexei is usually quietly indulging in one chef Fyodor’s classic Russian dishes, such as Rassolnik, Pelmeni, or a perennial favorite, Borscht. Served by the sexy and ambitious Margarite, from France by way of Montreal, Alexei has a plum view of the maximalist dining room lit by an elaborate chandelier, and shielded from the outside world by heavy red velvet curtains. The tea room is the nerve center of a criminal kingdom that he plans on expanding, in spite of Maxim’s misgivings. Fyodor’s perfectly spiced borscht, based on an old family recipe, is impossible to duplicate, but here's a recipe that comes pretty close. Whether you're plotting your next move over lunch, or about to head off to an afternoon tryst, followed by a slice of Medovik and a cup of Prianyi Chai, it's a most hearty and meditative meal.

4.   Bennie's Homemade Tiramisu: If cooking is an art and baking a science, Jessica is the artist of the family, and while Bennie's no scientist, she gained the patience to learn baking as an escape from hers and Jessica's domineering mother and from her recent chaotic and ill-fated romantic relationships with men. Her homemade tiramisu caps off a very promising evening following Jessica's first art show, when she receives a ride home from someone she never expected would sweep her off her feet so completely. She sends him home with an extra big slice and an extra big kiss destined to be the first of many. Want to make your own decadent dessert that will win someone’s heart? Try this recipe for classic tiramisu with melt-in-your-mouth/ melt-someone's-heart homemade ladyfinger cookies.

5.   Uncle Ito's Dragon Roll: In Baller, Mistress Momo invites Ambrose out to lunch at her cousin's former sushi restaurant in Japan town where her Uncle Ito still works turning out rolls that are like exquisite works of art. Usually wary of more exotic ingredients like eel and funazushi, Ambrose is dazzled by the sushi chef’s craftsmanship, and with Momo’s coaxing, ends up trying everything. Uncle Ito smokes red Marlboros and is missing a pinky finger, which signifies something more than a slip of his cleaver, as Ambrose had thought initially, and explains why Momo thinks of her uncle as the true badass of her family. It's why Ambrose immediately hires him as a security guard at the dungeon. Short and stocky, Uncle Ito rarely talks but his actions speak louder than words when he senses danger or discord. Don't let the chef's pants fool you–he’s packing heat underneath that Giants windbreaker. Here’s a recipe for dragon roll like the one that Ambrose started with that day. Make it if you dare, and show fam & friends what a true culinary badass you are. Uncle Ito would be proud.

6.   Laduree Macrons: After arriving in Paris to meet up with Jessica, Ambrose receives a mysterious call telling him to go to a certain Laduree shop at 9 AM the next morning where all will be revealed concerning a certain missing person. Out of curiosity, Ambrose goes to the shop on Rue Napoleon, makes some purchases, goes back outside where he has a revelation that changes him forever and sparks a breathless chase through the streets of St. Germain, with Ambrose carrying a Laduree box by a string, his already frazzled nerves hanging on by a thread. When he finally hooks up with Jessica later, the macrons turn out to be her favorite Parisian treat, so all's well that ends well, except that after what Ambrose saw outside the macron shop causes nerves him to believe he can never trust anyone ever again. For a taste of the macrons that cause such drama, order here, right from the source. If you want to try making your own, click here.

7.   Savoy Tea Room Scones: In Cracker, Maxim tops off his Savile Row shopping spree with tea at the Savoy, a celebration for escaping the orbit of his brother Alexei, and an attempt at escaping his own conscience for leaving Ambrose in the lurch with a mess to clean up and a dead body to dispose of. The fine China and watercress sandwiches can only do so much to assuage Maxim’s guilt, however, and no amount of silk ties nor pastel Egyptian linen shirts with French cuffs can make it better. If living well is the best revenge, then nothing tops being treated like minor royalty dining in the lap of luxury, except possibly finding a way to forget everything that happened back in San Francisco. The tidbit of information he stumbles across as his former boss’s personal assistant sifts through a stack of mail might make up for his earlier cowardly behavior. In the meantime, there are light-as-air scones slathered in Devonshire cream. If you're feeling guilty about some recent, or even long-past transgression that still haunts you, make this, and be redeemed.

8.   Dinner-with-Sergei Steamed Mussels with Pomme Frites: Speaking of guilt, fashion designer Phoebe Grace is drowning in a sea of it as she shares a quiet dinner in her Parisian apartment with Sergei, a guardian angel whose wings get clipped when Phoebe realizes his protection comes at a much higher price than she ever anticipated. Not even the starry buzz generated by an endless supply of Dom Perignon can reassure her that she did the right thing in making such radical changes to her life. Not one to shy away from adventure, the terror that the recent changes she's made have led to a colossal misadventure curbs her appetite to the point that she can only eat one kirsch-soaked cherry off the raspberry tart left sitting on the table as she gazes into the fireplace, realizing the wreckage she's left in her wake. Just because Phoebe lets those mussels get cold in their wine and butter sauce (perfect for soaking crispy baguette slices and of course, the pomme frites)  doesn’t mean you can’t take comfort in this authentic French-style bistro staple. Be glad you're not carrying around Phoebe's emotional baggage: Hermes, Vuitton or Ferragamo, it's still a heavy weight. Pro tip: Go extra heavy on the garlic to chase any lingering blues away.

9.   Bennie's Linzer Hearts: Bennie’s bouts of baking coincide with major pivots in her life and that of others, so in addition to her homemade tiramisu that makes a splash that fateful art-show night, the Linzer heart cookies she bakes in Cracker turn out to be a lifeline for Randy, and how Bennie learns about Terrence’s and Rajit’s checkered professional past at the internet search engine company that fired them both. Terrace claims she could package the cookies and sell them, but the effect they have on Randy the next day and the impact they have on everything going forward can't be contained in a package. Made with love in Bennie's sunny North Beach kitchen, these Linzer hearts, two rich sugar cookies–one with a heart-shaped cutout so that the red raspberry shows through–are truly transformative. Bennie's developed her own recipe over the years, giving these her personal touch, but if you want to create your own healing magic, try this recipe and get ready for the feels they'll stir up. They even win over Randy's mom–and she's no walk in the park!

10.  Club Luncheon Creamy Asparagus Soup: After Mary-Ann’s breakdown in Baller, her first reappearance is her “swan song” luncheon with the club ladies where she receives a glass gavel for all her years serving as committee chair for countless charity galas and fundraisers. Perhaps it's a bit ironic that this ending marks a new beginning but the chain of events following this champagne soaked oh-so-proper lunch is life-altering not only for Mary-Ann but for others as well. For the first time in a long time, Mary-Ann is in rare form, chatty and glad to leave this part of her life behind. One of the highlights of this classic club ladies’ annual event is the fresh Asparagus soup, creamy and comforting, brightened with a dash of lemon zest just before serving, silky with butter and cream, but not heavy. If you have obstacles to overcome, enemies (or frenemies) to deal with, or simply want to move on from past hurts, fortify yourself with this soup and you'll see things in a whole new light (ample amounts of champagne optional).

These are just a few of the meals and treats featured in the novels, but among the most significant (to plot and character). As in reality, life often revolves around meals, family gatherings, and baked goods created with love (or in the wake of loss) can also offer healing (or even a lifeline in hard times): a reminder that someone truly cares.

In addition to those listed already, for a wonderful selection of fresh and delicious California-inspired recipes that would easily grace Jessica’s, Bennie’s, or Mary-Ann’s tables on any given weeknight or weekend, visit the Two Cloves Kitchen Food Blog, my new go-to for Cali-fresh recipes!

Bedtime Noir #16: American Muse

If you’re a fan of pulp fiction, you may’ve already started a collection of Starlite Pulp Reviews. This small southern California press has published five reviews so far, all beautiful volumes containing pulp stories from noir to horror to sci-fi and Westerns. American Muse however is Starlite’s first collection of novellas, with four varied and high quality stories by authors Brian Townsley, Manny Torres, Alex Slusar and Jean-Paul L. Garnier. In tonight’s Bedtime Noir, I’ll be reading a snippet from “Hot Streak” by Alex Slusar.

Click here to see the video.

Movie Review: A Complete Unknown

Dir. James Mangold, screenplay by James Mangold and Jay Cocks. Starring Timothee Chalomet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro

There's been some comment about inaccuracies and blurry time lines in James Mangold's’s new film about Bob Dylan, A Complete Unknown, based on Elijah Wald's ‘s book Dylan Goes Electric! I wasn't bothered by word on the street that it didn't follow all the facts, chapter and verse. It's a movie, after all, takes poetic license, and whatever A Complete Unknown lacks in historical accuracy, the screenplay and performances more than make up for in emotional intensity.

 I tend to seek out biopics about artists, writers, actors, dancers, designers and musicians largely because I'm interested in what makes creatives tick, how they overcome challenges (if they’re able to) and perhaps partly because I want to understand more about the artistic impulse in myself. Of course such films often contain deeply intimate details about the person behind the work–good, bad and ugly–such as disastrous love affairs, jealousies & obsessions, addictions, weaknesses and destructive tendencies, that watching them can sometimes feel like voyeuristic key-hole peeping, with the perception that makers of docu-dramas–unlike biographers or documentarians abiding by some academic or journalistic standards– will take off the archivist gloves and get their hands dirty. This film has that behind-the-scenes/ “behind the music” feel, but without any tabloidish edges, due in large part to the transcendent performance by Timothee Chalomet as Bob Dylan.

It's about Dylan's transformation from itinerant troubadour into international rock star, thwarting Pete Seeger's (Edward Norton) dream of Dylan becoming the pied piper of the folk movement, only instead of leading new fans off a cliff like the sinister flautist of Hamelin, Seeger's vision has the immensely talented Dylan leading them to the mountain top, bringing folk music and its message off the street corners and out of the smoky confines of urban coffee shops and bars to the masses. Dylan's dream for his future doesn't mesh with Seeger's, however, and the final outcome of this push-pull in Dylan's early career is the stuff of legend.

 A Complete Unknown captures the zeitgeist of the early 1960’s while illuminating aspects about our own times, with phantoms of war, nuclear and conventional, assassinations, the threat of political violence, and end-of-era uncertainty lurking in the background. In the film, Bobby Dylan (formerly Bob Zimmerman of Hibbing, MN), newly arrived in New York City, pays his respects to the king of folk, Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy), with a visit to Guthrie’s hospital room. Guthrie is Bob’s damaged mentor, a sage robbed of the power of speech. Even in his debilitated state, both he and Pete Seeger, who's often at Guthrie’s bedside, see Bob as a new messenger.

The best Guthrie can ultimately do is to wish Bob well on his journey with the gift of a beloved harmonica, but Pete takes a very active role in promoting Bob, giving him a place to stay, finding him gigs, and introducing him to Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro), the reigning folk princess with whom Bob forms a relationship both romantic and professional. Concerning Bob’s relationship with Sylvie (Elle Fanning), a committed young activist (whose real-life counterpart is a woman real-life Bob still cares for, the reason he didn't want her real name used in the film), Joan is a frustrating threat, a looming presence whose musical ambition rivals Bob’s, and who inhabits a place in Bob’s life that Sylvie can never share. In a heartbreaking scene, she stands offstage watching Joan and Bob share a mic at the Newport Folk Festival, helplessly observing their knowing looks that reveal a deep connection between them. Sylvie and Joan are well aware of each other and their respective places in Bob’s life, and Joan’s sweeping glance at Sylvie prior to joining Bob onstage is devastating, leaving Sylvie to wonder how she could ever compete with the angelic-voiced, barefooted star, and finally deciding once and for all–she can't.

Bob’s connection to Joan would be daunting for any other woman in his life, but even ambitious Joan can't compete with Bob’s total commitment to his art. The main conflict is between Bob’s vision for himself and the one others have for him, seeking to mold his mercurial talent to their own ends. Like other mid-century artistic rebels who changed the cultural landscape in their creative areas, such as Jack Kerouac, Jackson Pollock and Charlie Parker, Dylan's early relationship with fame is tentative and trepidatious, but he learns to navigate it without falling into addiction or isolation. The sunglasses he wears through much of the second half of the film become his armor, hiding a soulful gaze that hints at vulnerability but mostly reveals a steely, unswerving resolve to be his own man in a world that offers easy avenues for selling out or giving in, conforming to the desires and expectations of others. The simmering tension surrounding Bob’s fate and his courage to fulfill the destiny he imagines for himself finally explodes in a climactic scene amid crying, confusion, gnashing of teeth and cries of “Judas!” As Johnny Cash (Boyd Holbrook) puts it, Bob decides to “track mud on somebody's carpet,” and in so doing, cements his place in America’s musical canon..

I shared one song from the film, “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue” , with my literature class just before the holiday break, a song that inspired Joyce Carol Oates to dedicate one of her most famous short stories, “Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?” to Bob Dylan. Past and present, it's clear that Bob’s music and influence still spans generations, with fans from Gen Z  to the Boomers. While Bobby stood on the shoulders of Woody Guthrie & other dreamers, truth tellers & street musicians that dared swim against the current, cut against the grain, and speak truth to power, he blazed his own trail as well. The arbiters of folk music yell for the guys on the sound board to stop the show during Bob’s first fateful electric performance, but they can’t; the force that’s been unleashed onstage is unstoppable,

 I went to see this film not knowing if I'd like it or not, but hoping I'd find something in it that would inspire me, which is another reason I must admit I like to watch biopics about creative folk. I thoroughly enjoyed A Complete Unknown not only because of the stellar performances and standout script, but because I did leave inspired. It helps to be reminded that when one feels pulled in multiple directions, pressured to conform to other's desires or fit into a box someone else built, the best thing one can do is plug in and break free.

Bedtime Noir #15: Namaste Mart Confidential by Andrew Miller

Bedtime Noir returns with a snippet from Andrew Miller’s new novel, Namaste Mart Confidential, an L.A.-set urban adventure that veers into Mexico, religious fundamentalism and pop-culture lore. Click here for the video.

You can visit Andrew’s web site here to learn more about his work.

Ten Fashion Aesthetics in the Eucalyptus Lane Series

As my series of novels—Poser, Cracker, and the latest, Baller—set in the darker corners of Silicon Valley has developed over time, the fashion tastes of my characters have solidified into specific aesthetics that help to define key things about them as they seek to discover more about who they really are, to each other and in the larger world. If you’re new to the series, the tone is suburban romance spiked with crime fiction, sunny neo-noir world where image and identity play a big part in the overall story arc, including themes related to how others see us versus how we see ourselves.

These are the top ten fashion aesthetics in the series:

1.       Bad Boy Aesthetic

Ambrose, the main character, is a Texas runaway who arrives in the San Francisco Bay Area and deals drugs to make a living. He also works certain days at a B&D dungeon as an assistant to a well- established dominatrix. Having come from an abusive home, lived on the road, and spent his fair share of time on the streets, his clothes reflect a life of “catch-as-catch-can,” thrift store and found items. Initially, his typical uniform is jeans and a flannel over a t-shirt, topped by a worn leather jacket from a deceased uncle, and old biker boots (Ambrose rides a ragged motorcycle). He’s blond, early twenties, and could almost be good looking “when he gives a damn,” but up until major changes are forced upon him in the first Eucalyptus Lane novel, Poser, he doesn’t give a damn.

When he runs afoul of his main drug connection and has to shift into another identity, pretending to be someone else, his aesthetic morphs into California preppy when he poses as a Stanford grad student with the help of a friend who buys him a new wardrobe and potentially new lease on life. Having never been exposed to other possibilities, he feels shaky at first, like being “pushed onstage without a script,” but he takes to his new persona when he realizes the potential of an amazing future he now holds in his hands, abandoning his ragged “gutterpunk” existence in favor of a shiny new one, eventually graduating from California preppy for “Old money” men’s fashion, discovering a penchant for custom-made suits and Italian shoes. Even after achieving some measure of success, tenuous though it is, when he walks down the street in Palo Alto or San Francisco in a state of sartorial splendor, he still flashes on his old bad-boy aesthetic whenever he catches a reflection of himself in a store window, back when getting dressed required minimum effort and almost no money, when every day and night were spent in survival mode, and those jeans, flannel, worn out jacket and boots were his armor in a cruel and uncaring world.

As his circumstances and attitude shift, Ambrose becomes something of a fashion chameleon in the series, and he’s not the only one.

2.       Rich Mommy Aesthetic

If anyone in the Eucalyptus Lane series personifies a classic rich mommy look, it’s Jessica Jenkins Eason, oldest daughter of a Silicon Valley tech billionaire and wife of a closeted executive whose transgressions cause Jessica to step outside her considerable zone of comfort and into one of hedonistic sexual experimentation and adventure. Jessica’s kind and caring nature and movie star good looks mask a woman ready to break the mold of her former predictable existence and embrace one of risk and radical self-expression. As the mother of a toddler, Jessica walks a fine line between living up to her maternal responsibilities and seeking happiness on her own terms, which happens when Ambrose comes to live in her guest house. She doesn’t realize at first that he’s pretending to be someone he’s not, and it’s only when she discovers the truth about him that she begins to discover hidden truths about herself. When that happens, her style begins slowly evolving. She still rocks a practical designer wardrobe perfect for taking her son Beau for play dates at the park, or stopping by Stanford shopping center for a new pair of shoes to wear to the next charity gala she’s obligated to attend. While her rich mommy aesthetic remains throughout most of the series, Jessica also begins to embrace the boho fashion aesthetic when her career as an artist takes off and what constitutes ‘family’ shifts along with her wider understanding of the world outside her little corner of Palo Alto

3.       Retro Aesthetic

While Jessica embodies the rich mommy aesthetic, her younger sister Bennie, who lives in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood, consistently embraces a sweet/ naughty retro vibe throughout the entire series.

Bennie loves dresses that suggest the prim and proper silhouette of 1950’s ladies’ fashion: full skirts, covered in polka dots or some other fun pattern, cinched waists, sweetheart necklines, often with funky Mary-Jane shoes and whimsical sunglasses. Bennie plays at being prim and proper but privately, is anything but. While her old college pals from Hollins are climbing the corporate ladder, Bennie works as a receptionist at Miss Dover’s dungeon, sunny gatekeeper to for a portal where souls both lost and found engage in their wildest fantasies, finding pleasure through pain. When at home, Bennie favors silky robes embroidered with Chinese dragons, and velvet slippers beaded with intricate designs of dragons, peacocks, or flowers. Bennie also loves lacy, racy lingerie, retro and otherwise, occasionally accessorized with handcuffs.

Though Bennie’s fashion aesthetic remains constant, she’s the main one who facilitates change in others, transforming Ambrose’s aesthetic from Bad Boy to California preppy, and reluctant to admit that it’s the bad boy look she fell for first, before crafting the persona for him that would captivate her own sister, a move she later comes to regret. But, as Bennie likes to say: “Everything happens for a reason.”  

4.       Older Rich Guy Aesthetic

The middle-aged and older men in the Eucalyptus Lane series have their own individual takes on this aesthetic, but one thing they all have in common is that none of them look like they’re trying too hard.

Mr. Bob, aka Bob Bauer, retired tech exec, always looks like he’s headed to or from a board meeting, with a stop-off for drinks and cigars, or maybe a round of nine holes at the club. His typical look consists of slacks, a sporty polo, and expensive but comfortable loafers, so that all he has to do is throw on a blazer when propriety demands, or a tuxedo when his wife Mary-Ann demands that he accompany her to a formal event to raise money for charity.  Laconic, with a dry sense of humor, Mr. Bob sometimes smokes cigars at places where smoking isn’t allowed, just to see if he can get away with it. When he’s really ready to relax at home by the pool, or on vacation in Majorca, he wears a Hawaiian shirt, cargo shorts (yes, cargo), and topsiders while enjoying a brandy or beer and a fine cigar while he streams the Giants game on his phone.

Retired tech billionaire Parker Jenkins, Jessica and Bennie’s dad, like to travel the world, tool around the San Francisco Bay on his sailboat or the Mediterranean on his yacht. He tends to embrace a softer side of this aesthetic, with more cotton and linen, and cashmere sweaters. Like Mr. Bob, he has to don a tux occasionally, and even then, looks totally at ease. As Randy observes when he meets Mr. Jenkins for the first time: “Everything about him screams rich—in the most tasteful, understated way.”

In his first appearance, Maxim Rusovich, longtime client at Miss Dover’s dungeon and younger brother of her mortal enemy, is wearing silk boxers and not much else, but generally he’s seen in impeccably tailored suits for the short and chubby. His older brother Alexei, the more intimidating of the two, also dresses up daily for overseeing operations at his tea room in Russian Hill or any nefarious activity at his operations in the central valley or the parking garage at a property he just acquired.  Maxim and Alexei both get their suits from Savile Row, or Spoon’s in Chinatown. Both also have ties to Russian businessman Sergei Dobrev, who uses highly questionable methods to protect his longtime interests (not official mafia, but still gangsta). Sergei, early seventies, rocks the Older Rich Guy/ Tycoon aesthetic, often sporting white pants, black blazer and thick-framed sunglasses on his palazzo in Monte Carlo, a look that always makes Miss Dover think of Aristotle “Ari” Onassis (the Greek shipping tycoon who swept a widowed Jackie Kennedy off her feet), or in a designer track suit, limited-edition sneakers, and always—those sunglasses.

None of these men would consider themselves influencers, yet they influence younger guys like Ambrose and Randy who didn’t grow up with the finer things, but recognize quality when they see it, from shoes to cologne, to the neatly pressed handkerchief tucked into the breast pocket of a custom made suit. Taste can’t be taught, but like an appreciation for a fine cigar, or a nose for fine wine, can be acquired by those willing to learn.

5.       Dominatrix Aesthetic

 Owner and head dominatrix at Dover, Inc., Miss Dover, a trans black woman in her early forties, embodies this badass feminine aesthetic with black leather & latex, take-no-prisoners attitude, and streetwise ability to recognize a line of bullshit when she hears one—99% of the time. One of the first people Ambrose met when he arrived in the city, Miss Dover gave him a job, and over the arc of the series, much more, though their mentor/ protege relationship gets tested to the limits. Miss Dover has dreams of becoming a famous fashion designer, and while her own fashion aesthetic eventually tilts toward minimalism in pastels and grays, the lines and contours remain as sharp as her claw-like diamond-encrusted nails.

Momo, assistant dominatrix at Miss Dover’s, likes to wear selections from her latex cat suit collection, along with cat ears & riding crop or flogger. When she’s not at work, she creates cute mother/daughter outfits based on Japanese anime, while Mignon, ambitious newcomer, is a “kitten with a whip,” with a soft French accent and hard heart.

6.       Normal Core Aesthetic

In a series with so many fashionistas, normalcore stands out for its pure, unassuming simplicity. Veteran and ex-cop Randy Burke isn’t going for an aesthetic so much as trying to keep some decent clothes on his back and a roof over his head, but his signature black polo shirt with jeans and brown loafers are his everyday capsule wardrobe, at least until he can make it to the laundromat. He tends to feel “frumpy” when he dresses up, especially now that he’s gained a few pounds, and so avoids it, but that becomes harder as time goes on, when he’s called upon to attend certain formal and semi-formal events, whether as guest or front-of-house hired help. He’d rather be at home on the sofa with a cold beer, wearing his favorite Giants t-shirt, and Costco plaid boxers. He played catcher when he was on the baseball team in high school but knows that after all the shit he’s pulled, he’s the last guy in the world who would ever catch a break—until fate throws him a curveball.

Ambrose’s older brother Butch is another normal core adherent, though like Randy, not much is normal about him. He’s spent a large chunk of his adult life in prison, where clothing options are severely limited, but when he has the option, he wears jeans and a t-shirt, and/or a plain button-down if he’s really dressing up. Alternately amused by and resentful of Ambrose’s growing clothing obsession, Butch sometimes has to remind himself that in another life, his own “job” stooging for a drug kingpin called for burning lots of money on a wardrobe with a certain jet-set flair, light years away from anything he’d even consider wearing post-incarceration. He hopes Ambrose isn’t headed on a similar trajectory, getting himself into situations that could end badly. As he reminds Ambrose one day during a brotherly argument that gets

heated: “You can’t wear those cute little outfits in prison, you know.”

7.     Ladies Who Lunch Aesthetic

Jessica doesn’t have a regular job, but keeps busy looking after her son Beau with the help of a very dependable baby-sitter. Before she begins pouring all her energy into her blossoming art career, she also spends a lot of time serving on charity committees and boards for various philanthropic organizations, occasionally dipping into the ladies who lunch aesthetic. Her longtime acquaintance, Mary-Ann Bauer (wife of Mr. Bob) however, is a lady who lunches extraordinaire, who’s chaired more committees than she can count and served as president, vice president or secretary for everything from the garden club to the Woman’s Club. Among other ladies of leisure who do charity work when they can, Mary-Ann is a hard-charging go-getter that some might even call pushy. She embraces the ladies who lunch aesthetic by dressing impeccably for luncheons and other occasions where hostess-y effortlessness and ease is paramount, kicking it up a notch with power high heels, classic designer sheath dresses (she has one in every color) and wearing her hair up in a way that means business, even though she never goes to work at an office.

8.       Geek Chic Aesthetic

When Rajit Sharma moves into Bennie’s apartment building in North Beach and tries to strike up a friendship, Bennie is cool to him at first, having just been through relationship drama, but she warms up quickly, even helping him out of a jam in Poser (Book 1). Even before Rajit wins her over with his politeness, charm, quirkiness and vulnerability, she’s impressed by his neat, preppy-leaning slim-fitting suits that he punches up with unique touches like a contrasting paisley bowtie, or classic wingtip shoes in unexpected two-tone colors.

Before long, Bennie notices that Rajit has backslid, lapsed or advanced (depending on how you look at it) into more of an underground tech (ninja) aesthetic, in jeans, hoodie and sneakers—all black.

Rajit’s friend and former “partner in crime,” Terrence Olivier, rocks the Geek Chic aesthetic with quirky outfits similar to Rajit’s, along with hip, wire-frame glasses, and a rock-steady gaze that gives him the air of a force to be reckoned with. In his down time, Terrence likes to wear ironic t-shirts, faded jeans and Vans, keeping a closer eye on the latest techie fashion trends while Rajit, like Ambrose, tilts decidedly toward a more trad-menswear look.

9.       Yoga Girl Aesthetic

Brianna, Randy’s neighbor in Poser is always seen in yoga pants, tanks, and the big, loose sweater she throws on to walk across the parking lot to the yoga studio in the strip-mall next to their apartment building. Brianna loves everything yoga, including the classes, the equipment, and the “well-endowed yoga instructor, Steve.” She’s also given to smoking, hard-drinking, and spur-of-the-moment sex with whoever’s available. While she embraces the yoga-girl aesthetic, in reality she’s a party girl in a yoga girl outfit—fun-loving, hard-living, and not too discrete, though she is observant about the comings and goings around the apartments. If asked about it, though, she might need a drink to jog her memory, like when Randy asks her about the “fake” pizza delivery man who knocked on his door prior to his computer getting hacked.

10.   Tough Guy Aesthetic

What causes Ambrose to seek refuge in Palo Alto is a run-in with his “night” boss: bald, muscle-bound tough guy Lang. Ambrose slings drugs for Lang early in Poser when he’s not working at Miss Dover’s. Having been warned after tripping up one too many times, Ambrose knows that Lang is gunning for him. Lang talks tough, but also relies heavily on his tough guy look, a combo of goth guy aesthetic (minus the skinny jeans and eye liner) and rocker/ punk aesthetic, with his black leather and many piercings and tattoos. Ambrose’s relationship with Lang shifts and flips during the course of the series, but it’s a key confrontation with Lang that forces Ambrose to realize that running away isn’t always the answer, a lesson that sticks with him when other lessons he thought he’d learned have fallen away.

BELOW: Silhouette portraits of peeps from the Eucalyptus Lane series.

For more about the Eucalyptus Lane series of novels, Poser, Cracker, and the latest, Baller, including order links, click here.

Sign up for my newsletter to be notified about new blog posts, videos, and author events. Much more to come on that—stay tuned!

Five Reasons to see the Flannery O'Connor film Wildcat

Directed by Ethan Hawke, Written by Ethan Hawke and Shelby Gaines.

1.       If you don’t know anything about Flannery O’Connor and her stories, this film serves as an excellent introduction.

If you’re new to the work of Flannery O’Connor, Wildcat will orient you to the salient features of much of her Southern gothic literary oeuvre, including her use of rural Georgia as setting, and the characters who inhabit the postwar rural south, ranging from prideful landed gentry to “poor white trash,” from crooked bible salesmen to maniacal would-be preachers. O’Connor claimed that while the south purports to be “Christ-centered,” it’s really “Christ- haunted,” and her stories are populated with characters engaged in a spiritual struggle, whether they realize it or not.  Her protagonists are forced to deal with a pivotal moment of grace, and what it means for their lives. In O’Connor’s fictional universe, deeply rooted in her devout Catholicism, God often acts through an unlikely agent of grace on characters that many readers may find less than deserving, but that’s the nature of grace: God’s underserved mercy. Wildcat illuminates this concept through explorations of key moments in O’Connor’s fiction. These moments are often fraught, anxious or frightening, but always transformative. Concerned as she was for the souls of those in an increasingly secular world, violence is O’Connor’s way of getting the reader’s undivided attention, the kick in the head she believed most readers require to make them see the need for God in their lives. In Wildcat, O’Connor herself (Maya Hawke) seems startled by her own visions of sudden violence, recognizing it as the vehicle she would use to drive home her message to jaded modern audiences in need of saving.

2.       If you already know a lot about Flannery O’Connor and her work, this film will give you new insights into both.

Many O’Connor fans are likely familiar with details of the author’s biography, such as her childhood in Savannah, move to Milledgeville as a teen, education at Georgia College and Iowa Writers Workshop, and the subsequent struggle with lupus that necessitated her return to Milledgeville. In photos of O’Connor, she appears as a studious young woman: intense, somewhat remote. Even in photos of her smiling, it’s hard to get much of a sense of this personality whose wry sense of humor and fearlessness imbue all her stories. With Wildcat, we gain a clearer perspective of Flannery O’Connor the writer, who must champion her own work with a ferocity unfamiliar to writers of more conventional fiction of that time, and the loneliness she feels among her peers who rush to correct the political incorrectness of characters who aren’t right, but are nonetheless real. We also get a more complete picture of her desire for love and understanding. In the film, O’Connor harbors an unrequited yet seemingly mutual affection for Robert “Cal” Lowell (Philip Ettinger). I don’t know how much of this is historically/ biographically accurate, but true or not, Lowell’s character in the film could serve as a composite of several thwarted relationships O’Connor had with men. It seems that she finally came to terms with the frustrations and hurt through absolute commitment to her art, especially in the wake of her lupus diagnosis and the knowledge that she was destined to die young. In fact, that’s another aspect of O’Connor’s life brought into sharp focus in Wildcat: anxiety about impending death.

3.       This film goes beyond the label of “biopic” in its treatment of the subject and her work.

While the cinematic narrative addresses the biographical, it immediately delves directly into the art itself, with Maya Hawke and Laura Linney playing the author and her mother in addition to other characters from O’Connor’s stories. O’Connor herself says in the film, “I only feel like myself when I’m writing,” and Hawke’s performance of O’Connor as well as the fictional characters (not all of them female) is diamond-sharp and spot-on. O’Connor’s imagination is in overdrive as she wanders through a New York house party, seeing stills of the vivid activity flowing around her, as if witnessing moments in time bursting with the potential of being transformed into literature. With the long train ride from the cosmopolitan New York literary scene to the more provincial environs of central Georgia, during which signs of her lupus manifests, O’Connor shortly discovers that the opportunities she feared missing by having to stay home on the farm have in fact traveled south with her. Inspiration is all around, so she adheres to a strict schedule, rearranges her room to minimize distractions and sets to creating some of the most memorable fiction of the twentieth century, timeless and universal, out of things happening in her own backyard. In Wildcat, life and art blend seamlessly into a complex series of juxtapositions and reflections, separate vignettes skillfully woven together into one compelling narrative about the author’s spiritual and creative evolution.

4.       Maya Hawkes performance is amazing.

Hawkes’ portrayal of Flannery O’Connor is a portrait in toughness and tenderness, from facing down a reluctant publisher who suggests she go with a more conventional narrative in her novel, Wise Blood, to her deep affection for Lowell. The scenes where she and Lowell banter about matters both literary and personal are some of the few instances where her vulnerability is on full display. Another key instance of this is O’Connor’s emotional conversation with her priest (Liam Neeson), about her feelings and fears concerning the looming prospect of death. Eventually, her acceptance of Lowell’s impending marriage to a lovely New York blonde, and of her own mortality, free her to fully inhabit the world of her uncompromising fiction. Maya Hawkes embodies Flannery O’Connor the writer, the woman, and the daughter of another strong-willed woman: Regina Cline O’Connor (Laura Linney). Shades of their complicated, occasionally prickly relationship are revealed in the biographical parts of the film, while hidden aspects possibly surface in the fiction (especially in “Good Country People”). O’Connor turned a jaundiced eye toward a certain type of women a bit too sure of their place in the world, as well sheltered youth fresh from the halls of traditional academe. None are spared pain, doubt nor confusion (though in the case of Manley Pointer in “Good Country People,” that’s debatable). In a scene from “Everything That Rises Must Converge,” the liberal-leaning son of a middle-aged woman is alternately amused and horrified at his mother’s embarrassment and paternalistic racism on a city bus ride and the subsequent encounter with a black woman and her young son. Julian’s reaction ranges from schadenfreude to pity at the outcome. Things are rarely cut and dried in Flannery O’Connor’s fictional universe, and Maya Hawkes “gets” both O’Connor’s complexity and multi-faceted interpretation of events surrounding her in her time.

5.       Laura Linney’s performance is amazing.

Like Maya Hawke, Laura Linney portrays multiple characters in addition to that of Regina, including Mrs. Hopewell from “Good Country People,” and Mrs. Turpin from “Revelation.” As Regina O’Connor, Linney embodies the southern woman of that era for whom a priority is keeping up appearances, which extends even to her daughter when Regina keeps the doctor’s diagnosis from Flannery herself, for fear of making things worse. Flannery resist Regina’s admonishments to rest rather than wear herself out writing, but even in Flannery’s resistance is evidence that she also recognizes her mother’s concern. Her acceptance of Regina’s love for her, even as she pushes back against it, is familiar to mothers and daughters everywhere. The “Jesus scene” within the exploration of “Revelation,” a short story about a woman who sees herself as a very good person, near the top of the social hierarchy, is visually stunning, over the top, and exemplifies much of the controversy surrounding O’Connor’s work. It’s also why she is often seen as a “problematic author,” even with a long list of literary accolades to her name. The choice Jesus presents to Mrs. Turpin, use of the “n-word,” and Mrs. Turpin’s anxious response, is a reflection of O’Connor’s time and place. To pretend that such debates, internal and external, didn’t or don’t occur, is a denial of history and reality, and O’Connor did not shy away from unpleasant truths that, even as her publisher claims early on, make things uncomfortable for her readers. Offering comfort, cover, and escape from reality was of no interest for O’Connor, and not the purpose nor aim of her fiction.  If, as Shakespeare is quoted as saying, the purpose of art is to hold the mirror up to life, Flannery O’Connor does it with a steely, gaze. What we see looking back forces us to assess our relationship with society, ourselves, and most importantly, with God.

It's not easy to hear nor see much of what happens in the fiction of Flannery O’Connor, but it isn’t supposed to be. O’Connor had her own tough reality to face, but she did it with dignity and courage. Like Flannery O’Connor, we can’t know what we’re made of until we’re tested. That’s the only way to find out how any of us would fare staring down the barrel of the Misfit’s gun—or whether we’d be the ones holding it.

Here’s a link to the official trailer for Wildcat.

For an excellent documentary about Flannery O’Connor, watch Uncommon Grace, a film by Bridgit Kurt, filled with fascinating facts, and commentary by O’Connor scholars and experts. Here’s a link to the web site.

You can read my interview with Bridget following her first festival win for Best Documentary here at Deep South Magazine.

If you’re interested in more about Flannery O’Connor, click here read to read my short piece in Deep South about the “Flannery and Fashion” exhibit at Andalusia Farm, and my interview with Elizabeth Wylie, former executive director of Andalusia Farm here.

Bedtime Noir #14: Baller Preview

Baller, Book 3 in the Eucalyptus Lane series, arrives later this spring from Outcast Press. This is the first snippet I’m sharing from that, and I’ll be back soon sharing work from my fellow writers! Click here to see the video.

Movie review: Barbie

Directed by Greta Gerwig, written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach. Production Companies: Mattel, Heyday Films, Lucky Chap.

I went to see Barbie on opening night, having just realized that my mother had only days to live.  I can hear a chorus of the Barbies saying, That's good you came to the movie, Nevada. You needed something to relieve your sadness. A distraction, a mild narcotic.  

And what better to take my mind off my real-life troubles than a candy-colored, toy-inspired movie of the moment? Except that the theme of the new Barbie movie is death. 

From an anarchic opening scene wherein Barbie (Margot Robbie) is first encountered by little girls whose experience with dolls has heretofore only been those shaped like babies, to Barbie's life-altering choice, offered by Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon), in the form of a glittering high-heeled pink pump (living a fantasy) or a Birkenstock (living for real), Barbie is a rapturous celebration of femininity, a journey to a world of female empowerment, where joy and optimism reign supreme and the gritty and chaotic "real world" never intrudes. Powerful and accomplished women rule Barbie Land, and no one ever questions whether there "should" or "could" be a female president. It's a given that women can do absolutely any and everything. 

But even Stereotypical Barbie gets the blues as it turns out, when Barbie's perfect world is marred by the encroachment of a real woman's blues, those of Gloria (America Ferrera), who works for Mattel, and whose recent sketches portray a Barbie that, though beautiful, has the melancholy expression of many women in the real world, facing its impossible contradictions and demands every day. This heartfelt,  specifically female affliction, and the urgings of Weird Barbie (the embodiment of all Barbies upon whom modern little girls now turn their anarchic actions, using ink pen, scissors or lighters to modify her looks, and pose her doing perpetual splits) are what pull Stereotypical Barbie out of her dream house that has somehow suddenly become uncomfortable. 

If Stereotypical Barbie wants to retain her perfection, she must find the girl whose blues are potent enough to poke a hole through the fabric separating Real World from Barbie Land. What Barbie doesn’t anticipate is besotted Ken (Ryan Gosling) hitching a ride in the back of her pink convertible. While Barbie won't be distracted from her mission to find the sad girl who's tearing the fabric of her rose-tinted not-quite reality,  Stereotypical Ken discovers the testosterone fueled magic of toxic masculinity, and brings it back to Barbie Land where it's greeted by the other Kens like the bringing of fire. 

Meanwhile, when Mattel execs (headed by Will Ferrell) get word that Barbie is out of the box and running amok, an all-out chase ensues. Mattel is portrayed in the film as pure Corporation, whose sole goal is to make a profit. An out-of-the-box Barbie running free in the Real World makes for a volatile situation, and as many executives believe, volatility in business is usually a result of bad management. Once again, the "problematic female" must be contained.

Barbie's ultimate goal of maintaining her own perfect world shifts when she meets her creator: not a male chauvinist with a burning desire to impose impossible standards of physical perfection on all womanhood, but kindly Ruth Handler (Rhea Perlman), who created Barbie in honor of her daughter, Barbara. During her time with Ruth,  Barbie gets to see a side of the real world that, unlike the nasty, brutish, greedy side she's seen so far, is kind and caring. 

Margot Robbie is superb as Barbie, whose glamor is softened by her vulnerability. When Barbie, dressed in a hot pink cowgirl outfit, confidently approaches a table full of jaded tween girls at lunch, she proudly announces herself, and, expecting excitement and adoration, instead gets cut down to size by their feminist diatribe. She flees in tears, not yet realizing the connection between one of the girls in that hostile group and her own goal. 

Ken sees Barbie as an obscure object of desire, not necessarily a sexual object but something/ someone he must pursue. Ken exists only in relation to Barbie, created to be Barbie's boyfriend, 'friend' being the operative word, so while Barbie is consumed by existential angst, Ken wrestles with his own. When a Barbie Land battle of the sexes turns into a war between the Kens, Ken also finds his purpose. In a mind-blowing (for me!) dance number, Ken's journey culminates in a breakthrough that's palpable, a vibrant moment of epiphany. 

There's a lot of talk about Barbie as marketing extravaganza, that it's mostly a sales vehicle for–of course--the toys themselves, and everything else onscreen. But isn't just about every superhero/ big-budget/ gadget-driven juggernaut a marketing machine, from t-shirts & tin whistles to shoes, posters, toys, and fast-food confections? Barbie has more heart & soul in its little plastic finger than the biggest CGI/SFX extravaganza has in its–whatever. Did Barbie make me consider buying a pair of pink Birkenstocks? Maybe. Might I buy a fuzzy pastel hoodie that says "I'm K-enough" for my husband, if I happen to run across one? I might. But then, I've been toying with buying a new pair of Birkenstocks for some time now, and my husband, at nearly age 70, is secure enough in his non-toxic masculinity to wear pink. 

As I was walking into the theatre, I saw a small group of women taking selfies in front of the Barbie movie poster out front. I asked if they'd seen it, and they said yes. Did they like it, I asked. They said they did, one of them adding: "It was actually quite poignant." 

I agree. There's one scene near the end that especially touched me, given the situation with my mother. In a film full of eye-candy colors and set-design, it's lovely in its simplicity, and stark in its meaning: the crux of Barbie's existential struggle. You'll know it when you see it. Referring back to the theme I mentioned earlier; it's not just death, but how its inevitability is what gives us our humanity. 

For all the controversy surrounding Barbie dolls themselves, and now the film, its easy to forget but well worth remembering that Barbie isn't just an anti-feminist, facist tool of the male patriarchy, nor is she a seductive emissary of a 'woke' agenda that would destroy all that is good and holy in America and indeed the world. 

Barbie began as one woman's tribute to a daughter she loved. Countless little girls have spent countless hours playing Barbie dolls, and so did their mothers. The references to that generation at the end, show what really gives Barbie the humanity she craved. It was there all along, in the impulse that created her,

She only had to take it by the hand.

Bedtime Noir #13: Percocet Summer

It's still summertime here in the US, but going by fast, so I'm sharing a sample of Paige Johnson's summer-themed transgressive poetry to try and help capture some of these last lanquid days of the season in a bottle (or pill bottle, as it were). Click below for a fix from Percocet Summer, available from Outcast Press, and wherever books are sold..

You can find & follow Paige on Twtter @OutcastPress1

Bedtime Noir #12: Murder and Mayhem in Tucson

Tonight I’m sharing a snippet from Patrick Whitehurst’s nonfiction book about murderous goings-on out in Tucson, Arizona, the subject and setting of Murder and Mayhem in Tucson (History Press). As both reader and writer, Patrick is no stranger to noir, horror and mystery, and his encyclopedic knowledge of all things Perry Mason and Columbo (two of my fave shows) is nothing short of amazing.

You can find out more about Patrick’s work, including his Barker Mysteries and “Sam the Thug” stories and much more at his web site, https://patrickwhitehurst.com/fiction/ .

Bedtime Noir #11: Sneak Peek at Starlite Pulp Review #2

Excited to see my short story, “Scattershot,” in the new Starlite Pulp Review #2! I’m sharing a snippet right here, and you can go to the Starlite Pulp web site or wherever you like to go to buy books and get your copy for a collection of pulp fiction (noir, crime, sci-fi, horror!) by established and emerging authors.

Bedtime Noir #10: L.A. Stories

This week I’ll share a tidbit from L.A. Stories, a trio of grindhouse novellas from Alec Cizak, Scotch Rutherford and Andrew Miller. If you’re a fan of gritty noir and dirty realism in literature and the “grindhouse” aesthetic in film, you should check it out this summer! It’s like a late night at grungy drive-in, or an illicit later-night visit to that downtown theatre you weren’t supposed to go to (but did). I wrote a more in-depth review of this book last year, so you can check that out here.

Click here for this week’s video.

More posts coming up this summer with new and recent works of noir, pulp and transgressive fiction, and more on my fave minor (though major inspo for me!) characters of noir film, TV and lit. Stay tuned!

Bedtime Noir #9: Murder in Greasepaint

I’m so glad to be back to Bedtime Noir! After a few weeks hiatus we’ll kick off the summer with Whiskey Leavins’ genre bending/ blending detective novel with clowns a-poppin’ and a femme fatale (with special talents) like you’ve never seen (or heard) before. Click here for the video, and for more about Whiskey Leavins and his other work, check out his web site here.

Bedtime Noir #8

Noir and transgressive fiction often intersect; I know it does in my writing. Tonight I'm sharing a snippet from the first Outcast Press anthology, In Filth It Shall Be Found. The snippet is from “Sugar Baby,” by CT Marie. Click here to watch the video, and read an earlier full review here .

Bedtime Noir #7: O'Connor Country Edition

This week in a change of pace, I’m in downtown Milledgeville sharing a couple of my favorite stops for evening walks: Cline House, former home of Flannery O’Connor, and Memory Hill Cemetery.

While there’s much in Milledgeville that’s new, evidenced by the influx of Georgia College and Georgia Military College students from all over the country and the world, the past is ever present in the architecture, historical artifacts and the history of the place itself. It was here at the old State House (renovated and still in use at GMC as a classroom building and administrative offices; I’ve taught several English classes there) that after a night of contentious debate, Georgia voted to secede from the Union. Everywhere at Memory Hill Cemetery are graves of the Confederate dead, along with veterans of the American Revolution and their family members. There are also the graves of patients of Central State Hospital (once known as the Georgia Lunatic Asylum built in 1845), and of former slaves.

Often when I talk to people from other parts of Georgia, they speak of Milledgeville as if it’s an off-the-beaten path part of the state that they’ve never been to, and don’t know much about. There’s a lot that’s new here, as old houses are renovated and repurposed into college offices, and sorority and fraternity houses. Still, something odd about walking past white-columned mansions at sunset, glowing within from strings of bright blue, red or yellow LED lights hanging from the ceiling, with hammocks on the porch, and the occassional painted party cooler or card table on the roof.

As Milledgeville continues being constantly updated to accommodate more new students each year (it is a college town now, after all), places like Cline House and Memory Hill retain the Southern Gothic aesthetic that conjures up the mood of Southern noir, and the spectacular sunsets that inspired O’Connor herself continue to dazzle, accompanied by the sound of evening chimes from the steeple of the Catholic church where she attended morning Mass.

Whether a wrinkle on the map, or in time, O’Connor country still occupies a place in central Georgia and the imagination, populated by Misfits, discontented Ph.D’s, “freaks,” and everyone in between. O’Connor famously declared that the south claimed to be “Christ-centered” but was actually “Christ-haunted.” Just another characteristic of Southern noir that deepens its mystery, and to this day, influences life in the deep south, socially and politically.

Click here to see the video on Cline House, and here to see a bit of Memory Hill.

Bedtime Noir #6: Reading from My New Novel, Cracker!

Tonight, I’m sharing a passage from the latest book in my Eucalyptus Lane series from Outcast Press. Cracker picks up where the first book, Poser, leaves off. Much more about Cracker soon, some exciting news about upcoming publications and events (!) & more posts about film, writing, reading and life. But for now—here are a couple of scenes between Jessica and Ambrose (and Beau!) from Cracker. Click here to watch!

Bedtime Noir #5: Mediterranean Noir

This week I’m reading a short passage from Garlic, Mint, & Sweet Basil, a book of essays by Jean-Claude Izzo. He writes beautifully about Marseilles, the orgins of the noir novel, and with his Marseilles trilogy (Total Chaos, Chourmo, and Solea), is credited as the founder of modern Mediterranean noir. The bite-size little essays in the book are amazing, with lovely description. Whether you consider them short essays or flash non-fiction, each chapter only made me want to visit Marseilles that much more! Click here for video.

Bedtime Noir #4: Dead Dogs by Manny Torres

Reading from Manny Torres's debut novel. Manny has some other novels as well, including Father Was A Rat King, and Perras Malas. He’s also an accomplished visual artist. I interviewed Manny for Deep South Magazine last year, so if you’d like to know more about Chuck and Phobos from Dead Dogs, and Manny’s other work, click here for the interview.

Click here to watch my short reading from Dead Dogs.

To learn more about Manny and his latest work, click here.