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Reviews
An American Werewolf in London (1981)
Excellent despite one major flaw.
I do have a lot of live for this movie. Definitely the best direction ever by John Landis. Great writing. Very funny black black black comedy. Great make-up. Only flaw is that the lead actor, David Naughton is absolutely horrible. Best known in the US as the Dr. Pepper guy. Really cannot name anything else of consequence he has ever done. The scene with all of the victims in the porno theater is absolute comedy gold. The rest of the cast is very good. The transformation to a werewolf scenes are excellent. I would highly recommend the movie to anyone who likes to laugh at ridiculous creature movies. Nine out of ten easily.
Santa Fe (1951)
Good but not great
Good but not great old time shoot-em-up western. Typical Randolph Scott pic. Brother agains brother tale. Old North/South post-war conflict. Certainly worth the 90 minutes. Good for a rainy day or lazy afternoon watch. Lots of cliches, but all good cliches. Nice cinematography. Trains. Nice sets and costumes. Black hats vs White hats. Decent acting by a lot of faces you recognize but do not know the names. Very good flat car fight on the train at the end. Of course Randolph (white hat) prevails. Last line is a classic. "As the railroad grows, so will America. You darn tootin. Please enjoy if you get the chance.
Perfect Days (2023)
Feeling Good
Take a couple hours and enjoy this beautifully shot character study. Directed by Wim Winders who specializes in character studies. But usually more oddball characters. Everyone should enjoy their existence as much as the lead character in the film. Can range between boredom and sublime satisfaction. Will remind many people of their own lives in the best possible way. You will hopefully wish you could learn even more about him and his backstory, but that really is not necessary. Beautifully shot throughout Tokyo. Acting is also great by the lead, but some spice is added by various minor characters who inhabit his existence without upsetting the daily routine he has built and enjoys. The soundtrack is also one of the best I have ever heard. Filled with the songs from the lead characters own collection. Well worth adding to your own life.
My Favorite Year (1982)
Great Fun
Outstanding writing by outstanding real comedy writers. Not by the hacks who have been writing for Saturday Night Live since the mid 1980s. The cast is also top-notch. Peter O'Toole plays an old Hollywood star on the down side of his career making an appearance on a 1950s sketch comedy show, Patterned after "Your Show of Shows." If you are not familiar with this show, you should do your best to check it out. The show started the careers of many of greatest comedy writers in history. Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Howard Morris (Ernest T Bass from the Andy Griffith Show), Pat Paulson, and Woody Allen just to name a few. The main character of the film is based on Brooks. Take the time to watch this gem directed another fine comedy writer/actor Richard Benjamin.
Palm Royale (2024)
Not not not funny
The reason this is not funny is easy to see. Kristen Wiig has never been funny She is NOT funny. She will never be funny. She also cannot act at all. Great cast except for her. Unfortunately, she is in every scene. Did I mention that she is NOT funny in any way? How she continues to get cast in things is amazing to me.
The writing is fair at best. The look is good. Cinematically well made. Costuming and sets are great. Has the time period down.
This could have been really good. I could easily name twenty actresses who would have been a much better casting decision. Writers who were actually funny would have helped as well. I would guess the writers are also non-funny SNL alums. Please stop hiring ex-cast members and writers from a show which stopped being relevant or funny decades ago.
Where Danger Lives (1950)
Not great, but above average noir.
Well written. Well directed. Good story. Other than Mitchum; terrible acting. Overall, pretty decent noir film. Claude Rains also great for the whole five minutes he is in the movie. Must have owed the studio a film. Faith Domergur is excellent eye-candy but that's it. Typical Howard Hughes discovery/girl friend. I still recommend spending the 1:45 it takes to watch. Great location filming in Mojave Desert. Director Farrow is an often overlooked outstanding noir director. The Big Clock is one of his best. Mitchum great at this type of film. However, he doesn't play the stupid lovesick patsy quite as well as the hard-boiled or villain.
Fargo (2014)
Flaws but worth it.
Four really good seasons. Good writing. Good acting. Skip season 4. The absolute worst. Stupid ridiculous story. Awful acting. Rock and Swartzman are both terrible actors. Seasons 1 and 5 are probably the best. All four seasons have interconnecting storylines. Unfortunately, most of them are not discernible by just watching. Still worth the watch. Supposedly, all the stories are true. Some embellishment I'm sure. Several directors involved. You can tell which ones were trying to win episodic Emmys. Doesn't quite measure up to the Coens or the original movie. But same quirkiness. Stick with it and enjoy the adventure.
Trying (2020)
Dry Dry Dry
I know some English humor is dry wit. However, this is like the Sahara desert. Good for one chuckle per episode. Acting is mediocre, except for Imelda Staunton who has a nice turn as an adoption agency person. I was really TRYING to like it, but it wore me down. The worst part of the show, however, is the fingernails on a chalkboard music. It's like being subjected to the longest Jack Johnson concert ever. Ugh. A friend compared it to Ted Lasso. I will never take another comedy recommendation from her again. The location is the only thing the two shows have in common. If you are looking for a comedy stream to binge, keep looking.
The Curse (2023)
Poor Choices
Satire is supposed to be funny. This is not. "Edgy" is just a pretentious code word for This is not funny, but I want to act like it is." I love Emma Stone, but this is so far beneath her. Fielder is just a terrible actor. The first episode of the Rehearsal was funny, but he did not stick with the part of the premise that was actually funny. That show started like a rocket, then fizzled to an obvious conclusion. This show started slow, then continued without ever gaining any momentum. I honestly hope that much of the dialogue is ad libbed. It's even worse to believe this was actually scripted. Everything feels forced, but not in a cringeworthy way. More in a let's force a reaction way. This is the first Emma Stone failure in my opinion. I give her credit for trying to branch into new territory, but she picked the wrong partners. Hopefully her next foray into the unknown will be more fruitful. Looking forward to "Poor Things" with more talented participants.
NCIS: Sydney (2023)
Absolutely stupid.
Without giving spoilers, more than half of the things that happened in episode one were total garbage that would never occur under any circumstance. As bad as the writing is, it pales compared to how bad the acting is. Big fan of the original. New Orleans and LA were ok. Hawaii is tolerable. This is absolute tripe. This is the second new show this season where a terrible unknown African-American actress was hired as the lead. (The other was Found with an even worse miscasting). I see TV shows and movies almost every day with excellent black actresses. Apparently, none of those were available. Time to the let the sequels go and allow the original to play out its run. Hopefully, a quick cancellation can lead to something better.
Found (2023)
Absolute Garbage
Storyline is ridiculous. Acting is horrible. Lead actress is the worst of the bunch. Ridiculous portrayal of police. At least half of the actions by "the team" would never be allowed to happen and some are outright illegal. The technology used by the "team" would easily cost eight figures. The police and FBI missing persons bureau would have access to the same technology, but can't seem to solve anything. Without spoiling, there is a relationship between the lead character and someone from her past. This aspect of the show is not only unbelievable; it is totally moronic. Total tripe. Luckily, I will bet anything that this will be a quick cancel.
You (2018)
Weak and getting weaker
First three seasons were weak but palatable. Fourth season was absolute BS. Totally unbelievable. Absolutely could not have happened. Don't waste any more time. Hopefully this over. Acting was mediocre at best throughout, not now writing has become hack level at best. I guess Greg Kinnear has hit rock bottom to take part in something written at this level. The show needs to be killed before any more characters are killed. Netflix is almost always hit or miss. More misses lately though. Starved for content I know, but needs a better effort than this. Should have really ended this after the originaliy written first two seasons based on the books.
The White Lotus (2021)
Good but Overrated
Just back to back binged White Lotus and Severance. Both are good but Severance is far better. White Lotus is described as a dark comedy. Severance is darker, funnier, far better acted, far better written. The comedy in White Lotus is basically non-existent. Only two characters are funny at all. I'll let viewers decide which two. The acting is mediocre at best. I cannot believe some of them were actually nominated for awards. Good PR reps I guess. The two college girls are awful. Totally stiff. The newlyweds are worse. Please take some classes. Show is entertaining but if you have only time for one. Severance is the way to go.
Devil in Ohio (2022)
Stupid story. Terrible acting.
Soap opera plots are more plausible. Uses every possible "horror" cliche. Especially, every character making the most ridiculous and dangerous decisions at every opportunity. Dumbest most non-scary cult ever. Crimes committed over decades without anyone ever connecting them.
But the biggest offense is the most horrible acting by EVERYONE in the cast. I pray none of the so-called "teen actors" ever get another role. Please make them get other jobs outside of the entertainment industry.
Not one redeeming feature of this production. It gets 2 stars for awful music and costumes which are comical.
Don't waste your time.
Elvis (2022)
Not a Bio Pic
Should not be referred to as a bio pic. Significant portions are total fiction. Timelines are off in many cases for no reason. Many of the interactions with other music industry celebrities never really happened. Just another mediocre BAZ music video.
Don't Look Up (2021)
Not a satire. Drivel.
Discount any review that calls this satire. They don't know the meaning of the word. This is closer to the ridiculousness of Airplane except not as funny. Characters are stupidly over the top. Wanted to be Dr Strangelove, but closer to Dr Phil. I guess these outstanding actors looked at McKay's previous successes and felt like this would follow suit. They were sadly fooled. Don't waste your time.
Being the Ricardos (2021)
One miscast dooms to mediocrity.
Excellent cinematography. Excellent writing. Bardem, Simmons and Hale are excellent. However, Kidman is totally miscast and awful. A long list of other actress would been a better choice. Overall a huge disappointment due to one huge error.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
Fun but ridiculous
Nice Halloween movie. Sorry for the pun. Way too many holes in the script and plot. Good tongue in cheek performance by the great Dan O'Herihy. Probably had to do that to keep from laughing when delivering his lines. Just sit back, unplug and take the short ride. Terrible effects add a laugh or ten.
A Quiet Place (2018)
Pluses and Minuses
Big time plus for originality. Plus for acting in a difficult script to act out. However, I know you have to somewhat suspend disbelief for these types of movies, but logic goes out the window way too often. I do not want to give examples that spoil any plot points. Just be prepared to overlook these lapses in order to be entertained. Not really scary, but is suspenseful. Good cinematography.
Clickbait (2021)
Interesting story. Good pacing. Absolutely horrible acting.
The story grabs and moves quickly. Good production value. Bit of a ripoff of the CBS crowd-sourcing show from a few years back. Worth a watch despite what might be the worst group of actors I've ever seen on one show.
I Care a Lot (2020)
Absolute Crap
Totally implausible. Ridiculous premise. Two female con artists who turn into Charles Bronson to confront Russian mobsters. Yeah right. The direction was pathetic. Looked and sounded like the absolute worst episode of Miami Vice. I know people are starved for movies right now, but don't waste your time on this piece of junk.
Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel (2021)
The real subject
The real subject of this show is not the girl who died. It is really a documentary about these internet nuts who have no lives and waste their days "investigating" stories with no real expertise or real sense of reality.
Little Fires Everywhere (2020)
Watch the first 7 episodes. Then make up your own ending.
Not going to give any spoilers. However , the ending is absolute crap. I have not read the book. Perhaps the show and ending are faithful to the book. If so, I guess the author ran out of paper or hit a word limit. Suffice to say the ending tries to wrap everything up in a nice little package. Ridiculously so. Good acting. Good production. Ruined by moronic ending.
The Prom (2020)
Wow! This is awful.
Poor casting. Poor acting. Ridiculous songs. I really cannot imagine how this could have been worse. Who actually thinks James Corden can act? Please someone give the LBGTQ community a musical they can actually take pride in. Pure tripe. Does Meryl Streep need money this bad?
Happiest Season (2020)
No substance tripe
No edge. Totally predictable. Romantic comedy with no comedy. Good actors with nothing to do but follow a vanilla script.