Welcome to Culture Hound, InsideHook’s deep dive into the month’s most important cultural happenings, pop and otherwise.
WATCH: Thor: Ragnarok
The Norse god (minus his hammer) tries to prevent the end of Asgard with help from a rogues gallery of heroes … including the Hulk. Directed by Kiwi up-and-comer Taika Waititi (What We Do In the Shadows, Hunt for the Wilderpeople).
ENJOY (NSFW): Scientwehst
An artistic mix of architecture and erotic photography by Brooklyn artist Giulia, who crafts “brazenly-feminine digital collages” on Instagram.
CHUCKLE: Paul Ryan
An almost 200-page McSweeney’s/ClickHole-worthy parody of the House Speaker, “refracted through an absurd prism of magazine hell.” Each article parodies a different genre or glossy magazine. Bonus: Get a photo of Paul Ryan with the actual Paul Ryan, and you’ll win a cheese basket.
READ: Artemis
The Martian was a self-published phenomenon a few years back — and a pretty good movie that stripped out all the science (blame Ridley Scott). Andy Weir’s second book, however, is more of a hardboiled crime novel … set on the moon. A fun bit of sci-fi noir to read during your inevitable flight delays. (Nov. 14)
SUBSCRIBE: Charcoal Book Club
The world’s first photobook-of-the-month club is here to sex up your home. Handpicked photo journals sourced from “the most respected photographers and publishers in the industry,” and a must-have for any man’s (or woman’s) bookcase. Read more here. And since there’s nothing better than a well-appointed bookshelf, the gents at Charcoal are giving an exclusive 15% off any subscription to InsideHook readers. Just enter INSIDEHOOK17 at checkout. (Nov. 8)
PLAY: Call of Duty WWII
After a few wayward missions to space, the first-person shooter heads back to its “boots on the ground” World War II roots. You, too, can experience D-Day! And a co-op mode where you fight Nazi zombies (note: it’s OK to punch Nazi zombies). (Nov. 3)
LISTEN: Our Spotify Playlist
Thirty new tunes populate our playlist, including the Zep-loving kids of Greta Van Fleet, Sharon Jones (RIP), Thundercat, Sleigh Bells, Rhye and Franz Ferdinand.
BINGE: Godless
“Mister, we’re a lot f*cking stronger than you think we are.” An outlaw takes refuge in a town run by badass women (and only women) in this new Netflix limited series, a violent western overseen by Steven Soderbergh and Scott Frank (Logan). (Nov. 22)
And don’t forget … Richard Linklater made a war movie? Well, it’s a meditative one. With an all-star cast (Bryan Cranston, Steve Carell, Laurence Fishburne), the indie director examines what happens long after the battle in Last Flag Flying (Nov. 3) … Good timing or horrible timing? Louis CK goes full Woody Allen in his controversial, black-and-white dramedy I Love You, Daddy, which, yes, features an older man in show business possibly seducing an underage girl (Nov. 17) … A privileged New York family sees their home life shattered in Heather, the Totality, the debut novel from Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner (Nov. 7) … Calling Stranger Things fans: Future Man is basically a comedic take on ‘80s cult hit The Last Starfighter, overseen by Preacher’s Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Nov. 14) … And finally, the welcome return of Stan Against Evil (Nov. 1) and Search Party (Nov. 19).
Main Photo: Charcoal Book Club – Todd Hido/Intimate Distance
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