46 | SEPTEMBER 19 • 2024 
J
N

WOLFS, COMEDY/THRILLER; 
SUPER-REVIEWED FILM; 
SACKS, 2X; MORE

Wolfs, a comedy-thriller, opens 
in theaters on Sept. 20. It starts 
streaming on Apple TV+ on Sept. 
27. Here’s the premise: George 
Clooney and Brad Pitt play 
professional fixers who deal with 
dangerous and chaotic events 
that bother their wealthy clients. 
These guys don’t normally work 
together, but they were sent, by 
their respective employers, to 
the same murder scene. They 
are hired to deal with the messy 
murder scene and find out “who-
done-it.”
Austin Abrams, 27, plays 
a mysterious character only 
called “The Kid.” An advance 
review describes “The Kid” as 
an overly nervous young man 
who is an unlikely third wheel. 
His importance to the murder is 
gradually revealed. The same 
review says Abrams’ character is 
the source of much of the film’s 
humor, and Abrams is a very 
good comedic actor. (Veteran 
character actor Richard Kind, 57, 
shows up late in the film as The 
Kid’s father). 
Abrams’ credits include the 
TV series Euphoria (main cast) 
and The Walking Dead. His film 
credits include Paper Towns 
(2015) and Jewtopia (2012). He 
grew up in Sarasota, Florida. His 
parents are both doctors. 
His Three Daughters opened 
in a few theaters on Sept. 9 (to 
qualify for Oscar nominations) 
and will begin streaming on 
Netflix on Sept. 20. It was 
written and directed by Azazel 
Jacobs, 51. His three previous 
feature films got generally good 
reviews, but didn’t get released 
to theaters (Terri, The Lovers) or 
only had a very limited release 
(French Exit). 

I have been rooting for 
Jacobs because his father Ken 
Jacobs, 91, taught cinema at 
my university, and I took two 
enlightening classes with him. 
Well, I guess my psychic 
rooting has paid off. Many 
reviews came in after the limited 
theater opening and they are 
all glowing — for Jacobs and 
for the cast (Washington Post, 
L.A. Times, Boston Globe, the 
Hollywood Reporter and more). 
Premise: The “three” are 
estranged, very different sisters 
who come together to help their 
dying father. They are played 
by Carrie Coon, Elizabeth Olsen 
and Natasha Lyonne, 43. The 
Hollywood Reporter said: “The 
film is free of mopey melodrama 
that often makes the dying 
parent/estranged sibling screen 
subgenre so dire. It’s [Three 
Daughters] wry, vivid and moving 
in unexpected ways.”
It seems like Jewish actresses 
have a friend at Sunday Morning, 
the very good CBS program. 
On Aug. 18, they profiled Carol 
Kane, 72, and, on Sept. 1, they 
profiled Lyonne. Her profile 
focused on Lyonne’s multiple 
talents, which includes directing. 
(Google CBS Sunday Morning 
and you’ll find both video profiles 
on the home page; also on 

YouTube).
Brilliant Minds is an NBC series 
that premieres on Sept. 23 (10 
p.m.). It is based on several 
books by Dr. Oliver Sacks (1933-
2015). This British neurologist 
wrote engrossing case studies 
of patients with “interesting” 
symptoms related to a brain 
injury or disease.
Sacks’ close relatives included 
Abba Eban, the famous Israeli 
diplomat; Robert Aumann, 91, an 
Israeli American mathematician 
who won the Nobel Prize; and 
Jonathan Lynn, 81, a film and TV 
director/writer (My Cousin Vinny 
and many other hits). 
Sacks’ first book (1973), a 
memoir, became the basis of 
Awakenings (1989), a critical and 
box-office smash. Robin Williams 
played a doctor modeled on 
Sacks. In the NBC series, the 
lead character, Dr. Oliver Wolf, is 
also modeled after Sacks (Wolf 
was Sacks’ middle name). Dr. 
Wolf is played by Zachary Quinto.
Awakenings didn’t disclose 
or incorporate three things 
about the “real” Sacks: that 
he was Jewish, he worked in 
a Jewish hospital and that he 
was gay. In real life, Sacks got 
his medical degree from Oxford 
(1958), but he interned at a San 
Francisco Jewish hospital. In 

the early 1960s, he took a post 
at a Bronx Jewish hospital. 
There he pioneered treating 
long-comatose patients with a 
new drug (L-Dopa). Awakenings 
was based on the story of this 
treatment. 
Sacks disclosed in his 2015 
autobiography that he was gay 
but had been celibate for a large 
part of his life. In Awakenings, 
the Sacks’ character is “shy,” 
but at the film’s end, he and a 
very supportive nurse (played by 
Julie Kavner) signal that they are 
about to turn romantic. 
I can hope, but I doubt, that Dr. 
Wolf, the NBC character, will be 
openly Jewish and/or gay.
Here are the Jewish winners 
at the Creative Arts Emmys 
(Sept. 7-8): Guest actress, 
Comedy Series: Jamie Lee 
Curtis, The Bear; Guest actor, 
Comedy Series: Jon Berenthal, 
The Bear; (Male) Performer in 
Short Comedy or Drama Series: 
Eric Andre, The Eric Andre 
Show; (Same category) Female 
Performer: Maya Rudolph, Big 
Mouth; Original Music and Lyrics: 
Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, 
Only Murders in the Building. 
Paul and Pasek, U-M alumni, got 
the coveted “EGOT” title with 
this Emmy (winners of an Emmy, 
Grammy, Oscar and Tony). 

CELEBRITY NEWS

NATE BLOOM COLUMNIST

ARTS&LIFE

HARALD KRICHEL 

Austin Abrams
Natasha Lyonne
Dr. Oliver Sacks

PEABODY AWARDS 

MARIA POPOVA

