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We all know "California Roll". As its name's sake implied, it is an amalgamation of "edible cultural substance" wrapped under a sheet of seaweed. This is how the movie was to me. Since we are onto food, I shall start with the most visceral chewing sequence of eating shrimp cocktail by Dennis Quaid, who played the very loud show producer Harvey and who was at a dismissal lunch meeting with Demi Moore, the lead character Elizabeth. In that scene, Dennis chewing was a total emancipation of any known social grace or table manners. In closeups, under Dennis grinding teeth, the shrimps are no longer part of a delectable starter of fine dining, but a swirling mess of unappetizing protein, or more precisely, to use the scientific detachment of non-judgmental to redescribe what I said, they were simply some protein SUBSTANCE. Now if we were to use the same non-judgmental scientific lens to interpret the entire movie, again, starting with the shrimps, which are protein being digested, assimilated and transformed by Quaid to become part of a newer Quaid on a cellular level, That is biology. As such, if you were to use the same metric to understand what happened to Moore, isn't that the same thing? Some evolutionary newer self from cell division? This is my point, and if you were to see it as a show about speculative science on evolutionary possibilities, that could well be a National Geographic show, but it isn't. The reason why it isn't is because the story is seen through the lens of social criticism. Here is why I used "California Roll" as a metaphor for the movie. Like California Roll, the amalgamation in this case is how science and accusative social context are rolled into one to form this. Another aspect of amalgamation here is of genre: sci-fi and very, very black "comedy". The comedy aspect is attitudinal and as a viewer, you need to find it somewhere swimming among the Mardi Gras of horror. From an entertainment point of view, Dennis, Demi and Margaret (Qualley) are just captivating to watch. Other delights for me came from a host of homages or references to classics. For example: The Picture of Dorian Grey, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and finally that very iconic scene from the movie "Carrie" . You will know what I mean if you have read either those books or seen those movies.

"Perfect Days" is a way of looking at life in which contentment has given you enough satisfaction to call your days "Perfect". But behind this simple truth lies an ocean of desires, all of which are personal and each of which has a passing benchmark that must be met before you can feel content. The assortment of components that make your days "perfect" are commonly agreed for we are fundamentally social animals with shared values, and these ideas of perfection usually need to pass the litmus test of some degree of consensual recognitions so that our self-proclaimed perfections will have some form of resonance from our peers as confirmation.

But what if that root cause for our satisfaction is minuscule or so insignificant that it is imperceptible to others? What if that satisfaction is so profoundly personal that it can only be felt by you alone?

The character Hirayama, played fabulously by Kogi Yakusho is a toilet cleaner who finds "Perfect Days" from the immersive regimen he exercises daily in his unchanging routine of cleaning public toilets. That and what remains of his simple private life becomes the cocoon of his universe of "perfect days". The real pleasurable dialogue he has with the outside is not from the people around him, but from his books and music. Because his idea of perfection is of such humble simplicity, his "Perfect Days" become something beautiful and magical to watch.

MONSTERS

The series is extremely good and extremely well done, but it is also a hard pill to swallow. That is not only was the crime real and heinous, one in which the victims were the parents, but also the real shocker is the defense used by the brothers. It was shocking because it went beyond the abyss of the unfathomable. If you are morally prudish and have a delicate sensibility, it can be disgusting and brutalizing to learn.

This is where the show is being masterful! It is masterful in skillful manipulation through casting and storytelling. On casting, both Javier Bardem and Choe Sevigny were good. The cleverness is how they dialed up the volume of their embodiments of the parents to the edge of almost being caricatures. This 110 db presentation left an indelible impression of what it was like at home. This kind of performance requires walking a fine line. Just a slight leaning on the wrong side would topple the believability and both Javier and Choe walked that line brilliantly. However, this is just the first of the "one-two" punch. The knockout punch came from Cooper Koch and Nicholas Chavez who played the brothers with Cooper's performance being the most grippingly convincing. Despite their sloppy planning here and there, you as the armchair judge and jury are very ready to ladle out globs of sympathy, and if you are not, the detailed verbal pornographic disclosure of what happened to Cooper (aka the character Erik Menendaz) would have changed your harsh and hardcore seeking for criminal justice mind. Now that you have become pliable and are ready to eat out of the hands of sympathy for the brothers, the turnaround comes sudden and swift. The final episode is the awakening that doesn't give you a second chance to catch your breath for a pause and a maybe... It aims straightly at your jugular for a no return fresh look in which justice is served. Highly recommended.