Four Filipino movies

Netflix is a savvy marketer.  They have noticed that many immigrants to America love to watch movies from their homeland and at the same time are able to use their expertise to spread culture around the world.  What this means is that by targeting different ethnics with movies in their native language they also offer them for the rest of the population.  Out of curiosity or a desire to learn more many Americans (and Canadians) take advantage of the opportunity to see how the rest of the world likes to tell its stories.

The world is opening up to anyone willing to explore.  Always looking for something different stumbled on one Filipino movie  In a short period of time watched four Filipino movies.  The first was "You're my Boss" which I enjoyed, but admit not quite up to American standards.  But it inspired me to watch "Starting Over Again."  And in turn watched "Everything About Her" and finally "Barcelona"  Really just a glimpse of a different culture (with many Western overtones), but some interesting stories told well.

All movies are stories enhanced by technology and creativity.  It has to be believable at least to the point you can identify with what's happening.  Not that you feel they are telling your story, but that it is about something you can feel.   It helps if the actors look and behave naturally.  Of course some are set up in weird costumes, but there still must be something .  The camera is often taken for granted, but it can.   Music ads to your enjoyment, more so if it fits the story.

"You're My Boss" (2015) was a comedy where deception was a key factor.  One woman was substituting for her out of town boss, but soon as a Japanese company couldn't at first accept a woman boss, her male assistant pretended to be the boss.  Naturally the couple seemed misfitted.  The male had a rural family and a different way of looking at things.  The woman was status conscious.  Of course they sorted out their differences.  Basically the two main characters were likeable, the plot was comical in parts.  Some very interesting scenery, both in Manila and a rural coastal town.  Directed and co-written by Antonette Javana.  Emerzon Texon wrote the music.  Carmi Raymundo is listed as creative producer.  Hermann Caravail took the cinematography.  Starred Toni Gonzaga as the substitute executive (more on her later) and Coco Martin as her personal assistant.  Coco won an acting award for this film, but at one time was a janitor in Alberta, Canada.


Toni Gonzaga was listed for "Starting Over Again" (2014--pictured at the top).  I thought I could predict the outcome from the title.  The reviews were very favorable.  The story line had to do with the aftermath of a breakup and then evolved into a love triangle.  Humiliation and misunderstandings were untangled.  It did not end the way I thought it would, but poetic.  The acting was really good and the way the plot was laid out kept viewers engaged.  I learned Toni (who deservedly won an acting award for this role) was a singer and I ended buying one of her tunes.  Piolo Pascual also won acting awards for this film and sang a song, having won 2 song awards.  Iza Calzado played the newcomer to the love triangle and looked very sophisticated. One scene I remember with the two women discussing the difference between cooking and baking was informative and metaphorical. 

Again the cinematography was handled by Hermann Claravall.  Cesar Francois Concio composed the music.  Carmi Raymundo is listed as creative producer.

"Everything About Her" (2016) also had good reviews  The two female leads were very good with the male lead ok.  The story was about families that were dysfunctional.  It takes a problem to bring people together; in this case it was cancer.  The mother was highly successful, but very bossy who had driven her husband and son off to America was brought down to earth by a diagnosis.  The young woman who was hired to be a personal nurse also was strong willed, but was resentful of her mother having left the family.  The nurse meets the son; there is of course a little distrust, but ironically they each help the other to forgive.

Directed by Joyce Bernal who also did some editing.  Writing was shared by Mia Concio I enjoyed the background music by Carmen Cuya.  Cinematography by Shayne Sarte.  Carmi Raymundo was the creative producer.  Vilma Santos played the cantankerous matriarch and is the most prolific award winner starting back in 1964 as best child actress.  She has also been elected mayor of Lipa City and Governor of Batangas.  Angel Locsin played very capably the personal nurse.  Xian Lim who is part Chinese and sometimes has Chinese speaking roles played the son.  He had been born and raised in San Francisco before going back to the Philippines at age 18 with his family

"Barcelona" had a moderately high rating on IMDB, but also had three very negative reviews.  A common criticism was about the acting and casting.  Maybe somebody else could have done a better job, but the two leads more than interpreted the story to my enjoyment; they were a delight to watch.  The cinematography was beautiful, possibly noticed more because Barcelona is a gorgeous city.   Over laying the end credits were bloopers that showed the actors had some relief from the heavy emotions.  The film won several awards.

Olivia M Lamasan was the director and had been a script consultant for both "You're My Boss" and "Everything About Her."  Carmi Raymundo wrote the screenplay.  Hermann Claraval did the cinematography.  Daniel Padilla played the male lead and won an award for it.  Paired with Kathryn Bernardo they won movie love team of the year (for the second time). 

The last three were melodramatic with high emotional content.  In all three movies one is aware that Manila is modern looking city and many of its citizens are sophisticated.  It reminds me of Bollywood that ignores the poor and backward in most of its films.  What we identify with is the middle class and what we envy is the upper class.  Even more than in Bollywood much of the dialogue is in English--partly because it is seen as a mark of an educated person, but possibly also because they want to hit a wider audience.

As of 2018 "Manila in the Claws of Light" (1975) was only the second Filipino movie I have seen.  Filmed in 1974 under the direction of Lino Brocka during the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos.  It was introduced by Martin Scorsese who borrowed the ending for his movie, "Taxi."  There is a love story, but it also carries a political message.  Corruption is very evident.  Not comedic nor melodramatic, but let me know there is a long history of film in the Philippines.

Thanks to Netflix for expanding the world.

"BAD GENIUS" OUT OF THAILAND

Thailand is the source of some of my favorite food.  A nephew is teaching English in Thailand right now.  I have actually seen three or four Thai movies, but didn't see them as a major film producer.

Skimming through what Netflix has to offer I noticed "Bad Genius."  It seemed quirky, but I was struck with the idea for widening my foreign movies comfort level. It won the audience award at the Toronto Reel International Film Festival; best newcomer at the Asian Film Festival and at the Thailand National Film Association best picture, best director, best actor, best actress and best supporting actor.

Part of the movie is like a heist movie with lots of twists and clever reactions, but part is also a morality play.  Instead of stealing valuable objects it is about stealing valuable information.  A very smart girl, Lynn is transferred to an elite high school in Bangkok with help from her widower father making some sacrifices and she making some shrewd negotiating points.  There she befriends (or is befriended by) a relatively wealthy girl, Grace and her wealthier boyfriend, Pat.

The viewer will be impressed with what a clever scheme is planned. But first  Lynn was induced to help her friend and her boyfriend cheat on scholastic tests.  Part of the cover was to give music lessons to an increasing number of customers.  We are introduced to a rival, a boy named Bank who comes from an even poorer family who is a loner and very honest.  His intelligence is equal to hers, but not only does he rebuff efforts to cheat he is able to uncover her scheme to the authorities.  She gets reprimanded and not allowed to compete for a scholarship she obviously was well qualified for.  

She becomes aware of an international test (for admission to elite universities) and figures out that if she takes it in Sydney, Australia that would give her four hours to work with for her paying friends back in Thailand.  She recognizes that her memory capacity will not be enough and her friends pick up that the honest guy needs to be recruited.  Unknown to Lynn one of the friends arranges to have the honest genius beaten up so he cannot take a local scholarship test

Bank is manipulated into participating, but when Lynn finds out how he was set up she wants to back out.  Although Bank is upset he decides maybe it is in his best interest.  The network of wealthy students organizes and fund a trip to Australia for the two while Lynn and Bank work out some details.

Security is tightened as the Australian test givers realize that cheating has stepped up.  You can feel the pressure as the two try to circumvent new scrutiny.  Bank actually gets caught (after sending coded answers to Thailand) and it looks like the authorities are suspicious of Lynn who feigns illness and takes off through the Sydney subway system with one man in pursuit.  She manages to convince the testers that she left early because of an illness, but that meant her own test scores won't count, even though she finished the test.  Using email and sophisticated tools the answers are sent to Thailand just in time for the wealthy students.to take their test.

Now that is quite a lot of details (of course many have been left out), but you'll have to see the movie (available on Netflix) to find out how it ends.  You are highly unlikely to guess much of the ending, but you will enjoy how they execute the overall presentation.

There are lots of heist types of movies and some even have some moral theme, but for me this one really stood out.  I will mention some names with the expectation that they will be involved with worthy movies in the not too distant future.  Most of them are real tongue twisters

Nattawut Poonpiriya, director and one of four writers had done a few previous films with some of the same crew.

Cinematography by Phaklao Jiraungkoonkun was another strength of the movie.  It was filmed in both Bangkok and Sydney.  Music was effectively used to make you feel the tension by Vichiya Vatanasapt.  Editing  (important in the simultaneous action in Thailand and Australia was handled capably by Chonlaset Upanigkit.

At IMDB they showed a pop music video which I liked enough to buy the audio, but didn't appear in the Netflix version.

The star of the show was Chutimon Chuenscharooenskying who played Lynn displaying a range of emotions.  She was a model and only recently got into acting.  Because they wanted to project her as a genius the script made her left handed, but in reality Chutimon was right handed and had to adjust  She won best actress award with the Thailand National Film Association.  At the New York Asian Film Festival she was awarded Screen International Rising Star. 

The other genius, Bank was played by Chanon Santinatumkul.  He had a few more films under his belt and won the Thailand National Film Association best actor award.  Viewers could feel a romance coming on, but that was not the director's aim.  The two developed a chemistry that spurred viewer's hopes.

One actor who appeared in the Australian section (actually the one in hot pursuit of Lynn) was Ego Mikitas.  An English speaking actor who has appeared in other Thai movies as well as one Japanese plus "O/A" on Netflix.  He also has performed stunts

All the actors left a feeling of reality, but I would like to give some attention to Thaneth Warakulnukroh who played the father of Lynn.  He stuck with her although you could feel his pain.  He was the lead character in "Pop Aye" which was shown at the Hamilton Film Festival.  In it he played a man who traveled over Thailand with an elephant.

Netflix seems to be opening up internationally and this is a good example of something worth exploring.

7 Anos

7 Anos is Spanish for 7 years.  Why would you want to spend 7 years in prison?  That is what this movie seen on Netflix, focuses on.  Netflix which has been in operation in Spain for a little over a year agreed to help produce and distribute this Spanish film.

It is a very interesting exercise in mediation.  Mediation only happens when there is a conflict and the participants seek an outsider to help resolve the issues.  Each conflict is unique, but they share some commonalities.

The conflict is established fairly quickly.  A firm with four founding partners is being investigated and they have reason to believe that within a few days they will be charged and since they are each guilty they all could spend 7 years in prison.  They learn that it is possible for one of them to take a fall so that the business could carry on.  They cannot agree which one of them it should be and invite a mediator to help.

At first the mediator is presented with a contract for a period of years and he sees that the amount is far above his normal pay.  They have no long term problems for him, but next promise if he can mediate successfully their urgent problem he will get the job.

The mediator explains 3 rules:  everyone must be willing and if not can walk out at any time; they must listen to each other; and the mediator is not to take sides.

The mediator after hearing a brief account of their problem started by explaining a case.  Basically two men wanted a particular orange.  The challenge was how could they please both men.  The answer was to find out why each man wanted the orange.  In the example it was decided one man wanted the skin for a cake and the other wanted  the pulp for juice.  The point was that everyone is in a different situation and they should try to find the differences to decide.

The rationalization for the crime was they were working something close to 100 hours a week and the accountant realized she was being taxed at 56%.  And they further reasoned that the government wasted their money.

What follows is that grudges are brought out between the four.  They all recognize that each is important to the company.  One invented the product.  Another acts as managing director.  The third is a salesman who brings clients to them.  The fourth, a woman handles their money and is the one who initiated a tax evasion process that they all adopted and is the reason for the investigation.  The viewer is never told anything about the product.

They discussed who would suffer the least.  One of the men pointed out that it is common for white collar workers to get raped by hardened criminals.  The one woman pointed out there was a limited number of female prisons in Spain all of them too far for her relatives to visit and that women are easily raped by the prison staff.  Some of them tried to claim they had more family responsibilities.

They discussed who was most needed at the company and for their families.  Some personal details came out including who was slacking off, an affair and another and an abortion.  At one time one partner slugs another and draws blood upon which the mediator gets up to leave.  The man who threw the punch apologized and promised it wouldn't happen again.  The mediator was only persuaded to return after all four asked him to.  At one point one of the partners recalled when all four were in Las Vegas for a critical presentation and after a problem they all contributed to the success that got them launched.

The resolution had many ups and downs and finally reached a conclusion at which time there was a twist.  I won't spoil it as for me what made the movie so enjoyable was the process.  The acting, writing and direction was excellent so you could feel the tension in the room.  All the action took place in one moderate sized room with a sink and terrace.

Spain is supposed to be a strong anti-smoking nation and a few times it was pointed out all smoking had to be done on the terrace.  Later one of the partners broke that rule and ironically used the cigarette package warning to make the point that he wished there were more warnings.

The director Roger Gual had won a Goya award (like a Spanish Oscar).  Married to Marta Torné who provided a telephone voice near the end.  Roger also contributed to the writing along with Julia Fontana (the main writer), Jose Cabreza and producer Christian Conti.  Conti also produced a Peruvian/Columbian movie, "Undertow," a most unusual film I enjoyed a few years back.

Federico Justid, from Argentina wrote the music for this movie and for the Academy award winner "The Secret in their Eyes."

The viewer sees only five actors and they each play off one another very well.  Alex Brendemuhl had played Josef Mengele in the Argentine movie, "The German Doctor."  He also played with Ricardo Darin in "Truman" that I hope to see.  He has also appeared in German movies.  Juan Pablo Raba originally born in Colombia, but raised in Spain got started in Colombian television.  He can be seen in "The 33" and "Narcos.".  Manuel Morón who played the mediator was also in the prison drama, "Cell 211," and "Dark Blue Almost Black."  Juana Acosta is also from Colombia appeared in "The Liberator," one of my favourites from last year and has also been in at least one French movie.  Paco Leon had been a popular Spanish television star and has directed films and television series.

The Spanish speaking film industry is rich and diverse.  One of my most popular film blogs covers the topic in more detail including some more details of referred movies.  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/07/hispanic-cinema-spans-globe.html Hopefully Netflix will make more of them available in Canada and the United States.

Note:  The bolded movie titles are ones that I actually saw.

"HOPE," A GUT WRENCHING FILM FROM KOREA

The sort of tragedy or test depicted in "Hope" is the sort we read about and forget so we can move on.  Unless of course it hits closer to home. and we have to make adjustments that seem impossible.  The English title "Hope" refers to the name of the young protagonist and not the emotional state.  An alternative title is "Wish."

A young 8 year old girl, Hope is severely raped so that not only is she traumatized, but she is suffering from unimaginable injuries.  The movie begins with her as a young student with two busy, but caring parents.

On a rainy day, late for school she is stopped by a man who seems to sweet talk her.  We do not see the actual rape, but afterwards as she is carted on a stretcher to a hospital.  The injuries include facial cuts, but more critically her bowels need to be partially replaced.  She will be wearing a colostomy bag for the rest of her life and we are given discrete glimpses of it.  For awhile we see stitches on her face that only gradually fade away

The parents are very upset and demanding action against the perpetrator who is soon identified.  They and some of their friends are very stressed.  The mother was five months pregnant at the time and her husband only discovered it because she fainted at the hospital during all the turmoil.

A therapist in a wheelchair seems to be sympathetic, but the girl's mother emphatically rejects her.  Later there is a change of heart and we learn the therapist had been through a very similar story with her daughter raped while young and later committing suicide.  The therapist herself was so upset she tried to kill herself but instead lost her legs.  She recognizes a problem beyond Hope and treats the whole family.

Hope is embarrassed, but encouraged to go back to school.  One young boy started crying because he had not walked with her the day of her attack.  The father comforted him.  Hope is supported by her teachers and fellow students and seems to be making an adjustment to live normally.

Testifying scares her parents, but they are told if she doesn't, the accused might escape punishment or get a short sentence.  The father confronts the accused in prison and loses his composure  His daughter overhears him saying he would take care of the accused if the trial does not go right.  She does testify behind a partial screen.  The defendant still claims not to remember as he was too drunk (with Hope admitting he smelled of alcohol) and is sentenced to only 12 years.  The audience in the court is very offended realizing when Hope will barely be 20 when her rapist will be released.  The father actually tries to physically attack the accused in court, but his daughter stops him  by clinging to him while her mother collapses.

I have seen a few dozen Korean movies and have found many of them are very good and some even exceptional.  Many of them are very violent, but "Hope" is a little different.  The violence is hidden, and the core is a very compelling family drama.

The little girl, Lee Re is very good as Hope and Hae-suk Kim played her mother and had been in "The Thieves," (something like "Ocean 11, only more exciting).  The women who played the girl's fathers' s boss's wife, Mi-Ran Ra won awards as best supporting actress. A supporting actor, Song-ho Kim (who plays the father's boss and friend) appeared in one of the enjoyable ones I remember, "The Happy Life" where he was a drummer who with two other friends revived his high school band twenty years later.  "Hope" was directed by Joon-ik Lee who had done "The Happy Life" previously.

The music is in the background, but occasionally intriguing.  The composer, Jun-seok Bang has done a number of scores for movies I enjoyed including "The Thieves."  Part of the film was shot in Busan.

"Hope" is available on Netflix, and although it is one of those things you should do, it will be very difficult.  Most of you will appreciate that you are luckier than you imagined.  It does have a happy ending of sorts and we can all take some comfort.  A child rape has repercussions that effect many people for a long period of time.

My earlier experiences with Korean movies are mostly captured in http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2014/04/a-slice-of-korean-cinema.html I still find some new good ones and feel South Korea is a major film producer.

Movie Ratings....What's your take?

Movie Ratings.  I look at them, do you?  I have contributed to them, how about you?  In one sense the ratings are merely a popularity contest with only a slight connection to merit--even slimmer link to your personal preferences.

Movie ratings are a short cut to making decisions.  If you are just planning a weekend outing to visit a movie theatre and maybe eat out you might have ten choices to make or maybe just two after you eliminate all the "crazy" or inappropriate ones  There is a lot of hype to get your attention and maybe some comments from your friends.  A rating can make the choice a little easier.

How about confronted with a choice of DVDs at your library or convenience store?  There can be a very wide range of choices from old to almost current  and very diverse genres.  Maybe when you go home you check out a few ratings for your next trip.  Or maybe you use your smart phone on the spot.

Streaming services offer an even wider range of options.  I was impressed by Netflix who after evaluating my film choices would give me personalized ratings of other films based on those choices.  Still I would look for other ratings.

The ratings can easily be distorted and when you see films that are only .1 different you really are in danger of making a mistake against your own aesthetic preferences.

Have you noticed there are often very high ratings on just opened new movies, but that over time the ratings seem to come down?  More rarely you may see a movie move up in ratings.

Genres such as action films create expectations.  Viewers looking for blood, speed and explosive action can be very reactive to movies that don't rise above previous films.  Those looking for titillation can also be cruel to lesser or shorter displays of skin.  Romance can also cause disappointment if they don't work out to fantasized scripts.

The biggest gap seem to be between what might be called "art" films and those for the mainstream.  Supposedly art films are a little more difficult to understand and the popular movies go for the jugular straightaway.

Have you ever contributed to a rating?  I have and if I am being honest I am not totally honest.  One factor is called "anchoring" which just means you start with the established rate and either move it up or down depending on how much you agree with the crowd--but of course you are already influenced by the crowd.  Then there is the concept of fairness--do I think the crowd gave it an honest look and in some cases I attempt to correct their error possibly by over compensating.  Then I admit I like to promote what I like and discourage what I don't like.  I am not sure how objective I am as it all seems in comparison to what others have decided.

Some people have a vested interest in the ratings and not just those with a financial stake in a production.  Probably most obvious when a movie first comes out which is why ratings start high and then get lower as others view the film.  If you are an early adopter type (for movies at least) you have a vested egotistical interest in boosting your choice.  Many of us are fans or celebrity watchers--we boost our heroes (established in previous movies)---others of us like to think we are very discriminating and tough

Different systems;  4 star, 5 star, ten--increments.  When you look at Olympic judges where decimals can go out to 3 or more places.  It really comes down to a ranking system--is this one better then that one, then what about this one that sort of fits in between?   Rotten Tomatoes gathers as many official reviewers as possible and simply decides if a review is fresh or rotten, although it sometimes seems  arbitrary as many reviews contain both positive and negative points.

What can you do?  There are only so many leisure hours in a day and going beyond movies there is a lot of competition for your attention.  Of course we look for something we can trust so we tend to gravitate towards a reliable reviewer or system.  Something that reinforces our own bias and prejudice.  Occasionally we are disappointed, but on the whole this natural process works for most of us.

You can spend a lot of time evaluating movie choices.  Does the time add to your enjoyment?  Or does the time merely subtract the time watching?

When I went to high school (over forty five years ago when there was a grade 13) Shakespeare was always a part of the course.  The average high school student really is bored with the straight reading of Shakespeare and going into minute details seems like torture.  The words already strange sounding are made more mysterious with colloquial meanings.  At one point it annoyed me that the teacher could get so serious about such little details.  As I get older I appreciate many of those little details, because they add up to a different deeper impression when understood better.

Those who read my reviews and comments might be struck with my diversity, but really I avoid some categories altogether.  At the same time I fear being stuck in a rut.  There is a huge world out there with lots of beautiful and interesting things I am totally unaware of.  As you open up possibilities the choices can get more difficult.

Film festivals are my favorite place to start.  I trust the selection committees to make some good choices.  A really popular movie with strong financing doesn't need festivals as much as the more arty type of movies.  There is little danger of missing a popular movie, particularly in a genre you already favour, but without the big bucks small movies too often get overlooked.  Winning an award at a film festival gives some promotion and helps to attract money.  Most festivals now have audience awards that reflect consumer popularity.  The more awards the more publicity.  Independent movies, known as "Indies" are not financed by the big studios and find festivals critical to getting launched.

Reading reviews is also key, but not just one.  It is amazing going over the reviews at IMDB the contrast of opinions on the same movie.  In fact often my choice is not made with someone I find agreeable, but with someone not so agreeable--I choose to seek out what they reject.  Many people seem to favor movies with established stars or directors or writers.  Unfortunately I have discovered they all need the money and/or attention.  In Bollywood I am most impressed with Aamir Khan--he is in big demand, but is a very conscientious thinker, selecting one movie a year and going into a great deal of preparation.  Actors able to act in different languages also seem to have more freedom--Mads Mikklesen can be seen in Danish, English and French, usually at a high level.  At one time a movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock was pretty much a guarantee of a masterful suspense film.

In small markets there are few arty movies shown and they usually only last for a short run at best.  Maybe I am just too cheap, but most of my movie viewing is by DVD and increasingly with streaming and there you have a tremendous amount of choice, but you have to wait longer than movie goers for the new films.

Photos:  The three movie posters are from movies that had high ratings and lived up to the hype.  Partly because some individuals are indicators of potential quality.  They are selected for their power and they usually make good decisions.  Alfred Hitchcock, Mads Mikkelson and Aamir Khan.

Screen Bingeing

When I was growing up television was dominated by weekly shows.  We all looked forward to our favourite comedy, drama, variety (Ed Sullivan) and western shows.  Popular movies would be on tv a year or so after they had played in the theatre.  Late shows were older movies.  Drive-ins were common with my parents taking me and my siblings to them.  Although hour long dramas were common enough, they didn't have the status later claimed by made for tv movies.  You could say the goal of tv shows was to be continuous; to find the formula that stimulated habit forming viewing.

It all boils down to the fact that we humans love stories.  Dramatic tension, humorous relief.  Sex, violence, mystery, romance.  Living vicariously.

My favourite form was the mini series, often based on a lengthy book.   "Roots" was a weekly show that got the attention of millions of North Americans painting a picture of black heritage that was largely unknown. I was also  a fan of James A Michener having read most of his books and watched  many of the adaptations of his lengthy multi generational stories.

 "Rich Man, Poor Man" was another I remember with pleasure.  There is always a trade off between doing something in depth or getting to the point quickly.  My job made it difficult to watch prime time tv, but as the mini series had a limited run I tried to make an exception.

I like the BBC approach.  Choosing a book or series of books and instead of rushing production they opted for fewer shows with more emphasis on quality.  One example for me was "The Jewell in the Crown."  The "Wallander" series has only been three shows per year, but all excellent.  Now many of these shows are available in DVD format and/or streaming.

At one point copying tv shows became a solution.  I remember reading a bit about the legal battles as copyright holders were concerned it would cheapen their products and allow viewers to bypass commercials.  The first rationale to justify it was that it allowed people with inconvenient schedules to see movies and tv shows at a more convenient time and termed this practice time shifting.   But many people did in fact  build a  library of films for those times when the options were relatively boring and loaned them out to friends. In fact often they would watch one show while taping another.

As you get older you get used to some things, but the younger generation is constantly learning new technology that adds to enjoyment.  Our two kids gave us a big flat screen tv and a Netflix subscription.   Many, maybe too many, hours of enjoyment have resulted.  I realize that electronic entertainment is more portable than ever.

Netflix made it possible to watch a whole series in quick succession.  Streaming is still a new concept for me, but the technology is having an effect on millions of us.  Missing an episode because of work or family obligations was occasionally annoying and waiting for the next episode frustrating for many.  Binging was now possible and desirable because many of your friends and acquaintances had already seen the series and maybe there was still more episodes to watch.   Many were movies and tv series that had already appeared in America or Europe and some were created for the network.

Breaking Bad" was the first series for us and we had to catch up to a lot of friends and co-workers.  We were hooked.  I could not imagine being caught up in the life of drug dealers in a mid sized  New Mexico town and all the dramatic twists and turns, but it held a grip on us.

Soon after that I heard about "Suits" and before long we were following the exploits of a fraudulent young lawyer and those surrounding him.  Other series that were usually recommended included
"The Killing" set in perpetually rainy Seattle;  "Homeland" about a returning prisoner of war who had been converted to extremist Islam.   "The Good Wife" about the wife of a politician disgraced with a sex scandal.  "House of Cards" got as much attention as "Breaking Bad" and painted a picture of contemporary corruption at the White House level  "The Bridge," set between Malmo, Sweden and Copenhagen, Denmark was the first sub-titled series and I learned that the two lead characters, one Swede and one Dane only spoke their native language to each other and were well understood.  Three with a British tinge got our attention  "Wallander," "Scott and Bailey,"and  "Last Tango in Halifax"

The streaming service prepped us for more binge watching using DVDs.  Our daughter loaned us a DVD set of "Orphan Black" which was way-out in left field for us, but we soon got hooked and will try to catch the new season on tv.  Borrowing from the library meant even more binging; a whole season compressed into one week.  We saw a season or two of "Downton Abbey" before doing the more casual pace of the tv program.  We got in the habit of watching an episode starting with dinner which varied a little in time and often watched an extra one.

Just as television and DVD's have proved to be markets for movies, the streaming networks are markets for television and movies.  We are swimming in streams of media choices.  Recently I wanted to watch "Book of Negroes" based on a book by Lawrence Hill.  I had actually had a chat with the author who admitted that he was working on the tv script to become a mini series.  I had loved the book (prompted by Canada Reads) years ago, but work and other conflicts meant I could only see parts of it--hopefully it will either be streamed or come out in a DVD format so I can watch it all in sequence.

What is the right length for a story?  It can get boring seeing the same characters with similar plots so variety is a factor. You would like to think you are selective, but part of the process is listening to what your friends and co-workers liked and reading or listening to trusted reviewers.   And let's face it we can all become addicted to the idea of finding an engrossing series.  What would you suggest should be binged on?