Tag: HBO
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Sex, Drugs and Torture Porn: The Empty Provocations Of ‘The Idol’
Sam Levinson, the self-defined “sick and twisted mind” behind the Gen-Z sleeper hit Euphoria, has joined forces with musician, producer and now, ostensibly, ‘actor,’ Abel ‘The Weeknd’ Tesfaye to write and direct what he has described as “the biggest show of the summer” at its initial press conference: HBO’s The Idol. Despite the initial public…
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Princess Diana Documentary Is A Compassionate But Dry Rehashing Of A Well-Worn Tale
The late Diana Spencer’s life is again retold in The Princess. Directed by Ed Perkins, whose last film was 2019’s Tell Me Who I Am, a true story of identical twins and their dark family secret. Much like that feature, this film is compassionate, even if it lacks anything revealing about the late royal. The…
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The Sophmore Season Of ‘Euphoria’ Is An Emotional Rollercoaster That Loses Its Thrill 
It’s been over two years since Euphoria first graced our screens with its harsh reflections of an intoxicating drug-fuelled coming-of-age. Season one left us standing next to Rue (Zendaya) on the platform of a train station as Jules (Hunter Schafer) passes her by. Much like Rue, the blaring questions about what comes next are all…
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Euphoria Season 2, Episode 1: Being A Teenager Never Looked So Adult
It’s been over two years since Euphoria first graced our screens with its harsh reflections of an intoxicating drug-fuelled coming-of-age. Season one left us standing next to Rue (Zendaya) on the platform of a train station as Jules (Hunter Schafer) passes her by. Much like Rue, the blaring questions about what comes next are all…
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We Need To Talk About The Over-Sexualisation Of Gen-Z
Why is it that films, articles and television shows about Generation Z are created by older adults? Take this piece as an example where a non-Gen-Z woman claims to understand ‘teen melancholy’. Most of the content on screen is targeted towards the younger age bracket of us, being fifteen to eighteen, so why does it…
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How ‘Euphoria’ Tackles Redemption
Content Warning: Suicide, abusive relationships, drug addiction. Euphoria, Sam Levinson’s high school HBO drama released in 2019, tells the story of Rue (Zendaya) and several of her classmates. Rue is a shy teenager who struggles with drug addiction. She narrates the story of her peers as they navigate the best and worst teenagedom can offer…
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Whitmer Thomas’ ‘The Golden One’ is a Unique and Intimate Comedy Special Like no Other
Back in late February, Los Angeles-based actor/comedian/musician Whitmer Thomas debuted his first hour-long comedy special for HBO. While Thomas has performed comedy in various ways for many years and appeared on several TV shows (including Stone Quackers, The Walking Dead, and GLOW), this comedy special feels monumental. There aren’t a lot of specials that make…