This and that:
- Alex Ross Perry and Elisabeth Moss make beautiful (rock) music together in his movie Her Smell, in which Moss stars as a musician who is equal parts genius and chaos monster. I loved all the references to '90s alt-rock (definitely stick around for the credits), and how the film firmly centers women and all the male characters kind of float around at the periphery of the action.
- I had a lovely evening in Santa Cruz on Saturday filled with many of my favorite Santa Cruz things (veggie Mobo Sushi rolls, shopping at Sockshop and Bookshop Santa Cruz, etc) before capping it off with Santa Cruz Shakespeare's delightful production of Pride and Prejudice. Adapted from the Austen by Kate Hamill and directed by Paul Mullins, this version leans hard into physical comedy along with some well-executed anachronisms and panto influence to boot.
- Max Boot's book The Road Not Taken: Edward Lansdale and the American Tragedy in Vietnam is a compelling biography of the man who wanted the U.S. to practice "hearts and minds" diplomacy overseas, and it also helped fill in some of the gaps in my knowledge about the run-up to the Vietnam War.
- Thanks to the Criterion Channel I've been soaking my head in films by Athina Rachel Tsangari this week, a director associated with the Greek Weird Wave and who closely examines just how strange we humans be. Attenberg is an excellent place to start.
- Moms and non-moms alike will find a lot to chew on in Molly Smith Metzler's play Cry It Out as it hilariously and poignantly examines the choices women have to make in this country if they want to become a parent. Just Theater's current production at Custom Made is extraordinary, directed by Molly Aaronson-Gelb and starring a trio of my favorite local actors: Martha Brigham, Lauren English, and Lauren Spencer.
- Tickets for next Sunday's Apples & Hops Festival at the UC Botanical Garden are probably too spendy for me, but proceeds do benefit the Garden and include as many apple donuts as you can inhale.