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Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2024)
a show about two sad and broken people?..
It's really sad to say, but having nothing else to do while working I binge watched the entire season in a bit over a day. I guess I liked community, but not sure how much Danny Glover's acting was ... well, good even then... I mean, he's fine enough and likeable as a human ?.. but I guess I just thought, hey, it's based off the two titular movies so should be fast paced fun and funny spy thriller, right? Ya! First few seconds lol "Brad" Smith endearingly brings up that squirrel! After that? All downhill. These are two dull characters badly acted out, rejects from other programs, but not for anything cool lol simply for being defective... And they take this narrative of boring and defective individuals and spread it over 8 episodes, basically a sad relationship "dramedy" following a hollywood type formula without any actual heart, a script acted out for money. Paid for by these really bad adds ... (shame on you amazon lol)
I am writing this to balance the odd 8 star + ratings on here. Odd reviews. I don't get it... I don't know if there is a different standard these days. But I guess they probably don't understand me! I literally almost shut it off a few times during the last episode out of sheer boredom and the predictability and unbelievable writing.
If I got one thing out of that series, it's the chance to practice my writing a little bit here to express how much of a waste of my time it was.. :-/ oy.. Yeah I hear myself. But trust. Me, unless like me you have literally nothing better to watch while doing something else, or for some reason you enjoy really low level relationship drama, just move on. These are not the Smiths you are looking for...
Zeros and Ones (2021)
1 because no 0. Maybe I just didn't have the brightness and contrast high enough...
Ya, I mean, if you are reading this, either like me you are trying to see if anyone understood anything and you are seeking validation that this is completely and utterly out to lunch, or you are genuinely trying to figure out if you should watch this.
Well, if you have not seen it, just walk away. Now. I would give you reasons why not, but really, I don't understand enough of what is going on to do so. Just trust me, not worth your time unless you like to pretend you are smarter than you are...
To be fair, maybe you ARE that smart. Maybe you and the director are the only two people on earth to actually get it. If this is you, I am sorry, it must be really hard dealing with all us soft boiled brains.
If on the other hand you want to know if anyone else feels the way you do, yes, would be zeros all the way, but the lowest we can rate it is 1. And then we need to use 600 words or more to explain to people why it is all so ... whatever it is... Or maybe there is more going on in those dark blurry shaky scenes I didn't see. Maybe I just didn't have the brightness and contrast set high enough...
Star Trek: Picard: The Star Gazer (2022)
A rare gem with full spectrum power, cast, story, production, writing
The culmination of Jean Luc Picard's heroic quest!! The philosopher king back or one more run at saving the galaxy.
One of those rare 10/10 series, although I guess a part of it requires the TNG as a prequel to deliver the full power.
To see Brent Spiner in different roles is great. Loved Data. Patrick Stewart is surprisingly still amazing, full on and a great motivator. I would still follow him into battle 10/10!
And well, just to be clear, Seven of Nine... still and always amazing. And all the new crew are top notch and pleasant add ins. Love Elron!!
"Choose to live." "Yes, I very much choose to live!"
The whole season story arcs for 1 and 2 are great each in their own respect, the first being more contemporary, the second being very nostalgic inducing for Star Trek TNG fans as it all comes together...
Well done! Thanks to all who participated to make this one happen! Amazing addition to the Star Trek Canon.
Upload (2020)
boring attempt at capitalising on a trending topic
Watch this for a lesson on how to turn the interesting concept of digital mind uploads into a mundane mess of a plot full of holes and centred around a boring character arc that can't even be interesting to the characters experiencing it.
Actors are ok, and production value decent, but the story... the sci-fi is lipstick on a pig.
Disappointing and not worth the money it obviously cost to produce. But, we are starved for content and willing to gobble up any hot mess.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
spiderman 17: rehashed trash
Yeah, they did it again. They told the exact same story in a slightly different way and got away with rave reviews. Guess everyone is brain-dead or too young or stoned to remember the plot to the last one...
I wish we could expect something new in the future, but it looks like spiderman's real power is being reborn every 5-7 years in some alternate world, and going through the same loop of self-discovery, puppy love, loss of parental figure, final showdown with oh so predictable outcome, followed by the post-victory self-sacrificing isolation...
Yo, future spiderman reboot writers, you taking notes? Rinse and repeat the above and apparently you can keep milking this mess for generations to come!
What a joke. And I actually believed this time was different maybe... but instead, spoiler not spoiler, they literally had to rehash the past as they seemingly don't know how to make a proper villain anymore.
Like, seriously, the only real bad guy in this whole mess is teenage stupidity and hormones... And lol i do mean the movie, but also clearly the writers.
Touching Evil (2004)
star crossed production!
It's a pretty decent show. Has a weird vibe going that makes it unique and worthy of it's high ratings even today. I am a huge Burn Notice fan so I may be biased lol but such is life!
So yeah, many years later lol looking back, it's pretty interesting to see the amount of great actors that somehow all came together to make this series happen!
Aziz Ansari: Nightclub Comedian (2022)
What happened to Aziz? Did he start trying to write his own jokes?...
I don't know exactly when it happened, but Aziz stopped being funny and became boring and obvious, stating facts and hoping to get people to laugh about it. I am gonna go out of a limb and say either he now writes his own stuff, or no longer does... or maybe he just became lazy and thinks that he is "cool" now or something.
Go back to the drawing board and redefine yourself as the nightclub fact stater... comedian is out of your reach at this point...
Hagane no renkinjutsushi (2017)
wow total garbage.. bad story, bad acting, bad everything
Maybe if you are 11 and you are in love with the manga series this is your thing. Anyone else, do avoid and save yourself the frustration.
The whole thing is like a cardboard version of a story. No depth, no intrigue. Soooo cheesy and badly acted. I guess the effects are not too bad, but hey, these days, you can do this in your basement..
Villains (2019)
funny, chilling, and well acted
This little gem is worth a watch. There is good acting, a great atmosphere, and just the right ratio of humor and chilling to make an entertaining watch.
Death to 2021 (2021)
has funny moments, but obvious political agenda
Well, it is a good mockumentary. It mocks and belittles anyone not buying the mainstream media dribble. So if you are a good sheeeple and would like to be pet in the echo chamber, this may be the reinforcement you are so desperately craving as a good little drone.
Titans: Purple Rain (2021)
They gave Trigon all those SOULS!!! NOOO lmao
Ok, so apparently this is not a very well known fact, but Trigon put those pits around to capture people's souls. This comes from the mouth of the head of the demon himself, Ra's al Ghul! (justice league vs teen titans)
This means that when someone who has used a pit dies, their soul is forfeit.
This means that they have in fact sent hundreds, thousands? Of people to hell to suffer eternal torment with their little purple rain.
Wow lol talk about not knowing your own lore.
And as if that wasn't bad enough, the writers decided that a bunch of drama and betrayal and inner conflict and lol near romance is what this finale needed more of...
Seriously, Trigon is somewhere in a dark, dank, brutally hot corner of hell literally rofl... re-watching that finale with glee..
Rotten: The Avocado War (2019)
really quite interesting lol but cry me a river...
So yeah a bunch of privileged land owners complaining how their market growing has caused them all kinds of hardships due to the environment they themselves are responsible for destroying..
What is funny and revealing is that there seems to be no awareness of the irony of rich land owners complaining of not being able to hire laborers at slave wages to do their "plantation master" bidding.
The rotten california grower goes so far as to show disdain that an environmental effort is impacting his capacity to continue his mercantile practices.. oh the irony lol.
Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000)
Larry! Larry! Larry!
Yeah that's right, this guy deserves a chant!
All these years later and he is still breaking the mold, pushing the barrier of what is acceptable, making truly inspired and ingeniously engineered moments of comical parodies of the real world.
If this was your ticket Larry, it would say "forking amazing comic/genius" lol
See what happens when you let an ultra wealthy self deprecating jew go nuts on himself and the world.
Oh, and fwi, the cameos are amazing! And keep in mind it's semi-scripted!
Larry for president!
Larry! Larry! Larry!
The 100 (2014)
good sometimes but always manipulative
The issue with this series is there is no clear continuity in the character development.
Each seems to at one point be good, then bad, then selfish, then selfless. Makes no sense. You like everyone, then hate everyone. The "story" appears to dictate how an individual acts, not how they acted in the past..
There is a constantly recurring notion of the characters being all about deciding for everyone what is good behind their backs and attempting some form of double cross or deception - "for their own good"... it's a very annoying plot mechanism and just keeps being central.
I don't know.. as it picks up, some good seasons and bad seasons, and in each a lot of variation. I like the concepts, the plots, the macro. My main issue I guess is a lot of the emo stuff, the micro, the constant attempts at manipulating.
The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale (2018)
I guess there's something about Joel..
I mean, let's face it, the show is really kinda bad, but so bad it's great. The way they seem to find those gems of moments that just leave you jaw hanging from various reality TV shows.
Also, as the title says, it's something about Joel McHale. He's just a very likable person for some reason.. and he's really "spreading his legs" here... That's a spoiler for ya lol
And yeah, there are some really great and funny cameos as well. Top notch actors giving funny and awkward performances to parody the content of the show.
In some weird ways, Joel reminds me of Norm MacDonald, right down to the awkwardness with which he interacts with his guests.
Good job Joel and really the whole team. For the production costs of this thing, you did an amazing job of creating entertaining content!
Even the credit song, which I definitely listened to... at least once..
Midnight Mass (2021)
Entertaining, creepy, and mostly satisfying.
Solid overall series with a strong Stephen King influence.
It's obvious that through the directing of SK movies, Flanagan has picked up on some of the vibes, the general methodology of a gradual introduction into the other worldly. SK actually recommends exactly this technique in "On Writing".
Ok, so to be real, there were moments where I was genuinely a bit creeped out by the strong christian vibe. Like, it gets a bit bad there and at times one is left wondering if this is in fact a covert attempt at actual conversion...
But then thankfully, it gets dark and creepy. Of course, this may be to sell the Jesus pitch.. but whatever, at least it's there and it's finally entertaining.
And let's face it, the use of things like the SOOOO obvious "Dead man walking" setups to name only one that happens a few times too many, make this an obvious "hollywood formula" series.
Ok, now let's get real again one final time... long before the crazy lady was on the beach digging, my survival game training had kicked in and I was already trying to spot a shovel.
I think this is actually a pretty sad and boring ending. This is where SK gets it right and where Flanagan ends up really just being a bunch of cliche moments lined up together as per someone else's techniques ending in a scene somehow without any emotional gratification..
Psych (2006)
funny, witty, smart and kind
I don't give tens often... in fact, there are maybe a handful of shows that qualify. This here is one of them. It's got it all. Great actors, great writing, great sets, character progression.
I often laugh out loud, usually at/with Gus. Lassider is perfect and required, and a great actor to boot. Shawn and Juliette interacting is cute and believable. The dad is a great actor and spot on in his role. Shawn can get a little "much" sometimes, but that's kinda the point...
I don't know, if you're some kind of freak of nature that doesn't like pineapples, maybe this show isn't for you. For anyone else, worth a quick check. You will know if you are hooked fast enough.
Jupiter's Legacy (2021)
Would have been a 7-8, but really fumbles the finale
So, spoiler free. The show is pretty good. Has decent moments. There are some cliche emo scenes as well, but it doesn't get too caught up in it.
So, it's two timelines, side by side. And sadly, they both suffer from the same problem of a dull, unsatisfying conclusion, almost like the writers were all motivated and original to start, then kinda defaulted to auto pilot predictability.
I sadly saw the "big reveal" in the first episode. There was key dialogue that spoiled it all for me. You gotta be careful with foreshadowing folks, it's easy to slip the nip and become obvious. I was hoping I was wrong, but nope, it was just more and more blatant going forward.
Oh, also, I kinda hope they don't get renewed simply because they tried to end it on a cliffhanger, without a real climax, to bait us into another season.
For the record, cliffhanger finales without anything concrete are a sure way to generate frustration, not loyalty. Blue-balling your "fans"?.. shame on you.
Writers are kinda weak in terms of character development as well. You can tell they are based off a comic book version of themselves, and don't really pull off the "people" part of the equation.
Finally, to be fair, the acting is actually decent. Good commitment. Good execution. Perhaps the biggest saving grace, with the sets and the wardrobes.
Outlander (2008)
Space exploring dragon hunting viking Caviezel! What more can you ask for?
The title actually sounds like it could be a horrible joke, an attempted mashup of all these things into some weird parody that takes itself seriously. But this is NOT the case here. The story flows, assumes its genres surprisingly well, somehow...
It is far from original, in that most of the plot elements are seen many times, although likely not all at once hehehe, but in this sense it is perfect, as it is original and personal while being so familiar as to feel like one's own dream...
Again, it seems like it should be re-hashed garbage, an attempt at modernizing a story as old as time, and going too far in so doing on too low of a budget. But somehow, it's none of those things. Great acting, ok CGI, great story, and good dialogue. I liked it!
Jiu Jitsu (2020)
wow just wow... and where's the jiu jitsu?...
If you dont care about quality, dialogue, plot, acting, fight scenes, CGI and life in general this may be the movie for you. If however you actually enjoy your life, save yourself the torture and self-inflicted harm and walk away...
Seriously, I thought, it can't get any worst can it? But it does. Then it does it again. And again.
Some people give it a high rating because it's so bad it's good? They lie. It's worst than that, which makes it bad again. And it's not funny. It's annoying. There's a very big difference. The tone, the seriousness with which the actors take themselves. The actors themselves and the energy they put off just made me cringe so often, like fingernails on a chalkboard.
Mr. Cage lol how did it come to this?..
I dont understand how rubbish like this even gets made in 2020...
Oh, as a proof of the insanity of whoever put this joke out into the world, the fighting styles used are anything but jui jitsu.
Ironic? Or just very sad?
Definitely sad.
Burn Notice (2007)
fun action adventure series with a satisfying progress/conclusion
Yes, it's true, it does get a bit dark as things progress. There are a few moments that change the scope and direction of the series, but they feel organic and in line with the theme. This is a burnt spy show after all, not a Magnum PI ripoff.
The true gems of the show are the actors. The settings, the stories, the progression, the directing, writers, dialogue, all are at least good if not borderline great. But the casting, that is truly great. From the mom, to the brother, the girlfriend, Sam, the various villains, all wonderful, top shelf. My favorite villain being Simon, but not by far!
Jesse, who later joins the series, is now another of my all time favorite actors thanks to his performance here.
All in all, if you are reading this, I say it's already at the point where you are curious enough. Give it a try. It will not be disappointing.
American Gods: Tears of the Wrath-Bearing Tree (2021)
Pink Floyd The Wall meets Inception. In a bad way.
Cheap writers filling time. Bad vision scenes without any revelations or value that seem straight up like a caricatured psychedelic trip. Those ain't visions there "shadow moon" lol those are just straight up delusions. You should probably see a doctor about that.
The whole season felt like it was trying to build towards something but never quite delivered. So the unstated promise was that there would be substantial resolution at the end? If the show thinks it delivered, then it may be as delusional as their so called visions.
Bluntly, this finale is a kick in the jewels, as it does nothing to resolve anything, but merely tries to set itself up with about a dozen cliffhangers to entice another season.
Seriously, the whole season slow burning to build up to cliffhangers for another season? Man, I hate you guys lol
Like, have you ever played with a cat and not let it get the toy even once? The cat kinda goes bonkers and gets weird and aggro and looks at you like maybe if you were not so big and strong things would go a lot different. This is what you are doing. Hire writers that are able to actually let the viewer have some resolution.
To be honest, I don't even care about any of these characters anymore. This is what happens when you run in 36 directions and don't actually give any substance to any of them.
which is too bad because season 1 was very good in this regards, and others.
If some studio execs are so out of original ideas as to fund a fourth season of this, I may watch it out of spite, like the sports team you love to hate.
Surprise me, please! but truthfully, I would not renew this garbage. Or at very least clean house. Change it's momentum.
Coming 2 America (2021)
tired political agenda wastes talent once again
Instead of trying to not insult the boring and angry ones, how about making a movie we can actually laugh at? tired and lacking in every way. Big names made it happen. but it is sadly an obvious cash grab. Shameful.
American Gods (2017)
Loved first season, then goes downwhill
I would recommend the first season. It is interesting, original, entertaining. 8/10
Second season has confusing choices to say the least. Not very interesting and character arcs rather dull to say it like it is. 6/10
Season 3 is just slow and seems to go nowhere. 3/10. This is the sign of a lack of imagination or too much restraint on writers, or something... I don't even know what is going on or why I should care. There is just not enough happening here in terms of content, story, action. and all those "artsy" vision scenes look like they are straight up out of Fear and Loathing or something. I swear a lot of them don't even have any other point than to fill screen time because well lack of story.
To put it in a rather vulgar but fitting way, it's like the guy pulled off all his moves and blew his load in season 1, but has just kept going with no real passion, content, reveals, since.
I am leaving at 6/10 because well season 1 was decent. I guess I should have just called it a cab after season 1 lol
Bliss (2021)
Now you know how it feels
I have not been here, but I have been places. People that say the movie is about this or that, or not about this or that, fail to grasp what it's like to live in a subtle shifting universe where the difference between what is real and what is "generated" is blurry.
There are really great scenes, uses of imagery and symbolism. And the acting is also very good.
People speak of mental illness like it's a simple thing to define. because traditional judeo-christian mythology of a heaven and hell and all layers of places and beings makes perfect sense!... Alternative beliefs brought about by drugs, shamanistic and recreational, do tend to step on this blurry line though. The line off what is real from what isn't... And so yes, this movie IS about drugs and shifted perceptions.
To say it is about homelessness is to have no idea of what the reality of being homeless feels like, and to say it is about drug addiction again implies one has no idea what that actually feels like or looks like... This movie represents none of the actual trials and tribulations of those realities. These characters dance through existence like little snowflakes in a storm.
This is more about an attempt at genre mashing new age simulation theory stuff with the hard knock life of reality by a writer who never struggled a day in their lives..
And yet I still give it a high rating. because it does what it sets out to do very well. It puts the viewer in that oddly confused and ambiguous state that is proper questioning of the nature of reality, and makes it dirty and sweaty and messy like a good mushroom trip or something.