Media Captures - August 2022

DOCUMENTARIES

The Captain – 10

The sports documentaries just keep getting better and better. I can’t name anything new on TV right now that's better than this inspection of Derek Jeter’s career.  There’s no better fairy tale on Disney, no better sports doc on Netflix, no better biography on Hulu, and no better leadership lesson on you tube.

All Derek Jeter ever wanted to do was play shortstop for the New York Yankees, a dream I’m sure many a youngster has had about their favorite team.  Nowadays, the odds of staying with one team, even if you could make it to the majors is slim.  In my youth, when my dream was to play for the Pirates, there were fewer trades, less competition and almost no free agency.  I faced only that one little obstacle, lack of talent.  When Jeter miraculously falls in the draft to the Yankees, the ride begins. Not only did Derek’s dream come true, but his impact went way beyond just that.  With clutch performances within a new dynasty he went straight to the Hall of Fame.  You can’t make this up. 

But what this 7 part documentary on ESPN+ does best is serve as a master class on leadership.  Jeter, throughout his 19-year major league career, has to navigate the pressures of working for George Steinbrenner, in the media capital of the world.  He has to deal with teammates, competitors, and other leaders with massive egos.  Fortunately, the answer for every problem is the same – winning.  I learned early in my career (the one I actually had – not baseball) that the keys were preparation, focus, and intensity.  Jeter sits down and takes on every question head on.  He explains it all.  If you’ve every played a minute of a sport – you owe yourself to watch this.

Untold:  The Story of the Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist - 9

Like no one has ever fallen in love over the phone before.

Netflix’s Untold series, which is very good, takes up the story of Manti Te’o, the Notre Dame linebacker who was actually in the running for the Heisman.  Then, it was revealed that Te’o had never actually met his girlfriend and there was a good reason.  She didn’t really exist and so her reported death should have been easy to verify. 

Once this catfishing was revealed, I didn’t know what to think.  But apparently, and this is going to shock you, a lot of people did and were willing to express themselves.  Was this a hoax? Was he in on it? Ready, Set, Speculate.  

Well, the documentary leaves no doubt that a guy named Ronaiah Tuiasosopo had nothing better to do than really mess with someone in the public eye.  Te'o was from Hawaii and had unexpectantly chosen Notre Dame, a devil of an isolation.  Tuiasopos is the villain and he’s pretty easy to hate. Oh, and in the meantime, he has transitioned to a female named Naya (way easier to pronounce), so there’s an awful lot going on in his psyche.

"Transitioning” is a really hot topic these days, and both sides are vehement, and very sure of themselves.  Imagine that. I’ve always felt sorry for people that I could see were “gender-confused” as I put it.  And I’m not belittling that.  I can’t imagine what it’s like to get up and look in the mirror every morning and not understand who I am, and why I felt so wrong and why I’m so uncomfortable in my own skin.  It’s a feeling I wouldn’t want and wouldn’t understand.  All the discomfort I ever had to face was the visual – that if I looked more like Brad Pitt than Patton Oswalt with acne, I’d have had more fun.  The mirror can be tough.

Anyway, Manti comes off clean, and while he’s out of football for now, he’s a sympathetic figure, thanks to this excellent documentary.  He hung on with the Saints for a couple of seasons, and I don’t think we’ll see him again.  He got married in 2020 and hopefully the only catfish that comes his way has Mississippi on the box.

One Final note:  I don't like The Yankees or Notre Dame, just so you know.

Lucy and Desi – 9

Director Amy Poehler put together a wonderful documentary on these two early TV icons.  I think it’s a little bit better than the dramatization written and directed by Aaron Sorkin.  No fan of Lucille Ball should miss it.  We think success is easy and lucky.  Sometimes it's not and this is a great story of chemistry, then break-up. Excellent. 

STREAMING:

Surface – 6

Apple+ sucked me in with this high gloss, low energy, overly dramatic story that goes nowhere and takes its time getting there.  The pace is horrible, and I can’t believe I stuck with all 7 episodes.  When you’ve waited a week for the next episode, you feel obligated to watch.  Apple+ shares this approach with HBO and sometimes it works.  This time it was just another aggravation.

Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who appears destined for stardom, plays Sophie, a lady who may have jumped off a boat to commit suicide.  Or she may have been pushed.  Or she may have staged it.  There may have been a reason. 

I don’t care. By the end, I just wanted out.

The 355 – 7

While I was intrigued with the cast, the initial reviews were horrible and kept me from going to see this in the theaters.  I’m not going to say the reviews were wrong, but all action flicks considered, this ain’t a bad way to spend 2 hours. Jessica Chastain is spreading her wings.  I think that’s a good thing.

The Gray Man - 6 

I understand that Netflix wants to make a franchise out of this Jason Bourne type treatment.  Just like Bourne, they got the casting right when they pegged Ryan Gosling.   The other thing I understand is that it’s based on what many of my friends think is an excellent book series.

Unfortunately, the movie didn’t work for me, other than Ana Armas as The Gray Man’s friendly spy, coming on the heels of her like role in the latest Bond epic, and her next role as Marilyn Monroe.  She’s got all the required charisma.  Will she emerge from this 18 month stretch a star, or never be heard from again?  I think she’s a star.  Yep, that's me going out on a limb.

The problem with the movie is it’s another example of what I call Violence Porn.  Let’s see how many people we can kill in as many unique ways as we can think of.  They might as well put a counter in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen.  And some of them are pretty inventive, but geez, how about a little subtlety now and then. That “there will be none of that” is obvious 10 minutes in.  The Bourne movies were restrained at first.  Couldn’t we have at least kicked it off that way?  Wham Bam No Thank you ma'm.  Shoot ‘em up.  Better yet, send some of this frenetic energy over to Surface.
 

Inside Man:  Most Wanted – 7

What in the world was I doing watching this sequel that probably went straight to video?  Simple.  Rhee Seehorn, the breakout star of Better Call Saul.  She’s been a working actress on the Hollywood fringes for a long time, and I thought I’d go back and check out one of her few starring roles prior to BCS.  The verdict is in, and I would have never seen her breakout coming. 

The original Inside Man was a very heavy story of a bank robbery to get to a Nazi artifact in a safety deposit bank, and I remember it being overly long and complicated, starring Denzel Washington, Jodi Foster, and Clive Owen, and not making much of an impression as evidenced by the fact that I have no remembrance of what the artifact was. So, maybe I should've rewatched the original.  Or, I should have just started something else.  But, I was curious. Still a fan.