The Learning Curve of 2021

I went for an early morning walk today. I saw a lot more people running, walking, doing yoga, or tai-chi than I would on a typical day. I chalked it up to New Year's Resolutions and probable new personal commitments to exercise. I wonder just how many of those intrepid runners will still be at it come February? Because that's the thing about resolutions. They are usually doomed to fail unless one has a constitution of steel and a mind ready to bring on change. Most of us simply don't have either.

It is why I rarely start fresh on January 1st. Other than Betty White no longer walking this planet, what has really changed since yesterday? Change can only happen with true fidelity to the cause and real change comes from growth, experience, and education. I am a big believer in the power of knowledge and learning. And so it was, that I asked some friends to share with me one thing that they had learned throughout 2021. One thing. It could be a thing that led to something positive in their lives or it could be a realization that something toxic needed excising. One thing learned. It seems so simple when the question is asked but for some, it required a bit of soul-searching. I was impressed by the answers and the generosity with which they were shared. 

Some took the opportunity to have tangible and hands-on learning experiences.

"I have started to learn to paint in acrylics. A new hobby that can be done at home. I took a TDSB adult education course online to get started--an opportunity not usually available."~Janice S.

"I learned to use Squarespace to set up my new website. Definitely a learning curve."~Sandee S.

"After years of painting in acrylic, I am learning to paint in oil."~Karen P.

"I learned that I love plants, that 10K+ steps per day are great for the soul, and that a little TV is relaxing.~Kim A 

"I've learned how to use an industrial leather sewing machine. (I help my wife realize her creations.) Working on learning leather tooling and carving."~Scott M.

Last year in this space, I remarked how important new hobbies and ventures had become to me during the early days of the pandemic and that continued into 2021. Baking, cooking, and online classes have continued to stimulate my mind and feed both body and spirit. I am in awe of people with artistic abilities and can't wait to see the fruits of their labours. 

But...there was more. Friends who continued their educations in far more formal settings.

"I learned that you can go back to school after 50 and earn a new diploma."~Zoe S.

"I've learned that I can still rock the cap and gown."~Larry T.

"I've learned/got better at controlling my patients' diabetes with newer medications."~Ellen G.

I love my friends who understand and have committed to lifelong learning. We are better humans when we realize that we don't know everything and then open ourselves up to expanding the reservoirs of knowledge. 

There were happy posts that shared milestones...

"I learned, not surprisingly, that I love being a grandparent."~Kathy S.

And the painfully honest and understandably angry and fed-up posts...

"I never want to experience another pandemic."~Francine

I think that she speaks for 7+ billion of us. 

And then some dug deep within themselves and had no difficulty sharing self-actualizations and realizations. I appreciated how profoundly personal these were and was honoured that they felt comfortable enough to make them public. I think that I will remove names at this point because they aren't friends of the entire intertoobs. If you are my Facebook friend, you can read them for yourself.

"I learned that I cannot control life. I'm not even talking about my life, bigger than that. I am truly just a player in this thing, so I need to focus on enjoying and surviving, not on anticipating or predicting. That's just so big for my mental health journey."

"I learned a great many things, but most of all who really matters."

"Stress is not something someone hands you on a platter, you "serve" yourself. So, choose your stresses wisely!"

"I learned that I am stronger (emotionally and physically) than I thought I was."

"I learned that although I love my job/profession, I cannot work 7 more years until retirement. Life is short, so I am working on retiring in 3 years." (This came from a healthcare professional.)

"I am learning to always be true to myself. Life is too short to settle and/or to allow anyone to make me feel any less than what I am."

"I learned that I LOVE being a homebody. Shocked the hell out of me."

"I learned אם אין אני לי מי לי This is a quote from Rabbi Hillel in Pirkei Avot which translates to "If I am not for myself, who will be for me." (This is Dawn speaking now. The rest of the quote is instructive too as it reads, "And when I am for myself alone, what am I? And if not now, then when?")

"Remember to tell people how much they mean to you because you might not get a second chance."

During a time of so much pain and suffering, people found ways of coping, learning personal truths, and coming out stronger. It hasn't been that way for everybody and so many are still struggling but I am giving standing ovations to those who are living authentically.

It wouldn't be fair to ask you all to share and for me to merely act as observer and stenographer. Here are a few things that I learned this year. Some are difficult to hear and the Canadian in me wants to apologize for them but...well...here goes.

I learned that in the name of actively listening to every voice we tend to give credence to stupid and dangerous ideas.

I learned that I only have so much bandwidth.

I learned that my exhaustion sometimes explodes at inopportune times and at the wrong people.

I learned that giving in to that exhaustion isn't selfish.

I learned that what is "normal" to me might not be "normal" to you.

I learned that as a society we have elected the dumbest motherfuckers on the planet to lead us. This is irrespective of party or political ideology. 

I learned that a long walk with a good book in my ear can be soothing.

I learned that watching the world through the eyes of children can be soul-cleansing, especially when those children are grandchildren.

I learned that while I can't control people or their stupid behaviour, I don't have to let them into my life. 

And here's the toughest of all...

I learned that cutting off toxic people, even if they are family or formally close friends, is a mental health imperative. 

I want to leave 2021 on a positive note and enter 2022 with hope and so, I will give you a few more from dear friends who are obviously far better people than am I.

"Be kind every day."~Naomi C.

"Being an empty-nester isn't as bad as I thought it would be"~Kim A

And...this...my favourite of all...was attached to Scott's comment above.

"I learned that I love my wife of 30 years more than I thought possible."

Me too, The Husband. More than I ever thought possible.

Onward and upward 2022. 

Let's go.

A Birthday Story

Today is my birthday!

This story has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that today is my birthday but it is such an oddity during these difficult and bizarre times, that I am accepting it as a gift. Let's call it a birthday phenomenon. 

This morning, The Husband and I were attempting to install some extra shelving in our kitchen. (Yes, I realize that birthday celebrations in the time of Omicron have taken on a whole new level of excitement.) His phone rang during this wild time and since he was busy and didn't recognize the number, he chose to let the call go straight to voicemail. When he finally did retrieve the message, he discovered that it was from somebody who works at Benjamin's Funeral Home. Now before I continue, for those of you who are not from Toronto, Benjamin's is one of two Jewish funeral homes in the city. The woman was quick to point out that this was not a call of condolence or sadness but that she did hope that The Husband would return her call at his earliest convenience, which he did.

It seems that Benjamin's received an odd call this morning that had to do with The Husband's dad (z"l). He passed away almost seven years ago, so even the people at Benjamin's were a bit surprised by the request. The caller identified himself as a former client of my late father-in-law's and was anxious to get in touch with a member of his family. He knew that he had died but hadn't found out at the time as they had lost touch. When he finally did learn of his death, he tried to call his former legal office which had, of course, been closed and disbanded. He was about to give up when a Jewish friend suggested that he contact Benjamin's or Steeles Memorial and see if they could help. Benjamin's wasn't about to give out any contact information to a random caller but they did offer to act as a go-between and thus they made the call this morning to The Husband. They had next to no information about the caller other than his name and phone number and left it up to The Husband if he wanted to make the connection.

I tend to be suspicious and overly cautious these days. (Damn it, I really wish I wasn't) I made The Husband block his number before he called Surinder so that the Caller ID couldn't track it. Unfortunately, this is the world we live in right now. After a few formalities, both The Husband and Surinder were eager to verify the other's identity. There was no question that both were who they said they were and knew things that only someone acquainted with my father-in-law (z"l) could have known. It turns out that Surinder was indeed a former legal client of The Husband's dad and had been for over thirty years. He was anxious to touch base with The Husband's mom and was saddened to learn that she died last year. He went on and on for about ten minutes about what a wonderfully gracious man Dad was and how he took such great care of him both professionally and personally. He regaled The Husband with stories about how his dad was forever talking about his family and how proud he was of his children. As I could only hear one side of the conversation, I was struck by how choked up The Husband got and how moved he was by the effort to reach out.

But wait...there's more!

Surinder very much wanted to make a donation of $1000.00 to a charity of The Husband's choice in memory of his dad and wanted to know if The Husband had any suggestions. He was crying a bit at this point and suggested The PSP Society of Canada which is the truly horrible disease that claimed the lives of both his dad and his paternal aunt. (I am providing a hyperlink to their website in case somebody reading this might want to send a donation.) He asked The Husband if he would text him the information and he would take care of it today. 

These past two years have been filled with constant sadness and pain. We all have tended to wallow in the morass and I think it is possible that the goodness that is out there has been somewhat blurred. Surinder could have very easily made that donation in memory of my father-in-law without reaching out. He could have salved his own conscience easily with a credit card but he made the effort today, seven years later, to let my husband know something special about his dad. I don't think I could have asked for a better birthday present.

One Beautiful Second

Editor's Note: For the fifth consecutive year, Dawn and The Husband will be spending a few nights attending the Toronto International Film Festival, known to the locals as TIFF. While they can now proudly call themselves seasoned veterans at this madness, CoVid-19 has altered how films will be screened this year. While TIFF is offering in-person and drive-in experiences all over the downtown core, neither one of them is yet ready to sit in a theatre with other potential Delta vectors, even though every patron is masked and vaxxed. The roster, while not nearly as robust as in previous years, still offers some wonderful choices so they have increased their number of films to view to six.  Because they are old and, as previously stated congregating in a movie theatre is anathema in this still raging pandemic time, all films will be screened from the comfort of their living room complete with popcorn, a few homemade treats, and lights appropriately dimmed. The only phone calls that will be answered during the viewing of these world premieres are from Molly or Talia because grandchildren rule. TIFF still serves as a tremendous distraction from the world's ills and allows for some much-needed escapism during these tumultuous times. The next several posts will focus exclusively on TIFF and will offer very quick bullet point reviews for the movies seen. You've all been warned.

As TIFF '21 draws to a close, I am once again reminded of how much I love this art form. There is a lot of garbage that has found its way to celluloid over the years, but that hasn't diminished how wonderful the movies truly are. Superheroes and comic books notwithstanding, there are so many stories worth telling and viewing that I am very grateful for one of the world's best film festivals that brings them all together for a fortnight. And in my hometown...bonus.

It is in this heartfelt vein that TIFF '21 chose for its closing gala, director Zhang Yimou's love letter to cinema, One Second. This breathtaking and visual masterpiece was scheduled to be released at the Berlin festival in 2019 but it was pulled because of what was described as "technical issues." The film world is fairly certain that the Chinese government was none too happy with some of the portrayals of mid-1970's Maoist China and demanded cuts before the film could be screened. Two years later, we have the final product but I'm left wondering what ended up on the cutting room floor. All of that backroom drama was for naught because what remains is a visually stunning and heartwrenching depiction of a man who escapes a labour camp to see a film that has within it, a glimpse of his long-lost daughter. Along the way, we are treated to magnificent and striking desert landscapes and a cast of characters who tie themselves to his quest for their own personal reasons. There is a harshness to the setting to be sure but there is also a true adoration for the power that film has, both as entertainment and propaganda, and what can occur when movies are communally viewed. 

We absolutely loved this film and were so grateful to be among the first audiences in the world to view it. The first digital showing happened at the same time as the theatre screening. We saw seven movies this year at TIFF and this is the only one that I wish we had seen in person with other patrons. I missed the oohs, aahs, and knowing glances of fellow movie buffs.

Dawn and The Husband give One Second two huge YUPS. See this movie.

**And that's a wrap on TIFF '21. We hope that we can do it again next year in person.**

A Hot Mess From France and Love and Loss From Britain

Editor's Note: For the fifth consecutive year, Dawn and The Husband will be spending a few nights attending the Toronto International Film Festival, known to the locals as TIFF. While they can now proudly call themselves seasoned veterans at this madness, CoVid-19 has altered how films will be screened this year. While TIFF is offering in-person and drive-in experiences all over the downtown core, neither one of them is yet ready to sit in a theatre with other potential Delta vectors, even though every patron is masked and vaxxed. The roster, while not nearly as robust as in previous years, still offers some wonderful choices so they have increased their number of films to view to six.  Because they are old and, as previously stated congregating in a movie theatre is anathema in this still raging pandemic time, all films will be screened from the comfort of their living room complete with popcorn, a few homemade treats, and lights appropriately dimmed. The only phone calls that will be answered during the viewing of these world premieres are from Molly or Talia because grandchildren rule. TIFF still serves as a tremendous distraction from the world's ills and allows for some much-needed escapism during these tumultuous times. The next several posts will focus exclusively on TIFF and will offer very quick bullet point reviews for the movies seen. You've all been warned.

It was double feature day. We built in a hiatus for Yom Kippur and, as a result, had some trouble fitting in the movies we wanted to see. We have done doubleheaders before at TIFF. Usually, it means sprinting from one cinema to another and arriving breathless and sweaty for the second film. When one does TIFF digitally, a two-film day merely requires a ten-minute break to pee and gather snacks. In all honesty, we would have been happier with one movie because the first one was a hot mess.

We have entered into the world cinema phase of our TIFF '21 experience. We always like to choose films from the foreign language repertoire for several reasons. Filmmaking is a worldwide art form. In our experience, films that are made outside of the North American (read: American) lens are usually fresher, more original, and with stories that we have never before seen. They are more often than not independent and outside of the studio system. American filmmakers will often snatch up the best of these and remake them in watered-down English language copies. For my money, it is always important to check in on the world cinema selections at TIFF. That said, our first foray this season into this genre was a bomb. France is the story of a narcissistic, fame-loving television news reporter/anchor who cannot seem to ever get enough adoration from her fawning fans. She puts her work over family, is egged on by her social media-obsessed assistant, and is an empty vessel for anything other than her own narratives. She stage directs her reports, re-positions her interview subjects to manipulate the stories, and is more of a celebrity than a journalist. How many times can the audience watch her take selfies with fans? It grows mouldy very quickly. There is a real opportunity here for director/writer Bruno Dumont to create a real satire on the problems of modern television journalism but unfortunately, he veers off into so many tangents and subplots that the movie loses its centre. New characters pop up without explanation and crappy things happen for no reason. Bond girl Léa Seydoux is dour and miserable as the leading lady and she changes her clothes so often, it felt more like I was watching a fashion show than a film. (I counted at least 12 different coats. Who in the world has 12 different coats?) The movie is a morose morass that left us wondering why we wasted over two hours watching it. If we didn't have to read the subtitles, we both would have been sound asleep. 

Dawn and The Husband give France two hot and deep NOPES.

We fared far better with our second film of the day. I generally love a good British period piece and Mothering Sunday checks off all of the boxes. Featuring wonderful performances by promising young actors Odessa Young and Josh O'Connor (The Crown), Mothering Sunday is a steamy adaptation of Graham Swift's novella set in inter-war Britain. The film follows Jane, a young maid in service, through three generations as she navigates life, love, and loss all while developing her inner artist. This film is one of the most sensual and frankly hottest movies I've seen in a long time and yet, every scene was directed with sensitivity and purpose by Eva Husson. She literally strips her characters naked and it gives their conversations and movements a tinge of ache and realism. But above all, Mothering Sunday is about loss and how we cope with grief. In one extraordinary scene, Jane's boss, played masterfully by Olivia Colman, is recalling her own heartache at the loss of her son during the war. She comments on Jane's upbringing in an orphanage and tells her to be grateful for it. "You are totally bereaved from birth. You have nothing to lose and never shall,” she tells Jane during this poignant exchange. Of course, that is a simplistic view of one woman's anguish and the film's future tragedies prove that grief is never definable. While we see Jane mature as both a woman and an artist, we never really see her art but we know that it is superb. Mothering Sunday isn't a perfect movie but it is a really good one and I loved that such accomplished actors like Colman, Colin Firth, and Glenda Jackson took small supporting roles simply to be a part of it. I urge you to see this film. It is well worth your time.

Dawn and The Husband give Mothering Sunday two very enthusiastic YUPS. We both loved it. 

**Our last film is this evening. The final review will be published tomorrow. Thanks, TIFF.**

The Good House? Eh, Not So Good.

Editor's Note: For the fifth consecutive year, Dawn and The Husband will be spending a few nights attending the Toronto International Film Festival, known to the locals as TIFF. While they can now proudly call themselves seasoned veterans at this madness, CoVid-19 has altered how films will be screened this year. While TIFF is offering in-person and drive-in experiences all over the downtown core, neither one of them is yet ready to sit in a theatre with other potential Delta vectors, even though every patron is masked and vaxxed. The roster, while not nearly as robust as in previous years, still offers some wonderful choices so they have increased their number of films to view to six.  Because they are old and, as previously stated congregating in a movie theatre is anathema in this still raging pandemic time, all films will be screened from the comfort of their living room complete with popcorn, a few homemade treats, and lights appropriately dimmed. The only phone calls that will be answered during the viewing of these world premieres are from Molly or Talia because grandchildren rule. TIFF still serves as a tremendous distraction from the world's ills and allows for some much-needed escapism during these tumultuous times. The next several posts will focus exclusively on TIFF and will offer very quick bullet point reviews for the movies seen. You've all been warned.

It isn't unusual for TIFF to collide with the Yamim Noraim. They both happen at the same time of year, so overlap is often an inevitability. When we looked at the calendar and the schedule of movies, we knew that Wednesday and Thursday were going to be problematic movie-viewing days. You know, Yom Kippur and all. But, we also really wanted to unwind after the big Jew day with a film. We specifically looked for something that wouldn't overly tax our intellect and that appeared from its description, an easy watch. We thought we found it in The Good House.

Based on the 2013 novel by Ann Leary, The Good House stars a wonderfully acerbic Sigourney Weaver as Hildy, a functioning alcoholic real estate agent in small-town New England, who is trying to keep her life from spiralling wildly out of control. Directors Maya Forbes and Wallace Wolodarsky use the cinematic breaking of the fourth wall to allow Hildy to narrate her own story to the audience. At times, her lack of self-awareness is cloying and frustrating. But in the hands of a skillful actor like Weaver, it actually works well. The town is populated with an assortment of very one-dimensional characters that seem to have little to do other than act as a foil to Hildy's poorer instincts. Much of the stellar supporting cast is wasted as they weave in and out of Hildy's life and I was missing a deeper dive into how these people might enrich Hildy's life and story. 

The one exception is the always phenomenal and screen-eating Kevin Kline who plays Hildy's longtime neighbour and obvious wannabe paramour. Kline is outstanding as always but the story is so wildly broken that he can't save the script from its inconsistencies. Kline and Weaver have obvious chemistry. In their third onscreen pairing, they keep the film from descending into total chaos. Good acting can often save a mediocre film and in this case, it certainly does.

I wanted to love The Good House. I simply didn't.  I loved the idea of seeing an older woman run through the entire gamut of life's turmoils play out in a movie. Weaver's Hildy is stressed, messed, and dressed. She longs for sex and company and comfort. Older women in movies are often one-dimensional mothers and grandmothers. Hildy is both of those but so much more. Unfortunately, the film falls flat and never seems to understand how to bring the story full circle. 

Dawn and The Husband give The Good House two disappointed NOPES.

At least we didn't have to tax our brains too much after a day of Zoom davening.

The Eyes Have It

Editor's Note: For the fifth consecutive year, Dawn and The Husband will be spending a few nights attending the Toronto International Film Festival, known to the locals as TIFF. While they can now proudly call themselves seasoned veterans at this madness, CoVid-19 has altered how films will be screened this year. While TIFF is offering in-person and drive-in experiences all over the downtown core, neither one of them is yet ready to sit in a theatre with other potential Delta vectors, even though every patron is masked and vaxxed. The roster, while not nearly as robust as in previous years, still offers some wonderful choices so they have increased their number of films to view to six.  Because they are old and, as previously stated congregating in a movie theatre is anathema in this still raging pandemic time, all films will be screened from the comfort of their living room complete with popcorn, a few homemade treats, and lights appropriately dimmed. The only phone calls that will be answered during the viewing of these world premieres are from Molly or Talia because grandchildren rule. TIFF still serves as a tremendous distraction from the world's ills and allows for some much-needed escapism during these tumultuous times. The next several posts will focus exclusively on TIFF and will offer very quick bullet point reviews for the movies seen. You've all been warned.

If you would have asked me before this year's edition of TIFF if I would have even considered watching a movie about former 80's icon and fallen evangelist, Tammy Faye Bakker, I would have sent you packing to the deepest ends of purgatory. As someone with enough mileage on her to have lived through that bizarre period in history, I thought that I knew more than enough about Tammy and her grifter husband Jim to last me two lifetimes. As founders of the Praise the Lord (PTL) network, these two swindlers preached the gospel of prosperity and greed all whilst bilking their gullible followers out of hundreds of millions of dollars. As the Reagan Revolution brought together fiscal conservatives and the Christian right, the Bakkers were gleefully lining their own pockets while helping to pioneer the over-the-top televangelist style of entertainment. While Jerry Falwell Sr., Pat Robertson, and Jimmy Swaggart were all railing against gays, liberals, and feminists, the Bakkers were building theme parks and Tammy Faye was at the centre of it all. With her weird outfits, bizarre make-up, and over-the-top perkiness Tammy Faye Bakker was the butt of thousands of jokes and late-night monologues. I honestly thought that I knew her story.

I was wrong.

In 2000, a sympathetic documentary was made about Tammy Faye that pushed past all of the camp and trashy nonsense and revealed her to be a true believer in the teachings of Jesus who fell for a charlatan. The documentary is credited as source material for the new film The Eyes of Tammy Faye starring an unrecognizable Jessica Chastain. It was Tammy who talked about helping the poor and building houses for children with disabilities and for women with abusive spouses. While the Falwells of the universe were relishing in the "gay plague" of AIDS and pushing women into the background, Tammy Faye was inviting AIDS patients onto PTL to talk about their disease to try and help educate her viewers. It was Tammy who innately understood her God and the quest to make the world a better place all while her husband was swindling the flock. Tammy Faye certainly wasn't blameless. She was a narcissistic publicity hound who had problems with addiction to prescription drugs, but she was also far more interested in the religious part of her ministry than was her hypocrite of a husband.

We see the entire film through Tammy's eyes and Ms. Chastain expertly keeps the film from crossing over into the freakish. I honestly wanted to punch Andrew Garfield's pompous Jim in the face more than once as he used his false piety to build an empire. Keeping the focus strictly from Tammy's perspective gave the movie a sense of enduring pathos and the viewer really feels every emotion that she does when the house of cards crumbles. Ms. Chastain is a revelation behind pounds of make-up and latex and she managed to do the impossible for me, which was to make Tammy Faye Bakker a sympathetic character. This performance is a guaranteed Oscar nomination.

While The Eyes of Tammy Faye does feel a bit like Oscar bait, the pathos and care of Jessica Chastain elevate the film to another level. 

Dawn and The Husband give The Eyes of Tammy Faye two YUPS.

**Note. We are taking a few days off for Yom Kippur. See you back here on Friday.

It's Difficult to Be Human

Editor's Note: For the fifth consecutive year, Dawn and The Husband will be spending a few nights attending the Toronto International Film Festival, known to the locals as TIFF. While they can now proudly call themselves seasoned veterans at this madness, CoVid-19 has altered how films will be screened this year. While TIFF is offering in-person and drive-in experiences all over the downtown core, neither one of them is yet ready to sit in a theatre with other potential Delta vectors, even though every patron is masked and vaxxed. The roster, while not nearly as robust as in previous years, still offers some wonderful choices so they have increased their number of films to view to six.  Because they are old and, as previously stated congregating in a movie theatre is anathema in this still raging pandemic time, all films will be screened from the comfort of their living room complete with popcorn, a few homemade treats, and lights appropriately dimmed. The only phone calls that will be answered during the viewing of these world premieres are from Molly or Talia because grandchildren rule. TIFF still serves as a tremendous distraction from the world's ills and allows for some much-needed escapism during these tumultuous times. The next several posts will focus exclusively on TIFF and will offer very quick bullet point reviews for the movies seen. You've all been warned.

We found ourselves home on a dreary Sunday afternoon and decided to add a movie to our TIFF '21 repertoire. The beauty of this festival is that tickets remain on sale throughout the fortnight of screenings and single films can be scooped up on a whim. It is even easier with the digital additions, so yesterday we decided to watch one that I had previously wanted to purchase, The Humans.

Stephen Karam has taken his intimate and increasingly smothering 2014 Tony award-winning play and masterfully transformed it into something deliciously conceptual for the screen. It is a rare thing for a playwright to take on the role of screenwriter for film adaptations but it is even rarer still for a playwright to sit in the director's chair. Karam must have been a pure pain in the ass to the studios in his lobbying for the job. In the q and a after the screening, he talked about coming into the initial meetings armed with hundreds of photographs to outline and better conceptualize his vision. His foresight is a success as he transforms what was already a psychologically gut-punch of a family drama into something even more sinister and revelatory. His camera work that moves effortlessly from garbled cross-talking and narrow hallway shots to blackened closeups of the rotting walls of the stifling apartment, is a metaphor for the crumbling of the family we see before us. There is a sense of horror and dread that descends upon the audience as we can almost feel the pain that the characters are going through. A series of creaks, bangs, and blackouts coming from the ageing infrastructure only heightens our trepidation.

The cast is a stellar ensemble. Led by Tony winner Jane Houdyshell who reprises her award-winning role as the matriarch and the always undefinable Richard Jenkins as the anxiety-ridden father who is trying and failing miserably to hold his family together. The talent is unsurpassed. Beanie Feldstein is just a joy to watch practice her craft and a special shout-out has to be given to a wonderful Amy Schumer who absolutely shines in her first dramatic turn. Rounding out the cast are Steven Yeun and June Squibb. There are a lot of acting nominations in that sextet. A lesser group of actors could have made this piece feel stilted and junky but this group has obvious chemistry and it shows in the finished product. 

It takes a lot of guts to make a movie during a pandemic lockdown that is as claustrophobic as The Humans is and at times it is difficult to watch. There are definitely some slow parts and while I believe they are deliberate, this is not a movie for the casual movie-goer or the escapist. The Humans requires some deep thinking by the audience and that isn't always everybody's cup of Diet Coke. It is yet another film that required some deep marination after viewing and it took me some time to appreciate the majesty of the work. The Husband wasn't so sure and is still coming to terms with what he saw.

Dawn gives The Humans a YUP. The Husband isn't yet ready to decide but his ambivalence is more about the structure of the piece and not the acting or the subject matter. He is on the fence.