A Timothée Chalamet look-alike competition
Plus! A book you should read, a movie you can miss and a masterclass in flirting.
Let’s catch up:
Donald Trump appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience this week as part of a final campaign push aimed at young male voters. Joe Rogan consistently tops the podcast charts with 14.5 million followers on Spotify and 17.6 million on YouTube. Staggering numbers. Coming in at 3 hours (!) long, you have to wonder how many listeners made it through the whole episode.
Beyoncé, Bruce Springsteen and Kelly Rowland were among a bevy of celebs who appeared at campaign rallies this weekend in support of Kamala Harris. I am fascinated by the impact of celebrity endorsements in this election. Is a Beyoncé endorsement as powerful in 2024 as it was in say 2008?
Disney+ has released a TV adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s steamy book Rivals. Set in the Cotswolds in the 1980s, it is all shagging, showmanship and shoulder pads, and has prompted a frenzy of internet think pieces.
Timothée Chalamet unexpectedly showed up at the inaugural ‘Timothée Chalamet look-alike competition’ in New York City over the weekend. The event was organised by a 23-year-old YouTuber and the winning Timothée walked away with ‘a shiny six-foot-tall trophy, a humongous $50 cheque made out to “Best Tim,” and a briefcase full of fun-sized Halloween candy’.
A trio of Timothées.
📚 Book Review: Evenings and Weekends by Oisín McKenna
Evenings and Weekends is set over a sweltering two days in London in 2019. A whale has washed up on the banks of the Thames and our characters are each at a turning point. Maggie is 12 weeks’ pregnant feeling uncertain about giving up her dynamic London life to move to the ‘burbs. Her partner Ed lives with her in a mouldy Dalston flat and is trying to make sure his past doesn’t catch up with him. Maggie’s best friend Phil is sort-of dating his housemate Keith and keeping a secret from Maggie. Phil’s mum Rosaleen is sick and working out where she fits in the lives of her adult children.
Weaving so many stories and voices together is a tough ask, but debut novelist Oisín McKenna has nailed it. The descriptions of London are vibrant and realistic. It is all the London highlights (and dodgy lowlights): London Fields, Hampstead Heath, Tesco, 11-person share houses in Bermondsey, damp flats in Dalston. What I particularly enjoyed about this book is that most of the characters are in their 30s ‘navigating queer identity, financial precarity and emotional commitment’. They certainly do not have it all figured out. Highly recommend this one (also available as an audiobook on Spotify).
🎬 Movie Review: The Apprentice
In cinemas now.
The Apprentice shows us a young and impressionable Donald Trump under the mentorship of controversial New York lawyer Roy Cohn in the 1970s and 80s. Cohn’s three rules for success? No 1: attack, attack, attack. No 2: admit nothing, deny everything. No 3: always claim victory, never admit defeat. Sound familiar?
This movie has a shiny 80s hue like the famous golden escalator. It is money, sex, drugs, cigarette smoke and liposuction. Sebastian Stan (Gossip Girl, Captain America) plays a convincing Trump, with a side profile and constant use of superlatives that are uncanny. Jeremy Strong (Succession) as the crooked crooning Cohn takes the cake though. Trump’s complicated relationships with his father and his alcoholic older brother (who never quite ‘made it’ in their father’s eyes) mean it is Cohn who he goes to for guidance. That is, until the student usurps the master.
Ultimately, while The Apprentice gave me a (fictional) glimpse into Donald Trump’s backstory that I didn’t know about before, the movie is just not memorable enough for me to recommend you head to the cinema. You can give this one a miss.
Currently…
📺 Diving into: Presumed Innocent on Apple TV+ with Jake Gyllenhaal and (his real-life brother-in-law) Peter Sarsgaard. It comes highly recommended from Laz’s List subscribers.
🥇 Excited for: Part 2 of Simone Biles Rising, the incredible documentary series about Simone Biles preparing for the Olympics, which has just been released on Netflix.
😮💨 Watching: Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare on Netflix. While I preferred the podcast series which came out last year (this TV version is a bit heavy on the re-enactments), it is nonetheless a fascinating story of betrayal.
💋 Obsessed with: Andrew Garfield on Chicken Shop Date. If for some reason you haven’t seen this masterclass in flirting yet, do yourself a favour.
A review of A Different Man from our in-house Laz’s List film critic…
A slightly nebulous review of A Different Man from our in-house film critic this week.
Rating: 6/10
Translation: “A Different Man” jumps straight into disfigurement and how society responds. We are in New York and we watch our “man” evolve as obstacles and opportunities come his way. The narrative stayed loose - too loose. The movie was partially saved by some very unexpected moments. Don’t put yourself out for this one…
Hey coach, I wanted to click on 'Movies' and 'Podcasts' for special guidance - however, the platform did not seem to allow a second pick. [Confused emoji face]
Love your work..........as usual......................
"The Gambler"
Would love the addition of some pod reccs from my source of truth (Laz's List)!
If you're in the market for quirky but excellent (aren't we always), I highly recommend the series "9/12" from Pineapple Studios - all about how 9/11 the day became 9/11 the idea and how that one day has shifted our perspectives in every which way.
Love, uninspired but always enthused podcast lover