Anne's Arts & Activities Blog

  I didn't hear about “State of the Union” during its first season (I was in a bad place mentally then.) but saw a preview for the current season with Patricia Clarkson (one of my favorites) and Brendan Gleeson, and decided I should check it out. Sundance TV's “State of the Union,” is a short-form series written and created by Nick Hornby and directed by Stephen Frears. It consists of 10 10-minute segments featuring couples discussing their problems right before going to a marriage counseling session. Chris O’Dowd and Rosamund Pike played Tom and Louise during the first season and were discussing whether their marriage could and should be saved after she cheated on him. Through their humorous but serious conversations we learn why she cheated and what got them both to that point. We also learn about how they met and much, much more. I was amazed at how much could be jammed into 10 minutes. Clarkson and Gleeson are a very different couple and are seeking counseling for...

 I wish I hadn't started Amazon's new series “As We See It” on a night I didn't have time to binge because I most certainly would have kept going beyond the second episode. The show centers on three 20-something roommates who are on the autism spectrum and their aide who are all try to navigate the world amidst its many challenges, some bigger and more complex than others, relatively speaking. One of the things I like best about the show is that the three main characters are played by actors who actually are on the spectrum. So far my favorite roommate is Violet (Sue Ann Pien), who works at Arby's, wants a boyfriend and has no filter. As she's working the counter at Arby's she propositions a customer (it's all innocent and honest as far as Violet knows), resulting in a tirade by he customer's wife and a demotion for Violet to sandwich technician. Later, she meets a man she found on Bumble. He doesn't know she's on the spectrum and ends up d...