Laura Dern Week: "Enlightened" (2011-2013)

Manuel here capping off Laura Dern Week on her 50th birthday.

Enlightened’s Amy Jellicoe is one of the most indelible television characters of the 21st century. And while that sounds like hyperbole, it may very well be an understatement. Pitched as a show “about a woman on the verge of a nervous breakthrough” (gotta love that wordplay) Mike White’s two-season wonder of a show was a quiet meditation on low-key Cali self-empowerment in the age of bitter cynicism. The HBO production was also a great performance showcase for co-creator Laura Dern who rightly won a Golden Globe for her portrayal of Amy, a woman whom we first meet while having a full-on breakdown at work. And it’s a thing of beauty...

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Fisher & Reynolds HBO Doc Arrives This Week!

Chris here, still mourning the loss of our beloved Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds. In the midst of all the sad news of their passing was the reminder of their upcoming HBO documentary Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds, which had kicked around the 2016 festival circuit. Well, HBO isn't waiting until the originally scheduled March debut date to let us say our final goodbyes to the two legends! The doc will now debut this Saturday, January 7 at 8PM.

The film will give us an up-close look at mother and daughter and likely make us feel every last emotion we have. Sadness aside, what a rare treat to celebrate both stars and their lasting bond.

"Girls" Coming to An End

Chris here, with the beginning of the end for one of our HBO favorites. Lost in the shuffle of the latest in Lena Dunham's foot-in-mouth syndrome (something about abortion, I skipped the clickbait), is that the final season of Girls is upon us. You will remember that the previous fifth season was the show's very best, a peak for a show that has only consistently improved. How will the show top those creative (and Emmy-ignored) heights?

When we left off, Hannah and Jessa have yet to make amends over Adam, Shoshana was finally getting her career in order with Ray's coffee shop, and Marnie's tour was looking shaky. Now we have a season trailer to hint at how things might shake out! Girls' final season premieres on February 12, one week ahead of actress extravaganza Big Little Lies - Sundays are all about the ladies on HBO.

Which Girl do you think will get it together in season six?

Doc Corner: Slenderman, David Lynch and More at Doc NYC

By Glenn Dunks

Doc NYC begins this week in (where else?) New York City. This year's festival, running from November 10th to November 17th, features 110 feature titles (now on sale), 44% of which are from women directors proving that #52FilmsByWomen is perfectly achievable if you're a fan of non-fiction.

After the jump notes on four new titles including a horror movie ready documentary and a look at David Lynch's creativity offscreen...

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A Conversation About "Westworld" - Part 2

A conversation between Lynn Lee and Kieran Scarlett. At the end of Part 1 of the discussion, Lynn left us to wonder just how long "Westworld" can keep this story going. We pick up where we left off.

Warning: Spoilers Ahead

Kieran:  That’s an excellent point about Marsden and Wood’s performances that I hadn’t considered. I did think Wood was much more compelling in the second episode than she was in the pilot. I found myself adjusting to the tonal rhythms of her performance, which are quite specific. I appreciate that there isn’t a rigid uniformity to how the actors portray AIs. Each has their own texture and we’re not just watching actors play mindless automatons, which would have been so boring. That we get insight into their creators and programmers based on how each AI behaves is also an intriguing facet to the performances that I suspect will be explored more fully as the series progresses.

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