Here are a few recent favorite things in the nonfiction sphere:
A TV Show That Is Blowing My Mind: Neighbors
This HBO series feels entirely fresh and almost dangerous. Each episode features two sets of feuding neighbors. They’re fighting over the kind of stuff neighbors fight over: fences, pets, property lines. But Neighbors leans very hard into the most absurd, most heightened, most batshit neighbor feuds imaginable, and they try to engineer some kind of resolution (I won’t spoil how that tends to go). It’s mostly funny, but also seriously dark and frightening. This being America, guns eventually show up in a big way (in Episode 3, the episode where I truly lost my mind). It took me a minute to click into its frenetic pacing, but once I got the feel for what this show is all about, I became completely obsessed. I am particularly interested in nonfiction forms that feature people and stories we might expect to see in reality TV (in one episode, the warring neighbors also go on Judge Judy) but then do something different with them. I am very curious and excited to watch the final two episodes!
A Funny Podcast That Made Me Think: Shell Game, Season 2
tries to build a million dollar startup with only AI agents as employees. This basic concept is pushed to its breaking point (truly) in this witty and twisty tale. Every episode went places I never, ever, ever expected. There’s a plotline featuring a (human) intern that made me stand up and cheer. The AI employees become obsessed with really weird stuff like endlessly discussing their plans to go hiking (??) while Evan tries to get them to focus on work. There’s a really funny office party scene. Ratliff is a great thinker and fantastic storyteller — I’ve long been a fan of his stuff — and this series feels both light on its feet and surprisingly sophisticated in terms of its vision of the future of work. I could not stop listening!
A Movie That Feels Like a Warm Hug: Folktales
Okay, maybe after you take in the nihilism of Neighbors, you will need something nice as a palate cleanser! I adore this heartfelt and uplifting film about a “folk school” in Norway, where modern kids go to learn ancient traditions like dog sledding, building a fire and mythological stories. It made me want to howl at the moon. It also made me think about how modernity is making us sick. The kids are sweet, the dogs are cute, the questions are deep, and the overall effect is profound. This is the latest feature by Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing, a powerhouse directing duo who have been making incredible documentaries together for 20 years. I saw it big and loud in a packed theater last fall, and I just watched it again with captions on and those terrible headphones on a Delta flight. It totally held up, even in this substandard conditions. (Also: who else looks forward to long flights so they can watch lots of movies?)
A Book That Shocked Me: Five Bullets
Written by Elliot Williams in a highly accessible and engaging style that nonetheless does not skimp on the complexities of the law, this book recounts the horrifying story of Bernie Goetz, the “Subway Vigilante” who in 1984 shot and seriously injured four teenagers and became a symbol for, variously, righteous rage in the face of crime, white supremacy, and gun rights. This is a story I thought I knew pretty well, but of course a book-length treatment was chock-full of stuff I definitely did not know. Williams, a legal analyst for CNN, did an incredible job tracking down and speaking to as many of the principles in the story as possible, including a completely unrepentant Goetz, which makes for some of the most shocking parts of the book. Rudy Giuliani, Al Sharpton, Curtis Sliwa, and the NRA also make notable appearances.
An Article That Reads Like a Perfect Short Story: “The I.R.S.’s Money Pit”
This 700 word piece cast a curious spell over me. I have thought about it often since I read it in the January 19 issue of The New Yorker. I almost feel guilty recommending something so incredibly brief and unimportant in a world of incredible, important longform journalism, but when I reflect on my favorite recent magazine articles, I decided to be honest and share this is my favorite. I won’t say much about its premise, but just notice how it builds itself so beautifully from word to word. We love brevity! We love precision!
Comings, Goings & News
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I am writing from another airplane. I am headed to Salt Lake City to do a screening and Q&A tonight at the Utah Film Center. Doug Fabrizio will host the Q&A. This is my 2nd or 3rd (or maybe even 4th???) time I’ve had the pleasure of being interviewed by Doug Fabrizio for RadioWest. I’ve been interviewed by some incredible people over the years!
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I was only at True/False briefly, but saw and really enjoyed School for Defectors and The Oldest Person in the World. Definitely keep an eye out for these films.
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This weekend I’ll be briefly at SXSW for the world premiere of Manhood!!