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      In ‘Dying for Sex,’ Michelle Williams Isn’t Looking for Love

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      In this new series, based on a true story, Michelle Williams plays a terminally ill woman who wants to devote her remaining days to sexual exploration.Oh how the body keeps the score in “Dying for Sex,” an eight-episode FX dramedy, arriving Friday on Hulu, about a woman with terminal cancer. And if the big mort is near, maybe some petite mort is in order.Michelle Williams stars as Molly, who is sitting in an inert couple’s therapy session with her mild husband (Jay Duplass) when she answers a call from her doctor. Her cancer is back, and it’s Stage 4. She walks out of the office and out of her sexless marriage and into the loving embrace of her BFF (Jenny Slate) and a world of unbridled sexual exploration.Well, bridled a little, in that Molly engages in some bondage play as the show goes on. Her medication is making her horny, but also, simply being alive is itself a horn-inducing endeavor. She experiments with everything, starting with a marathon masturbation session where she tries a variety of vibrators and erotica: a cam guy, a nature documentary, the movie “Speed.” She has never really tried to figure out what she likes, and she’s never had an orgasm with a partner. She wants both of those things to change, and she can’t waste any more time.“You’re going to be dead in five years,” she tells herself. “Nothing matters.” Might as well hit on the guy in the elevator.Might as well swipe and swipe and have all kinds of interesting encounters. She’s not looking for love, she’s looking for pleasure — though she finds a bit of both. She unlocks her inner domme and gets the rush of her life by (consensually) kicking her neighbor (Rob Delaney) squarely in the penis. Unfortunately, this act also breaks her hip; the cancer is in her bones.“Dying” is based on a true story and adapted from the nonfiction podcast of the same name, which was created by the real-life Molly, Molly Kochan, and her best friend, Nikki Boyer, who is a producer on this show. (Kochan died in 2019.) The TV series was created by Kim Rosenstock and Elizabeth Meriwether, and it lives and dies by Williams’s performance.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      in Movies

      “Thank You Very Much” Looks at the Life of Andy Kaufman

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      “Thank You Very Much,” directed by Alex Braverman, uses archival footage and interviews to explore the appeal of a stand-up who didn’t tell jokes.A documentary subject like the comic Andy Kaufman, who died in 1984, has got to be both a dream and a nightmare for a filmmaker. Archival footage is usually used to suggest a glimpse into who someone “really” was, but Kaufman’s public appearances almost always involved him playing some kind of character, like the sweetly hapless Foreign Man (who evolved into Latka Gravas on “Taxi”) or the abrasively awful nightclub singer Tony Clifton. Kaufman suggested — and friends concur in “Thank You Very Much” (available to rent or buy on most major platforms) — that he was always playing a character, even if that character was a guy named Andy Kaufman. Trying to get at the “real” guy in this case seems quixotic.“Thank You Very Much,” directed by Alex Braverman, features several friends of Kaufman’s musing on who the real Andy was, and taps into elements of his childhood to explain some of his obsessions. But understanding the real Andy is not the ultimate point of this film. Instead, Braverman seems to be roving in search of the source of Kaufman’s appeal: Why did fans want to watch someone who was so often deliberately off-putting and exasperating? Kaufman’s act didn’t involve telling jokes (“I’ve never told a joke in my life, really,” he once said) and often seemed designed to push audiences as far as possible to see if and when they’d break.When, beginning in 1979, he started performatively wrestling women and spouting misogynistic garbage, it was awfully hard to tell whether he was satirizing women, feminists, misogynists, wrestlers or all of the above. His is not the kind of comedy you just chuckle at and move on. Today we might call him a troll.As “Thank You Very Much” shows, Kaufman was a comedian of the uncomfortable, the absurd, the confusing and at times the excruciatingly boring. Braverman wisely does not try to imitate Kaufman’s style in the film, instead opting to explore his career through old footage and conversations with people who knew him, like Lorne Michaels, Kaufman’s father (in archival interviews), the comedian Bob Zmuda and the musician Laurie Anderson (in new takes).We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Stephen Colbert Likens Trump’s Tariffs to an Economic Infection

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      “Has anyone thought about injecting our money with bleach?” Colbert said after President Trump’s new tariffs tanked the stock market on Thursday.Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Downward SpiralThe stock market had its worst day in five years on Thursday, the first day of trading on Wall Street since President Trump announced his new tariffs.“So, worst day for our economy since Covid,” Stephen Colbert said. “Just a little reminder: This time, he’s the disease.”“Has anyone — and I’m just spitballin’ here — has anyone thought about injecting our money with bleach?” — STEPHEN COLBERT“Everyone’s wondering how Trump decided on a tariff rate for each country. Well, it turns out a very precise mathematical formula was created. And then Trump just said, ‘Forget that — we’re doing it Plinko style.” — JIMMY FALLON“Yep, Trump’s tariffs went all the way from 54 percent to 10 percent, and today, so did his approval rating.” — JIMMY FALLON“But, you know what, I’m not too concerned about Donald Trump not understanding how his tariffs work, because he’s Donald Trump — he doesn’t understand how to make money running a casino.” — MICHAEL KOSTA“Now, one bit of good news comin’ out of all this: It’s all pretty solid proof there is no deep state, ’cause if there was, they would’ve stopped this [expletive], OK? But if they do exist, I just want to say to the cabal of financial and governmental elites who pull all the strings behind the scenes, maybe put a pause on your 5G-chip JFK Jr. adrenochrome chemtrail orgy and jump in here, ’cause we’re [expletive] dying.” — STEPHEN COLBERTThe Punchiest Punchlines (Mr. Worldwide Edition)“Yesterday, Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs across the entire globe: Asia, South America, Narnia, Arendelle, Wakanda, Bachelor Nation.” — MICHAEL KOSTA“President Trump yesterday announced a base line tariff affecting more than 180 countries, including a group of uninhabited islands near Antarctica. So, let that be a warning to you, great Pacific garbage patch.” — SETH MEYERS“Yeah, we put a 10 percent tariff on an island that only has penguins? Trump would have been better off tariffing that island Tom Hanks got stranded on. At least it had one guy and that li’l volleyball he was [expletive].” — MICHAEL KOSTA“Is this a mistake? Look, I know old people butt-dial strangers all the time, but this is the first time I’ve heard of someone butt-tariffing an entire country.” — MICHAEL KOSTA“Yep, Trump put tariffs on almost every single country, and as you would expect, the world is pretty mad at us. Right now, Epcot is down to two countries.” — JIMMY FALLONThe Bits Worth WatchingThursday’s “Tonight Show” musical guest Perfume Genius performed “It’s a Mirror” from his new album “Glory.”Also, Check This Out“‘The Lost Albums’ were full records, some of them even to the point of being mixed and not released,” Bruce Springsteen said in a statement.Sara Krulwich/The New York TimesBruce Springsteen announced a new boxed set featuring 83 songs, including 74 that have never been released. More

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      in Television

      ‘Lazarus’ Is a Dark and Kinetic Adventure

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      This anime series on Adult Swim is filled with fantastic fight sequences but also deeper musings about the nature of existence and divinity.A scene from “Lazarus.”Adult SwimRight on the heels of “Common Side Effects” comes another animated pharmacological thriller, this time the Japanese anime series “Lazarus,” which premieres, dubbed, on Saturday at midnight, on Adult Swim. The show is set in 2055, and a miracle pain killer that claims to free people from all suffering has become ubiquitous. Years after the mysterious Dr. Skinner released this drug, Hapna, he re-emerges with a second bombshell: After three years in your system, Hapna will kill you.Humanity has 30 days before everyone who has taken it — which is just about everybody — succumbs. Unless, of course, someone can find Dr. Skinner and the antidote only he can share.This calls for a ragtag team! Of course it does; “Lazarus” was created and directed by Shinichiro Watanabe, best known for his work directing “Cowboy Bebop,” which is also a dark, funny, futuristic ensemble adventure. The show’s other big draw is its fight choreography by the “John Wick” director Chad Stahelski. The action sequences are the highlight of the five (of 13) episodes made available for review: a big jailbreak in the pilot, lots of urban scrambling, a zippy comeuppance for a sex-pest sleaze.Our snappy hero and newest member of the crew is Axel Gilberto, an escape artist and underbelly-dweller who is serving 888 years in prison — your sentence is doubled every time you escape. He is recruited out of his cell and into a shadowy group that is determined to find Dr. Skinner and has the requisite position players to do so, including a hacker, a researcher and an icy boss.Each episode of “Lazarus” begins with the same visual montage, but each opening narration and narrator is different. The episodes end with a countdown of how many days are left until the Hapna apocalypse. This repetitive yet iterative framing feels like a ritual, and the show is filled with religious imagery and musings about the nature of divinity.If Dr. Skinner can both cure and kill everyone, does that make him a god? Or just the world’s most powerful drug peddler? If pain is a part of life, and there is no more pain, maybe we’re already dead, and there’s nothing left to pray for. If you thought the end was coming, would you change course or just surrender? More

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      in Television

      In ‘The Bondsman,’ Kevin Bacon Goes to Hell and Back

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      The actor stars as the title character in this new horror comedy series, playing a man charged with tracking down escaped demons.The devil goes down to Georgia in the horror comedy series “The Bondsman,” but he’s not looking for a fiddle fight. This demon master is actually an old-school telemarketer, fax machine at the ready, overseeing a pyramid scheme of lost souls. And when he taps you on the shoulder, you’d best be ready to do his handiwork.A gory, tongue-in-cheek slice of Southern Gothic, the new Amazon Prime Video series, premiering Thursday, presents a system of penance that borders on bureaucracy. A rural Georgia bondsman named Hub Halloran (Kevin Bacon) stumbles into the scheme in the first episode, when his throat gets slit in the line of duty. Coming to with a gaping wound in his neck, he soon realizes that he has been to hell and it has spit him back up. He’s still a bondsman, but now his job is to track down demons that have escaped from hell. If he refuses, he gets sent back.In a TV landscape offering no shortage of horror in recent years, “The Bondsman” has a folksier flavor than most. The show’s haunts are rural; the main characters are scared and surprised by the demons they encounter, but they also just seem inconvenienced and perturbed by the whole affair.“The operational theory is like, ‘Well, hell, I was going to go grocery shopping today, and instead, I’ve got to deal with a demon on the loose in my small town,’” said Erik Oleson, the showrunner. “It’s just one more of those things that the system keeps sticking on you.”The system, in this case, is represented by Pot O’ Gold, which presents itself as a tenacious series of pop-up ads and voice mail messages offering one of those opportunities that you just shouldn’t pass up. The company logo is a jovial leprechaun. The boss is the devil himself, though he’s too busy to make himself seen; instead he sends a very cheerful, un-devilish minion (Jolene Purdy) to give Hub his new assignment.Hub is skeptical, though he notices that his slashed throat, which he initially covered up with duct tape, seems to have magically healed. Soon he’s off to hunt down demons, armed with a variety of weapons (shotgun, chain saw), and Kitty, his spitfire mama (Beth Grant) by his side.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      in Television

      Late Night Debriefs After a ‘Tariff-fying’ Day at the White House

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      Stephen Colbert said that, thanks to President Trump, “America is finally free from the tyranny of being able to buy stuff from other countries.”Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Just ‘Tariffic’On Wednesday, President Donald Trump held an event at the White House to announce new international tariffs during what he referred to as “Liberation Day.”Stephen Colbert said that, thanks to Trump, “America is finally free from the tyranny of being able to buy stuff from other countries.”“Who’s ready to learn how to make their own iPad from scratch?” — STEPHEN COLBERT“Right, ‘Liberation Day. That sounds like the fake holiday your friends make up after you get dumped: ‘No, man. Who needs that beautiful, smart, independently wealthy woman in your life, when you can die alone? This is your liberation day, bro!’” — MICHAEL KOSTA“OK, so Liberation Day is just the day that Trump announced new tariffs. I kind of doubt this day will be remembered for all of history, but if you give me a day off from work, you can call it whatever you want.” — MICHAEL KOSTA“Now, you might be thinking, ‘What am I even being liberated from? The ability to afford goods and services?’” — MICHAEL KOSTA“Reportedly, Trump was still weighing tariff options until late yesterday. Now, if you’re not steeped in the wonky language of Beltway insiders, that basically means they were spitballin’ ideas through the bathroom door at 3 a.m.: ‘[imitating Trump] Tell you what: What if Ireland has to pay extra to be, uh — to be on the Lucky Charms box? What about that? I’m just spitballin’ here. We stop Count Chocula at the border.’” — STEPHEN COLBERT“Yeah, in his speech, Trump said, ‘[imitating Trump] We’ll make America wealthy again, like it was at the start of my presidency. Six months ago.’” — JIMMY FALLON“Yeah, Trump announced tariffs on aluminum, steel and several other items that popped into his head mid-speech.” — JIMMY FALLON“He also expanded the tariffs on aluminum to include canned beer. Even Kid Rock was, like, ‘Um, what are we doing here, man?’” — JIMMY FALLON“The tariffs will raise prices for Americans, and costs could go up by $3,000 per year. Netflix was, like, ‘Game recognize game.’” — JIMMY FALLONThe Punchiest Punchlines (Holding It Edition)“Democratic Senator Cory Booker delivered a 25-hour, four-minute speech yesterday on the Senate floor, shattering Adrien Brody’s record.” — SETH MEYERS“That’s right, Senator Cory Booker broke the record last night for the longest speech ever delivered on the Senate floor. The previous record was held by Joe Biden after somebody asked, ‘What was it like growing up in Scranton?’” — SETH MEYERS“What an amazing day for Cory Booker. Not so great for the C-SPAN cameraman, who missed the birth of his first child and kindergarten graduation.” — MICHAEL KOSTA“After his speech, Booker said he hadn’t eaten since Friday and stopped drinking fluids on Sunday so he wouldn’t have to go to the bathroom. Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders went to the bathroom three different times during this joke.” — JIMMY FALLONWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Stephen Graham and Owen Cooper Talk About the Netflix Hit ‘Adolescence’

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      In an interview, the actors Owen Cooper and Stephen Graham explore the social and personal impact of the Netflix hit about a teenager accused of murder.In the three weeks since “Adolescence” arrived on Netflix, the drama about a 13-year-old boy accused of killing a schoolgirl after seeing misogynistic content online has soared in popularity. It has also made a star out of Owen Cooper for his portrayal of the teenager, Jamie Miller.Even so, Cooper, 15, had to return to high school in northern England on Monday.In a video interview this week, Cooper said that his first day back was “a bit mad,” with lots of attention from younger children. Tuesday was better, he said, with only “a bit of bother.”As Cooper discussed the complexity of his newfound fame, Stephen Graham, the actor who plays Owen’s father and was also taking part in the interview, sat up, alert. “What kind of ‘bother’?” Graham said, sounding like a concerned parent.Cooper explained that it wasn’t anything serious, just children coming up to him, shouting his name, then rushing off. To which Graham replied with relief and a smile, “Ah, just some silly bollocks.”“The reason I wanted to be an actor,” said Graham, who co-created the show, was “to make dramas that made me think.”Suzie Howell for The New York TimesCritics have highlighted that sort of bond between the two actors’ characters as one of the reasons for the show’s success, although it has also drawn praise for stirring debate about whether children’s access to social media should be restricted or smartphones banned from schools.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      ‘Truelove’ Explores Truth, Love and Endings

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      This thoughtful British mini-series explores the complex bonds among a group of aging friends who are determined not to let one another suffer.“Truelove,” available now, on Acorn, is an ensemble drama about assisted suicide, about the bonds of friendship and the well-worn paths of regret. Later in its six-episode season, it is also a murder show, which feels a lot less special. But I guess by the time you’ve got morose British people walking by the seashore, you might as well throw in an investigation.The show centers on a group of old friends who gather at a funeral. In their grief and inebriation, they make a pact: We won’t let one another suffer. We’ll help one another die with dignity if that day comes. That’s what friends are for, right?When the first terminal diagnosis lands, the pals initially can’t bring themselves to help their compatriot die. But then he tries to hang himself, which he survives, and from his hospital bed he laments to the group, “I’m on suicide watch and ‘do not resuscitate.’” Maybe they will stick to the plan; maybe friendship means doing things together, the important things, even when they’re hard and sad and terrible.But if life is messy, death is doubly so, and confronting mortality sure has a way of changing one’s priorities. Phil (Lindsay Duncan, fantastic), still a little adrift after retiring from the police force, is incredibly loyal to her friends — and not only because she treasures them, etc. Her husband (Phil Davis) is not part of their clique. Her long-ago love (Clarke Peters) is. Maybe there’s a silver, silver-haired lining to all this heartache.Some of the needle drops here are perfect and lovely, while others are so on-the-nose they make your teeth ring. Understated, textured arguments exist alongside flat, dumb ones. The show becomes shallower but more propulsive as it goes, especially after a young police officer (Kiran Sonia Sawar) starts looking into this suspicious death cluster.At its highs, though, “Truelove” is a superb and knotty domestic drama. “Apart from blasting into space, divorce is the most expensive thing you can do,” Phil scolds her newly separated daughter, but she can’t ride that high horse for long. Where one partner accrues commitment, the other amasses boredom and resentment. It’s so easy to love what you don’t have. More