Picking out the right book is hard.
Pop Culture Ephemera
- Memoir of a Snail (2024) (Directed by Adam Elliot): “Life can only be understood backwards, but we have to live it forwards.” – Pinky. I rather liked this film. The stop-motion film from Australia is full of pathos and insight. It rides a razor-thin line between comedy and tragedy. Grace tells her life story to Sylvia, her pet snail. Since it’s all told as narration, the film doesn’t get bogged down in conversation (also cheaper to animate). It’s full of endearing weirdos like Pinky (her quirky, much older friend), her wheelchair-bound father, and her pyromaniac twin brother, Gilbert. There’s an emotional intelligence about this film that keeps it from feeling like too much. It’s about that shell that we find ourselves imprisoned in our lives, not knowing that there’s no lock to keep us in that cage. The messages aren’t too far removed from the Inside Out films from Pixar. Pinky has some of the best lines of the film, but it’s Grace’s love interest who puts broken bowls back together without hiding their cracks that sticks with me the most. Seek this out and keep moving forward.
- White Lotus – “The Meaning of Dreams” (2025) (S.3 E.3) (MAX): “This is what it looks like before a tsunami” – Lochlan Ratliff. The symbolism of the man facing the tsunami, “He didn’t even run. He just stood there,” is probably too on the nose for a Mike White-written series. There is the feeling of turning to face your fears in this episode. It might be releasing snakes (not my favorite scene!), putting your personal electronics in a bag, and the real horror of finding that your bestie voted for Trump. The third episode matches that of the other two seasons where the screws are turned a little tighter. The White Lotus isn’t always isolated, but there is always that moment where it feels like you can’t escape the grounds. The themes are starting to coalesce around peace and religion. I fear that next week aboard Greg/Gary’s yacht, we’ll see the temperature rise even further. The season is off to a good start.
- Chris Stapleton – “Friendship” (2017) (from From a Room: Vol. 2): “I’ll lean on you, you can lean on me / I’m never gonna let you fall.” Written by Lester Snell and Homer Banks in 1986 for J. Blackfoot. It sat mostly uncovered until Chris Stapleton found it to be a good match for his emotional country voice. I didn’t know this song until I heard it on the finale to Somebody, Somewhere (MAX). I recognized his voice immediately, and it’s one of those slow to mid-tempo songs that I prefer from him. It’s just a good song about being a friend. These used to be more popular in the ’70s, and I wish they would make a comeback.
- Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (2024) (Directed by Nick Park): “Give him the diamond, lad. I can live without inventing, but I can’t live without… me best pal!” – Wallace. From the very first moment, this felt like a warm cup Sleepy Choc. This is easily the best nostalgia of the past year. There is the “smart gnome” Norbot and there’s the return of Feathers from The Wrong Trousers (1993). The folks at Aardman Animation haven’t lost a beat over the years. There’s some clever parody that makes you want to stay close to the pause button to read posters, newspaper headlines, and book covers. It parodies familiar topics like Hitchcock and expands to tributes to James Bond, The African Queen (1951), and Cape Fear (1991). I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face at the return of my old friends (even though Wallace is now voiced capably by Ben Whitehead). It’s a quick 82 minutes without much waste. It’s definitely a feel-good film that we all need these days, lad.
- Flow (2024) (Directed by Gints Zilbalodis): The nominees for this year’s Academy Award for Animated Feature (other than Wallace & Gromit) share a theme of exploring inner feelings and how to adapt within a group. The film is dialogue free, but not without important sound design. The sounds of the animals are all real, often recorded at zoos. The nature sounds and unclear time and geography setting put this squarely in a Miyazaki-influenced world, even if the animation is closer to Sega Genesis graphics. Each of the animals on the boat have their own personalities. It’s not an exaggerated stock character like you might find in a Pixar or Dreamworks animation of animals. They don’t speak to each other, but they use lots of facial expressions in a way that you never doubt what is trying to be said. In this way, it’s also in the family tree of Kurosawa and Spielberg. The tide rises and eventually the tides fall. What we see is resilience, hope, and friendship out of tragedy. The lesson that we are all in the same boat is powerful, and I hope that it reaches a larger audience.
Best of the Rest
- Before Chris Stapleton covered “Friendship” there was a cover by Pops Staples in 2015. This partnership of Norah Jones and Mavis Staples in 2022 puts that gospel tinge to the song. The lyrics work just as well in that genre as they do in the country form. Prince loved Mavis and you can feel him channeled through her here. Look at Mavis’ kickin’ Vans.
- Entertainment Weekly (3/28/97): “Best Commercials of All-Time” #31: Meow Mix “Singing Cat” (1972): Morris the Cat was kicking their butt on the advertising stage. While Morris was big budget, Meow Mix went notoriously cheap with a simple repeated shot of what had been a choking cat (it survived). Adding the subtitles and bouncing ball was a great touch. The sheer simplicity made quite an impact. I didn’t turn my back on Morris, but these were pretty hard not to singalong as a child.
- There was a single second when Parker Posey got on that elevator that I thought White Lotus and Severance were going to have the best crossover of 2025. Alas, it isn’t up to those standards, but with the music of METTE “Mama’s Eyes,” this is a pretty catchy advertisement. It’s so nice to have Parker back in pop culture just being herself in the same way that made me fall in love with her in the ’90s.
Sunday Morning Tuneage Flashback
- On the Sunday Morning Tuneage from 6/4/2007 to 7/12/2009, I ranked my 100 Favorite Films of All-Time. I did one per week with the arbitrary rule that they had to air on television that upcoming week. It ended up being a pretty representative list in retrospect. A few were ranked out of order, but I stick with that list for that point in my life. The 2009 stats check out.
6 – Alfred Hitchcock films.
5 – Steven Spielberg films.
4 – Stanley Kubrick films.
4 – Billy Wilder films.
I’m going to attempt the impossible over the next 20 weeks. I’m going to use that old list as a template and rank five films a week, without planning it all out ahead of time. Remember, these are “favorite” and not necessarily “best” movies. Enjoy critiquing me along the way.
2025 Running Stats (#66-100)- 2 – Directed by John Hughes
- 2 – Directed by Quentin Tarantino
- 2 – Directed by David Yates
- 1 – 1920’s
- 1 – 1940’s
- 1 – 1950’s
- 4 – 1960’s
- 8 – 1970’s
- 6 – 1980’s
- 9 – 1990’s
- 3 – 2000’s
- 1 – 2010’s
- 1 – 2020’s
- FAVORITE MOVIES OF ALL-TIME (2009)
- 70. Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid (1969)
- 69. The Good, the Bad & the Ugly (1966)
- 68. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
- 67. Seven Samurai (1954)
- 66. Tootsie (1982)
- FAVORITE MOVIES OF ALL-TIME (2025)
- 70. Smokey and the Bandit (1977) (Directed by Hal Needham): This completely falls into the “favorite rewatch” category. I could watch it four times a year. It came out when I was nine and I can’t imagine a film that doesn’t have “Jedi” that would appeal more to me at that age. Two cheeseburgers and an ice tea were still just $1.50.
- 69. Harold & Maude (1971) (Directed by Hal Ashby): This movie cleared the path for me to love Wes Anderson films
- 68. Reservoir Dogs (1992) (Directed by Quentin Tarantino): I can credit this film with leading me down a path to more films than any other single film I can remember. I don’t know that I would have gotten to Hong Kong and Asian films in general as quickly without this film. I know I wouldn’t have explored some of the underground films of the ’70s without reading about his references.
- 67. Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983) (Directed by Terry Jones): This film benefits from being on HBO for a whole summer when I had lots of time in front of the television. The songs are still ones that I can sing at the drop of a hat. It often feels like a collection of unrelated skits, but I’m not about to quibble.
- 66. Princess Mononoke (1997) (Directed by Hayao Miyazaki): Sometimes I watch this film just to look at it again. The environmental message is more face forward than in other Miyazaki films, but that isn’t a detriment to the enjoyment. I have only watched it once in theaters, and I feel like I’m doing it a disservice to watch at home.
1975 in Review
- March – Avengers #133 (Marvel): Cover by Gil Kane and Dave Cockrum. Written by Steve Englehart. Art by Sal Buscema. “Take this Synchro-Staff. It will guide you. And prepare yourself for wonders beyond imagination– the wonders of truth– as I utilize my temporal transporter to send you inward– inward to the beginning!” – Immortus. There was Kree and time travel and witchy stuff all happening in these days. Steve Englehart wrote some very forward-thinking stories in the mid-’70s that the MCU is still being influenced by today. Just look at what is happening between Agatha Harkness and the Scarlet Witch here for illustration.
- March 13 -The first Chili’s was opened in Dallas, Texas as a burger restaurant.
- March 10 – Sports Illustrated. Lee Elder won the Monsanto Open in 1974 to become the first African American to qualify for the Masters. Other black golfers had won tournaments in the ’60s, but the Masters had different qualifying rules to keep the players out. Lee Elder, from Dallas, Texas, wouldn’t make the cut in 1975. He would later be the first African American to play on the U.S. Ryder Cup in 1979.
What the Hell Did I Put in My Mouth?
Lay’s Kettle Cooked:
Cajun Spice
A quick summary. My favorite chips are Kettle Cooked because I love the crunch. My favorite flavor for wings or fries is Cajun because it has slightly less heat than Jalapeno or Cayenne Pepper. So what do you think I thought about this new release? (By “new release,” I mean out in September but just found this week) They are just what I had hoped. There’s a little more heat than I thought at first but that little burn is perfect. The paprika, garlic, and onion combination is well balanced. Although you need a napkin for your hands afterwards, these are going to be in my pantry as long as the release is available.
Coca-Cola: Orange Cream
The lesson of the year in soda so far is that old flavors are getting new releases with slightly different names. Is Orange Cream significantly different Coke Orange Vanilla? Not much as far as I can tell. That was a good release because it had a strong vanilla flavor. This is similar except that the orange flavor at the end is rather disappointing. It’s subtle but it’s an overly orange candy orange. I’m not sad about this release if it sticks around for the summer. Cream is one of the big flavors of 2025, and here it’s a substitute for a good vanilla taste.
7-Up: Tropical
If you blinked last year at this time, you missed the Kroger exclusive, 7-Up: Tropical. It’s back everywhere this spring. The can is pretty cool. Not sure I can give you much beyond that. The lemon-lime soda is overwhelmed by peach and mango flavors. In fact, the real flavor ends up being like a Peach 7-Up which is not what I expect from Tropical. I like 7-Up and this loses all of the 7-Up flavor. Other companies have done better in the peach field, so I’ll skip more of these.
“Talk to me, old pal of mine
If you feel you can’t go on
Don’t you sweat, it ain’t over yet
This bond we share is strong” – Chris Stapleton
