Tag: GLOW

Streaming, Television Review, Women in Television

An Ode to “GLOW”

There are some more trivial things that we’ve lost like brunch, going to the cinema, travelling, concerts, just being in others’ presence. Films we’ve been dying to see have been pushed back or shelved. Shows we love have been postponed or cancelled. The world is hard. And it has become increasingly difficult after seven months of quarantining – if you’re being good – to find something to bring me joy. One thing that always brought me joy was the Netflix show, “GLOW.” Continue reading An Ode to “GLOW”

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Directors, Female Filmmaker, Female Filmmakers, Female Writer, Television, Women in Film

Thank You, Lynn

Lynn Shelton was an exceptional filmmaker.  Like many, I was devastated to learn about her sudden passing.  Shelton was 54.

I remember watching her work for the first time.  I saw “Your Sister’s Sister” (2011) at home, after renting it from Netflix.  I wanted to see Emily Blunt’s latest film and I didn’t know much about it.  Shelton brought to life an intimate story about three people struggling to find themselves, redefine themselves and their circumstances.  It wasn’t a flashy or showy film.  Yet, I was struck with every element of the film.

So, when her film “Touchy Feely” (2013) came out, I sought it out.  The film stars Rosemarie DeWitt as a massage therapist who suddenly has an aversion to touch.  It has to be one of the most intriguing plots I’ve ever seen on film, especially in an independent film.  It was inventive and simply human. Continue reading Thank You, Lynn

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Acting, Netflix, Spotlight, Women in Film, Women in Television

Spotlight: Betty Gilpin

There are few actresses who give full-on, metaphorical balls-to-the-wall performances.  Betty Gilpin is one of those people. She gives immensely high-caliber performances every time she is on screen.  So, with the release of “The Hunt” (2020) fast approaching it is time we take a moment to appreciate the underappreciated Betty Gilpin.

Gilpin has been working long before her turn as actress-turned-wrestler on Netflix’s “GLOW.”  But it has been her Emmy-nominated performance as Debbie Eagan and wrestling alter-ego Liberty Belle that has shone a light on her innate talent.  Continue reading Spotlight: Betty Gilpin

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Female Characters, Netflix, Reviews, Television

Now is the Time to Watch “GLOW”

It is a show run by women, about women, and about women using their bodies not for the benefit of men but for the benefit of themselves. As someone who has been inundated with images of how a woman should look and can’t look, it is powerful see a group of women who show that there is no wrong way to look or be or exist.  That every woman has strength in her. Continue reading Now is the Time to Watch “GLOW”

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Female Characters, Feminism, Women in Film

Why the Unlikable Woman is More Likable Than You Think

At the 2018 New York Film Festival, actress Carey Mulligan was asked how she could get into character for someone as unlikable as Jeannette in “Wildlife” (2018). Mulligan explained to the shortsighted audience member that likability is more than niceness. It is finding a connection in someone. Mulligan transformed herself into Jeannette, a young mother who, while her husband is away, has an affair as she tries to find herself again. It is a beautiful performance about the way definitions can be thrust upon and shackle women.

So, what made her unlikable? Was it the infidelity? The selfishness? The uncomfortable self-exploration? It seems that male characters can do and be those things. We call them “complex” or “complicated.” We label them the “anti-hero.” But what makes that journey different for women? Continue reading Why the Unlikable Woman is More Likable Than You Think

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Netflix, Reviews, Television, Television Review

Review: Glow Season 3

GLOW – The Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling – is a based-on-a-true-concept type sitcom (? drama ? sit-ma ?) about a women’s wrestling in the eighties. It’s a feminist by default excuse to recreate the most extreme looks of 80s women’s fashion and some of the most cliched of 80s women’s problems with some kitschy wrestling scenes and liberal politics thrown in for good measure. Like the “A-Team” meets “A League of Their Own” meets “Tiffany” but with heart. Continue reading Review: Glow Season 3

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