March shoutouts
Here's what I loved last month.
“Deep Crimson” (1996), dir. Arturo Ripstein
This Spanish-language crime drama/romance invented the concept of “freak matching” before the slang phrase ever entered the public’s consciousness. Arturo Ripstein’s film follows Coral, a full-bodied single mother who feels unlovable because of her weight and socioeconomic status. Coral dreams romance like in Old Hollywood movies, especially French actor Charles Boyer, and routinely scans local personal ads for potential dates. Meanwhile, Nicolás is a traveling romance scammer who woos Coral and robs her before realizing he might have caught the affection of the wrong woman.
Soon, Coral makes a proposition Nicolás can’t believe: She wants to be with him and work as his scout for potential victims. What follows is a darkly comedic and heartfelt tale of warts-and-all love between two people and the unavoidable tragedy awaiting a life of crime. This movie continually found ways to surprise me and it’s one I’ll continue thinking about for years to come.
“Deep Crimson” can be streamed on The Criterion Channel It’s also available to rent or purchase across most major streaming platforms.
I’m on a bit of reading slump in the first half of 2026. I’ve been reading a lot, just nothing I’ve loved and/or nothing I’ve loved enough to talk about. It didn’t feel right not to include a book among these recommendations, so I combed through some of my favorite books of all time to find something from my own personal hall of fame to discuss. From 2000, “What’s Not to Love?: The Adventures of a Mildly Perverted Young Writer” was my introduction to one of my favorite writers, the endlessly witty, neurotic and kind-hearted Jonathan Ames. This essay collection, one of the writer/novelist’s earliest, is composed of essays he wrote for the now-defunct New York Press. I first read this collection when I was in my early 20s and I read and re-read it more times than I can count. Ames is such an underrated voice in the literary scene (though several of his works have been adapted, in addition to his creation of HBO’s “Bored to Death”) and his prose style and attitude were big influences on me and my own writing. “What’s Not to Love?” features laugh-out-loud essays about Ames’ delayed puberty, about losing his virginity to a prostitute and about his close relationship with his great aunt Doris. These stories are filled with heart (but not in a corny way) and emotion (though not melodramatic) and have stayed with me throughout the rest of my writing career and still in-progress aspirations. This one will never leave my shelf.
P.S. The writer also dated iconic singer-songwriter Fiona Apple for a time in the late 2000s/early 2010s and their relationship/Ames’ essence is lovingly captured in the chaotic fourth track from Apple’s 2012 album, “The Idler Wheel…,” fittingly called “Jonathan.”
I’ve seen British pop star Harry Styles’ fourth studio album, “Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally” described as boring and unadventurous. Granted, the album is much less “dance” than its title and lead single led us to believe (or hope for) but what we did get is a pretty stellar pop album. Something that’s key to enjoying Harry Styles’ music is understanding that he is boring. Key among his influences is Paul McCartney: Someone I wouldn’t call boring but who is, in essence, just an affable British man who likes writing good pop tunes.
Styles doesn’t have a lot to say, and while I wish he did have more personal insight, his music and voice (particularly on this album) work to compensate for whatever adjective you might feel he’s missing as an artist. What this looks on “Kiss All the Time...” is an interesting, pseudo-club sound palette, in addition to some of the most interesting vocal deliveries of his career. We knew going into this album cycle that Styles was influenced by Millennial music maestro LCD Soundsystem and that influence, in addition to a bit of Bowie and yes, the Beatles, are very clear. And while the album might not have a mega-watt hit single like “Adore You” or even 2023’s “As It Was,” “Kiss All the Time” represents the 32 year-old’s most focused and cohesive body of work. It’s a terrific album filled with really great pop songs and I think that’s enough — for now.
Highlights include “Are You Listening Yet?” (which should have been the lead single), the beautiful but badly titled “Season 2 Weight Loss,” the stripped-back ballad “Coming Up Roses,” the album’s most disco-fied song, “Dance No More” and the exhilarating, gorgeous album closer, “Carla’s Song.”
“Darkman” (1990), dir. Sam Raimi
Me and my husband’s ongoing Sam Raimi-thon continued through March, with us watching the director’s 1990 superhero/horror film “Darkman.” This original concept follows scientist Peyton Westlake (Liam Neeson) who’s close to making a breakthrough in his quest to create “synthetic skin” for people like burn patients. But when Westlake’s girlfriend Julie (Frances McDormand) unwittingly uncovers a nefarious and illegal plan for a mega real estate development, gangsters go after the pair for the evidence.
The destruction of Westlake’s lab leaves the doctor a victim of his own experimentation (in true superhero style), leaving him terribly disfigured and in pain. At the hospital, an experimental nerve procedure only makes things worse, causing his emotions to be more unwieldy and his strength to become ultra-human. Hoping to reunite with Julie and get revenge on his attackers, Westlake returns to his destroyed lab to perfect his skin process.
“Darkman” is a unique film in that it feels familiar, as if it lives within the world of 1989’s “Batman,” (released a year earlier) but is much odder and emotive than Burton’s movie. The two are also scored by Danny Elfman, which just adds to the uncanny “this isn’t Batman?” feeling you get while watching. Raimi’s film deserves as much attention as “Batman” gets. It finds director Raimi spinning classic comic book concepts in a way only he can, meanwhile Liam Neeson is game for just about anything thrown at him. It’s fantastic.
“Darkman” can be streamed with ads on Philo. It’s also available for rent or purchase across most streaming platforms.
“U,” the third album from electronic artist underscores is a brilliant example of how an artist can distill their most zany and experimental sides into a more palatable package — without losing too much edge or creativity. This breezy nine-track hyperpop collection packs a lot of punch into 34 minutes. The San Francisco-born artist rounds the edges of some of the harsher elements seen on 2021’s “Fishmonger” and 2023’s “Wallsocket” (both are great), but adds in so many unexpected drops, switches and tweaks that while the album is rarely full-on assaulting you with sound (or perhaps I just listen to lots of noisy music), instead, it more often makes a softer, smoother choice. Granted, there’s still plenty of bite but this feels like a great entry point for newcomers. Thematically, the album touches upon relationships, heartbreak, consumerism and rejection she’s faced as a trans woman.
Highlights include the metaphorically creative “Music,” the dramatic and sad “Innuendo (I Get U),” and the vaguely “Justified”-era Justin Timberlake/Neptunes production groove of “Do It.”
MINI MIXTAPE
“Love4Life,” “Hammer,” and “Carousel” — Willa Ford (Perhaps one of the longest sophomore follow-ups in pop music history, early 2000s’ one-hit wonder Willa Ford recently released her long, long, long-awaited “amanda” — a mere 25 years after her debut. And honestly? It was worth the wait. The “I Wanna Be Bad” singer’s approach to this album is so refreshing, especially from a 45 year-old pop singer: “amanda” doesn’t feel like an album by nostalgia act. As much as recent acts like charli xcx and Robyn, Willa finds a way to bring maturity and self-assuredness to tracks like lead single “Love4Life” and the off-kilter Ke$ha-meets-Connie Francis banger “Hammer.” Also, check out the dreamy orchestral drama of “Carousel.”
Serving as the album’s executive/main producer (which I think is so cool), Willa creates songs that feel classic and modern, often making tweaks and diversions that punch up what could easily have been a standard pop track. I highly recommend the album, even if I didn’t feature it. And if she does any touring, I’ll be there!)
“PIXELATED KISSES” — Joji (This ultra-industrial lead single from Japanese singer-songwriter Joji’s polarizing fourth album “Piss in the Wind” is wall-to-wall heavy synths pitted against the artist singing slightly off-beat. It shouldn’t work as well as it does but it was one of my most-listened to tracks of March (love that I have this data now that Apple Music tracks all year-long!). Sidenote: This is the heaviest track on the entire album, which is closer to smooth R&B, hence the division between people who like the album for what it is vs. listeners who wanted more of this. I wanted more of this but I do like the album overall)
“klepto” — Sophie Powers & Lexie Liu (This is, quite simply, the best new Britney Spears song we’ve had in at least 15 years. Canadian hyperpop artist Sophie Powers joins forces with Chinese dance pop’s Lexie Liu to create a song that will probably never chart but should actually be no. 1 right now.)
“Don’t Stop me Now” — bassvictim (UK electronic music duo bassvictim is on a generational run of good albums. Starting with 2024’s “Basspunk,” the group composed of Maria Manow and Ike Clateman then released two albums last year before their fourth, “?”, released in March. The eight-track album takes electronic music in directions I truly never would have expected, including third track “Don’t Stop Me Now.” The song is a synth-assisted full medieval-folk song that’s strangely moving and inspiring. I’m so excited to see how this group keeps surprising the world.)
Final Thoughts
Over the past year or so, I’ve talked to so many peers who talk only about the past and how happy they were. While I too like to reminisce, I think it can be a trap from experiencing new things. I’m now one year away from being 40 and I don’t want to feel like the best of my life is behind me because I don’t believe it is. More life awaits.