letting the days go by

Good afternoon,

It's been a slow February, but here we are with another round of content!

For this letter, I write about the musical, American Utopia, the Stop Making Sense concert film, and one of my favorite coming-of-age movies, Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

I've become too fixated on Talking Heads and David Byrne that I mention them multiple times in this newsletter. Please bear with me.

As always, I'm coming in hot with my recommendations.

Latest Essays

American Utopia (2020)

A musical. I try not to let my crush on David Byrne get in the way with my analysis.

american utopia (2020) — mustang sandy

we’re on the road to nowhere.

Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)

One of my greatest comfort movies.

fast times at ridgemont high (1982) — mustang sandy

a teen movie with an attitude.

Media Archives

Films

Manila By Night (1980) Lifting the veil of our city’s nightlife. The dark underbelly of ‘80’s Manila filled with drugs, prostitution, poverty, and a whole lot of disco. Very gritty, very dirty, and very gay. I freaking loved it.

Chungking Express (1994) A Hong Kong anthology film about two heartbroken policemen finding love again. Nothing short of sublime. The second story awakened the hopeless romantic in me.

Hello, Love, Again (2024) The highest grossing Filipino film of all time. A sequel to Hello, Love, Goodbye, Ethan and Joy's love story continues in Canada. More than a romcom, the film touches on the hardships of OFWs living abroad.

The Big Bird Cage (1972) An American film about women in prison based in Ifugao. It's giving Quentin Tarantino, but it left a bad taste in my mouth. Other than our "exotic" vibes, I got the impression that the director wanted to exploit our resources for cheap labor.

Pickpocket (1959) A French new wave film about a man who's unemployed and learns the art of pickpocketing. He tries to stop, but the temptation is too strong. The subtext is so sensual, it could very well be soft porn for thieves.

Deep End (1970) The Swinging Sixties are over in Britain. A teenager gets a job in a bathhouse, and meets a co-worker he becomes obsessed with. David Ehrlich's Letterboxd review says it all: nobody, not even the rain, has ever been down so bad.

Carnal Knowledge (1971) Two friends explore the moral ambiguities of sex, love, and lust. Due to its controversial themes, Georgia authorities convicted their local theater manager for "distributing obscene material" for this film. Fortunately, the US Supreme Court overturned it.

The Pom Pom Girls (1976) A slice of life portrayal on the cool kids of Southern California. Teenagers are assholes to their teachers, curse a lot, and do the most disgusting things for no reason. If this isn't an accurate depiction of high school, I don't know what is.

The Paper Chase (1973) A first year Harvard Law School student devotes himself to his studies and his fascination for his terror prof. He starts a relationship with a woman, who’s coincidentally his professor’s daughter. Psychologically juicy.

9-to-5 (1980) Three women fantasize about overthrowing their sexist autocratic boss. A series of accidents lead them to fulfill their wishes, and assume control of his department. Starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton—before Grace and Frankie sold vibrators to 80-year-old women.

Music

Here Lies Love (2013) Upon doing research for my Talking Heads essay, I learned that David Byrne made a disco musical about Imelda Marcos’ life. This was the first Broadway show to feature an all-Filipino cast—and it earned four Tony Award nominations. How crazy is that?

Girlfriend is Better by Talking Heads (1983) This one absolutely slaps. I got a girlfriend with bows in her hair and nothing is better than that are such cool lyrics.

J'aime les filles by Jacques Dutronc (1966) A man sings about how much he loves girls—girls who camp, girls who go on strike, girls who work at the assembly line. Playful, suggestive, and kinda naughty. Can it be any more French?

Original Soul Classics That Beatles Recorded and Played Live There's no getting away from The Beatles in this newsletter. But in this case, it's not them singing but their predecessors.

Imagine by John Lennon (1971) After watching American Utopia, this mega-popular hit came to my mind. I have thoughts, so I'll be reviewing this song next.

Books

Catching the Big Fish by David Lynch (2007) A book on creativity, film, and meditation written by one of the best directors of our time. Unfortunately, I'm not a fan. Read my short Goodreads review here.

Backstage Passes by Angela Bowie (1993) An uncompromising memoir written by David Bowie's first wife. This woman is wild as shit. I can't believe the words that are coming out of her mouth.