There Are Two Sides of the Slay Button...
... and some are choosing the wrong side (FLOP)
I am jet lagged, writing this a day before publication with barely any true thought to the foretold events. With a rough ride on British Airways, two pints of the best beer I’ve ever had in my life and Family Guy all beckoning me to a sweet blissful train ride to Dream Land, forgive the way things are worded or lack there of. There are two very important subjects I want to touch upon for this week’s I’m Obsessed, so let’s just get right into it.
What I heard: Real Housewives of Jail now being optioned by Bravo
This past Friday, the sentencing for Jen Shah, the now former cast member of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, proceeded with Shah being given six and a half years in prison, five years of house arrest after release, and restitutions of $6.5 million dollars to pay back to the victims of her crimes which included wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Let me be clear when I say I have a love/hate relationship with Jen Shah, leaning more on the hate side of the spectrum. Her antics on RHoSLC, while entertaining at best, leave a bitter taste on the palette after viewing each episode.
Yes, she’s sometimes funny; she can drag Whitney, Heather, Lisa and Meredith at times and her reads are at the level of a ninth grader, but that’s about all that’s left of her character. Even from season 1, Shah was always just an angry, bitter person whose personality could barely translate to reality TV. Her tantrums when put under the microscope, which is, arguably, the sole purpose of the Real Housewives franchise, seemed overblown, over emotional and insincere. Did she really care that Mary said she smelled like hospital or was the record light on? Did she really feel her trust with Meredith was broken when the rumor got out that Meredith might have been the one to signal the feds about her crimes or was the camera zooming in? I could go on and on with these badly-written rhetorical questions but the it still stands. What was Jen Shah’s true purpose on coming on RHoSLC if all that was begot of it was attention to her federal investigation?
Shah led a massive telemarketing scam and swindled millions of dollars from elderly senior citizens. Many of these people were retirees, trying to make an extra buck and through the package Shah’s scam promised, sought a better life for themselves and the people they loved. Instead, Shah knowingly took that, abused their trust and respect and continued to swindle them for years on end, often after they even died. In a sense, Shah is a modern Housewife, similar to Erika Jayne, in that when her life is analyzed, we see a true representation of wealth cluttered with the bones and dust of the people she’s wronged before. It’s true reality TV and the public, including me, eats it up. Yet, as I’m looking back on the material Shah has provided during her three season tenure on the show, what real material is there? This is just my opinion as a month before her sentencing, she was signed to CGEM Talent in all areas. So, in the end, what do I know?
What I saw: I’m not a Uhaul lesbian but I loved Tár
On my flight, I ended up buying and downloading Tár to my iPad to finally watch what was probably one of the most anticipated movie releases of 2022 and it did not disappoint. I love a good music film though often times the plot is hyperbolic of the person’s life or highly-convoluted in spectacle for entertainment sake. What saves Tár from that rabbit hole of bad music films is the fact that Lydia Tàr isn’t real, but that won’t stop me from pretending she is!
Cate Blanchett simply can not not act and anyone who tries to show me a bad role will be tried by a jury. This movie saw her evolve from superior genius to sneaky creep to deranged lunatic in a character arc not dissimilar to that of a Greek myth. Each turn of the plot, especially in moment’s showcasing Tár’s vulnerability (particularly those where you see her world threatening her), creates a labyrinth that leaves the viewer waiting, wanting for our anti-hero to finally fall and learn her lesson. Whether or not see did in the end remains up for debate.
The too long/didn’t read of this is Miss Blanchett hit the slay button and said “Oscar, please?”
Random thoughts #2
Not really a random thought but I am very excited for Ava Max’s new album, Diamonds & Dancefloors, coming out January 27th. Just look at the material! Please run her her money!
