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Top Picks: 'Fastball' on DVD and Blu-ray, the album 'We Are King,' and more

Photographer Oliver Curtis seeks a new perspective at global landmarks, an app tells you what chargers you need for an international trip, and more top picks.

  • By Staff

Delicate ‘Sweet Bean’

The film Sweet Bean is a delicate little fable. It stars Masatoshi Nagase as Sentaro, a man who sells the Japanese pancake-like doroyaki. When Tokue, an older woman (Kirin Kiki), answers a help-wanted ad, he turns her down – but changes his mind after tasting her amazing an, the filling for the doroyaki. Because Tokue is such a powerful presence (and Kiki such a powerful actress), what might have seemed silly instead carries a poetic force. The film will be released on DVD and Blu-ray Aug. 9.

Different perspective

So many tourists have photos of famous landmarks. But what happens when you decide to seek a new perspective? Photographer Oliver Curtis found out with his series in which he faces a different direction at tourist attractions and snaps a photo. Check out what he captured at http://www.olivercurtis
photography.co.uk.

Intriguing fastball

If the baseball on TV isn’t enough for you, check out the documentary Fastball, which is available on DVD and Blu-ray. Director Jonathan Hock focuses on a gallery of the most celebrated names in fastballdom, including Walter Johnson and Sandy Koufax. It might even interest audiences who don’t know a curveball from a knuckleball.

Travel info

Taking a trip and not sure whether you’ll be able to use your phone charger? The Plugs of the World app can help out novice travelers or seasoned ones who need a reminder about the availability and kinds of outlets at their destination. Users report on changes, too. The app is $2.99 for iOS and $1.99 for Android.   

Soul nirvana

Singing twins Paris and Amber Strother and their cohort, Anita Bias, who together form King, want you to relax and imagine a more positive and soulful world. Their debut album, We Are King, takes the slow, meandering, scenic route to transport you there in luxe comfort via retro R&B bliss. Stevie Wonder’s backup singers and Sade are no doubt denizens of this dreamy, harmonic Shangri-La-La Land, with its lush, layered landscapes by some of Los Angeles’s most gifted sonic artists. Flights of imagination depart daily.

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