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Un asunto privado (2022)
Stylish & funny with a serious side. Watch in Spanish w/subtitles
Aura Garrido and Jean Reno really click in this sumptuously shot whodunnit set in late-1940s Spain. She's the plucky rich gal who's a better detective than the actual cops. He's her perpetually worried butler/father-figure who knows more than he lets on. The rest of the cast is similarly excellent - looks like the producers loaded up on top Spanish talent. If there are anachronisms ignore them (the red Hudson Hornet is glorious).
Unlike one-hour TV crime shows, light or heavy, this story has to arc across eight episodes, with no commercial breaks, and succeeds. There are silly moments, slam-bang action sequences, scary bits and plot twists. Second series, please!
I Care a Lot (2020)
Vile treatment of a preposterous premise: so British
Part way through this bludgeoning, dystopian take on American greed I thought, "this has to be British." The English writer/director has wrought what is claimed to be a comedy, but it likely amuses only those whose dark views it reaffirms. At least "The Favourite," also deceptively called a comedy, had a fine script and a sympathetic villain. Nonetheless, hat-tips to Peter Dinklage, Dianne Wiest and Chris Messina.
Call Me Kat (2021)
A Candidate for "Legendarily Bad"
Call Me Kat might become mentioned by a cautionary tale for the industry. Not everything you buy from the British turns to gold in the US, and just because CBS made fortunes from mediocre laff-track sitcoms doesn't guarantee that you can clone it with ease. I watched to see the adorable Leslie Jordan only to be assaulted by lazy, hack gags and the unfunniest fourth-wall breaking since Wayne and Shuster. It is the Guy's American Kitchen & Bar of sitcoms, per the New York Times 2012 review "As Not Seen on TV."
We're No Angels (1955)
Splendid dark comedy with stinko ending
Bogart, Ustinov and (yes) Ray deliver one droll crime-themed punchline after another in this sweet fantasy of bad guys who turn good despite their initial plans. The last two minutes, possibly Code-driven in the mid-fifties, knock it down several notches. Watch it anyway.
The Goes Wrong Show (2019)
Coupla smiles, but mostly painfully obvious
The same conceit repeated without much imagination. Is it 1970 already? Rare exceptions include the harassing air force officer bit. But The 39 Steps play, Airplane, A Mighty Wind or Little Britain and others it ain't. Most of the cast is very good, like a Second City improv troupe.
Royal New Year's Eve (2017)
Decent premise, but those accents.
The "royals" accents in this film are among the least believable you'll ever hear. The leads do their best to be likeable but it's not enough. The music cues are over the top, even for Hallmark.
Ghosted (2017)
Clever!
But clever doesn't get you CBS laff-track sitcom ratings, so this show might not win renewal. Or it might, if this droll mashup of styles gets enough viewers to top it's delightfully low budget. It's the sort of smart, slightly sarcastic show that lives well on cable or streaming.