By Nate Bloom
Contributing Columnist
“Heart of Stone” is a thriller film that starts streaming on Netflix on August 11. Basic plot: International intelligence agent Rachel Stone (Israeli actress GAL GADOT, 38) works for a mysterious “good guy” agency called Charter. This agency keeps a secret eye on other spy agencies. Stone, pretending to be a computer tech, infiltrates a British intelligence unit that is being taunted by a master hacker.
“Heart of Stone” is the first film that Gadot has produced.
British Jewish actress SOPHIE OKONEDO, 54, has a big supporting role as Nomad, another Charter agent. Okonedo, a Tony-winner, was Oscar-nominated for “Hotel Rwanda.”
Oy,vey! I thought one major series about the now-disgraced SACKLER family was enough. You may recall “Dopesick,” the 2021 Hulu series about how Purdue Pharma, a company owned by the Sacklers, flooded the country with oxycontin, a highly addictive opioid drug. For a very long time, Purdue Pharma downplayed how addictive the drug is.
On August 10, the six-episode Netflix series “Painkiller” will be released in its entirety. “Dopesick” was based on a book of the same name about the Sacklers and the oxycontin “epidemic.” “Painkiller” is based on two long magazine articles covering much of the same ground.
Three Sackler brothers (ARTHUR, MORTIMER, and RICHARD), all physicians, founded and ran Purdue Pharma. It was a small company until they began marketing oxycontin in 1996. Arthur died in 1987 and he’s not in the series.
Mortimer died in 2010. I gather he is a minor character in the series. He’s played by veteran character actor JOHN ROTHMAN, 74. Trust me, you know Rothman’s face.
Richard Sackler (died 2017), and his son, DR. RAYMOND SACKLER, now 78, are major characters in the series. MATTHEW BRODERICK, 61, plays Raymond.
“Strange Planets” is a 10-episode adult animated series that premieres on August 9 on Apple TV. It’s based on a bestselling graphic novel of the same name. Apple publicity says “Strange Planets” is a hilarious and perceptive look at a distant world not unlike our own…relatable blue beings explore the absurdity of everyday human traditions.”
HANNAH EINBINDER, 28, the co-star of the hit series “Hacks” on HBO, has a big (voice) role.
Einbinder recently joined other striking writers and actors in a public protest. She told Indiewire that management was trying to “bleed out” the unions. She added: “It’s inhuman frankly…the horrible position the average writer and actor has been put in thus far.”
Here are some excerpts from the Wikipedia article entitled “Barbenheimer”:
Barbenheimer is an internet phenomenon that began…before the release of two blockbuster films, Barbie and Oppenheimer, on July 21. The dichotomy of Barbie — a fantasy comedy about the doll Barbie — and Oppenheimer — an epic biographical thriller about physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, scientific director of the Manhattan Project, which developed the first nuclear weapon [1945] — prompted a comedic [internet] response, including memes and merchandise. Instead of Barbenheimer creating a rivalry, many suggestions to watch the films as a double feature emerged. Cast members of both responded by encouraging audiences to watch the films on the same day.
As I write this, Barbie has grossed over $750M worldwide, and Oppenheimer has made over $400M worldwide.
Yes, the two films have prompted a few articles that mention OPPENHEIMER, before going into the background of RUTH HANDLER (1916-2002), the creator of the Barbie doll, most notably, a Wall Street Journal July 20 article (“She Was the Oppenheimer of Barbie. Her Invention Blew Up”). This article begins with stating that Handler founded her toy company (in her garage) in the same year (1945) that the first atom bomb was dropped.
But I haven’t seen a single article that notes, in the same article, that Handler and Oppenheimer were Jewish. Nor have I seen a meme or piece of merchandise that says this. Such a “thing” may exist, but I haven’t seen it.
I would really love to see a meme, or a t-shirt, or a poster that has images of Oppenheimer and Handler side-by-side. The caption should read: “The Jewish father of the A-Bomb and the Jewish mother of Barbie.” Except for the word “Jewish,” that’s what these two inventors were called in their lifetimes.
Oppenheimer and Handler’s creation (Barbie) are worldwide hits. Can’t Jews get a little reflective glory? Can’t we openly shep nachas via a t-shirt? Such a t-shirt would be a souvenir of an incredibly unlikely cultural event.
I realize the doll Barbie, and the making of the atom bomb, are not without controversy. But, I say, “go with the moment.” The public loves ‘Oppy’ now, and they adore Barbie.