A Note on TV
Forever
Marrying your life partner is one thing, but what about if it meant spent post-death eternity together? This is the question at the heart of Forever, where husband and wife June (Maya Rudolph) and Oscar (Fred Armisen) both find themselves united in a pst-death life. XX is happy to carry on as they did in life, living a small, repetitive but comfortable life together. June, who’d felt the stirrings of entrapment in their lived life, and now finds herself in a kind of middle class purgatory isn’t so sure she wants to settle down again, in death, forever. This small story takes on some of the biggest things in life with a wry humour and a lot of heart.
Forever, Amazon Prime
Das Boot
In the Second World War German U-boats hunted British ships in the Atlantic and it wasn’t until the Brits had cracked the Enigma that they had a desperately needed advantage over the enemy. This TV series expands on the original German film Das Boot (based on the novel of the same name by Lothar-Günther Buchheim), which was a claustrophobic submarine drama anti-war film. It’s 1942 after the Enigma has been cracked and the action starts at La Rochelle in France and revisits the story with the U-boat operation and builds out the stories of the marine’s along with the German military officials and the local Resistance efforts.
Das Boot, series 1 and 2, available on SBS On Demand, Apple TV, Google Play
A Note on Borgen
Have you watched Borgen? It’s on the Broad’s list, but remains, as yet, unwatched – there are only so many hours, afterall. If you’re a fan, then this note is for you. The Danish political drama is back for a fourth season thanks to Netflix, following the news the streaming platform nabbed the series for its back catalogue and has reunited the cast and crew to make this new one.
A Note on Books
A Room Made of Leaves, Kate Grenville
Acclaimed Australian author Kate Grennville returns to fiction with the story of Elizabeth Macarthur, wife of the wool baron John Macarthur, and her secret memoir that takes the reader behind the veil of polite colonial society.
Utopia Avenue, David Mitchell
The author of Cloud Atlas returns with his latest book about a British psych rock band, Utopia Avenue, and their short but bright journey from London to the US as the Summer of Love comes to a close and something darker and destructive emerges.
A Note on the True Crime Podcast
S-Town. Serial. Criminal The true crime podcast has been a podcast and popular culture phenomenon, with the gritty, gruesome real life stories. In a sign it’s reached its zenith with A Very Fatal Murder, a satirical true crime podcast from the masters of satirical takes, The Onion. Onion Public Radio (OPR) correspondent David Pascall leaves New York City for the sleepy town of Bluff Springs, Nebraska to investigate the mysterious death of a 17-year-old girl, Hayley Price. You may never be able to listen to a true crime podcast the same way again.
A Note on The Booksellers
Lovers of the written word, the feel of a real book and the treasure of the printed form, may love this new documentary The Booksellers, which lifts the cover on the world of rare book dealers and collectors.
A Note on the Miles Franklin Award
The shortlist for the Miles Franklin awards was announced last month and the winner will be announced next Thursday. If you want to see who made the short list and find some inspiration for a new novel, the six finalists include The White Girl by Tony Birch, The Yield by Tara June Winch and Exploded View by Carrie Tiffany.
A Note on I May Destroy You
Michaela Coel, creator and writer of the new BBC-HBO series, I May Destroy You, which is the fictionalised story of her sexual assault after a night out when her drink was spiked. Her first series Chewing Gum was an award-winning comedy about a girl’s desperate attempt to lose her virginity. The creative talent, who hails from London, created a series around the event and describes the need for introspection and embracing both the joy and pain in life in this length Vulture profile.
