Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter
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Pulling the plug
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During the pandemic, I almost daily gave thanks that we live in the age of streaming services. After libraries closed and I was confined to my home alone for much of the time, TV was a lifeline that probably literally kept me sane.
Whether it was trashy fun (Tiger King , Love Is Blind), or comforting soapy fare (the British series Mount Pleasant was pure pandemic pleasure), or prestige television (I’m sure I watched some), it felt like having friends in the room.
And now, when the ongoing Hollywood actors strike is postponing the return of some of my anticipated shows — that Severance cliffhanger! — streaming is still there with its myriad options and deep catalogues.
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However, what’s become clear is that cable TV is increasingly a last viewing resort for me.
I am invested in several network shows, but I realize that weeks can go by before I remember to check the PVR for new episodes of Abbott Elementary or What We Do in the Shadows (both of which eventually come to Disney+, in any case).
In last Saturday’s Free Press, my colleague Denise Duguay outlined her plan to — gasp! — cut the cord of her cable and cut down on her television/streaming viewing with the aim of watching more mindfully and judiciously.
I, too, have been toying with the idea of getting rid of my terrestrial TV channels. Like Denise, I love TV too much to give it up altogether, but several of her excellent arguments ring true, No. 1 being the savings.
I subscribe to Crave, Apple TV+, Prime Video and City TV+ (I needed to see the new season of Justified, OK?); my boyfriend takes care of the Netflix and Disney subscriptions. Add on the cost of cable, the thing I watch the least, and it’s a shocking monthly amount.
I don’t really begrudge streamers the cost — it brings me a vast amount of pleasure every month and I’ve spent more on a single night out — but I could be more discerning about my choices.
So I’m joining Denise on her quest, starting this Sunday. I plan to ditch my cable and be more mindful about what I watch, actually keeping track of the time I spend in front of the boob tube (and only watching on an actual TV — no laptop or phone allowed).
Rather than framing it as a deprivation, I’m trying to make it a positive: Not “I’m not allowed to watch more TV tonight” but “Ooh, I have an hour to read before bed.”
I’m making no moral judgements about books being superior or more intellectual entertainment than TV — as Stephen Fry says (and I paraphrase): don’t watch television because it’s intelligent, thoughtful and well-produced; watch it because YOU are intelligent, thoughtful and well-produced. Television is in its golden age and is a bona fide cultural lingua franca.
But I probably don’t need to be watching New Girl for the third time, however well-produced it is and I am. And this stack of books isn’t going to read itself.
Jill’s stack of books. (Jill WIlson / Winnipeg Free Press)
Denise would love you to join her: Challengers are encouraged to share observations, questions and suggestions in writing by email denise.duguay@winnipegfreepress.com or snail mail to 1355 Mountain Ave., Winnipeg, MB, R2X 3B6.
Halloween treats: Readers were surprisingly reticent with their spooky suggestions, but Free Press freelance scribe Randall King kindly recommended the shot-in-Manitoba Dark Harvest (streaming on Amazon Prime).
Another dandy idea from reader Cynthia is the American Horror Story series from Ryan Murphy, on Disney+ — so many seasons to choose from!
And for a scary soundtrack, I direct you to this petrifying playlist the Freep arts team put together last year.
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Jill Wilson
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So not only do I pay for all those subscriptions, but I’ll also shell out to rent movies on occasion. I missed You Hurt My Feelings in theatres; it was only 99 cents to rent on Apple — and what a bargain.
I am big fan of Nicole Holofcener films (Walking and Talking, Friends With Money) and this one stars the inimitable Julia Louis-Dreyfus as a writer who’s struggling with the fiction follow-up to her memoir. When she finds out her husband (Tobias Menzies) has been lying to her about liking it, it sends their otherwise rock-solid marriage into a tailspin.
I love both sides of the Barbie/Oppenheimer coin, but sometimes I want something small, intimate, talky and human, about small-p problems.
What’s up this week
• Free Press arts writers have five recommendations, from Dean Brody to Comiccon, where you can meet Giancarlo Esposito, Robert Patrick and Lou Ferrigno.
• Polaris Prize-winning singer-songwriter Jeremy Dutcher plays the Burt on Saturday: Alan Small has the scoop on his new album and its Manitoba connection here.
• Also on Saturday, local troubadour Matt Foster, who electrified audiences at the folk festival this summer, releases his album at the West End Cultural Centre. Tickets at wecc.ca.
• It’s a blast from the past at the Big A tonight, where Winnipeg ‘80s bands Monuments Galore and Chocolate Bunnies from Hell take the stage.
• At the Gas Station Arts Centre on Saturday, fringe favourite The DnD Improv Show presents a Halloween Special.
• Buhler Gallery at St. Boniface Hospital) presents Planet Love until Nov. 19, with, works by AO Roberts, Cheryl Zubrack, Chimwemwe Undi, Colleen Cutschall, Darren Stebeleski, David Heinrichs, Helga Jakobson, Jamie Wright, Jonato Dalayoan, Moneca Sinclaire, Phil Brake and more. Eva Wasney has the story.
Theatre season is in full swing — check out your options below
• Prairie Theatre Exchange (3rd floor, Portage Place) from Oct. 27-28 – Tomatoes Tried to Kill Me, But Banjos Saved My Life, by Keith Alessi. Special fundraising performances of a Fringe Festival favourite. More info and tickets at pte.mb.ca.
• Royal Manitoba Theatre: John Hirsch Mainstage (174 Market Ave.) on until Nov. 11 – Clue, by Sandy Rustin, based on the screenplay by Jonathan Lynn. More info and tickets at royalmtc.ca
• Theatre By the River (Portage Avenue Church, 1420 Portage Ave.) on until Oct. 28 – Glad to Be Here. More info and tickets at theatrebytheriver.com.
• Théâtre Cercle Molière (340 Provencher Blvd.) on Until Nov. 4 – Entre Maronne? (Si ça te dit, viens), by Gustave Akakpo. English subtitles available at all performances. More info and tickets at cerclemoliere.com.
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NEW IN MUSIC
Alan Small:
Language arts
After entire album in Wolastoqey, Jeremy Dutcher finds writing in English a challenge
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Album reviews: Jeremy Dutcher, Duran Duran, Peripheral Vision and Gianandrea Noseda
When Jeremy Dutcher accepted the 2018 Polaris Prize for his first album, Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa, he declared: “Canada, you are in the midst of an Indigenous renaissance.” Evidence of that proclamation has slowly but continuously revealed itself over the past five years — politically, socially, legally and culturally — and Dutcher, a classically trained operatic singer, musician and academic, is at the vanguard of this renaissance.
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Holly Harris:
East meets West to the beat of tabla
The Manitoba Chamber Orchestra served up a big batch of musical stew steeped in cross-cultural flavours Wednesday night, as it welcomed back to its stage multi-award-winning, Sri Lankan-born Canadian composer/conductor Dinuk Wijeratne.
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Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter
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NEW ON SCREEN
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NEW IN BOOKS
Mike Sawatzky:
Class act
Regardless of circumstances, Dryden has always risen to the occasion
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Reviewed by Faith Johnston:
Breaking the rules
Historians chronicle how prominent politicians duped Indigenous communities out of land, compensation
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Reviewed by Andrea Geary:
Novel sheds light on serial killer’s victims
In her novel Bright Young Women, Jessica Knoll choses to write a fictionalized account of how serial killer Ted Bundy abruptly ended the lives of three of his many victims, and how their horrific deaths impacted their friends and families for years afterward.
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Reviewed by Nick Martin:
Top secret
Herron’s British intelligence yarn brings a shady cast of characters
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Reviewed by Chris Rutkowski:
A dangerous path
Climate scientist rings alarm bells on the state of our planet — and the political obstacles preventing action
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