So far, so good. The Cambodian Pinay lead character, Elodie Yung as immigrant doctor Thony, is smart, talented and focused. And rather than letting a super intelligent main character’s frankly dumbass moments go unexplained (beyond human imperfection) like so many other series, The Cleaning Lady offers much deeper and character-driven motivations that make the bad decisions believable as she heads underground and into shady business. A child on the brink of death, an opportunity for a better life, deportation and DACA, love, abandonment and the American caste system all come into play without it feeling confusing. If you desire binge-worthy drama, this is it. As Arman Morales, Adan Canto’s oozing sex appeal and even-tempered consideration may minimize the callous and violent gangster he should be, but juxtaposed with Thony’s volatility and drive to survive, it adds dimension to their power struggle. Yung and Canto’s chemistry is hypnotizing — hopefully it won’t turn into another StockholmSyndrome plotline. Devastatingly beautiful and talented Eva De Dominici makes you want to yell at the camera to stop moving and focus on her, regardless of who’s speaking. Should
the series take off, it’s easy to imagine her Nadia Morales becoming an iconic character worthy of impersonation by the best of RuPaul’s Drag Race’s Snatch Games. As Fiona, Martha Millan is perfect in her portrayal of many Filipinas’ coming-to-America story and her acting breathes life into the familiar storyline, offering strength, perseverance and a necessary grounding for Thony. Typically, heady crime dramas don’t spark joy in me and would end up in the Kondo trash pile. But Hollywood moving away from the caucasity of diluting all Asian cultures into a hodgepodge mixand-match of Orientalism does. And with a good balance of character development and motivation, drama, action and plot, The Cleaning Lady is breaking the norms of Hollywood while using its formulas in a new way to generate an interesting series. I’m hoping for its success. TV14. 45M. FOX, AMAZON PRIME, HULU, STREAMING. l Tiggerbouncer Custodio (he/she/ they) is an empowered queer Indigenous Filipino artist passionate about truth, reconciliation and accountability, whose works have been seen on Humboldt stages and spaces, as well as out of town venues.
NOW PLAYING
BELFAST. Kenneth Branagh writes and directs his own Irish coming-of-age story. PG13. 98M. MINOR. CLEAN. Adrien Brody stars as a sanitation worker haunted by his violent past and looking for redemption. R. 94M. BROADWAY, MILL CREEK. THE KING’S MAN. Ralph Fiennes and Gemma Arterton star in a retro action spy prequel. R. 131M. BROADWAY. JACKASS FOREVER. It’s all fun and games until somebody in this aging crew breaks a hip. R. 96M. BROADWAY, FORTUNA, MILL CREEK. JEEN-YUHS: A KANYE TRILOGY ACT I. It’s four and a half hours. Jee-zus. 270M. BROADWAY. LICORICE PIZZA. Writer/Director Paul Thomas Anderson’s tale of coming of age and first love in 1970s California. Starring Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman. R. 133M. MINOR. MOONFALL. Halle Berry goes to space to save the planet with Patrick Wilson and John Bradley. PG13. 120M. BROADWAY, FORTUNA, MILL CREEK. NIGHTMARE ALLEY. King of horror-fantasy Guillermo del Toro creates a
carnival experience we will all be afraid of, with Bradley Cooper, Toni Collette and Cate Blanchett. MINOR. REDEEMING LOVE. Abigail Cowen and Tom Lewis star in a star-crossed, Old West love story about a sex worker trafficked since childhood. PG13. 134M. MILL CREEK. SCREAM. The horror franchise picks up 25 years later like a Friends reunion but stabbier. With Courtney Cox, Neve Campbell and David Arquette. R. 120M. BROADWAY, FORTUNA, MILL CREEK, MINOR. SING 2. The animated animal musical returns with the voices of Matthew McConaughey and Reese Witherspoon. PG. 112M. BROADWAY, FORTUNA, MILL CREEK. SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME. See what happens when you take your mask off? Starring Tom Holland and Zendaya. PG13. 148M. BROADWAY, FORTUNA, MILL CREEK. THE WOLF AND THE LION. Molly Kunz and Graham Greene in a story about a rescued wolf pup and lion cub. PG. 99M. BROADWAY. For showtimes call: Broadway Cinema 443-3456; Fortuna Theatre 725-2121; Mill Creek Cinema 839-3456; Minor Theatre 822-3456.
HUMBOLDT GEOGRAPHIC
The Third Kingdom By Rowdy Kelley
humgeo@northcoastjournal.com
W
e all know the plants and animals are extraordinary in Humboldt, but the kingdom of fungi is probably the most prolific. Edible, medicinal, psychoactive or deadly, there are many varieties of each. Some, though, are just unbelievably strange looking. Until the middle of the 20th century, fungi were placed in the plant kingdom. The separation into its own kingdom was based on characteristics like how the living things obtained their nutrition. Animals eat or engulf and plants photosynthesize, while fungi excrete digestive enzymes and then absorb the externally digested nutrients. l Rowdy Kelley (he/him) is a TV and film location scout/manager, producer and director with family roots in Humboldt going back to 1900. He’s an avid outdoors person into mountain biking and SUPing. See more of his photos on the Humboldt Geographic Facebook page.
Egg shell slime mould. Photo by Rowdy Kelley
northcoastjournal.com • Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022 • NORTH COAST JOURNAL
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