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Reviews
The Dynasty (2024)
Very Poorly Done - Season Ticket Holder
This is a great documentary for outsiders or people who only look for drama or storytelling, where facts, history, and key points are iorgned. If you don't care about what actually happened to make these 2 different dynasties formed over a 20 year span, and are ok with it being misrepresented, while under-produced., then this is for you. Glossing over key points in each of the 2 sections of the dynasty runs (2001-2004 and 2014-2018), is either intentional or a massive oversight by the producer. Either way, it was incredibly disrespectul and very thin on the actual substance as to what made those teams so legendary in a salary cap league., which of course are the PLAYERS coached selected and coache by Belichick himself. Their successes have never been seen before in N. American sports history, certainly in the modern NFL, where you aren't suppose to form dynasties, and may never be seen again. A new production is needed that commands more than just 10 episodes and under 10 hours total. It's not enough for 20 years of time. One episode covered 3 seasons and was only 33 minutes and they played in 1 SB during those 3 seasons, not even mentioningn it. Minboggling. As a fan of the team and someone who has a photographic memory who knows what is missing, I could have done a better job producing this. Good job sourcing 1st hand interviews, but there weren't enough and those were overshadowed by the production approach which was very poor.
Murder, She Wrote: Murder Takes the Bus (1985)
Arguably The Greatest Episode (Spoilers)
The fact this one parallels a bus trip and an isolated location at a diner, makes it automatically one of the best episodes in the canon. They do a good job of creating numerous potential suspects and even though it appears like not much can happen sitting in a diner, multiple events happen to build the tension. It's a great cast too, with Rue McClanahan, Mills Watson, Linda Blair, Michael Constantine, John Davis Chandler and Albert Salmi. I'd imagine when the show was at its inception this is the kind of episode they were hoping to create with the isolation factor, the bad weather, and the backstory pushing the murder itself. An all time classic.
L.A. Confidential (1997)
One Of The Best Films Ever Made
It's an easy top 10 of the 1990s as it's essentially perfect across the board from the casting, to the cinematography, to the idea it's a clean 2 hour movie with literally no gaps. As the flow of it from the beginning to end is spotless. Russell Crowe's early career breakout is here, Guy Pearce, Richard Straitharn, James Cromwell, Kevin Spacey, etc, are all fantastic, right on down to Kim Basinger's best acting job of her career. Super attention to detail from Curtis Hanson makes it an instant classic, too. The cares, the clothing, and the plot itself is actually better than James Ellroy's book and that's saying something. A masterpiece.
Outside Providence (1999)
An Underrated Late 90s Gem
This one somehow got missed, but it's a quality coming of age teenage angst film that really doesn't really get made anymore. It's arguably the Farrely Brothers finest work. Great cast, it's funny, has a nice soundtrack and is well casted, shot on location in Rhode Island. Alec Baldwin fits perfectly as the old school, blue collar father and the supporting cast is also very good. It even taps into the era's homophobic undercurrent that was more prevalent in the 1970s than what you'd fnd today. If you enjoyed movies like Dazed and Confused and a tv show like Freeks and Geeks, ,this is more or less a cross between those kinds of works. Defintely a lost little gem.
The Holdovers (2023)
Thankfully, Not A Marvel Movie
I really enjoyed this movie. I am not sure why some are acting like it has flaws. It could have been a 10/10 with an out of the woodwork periperhal to main story, but that wasn't the point. In fact. The tweak we got was actually really moving. It made me laugh, tear up, in some ways yearn for the pre-internet years even more, and then laugh again. Strong cast led by Giamatti, but the young kid and DaVine Joy Randolph, the latter playing a key role as the go-between, also hit it. Nice little soundtrack, too. It sort of reminds me of Dead Poet's Society meets Outside Providence. It also has a nice ending.