Set aside the Downtown Abbey catfight between the royal siblings and their spouses who don’t actually mean A thing. But, here’s on Scoop, a recently released 2024 Netflix film, that stars Gillian Andersen (who actually played Margaret Thatcher in The Crown), Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew, Billie Piper, and Keeley Hawes—a very British set of cast, as expected—exposes the bigger picture of behind the scene of all the news you’ve seen, especially the notorious Prince Andrew interview. 

So yes, it’s about Prince Andrew, the late British Queen’s favorite son, and his involvement with a couple of paedo sickos, Ghislaine Maxwell and… Jeffrey Epstein.

The epicenter of the film surrounds the interview and how BBC journalist Sam McAllister managed to secure an interview with the ‘alleged’ royal paedo and the details surrounding the one-hour-long interview. That detail includes Andrew Windsor’s weird attitude, such as when he screamed, “Trousers!” when he saw Emily Maitlis come to the Palace wearing them, which soon later he smirked.

Scoop has done a very neat job of recreating the nerve-wracking moments of the journalists involved, the pictures of Andrew + Epstein, and the interview itself. The audience is taken to deep down on how gripping the tight situation around such a particular moment later shakes the Royal family.

On the other side of the interview, Sam McAlister herself had a difficult time achieving the break that she deserved, the doubt of the credit she might received from the hard work she did, and her relationship with her teenage son.

I would prefer the audience to watch this and digest it for unique and better judgment. However, one thing I’d like to appreciate, Scoop has successfully reminded us whom journalism stands for: the truth and the only truth. In a world where media is both shifting and struggling, there are certain points where we still can count on good, fair, and responsible journalism.

And the release of the film reminds us that even though Prince Andrew is no longer serving royal duties, he’s still out and free—somewhere he doesn’t belong after all the crimes he did.

Now, my question to you, British Royal Family fans, is why are you still adoring this highly illustrated family?

A little note: not to confuse Scoop the 2023 Indian series.

"Oh kamu ballet? Wah kek Black Swan dong."

Aku: "Ya kali dah!"

Jujur rada capek pas orang-orang tau aku ikutan ballet, yang di kepala mereka taunya cuma Black Swan. Sementara, apa yang digambarkan di satu film itu (meski bagus atau nggak bagus) ya nggak terlalu menggambarkan dunia ballet banget. At least, di Indo. Bitchy-bitchy? Ya tergantung orangnya lah. Di semua komunitas atau industri, pasti ada aja.

Dan ballet itu nggak cuma Black Swan atau lengkapnya lagi, judul betulnya itu Swan Lake. Banyak cerita ballet lain pula 🤣

Jadi, aku kasih list tontonan yang bisa dicoba kalau tertarik ballet, dengan segala plus dan minusnya.

Mao's Last Dancer

Based on true story dari Li Cunxin, ballerino asal Cina, anak seorang petani, hidup di masa Mao Tse Tung. Dia salah satu anak yang dipilih untuk dididik pemerintah sebagai penari ballet, dalam agenda Mao untuk bisa bersaing dengan negara-negara ‘cultured’. Sampai kemudian, ia dikirim ke Amerika dan melihat kehidupan yang berbeda, bebas dan demokratis, mempertanyakan cara pemerintahan Cina bekerja. 

Buat aku yang belajar ballet, akhirnya paham bagaimana pola pengajaran ala Cina yang keras, meski kontroversial. Secara penggambaran, cukup jelas, nggak heboh diromantisasi, Sayangnya visual-nya kurang, padahal skill ballet aktornya bagus banget.

Tiny Pretty Things

Diangkat dari novel dari judul yang sama, ceritanya soal satu murid ballet yang akhirnya diterima di salah satu sekolah tersulit di Chicago. Kenapa dia diterima? Ternyata dia dipanggil karena untuk menggantikan spot salah satu anak yang berusaha bunuh diri, belum mati tapi ya koma dan kemungkinan tidak akan bangun lagi.

Tapi ketika dia mulai, banyak keanehan seputar kejadian anak tersebut yang mencoba bunuh diri. Apakah benar dia bunuh diri atau ada yang mendorongnya? Sementara kultur sekolah tersebut sangat uptight, dengan murid-murid yang arogan, guru-guru killer yang acuh, dan pihak management sekolah yang tertutup. 

Sebagai thriller story, kurang thrilling dan kebanyakan drama bocah. Yes, ballet is quite tricky for an inclusive culture, tapi enggak se-sinetron ini sih. Secara koreo ballet yang ditampilkan, lebih ke kontemporer dan maksa.

Navillera

Drama korea yang membuat aku mau mencoba pilih-pilih drakor untuk ditonton (karena selama ini nggak suka drakor).

Cerita awalnya dari Webtoon, tentang seorang ballerino muda yang berbakat, tapi latar belakang keluarga dan trauma menghambat Lee Chae-rok untuk menyadari kemampuannya dan terus maju. Sementara itu, dia ketemu dengan pensiunan tukang pos usia 80 tahunan yang ingin sekali belajar ballet.

Dengan cerita masa awal karir Shim Daek-chul yang dari keluarga susah, kemudian punya keluarga sendiri, dan anak-anaknya kini sudah dewasa dengan kesulitannya sendiri-sendiri, makin mempertajam pain points orang-orang yang belajar ballet dari usia dewasa, khususnya untuk lansia.

Dramanya masuk akal banget. Self-doubts, kemampuan tubuh dan otak yang semakin menua untuk belajar, plus arogansi orang-orang yang lebih muda melihat orang-orang yang mau belajar meski di usia tua. As an adult ballet beginner, Navillera berhasil capture the real struggle tanpa romantisasi menye-menye.

Center Stage

Mungkin in cult-classic ballet terbaik. Kalau nggak tau filmnya, mungkin anak kelahiran 80-90an inget soundtracknya, Mandy Moore - I Wanna Be with You.

Filmnya nggak terlalu terkenal, karena yang main rata-rata bukan aktor terkenal, melainkan penari balet profesional sungguhan. Tapi justru ini menjadikan film Center Stage the best cult classic movie yang breakthrough pada masanya. Mungkin yang kamu kenal di sini cuma... Zoe Saldana.

Ceritanya tentang beberapa murid baru, murid lama, guru-guru, dan profesional dancer di salah satu sekolah ballet ternama dengan segala dramanya. Mulai dari murid yang tekniknya berantakan, ada yang prodigy tapi terpaksa ballet karena paksaan orang tua, berbakat tapi insecure, dan sebagainya---karakter yang mungkin kita temui di sekolah ballet pada umumnya, jadi kita rasanya relate.

Koreonya bagus banget, btw!

Coming of age story for ballerinas, ya walau endingnya macam ketebak.

Nanti ditambahin lagi ya watchlist. Ada part 2!

Moving forward is always difficult, especially when you have huge baggage. I found that watching films or series that are able to touch you and bring you to tears are the ones helping me to take a step. So I'm recommending you some the latest films/series in the theme where we can start thinking about accepting the presence.

Russian Doll - Season 2 | Series | Netflix 

From subway station to another, from a train ride to another.

The second season brings Nadia, not only the ability to body-switch, but also to time-travel! The whole seven episodes focused on Nadia's struggles to fix her fate, by changing the past, and mending her mother's mistake she blamed heavily, so she could have a better chance.

I cracked on the last episodes where Nadia makes her chance to thank Ruthie. Surely, the series subtly tells us to make the best version of ourselves and be with people who truly love us.

"Turns out, I was wrong about time. ... See, I thought I could change things for us, you know? If I just went back far enough. And then, I couldn't change anything at all. "

The plot is confusing at first. Compared to the first season, the storyline was easier for me to digest yet intriguing ending. Somehow, strong witty lines and a twist of history gives this second part more flavour to taste. 

7 Lives of Léa | Series | Netflix 

The story starts with Léa who found a dead body, only skeletons, with a bracelet. After that incident, she gets the ability to body-switch and time travel. First, she travels back to the past where the mysterious dead man is still alive and becomes him. Later, on another date in the past, she becomes the other people related to that guy, who also happens to be the people she knows very well, including her parents.

However, this French series takes us to another angle, by giving us the picture if Léa saves the dead guy's life and revoking the hidden regret of her parents. 

We are fastly taken by the regret of Léa, as the reality she gets back to is another story she doesn't recognize anymore. The endings make us dead empty inside enough for us to accept our reality. 

Pachinko | Series | Apple TV+

Maybe this one has more tragedies and less magical since it doesn't offer super power to time travel. Yet, this one comes from a highly successful novel that offers a deep perspective of immigrants spans to 4 generations and how the political and societal dynamic affects them.

In the first season, Sunja revisits her past by going back to her hometown and is faced with her mistakes years before. Yet her strength keeps her and her family moving forward without forgetting the hardship and twisted path that have brought her this far.

Pachinko has successfully portrayed the hardship, struggle, and dilemma of being an immigrant and the life years after for generations. The smell of home, the taste of mothers' home-cooked meals, the feel of familiar comfort that are gone and far impossible to come back to---something unthinkable for many.

Senior Year | Film | Netflix

Reminds me of Korean series where a highschooler got an accident then wakes up a few years later after a long period of coma, only to live up the life she has lost so much.

But well, this one is played by Rebel Wilson. Funny and entertaining as always. The 17-year-old Steph has to move on with her childish attitude and accept that her 37-year-old body and the people around her have moved on with their lives. There, the lesson learned: true friends don't leave.

By keeping going with her own life with the rest she has, Steph understands that the life she used to want isn't the best for her and that the accident actually gives her a chance to have better things ahead. She goes back to her high school in her older form to regain what she always wants. I love it when moving forward is also counted for moving back with everything you got. The bravery of taking whatever you dream of when things have already moved sideways.