Humpday Recommendations 06/14/2023

Watch: “Ang Larawan (The Portrait).” In the last days before World War II breaks out in the Philippines, two spinster sisters agonize over whether they should sell their recluse artist dad's last masterpiece to make ends meet. Don't miss this gem of a period musical now on Netflix ... and keep an eye out toward the end for a blink-or-you'll-miss-it cameo by yours truly. — Carlos

Watch: “Return to Seoul.”Longing to know more about where she comes from, 25-year-old Freddie, who is French, travels to Seoul, the place of her birth, to reconnect with her birth parents. The film, directed by France’s David Chou, is a magnificent meditation on family, belonging, and self-actualization. – Gabrielle

Pitch: on acid. June 12 marks 53 years since Dock Ellis, a right-handed starter for the Pittsburgh Pirates, pitched a no-hitter whiletripping on LSD. Even if you don’t know or care at all about baseball, this four-minute animated recreation of the event, narrated by Dock himself, is worth the “trip.” – Alex

Read: “Lake Success,” by Gary Shteyngart. As someone who has ridden every bus that travels south from New York City, I feel confident in attesting to this book's insanely accurate description of the Port Authority bus station at 4:30 am, the bus stop bathroom in Baltimore, and all the people you meet along the way. If you like a story about a finance bro’s fall from grace into the bowels of America, this is a book for you. – Riley, from a Greyhound Bus