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Joan (2024)
I enjoyed it!
Well, I certainly enjoyed the trip down memory lane back to the 80s. I served in the Met Police back in the 80s and it reminded me of some of the ne'er-do-wells I had to deal with back then.
It was interesting to see Sophie Turner going blue collar and embracing her inner Cockney. I thought she handled the role quite well and showed some versatility in a change from the stuff I've seen her in before.
The supporting cast were quite good, too. It was well-paced, good locations and nicely shot. The script was a bit weak at times, but not to the extent it made it less enjoyable.
The excellent 80s soundtrack was a joy, too. I hope they release the original song from the end credits, as they'd have a hit on their hands!
Well worth your time and, as they have set a second series, I hope they make it!
A Gentleman in Moscow (2024)
An absolute joy!
I was looking forward to watching this series, after seeing the trailer. And i will add, here, that I have not read the book.
The first episode, setting up the characters, was a bit heavy going, but I always say that you should watch at least 2-3 episodes of a series before giving up on it. And, if you stick with it, and get into the second episode, it becomes totally engrossing!
Ewan McGregor and the rest of the cast, particularly Johnny Harris, do an excellent job. It's well written, beautifully shot and the soundtrack music is marvellous.
I can thoroughly recommend this. Stick with it and you'll be rewarded!
The Twelve (2022)
Enjoyable!
I watched Season 1 and didn't review it. Now, with one episode left in Season 2, I think it's time to write a review.
Season 1 was pretty good, but i think Season 2 has been better still. The plot is nicely paced and the events involved jury members aren't quite so outlandish. It's a thoughtful, nuanced series. Sam Neill and the leads all do a good job.
The locations are also a big part of the story and it's very well shot.
This sort of drama is in short supply in today's crash-bang-wallop action-oriented world, so this makes for a nice change.
I highly recommend watching this if you enjoy well-told and interesting stories.
Wyatt Earp and the Cowboy War (2024)
Outstanding!
Well, if you only know Wyatt Earp from the movies, such as Tombstone (which is a great movie, BTW), then this will open your eyes to the complexity of the real Wyatt Earp.
It wasn't all so cut and dried as the movies make it out to be. And events didn't quite go down the way the movies claim. It's actually much more interesting than that!
This docu-drama does a great job of layering in the events, all the way from the local events in Tombstone, to the reverberations they caused politically and economically.
The drama parts are well acted and the story rattles along at a great pace. They manage to end each episode on a cliffhanger, too.
And a special mention for Ed Harris' outstanding narration!
I binge-watched it in one evening and i highly recommend it!
Signora Volpe (2022)
A very enjoyable ramble around Umbria!
This series has been a pleasant surprise. Emilia Fox and the rest of the cast do a very good job of presenting these gentle-paced whodunnits against the beautiful backdrop of Umbria.
I like the fact that they have used an Italian cast, who speak in Italian, and haven't done the usual thing and used a bunch of British actors, all speaking English, pretending to be Italian!
Even the obvious romance with Capitano Riva is handled elegantly, even though we could all see it coming from a mile away. And Giovanni Cirfiera plays his part very well too.
Well worth a watch. I hope they'll commission a third series, too!
Mame (1974)
Great entertainment!
Well, I am going to go against the grain here and say that, while Lucille Ball was 63 when this was filmed, it really doesn't detract from the movie. Yes, they had to limit her dance steps, etc., but they gained some wonderfully delivered humour.
As an example, Bosom Buddies is hilariously funny, with some biting humour between Mame and Vera (Bea Arthur) that is wonderfully delivered. Lucille could deliver lines with such droll humour!
On top of that, Robert Preston is wonderful, as always. The musical has some really good songs and set piece numbers. The showstopper, of course, being the superbly choreographed and shot title number, Mame, just after the hunt.
I really do think people should view the movie in a more favourable light and it's current rating (5.9) is an insult!
So Help Me Todd (2022)
Ridiculous cancellation!
Well, CBS should be ashamed of themselves for cancelling So Help Me Todd. It's a popular show, as the rating here shows.
It's a fresh take on the crime procedural/whodunit genre. The cast are excellent and the writing is really good. There's interesting crimes to solve every week and the interaction between the principals is such great fun, with wit and humour.
I simply cannot understand CBS policy. Why cancel a popular show halfway through a season? And yet other dross shows, with poor ratings, survive. Network politics? Quite frankly, it's almost at the point where it's not worth investing time in a new show until it's been renewed to at least two more seasons, then binge-watch to catch up.
I am fed up with investing my time in a show, only to have the network pull the rug from under my feet.
Reacher (2022)
Just enjoy the ride!
Look, folks who are looking at this as a crime procedural are entirely missing the point. Reacher is a larger than life character who does things his own way and suspension of believability is part of the deal.
Alan Ritchson plays the titular Reacher a ton of charisma and panache. His delivery of deadpan dialogue is so droll.
Season 2 has been even better because we've spent more time getting to know his former army colleagues and filling in some backstories. It's nice that they manage to fit in cameos from characters in Season 1, too.
Season 3 is already in production and I am looking forward to it!
The Regime (2024)
A missed opportunity to produce a great political satire
Ell, this turned out to be absolute tripe. Somehow, glutton for punishment, I managed to suffer through all six episodes and it was such a colossal waste of time.
Kate Winslet was horribly miscast and sounded like she had a stone stuck under her tongue. Awful.
The only guy who came out of this with any credit is Matthias Schoenaerts, as the Corporal. He played his part well and the producers missed an opportunity to make a much more interesting miniseries if they had seen him come to power.
So, really, don't waste six hours of your life watching this tripe. There are plenty of better series to watch instead.
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)
One of the best Bond movies!
This was George Lazenby's only Bond movie and it's absolutely one of the best of all the Bond movies.
The plot is good, the action is well shot, the characters are lively. Lazenby plays the part with a nice touch of humour and style, which foreshadows the move to Roger Moore's lighter Bond.
Telly Savalas makes an excellent baddie, as does Ilsa Steppat and her bladed shoes.
The regulars, Bernard Lee (M), Desmond Llewellyn (Q) and Lois Maxwell (Moneypenny) reprise their roles in the usual style.
The gorgeous Diana Rigg plays Tracy Bond and we get the best Bond song ever at the end of the movie, We Have All The Time In The World.
What's not to like?
Masters of the Air (2024)
Brutal, but magnificent!
People are being far too critical of the CGI blah blah blah. You try doing CGI for dozens of planes being manoeuvred around the screen at the same time. And if you're focusing on the CGI, you're missing the point. This is about the MEN who flew those aircraft. This is their story, on a human level.
And it does a great job of portraying those men and what they went through. Read up about the actual lives of the main characters and you'll see that the casting is really good and they portray the men accurately.
This is a series that follows a timeline and they cannot keep characters in the show who died in real life at specific points in time. The whole point is that you don't get to know many of the characters well exactly because they were killed so quickly and it's telling you what it was like for those who survived, not even having a chance to get to know many who were killed very quickly.
In short, this is a GREAT SERIES and should not be judged in comparison to Band of Brothers, but as another facet of the same war.
BTW, I am British and the pathetic whining by some Brits in the reviews is pathetic. They portray the natural rivalry between national forces. If you fools want to pretend it didn't happen, you need to grow up!
Wonka (2023)
I didn't expect to enjoy it so much!
This is such a good fun movie. Greats sets, some catchy songs (thanks to Neil Hannon, The Divine Comedy). Beautifully shot. A great leading cast and supporting cast. The story is well-paced and moves along at a jaunty pace.
The choccie badies are suitable rotters, trying to stymie Willy Wonka and being outsmatrted.
Timothee Chalamet is wonderful. He catches the tone perfectly, with some great delivery of the humour and some pretty good singing. I was really impressed by his performance. Jim Carter and the other preimary cast were excellent.
And a special mention for Hugh Grant, who almost stole the movie as Ooompa Loompa.!
The Beekeeper (2024)
Statham always make it a fun ride!
This a fairly generic action flick with a decent cast. It's quite well shot, the action scenes are well choreographed and there's a satisfyingly unlikable baddie.
Statham always put in entertaining performances and he's got a cheeky chappy approach to most of his roles that always keeps it witty. Like he knows that we know that he's having a great time. He doesn't take himself too seriously and knows exactly what he's good at.
The supporting cast do a decent job and the movie reaches a satisfying conclusion. I daresay a Beekeeper sequel would be pretty entertaining, too!
Worth a couple of hours of your time!
For All Mankind: Perestroika (2024)
Fantastic!
This has to be one of the best series finales for any TV series, ever. It is just fantastic.
At 1hr 18m, it's almost movie length, but there is a lot to cover in the allotted time.
They resolve all the outstanding issues perfectly, with style and finesse and none of them are rushed. The episode has a really good flow to it.
The CGI works great and the soundtrack is banging, especially using M83's Midnight City for the time jump/end credits.
It also ended on a very positive note and really sets up the next season (they'd better renew it, or there'll be trouble!
It's really worth having Apple TV+ just for For All Mankind!
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (2023)
A family soap opera with occasional monster appearances
This series has been a disappointment, and it's unusual for Apple TV+ to miss the mark because their content is usually top class.
This turned into a family soap opera and the monsters got lost in the mix. The hopping around timeline has made it messy, too. It would have been better told with a linear timeline.
But the main disappointment has been the lack of monster involvement and too much family feuding. When they did appear, the CGI was underwhelming. The Axis Mundi creation was really poor, too. It looked like a cheapo version of Stranger Things.
It's been a real struggle to see it through to the end of the series. Unless they seriously reconsider the approach for Season 2, then I won't be bothering.
Bosch: Legacy (2022)
Excellent!
Ok, first thing: ignore the reviews moaning that it's not as good as the original Bosch series. It is just as good, maybe even a bit better, actually. Moving Bosch into a life as a private eye allows them to give more dimensions to the character and explore more his relationship with Honey Chandler (the excellent Mimi Rogers) and the grey area where the line between right and wrong exists.
Season 2 of Bosch: Legacy may just be the best season of Bosch, original or Legacy, yet. Excellent storylines, well-written, a couple of excellent bad guys and the FBI falling flat on their face! What's not to like?
Titus Welliver is as good as ever in the lead and it's nice to see Jamie Hector pop a couple of times, too. The last appearance of Lance Reddick is sad, but so nice to see him one more time.
Lawmen: Bass Reeves (2023)
Another great show from Taylor Sheridan!
Well, I was looking forward to seeing Bass Reeves and it didn't disappoint! A top-notch cast did a great job bringing the characters to life. The locations and cinematography were fantastic and it had a sense of grit that many western series don't.
David Olewayo, as Bass, was exceptional. The supporting cast were also great: Forrest Goodluck, Dennis Quaid, Barry Pepper and Donald Sutherland all played their parts superbly. It's the best role I've seen Sutherland play in a long time.
There were three books written, so I hope we'll get to see at least one more series of Bass Reeves. With 1883 and, now, Bass Reeves, Taylor Sheridan has struck gold, not pyrite! (Watch it all the way through and you'll recognise the reference!).
Mr. Monk's Last Case: A Monk Movie (2023)
Good to have Monk back...
Well, I hope this won't be the last case for Adrian Monk. It's been so long since the series ended and it was a sheer joy to see the whole gang back together again.
Tony Shalhoub is such an underrated actor. He pitches everything just right and it's as if he has never been away for so long. He retains the quirkyness, the awkwardness and some great humour.
The plot is good, James Purefoy makes a good baddie and the supporting gang all do a great job. Jason Gray-Stanford (Disher) chips in with some hilarious attempts to solve the case, too.
So while i understand that Shalhoub might not want to get involved with another Monk series, I do hope he'll agree to do the occasional movie.
The Artful Dodger (2023)
What a hoot!
Well, I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I sat down to watch the first episode, and it took a bit of time to adjust to the fact that the Dodger and Fagin, last heard of escaping at the end of Oliver Twist, ended up being transported to Australia (not at the same time).
Once you get your head round that, it's a fast-paced romp. Great performances from Thomas Brodie Sangster and David Thewlis, who is totally in his element playing to lovable rogue Fagin, and a great performance from Maia Mitchell, as the governor's wannabe surgeon daughter.
It's been great entertainment and we even see a few other Dickens character pop-up!
I hope it gets a second season!
The Continental (2023)
Takes a while to get into high gear!
As others have said, this miniseries doesn't really get going until Episode 3. Running it across only 3 episodes makes it quite a hard watch at times, in the first two episodes. The pace sags too often and there's not a lot going on.
Finally, when we get into Episode 3, everything fires off in spectacular style and it's a blast. It finally lives up to the John Wick connection.
It's well shot and there are some very good martial arts fight scenes. The soundtrack has some great songs from the 70s.
As for the cast, the standout, for me, was Ray McKinnon. He's brilliant, with his usual charming southern drawl, and has some great lines that he delivers superbly. Colin Woodell and Ayomide Adegun capture the essence of the older Winston and Charon we know so well from John Wick. And a special shout-out to Mark Musashi and Marina Mazepa, as Hansel and Gretel. They are absolute scene-stealers!
The Chelsea Detective (2022)
Quality!
I have just finished season 2 and I have to say that this is one of the best "whodunit" shows on TV.
The storylines are interesting and not just your usual formulaic tropes. They're well thought out and hang together well enough.
The real enjoyment, though, is in the performance of Adrian Scarborough, who brings Max Clifford to life, warts and all, in great style. The interactions with his ex-wife, aunt and his team have just the right blend of pathos and emotion.
I really hope that they will bring this back for a third season, as it is no much better than a lot of the rubbish served up on TV!
Ancient Empires: Alexander The Great (2023)
Superb!
I just watched the first episode, Alexander the Great, and it is the first documentary about Alexander that properly gives viewers the real scope of the magnitude of his achievements. To comprehend the size of the empire he created: he covered 11,000 miles in 10 years. Just think about that, for a minute. It is truly mind-boggling.
The mix of action scenes and documentary input from noted historians and generals really works well and the pace never flags throughout the 90 minutes.
Excellent production values: locations, costumes, battle scenes. All first-rate.
I thoroughly recommend that you watch this.
Lioness (2023)
Not bad, but Sheridan is out of his zone
Ok, this was not a bad series, but it also wasn't very good. Sheridan had left his comfort zone and the writing suffers as a result. It's quite entertaining, but there are so many holes in it that it just falls apart under scrutiny.
I think, also, that Sheridan has fallen victim to the usual Washington character stereotypes and the big-wigs in this all walk and talk like cardboard cliches.
The casting has some serious miscues, too. Whoever thought Nicole Kidman was right for this type of part needs a re-think. I guess it was more of "Can we get another big name on onboard?" Morgan Freeman is wasted, frankly, too.
So it's Ok, Michael Kelly is his usual reliable self. Zoe Saldana does alright. Laysla de Oliveira isn't at all convincing and comes across as rather wooden. LaMonica Garrett is woefully under-utilised.
If there's a season 2, they need to up their game.
Schmigadoon!: Welcome to Schmicago (2023)
Great fun!
Well, season one took most of us by surprise, but turned out to be terrific entertainment. Season two is even better!
Most of the cast return in Schmicago, obviously, in different roles and have no memory of their roles in Schmigadoon. The only ones who remember Schmigadoon are the two principals and the Leprechaun. The additions to the season two cast do a great job.
The songs are so well written, again, and capture the essence of the period perfectly. The choreography is perfectly in keeping, too.
All in all, it great entertainment and i can only hope that there's a season three lined up, because this is one of the most enjoyable things on TV.
Les trois mousquetaires: D'Artagnan (2023)
Excellent!
I have seen all the previous movie versions of Dumas' The Three Musketeers, but this is by far the best of them. It's a much grittier adaptation, although not without the black humour of the book, and is, in my mind, more like the sort of story Dumas was aiming for.
I see some reviews complaining about the ages of the principals, but I have always considered Aramis, Athos and Porthos to be a fair bit older than d'Artagnan. How could they mentor him, otherwise? So i think the casting works.
It's beautifully lit and shot. The original score is good. The fight scenes are very well done. All in all, it's excellent.
I am eagerly awaiting the next instalment!