Selena (1997)

Season 1 of The Bear lived up to my expectations. Even though I had not much of an idea of what the series would be about. Creator Christopher Storer delivered a style and loose narrative straight from the heart.

Season 2 showed up on Hulu last month. I did not truly know what to expect. The Season 1 finale left you with this understanding that a new restaurant was underway. That’s it.

Not only was I impressed with Season 2, I was emotionally hooked in a way that the first season only hinted at. Multiple characters are explored on a deeper level. Supporting ones especially were given more life. Deep, meaningful relationships develop, bearing both elation and heartache. All the right ingredients for both comedy and drama. (One short note: The Bear was recently nominated for an Emmy in the Best Comedy category. Which I guess means this show is technically a comedy. Although I would argue it more closely resembles a drama.)

We're in the midst of July, the month in which Americans are supposed to be at their most patriotic! With barbecues, beach trips, and fireworks galore, this is the month where we celebrate our country. For Incluvie, that primarily means diving into the wonderful "melting pot" of the diversity of American film! In between celebrating and feasting, it's important to remember the very basis this country is founded on: "liberty and justice for all."

So, here are just a few films celebrating the lives and accomplishments of Americans of every race, gender, and ability.

Premise: This is the untold story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson—brilliant African American women at NASA working on the launch of astronaut John Glenn.

The story of Selena, possibly the most iconic Tejana singer in recent memory, returns to the screen—but this time a much smaller one with Selena: the Series. This biographical drama series details Selena Quintanilla’s incredible life as a Tejana music star before her tragic murder in 1995. The series aimed to, as said by one of the directors (Hiromi Kamata), “refresh people’s memory and introduce her to new generations in a very powerful format, which is the series, gives you the freedom and time to really develop a character and develop a dramatic arc throughout the story.” Unfortunately, I feel this series under-delivers this goal.