60 | MARCH 21 • 2024
J
N
ROOTS UPDATE; THREE
NEW FILMS, STAND-UP &
SKATING
This week’s Jewish-related
films, etc., are more varied
than usual. But before I
describe them, I want to
give you a long heads-
up: Michael Douglas and
Lena Dunham will be the
guests on the Finding Your
Roots on Tuesday, April 2
(PBS). Their paring isn’t an
accident: Roots episodes
often pair celebs with sim-
ilar backgrounds (Jewish,
African American, etc.).
Next week, I will say a bit
about Dunham and Douglas’
ancestry. But I’ll say more
about a nice coincidence:
Both have interesting films/
series that will be released
soon or are in the works.
Ghostbusters: Frozen
Empire will open in theaters
on March 22. It is the fifth
film in the Ghostbusters film
franchise.
The fourth film,
Ghostbusters: Afterlife
(2021), got mixed reviews,
and I thought it was just OK
(I loved the first two films).
But Afterlife made a lot of
money and that paved the
way for Frozen.
Afterlife was co-written
by and directed by Jason
Reitman, 46 (Juno, Up in the
Air). Reitman’s co-writer was
Gil Kenan, 47 (Poltergeist).
They switched jobs for
Frozen: Kenan directed, and
he co-wrote Frozen with
Reitman.
Paul Rudd, 54, starred in
Afterlife and he has a lead
role in Frozen. The new
Ghostbuster cast that made
its debut in Afterlife returns
for Frozen, as does the orig-
inal Ghostbusters, who also
appeared in Afterlife (Bill
Murray, Dan Akroyd, Annie
Potts, others).
Here’s the plot: The new
and old Ghostbusters join
forces to save New York City
from a death-chilling foe.
On March 21, Amazon
Prime will premiere Road
House, a remake of a hit
1989 film of the same name.
Jake Gyllenhaal, 43, plays
Dalton, a former pro mixed
martial arts fighter who is
hired to bring order to a
Florida bar with very rowdy
drinkers. He also has to bat-
tle an evil, rich businessman
who wants to put the bar
out of business.
Gyllenhaal, as usual, is
very fit and often reveals
his incredible array of chest
and stomach muscles. His
stomach “six-pack” certainly
attracts the attention of a
pretty physician who patch-
es up Dalton.
The film’s director, Doug
Liman, 58, has helmed
many hits, including The
Bourne Identity. He has
almost disowned Road
House. He says that
Amazon was supposed to
release the film, first, to the-
aters. (Advance reviews say
Gyllenhaal is quite good,
but the script is kind of dis-
jointed and there’s too much
obvious CGI use in the fight
sequences).
Comedian Dave Attell, 59,
has a solo Netflix stand-up
special on March 26. Titled
Hot Cross Buns, the official
description says: “Attell
unloads in this blistering
stand-up special on hard
seltzers, strip clubs, unsatis-
fying snacks and his wild trip
to a petting zoo.”
Attell has been a come-
dy stalwart since the mid-
’90s, with many comedy
specials and appearances
on Letterman, HBO and
Comedy Central.
Rest in Peace is an
Argentine film that begins
streaming on Netflix on
March 27. The film focus-
es on Sergio. He’s facing
mounting bills, and his
health is deteriorating. Then
an unlikely way out appears
to him. He might be able to
get out of his problems and
also safeguard his family’s
well-being. But he has to
leave his home and disap-
pear forever.
The film was co-written
and directed by Sebastian
Borensztein, 60, an
Argentine landsman. To
“understand” Sebastian, you
have to know something
about his father, Mauricio
Borensztein (1927-96), a
very famous comedian in
Argentina who performed
under the stage name Tato
Bores. He entertained in
theaters and on TV. His
forte was political humor.
One bio says: “His ironic TV
monologues, delivered at a
fast pace, became a refer-
ence point for generations
of Argentines.”
After college, Sebastian
wrote copy for ads, but
quickly switched to screen-
writing under his father’s
guidance. He also produced
and directed his father’s
shows.
He went on to write
and direct acclaimed TV
series. His biggest film hit is
Chinese Take-Away (2011),
which he wrote and direct-
ed. This comedy-drama was
a big box-office winner all
over Latin America.
The World Figure Skating
Championships are held
this year in Montreal (March
20-24). Peacock and NBC
pretty much cover all the
events.
Two Israelis are in
the competition. But an
American, Jason Brown,
29, is the only Jewish skat-
er likely to make it into the
finals. On March 23 (8-10
p.m.), NBC will do a special
that will cover highlights.
Brown, who had a bar
mitzvah ceremony, won an
Olympic bronze medal in
the 2014 team event and
was the U.S. national cham-
pion in 2015. In the 2024
U.S. Championships, he was
third in the short program
and second in the free
skate.
CELEBRITY NEWS
NATE BLOOM COLUMNIST
ARTS&LIFE
WIKIPEDIA
Dave Attell
TOGLENN
Jake Gyllenhaal
BY GABBOT
Lena Dunham