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dionysusdm
Reviews
Doctor Who: 73 Yards (2024)
What an intriguing episode!
Finally! This episode felt like episodes of the past that I liked so much. Oddly enough it did so without the Doctor's help. After watching the first two episodes, I was definitely not impressed. They were silly to the point of being ridiculous. Then there was BOOM. There were some definite plot holes in it, but it's more serious tone was a nice change. It gave me hope that this series might be worth watching after all. And sure enough, 73 Yards fulfilled that hope. It was intriguing, enigmatic and mysterious. It let Ruby shine as a character and companion. It had me hooked. While some viewers felt let down by the ending, it was something that I wasn't expecting, and I found that refreshing. Some viewers also said that it made the episode pointless. But the point was that it led Ruby on a path to end up saving the world. And once again, she did it without the Doctor.
The one thing that I agree with, mentioned by other commenters, was the fact that "the 73 yard woman's" constant gestures weren't explained. Or if they were, I totally missed it. How were her gestures relevant?
I hope the next episode continues to show the improvement that episodes three and four have.
The Tourist (2022)
Solid 8 for Season 1, Season 2 stupidity drops it to 6
I don't know how to keep spoilers out of this review because of the "required characters" involved. But I'll try.
Season 1 WOULD have been a 9 for me...until one totally impossible thing happens. I knocked one star off right then and there. Can't say what it was, but it's obvious. I would highly recommend watching Season 1.
Season 2 should be titled "The Tourist: Stupidity Reins Supreme". But I still like the characters, and I do like SOME of the added humor. So Season 2 gets a solid 6 stars from me. So many scenes in just the first two episodes could've been resolved with simple common sense. But apparently common sense was left back in Season 1. However, it was still interesting enough to watch all the way through.
Summation - I most definitely recommend Season 1. It's suspenseful and riveting. But a viewer could stop after Season 1 and be satisfied. Season 2, in my opinion, feels like more of an afterthought.
Lessons in Chemistry (2023)
Ridiculous and overused trope
To avoid spoilers, I won't give it away. But I was so disappointed in episode 2 when this ridiculously overused and abused TV and movie trope was used. As soon as I saw it, I knocked off 2 stars. You'll totally know it when you see it.
Other than that I've thoroughly enjoyed this series so far. I'm only on episode 3, but with intelligent writing and superb acting, I can't see it going downhill from here. I've been on the fence for a while when it comes to Brie Larson, but she's already won me over here.
Minus the obvious comedic aspects, there are elements of this series that remind me of "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel". And that's a good thing as far as I'm concerned.
I'm hooked and look forward to the remaining episodes. But seriously, what motorized vehicles have completely silent engines?
Henpocalypse! (2023)
Not exactly bad, but not really good either
I would've given Henpocalypse! A middle of the road 5 rating, because it's just Meh. But then I got to the end of episode 6 and...it just stops! This isn't a season (or series), it's just 6 episodes of something that is obviously longer. They decided to show us 6 episodes and then just stop there, pretending that it's some kind of finale. It's not; it's just more of the same. And I don't even care about what happens next. So my 5 rating drops to a 3. Heck, two months from now I'll probably forget that I ever watched this. Since I'm being told that my review is too short, I'll add that I DID enjoy the Jen character, once she was on her own.
The Rookie: Feds (2022)
The FBI: Boobs A'Poppin
That should be the title to this show. Are all three of them getting salaries (Niecy, left boob, right boob)? In all seriousness, if they removed the supposed star of this show, I'd probably enjoy it like I do The Rookie. I have nothing against Niecy Nash as a person. I bet she's a great human being. But her character is nothing but a caricature of an FBI agent. And a bad caricature at that. I'd love to see where the rest of the cast could go without the lead. My honest opinion is that if this show gets renewed for another season, with Niecy's character still at the helm, then Hollywood has truly gotten lazy and disrespectful of its viewership.
Call Me Kat (2021)
Why is this still on?
I tried watching it when it first began, and immediately took a strong dislike to it. It's one of those sitcoms where every joke is forced, and most being completely unfunny. It has one of those laugh tracks where "people" laugh even when a joke hasn't been told, and there wasn't a pratfall. I cringed so much that my face nearly got stuck like that. I vowed never to watch it again, but figured it wouldn't last a full season anyway.
Now here it is in its third season. I figured that maybe things had improved. Like some shows in the past, maybe Kat had finally found its footing. So I randomly chose a couple of new episodes to watch. OMG, it's still as bad as it was in the beginning. Not a single joke made me laugh or smile. And it's not hard to at least make me smile at something. The only reason that I can think of as to why this show still has an audience is because people have a fondness for the actors involved.
I broke my vow to never watch it again. But if, by some miracle, it's still on in another two years, I won't be fooled into watching again.
The Rookie: The Choice (2022)
The episode gets an 8. John Nolan gets a 4.
I'm not sure if this episode just jumped the shark (or another shark), but I know it failed Nolan and his sworn duty as a police officer. John swore an oath to "protect and serve". That means protect the lives of innocent people, and serve justice when appropriate. In this case, Bailey was that innocent person. Only instead of being physically held with a gun to her head, while her attacker "threatens" to kill her, she was LITERALLY being murdered right in front of John's eyes. Nolan had a gun pointed directly at an ACTIVE murderer, and did nothing. He failed his oath, and he failed his duty. And if he can't fulfill those two things, then he shouldn't be a cop. I'll say it again, Rosalind was LITERALLY killing Bailey! Shooting Rosalind WAS the correct thing to do in that situation. They can spin it anyway they want to; so can viewers. But in my opinion, the show just let John Nolan down.
The Rookie: Real Crime (2022)
Could've resolved this differently
While I'm glad that the "falsely convicted and jailed" story line is now resolved, and we can move on from that, was this really the only way to do it? This was absolutely horrible. I've really liked pretty much every episode of The Rookie, even allowing some slack for "funny" episodes that weren't funny. But this episode was just bad. I felt sorry for the actors, to have to lower themselves to this dreck. I hope to heck that the writers have gotten this junk out of their systems, and can now go back to writing gripping, suspenseful episodes.
Fantom (2020)
Very engrossing, well written and acted
Thank goodness for subtitles, so I can watch great foreign series like this one. I really enjoyed the twists and turns, right up to the end. Also, the ending leaves it open for a possible second season. I hope this happens.
The Hunter's Anthology (2021)
What has happened to the 5th Episode?
Although the acting is kind of subpar, the effects look cheap as heck, and the "demon hunter" WAY overacts his part, I was still entertained by the first four episodes. But where is the 5th episode? I can't find it anywhere. Which means that I can't find out who the demon is. Will I lose sleep over this? Hardly. But if I choose to watch a series, I'd like to see it to its conclusion.
So does anyone know where to watch the 5th episode?
Reluctant Angel (1997)
Acting that would work as a play, but not on film
I always have a hard time enjoying a movie that feels more like a play that has been filmed, rather than a SCREENplay that has been filmed. The actors speak and move as if they have to project their words and movements to people in the back of a theatre. This works beautifully IN a theatre ON a stage, but comes across as overacted and melodramatic in a movie.
Thus is the acting in "Reluctant Angel." I watched it because I am a fan of Megan Follows, so I am "reluctant" to say I was disappointed, particularly in her acting. But it wasn't just her; all three main characters were too overblown to seem real, the dialogue wasn't realistic, and the camera work was overly dramatic (including swirling around a room while the characters walk in a circle). These elements caused me to be too aware that I was watching a MOVIE instead of watching a story unfold.
All of this left me unsatisfied when the movie ended. If the elements that I have listed above bother you when you watch a movie, then "Reluctant Angel" is not for you.
Waking Up in Reno (2002)
Very good actors having a very good time
Bottom line: I enjoyed this movie.
It wasn't in the same league with Moonlight Mile, which I watched the same day, but it wasn't MEANT to be compared with movies of that caliber. It was meant to be fun and good for a few laughs and I believe it succeeded.
Also, what is wrong with a "great" and/or "respected" actor taking a role once in a while just for the fun of it? All four of the lead actors looked like they were having a great time playing these characters. And when actors look like they are having fun making a movie, I usually have fun watching the movie. Such was the case with Waking Up in Reno.
Moonlight Mile cost me $4 to rent and Waking Up in Reno cost me $4 to rent. For different reasons, both were worth the cost of the rental.
It Came from Somewhere Else (1988)
Lots of witty, clever ideas filmed on shoestring budget
The makers of this movie were obviously ambitious enough to get it filmed on a shoestring budget, without the shoe and without the string. It also looks like they used a lot of amateur actors, or just local townspeople.
But what the filmmakers had going for them were numerous humorous ideas, that are witty enough that they transcend the cheapness of the movie itself.
I think this movie is what a film by John Landis, Jim Abrams and the Zuckers would have looked like if they were in college and had no money to make it. And that's part of this movie's charm. Like their bigger budget movies, this film is a parody. And it works.
One really clever idea that's ongoing in the film -- most of the movie is in black & white, but switches to color every time there is gratuitous nudity or violence, then switches back to black & white. Also, some of the bad acting appears to be intentional, as a send-up to many of the old black & white sci-fi movies of the 50's.
Perhaps I'm giving the filmmakers too much credit, but I think they knew exactly what they wanted to make, but didn't have the resources to get it just right. But it is still enjoyable. Too bad it is impossible to find.