Reviews

I hit on this by chance, and got slowly drawn in, then by episode three was hooked, and by episode five could hardly wait to finish. Perfect for a binge watch. Despite it having all sorts of unrealistic and improbable story lines, it still worked well. Perhaps sliding into caricature too frequently, the characters were intrinsically interesting even when hopelessly naive or stereotyped. Set on the beautiful Irish west coast helped of course with stunning scenery as a backdrop. The story moves along quickly with all sorts of unexpected twists and turns, and just as you the viewer thinks it can't get any more outrageous, it does. A chaotic mix of journalistic enquiry, amateur crime detection, and very, very dark comedy was quite addictive.

I've watched the first two episodes, and must admit that I'm rather underwhelmed by both of them. No criticism of the new Doctor or his companion as the acting was fine, but the stories just weren't very engaging. It seems to be obsessed with image projection these days instead of attention grabbing story lines and real drama. If it is a trying to be a reflection of modern culture, with its superficiality of identity politics, obsession with fashion and much else that is about appearance and nothing more, then it succeeds quite well. But that is a long way from what Dr. Who used to be about in his glory days.

Replace the haunted house by a haunted swimming pool, then replicate all the clichés known to the genre, and that pretty much sums up the entire film. The story was passable, the acting OK, the engagement factor moderate, but it lacked originality. It was very much a film by numbers production. For avid supernatural horror fans it might just about pass, but don't expect more of it than that, for it is a run of the mill exercise made for a genre market. If you are not into supernatural horror films, then this offering is unlikely to interest you. If you are a keen horror fan you are likely to be disappointed as it really fails on the fear factor.

I like films that do not easily conform to a particular genre, and this is definitely one of those. It starts with the hallmarks of an Evelyn Waugh portrayal of Oxford University, in its portrayal of the clash between wealth and privilege on one side and poor but bright scholarship students on the other, before morphing in a more sinister direction. Then it gets quite scary as the scene shifts to the inevitable stately home (not a million miles from the one in Brideshead Revisited), as a poor disadvantaged student grapples with the eccentricities of a very wealthy family. Then, it changes direction yet again, and things we thought were true are demonstrated to be fabrications. All of that I got. The real problem I have with this film is its strange take on sexuality. It just did not seem to get it right somehow, and seemed to me to be deliberately sexually provocative for no good reason, whilst not integrating the sexual dimensions into the narrative effectively. Nonetheless, a very engaging film.

Historically, I never watched this because I couldn't stand the main character played by Amanda Burton. I started watching the latest series (27) having forgotten about that, and got quite drawn into it. Then I backtracked to an earlier series (25) featuring the new set up along with the return of the Amanda Burton character (now a very successful business woman - well, she would be, wouldn't she?) and remembered why I didn't watch it before. She is still playing the repellant, hard faced, egocentric prima donna that I remember from series one. The rest of the cast I thought were OK. It's probably quite a long way off-mark about how forensics actually work, but as drama it works quite well.

An interesting and engaging story that unfolds gradually and realistically. The characters are well drawn and well acted, avoiding stereotyping. It held my attention throughout even though the pace was slow at times. It managed to avoid the traps of over-sentimentality and mawkishness to which this type of film can easily succumb. It is not the most riveting film to watch but it succeeded in telling its story convincingly. Much of the story is set in Paris, which this time is not about finding love in springtime, but dealing with the aftermath of a deceased partner and finding out that the relationship was not quite what it appeared to be. Moving without being a tearjerker, and all the better for that.

A pretty riveting story, but it becomes very complicated with multiple layers of narrative that (sort of) all tie up in the end, but it wouldn't hold up to forensic scrutiny. Some of the actions of the characters are frankly unbelievable. Nonetheless, I binge watched it over two days so it certainly had the engagement factor, leaving the viewer constantly guessing about what is real and what is fictional, and then just as you think you know, something happens to change your perception. I'm not sure that all of the story lines were really needed, such as the discovery of the half-brother, which just complicated the plot for no good reason. But for entertainment on a cold winter's day it worked very well.

I was going to start by calling it enjoyable, but given all the violence in it, perhaps that's the wrong word to use. It certainly had an engagement factor, with a twisting, turning narrative, and the acting was very good, but ultimately it just failed to gel properly. The story become rather preposterous, unconvincing, and is a terrible advert for Ireland, where almost everyone seemed to be a viscous, violent psycho killer caught up in inter-family feuds. The other characters, like the Australian ex-boyfriend and the Irish policeman were just plain daft. It didn't really live up to the standards that series one set.

I was expecting something to grab my attention from the start having seen the hype, but found myself contemplating turning it off half way through as nothing much of interest was happening. It was slow and ponderous for much of the time, with lots of boring chat, lots of deeply unpleasant characters, lots of financial talk in the cut throat world of corporate finance, and a central relationship that was not really realistic, all of which made it tedious to follow at best. The film only really came to life towards the end, and became more and more preposterous as it went along, concluding with a really weird ending. What a waste of quite talented actors.

This is one of those series that can easily be binge watched. It had an engagement factor in that the narrative opens up slowly revealing bits of the past, and the complex interactions of the British ex-pat community, but it all makes sense by the end of the series. The plot stretched credibility at times, there were far too many convenient co-incidences, and some of the characters' actions rather baffling, lacking clear motivation or purpose. However, for anyone wanting a series to get immersed in, this fits the bill quite well. Nice locations and sunny weather make it easier on the eye of course, and Barcelona looks as lovely as ever.

The story is almost impossible to take seriously. Many of the characters' actions are implausible. The script is rather dire. The actors unconvincing in trying to present characters that were so badly written. The various layers of the narrative just about got tied up by the end of the film, but by then I'd lost the will to care about any of the characters. None of them seemed believable. The ending was far fetched to say the least. Another film that had potential, but was so badly put together that it really failed to get off the ground at all. It just belly flopped into the freezing cold lake on the set.

Lots of talk, lots of incoherent nonsense, a creature that resembles a hairy shadow, completely unbelievable story lines (where they existed at all - much of the action appeared to be quite random with no clear reason, motive or explanation), extensive periods when nothing much happens at all, it has a sleep inducing quality that is about as far away from an effective horror film as it's possible to get. Computer generated graphics used well can produce astounding, engaging films when used in conjunction with a good story, believable characters and intelligent production. Unfortunately, this film failed on all fronts.

A watchable piece of escapist nonsense, suitable for Christmas viewing if you really can't find anything better to watch. The plot is daft in the extreme, the comedy rather mild and the horror weak. The elves looked like they had just stepped out of a Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs production. It really fails at just about every level, except for huge dollops of sentimentality which got more and more difficult to digest as the film went along. It certainly won't be making it into the league of Christmas films that regularly get screened over the Christmas period. I'd be surprised it if resurfaces next Christmas.

I watched this expecting a steamy thriller. Instead I got soft porn with a bit of a storyline. If you like looking at naked or near naked bodies, of both genders, there are plenty of scenes to choose from. Inevitably all the actors have impeccable physiques and the sex scenes do show some imagination in terms of activities and positioning. It couldn't really have got more explicit without having to be differently categorised. I just wish that the thriller part of the narrative was more pronounced. I got the impression that the sex scenes were really the driving force for the narrative rather than the crimes. It was well acted nonetheless.

As coming of age dramas go, this one is very good indeed. It had interesting story lines, relatable and likeable characters and was a bit risque at times. There was excellent acting from all those involved and especially the three young leads. Set on the Polish coast in summer, it had some really nice settings and scenery and was photographed exceptionally well. The menage a trios of the three young leads was handled very well, capturing young desire vividly with its complexities, uncertainties and traumas. The story moved along well, without becoming predictable. I found it very engaging, very well made, and quite liberating.

I thought the concept of a narrative happening in four different time periods had potential, and as a long time viewer of Dr Who I'm quite familiar with the concept of time travel. The series started well, with interesting story lines in each historic epoch, and then gradually the broader picture started to emerge of the similarities between the different time zones. Gradually it started to make sense. But then somewhere towards the middle of the series, it became very difficult to follow. It just became too complicated for its own good. Either there were some pretty glaring plot holes, or else I failed to follow the detail sufficiently. I'm not tempted to re-watch the series to establish which.

I was very surprised that watching a film over sixty years old, which I had somehow managed to miss at the time of its release, to have stood the test of time so well. Whereas many horror type films of that period look like camp nonsense today, this film does have a well developed story, is well scripted, well acted and very well filmed. It starts well, does sag a bit in the middle though, but then redeems itself towards the end. The recurring "eagle" motif was a bit redundant I felt, and did not justify its UK title of "Night of the Eagle", but the American title "Burn Witch, Burn!" was even worse. It suggested a kitsch campy witchcraft film, which this certainly is not. It's a cut above most of the horror genre films of the day. It deserves to be shown more often.

Why was the word "Exorcist" used in the title? Answer = To generate sales. This mess of a film has really nothing to do with the original Exorcist except for ripping off and reproducing some of the ideas and scenes, which were done more poorly than in the original. Whereas the original had some spine chilling moments that were unexpected and consequently shocking, this failed to produce any shock at all. It merely recycled some stuff from the past, but did it badly. The most captivating part of the film was in comparing it to the original, and it failed at just about every level. Without the hype of the word "Exorcist" this film would have sunk without trace.

The way this series was presented gave you the impression that Mexicans live almost exclusively on meat. Whilst this may be the case, I know that Mexican cookery also uses a lot of unusual herbs and spices. I would have liked much more on that topic. Ms Longoria often seems brimming over with enthusiasm, and virtually every dish she tries is highly praised. I got a bit worn down by the endless enthusiasm as it just came across as slightly false at times. As a presenter she is always immaculately turned out, to the point that the viewer is left uncertain about whether it's the food or the presenter that is the star of the show.

I really enjoyed this series. It is well written, very well acted, and had an interesting story that develops well over the course of the series. The setting, on Indian's Andaman and Nicobar Islands, was unusual and confronted the issues of ethnic differences very well, and also the exploitation of the natural environment. The characters were very well drawn, showing the complexities of people caught up in matters with potentially tragic consequences and how their personal interests affected their actions. It managed to avoid stereotyping and created characters identifiable as real people. The ending was clearly left open for series two. I'd be happy to watch that too.

I didn't know that this was based a real case before I started to watch it. Approached as pure drama it is a magnificent piece of work. Very well written - the twists and turns of the story unfold gradually as the viewer is taken through the facts and fictions of the case, and perceptions of the characters change as their actual actions are revealed. The acting is very good too. The two leads - both sultry, hot and erotic - add some sexual charge to the drama, which underlies the entire case: Two people who find it difficult to keep their hands off each other. How close this is to the actual case, I do not know. But as drama it worked very well indeed.

I really enjoyed this series. A pity it was only four episodes long, as I felt the narrative could have been developed further (or is that waiting for series two?). A very well observed drama about life in a busy, fine dining kitchen, and all the crap that the overworked, underpaid staff have to deal with on a daily basis, as they struggle with the demands of work whilst trying to reconcile that with a personal life. Not a very good advert for anyone considering a career in fine dining, but all the better for that. Well written, well acted, and convincing portrayal of life behind the scenes in the financially driven modern world of the fine dining experience.

With its impressive cast list I thought this was worth a view. It is not. Unfortunately, to watch it to its end means suspending belief in all sorts of things. Many of the scenarios were completely implausible. Many of the characters actions were completely unbelievable. The psychology of many characters unrealistic. The connections between the UK and the USA story lines, tenuous to say the least. I watched to end only to find out how the preposterous, convoluted plot would finally be wound up. It seemed to be written from a perspective that treats the viewer as thick as pig muck and completely gullible. Quite offensive really.

A supernatural tale, apparently based on a myth of some sort, that was reasonably engaging without becoming compulsive viewing. Not knowing the myth in advance was a disadvantage I feel, as some aspects of the narrative were quite confusing. The acting was good by and large, and the characters interesting. But the story itself was quite difficult to follow and was rather slow. With a tighter grip it could have been more engaging. The special effects were convincing. I was left with the impression that the ending was clearly written to allow further series. I'm not sure that I would want to follow it further though.

It's not often that the horror genre throws up an original idea these days, but this film is a rare example demonstrating that it is still possible. It is a twisted and disturbing tale that avoids falling into established genre cliches. Not an easy film to watch, especially for the squeamish, with lots of blood and body parts on display. But for those with strong constitutions, the story is gradually revealed, drawing the viewer ever more deeply into the twisted plot and the increasingly mad behaviours of the two lead characters. The acting is very good, somehow managing to engage the viewer whilst at the same time revealing the repellent nature of their actions.