Where COULD one escape fascism? Sweden looks pretty good right now - Denmark? Canada?
*
So as a means of procrastination, I read the Baldoni lawsuit in its entirety - 100+ pages - and while I am not a lawyer, it seemed like there were VERY few legal complaints and a lot of whining and very dramatic writing. He is alleging extortion? how? there is no evidence. For Blake to say that RR and TS are her "dragons" isn't exactly threatening. SIGH. Also, at one point he says that it's not sexual harassment to call someone sexy right after they call themselves sexy and DUDE that is not the same situation. SIGH.
In re: escaping fascism, we are looking seriously at a move out of our red state and to the Northeast. Any suggestions for specific communities to consider moving to in the Northeast US? We'd like to have access to both nature (like, a wooded lot, and within a < 1 hr drive of good hiking trails) and grocery stores; reasonable diversity in the community; local arts/galleries; safe public schools with art/music programs; ideally within 90 minutes of a commercial airport.
I agree with Western MA, also CT. Depending on where you land in CT you can get to NYC airports; Hartford/Springfield, and PVD are also viable airport options.
I lived in SE CT and every airport was over an hour away! Planning trips was annoying! (although Avelo started from New Haven and that was pretty cool). But CT is good cause you can get to NYC or Boston quite easily. (I'm from CT and my friends say I always evaluate places by how long it takes to get to other places, not what you can do there. )
I grew up near Erie, and while it does technically have an airport and it did have a few more route options a decade ago, we were always looking at Pittsburgh, Buffalo and Cleveland. Also for concerts and professional sports; they were an hour and a half, two hours away depending on the snow.
Probably why it didn’t faze me for a long time to spend two hours each way getting to the beach from the Bronx.
I recommend the Merrimack Valley/North Shore region (northeastern MA)- fairly easy access to Boston via the commuter rail or 93, lots of open space and not quite as expensive as MetroWest or Boston
I live in CT and feel like it fits the bill on all of that but fair warning that home prices are very, very high in most parts of the state with good schools/commuter rail access. Litchfield county, Essex, or old saybrook are a bit more affordable though harder to commute from.
As much as I understand wanting to get out of Red State madness, I also say look at NH where Free Staters have been moving in droves and really messing the place up. We can't all abandon the fight to make Blue States even bluer.
Unless we just break the country into two which seems the best option.
If Canada somehow became the 51st state before Washington, DC I would loose my mind. Taxation without representation! I don't think DC statehood will ever come to pass without major changes sadly.
Also I recently learned that there are actually tourists who accidentally fly here and think they are in Washington state. So that can't be helping.
Hi from New Jersey! Here's the secret: we put all the chemical plants by Newark airport so that nobody wants to live here. But we're the Garden State for a reason. I genuinely do love it here.
A few facts to back me up:
- NJ is #2 in the nation with percentage dedicated to parkland: 2 of every 10 acres here, second only to Alaska with 4 of every 10.
- Why This Place ranked us #5 for hiking trails - now, are there giant Colorado-esque mountains here, no, but are there hiking trails, woods, waterfalls - plus beach trails, SO MANY, YES.
- Grocery stores: my friend from Pittsburgh insists on going to ShopRite when she comes to visit. Also I just did a Target pickup run to get my Onyx Storm book so I can dive right in after work, and that plus Dunkin plus the library took me exactly 16 minutes.
- Diversity: this one definitely depends on the particular town - I will not pretend we do not have red spots - I live in one, unfortunately. But we're #2 for linguistic and #6 for ethnic diversity according to WalletHub last year.
- Local arts: so much! so much! Princeton, Montclair, Morristown, New Brunswick, Millburn all have great theatre; too much art to list.
- Schools got #4 in the nation according to that same WalletHub survey.
- Airports: honestly two of the main reasons I'd struggle living elsewhere are access to the ocean, and to two hubs within 90 minutes - EWR and PHL. Also, I have made it from my door to my gate at ABE in 21 minutes, so that's nice to have too.
Here to second (northern) NJ 🤗 standard disclaimer that nowhere is perfect, still plenty to fight for in NJ but if you’re looking for a new location I think it’s pretty good
- Most of the NE has a VERY high cost-of-living and, depending on where you come from, you will have serious sticker shock. Pay particular attention to overall tax burdens (property, income, sales); NY & NJ can kill you. Obviously, living near a major city (NY, Boston, Philly) will be the most expensive.
- Because the NE states are relatively small, you can still be close to nature from even the major cities. If you also want diversity and access to amenities, without the big city sticker shock, I'd suggest looking at the suburbs of a smaller city (Providence or Newport RI; Hartford or New Haven CT; Springfield MA; Portsmouth NH; Portland ME all come to mind.)
- If your primary goal is to avoid "red" neighbors, stay away from deeply rural areas. Even in a famously "blue" state like NY, anywhere outside of the major cities will be majority "red". MAGA propaganda has infiltrated everywhere, though it will still probably be a lot better than what you currently encounter.
- If you're coming from a warm state, don't underestimate the awfulness of winter in the NE. If you really can't tolerate colder weather, you'll be hibernating for half the year.
- While not technically the NE, take a look at Delaware. Marginally better weather, beautiful ocean beaches, reasonable cost-of-living.
My son has lived in Providence for the last 12 years and loves it! You are literally 20 minutes from everything - the mountains, the beach, the woods, etc. The universities are great, parks, libraries, theater, music, incredible food, it's all right there.
I live in Baltimore, MD, and while Baltimore might not have everything you are looking for, Maryland definitely does. The only caveat is that the further you get from the city, the more Trumpy it gets. I actually lead group hikes at a ton of different parks all within 45 minutes of Baltimore, at the most, so the hiking rules. You're a few hours from the mountains and a few hours from the ocean depending on what you prefer. And of course the bay is right there and super fun in the summer. I go to concerts and either the Walters or the BMA once or twice a month. The live music scene kinda sucks, but Philly and DC are close enough to make that okay. I am planning to leave the city eventually (I am close by my mom and help her out a lot, which is the only reason I'm still here) but Maryland overall has been good to me.
Hello fellow Baltimoron!! Anne Arundel County, where I happen to live (Pasadena) is hard to endure right now. So. Many. Confederate. Flags. 🤮 I was the only person in my neighborhood with Harris/Walz signs. And these people are middle class to poor! Their signs are HUGE. Because Maryland is still a very Catholic state, there are one issue voters, which I TRY to understand, even if I don’t agree. The closer you get to Baltimore, the more blue you get.
I am told by worried Canadian friends that Canada appears to be going the way of the US in terms of political leanings, so ... we all hope they're being pessimistic.
Phew! I truly feel like Canada is so good at keeping political discourse at a simmer. Yeah there was the truckers' protest but nobody died as far as I know. I love watching debates in Canada. There is a base level of respect we seem to be lacking.
One of the commenters on The Squawk whose an attorney went through the suit and she said that while most of it was a whiny mess, there may be a valid point or two but he's going to have a hell of a time proving it (paraphrasing obviously because she recapped it live while reading it and she was incredibly thorough).
I saw somewhere that his first lawsuit against the NYT was likely more to get info during discovery than because they thought they had strong legal grounds to file. I'm not sure they will find what they want, but who knows anymore? It's really become a circus.
I have not read the lawsuit, but the language Baldoni's lawyer has been using makes me think that he knows Justin's case is weak. I know it's the job of a lawyer to vigorously defend their client, but that does not mean whip out the thesaurus to come up with multiple ways to call Blake a liar.
@heather and jessica - there's footage of the "nose" scene - he makes a comment about "my nose is so big" and getting in the way and BL jokes about it - what's SO awful is that he says "that's why we hired Jenny Slate, too, because our noses match." Anyway, his characterization of her having criticized his nose is absolutely not true - and HE provided the footage
Is it wrong, bad, or weird that while up to now I have generally been ambivalent about most awards shows - sure, turn 'em on the background, mute during the boring parts, and maybe there's a category I'm really invested in - but now that there live chats here, I'm putting them on my calendar? :D <3
Exactly the same! But I have also always read recaps of shows I didn't bother watching. I think I value the humor and the community more than the reason for it all, if that makes sense.
THAT VILLA! Wow. I feel like it would be such a letdown if the bathrooms were normal in any way. I want weird, hard-to-clean cold stone tiles - unreliable pull chains for flushing - creepily realistic claw-footed tubs - drippy green-copper taps. We'll laughingly complain to Intern George as we sip drinkies on chaise longues under the welcoming Italian sun
I voted no on White Lotus merely cause that schedule you've posted looks exhausting and I don't want to add something to y'all's stress.
Also, Diet Coke does go bad and surprisingly quickly. Not that I have ever tested this at home, but had leftovers from a work event I decided to store for the next work event, and it was flat. And I want Karl's pencils too. Not at that price, but I would take knockoffs. I love a pencil even if my younger staff literally shutter at the thought.
Oh don’t worry about the work load there! (Although that is so sweet and I appreciate it.) We wouldn’t have floated it if we didn’t have the the oomph for it. - J
I know we're not getting The Traitors weekly recaps this season/are doing small doses in the newsletter....however I love this show and this is spoiler free question: Is Gabby from the Bachelorette this year's narrator? I'm so surprised!! I also didn't know that she and Bob the Drag Queen were so close until watching an outside source??
So this past week's Graham Norton show had the host of Traitors on - I believe she's been on before but I've usually fast forwarded thru her sections but didn't last night (I was waiting for enough PBS News to cache so I could fast forward thru discussions of the inauguration) and she had some funny stories to tell. But the funnies part is that Tom Hiddleston watches the show and had questions and notes about it.
Oh my gosh!! I love the concept of Claudia Winkleman getting a text and it's like "oh it's just Tom. He thinks we should have more lingering shots of the cloaks."
I haven't even started the UK season yet so maybe Tom's got some great insights. It's easier for me to get spoiled on the US version, so I watch that one as it goes.
No it's not texts - Tom was another guest on the show so we actually got to see him talking about it and she said something along the lines of I love that you actually watch the show.
I confess I’ve never seen a Bridget Jones movie. Maybe I’m a bit too old. I’m wondering if it’s worth watching now, I suppose one could start and see if it leads to the next. That said, I found the interview with Renee and Hugh entertaining, but the pictures, if just seen randomly, she seems somewhat unidentifiable. A lot of magazine photography feels so dreary these days.
I'm not sure if the first one will hold up (sexual harassment at work taken lightly/welcomed?, counting of cigarettes and calories) - but I loved it the first time I saw it and always stop and watch it when it's on tv and I notice it. There is a lot to like in it - her friendships, 'Mr Darcy'. The second one was annoying from the get go. And I think I remember being surprised that the third one wasn't that bad but it didn't follow the book if I'm remembering correctly. So I vote for watching the first one.
I saw this with my mom, her two sisters and my grandma. And my very lovely, very loud aunt, who is a Broad through and through hooted and yelled out "hell yes they do!" I was 21 and just wanted the floor to swallow me up. Looking back, I gotta admit she had a point.
The music is good, many familiar faces in the cast, and the calories and cigarettes...well that is life. Many people still do that to lose weight. And she wants to lose weight for herself. Does she NEED to? No. Her character wants it.
Also, you … can’t sue someone for saying mean things. Well, you can sue someone for ANYTHING, but “she was mean about something I’m self conscious about” is not a valid legal claim. I keep reading about his suit (and also — $400 M?!?!?! HOW did they calculate the alleged damages there?!?!) and thinking, hello frivolous lawsuit. What a douche canoe.
I definitely thought, "since when can you sue someone for saying something bitchy?" (With all appropriate caveats about hostile work environments and legit harassment obviously. But people are definitely still legally allowed to be garden-variety bitchy!) - J
The big reason I don't think that is because ALL her written correspondence that's been produced -- by him -- in these suits show her trying to be very, very polite (almost to the point of being very aware that you've gotta be careful what you type). I just don't square that level of effort with her turning around and being like, "GET A NOSE JOB, JERK," especially if on camera. -- H
If someone in the entertainment field expressed to me that they didn't like a, b, or c about their appearance I think I would be reassuring about things you can't change easily. A bad haircut can be fixed. I am sure many stars have been nitpicked by casting directors. Too tall, too short, too old looking, too bald.
What isn't cool is hiring a non actor for a birthing scene. Or walking in on a nursing mother. Or touching her in a non-agreed way.
I like that cover of Renee and it dodges the issue of her eyelid surgery (although I do think in motion she looks like herself again). I have missed Cameron more than Renee but it's nice to see her. I tend to like her films more.
H&J, I hope you and your loved ones continue to remain safe.
Alas, if one wishes to escape fascism, Italy probably isn't the best option.
So we need a villa in France is what I’m hearing?
That is 100% my retirement plan!
Where COULD one escape fascism? Sweden looks pretty good right now - Denmark? Canada?
*
So as a means of procrastination, I read the Baldoni lawsuit in its entirety - 100+ pages - and while I am not a lawyer, it seemed like there were VERY few legal complaints and a lot of whining and very dramatic writing. He is alleging extortion? how? there is no evidence. For Blake to say that RR and TS are her "dragons" isn't exactly threatening. SIGH. Also, at one point he says that it's not sexual harassment to call someone sexy right after they call themselves sexy and DUDE that is not the same situation. SIGH.
In re: escaping fascism, we are looking seriously at a move out of our red state and to the Northeast. Any suggestions for specific communities to consider moving to in the Northeast US? We'd like to have access to both nature (like, a wooded lot, and within a < 1 hr drive of good hiking trails) and grocery stores; reasonable diversity in the community; local arts/galleries; safe public schools with art/music programs; ideally within 90 minutes of a commercial airport.
Maybe look western Massachusetts or central Massachusetts for that?
I agree with Western MA, also CT. Depending on where you land in CT you can get to NYC airports; Hartford/Springfield, and PVD are also viable airport options.
Yeah I went to college in Western Massachusetts so that’s why I think of it. All the trains near the Berkshires aren’t bad.
I lived in SE CT and every airport was over an hour away! Planning trips was annoying! (although Avelo started from New Haven and that was pretty cool). But CT is good cause you can get to NYC or Boston quite easily. (I'm from CT and my friends say I always evaluate places by how long it takes to get to other places, not what you can do there. )
I grew up near Erie, and while it does technically have an airport and it did have a few more route options a decade ago, we were always looking at Pittsburgh, Buffalo and Cleveland. Also for concerts and professional sports; they were an hour and a half, two hours away depending on the snow.
Probably why it didn’t faze me for a long time to spend two hours each way getting to the beach from the Bronx.
Central Mass is getting a little Trumpy. I'd stay closer to the Boston area.
I was thinking like Worcester but I do feel like central could go the way.
I recommend the Merrimack Valley/North Shore region (northeastern MA)- fairly easy access to Boston via the commuter rail or 93, lots of open space and not quite as expensive as MetroWest or Boston
I live in CT and feel like it fits the bill on all of that but fair warning that home prices are very, very high in most parts of the state with good schools/commuter rail access. Litchfield county, Essex, or old saybrook are a bit more affordable though harder to commute from.
It is also pretty red outside Hartford/Waterbury/New Haven. My hometown is in Litchfield County and the Trump flags are still up 2 months later.
As much as I understand wanting to get out of Red State madness, I also say look at NH where Free Staters have been moving in droves and really messing the place up. We can't all abandon the fight to make Blue States even bluer.
Unless we just break the country into two which seems the best option.
But then which half does Canada get assigned to? We're becoming the 51st state, don'tcha know.
True. But think- you'll be able to go to the Gulf of America with no passport. -eye roll-
If Canada somehow became the 51st state before Washington, DC I would loose my mind. Taxation without representation! I don't think DC statehood will ever come to pass without major changes sadly.
Also I recently learned that there are actually tourists who accidentally fly here and think they are in Washington state. So that can't be helping.
When the governor of Ontario said (jokingly, unfortunately) that he'd accept Alaska and Minnesota, my immediate response was "yes, please."
Is Doug Ford as dodgy as his brother, Rob?
Hi from New Jersey! Here's the secret: we put all the chemical plants by Newark airport so that nobody wants to live here. But we're the Garden State for a reason. I genuinely do love it here.
A few facts to back me up:
- NJ is #2 in the nation with percentage dedicated to parkland: 2 of every 10 acres here, second only to Alaska with 4 of every 10.
- Why This Place ranked us #5 for hiking trails - now, are there giant Colorado-esque mountains here, no, but are there hiking trails, woods, waterfalls - plus beach trails, SO MANY, YES.
- Grocery stores: my friend from Pittsburgh insists on going to ShopRite when she comes to visit. Also I just did a Target pickup run to get my Onyx Storm book so I can dive right in after work, and that plus Dunkin plus the library took me exactly 16 minutes.
- Diversity: this one definitely depends on the particular town - I will not pretend we do not have red spots - I live in one, unfortunately. But we're #2 for linguistic and #6 for ethnic diversity according to WalletHub last year.
- Local arts: so much! so much! Princeton, Montclair, Morristown, New Brunswick, Millburn all have great theatre; too much art to list.
- Schools got #4 in the nation according to that same WalletHub survey.
- Airports: honestly two of the main reasons I'd struggle living elsewhere are access to the ocean, and to two hubs within 90 minutes - EWR and PHL. Also, I have made it from my door to my gate at ABE in 21 minutes, so that's nice to have too.
Sorry, this is long, but honestly, I love it here. For further proof, this first line: https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/fashion/05things.html
Here to second (northern) NJ 🤗 standard disclaimer that nowhere is perfect, still plenty to fight for in NJ but if you’re looking for a new location I think it’s pretty good
My BIL and his family live in Montclair. Charming, great restaurants, easy access to Manhattan, etc.
Currently writing in from my shore house in Cape May. All broads welcome.
We'd love to have you! A few considerations:
- Most of the NE has a VERY high cost-of-living and, depending on where you come from, you will have serious sticker shock. Pay particular attention to overall tax burdens (property, income, sales); NY & NJ can kill you. Obviously, living near a major city (NY, Boston, Philly) will be the most expensive.
- Because the NE states are relatively small, you can still be close to nature from even the major cities. If you also want diversity and access to amenities, without the big city sticker shock, I'd suggest looking at the suburbs of a smaller city (Providence or Newport RI; Hartford or New Haven CT; Springfield MA; Portsmouth NH; Portland ME all come to mind.)
- If your primary goal is to avoid "red" neighbors, stay away from deeply rural areas. Even in a famously "blue" state like NY, anywhere outside of the major cities will be majority "red". MAGA propaganda has infiltrated everywhere, though it will still probably be a lot better than what you currently encounter.
- If you're coming from a warm state, don't underestimate the awfulness of winter in the NE. If you really can't tolerate colder weather, you'll be hibernating for half the year.
- While not technically the NE, take a look at Delaware. Marginally better weather, beautiful ocean beaches, reasonable cost-of-living.
My son has lived in Providence for the last 12 years and loves it! You are literally 20 minutes from everything - the mountains, the beach, the woods, etc. The universities are great, parks, libraries, theater, music, incredible food, it's all right there.
I live in Baltimore, MD, and while Baltimore might not have everything you are looking for, Maryland definitely does. The only caveat is that the further you get from the city, the more Trumpy it gets. I actually lead group hikes at a ton of different parks all within 45 minutes of Baltimore, at the most, so the hiking rules. You're a few hours from the mountains and a few hours from the ocean depending on what you prefer. And of course the bay is right there and super fun in the summer. I go to concerts and either the Walters or the BMA once or twice a month. The live music scene kinda sucks, but Philly and DC are close enough to make that okay. I am planning to leave the city eventually (I am close by my mom and help her out a lot, which is the only reason I'm still here) but Maryland overall has been good to me.
Hello fellow Baltimoron!! Anne Arundel County, where I happen to live (Pasadena) is hard to endure right now. So. Many. Confederate. Flags. 🤮 I was the only person in my neighborhood with Harris/Walz signs. And these people are middle class to poor! Their signs are HUGE. Because Maryland is still a very Catholic state, there are one issue voters, which I TRY to understand, even if I don’t agree. The closer you get to Baltimore, the more blue you get.
Oh, I’m sad to hear that. I did my military journalism training at Fort Meade and really liked the area.
Of course, that was during the first W. administration, and for all his many faults, no one made following him their entire personality.
This is the thing I don’t get about all of it. How did that happen? No one had politician flags on their lawn or their CAR? WTH? It’s so, so weird.
I am told by worried Canadian friends that Canada appears to be going the way of the US in terms of political leanings, so ... we all hope they're being pessimistic.
We're not.
Signed, Canadian Friend
Phew! I truly feel like Canada is so good at keeping political discourse at a simmer. Yeah there was the truckers' protest but nobody died as far as I know. I love watching debates in Canada. There is a base level of respect we seem to be lacking.
I am glad to hear it. Maybe I just hang out with a pessimistic group...
One of the commenters on The Squawk whose an attorney went through the suit and she said that while most of it was a whiny mess, there may be a valid point or two but he's going to have a hell of a time proving it (paraphrasing obviously because she recapped it live while reading it and she was incredibly thorough).
I saw somewhere that his first lawsuit against the NYT was likely more to get info during discovery than because they thought they had strong legal grounds to file. I'm not sure they will find what they want, but who knows anymore? It's really become a circus.
I have not read the lawsuit, but the language Baldoni's lawyer has been using makes me think that he knows Justin's case is weak. I know it's the job of a lawyer to vigorously defend their client, but that does not mean whip out the thesaurus to come up with multiple ways to call Blake a liar.
@heather and jessica - there's footage of the "nose" scene - he makes a comment about "my nose is so big" and getting in the way and BL jokes about it - what's SO awful is that he says "that's why we hired Jenny Slate, too, because our noses match." Anyway, his characterization of her having criticized his nose is absolutely not true - and HE provided the footage
https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/wayfarer-studios-releases-justin-baldoni-blake-lively-slow-dance-scene/
It’s almost like he wants to give Blake money for her legal fees.
How do you celebrate Festivus if you DON’T have a list of grievances to air, Justin?
(Also, he obviously made note of that comment somewhere.)
I feel like we all dropped off reading/watching Bridget Jones after the second movie or third book but I’m all for Renee getting more flowers.
Is it wrong, bad, or weird that while up to now I have generally been ambivalent about most awards shows - sure, turn 'em on the background, mute during the boring parts, and maybe there's a category I'm really invested in - but now that there live chats here, I'm putting them on my calendar? :D <3
Exactly the same! But I have also always read recaps of shows I didn't bother watching. I think I value the humor and the community more than the reason for it all, if that makes sense.
Absofrackinlutely. (And in fact I too have been fully engaged in recaps of shows I don't watch ... and now don't have to, hahahahaa.)
THAT VILLA! Wow. I feel like it would be such a letdown if the bathrooms were normal in any way. I want weird, hard-to-clean cold stone tiles - unreliable pull chains for flushing - creepily realistic claw-footed tubs - drippy green-copper taps. We'll laughingly complain to Intern George as we sip drinkies on chaise longues under the welcoming Italian sun
I don't even know how to play golf, but I want to hang out with Larry David and Doc Rivers just to see how that odd couple gets along!
Same
At first glance I thought Renee was Lea Seydoux. That's a really odd angle/styling of her!
I voted no on White Lotus merely cause that schedule you've posted looks exhausting and I don't want to add something to y'all's stress.
Also, Diet Coke does go bad and surprisingly quickly. Not that I have ever tested this at home, but had leftovers from a work event I decided to store for the next work event, and it was flat. And I want Karl's pencils too. Not at that price, but I would take knockoffs. I love a pencil even if my younger staff literally shutter at the thought.
Oh don’t worry about the work load there! (Although that is so sweet and I appreciate it.) We wouldn’t have floated it if we didn’t have the the oomph for it. - J
I have tested it when I got a can if diet code that tasted like seltzer, it was last the "best by" date.
I know we're not getting The Traitors weekly recaps this season/are doing small doses in the newsletter....however I love this show and this is spoiler free question: Is Gabby from the Bachelorette this year's narrator? I'm so surprised!! I also didn't know that she and Bob the Drag Queen were so close until watching an outside source??
So this past week's Graham Norton show had the host of Traitors on - I believe she's been on before but I've usually fast forwarded thru her sections but didn't last night (I was waiting for enough PBS News to cache so I could fast forward thru discussions of the inauguration) and she had some funny stories to tell. But the funnies part is that Tom Hiddleston watches the show and had questions and notes about it.
Oh my gosh!! I love the concept of Claudia Winkleman getting a text and it's like "oh it's just Tom. He thinks we should have more lingering shots of the cloaks."
I haven't even started the UK season yet so maybe Tom's got some great insights. It's easier for me to get spoiled on the US version, so I watch that one as it goes.
No it's not texts - Tom was another guest on the show so we actually got to see him talking about it and she said something along the lines of I love that you actually watch the show.
Ohhh that’s even more fun!
I confess I’ve never seen a Bridget Jones movie. Maybe I’m a bit too old. I’m wondering if it’s worth watching now, I suppose one could start and see if it leads to the next. That said, I found the interview with Renee and Hugh entertaining, but the pictures, if just seen randomly, she seems somewhat unidentifiable. A lot of magazine photography feels so dreary these days.
I'm not sure if the first one will hold up (sexual harassment at work taken lightly/welcomed?, counting of cigarettes and calories) - but I loved it the first time I saw it and always stop and watch it when it's on tv and I notice it. There is a lot to like in it - her friendships, 'Mr Darcy'. The second one was annoying from the get go. And I think I remember being surprised that the third one wasn't that bad but it didn't follow the book if I'm remembering correctly. So I vote for watching the first one.
The kiss at the end is perfect.
And the quote! “Oh yes they fucking do!” Is a great way to get there.
I saw this with my mom, her two sisters and my grandma. And my very lovely, very loud aunt, who is a Broad through and through hooted and yelled out "hell yes they do!" I was 21 and just wanted the floor to swallow me up. Looking back, I gotta admit she had a point.
I would have done the same! I probably saw this in college without my mom for that reason.
The music is good, many familiar faces in the cast, and the calories and cigarettes...well that is life. Many people still do that to lose weight. And she wants to lose weight for herself. Does she NEED to? No. Her character wants it.
watch #1 with a grain of salt for things that don't hold up, skip 2 and 3 and come back for the new one.
The book is very mid-2000s and it read that way then and will be worse now, but really the book is just a modern day Pride and Prejudice so…
I would guess that if Blake did make the nose job comment, she probably said it to be mean and he probably deserved it.
That was my exact reaction!
Also, you … can’t sue someone for saying mean things. Well, you can sue someone for ANYTHING, but “she was mean about something I’m self conscious about” is not a valid legal claim. I keep reading about his suit (and also — $400 M?!?!?! HOW did they calculate the alleged damages there?!?!) and thinking, hello frivolous lawsuit. What a douche canoe.
I definitely thought, "since when can you sue someone for saying something bitchy?" (With all appropriate caveats about hostile work environments and legit harassment obviously. But people are definitely still legally allowed to be garden-variety bitchy!) - J
The big reason I don't think that is because ALL her written correspondence that's been produced -- by him -- in these suits show her trying to be very, very polite (almost to the point of being very aware that you've gotta be careful what you type). I just don't square that level of effort with her turning around and being like, "GET A NOSE JOB, JERK," especially if on camera. -- H
Oo, that villa looks suspiciously like the one where James and Vesper rehab at the end of Casino Royale.
You made me look it up, because you're right, they do look quite similar. (Turns out it was filmed at a different villa.)
Price on application is wild! 🤣
I wonder if the people at Savills are like, “who in the hell is linking to these random properties?” when they get like 300 clicks on just one…
They should let us report in person!! - J
If someone in the entertainment field expressed to me that they didn't like a, b, or c about their appearance I think I would be reassuring about things you can't change easily. A bad haircut can be fixed. I am sure many stars have been nitpicked by casting directors. Too tall, too short, too old looking, too bald.
What isn't cool is hiring a non actor for a birthing scene. Or walking in on a nursing mother. Or touching her in a non-agreed way.
I like that cover of Renee and it dodges the issue of her eyelid surgery (although I do think in motion she looks like herself again). I have missed Cameron more than Renee but it's nice to see her. I tend to like her films more.
yea and implying a woman is "difficult" for listing the shitty harassment stuff you did to her...it's staggeringly depressing how not surprised we are