trainwrecks & tragedies
can’t look away
Netflix original documentaries have long leant into absurd stories that can gather easy clicks from the title alone. This month they have a series of mostly < 60 minute documentaries, all titled “Trainwreck: insert clickbait-y title here” dropping. Back in 2022, they released a 3-part series Trainwreck: Woodstock 99 and then went silent. Over June and July this year, the series will increase to 9 entries. From the 2013 Carnival Cruise liner dubbed “Poop Cruise” to a public Facebook event that turned into “The Real Project X” and a Canadian Mayor, embroiled in a drug scandal, dubbed “Mayor of Mayhem.”
Of the new releases, Trainwreck: The Astroworld Tragedy serves as a shocking stand out, whilst the others focus on relatively silly stories where events quickly escalated beyond predicted or things were not what they seemed, Astroworld was a true tragedy. In 2021, 10 young people were killed and many more injured as a result of a crowd crush during Travis Scott’s headline set. Since the event, there have been various lawsuits against different involved parties, including Scott himself, however no one has been indicted on criminal charges and civil wrongful death suits were settled outside of court for undisclosed amounts. The documentary itself is incredibly distressing, complete with footage from within the mosh pit and first-hand accounts from survivors. It goes without saying that a crowd crush, or even just a crowd you can’t escape, is my personal absolute nightmare situation. What the documentary does well is bringing together an expert in crowd control with the attendees, onsite paramedics and security guards who were there on the day to paint a picture of everything that went wrong, which is in the spirit of what the Trainwreck series is looking to do.
However, it is difficult to place a story where young people were asphyxiated in slow-motion as a concert continued on around them, to a cruise liner that lost power in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico and forced people to poo in red biohazard bags when the sewerage system failed, into the same series. The term train wreck does denote a certain level of morbid curiosity, a fascination in how disasters occur. Ultimately, as I’ve mentioned before, it is perfectly natural that as humans we seek to understand what we fear we can’t through media but the line is difficult and sometimes blurry.
There can be something to be learnt by compiling these stories, building a picture of how the calamity occurred and potentially what we can learn to avoid similar disasters in the future. They may also serve to speak truth to power, where private businesses or influential figures are getting away with something that should be brought to light. Like with true crime, there is a fine line between using media for justice, education or change - and creating voyeuristic entertainment out of tragedy.
Whilst I am not saying this is anything new - it strikes me how the virality of these moments, already complete with worldwide interest, commentary and plenty of first hand footage, turns them immediately into a dream production that will draw viewers in. The sheer volume of productions, and the speed with which they can be released is stark. Do they make the world better by existing? Do they need to?
For transparency, I watched both Poop Cruise and The Astroworld Tragedy to help me write this piece - and I can’t say that I’d recommend them.
The full Devil Wears Prada 2 cast has been announced. Returning from the original cast is Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci. Joining them, is Kenneth Branagh, Lucy Liu, Pauline Chalamet, Justin Theroux, BJ Novak, Simone Ashley and TikTok star Caleb Hearon. The sequel begins filming this week, and if it is released as planned in 2026, it’ll be exactly 20 years since the first. By all means move at a glacial place, you know how that thrills me.
La Chimera (2023)
Film
Stan
Starring Josh O’Connor (speaking Italian!!!, which he very impressively learnt for this film) as a British ex-pat recently out of jail for grave robbing artefacts in Italy. In his past life, he was an archeological scholar, working in Tuscany and falling in love with a beautiful local girl. Now, his ex-girlfriend is gone and he quickly falls back in with his troupe of tombaroli (tomb raiders) who he leads to hidden tombs through mystic means-like a sixth sense for Etruscan relics. The film is beautiful to look at, and not just because of O’Connor’s sweaty linen suit or the gorgeous 80’s Tuscan setting. Incorporating elements of magical realism, La Chimera by name and form feels like an illusion just out of grasp of reality.
Pachinko (2017)
Fiction Book
By Min Jin Lee
One of those books that people have talked about for years, and I finally picked up because it was free on Audible, only to be lightly (stupidly) surprised that it was as great as everyone has said. Pachinko is a historical fiction, centred on a Korean family lineage, spanning decades of the 1900s. Focusing on the Korean experience of the Japanese occupation, WWII and beyond. Pachinko is a fine example of injecting humanity and care into the truth of history, and I felt transported into the past (without any of the stuffiness that sometimes comes with historical fiction.) I particularly enjoyed how it informed luck, survival in the face of great adversity and identity. In light of its events, it also deals in the first-hand experience of immigration, war and imperialism. Next up, I may watch the Apple TV+ adaptation series.
Such Brave Girls (2023)
TV Series
Stan
A British comedy about a dysfunction single-mum and two daughters - played by real life sisters Kat Sadler and Lizzie Davidson. The former also serving as creator and writer of the show, with much of it inspired by her own life. The family is a twisted trio of self-absorbed women, dealing with adult children living at home, the abandonment of their father a decade before, toxic relationships, mental illness and rising debts that the mother seeks to rectify by finding a new husband. Whilst the show does not shy away from heavy themes, it is unflinching in its humour and doesn’t hold back from choosing comedy where many would turn away. If you’re a fan of Fleabag (2016)’s style, this is worth checking out. Season 2 of Such Brave Girls just dropped in full on Stan.
You’re not made for human eyes,
Linley x
