Irrelevant But Awesome

Chris:  Remember a few episodes ago when I said that I would’ve liked it if Machu Pichu’s family trained the girls? How great were those training scenes? The bigger brother was a bodyguard for Snoop Dogg about a decade ago and now he’s got impressive comedic timing and then the shorter brother...well he comes from the most legendary wrestling family in Puerto Rico so I guess it shouldn’t be too much of a surprise that he can deliver. Either way, this episode got to me a little bit. Sure, the end of the wrestling show kinda fell apart but I couldn’t help but feel a little bit of vicarious pride build up in me as GLOW put together a wrestling show that somehow got the crowd invested because no matter the size of the production, that’s the ultimate goal. And it’s good to see the show honor the time-honored tradition of wrestling and that’s finish the show no matter what happens during the show and trust me, some awful, unplanned things have happened during wrestling shows. This w...

Alexa:  I love a good political satire, but “Look Who’s Back” just didn’t click with me. I appreciate what it tried to achieve in its critique of media sensationalism and nationalist views, and its warnings that the demons of the past could easily resurface today. But ultimately the movie seemed more concerned with hitting viewers over the head with its key messages than in finding creative ways to convey them. The “Borat” trope of bouncing back and forth between scripted material and man-on-the-street interviews felt stale, and much of the latter was more frightening than funny. I think that’s the key disconnect for me - the context in which I viewed the movie. Given the current state of U.S. politics, I’m just not in the mood to find humor in a dangerous but “entertaining” man being propelled toward an actual position of power by ratings-hungry media and increasingly vocal and disgruntled followers. Joel: I think if I had seen this movie when it came out in 2014 (or had ...

Chris:  Debbie is still coming to grips that she needs to work with Ruth sooner than later which is finally somewhat accepted by the end of the episode. At the beginning, when Ruth is going over her ideas, I honestly thought it was just gonna be another silly awkward Ruth moment but by the end, I was actually impressed the performance along with the self-bumps. Honestly, it looks like Debbie is still struggling to fully commit to this whole silly wrestling thing and yet is intimidated by Ruth’s willingness to go all-in but uses the “sleeping with her husband” thing as an excuse to get out of the room. And then whatever good heel character work Ruth had at the beginning of the episode, it feels almost undone by the time she gets back from the Russian brisk. And you can always tell when a wrestler is in their comfort zone, case in point, Kia Stevens. She’s been wrestling her whole adult life and she’s been holding her own in this show but there’s times where you lines don’t feel...

Alexa:  Low-key, character-driven indies are typically my jam, but “Win It All” was pretty hit or miss for me. The film reunites Jake Johnson with frequent collaborator Joe Swanberg, and it’s Johnson’s performance that truly carries the film for me. It’s an admirable showcase for his talents and charm beyond “New Girl,” when Eddie could easily have turned into nothing more than a rougher-around-the-edges Nick Miller without the fun roommates. And he’s complemented here by a couple of pretty stellar supporting players in Keegan-Michael Key and Joe Lo Truglio. But while Johnson and Swanberg’s previous film “Drinking Buddies” felt natural, smart and relatable, “Win It All” is hampered by uneven pacing that drags a little too much for a movie that clocks in at just under 90 minutes. The story also resolves a little too quickly and neatly for my taste, when Eddie hasn’t done much to convince us he’ll actually change his ways. Joel: For a movie about accidentally losing $50,000...

Chris:  Really? Alex Riley is giving the deep insight (not making a euphemism, I swear) into the world of professional wrestling? That’s like Tim Tebow giving you football advice or Tim Tebow giving you broadcasting advice, or Tim Tebow giving you baseball advice, or Tim Tebow giving you advice about being subtle about your religion. All joking aside, Alex Riley (Steel Horse) introduces a great point about how it takes every participant in the ring to tell a story and deliver quality matches and wrestlers’ feelings about each other in real life is left in the dressing room. It’s an impressive thing to do because there’s always someone at your work that you can’t stand and avoid at all costs but you can’t do that in pro wrestling, if the booker tells you have a match and possibly an entire storyline, it doesn’t matter how you feel about that person, you still go out and try to get each other over with the crowd and deliver. Some of the greatest matches were performed by wrestle...

Chris:  Glow dipped their toe in a plot device that was done heavily in Orange is the New Black and that is have an episode focused moreso on characters that have been in ancillary roles up to this point, showcase their background and move them into a more prominent position in the show moving forward. Glow didn’t go into the full flashback scenes like Orange did but I wouldn’t be surprised if from this point on, we have more focus on Shiela the She-Wolf. Of course, it’s worth mentioning this episode featured two pro wrestling cameos by former WWE wrestlers, Brodus Clay (now going by “Tyrus” on Impact Wrestling) and Carlito, both playing brothers to Machu Pichu. Part of me was hoping Machu Pichu’s father and brothers would start training the girls because it still bugs me that they don’t have an actual trainer since Salty Johnson left after the first episode. There’s been a lot of focus on finding character and character development but it’s been a couple episodes since we’ve ...

Alexa:  I knew nothing about “Exam” before watching it, and I would highly encourage others to go into it with the same approach if at all possible. The less you know, the better. Since this was Jason’s pick, I assumed it would be a horror movie - which can be hit or miss for me - but “Exam” is actually my favorite kind of thriller. It’s purely psychological, with the suspense built around the intricacies of human nature. The premise is simple on the surface: Eight candidates for a high-powered job enter a room where they are to take an exam as the final piece of their interview. One question, one answer - except the question isn’t apparent, and that dilemma is the springboard for a complex web of responses and interactions from the candidates as their layers are gradually pulled back. At what point does collaboration intersect with competition? How do people work together when the ultimate goal is to help yourself? What are your motivations and instincts when working toward s...

Chris:  Oh man, very little actual wrestling in this episode as they venture mostly out of the gym but the last half of this episode was a perfect example of pro wrestling in the 80s and some 90s where wrestlers were stripped down to racial stereotypes, sometimes not even that wrestler’s own race. Hell, hispanic wrestlers where Arabic characters and there’s always one of the most famous examples of Yokozuna, a Japanese sumo stereotype played by a large Samoan man named Rodney Anoa’i. Racial Stereotypes aside, there is something to be said about the stories that are simplified are best to grab an audience. Not saying you can’t grab an audience with a more complex level but we’re talking about grown adults pretend fighting in very little clothing, it’s best not to complicate things too much as you’re already asking the audience to accept a hulk of a premise just by tuning in. The best wrestling storylines are typical brought in on a very basic, simplified level and then graduall...

Alexa:  To know me is to know my obsession with all things Harry Potter, so naturally I thoroughly enjoyed “Mudbloods.” I picked this movie to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the release of “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” and it certainly captures what a massive impact the series has had since then. Part sports doc and part tribute to the fandom, “Mudbloods” follows the UCLA Quidditch team’s journey to the fifth annual Quidditch World Cup in New York. For the uninitiated, Muggle Quidditch is the non-magical adaptation of the wizard sport, and it’s grown into a massively popular endeavor. Sure, everyone on the team featured here is a big Harry Potter nerd, but the movie does a solid job of conveying that this a contact sport that requires some actual athletic ability and strategy. I found the animation explaining the rules of the game particularly effective. Harry Potter fans will still get the most out of this doc, but I think there is something there for non-fa...

Alexa:  “War Machine” is a movie that should work. You’ve got Brad Pitt, a topical story, a promising director. But this thinly-veiled portrait of Stanley McChrystal’s tenure in Afghanistan and the Rolling Stone article that led to his resignation just does not know what it wants to be. It veers back and forth between satire and serious war drama and it’s not particularly adept at either. The strong parts of the movie are very strong, but much of it misses the mark. I understand the choice to use the Rolling Stone journalist’s commentary as a framing device for the narrative, because he does play a pivotal role, but he’s ultimately a relatively minor character, so his input is jarring at times. The movie’s saving grace is its cast. Pitt does an admirable job crafting a sympathetic character despite some questionable choices, and he navigates the story’s humor and drama with ease despite the film’s overall inconsistencies. I would also be remiss if I didn’t take a moment to si...