Reviews
Midsomer Murders: Shot at Dawn (2008)
worst midsomer ever
So many things about this episode are bad and they all stem from a bad script. Perhaps the worst aspect has to be the ludicrous behaviour of many of the main characters, which are totally unrealistic to the point of parody. It starts with the idiotic scene by the monument which has the army characters bickering like schoolchildren, then continues somewhat later with the breadstick battle scene in the pub - it beggars belief that anyone could have thought this scene should be in Misdomer Murders, which to the best of my knowledge is not supposed to be a sitcom. Barnaby's handling of the breadstick incident stripped the character of all his dignity. Tyhe character of the Major looks like hescaped from an episode of Minder (coincidence that George Cole is in the episode?) and the sub plot of the repair to Barnabies roof is also ridiculous. And the way Barnaby handles the Major is once again completely out of character and very poorly handled. Whoever wrote this script should not be allowed to write another, at least not without attending some kind of extensive training course. The basic premise of the episode is certainly hackneyed and unoriginal, but had it been handled with the usual skill by the scriptwriters there is no reason this episode would not have been quite passable. However the amateurish and frankly completely awful script has totally ruined it. Of the many indiotic ideas in the script the standout ones would be the girl being attacked by a radio controlled combine harvester (moving at a breathtaking 4 mph), the radio controlled machine gun murder (literally hit a barn door!), the breadstick battle in the pub, and almost every scene with the Major. As usual the scenery, cinematography and general production values were up to their usual standard.
Lewis: Expiation (2007)
the worst one so far
Very unimpressed with this episode, which is the worst of the three so far. No where near the standard of Morse.
The dialogue for all the characters was awful. None of the characters seemed real - they say the oddest things for no apparent reason. Its almost impossible to know what the characters are thinking or feeling, or what their motivations are, so I felt disconnected almost all the time. Its as if someone had snipped the various characters out of previous Morse shows, and hoped they would somehow gel. This is an example of the case where the whole is much less than the sum of the parts. The La Plassiter character especially looked like a Morse cut and paste. Someone seems to have said "hey, if we put in a crusty Oxford academic, like so many of the Morse shows had, then well have a winner", but the character just looks like he's in the wrong episode. Even Lewis himself has trouble justifying why he should take any notice of this character, who is initially at least seemingly unconnected to the case.
And the plot - as bad as the characters are the plot is much worse. None of it is in the least bit plausible, and its full of annoying idiotic plot devices to explain why Lewis is unable to solve a very obvious crime. I wouldn't be surprised if the author was high on something when they wrote this. The Stoker character is obviously the result of a desperate attempt by the writer to justify the inclusion of Le Plassiter, and to explain why he does not provide the information which if he did would have solved the case in five minutes. Worst of all is the way Lewis performs a very half-hearted investigation, hardly asking any useful questions, and cutting interviews short in order to keep the shaky plot from coming to a complete halt. Then there is the childishly obvious plot device of the substitute pathologist, who just happens to be incompetent, and once again allows the fragile plot to limp along for an extra hour.
The relationship between Lewis and the next door neighbour is really badly handled, and never seems believable either to myself as the viewer nor even to some of the characters.
One of the fundamental aspects of the plot, the wife swap, is completely ridiculous. Its simply a plot device, not a real situation, and the script fails to explain why it took so long for Lewis and co to find out that the two couples were not really married. Is it really that easy to forge documents? Could Rachel Hayward become Rachel Mallory that easily? Once again once Lewis learned about the marriage swap, then he came much closer to solving the case, and this had to be delayed.
The Lewis character seemed really strained and shallow in this episode. There is less to like about him in each subsequent episode. The character has too few likable qualities, and whilst I think very highly of Kevin Whately as an actor, I think the Lewis character needs some work to develop more positive character traits. Sarcasm and complaining get old very quickly.
If this serious does not improve dramatically I think it likely I will stop watching it altogether.
Thanks goodness we still have Morse (with Lewis).
The Almost every single aspect of the plot if far fetched.
Absolon (2003)
passable if you don't expect too much - could have been good
I watched this movie mainly because of the actors that were in it, namely Lambert, Perlman, Philips. The plot is not entirely original (which ones are?) but interesting in detail and certainly good enough to support a good movie. Had the budget been bigger, this move could have been so much more. Fight sequences are the worst part - silly and unbelievable. If you removed most of them the movie would be much better. The cast are mostly good actors but the script and other aspects of the movie let them down - they mostly do the best they can with what they have been given. Lou Diamond Philips would have had more impact if he had toned down his performance - its too over the top. I tend to blame the script/director for this rather than the actor. He certainly has the looks and talent to play a great bad guy - but hes not great here. Of the three name actors he comes out worse. (If you want to see what he can really do Courage Under Fire.) Perlman does well in his rather limited role. Lambert is OK some of the time, but rather wooden the rest. Brook is great too look at and sort of OK but the script gives her no opportunity to stretch herself. I liked the actress who plays the Scotts partner - an interesting performance. She looks great too. I hope to see her more often (I resisted the temptation to say "see more of her" - it could be misconstrued). In many ways a bad movie but it has some unexpected good points that kept me watching despite the lows. One commenter on this forum says watching this movie is a waste of time. Perhaps, but then really watching any movie is strictly speaking a waste of time. This is especially so today, when hardly any modern movies have anything but laughable plots. There are many worse ways to waste your time than this movie.
Marple: A Murder Is Announced (2005)
not at all bad compared to some of the others
I quite enjoyed this one. It was a huge improvement on the Sleeping Murder episode, which was awful. At least the plot was left mostly intact unlike Sleeping Murder - the title was about the only thing not altered. They could have been more subtle with the important plot points. I doubt most viewers watching who-done-its really want to guess who did it - it ruins the enjoyment. And of course Agatha Christies stories are far more than just about who did it.
I don't like the way the series is presented as Agatha Christies Marple. Why not just Agatha Christie? Its the author that makes the works great, not the character. And it seems to force the series producers to have to shoe horn the said Marple into stories, such as Pricking of the Thumbs, that never contained her in the first place.
As is usual with English productions, the cast were of a generally high quality. I thought Zoe Wannamaker and Elaine Page were great. I especially liked the end scene with Zoe. The only exception perhaps being the maid - she was a trifle over the top. I cannot imagine anyone (of that era) tolerating someone who was so bullish and rude.
Overall not bad considering some of the very low points in this series. Worth having in your collection.