PeachesIR

This documentary starts out with some interesting untold Hollywood history: Just after WWII, a busy Los Angeles filling station doubled as a discreet sex hookup venue for stars looking for quick, anonymous and, usually, gay sex. The cheery manager of all of these shenanigans was a gorgeous young veteran named Scotty Bowers, whom we meet in the 21st century as a still-fit, spry and sex-positive 90-year-old. Scotty made a small fortune as a Hollywood pimp, procurer and sometimes sex worker for the very biggest stars, directors and even foreign royalty, or so he claims and dishes in a new, tell-all book. Scotty gushes with enthusiasm when he reminisces about the sexual tastes, secrets and endowments of long-dead movie stars, and spares no details about all of his escapades. Some of the now-aging guys who worked for him share their stories of the wild days of Hollywood in the 50s through mid-80s, when the AIDS epidemic changed so many lives. He tells tales about everyone from Walter Pidgeon to Katharine Hepburn to Ava Gardner to Rock Hudson, and many more.

Scotty appears irrepressibly buoyant and even giddy as he shares juicy details about Hollywood's sex habits, but you also sense that he has endured tragedy and pain in his personal life, and maybe never healed. While he extols the joys of a hedonistic sex life where literally "anything goes," you sense a lot of sadness, loss and denial, too.

One thing that bugs me about this film (and others of this genre) is that Scotty shares very private, intimate sexual details about people who are no longer living and never agreed to have their personal lives exposed in a book or movie. He says his discretion was something the stars appreciated when he acted as their pimp or partner in bed, but now, he discards discretion and claims it doesn't matter.

Also, while I'm sure some of the stories Scotty shares are true, some seem embellished or may be figments of his imagination. I didn't find all of it convincing. Some of the darker aspects of Scotty's life, which he shares in detail (although shrugged off as no big deal), make me wonder if he indulges in fantasy at times as a balm.

It's an interesting look under Hollywood's satin sheets, for sure, but also left me thinking that Hollywood's glamour is spit-shined and very fake, even creepy.

"The Boys" is one of my favorite current series. In fact, it's one of the few series on TV/streaming right now that I find truly compelling. Quality writing, acting and visual effects. I will say that Season 4 seemed a bit of a drop in intensity from Season 3 (which was marvelous), but I'm still very eager for the final Season 5.

Antony Starr as Homelander is riveting as the co-lead/main villain, with his pomposity and monstrous behavior balanced with his self-hatred, desperate fear of his weaknesses being exposed, and most poignantly, his need for love. You despise him and then you feel sympathy for him -- amazing acting. The rest of the cast is excellent, too. Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), Hughie (Jack Quaid), Annie January/Starlight (Erin Moriarty), Mother's Milk (Laz Alonzo) and the rest of The Boys are all complex, fully fleshed-out characters, completely human in their angst, passion, tragedy and humor.

I've read that the comic book series on which the show is based is much, much darker and bleaker in tone and plot. But "The Boys" goes far enough to send a message.

The writing is always sharp and often very funny: political and cultural satire that digs deeply into the corruption that permeates modern society and commercialism. There's all kinds of gory violence and raunchy sex that veers into the bizarre at times, so if you're squeamish, "The Boys" may not be your taste. I am older and generally prefer historically accurate costume dramas, but I am not put off by it and truly adore "The Boys." Can't wait for Season 5!

This series has glossy, high-budget sets, costumes and production values, as well as a sumptuous score and breathtaking location shoots. Yet, the writing is painfully disjointed and dislodged from both the period and the historic facts. I understand that a contemporary series will take artistic liberties with the truth in order to accentuate drama or to make the story more relatable to modern, Gen-Z audiences. But these writers are almost making it all up from scratch. The actors are all very appealing, but I would have preferred seeing them in a completely fictional 18th century storyline instead of this muddled distortion of the lives and reign of the Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

For a somewhat more accurate depiction of these two tragic figures from history that takes some artistic license to include modern touches, watch the Sofia Coppola film instead.