M: Glengarry Glen Ross

A few nights ago I decided to knock out another movie that has just been stagnating in my DVR for months -- the 1992 film adaptation of David Mamet's play, Glengarry Glen Ross. It's an exploration of the unscrupulous things people are willing to do under the pressure of a high-stakes competition, with such stars as Al Pacino and Alec Baldwin playing heated personalities who bring Mamet's penchant for profanity to life on the big screen.

Overall, I don't really have much to complain about regarding this movie -- there are no flashy visuals or score to muddy the plot, which is to be expected with an adaptation of a play about real estate salesmen. I do find it interesting that probably the film's most memorable moment -- Baldwin's "Coffee is for closers" speech -- was written specifically for the film, and for a character who only appeared to give said speech. But the impressive display by Baldwin sets the tone for the rest of the film: a mixture of anger, desperation, and deception stoked by a do-or-die "third place is you're fired" workplace competition. If you're looking for a film driven by excellent dialogue, this one's a winner.

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M: Babylon Berlin

The first time i tried watching Babylon Berlin was about two years ago when i was scrolling through Netflix's recommendations for new series to watch. I tried an episode or two but it did not pan out -- possibly because every time i tried to watch the series, i was always already on the verge of drifting to dreamland. But #Covid19 changed everything so that instead of spending my free time outdoors, i find myself indoors most of the time now -- ergo, more TV time for me. Thus, in the last week of May i found myself being confronted by Babylon Berlin on the Netflix homepage once again and decided to give it a run over. And this time around it had me hooked from the moment i re-watched the first episodes that i was able to finish all 3 seasons of the series in less than two weeks. I loved the visuals and the music, and it even had a little bonus -- revisiting my rudimentary knowledge of the German language and practicing its pronunciations once again. Set in 1920s Berlin and the las...

M: American Graffiti

I have seen American Graffiti in three different decades--first in the late 1980s on Betamax; on VCD in the late '90s and just recently a few weeks ago on cable TV. Nowadays I'm amused seeing a very young Richard Dreyfuss and Harrison Ford and how their physical features have changed or not changed through the years since.

M: Jo Koy: In His Elements

for some reason i don't find Jo Koy's Pinoy-centric jokes funny. i watched "Live from Seattle" a while back and gave "In His Elements" a shot a few nights ago yet it still has not changed my opinion on him. Maybe it's because have drinking friends who are funnier with better lines and spiels. ;)

B.M.S.

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