This is an open letter of protest to HBO. Its programs are interfering with my sleep cycle. Recently, two of its programs kept me awake past my bedtime (admittedly, I retire early since I rise at 5:30 a.m.) The first is a new series called “Tell Me You Love Me.” Guess what it’s about? It’s about bad sex. What?HBO is pushing boundaries in the following ways: explicit scenes that include a husband masturbating, astonishingly convincing sexual couplings, a hand-job scene and an AARP-eligible actress performing fellatio. No, I’m not kidding! Yet, “Tell Me You Love Me” is not really about sex at all. It’s about relationships – relationships that don’t work. They endure marriage in “quiet desperation,” quoting Henry David Thoreau. I was glad no one was around when I watched this show. At first, I couldn’t believe my eyes. I thought to myself, “Gross. This is porn.” However, as I continued to watch (notice – I didn’t turn the television off!), the story became an interesting observation of relationships. So-o, I’ll continue to tune in weekly and reserve my opinion, and I will be sure to be alone when I watch “Tell Me You Love Me.”
The second HBO program disturbing my sleep pattern is “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” produced and acted by Larry David, the comedic genius who is responsible for “Seinfeld.” The man has a knack for getting himself into uncomfortable situations that end up alienating him from his peers and acquaintances. The fictional David is an off-kilter, comic version who plays himself at home, at work and around town. “Curb Your Enthusiasm” blurs the lines between reality and fiction with a cast of real and fictional characters. It’s unlike anything else on TV. This sixth season is as acid and elegantly constructed as past ones, with Larry unleashing havoc every time he opens his mouth. His humor is fueled by continuous jolts of the politically incorrect. The fictional Larry is unaware of giving offense and is indignant when accused of it. He’s annoying to me – yet fascinating. I have a love/hate relationship with Larry David – yet, I make sure to see every episode.
It didn’t seem possible for the world-class museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, to outdo itself – but it did! Known for blockbuster hits, it currently is presenting an exhibition that dazzles. The Met has put together all of its best 17th century Dutch paintings. The show, “The Age of Rembrandt,” includes some of the most beautiful paintings in any American collection – 228 pictures dating mostly from the 1600s. And there is the god of the 17th century European art, Rembrandt, at the center with his famous “Aristotle With the Bust of Homer” and his famous late self-portrait. The comprehensive exhibition provides a unique opportunity for visitors (lucky me!) to view the collection of Dutch paintings as a whole. It also commemorates the 400th anniversary year of Rembrandt’s birth. The collection includes an exceptional grouping of Dutch landscape painting and scenes of everyday life. Interestingly, the work has been sorted out not by artists or dates, but by the names of the collectors who bought and gave paintings to the Met. All of this wonderment takes place in 12 galleries, so you’ll need to spend time there. Wear your sneakers and remember that you can always take a break and enjoy the cafeteria, Petrie Court Café, the Roof Garden Café (my favorite) and/or the Met shops. You can’t possibly go wrong. “The Age of Rembrandt” is on view through Jan. 6. I plan to go back – at least “one mo’ time.”
When I learned that a film was being released after three years and that my two favorite actors, Diane Lane and Donald Sutherland, were starring in it, I hastened to see it – what a disappointment! I’m sorry that “Fierce People,” which was made in 2004, wasn’t tossed in the celluloid waste bin. The confusing tale revolves around an East Village 15-year-old and his drug-addicted mother, circa 1978. They are taken in by an aristocratic crowd in rural New Jersey. “Fierce People” is a social commentary with anthropological metaphors. The perils of privilege contrast the mores of high society with the blunt savagery of primitive tribes. Highlighted are the explicit parallels between the monied classes and the Ishkanani tribesmen (who?!). Lane’s and Sutherland’s bravura performances couldn’t save the script. I found “Fierce People” disturbing, impossible to follow and certainly not enjoyable. My up-to-date daughter-in-law, Andrea, said her friends recommended seeing it. “Chaque un à son goatee” – translation: each one to his own taste.
Now more to my taste is a documentary about Toots Shor, the fabled New York saloonkeeper. Perhaps it helps that I remember first-hand the 1940s and 50s. I even had dinner one night at Toots’ 51st Street bar-restaurant. The self-named hot spot in New York City was popular for baseball players, entertainers, many of the biggest celebrities and even the little people like me. “Toots” is a feature-length documentary by his granddaughter, an established documentarian. She, Kristi Jacobson, examines the life of her Runyonsque grandfather against the backdrop of 20th century American social history: Prohibition, the growth of the mafia, the golden age of baseball, and the tumult and fragmentation of the 60s. “Toots” is a fascinating New York story about a fascinating, natural host. The film recalls an era of glamour and egalitarianism. If you can recall those times, you’ll recognize many of the friends and admirers of the hulking Shor who agreed to sit in front of Ms. Jacobson’s camera – and you’ll be entertained.