GSK23 Reviews

Ófærð (2015– )

engaging

[6/10 · 9 May 2024]

Totally interesting, well made mystery in a small Icelandic town during horrible weather.

There's plenty going on here, so the narrative can easily place things on the back burner while focusing on something else. Also, being in a small town, they can't suddenly introduce the killer at the end (as a lot of these recent cop shows do).

I have to admit that they DO pile on way too many problems at once. This seems to be an influence of bad US made cop mysteries. For example, one episode had someone breaking in to where the torso was kept (unguarded!) while children go missing in the snow and little separate dramas play out all at once. Another episode, during an equally dense set of problems, the old man shows up and says "listen!" and warns that an avalanche is coming! (that later played out to be nothing!)

So, yeah, totally engaging and great continuity, etc. But, some eye rolling here and there; but not half as much as most cop mysteries I've been seeing lately.

Characters are well played and show depth.

I am just about to finish the first season, and I can't imagine how they get to the 3rd! 3 seasons for a week of action? Or does the storm pass and things move on? Honestly, if the storm passes and another mystery is revealed, I might say ho-hum and move on. It's good and engaging, but not solid enough to keep up.

Hill Street Blues (1981–1987)

surprisingly engaging

[8/10 · 26 March 2024]

I vaguely recall watching a bit of the first season or two when it aired. But, I was in high school and just starting to get out more and pretty much gave up tv at this point in lieu of punk rock concerts, parties, etc. All the things one does at that age.

So, bedridden with a nasty bug, I said 'heck, let's watch this!" I went in cold and didn't read up on it at all beforehand. It pulled me in pretty quick with it's rundown cop shop and dozens of people constantly on screen all doing really fantastic ensemble work.

The cops weren't as flat as they were in the past. They were complicated humans with real emotions. Granted, 1981 emotions, but still. And then, holy cow! It's Trinidad Silva! AND David Caruso (in that utterly cartoonish hat and green leprechaun suit!?!?!?) The gangs were still being treated like cartoons, but I kept my eye on Trinidad, as he was a brilliant character actor. Sure enough, he gets a line about his mother's cancer. So they're trying to even give the gangs a modicum of humanity. Certainly a first for the era.

They deal with "issues". But without outright dealing with some of the issues, they do put them onscreen to be VISIBLE. The "casual" sexism and racism are constantly in play.

One odd bit that really doesn't work now: The lovable Michael Conrad as the Sargent and his dating a high school girl. Ugh. Really? Even then? The guy is in his 50s. It's too bad, because otherwise, he's my favorite character! Dang! I'm still watching and maybe he'll ditch the girl and go full time with the decorator woman?

Otherwise, jeez, there's a billion narrative threads going on! There's rarely scenes with less than twenty people on screen! Story lines take at least two episodes to finalize, some much longer. Realy great character growth arcs that never happened before are starting to come into vogue here. This stuff will play out later in future shows like the Wire.

Plus, jeez, look at the FULL cast list! Scroll down... more and more.. it goes on forever. You'll notice quite a few up and coming names! Amazing.

Betty Thomas, a former Second City performer and good friend with the SCTV cast (even parodied BY them!), is fantastic. There's a cop here called John D. LaRue. Curious... SCTV had John Candy's character, a sleazeball, named Johnny LaRue. I seriously doubt there's a connection, but it's worth noting!

My only beef is the Los Angeles locations weren't really handled too well. Maybe nobody noticed on their 22" color TVs? But, jeez, I can't help but noticed the palm trees!

I wonder how younger viewers would like this? Being older, I can certainly summon the context in which this show "broke ground" and get into it. But, if you can't do that, does it still work?

All in all, I was surprised how hooked I was! I think having a bunch of narrative threads going at once -VERY soap opera- kept me watching. Its pacing is pretty quick for the time (pre-MTV) and each episode sorta flew by. Now that I'm no longer sick, I am still gonna keep watching!

Still of the Night (1982)

Solid "modern" noir

[7/10 · 6 March 2024]

Yes, there's some Hitchcock references throughout the film, but it never feels like it's TRYING to be a Hitchcock film. If anything, it felt like it was paying general homage to most 1940s noir films with a touch of Jacques Tourneur thrown in here and there. Maybe even some Argento/Bava influence as well (Suspiria and Inferno were fresh in the air).

I found it to be very enjoyable. Streep delivers a good 3+ minute monologue with real tears! She's fantastic throughout; looking very much the 1940s femme fatale (that purple dress!). Scheider is good, as he always is, but feels a bit like he's just walking through this one. Maybe his lines and the director kept him that way?

I really don't get the hate for this one. It's a homage! NOT a rip off or remake. I thought it nailed the vibe in color and in a modern setting without compromise.

Yeah, like most noirs, the plot and characters are not too deep. It's simple but very effective, if you let it be. To really modernize such a homage in 1982 would have killed it. Look at other 80s noirs and they mostly suck, or come across as silly and dated now. This one sticks to its guns and -again- nails the homage part perfectly.

True Detective: Night Country: Part 6 (2024) Season 4, Episode 6

seriously daft/camp ending

[2/10 · 23 February 2024]

OMG, f'n out of the blue way to tie up all the loose ends! Terrible.

So... despite the constant build up of some unforseen force killing those scientists in a very specific, horrific way was really just the Inuit cleaning staff? Seriously? Outside of a fleeting glimpse of them early on, there was NOTHING that alluded to this coming at us. But, you have to admit, that flashback scene of a dozen armed cleaning ladies busting in on the lab, rounding them up and killing them was a surreal, hilarious and even camp image to die for! Wow!

Then Navarro got her secret Inuit name from a hallucination! And it's meaning was... uh... well... Jeez.

But, really, the most hilarious thing ever is the last scene of Danvers and Leah eating sandwiches, laughing and driving off to the horizon in golden sunlight! Wow, they really... uh.. wtf... they really had to end with such a goofy cliché? REALLY? My gawd, that was juvenile.

So, to recap: The first episode was engaging enough to pull me in (small mining town in Alaska during it's season of total darkness, white miners, Inuit, cops and corporate science nonsense) and it felt like it could build into something interesting. However, after that, the rest of the episodes floundered and got silly, slow and jaw droppingly stupid at times.

By the 5th episode, I was sitting upright and paying more attention again: The bits with John Hawkes (the guy from the Butthole Surfers movie!) and his character's son Peter was interesting and tense.

The stuff with Danvers and Leah was DOA with Danvers just being too much of an unfeeling jerk to Leah. Not enough meat with the story or character depth here to make me want to care. Suddenly, by the last episode, Leah is all worried about Danvers only to end with smiles was boring, silly and unrealistic.

Doctor Who was great when he was onscreen, but his story and the lady that ran the evil corporation never had meat at all. It also just sorta got dropped at the end altogether (at least we saw that the corporation/mine was closed at the end).

Then, in the end, the tongue. So something "mystical" WAS happening? Or?

Sorry, throwing secret tunnels and labs in at the last minute (along with surprise vigilante cleaning staff) was too much. Honestly, I was getting pulled in again at episode 5 and was suddenly hopeful... so it was a huge letdown in ep 6 when it just went loodally.

I was attracted to this because of Foster and thought she would have chosen a good script, crew, etc. She may have, but of course, it's not her show and she didn't have a say in the editing and directing! Ugh.

True Detective (2014– )

not really anything special

[5/10 · 20 February 2024]

I watched the first season and was merely entertained. So I kinda forgot about this series until I heard about season 4 with Jodie Foster. I figured that maybe she wouldn't do something so thoroughly average, right?

Er, jeez, this is still really not doing much for me. The hokey mysticism drags it down real fast. I'm three episodes in and really not wanting to finish it, but I probably will.

Take the goofy mystic angle out and all you have is another detective show, only this time in a rural Alaskan town (coasting on the recent wave of Norwegian cop shows?).

Foster is fine, but really isn't shining here. In fact, no one is. Everyone is doing decent acting, but the writing is so dang pedestrian.

Well, like I said, I probably will keep watching. Maybe it'll pick up?

Monsieur Spade (2024)

Refreshing continuation of Sam's story

[8/10 · 8 February 2024]

Okay, I didn't expect this! I started watching cuz it's Spade and maybe, just maybe, it'll be passable. Well, it's more than that!

Clive Owen (name's familiar, but I can't place him) does a great job avoiding being Bogart while staying true to the character as written by Hammett. The lines are all cynical one liners with layers of meaning if you're paying attention. He chooses his words and is an efficient speaker.

It's not ever tying to be a noir either; which is nice. It's 1962 South France for gawd's sake! Sun and European hangover from the war(s) permeates the air. Everyone was affected by the Occupation and everyone has a back story. It's not your usual Spade in dank, dark 1930s San Francisco dealing with black jack wielding thugs and kingpins brandishing heaters! No! Spade's suddenly sitting before a Bishop discussing the Church's secrets! Very refreshing.

I just finished the third episode and it's not wavering a bit. Still on a solid course. I'm in!

The Spider Labyrinth (1988)

really goofy, directionless horror

[3/10 · 3 February 2024]

Saw this a billion years ago on a grainy pirate VHS. So, it was a revelation to see the fancy cleaned up Blu Ray!

However, that said, stripping away all that VHS haze ruined it for me! It's not a very atmospheric film and that's when I noticed the plot is beyond stupid. The acting is only slightly better!

The plot starts off in giallo territory, but shifts into goofy, Fulci-esque demon stuff. Even worse is that they only have one demon; which is a woman with silly monster teeth and bad 80s hairspray frightwig. Plus, by the time our hero battles the demon, he wins rather easily; which makes you wonder how it killed those other people earlier! Silly!

The last quarter is lit like a Bava film and takes place in a Gates of Hell/The Beyond-like underground maze. They're trying really hard to create something inspired by Fulci, but it never gets there. Yeah, I know, it's not like rocket science to rip off Fulci, but they never succeed here!

The last 3 minutes are beyond silly.

Wrong Turn 2: Dead End (2007 Video)

retreaded retreads

[1/10 · 16 January 2024]

Even Henry Rollingstone can't fix this. I love his parade of white male fanboys that think he's Brando or something. Sorry, nothing against him personally, but the guy is a horribly wooden actor. He's also too well known as "Henry Rollins" to be take seriously acting as someone else. Heck, even his bit part cameos dry up and ruin the scene he's in (see David Lynch's Lost Highway).

Besides Hank's "acting", this film is packed full of crappy non-actors. In fact, one could argue that it is indeed Mr. RollingInCash that actually "acts" the best here. I mean, it's a stretch, but it's true.

The rest of the film is just about as ineptly directed as the actors. It's an "action" film sold to the "horror" crowd (most13 year old boys or 17 year old got girls that shop at Hot Topic). A billion, trillion, GODZILLION miles from being effective as "horror" and twice as far from being actually watchable.

At this point, watching the neighbor kids at Halloween is more effective and scary than this film. Ugh!

Archie (2023– )

Jarring edits, montages and pop music

[4/10 · 14 December 2023]

I typically do not venture into straight American TV dramas, but the trailer looked abfab and Grant has always been an interesting character to me. I've always liked Grant and the films he's been in, but I've never dug too deeply into his life; so I can't say anything about the details here.

The actors playing the leads look and act fantastic. All of the scenes with Cannon and Grant are super engaging. Kudos all around to them, the make up folks and general production.

Here we go:

However, while I only just finished the second episode, I might be hardpressed to continue. I want to see more of the human drama here, but the freakin' segue "retro film" inserts are atrocious. There's one scene in the second episode where there is a montage of these "retro film" scenes from about 1918, overlaid with Jet Boy, Jet Girl on the soundtrack! A massive WTF as I sit upright in my chair, not having heard that one in ages, let alone in such a ridiculous context and had to get up to show my wife in the other room. What is the logic here? It's a 1918 clip and they're using a 1977 song in a 2023 production! And, really, up to that point, the music was typical background stuff; no pop music of the sort.

If this continues past this episode, I will hugely disappointed.

When the camera isn't focused on Grant/Cannon, things go off the rails quite a bit. I'm guessing they had lotsa 2nd units and 2nd unit directors that missed the group meetings with the main director and production team?

Ultimately, it's about 75% really solid and enjoyable; which ain't bad, I guess!

But, jeez, freakin' weird.

EDIT: Okay, I finished. Weird! It keeps layering in the wacky fake distressed footage. Some lengthy montages of "found film" are literally cut into the middle of some dramatic scenes. Again, as others point out, "Cary" is this constant fabrication that Archie has to put a ton of energy into, so I get some of the "fakeness" here. But, jeez, the filmmakers beat it into the ground until we're sick of it.

Also, as others noted, it's based on Cannon's book, so it's mostly about her time with Cary Grant. Yet, there's a ton of other stuff not including her; which I found to be more interesting, but never developed properly.

Ugh... kind of a waste of my time to finish it. It looked great when it wasn't shoving bad aged film montages and stupid modern music on us. But the non-Cannon stories allude to some really good story possibilities. Too bad!

John Adams (2008)

er...?

[3/10 · 8 December 2023]

Watching this now and I'm having a REAL hard time keeping my interest. Mainly because of the overall direction/script/cinematography. The actors seem fine for the most part.

It feels like an almost comic book-like interpretation of 1775 with things happening almost on cue ("the red coats are coming!"). This feels like it's distilled down to the most basic elementary school history lesson but never gets down to the real gritty life of the times and people.

And, really, did they constantly whisper back then? Jeez. Everytime Adams speaks, it's as if he's reading a speech to the masses, albeit whispered. Even when he's speaking to his wife, he's gazing off at some unseen audience instead of at his wife!

But, really, the absolute worst offender here is the cinematography. You know the director is there saying "Please, we need MORE Dutch angles!! MORE DUTCH ANGLES!!! NO, EVEN MORE THAN THAT!! KEEP GOING!! MORE DUTCH ANGLES!" JFC!

When things settle down and it's a buncha white guys in a room reading the real lines those historical figures spoke is when it is actually engaging. Those lines are powerful and still work. It's just... the rest is goofy as heck.

I assume that the powerful message here of what our founding fathers did to piece together a new nation in the face of horrible oppression and control by England is the point. As it should be. But, again, jeez, they really need to try again.

Survival of the Dead (2009)

Horrible

[2/10 · 28 November 2023]

So, finally, Romero makes a zombie film with survivors on an island. This has been mentioned in dialog since, I think, the very first film. If not there, then definitely in Dawn and certainly Day. It's a very obvious location for this series to finally end up at; it's just too bad it wasn't used in Land instead of yet another mall.

Still, while it's a great idea/location for a zombie film, we can't be faulted for assuming this would be good. Naturally, we shouldn't ass-u-me anything.

Also, oddly, we find out in Land that zombies can literally just walk underwater to get to where they are going; thus making the island concept sillier. Even more odd, no zombies walk under water TO the island in this film.

Sadly, this film is about as stupid as a stack of Eddie Deezen films. Heck, it's more like a stack of Sammy Petrillo films that have been urinated and shat upon for months by the time you get access to it. This film is that bad. Battling cowboy zombies? Oh my.

IF there's any social commentary here, I missed it. It must be very light. Odd, since social commentary is more or less Romero's trademark that separated his films from anyone else's. It felt closer to an extended Creepshow story than anything like the original trilogy; but even that is being too polite.

Sad that he died without making a better zombie film. Sigh.

Only Murders in the Building (2021– )

Jiminy Glick Mysteries

[9/10 · 20 November 2023]

I resisted for a long time because I really didn't want to suffer through some Lifetime-style old person's "comedy/mystery". I was fearing watered down humor, style and depth. But, then I remembered that I've loved everything that Martin Short has done all the way back to Jackie Rogers Jr.! I took a chance and now I'm on episode 7 and dying to watch more!

Brilliant concept with absolutely fantastic onscreen charm between the three lead actors. They're all going full bore into this and it shows. I'm laughing out loud every couple minutes!! And the minutes that I'm not laughing, I'm engaged in the story and mystery. Each character, even side ones, have depth.

I'm actually quite surprised at how much I like Steve Martin's character and his performance. I used to like his comedy records, but never really kept up on his films (straight up comedy movies are not my thing, unless they're from the 1930s), so he's the real winner here for me.

I've little idea who Salena Gomez is, other than I've maybe heard her name. But, she's great! Perfect delivery and she fits the character like a glove. Funny as heck!

The Sting stuff had me rolling on the floor laughing. The neighbors in the building are all equally goofy and fun. Oh, and Tina Fey is solid!

All in all, I'm anxious to keep watching; which NEVER happens with me and comedy TV! Great stuff!

A Haunting in Venice (2023)

bizarre camerawork

[1/10 · 9 November 2023]

The film is a nonstop parade of extremely wide angle shots done from extremely high or extremely low positions. That and tons of dutch angles. If you get motion sick, avoid this!

Usually those kinda camera tricks are used sparingly for a very specific effect. When used constantly, they lose impact and begin to confuse the audience (and make them nauseous!).

Then, the script. It's silly and thin. The acting is all around just fine. But the lines and situations are dumb. Branagh can act, but his impression of a Belgian man is... uh... embarrassing.

Finally, who is loving this stuff? It deviates incredibly far from Christie's stories, that I can't imagine too many hardcore fans liking this. Plus, when you have a rich history of David Suchet and Joan Hickson turning in fantastic performances as Christie's beloved characters; this one just feels wayyyy off center. No fun.

Klangor (2021– )

Solid and completely contained

[8/10 · 8 November 2023]

I was getting burned out on Polish cop dramas and almost bypassed this one. Not exactly a cop drama, but it involves a prison psychiatrist and some crooked prison guards. Yeah, there are cops in it, but they're not the focus.

Also, a huge plus for me is that it appears to be a contained story with eight episodes and no hope for a season 2. That means no cliffhanger ending for the 8th episode! That means pure dramatic storytelling that isn't kow-towing to the suits who are angling for more money, etc.

I saw that someone reviewing this here was whining that they figured out "the twist" ending from the beginning. Well, don't let that fool you, as the "surprise" is out in the open by the 7th episode, but you surely have most of it handed to you by the 6th episode as well. Which means, to me at least, the "twist ending" isn't what the story is about.

No, it's not merely about the missing girl. It's about families, teens in today's world, corruption in prisons, treatment of prisoners, etc. It's about a lot of things.

It's also very well written, acted, photographed and directed. Plus, the music is good too!

Tense family drama in the seedy underworld of Poland! Highly recommended!

Shock Waves (1977)

traditional 50s style fun

[7/10 · 4 November 2023]

If your mind's set on olden tyme monster film style, then this is perfect for you. It's not gory nor has any sex, but it delivers in a few creepy images and monsters. Plus you get Carradine and Cushing! (Albeit not in the same scenes!)

The plot is almost too simple to even mention, but here goes: Carradine is captain of a small charter boat that mysteriously is rammed by a ghost ship of sorts, forcing them aground on the shore of a seemingly deserted island. However, retired Nazi commander Cushing is in "self-exile" there along with his platoon of underwater Nazi zombies. Atmosphere and suspense ensues.

Definitely a "check your common sense at the door" kinda film. But if your gut is full of beer, this will do just fine.

Death Rider in the House of Vampires (2021)

Punk rock DIY!!!!

[1/10 · 18 October 2023]

YEAH! This is exactly what punk was about: Do it YOURSELF!

Here, Queen of all gloomy punk rock, Glenn Danzig, does just that: He "directs" a film!

The same impulse that made lil' Glenn say "ga ga ga, I can be a singer in a rock band" back in 1975 or whenever also made him say "uh, I can direct a movie like that Zombie guy!" So, for pure "punk rock"-ness of it all, good for him!!

BUT, as a member of an audience watching this dreck in hopes of being ENTERTAINED... whew. This ain't it.

At least when ICP made their films, they were so utterly, beautifully STUPID that you had no choice but to laugh along with them. Heck, I wasn't even drunk when I watched Big Money Hustlas and it was still fun. This film? I would have to be SO DRUNK that I would just pass out before I could even sort of kind of maybe possibly be slightly "entertained". PAINFUL to watch.

You'd think that after a career of doing songs about horror movies, this clown would maybe take the time to STUDY them enough before having such hubris about making one. Oy vey.

Fringe (2008–2013)

Great X-Files ripoff might surpass original

[6/10 · 10 October 2023]

Just started rewatching; first time since it originally aired. The first season is definitely just another updated X-Files knockoff. Mind you, it's a VERY good X-Files knockoff with John Noble stealing every single scene he's in!

The casting is pretty solid all around. Nina Sharp and Broyles are great characters. Again, Noble as Walter Bishop is the stand out. Walter's son Peter is well by Joshua Jackson. The central figure is Olivia Dunham played by Anna Torv.

My single beef with any of the actors is Torv. She's overall fine and does a good job. My problem is that she's only got about 3 facial poses and that one tic where she pulls her face to the side. Did the director force her to overdo this stuff or is that just how she is? Either way, it's a tad distracting and makes one notice that her acting isn't quite up to par with everyone else.

BUT, that's a very minor complaint and never comes anywhere near ruining the show. It's goofy fun with some great SF action and ideas thrown around all over the place. Having Peter be the voice of reason to Walter is always enjoyable, especially when Walter then proves his insane theory to be workable.

Oh, and then Spock shows up or something.

Good fun!

The Day After Tomorrow (1975 TV Movie)

Curious, but that's all...

[6/10 · 7 September 2023]

As a fan of Anderson's other live action AND some puppet TV work, this one really stood out as kinda weird! I gather that it was either a pilot for a series or some kind of educational film for children to learn about Einstein (?). Either way, it never went past one episode.

It's kinda like Lost in Space, but also not at all. It centers around a family launched to the farthest points in space with a new fast than light ship.

The family is tied very closely to their technical responsibilities on the ship and never engage in any leisure activity alone or with their family. In fact, no one leaves the bridge except a few brief scenes in the engine room or outside the ship. The effects are decent enough considering the age, but still cheaper than Space: 1999. Clearly Sylvia Anderson was busy working on '99 to help out here. Her costume designs would have helped!

The guy from Space: 1999 (Alan Tate) is the captain. I think he's the father too, but I'm not sure. The other guy is Brian Blessed who seems REAL close to the kids AND the woman. One minute he's calling her "darling" and leaning in close and the next, she's close to Tate! Maybe I missed a brief line explaining things?

The kids are, frankly, annoying. The girl complains a lot and doesn't do much until they need an ace pilot (which she is!). Her brother looks like a dwarf David Hedison with really bad hemorrhoids, and seems wholly unable to act in any other pose besides "painfully serious". He's quite distracting to say the least!

No one gets to battle monsters, aliens or leave the ship. Brian Blessed has never done so little! They come upon facing real death a few times and only the daughter seems upset by this. Everyone else is serious and focusing on their jobs; which, I guess, is what you want people to do in their situation. Still, makes for dull viewing.

Overall, it was interesting AND entertaining, but not for the reasons intended. It is a very interesting artifact from bygone TV days. Despite the director's ability, it felt like they were directing one of Anderson's puppet shows: very stiff and dry.

Pagan Peak (2018–2023)

Solid, surprising and involving

[9/10 · 28 August 2023]

First, saw someone's review here comparing this to the Blair Witch Project!! Har! Clearly, they never watched the series for more than, say, thirty seconds at random. Wow. Clearly, to anyone watching, there's nothing "Blair Witch" about this in the least.

Unless, of course, your worldview is so incredibly limited that anything with woods in it somehow is related to an olden tyme film that also features trees. Sad!

Anyway, I started watching this out of sheer repulsion to 99.9% of the American shows I've seen. Utter garbage with too many layers for the sake of layers plus silly superheroes and computer animation. Ugh. This show caught my attention while reading about good Euro shows, etc.

It's a real solid series that utilized film technique as well as film language to tell the story; which is a style all but forgotten in America. Yes, it comes across as SLOW to many of us Uh, Muricans because the camera actually gives us not only loads of atmosphere, but lingers over scenes to give us detail that THE VIEWER has to suss out! Imagine!

Then, they have an all around solid cast of really good actors that seem to care about the overall final product rather than their image. Also, very un Uh, Murican!

Things do sometimes radically shift about in surprising ways too! There's a lot of tense scenes and heaps of drama. I can't say that I was on the edge my seat a lot, but I was a few times. In fact, I don't need to be on the edge of my seat a lot; if that were the case, I'd be 12 watching some superhero garbage. Now, I want a mystery that I feel that I am solving on my own, along with those onscreen doing the dirty work.

I'm now almost halfway through the third season and am still very impressed. The characters not only develop and have depth, but they do very human things based on their specific situations. The treatment of the characters is really the solid core to this series. Even the villains are all given depth and humanity. Hell, I don't think there was a murder in the second season until the third episode! Try that in a small town in Uh, Murica!

And yes, there IS a very tiny credit at the end for the "format" of the show being based on the Bridge. Other than all of the action taking place around the Austrian/German border, and two different sets of cops having to work together; there's little here that connects to that show. Kinda funny how some will think it's another remake! But even funnier that the Bridge is still getting credited for anything happening on a border!

Oh! Almost forgot! While it deals with horrific crimes, I am constantly surprised at how little is shown! Another thing that goes against the trends! There's only a tiny bit of onscreen sex and almost zero nudity. However, there's fleeting glimpses of police crime photos; but those are minimal. So to give us a very adult crime series without the usual gore and sex is truly surprising and impressive. It's as if they did that on purpose to keep the audience invested in the atmosphere, characters and mystery at hand! (But, really, this remains very adult with its frank discussions of crime, etc.)

All in all, a very refreshing series that seems to be getting better with each season. Looking forward to season 4 and beyond!

A Waltons Thanksgiving (2022)

sad

[1/10 · 2 August 2023]

A Walton's remake COULD indeed work if they stuck to Hammner's source material. They didn't. Richard Thomas, needing a summer cottage on Martha's Vineyard no doubt, sold his voice as the narrator, but does not appear onscreen. Sad!

No Ben? And all the kids are either overly sappy or jerky/bossy. Depression era details are completely missing. Plus everything is filmed through a sunny fall hazy orange filter to really give you that faux Hallmark feeling of cornball warmth.

If you look at the state of country music now and compare it to back then, you can kinda imagine the film this is! It's so incredibly "Hollywood" that Hammner's literally spinning in his grave.

Dig up the original series on DVD and settle for that until a halfway decent director remakes it with better production and onscreen talent. This was embarrassing.

Wallander: Innan frosten (2005) Season 1, Episode 1

Not as good as I was hoping

[5/10 · 25 July 2023]

I figured that I should start with the original before going onto the British version. But.. I might move on to the British one sooner than expected.

I'm sorry, but the whole Jonestown thing was totally silly. As things unfolded and exposed, I had already guessed it ten minutes previously. Not exactly what I was expecting!

The characters are all distant and there's no feeling of connection with any of them. Maybe that will all fall into place with more episodes? I'm not going to give up, but this episode isn't pushing me too hard into the next one.

I'm truly surprised after reading all the really great reviews here. Maybe that put my expectations too high?

Silo (2023– )

sorta... okay?

[4/10 · 21 July 2023]

I just finished the third episode and I'm still watching! That says a lot in today's world of bottom of the barrel sci-fi television shows.

The first episode was like an update of Logan's Run, so I kept watching. The second one back-pedaled a bit to give us more story about the silo before going outside. The third was a bit much, but I made it and will continue.

The third episode wasted the entire second half with a weak emergency generator repair. That whole thing felt totally tacked on, as if they needed a catalyst to get the citizens to act in certain ways in the episodes to come. Honestly, I fast forwarded through a lot of the last half.

Some of the lines and acting are pretty average, but certainly good enough. Most, if not all of the characters are pretty flat. I truly hope the focus shifts back to the Sheriff and his wife on the outside as it cuts back and forth to the stories developing inside.

So far, pretty enjoyable dystopian/post-whatever SF about society and human behavior. While being very simplistic at times, it keeps moving forward well enough (despite the boring generator repair sequence).

I'll definitely give it another episode or two and maybe it'll grow and expand enough to keep me interested. But then, with the strike going on, I can't hold my breath for season two anytime next year!

The Walking Dead: Dead City (2023– )

Not a 10 by any stretch

[2/10 · 3 July 2023]

So now we pair Negan with Maggie? Right. Absurd.

Well, TWD was beyond absurd at first, too. But then it turned insultingly stupid. And then it got worse. Well past the "worst" stage, they introduced the Negan character. Fine. One season villain, sure it worked a bit. But then he kept coming back. And back. And now...

The guy playing Negan is no actor by any measurement. He plays himself over and over with no variations. I saw him in some other movie and he was exactly the same. That's great for him: Easiest check in the world and a host of fanboys ready for knob polishing action lined up around the block. But the rest of us want to see actual acting with words and emotions and stuff. I know, right?

Thank gawd Maggie's here to act all over this schmuck. Yet, she can't save this mess of a show. The rest of the characters are flat and dull and worse actors than Negan; or at least on par with him. The story is as threadbare as one can get. It's as if the producers literally said "TWD is a money machine. The fantards will submit to anything with TWD labelled on it. Let's do this thing!"

And, lo, they did.

I cannot go through this crud again like I did for 7 seasons of TWD before barfing all over my tv and giving up. No thanks.

Wataha (2014– )

Keeps my attention, but...

[6/10 · 12 June 2023]

Okay, I'm only two episodes in, but it's good enough to keep watching. It's clearly trying for a larger audience (via HBO and taking cues from recent Nordic police shows) but remains very provincial. Also, they ain't breaking into America with an overabundance of tobacco use!

There's some plot holes and obvious plot points throughout that keep it from being anything but original. Still, the "exotic" setting of the Polish border makes it slightly more appealing for me (American born with Polish grandparents).

The lead character, Viktor, who looks like Bobcat Goldthwaite to me, is kinda slow and not a crack detective on any level. He's clearly motivated to solve this crime, but I'm never sure if he's actually the central character in this mystery or not. I guess we'll see as it unfolds.

The DA is cold, calculated and focused on finding out if Viktor is innocent or not. She's not really doing much onscreen so far; so I'm not sure if I should stop thinking about her or not. The rest of his new team is also nothing special, so I'm never sure where I should be focusing.

Definitely engaging, but also dull at times. I will definitely give it another episode or two in hopes it picks up a bit. Even if it doesn't, I could see myself finishing it-even at this pace!

Edit: Okay, now I'm halfway through season 2! It's still engaging as heck! But it's also confusing at times, as people's motives are unclear and actions related even more unfathomable. I often tell myself that it must be some cultural difference that I just can't quite grok from my sofa in America. But, then I think it just might not be written so great. Who knows?

The story this time is more focused on Prosecutor Dobosz. Yes, she still chain smokes as does everyone. It's quite amazing, actually! She also gets a topless sex scene for no reason at all!

This season is equally convoluted, but moves along just fine and is keeping my attention. Victor is living out in the woods trying to solve the mysteries of the first season; so he's more interesting this time around. The characters as a whole, however, come across as not the brightest out there in TV land. So that's either my entitled American perspective, or the show's creators are giving us an authentic view of border criminals. Who knows?

Rabbit Hole (2023)

Constant stimulation but empty

[3/10 · 12 May 2023]

Seems like the perfect concept for paranoid, conspiracy-driven Western culture. I really liked how it started off by not giving us too much information and slowly filling it in as more aspects are vaguely unveiled.

However, the flashbacks -while full of information- kinda drags after a while. Also, Weir is too good and it's pretty silly that he's always perfectly clever. And Hailey... well, her character was a great side character; but by the second episode you realize she's now the 'nagging, sardonic love-interest sidekick' trope and it gets stale instantly.

The set up implies there is some super criminal mastermind that utilizes surveillance to get what he wants AND to be ten steps ahead of everyone. The problem is that that aspect of the story comes and goes as needed and isn't constant. There's plenty of movement by Weir that should be seen on CCTV allowing for him to be caught/killed, and it oddly never happens.

Also, I haven't kept up on Sutherland's career, but he doesn't seem to fit the part very well to me. Plus, he looks like old Fred Schneider from the B-52s. I mean, he's a decent actor, but there's just something that doesn't click.

Typical of a lot of "binge worthy" TV these days; the M. O. here is to keep throwing insane, unseen twists at the audience every few minutes without giving us time to digest any of them. The result is definitely fast paced and engaging at times, but also it's a very empty feeling by the end.

---

I just finished the last episode; which says something, I guess! I have to admit that I was on the floor laughing at this episode the most. The ending was so utterly ridiculous and stupid that I couldn't help but laugh a lot. Was this intentionally funny and camp? I sure hope so! If not, they really messed this one up!

If there is a second season, I'll pass. Really nothing engaging at all. Just amped up conspiracy nonsense with constant, insane twists. I guess the writers get points for layering on so much crap and actually linking it together is some vaguely "believable" way. However, I found it lacking and definitely in need of more depth. If I was superficial cartoon conspiracies, I can go to Twitter or cable tv news. As entertainment, it was kind of a slog...