brescd01 Reviews

Dracula (2020)

I am sure I am not saying anything new

[8/10 · 19 May 2024]

This is an excellent series. It is NOT the original novel but rather an homage. I don't think anyone can criticize it for its departures. This is an homage for "people in the know" just like the series Sherlock was, in which Mark Gatiss was also involved. Production values were excellent. Acting and script were first-rate. My criticisms are petty

1) the series didn't deliver on its promise because it ended so quickly, there were promises of philosophical revelations ("the blood is the life") that never arrived

2) The production values were so high I admit I would have liked an alternative version that followed the novel closely, I really long for that, FFC's Dracula didn't really deliver in this regard and the novel itself is so theatrical, it cries out for a faithful adaption. I know I said one shouldn't criticize on these grounds. Shoot me. Call this keening not a complaint.

A special shout out to Dolly Wells. She really was fabulous, I have never seen her in anything else so I don't know her range but hers was a truly wonderful character and performance.

Impuratus (2022)

truly a mess

[1/10 · 27 December 2023]

This film was a jumble of ideas with a terrible script, honestly there wasn't one part of it that made sense, was well acted, or was well-scripted. Way too long. I was on the edge of turning it off but stuck it out until the end so I could say I gave it a fair chance. It didn't deserve it. Nobody wants a shocker to succeed more than I. I will need a lot to erase the memory of this road-accident of a film. Not even worth trying.

The premise was good, a detective lured to an insane asylum in Pennsylvania ostensibly to meet a dying patient who wants to confess something to him. Unfortunately the script meandered from that decent premise to mix various horror genres without succeeding in any. I guess it's closest to a Sentinel or Exorcist-type horror, without the logic or intelligence of either of those movies.

Invitation to a Murder (2023)

Oy vey

[2/10 · 30 November 2023]

A true road accident of a film, disappointing because I quite fancy its star Mischa Barton. Stage-y in a bad way, the script is awkward in the extreme and the plot makes no sense. There is never any tension or drama and a lot of lovely scenery and costumes are totally wasted. Truly one of most abysmal Christie-like mysteries I have ever seen, perhaps the worst. It's that bad. Mischa Barton is luscious and plump and beautiful she is the only thing worth watching, she deserved a much better vehicle. If she defeated revenge porn, she didn't defeat this "revenge mystery", someone must have had it out for her to cast her in this mess.

A Haunting in Venice (2023)

wonderful family fun

[8/10 · 26 November 2023]

With this third film Brannagh's approach becomes clear to me. I thought MOTOE was superb, DOTN only slightly less excellent, this is on the same level. I don't respect the criticisms of any of these films, they over-intellectualize reviews. First of all, for those who prefer earlier representations of Poirot, can't respect this complaint. Take Suchet or Finney. I am not tearing down their performances or achievements. But there is no reason why Brannagh can't have a slightly different take on the character, his character is more sensitive, more wounded, and more self-aware ("Forgive me I am Belgian").

Remakes can be awful when they are dry retellings that add nothing and are mere copies of the original, these can be tiresome for peiople who have seen "the original". Sometimes the only justification seems to be a change of language and cast (ie The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo), and this can be disappointing and offensive apart form the movie's quality. Another purposeless remake would be The Omen, not offensive, just a waste of time.

None of Branagh's films are simple retellings, they are each colorful beautifully produced, acted, and filmed.

Second of all remakes are movies in and of themselves that could entertain people who haven't seen the original or don't remember it clearly. Each of these movies is solid family-friendly entertainment. My ten year-old daughter loved all three, ad did my 80 year-old mother.

To score such entertaining movies low, because they didn't reach some kind of Platonic ideal of Poirot in a reviewer's head, is twisted and useless, so subjective it is incomprehensible.

Haunting in Venice is a great Halloween movie, a great family movie, simply a great movie. Branagh shapes his approach such that it is recognizeable and aesthetically lovely.

The Exorcist: Believer (2023)

what a disappointment

[3/10 · 8 November 2023]

Seriously this was a mess. Usually I have lots to say but there really isn't too much to say about this sorry immitative wannabe poltically correct farrago.

The math of this portended problems. Two possessed girls. 3 religions. That is six somethings, and not good for clarity.

Then there is almost 1:1 immitation of the first Exorcist's various cinematic "tricks". 50 years of technical progress and innovation and not a single scene of Believer equalled or bettered the original. The original always understated its points and there was a precise crescendo to its terrifying conclusion. This film has no such rhythm. One example is the subliminal image of the demon, this film used that but to hammer it home the director inserted brief images of the demon in magbe ten frames to make sure you got it.

The film just wasn't scary. Honestly I don't think there was a single effective jump scare. The script is awful, just a waste of perfectly good actors who appear at times to adlib it.

I won't spoil the ending but if this is the best Hollywood can do in terms of political correctness, we are in trouble.

The Limehouse Golem (2016)

just terrible

[2/10 · 8 March 2023]

I didn't enjoy this movie which was ruined by a horrendous and absurd script. Some lines and plot twists suggested satire but the movie is a dark mystery with realistic sets and costumes to illustrate Victorian London misery. There was nothing wrong with the acting, editing or direction. The fault lay in ridiculous lines, unrealistic or unbelievable plot twists, just a strange concoction that didn't succeed in my mind on any level.

The script touched on themes of social justice and heteronorlativity, I don't think any PC topic was excluded except race since the entire cast was white. These issues deserved more thoughtful writing. The weakest feature of the script was dialogue, the exchanges were stilted and unnatural, no one spoke naturally. The twisted plot didn't help. Gore and nudity didn't save it though Valverde was certainly attractive. Ultimately the movie couldn't seem to decide if it was a mystery or a satire.

I watched this on Amazon and paid $.99 for the privilege, someone knew this movie was a clunker. It wasn't worth that.

Ófærð (2015– )

amazing

[9/10 · 16 July 2022]

If you can ignore the crazy Icelandic names (crazy to people not from Iceland) and the fictional device of bucolic super-safe locations becoming blood baths so that your entertainment needs can be met, you will be rewarded with an understated perfectly acted drama that will glue you to the screen.

Ólafur Darri Ólafsson is fabulous and gets the most screen time, but I don't want to ignore the countless other actors who support him, especially Ilmur Kristjansdottir his co-star. There is not a weak link. The despicable Trausti (Bjorn Haraldsson) is a good example, his moral growth is moving and realistic.

Fun fact: Olafsson was born in the USA!

There are some unusually realistic views of disintegrating marriages and teenage rebellion. On the plus side it will make the story more believable but on the minus side, it may touch you in disturbing ways.

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

much better the second time

[9/10 · 18 May 2022]

I saw this before and i don't recall being so impressed by it. I understand the hurt feelings, Branagh dared to remake a classic Oscar-winning movie, he dared to star in it, and he dared to direct it.

And yet, it is a very good movie. Are some of the performances over the top? Maybe, though I would be hard pressed to say which one because everyone contributed something charming to the ensemble.

One thing I can say: Penelope Cruz in the role for which Ingrid Bergman won her Oscar, is superb and a great actress. Is she as great as the stupendous Bergman? I won't compare.

Branagh hams it up and yet, while perhaps he falls slightly short of greatness, he is very moving and funny. His script is very good. The direction is very good. It is a beautiful film aesthetically

This is a film to enjoy in its own right. Branagh wasn't trying to surpass a great classic, he was puttin ghis twist on a great story. And I think he succeeded in mkaing great family-friendly entertainment.

The Sentinel (1977)

seriously flawed

[5/10 · 3 May 2022]

I saw this as a kid on network television and I remember its being quite scary. I watched it again last night on Amazon. The image was good but the movie was fllawed in so many ways and on so many levels, I struggle to give it a "5". First of all the story is first-rate. And the book is scary, I highly recommend it if you enjoy horror like The Excorcist. Unlike that great film, which is equal to the book it is based on (and the author wrote both), this film isn't ven close to the novel in quality. The plots, however are almost identical scene by scene.

I don't have the technical knowledge to trash this film properly. One thing I CAN say is that the sound is AWFUL, not in clarity, in quality. It sounds like a home movie. There is nothing wrong with the cast. Either the script or the direction or the editing or all of these are just horrible. And the film has not aged well. Multiple star cameos are ruined by horrible script and direction (Ava Gardner, Jose Ferrar, Eli Wallach, Christopher Walken, John Carradine).

The Bible Unearthed: The Making of a Religion (2005– )

incredibly good

[10/10 · 28 April 2022]

This is a truly extraordinary series based on an extraordinary book. Even if you disagree with the author's conclusions or find them premature, the information is so beautifully and clearly presented that you will feel well informed by the end. I don't "disagree" but I don't have a fraction of the sophistication necessary to have an opinion. But some of the theses are iconoclastic, and most are based on the absence of information rather than dispositive proof. Also, the basic theme that the Bible is tendentious and written with a particular agenda, doesn't really exclude or point to the veracity or falsity of its contents, just that the Bible was not composed contemporaneously with the events it described. And we more or less knew that from the use of the past tense throughout.

Freud (2020)

superb

[10/10 · 13 February 2022]

I'm a psychiatrist (a real one) and I know nothing or very little about Freud. That said this is a wonderful historical drama with beautiful performances I want to send messages to many of the actors thanking them. The cinematography costumes and sets are gorgeous and convincing.

It is intriguing, thrilling, moving and thought-provoking. As a modern psychiatrist I am probably unfair to Freud he created a paradigm for understanding human motivation, we have surpassed it perhaps but it was earth shattering compared to what preceded it. He also lived on the brink of the most terrible and deadly century in human history, and one can see the antecedents of the tragedies that would follow, in the setting of his early life, the political intrigues, the nationalist extremism, the irredentism, and the old dogmas both scientific and religious.

In any event a great romp.

The Woman in the House (2022)

I love Kristen Bell but...

[4/10 · 31 January 2022]

I adore Kristen Bell. She is one of my favorite character actors (do they use this term these days?) and what's not to love? In this series she is playing her usual fiesty detective/heroine and what could go wrong?

The story for one. And the script. This show couldn't decide whether it was drama or dramedy, irony or spoof. The plot line starts with Bell grieving the loss of her daughter who three years before was killed and eaten by a serial killer when her forensic psychiatrist husband brought her to work! Seriously? But this is played straight not for laughs. And so goes about ten other plot elements and twists that are clearly meant to be absurd or funny but are played straight.

This never stops. When our heroine is vindicated, a series of people give her ridiculous apologies that again are absurd yet are played straight, including her milquetoast ex-husband (yes, the one that got their daughter eaten at work) who apologizes for prescribing her "class IV psychotropics" rather than plain antidepressants! I'm a psychiatrist for twenty years and I have no idea what that means!

One side note: there is a somewhat explicit love scene in which Bell goes to town with a stripper. It is not erotic loving titillating or stimulating again it has comic elements but is played straight. And it starts with the hackneyed line "I have not been touched in so long"!

This script is amateurish at best I am pretty sure I could have written a better story (basically a redo of the Rear Window scenario). But first I would have decided what I wanted my series to be!

The funniest line is at the end, again played straight rather than for laughs, when the alcoholic Bell is on a plane and is offered red wine, which she refuses because she "has given it up" but asks for vodka, which she uses to wash down her Xanax!

Another annoying trope, her consumption of alcohol and drugs is ridiculous, a caricature of drug misuse. And yet she always wakes up her pert self.

I binged the whole series in one sitting. And I enjoyed It because Bell is....my sweetheart. But the rest of the show had nothing redeeming.

The Book of Life (2014)

very sweet story with mediocre animation

[10/10 · 30 January 2022]

This is perfect family fare, an allegory with a lovely message. I personally didn't care for the animation style. But it didn't prevent my 8 year old daughter from watching it over and over.

Young Frankenstein (1974)

perfection

[10/10 · 22 January 2022]

This film is what it is, a spoof and it is perfection. It is so sweet, an artifact of a time before 9/11, Trump, and the Pandemic. Every joke is spot on. I have seen it now hundreds of times and of course I no longer laugh at the jokes (rather I mouth them as they are recited), but they fill me with good feeling and recollections of uncomplicated belly laughs free from irony or cynicism.

My 8 year old daughter now enjoys this film so it is a sort of legacy along with The Nutcracker or Hansel and Gretel or Christmas Carol.

I am not an admirer of American movies generally but this is American filmmaking at its best.

Quantum of Solace (2008)

not as bad as I remembered it

[6/10 · 28 November 2021]

I watched this after many years and to re-see the Craig Bonds after his final bow, which I found so disappointing. This film grows on me. I realize the part of it I hated the most, the plot line concerning a corrupt general whom Kurylenko must kill from revenge, and the showdown at a strange hotel in the Bolivian desert, does not outweigh the film's considerable virtues. I forgot how lovely an actor Giancarlo Giannini is, I found his cameo actually rather beautifully done. Gemma Aterton is actually a very good Bond girl #2. Dench is excellent no surprise. So are Kinnear and Jesper Christensen and Wright. All excellently cast and I realize Christensen did an excellent job of creating a new character in the Bond universe, one that Fleming did not author. Kurylenko is better than I remembered and actually this might be one of her most sincere performances. Amalric I forgot is a first rate actor and excellent if understated villain. Finally there is Craig himself, and he really is a first rate Bond and nicely maintains the continuity from Casino Royale. Action is first rate for the most part. The overall plot line of a criminal organization's attempt to control clean water, seems especially relevant and prescient now and probably one of the more believable threads in the Bond movie-verse. So I would give this Bond film another look, it ages well.

No Time to Die (2021)

less than the sum of its parts

[5/10 · 20 November 2021]

I found this film to be the most disappointing of the Daniel Craig James Bonds, largely due to an inane story with a weak script. If I disarticulate each part of the film one from the other and judge them, I would give high marks to its various actors (including cameo roles). Ana De Armas charmed me in the normally superfluous "second Bond girl" role. Naomie Harris finally showed me why she was perfectly cast as the modern Moneypenny. Rami Malek, whom I have never seen despite his prior fame, was a fabulous and complex villain, though he has some terrific competition from villains in the other Craig films, three of whom were towering actors in their own right. Wright, Fiennnes, Kinnear, and Craig himself are all marvelous actors with great talent. Lea Seydoux is, as usual, a moving and intense actress (though her inability to smile is making her into a character actor). Even Lashana Lynch struck me as perfectly cast, as is Ben Whishaw, who really grew the appeal of the Q character through the Craig Bond films.

But none of these wonderful performers had anything interesting or credible to say, with the exception of Malek, who was given some good lines. The plot is ridiculous, a scheme to mass produce a selective bioweapon that targets anyone from their DNA. Not only did I not find the plot credible on any level, I felt it failed as a compelling plot line. Ironic quips from the actors that they are "saving the world" again, didn't help. The terrific Malek was wasted, his unusual history not at all clear and his lair, which could have been a fascinating set with huge possibilities, was utterly passed over. In fact Malek and his lair were the two elements of the film most authentic to the original novels. Craig's character was more Spartacus or Hamlet than original James Bond, especially disappointing given his terrific debut film Casino Royale. I will accept any excuse to admire the fabulous Christoff Waltz, but his cameo was a mishmash of references to the earlier films and utter nonsense.

What of the direction? I can't really fault the director in any way unless I blame him for the lousy script and story. Action scenes were mostly taut. The film never dragged. I didn't like one fight scene when Bond dispatches multiple pursuit vehicles in the forest, it seemed contrived and it's conclusion when a villain gets his comeuppance, seemed anticlimactic. Speaking of which, the scene in which Craig kills Malek was a huge disappointment, again not through any failure of editing or direction, just a pointless contest in which I was cheering the villain Malek whom I wanted to know more about.

Until this film I was most disappointed by the Craig film Quantum of Solace, largely due to a forgettable heroine and a lousy villain's lair. In fairness Casino Royale was so perfect I would have disliked any film afterwards. But the story, that SPECTRE is trying to control the world's supply of fresh water, was credible and compelling in contrast to this film's inane plot.

Ultimately I couldn't get past either the script or the plot to enjoy the considerable talent assembled for Craig's last Bond film. If you watch the movie (and you will) lower your expectations to the bare minimum and you might not feel ill-used by the end.

Cruella (2021)

amazing and stylish

[8/10 · 18 July 2021]

I'm not sure I enjoyed this film as much as I should have, the subject matter is derivative so somewhat predictable. But that aside the movie is an exceptionally stylish and well written revisionist take on a Disney villain, much more satisfying than Maleficent for example.

Emma Stone gives an amazing performance she could garner the Oscar (she is that good). The costumes script and cinematography are all first rate. CGI is kept to a minimum and the direction is snappy.

This is a first rate family film and really a stunning product from Disney, who so often disappoints with its treacly and vanilla offerings.

Agent Hamilton (2020–2022)

enjoyable depending on your POV

[7/10 · 17 June 2021]

I reviewed (superficially) the critical reviews and I can't argue with most of the criticisms. This is certainly a very flawed series. Whether you appreciate it depends on what you compare it to. The espionage genre is not very common on television in any country. Calling this a "budget Bourne" is probably fair.

I'm enjoying it. It has some serious flaws that are problematic. The plot is convoluted and not even remotely credible (so far). Of course if one takes the Bourne series as the standard, one might say that this is part of the genre.

The most unsettling flaw is the script. It is mulitlingual and there are substantial portions in unidiomatic and awkward english (spoken by supposed Americans). I can't speak to the Swedish, Russian, German or Arabic portions. The awkward script acts as a scaffolding for an awkward direction and editing. By far the worst scritping goes to Rowena King (as Farrin Haig), and this is a good example, beacuse there is nothing wrong with her acting she is a duplicate for example of the similar character in the Mission Impossible franchise played by Angela Bassett. Were I a person of color, I am not sure I would appreciate the stereotype of the senior spy master in the USA as a woman of color, it isn't exactly flattering as depicted in either of these productions in my view. But King's lines could have used a good proofreading.

The acting is fine, I think what people called bad performances was just poor scripting, everyone does an acceptable job. The hero is wooden, but compared to Bourne that seems to be the standard. He is very handsome and appears to be quite an accomplished linguist (aside from his Swedish and English) since he is Norwegian.

I personally felt Hamilton's Sapo nemesis Kristin Ek played by. Nina Zanjani and Astrid Bofors played by Annika Hallin were standout performances. Not surprisingly they also had the best scripting. There is a subplot in which Nina Zanjani's character is having an affair with a woman outside her loving marriage, I liked it, it was played for its emotions and the challenges of a working mother rather than anything suggestive or risque.

My comments above suggest a greater understanding of the plot specifics than I actually have. The Bourne franchise plot is ridiculous but its creators kept it simple, with clear bad guys and good guys. This has a ridiculous plot that gets quite murky. So I can follow the characters no problem but not their precise motivations.

This is breezy, doesn't require any thinking, and fun. I am enjoying it if only to see "James Bond" through a Swedish lens.

SAS: Red Notice (2021)

Oy vey

[2/10 · 14 April 2021]

What a waste of Sam Heughan! Terrible.

Plot is ridiculous script is ridiculous action is not up to current standards. Sorry.

Anno 1790 (2011)

awe-inspiring

[10/10 · 18 December 2019]

This is a quiet and unheralded series that ostensibly is a police procedural albeit placed in the Enlightenment. But production values, acting, script and direction are all first-rate, truly stunning.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)

a beautiful film

[10/10 · 25 May 2019]

This film is excellent on many levels, but if I were to choose one I would pick "the personal growth level". This film makes us better people and exceeds, for once, the limitations of both the super hero and cartoon genres.

The Mummy (2017)

Oy Vey

[2/10 · 11 June 2017]

First of all I apologize if I repeat things already written, I can't possibly have read every review.

Second of all this is not a review of "Tom Cruise". I am critical of his private life but I can set him apart from movies he is in and nevertheless enjoy them.

Third of all I went to the movie with low expectations and was looking to enjoy "a guilty pleasure" not a nutritious art house flick that I could brag about seeing.

This addresses the concerns I noted in positive reviews of this film.

It was awful, and I mean it had almost no redeeming features whatsoever.

CGI was fine. 3D effects minimal. They were especially weak in dark scenes.

The film was highly edited and there was lots of CGI acting really never entered the equation. It was fine in the sense that criticism would be strictly based on whether you like these stars or not. I would agree Cruise had no special chemistry with his leading lady but that was the fault of the story and script.

The script and story were the worst I have seen in my memory, I contemplated leaving several times but I was too lazy. truly egregious. And I don't mean "a story abut a reincarnated mummy is so silly". I mean "the story about a reincarnated mummy was the best story line and they should have stuck to that".

You have been warned. A shame. Because if it had been no better or worse than "average mummy shocker" I would have been more than satisfied.

Advice to Universal: your Dark Universe idea needs CPR, get better writers and story lines or you are headed for failure.

How anyone could have seen the last five minutes of the film and not realized this movie needed to be re-worked, I don't understand.

Wow. Seriously.

Foyle's War: The Hide (2010) Season 6, Episode 3

very beautiful

[10/10 · 4 October 2014]

I am glad to read that others thought as highly of this magnificent episode in a magnificent series. Michael Kitchen's performance and the character he created is so touching as to almost move me to tears.His acting is a marvel of subtlety, in fact his acting becomes so intense in its understatement I sometimes can't look at him. Yes, Foyle knows everything. But more importantly, he feels everything too. I am sure Horowitz deserves some credit for creating a character that Kitchen can so perfectly inhabit. But I really credit Kitchen, he must have deliberately developed the looks and mannerisms to make the points he wanted to make.He is the Maria Callas of actors.