SCREENSHOTS #15 - Anthony Bourdain's assistant memoir, another dino movie and other recs
Movies, series, books and more: everything I've watched, listened to, read, and tried in July.
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It has been an interesting month… I feel my recs are a little random, but, at the same time, I was excited to write this post!
MOVIES
Jurassic World Rebirth
Ok, not sure if I ever mentioned this fact here, but here we go: I'm obsessed with the Jurassic Park/World franchise. I've lost count of how many times I've watched the first movie - it is probably one of my favorite movies ever, lol. Since then, of course, I've watched all the other sequences - and I guess the last movie and maybe the previous one were a little disappointing. I didn't even know they were working on a new one, but when I found out about Jurassic World Rebirth, I ran to a movie theater, even though I didn't have high expectations.
Well, I think it was a good thing to have no expectations, because I actually enjoyed the movie very much, and particularly loved the fact that they brought a lot of references from the first movies. Of course, there were some of those moments that "only happen in the movies", but, overall, I like it a lot and can't wait for the next one lol!
SERIES / DOCS
Call her Alex
I knew very little about Alex Cooper before watching the two-part documentary about her life and her journey as a podcaster. And I know that, like any famous creator, she has fans and haters. If you are not familiar with her, she is the host of Call Her Daddy, which is Spotify's most-listened-to podcast by women. The project, which started with Alex and a friend talking freely about sex, is now a popular interview-style podcast - featuring guests like Sarah Jessica Parker and even Kamala Harris.
I know there's probably a lot of privilege in her journey, but I don't think it should diminish her success. Learning more about her story and what's behind the scenes was really inspiring - especially because she's a woman thriving in a format that was once dominated by men.
(And I guess you can tell me I'm biased in my opinion because I'm currently working on a podcast, so maybe that's why I got so fascinated and inspired by her story).
Available on Hulu.
Valeria
If you have been here for a while, you've probably noticed that I consume content in different languages, especially in Spanish. It's an easy way to keep me in contact with this language that I don't always have a chance to practice.
And it took me a while, but I finally watched the fourth and last season of Valeria. I think they did a good job bringing the 4 friends based in Madrid back for more adventures. If you are into series in other languages rather than English, and you love a great story about female friends, I'm sure you will have a great time with this show.
Available on Netflix.
Currently watching…
Better Sister, on Amazon Prime - I was hoping to finish before sending this newsletter, but you will have to wait until next month to hear my thoughts.
Too Much - new show written by Lena Dunham (Girls). It's a comedy, following a New Yorker who moves to London. So far, I'm having a great time!
Books
Care and Feeding: A Memoir
Laurie Woolever worked as an assistant for Anthony Bourdain after working with Mario Batali. In her memoir, she talks about her beginning in the food/hospitality industry, navigating culinary school, some complicated relationships, and addiction. When I read a memoir, I look for vulnerability, and Lauren strongly delivers that. Her reflections and self-analysis are deep and complex. I also loved to learn more about the behind-the-scenes of her work with Anthony Bourdain, of course, and it made me want to also read Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography - for this one, Laurie interviewed nearly a hundred people who shared Tony’s orbit.
I listened to the audiobook and Laurie is the narrator.
Stash: My life in hidding
Yes, you guessed it: another memoir. I can't help myself, I guess this is my favorite genre. In this book, Laura Cathcart Robbins opens up about her addiction to sleeping pills and alcohol and her journey towards sobriety while being a black woman living in Los Angeles, married to a famous movie director, trying to fit into spaces and expectations. I've never heard of Laura before, but I absolutely loved her book and how she opened herself - plus, I listened to the audio version, which she incredibly narrates.
If you like audiobooks, I have a tip for you!
So I've always used Audible for audiobooks - but I have recently discovered that if you have a Premium account on Spotify, you can listen to up to 15 hours of audiobook listening time every month - and they have 250,000 audiobook titles in their subscriber catalog. For example, these two books I just recommended are available on Spotify. You're welcome!
Podcasts
Yes, I know, cliche, but of course I felt like listening to Alex Cooper after watching her documentary - but yes, I've had listened to some episodes before. Highly recommend her interview with Charlize Theron - I wasn't expecting that, Charlize was so open and vulnerable and fun! I also liked to listen to the episode with Sarah Jessica Parker.
On the blog
Studying French in Paris – what’s like to study at Alliance Française de Paris
After coming back from Paris, I took some time to write a full blog post about my experience studying French at Alliance Française de Paris. If you are thinking about doing something similar, please make sure to check it out!
Other interesting readings…
Where to find media to consume instead of doomscrolling - such an incredible post by Mapu with excellent resources on magazines, online publications and podcasts, there so many I'm curious to check!
New York or Nowhere: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Living in the Greatest City in the World - absolutely loved this post by Ally Jane Ayers on the pros and cons of living in New York City + a great quiz to find out if it's time to leave.
YouTube
Ramit Sethi is known for his philosophy around renting versus owning and although I’ve seen his content about the topic thousands of times, this new video is probably the most complete one about the topic. Highly recommend!
That's a wrap! What have you been reading and watching lately?
Thanks for the mention!