Judy Berman

Recent Articles

You Season 3 Is the Best Installment Yet—and a Brilliant Send-Up of Suburbia

'You' is what you might get if 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' “social assassin” Larry David were a literal assassin, violently vanquishing braggarts and navel gazers and empty-headed trend chasers of every variety

By Judy Berman October 17, 2021

Suddenly, Everyone We See on TV Is Very Rich or Very Poor. What Happened?

There’s something ominous about the prospect of the vast majority of the population—everyone who lives above the poverty line but will never own an aircraft—disappearing from our screens. Where have TV’s middle classes gone?

By Judy Berman October 13, 2021

What Happened, Brittany Murphy?, Britney Spears and the Gendered Perils of Child Stardom

Taken together with everything we’ve learned about the other Britney these past several months, this two-part HBO Max documentary raises questions about the lifelong perils of early fame, for women in particular

By Judy Berman October 11, 2021

The Problem With Jon Stewart Could Be Great, If It Ever Catches Up to the Present

“I remember your march,” a guest says, referring to Stewart and Stephen Colbert’s jokey Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear, held on the National Mall in 2010. “I think it was against insanity.” Stewart: “Yeah, we won.”

By Judy Berman September 30, 2021

The 5 Best New TV Shows Our Critic Watched in September 2021

From Mike Flanagan's annual horror show to a hit Korean thriller

By Judy Berman September 30, 2021

Three New Britney Spears Documentaries Tell a Chilling Tale About the Bystander Effect

For years, it seemed that no one knew what was going on with Britney Spears. In fact, many people knew, but nobody managed to stop it

By Judy Berman September 28, 2021

Netflix's Maid Is an Empathetic Portrait of Poverty That Dispels the Myth of Bootstrapping

'Maid' demonstrates how the families our society refuses to help can get trapped in cycles of poverty and abuse.

By Judy Berman September 27, 2021

Apple TV+’s Beautiful, Frustrating Foundation Is the Latest Example of the Problem With Genre TV

Despite a convoluted opening, this lavish sci-fi drama rewards patience

By Judy Berman September 23, 2021

Netflix’s Catholic Horror Story Midnight Mass Is One Hell of a Halloween Binge

After a slow first two episodes, the show’s alchemy of spectacle, suspense and storytelling starts working. A binge becomes not just inevitable, but also unexpectedly satisfying.

By Judy Berman September 20, 2021

Cry Your Heart Out: The 11 Best Breakup Albums Ever Made 

Listening to a good breakup album is a dangerous act: if consumed at the wrong time, it can kill your joy, resurrect painful flashbacks, re-break your heart, reduce you to a puddle of misery. But...

By Andrew R. Chow September 17, 2021
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