sylvesterthekat Reviews

The Politician (2019–2020)

Like Glee without much music

[6/10 · 5 October 2019]

If you didn't know this was Ryan Murphy before watching it you'd know within a few minutes of starting this show. For me it's just ok. Nothing special and it's full of Murphy trademark tropes. I'm a bit bored of it and wish he'd take some different approaches. The many volte faces of several of the characters are not credible and put these characters in a poor light, eg Payton's dad. If you're a fan of Murphy's work you'll love it.

Versailles (2015–2018)

Absolutely gorgeous

[9/10 · 30 January 2018]

And I'm not simply referring to Alexander Vlahos! The scenery is sumptuous and glorious, as are the costumes. The place, Versailles, is now firmly on my list of places I must visit. I went to Hampton Court Palace recently and that was a magnificent place but I think it will pale in comparison.

The show is, I believe, reasonably true to history. I've done some reading about the various characters and while of course the show writers have filled in the gaps as they saw fit, they've stuck to history for the important aspects. Let's be fair, they do need to make it flow and be entertaining enough to keep our attention!

George and Alexander are simply marvelous, I absolutely love their portrayals of the two brothers. I could watch Philippe for hours on end, he's that fabulous as the gay/bi cross dressing prince. Credit must go to all of the cast who are wonderful supporting characters, and also to production design and costumes/hair which could have let the entire enterprise down had they not been well done but it's all been done beautifully.

If you enjoy period/historical drama then you'll love this show. I can't wait for season 3!

Weiner (2016)

A modern tragedy

[8/10 · 24 October 2016]

I'm not going to give a blow by blow precis of everything the documentary deals with as some other reviewers have done. You can watch it for yourself to find out the details. If you're asking me should you watch this film, I have to say yes, it's worth your time.

What I wanted to say, having seen this film, is that it reveals fully just what New York and America has lost in losing Mr Weiner from the political arena. He is (or was) a brilliant politician who seems to genuinely care for the wellbeing of his constituents and wanted to enact change to improve the lives of everyone. That he was unable to control his impulses is a real tragedy because, as we have seen, he's destroyed his career, his marriage and his credibility and presumably is now unelectable in any political office (though my position on that may change!).

This film helps us understand Huma's decision to stand by him after the first revelations and even the second and I fully understand and respect her decision to leave after it all happened again in the summer of 2016.

Even if you don't have a particular interest in politics, or sexting or Weiner, this film is worth watching for the human dramas that unfold during filming, especially as his staff discover and deal with the new scandal that arises mere weeks before the Mayoral election.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again (2016 TV Movie)

Casting Laverne Cox was a big mistake

[5/10 · 21 October 2016]

Now don't get me wrong, she performed fine, sang reasonably well and had 'attitude'. But she's too feminine! The whole point, at least for me, of the Frank N Furter character is that it's obviously a GUY dressed as a woman, ie a TRANSVESTITE! Not transgender, not a woman. A man. Think about it, Brad and Janet aren't going to think hey, that's a guy wearing risqué women's clothing. No, they're going to think it's a tall woman with big boobs wearing risqué clothing. The shock value is reduced. And while we're on the subject of shock value, they totally messed up the Frank entrance scene after Time Warp. Then, later on, the whole dynamic of Frank ending up in bed with both Brad and Janet is substantially altered if Frank is a woman. Just think about it!

I've given it 5/10 mostly because they did a fairly good job with the songs and who can go wrong with those? But, exacerbated by the monumentally annoying commercial breaks, it's really not worth watching this. Buy or rent the original instead, it's much much better.

Fleabag (2016–2019)

Excruciatingly funny and definitely NSFW!

[9/10 · 17 September 2016]

First, props to Phoebe who is utterly brilliant. She conveys so much with just a look, especially in the silent retreat episode.

Thank you to Amazon for bringing this to American viewers. Being a Brit myself,perhaps I am predisposed to like this show but honestly, I found myself almost hyperventilating at some of the scenes.

The show isn't ALL about the comedy either. There are some genuine human moments, for instance the loss of a friend and relationships with family and boyfriends. Yes, there are comedy moments in all of this but it's nonetheless heartfelt and real.

My one complaint is that there are only 6 episodes! I hope more are coming soon.

Vice Principals (2016–2018)

I just don't get it (slight spoiler)

[5/10 · 9 August 2016]

Before I say anything specific about this show, I should say that I have loved pretty much everything that Walton Goggins has appeared in and pretty much hated all of Danny McBride's work. So I was ambivalent about watching it and hoped that Goggins would carry it to greatness.

Sadly, that proved not to be the case. I suppose I just don't like this sort of comedy. I finally canceled the series recording after the episode where they destroyed someone's house gratuitously. What's funny about that? The character in question wasn't dislikable enough (IMO) for that to get a laugh. I prefer my humour more subtle and clever than this; I love Curb Your Enthusiasm and hate Mr Bean so make your mind up which your funny bone is more closely aligned with before you decide to watch.

Inside the Garbage of the World (2016)

This film should be shown to all the children of the world

[8/10 · 9 July 2016]

It's not often that you watch something that makes you glad you won't be around in 100 years. This is one of those things. The scale of the problem is unimaginably enormous and I've no idea how or when it will ever be solved.

The film taught me that we as a species HAVE to change our habits. We have to become more aware of what is happening to our planet. Did you know that plastic trash is now present in pretty much every sample of seawater anywhere around the world? And it's not 'easy' stuff like soda bottles, it's been broken up over the decades and is now microscopic in size (in addition to the big stuff) and that is then eaten by sea animals and eventually ends up back on our own plates! So not only is this plastic killing off millions of animals a year, decades down the line it's surely going to have a big impact on our own health with more incidences of cancer caused by the chemicals we'll be ingesting. Think you're OK because you don't eat fish? Think again! Lots of other things eat fish and we eat those other things too.

These are the things this short film taught me. Things I was marginally aware of but am now far more knowledgeable of thanks to the clear and simple demonstrations and explanations shown here.

The photography is both beautiful and jarring with scenes of sea mammals and fish in their natural beauty then images of beaches and rivers clogged with plastic trash.

We are killing our planet. If you want to be part of the solution, rather than the problem, watch this film as a start.

Boyhood (I) (2014)

I feel it's being lauded just because it was filmed over 12 years

[3/10 · 19 January 2015]

I struggle to find anything good to say about this movie. Maybe if you're really into the process of movie making and find the idea of filming it over a period of 12 years to be exciting, you'd get your rocks off on it. Sure, it was a bold step to take because who knows if all your actors will still be willing to participate in 12 years, or even be alive! But as a movie watcher who loved Foxcatcher, Grand Budapest Hotel, Lego Movie, Moulin Rouge, Schindler's List and Blade Runner (to give an idea of my eclectic tastes), I was pretty much totally bored by this exercise in indulgence. It might have helped if more than two of the cast were capable actors. As it was, the combination of lack of story and really ANYTHING happening, made this an exercise in endurance for me, the watcher. I found myself constantly checking to see how much of the 2 hours and 45 minutes was remaining, and fast forwarding a few segments because I had better places to be. The best scene in the whole movie, for me, was the contraception discussion and for that, I elevated it from one star to three. I sure hope this does NOT win Best Picture at the Oscars because that would be a big insult to ALL the other contenders.

Ambition (III) (2014)

Short movie about the upcoming Rosetta mission left me wanting more!

[8/10 · 28 October 2014]

This is a beautifully produced short film to draw attention to the Rosetta mission that's sent a probe to a comet in order to determine if it contains water, and which then could explain how water ended up on earth.

Aidan Gillen from Game of Thrones is believable and brings presence to his role of 'Master', teaching a young girl the art of planet building, perhaps? That's not really explained. But it doesn't really matter for the purposes of this short film.

The effects are top notch and I'd happily watch a full length movie that expanded on the story and characters.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

A thoroughly entertaining movie

[8/10 · 3 August 2014]

I'm not going to write a thousand words like some people seem to have done. I figure folks want to know quickly if they're going to enjoy something!

1. Great music, especially if you grew up in the 70s and 80s. 2. Beautiful animation - these folks are getting really good at this. 3. It's funny, especially pretty much everything that comes out of the raccoon's mouth. 4. A not too silly storyline, I wasn't bored and didn't feel the need to roll my eyes too much. 5. Enjoyable villains, especially the blue guy Yondu, played by Michael Rooker who was Merle Dixon in Walking Dead.

Overall this was a creative story with charismatic characters and if you're a parent wondering if you'll be bored taking your young teens to it, don't worry, you won't. It's also not horribly violent - violence is sort of cartoonish and not at all gory.

Fargo (2014–2024)

I don't usually rate anything a 10 but this is exceptional

[10/10 · 19 June 2014]

This series blew me away. That it's based on true events probably gives it added gravitas that a made up story would not possess because you'd think it was perhaps a bit OTT. But this stuff happened!

The cast are superb, there's not a wrong-un among them. The actress who played the dogged cop Molly was outstanding and I hope we see her in more shows to come. Everything was pitch perfect, from the accents to the actors. Billy Bob Thornton gave us his best work in years, he totally brought the improbably evil character Lorne Malvo to life and Martin Freeman was utterly believable as the inept insurance salesman at the hub of the tale.

I don't want to give anything away so can't really say too much more about it other than to say do. not. miss. this. The finale is so freaking awesome you just won't believe what you're seeing.

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Why are people rating this so highly?!

[5/10 · 1 June 2014]

I fell asleep. Yes, I actually fell asleep during this nonsensical mish mosh of a movie. I don't know that I've actually ever fallen asleep in a movie theater before, except one time when I had just got off a 10 hour flight and went to a movie to try to stay awake to avoid jet lag. Fail!

But back to this one. If you like a movie with intelligence, a coherent plot, characters you can care about and great acting.... don't bother going to see X-Men: Days of Future Past. Really. Just don't waste your time.

About the only good thing in this movie was the guy playing Nixon. The whole opening sequence and its matching sequence later in the movie is a chaotic mess where you have no clue really of what's going on. There's not too much logic about any of it!

I love Fassbender, McAvoy and Stewart but oh man, they need to get involved with better projects than this.

Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (2013)

A few extremely funny scenes

[7/10 · 15 November 2013]

I'm not a huge fan of the Jackass movies and am approaching 50 so maybe not in the target demographic but the trailer for the movie made us laugh so we went to see it. Most of the time I was chuckling rather than out and out belly laughing. But one scene in particular (the strip club) almost made me hyperventilate. I literally couldn't catch my breath because I was laughing so hard. It's one of the funniest scenes that I can recall ever seeing in a movie. The boy who plays the kid is excellent, he's very believable and cute and for such a young boy he does very well in what is not really a straightforward acting role. If you have the right sense of humour for this type of thing, I highly recommend it (if you're aged 14-25 and male it's a guaranteed hit). If you hate Jackass and all it represents, don't bother paying to see it in a theater, maybe wait for cable because that one scene in the strip club IS worth seeing (unless you're an overly sensitive prude!).

The Expendables (2010)

A perspective of The Expendables from a woman aged over 40 (it ain't good)

[5/10 · 16 August 2010]

I was dragged to see this by my husband, who evidently quite enjoyed it. I did not. I have to say I'm completely mystified that it's so far received such high ratings. Was I at the same movie as these other people? The novelty of all these big action heroes of yesterday and today being together under one title soon wears off. Arnold is in it for maybe 2 minutes (hardly surprising given his day job) and he doesn't take his shirt off. Bruce isn't in it for much longer than that either. I'd call both of those cameo appearances.

The story was basic and obvious. The script was dire, a grade schooler could have written it. The acting was mostly poor and contained much ham - but then with that script it's hardly surprising. The action was overblown and often ridiculous, with people escaping the apparently inescapable without a scratch. Somehow all of our protagonists managed to avoid any injury whatsoever (with the exception of Dolph who was shot by Sly).

About the only thing that was remotely pleasing to me was that nobody made out with the damsel in distress. That would have been even more improbable than everyone getting away uninjured from all the explosions! Glad to see that Sly retained a smidgen of realism in this otherwise silly shoot em/blow em/burn em/squish em up.

Max Payne (2008)

Maximum Pain

[2/10 · 17 October 2008]

My advice: unless you're an adolescent boy who's enjoyed playing the game, avoid this one like the plague. Dreadful doesn't even cover it. I don't know what Beau Bridges and Mark Wahlberg were thinking... well I do, I guess they were looking at the script through green-tinted glasses.

Mere minutes into the film I could see what was coming a mile off. One only needs to have played a few video games to be able to figure out that the big corporations are always evil and that the guy you think is Mr Nice is actually quite the opposite.

The valkyries were quite creepy, it's one of the few things I can say that's any good about the film but they're really not well used in the story and are only imaginary beings anyway so what was the point? Save your money and skip this; I wouldn't even bother with the DVD!

Lake of Fire (2006)

This is not easy viewing

[10/10 · 18 June 2008]

Unlike some here, I'd say it's quite obvious which side of the debate Tony Kaye himself lies on; that of pro choice. Although it presents both sides of the argument, the only sane representatives are on the side of choice. Now I don't know enough about the pro-lifers to know if they're all as nutty as the people presented to us in this film. Some aren't quite as crazy, for instance Norma McCorvey, whose reasons for now being pro-life can be understood (she was basically pressured into feelings of guilt for her part in Roe v Wade) if not supported.

What most of this boils down to is religious fanaticism. The vast majority of the pro-lifers use religious 'teachings' as their argument for abolishing abortion rights. I say that it's unwise to base any serious decisions on something as debatable and dubious as anything the bible has to say. After all, the bible at various points would have whole tribes of people wiped from the face of the earth, it would sacrifice daughters to prevent men from making sodomites of themselves, 'god' turns a woman to a pillar of salt for the heinous crime of looking back at her home. Good grief, what a terrible sin! Almost as bad as committing blasphemy for which crime some in this film seemed to think it was acceptable to face the death penalty. We need to be worried about the religious fanatics in this country, not complacent about them. With Bush's encouragement they have grown in strength and the abortion fight is just a part of their whole game.

Tony Kaye did a brilliant job here of showing us all of that. Pro Lifers can't possibly be happy about this film, even though it doesn't candy coat anything - we get to see abortion in all its gory glory. Nevertheless, I feel that if someone is sitting on the fence about the issue and sees this film, they're unlikely to want to associate themselves with the crazies portrayed herein, especially the lunatic priest in Colorado who claims that abortion doctors are Satan worshipers who dangle the expelled fetus by the leg and then barbecue it. Clearly he's one or two marbles short! To summarize, this is an absorbing if somewhat long documentary which presents various arguments for and against abortion and satisfactorily raises most of the issues. Rent the video and devote an evening to watching it but be prepared to run the gamut of your emotions (whichever side of the issue you support), from anger to frustration, fascination to sadness.

Lost: Flashes Before Your Eyes (2007) Season 3, Episode 8

If you're going to pretend you're in England... get the spelling right!

[8/10 · 17 February 2007]

This isn't so much a review as merely a comment on this particular episode.

This episode was generally a good one and I'm hoping that it is a portent of things to come (ie that we see more of the cast other than Jack, Kate and Sawyer) and that we return to the mystery aspect of the storyline.

I'm English so it was slightly annoying to me that they made such a glaring error as to spell the word 'honour' incorrectly on the recruitment poster when Desmond walked past an armed forces recruitment office. That was the most glaring one. It was mostly obvious that they weren't really in London but I guess to anyone who hasn't lived there it wouldn't be so bad! I wonder if they've given themselves a way out of the series by implying that if Desmond ever makes the choice to marry Penny, the world will come to an end and so will the show! It looks anyway like it might be curtains for one particular character, after what was revealed by Desmond at the end.

Life on Mars (2006–2007)

Will he ever get back to the future?

[9/10 · 25 July 2006]

This show is so much fun and so well done I can't think of a better one on TV at the moment. It will inevitably appeal most to those of us who were around in the 70s and remember this stuff and perhaps even more particularly who lived in that part of England. I was brought up in the Liverpool area and therefore much of this is intensely familiar to me, from the streets to the cars to the way people dressed to the colloquialisms used.

The writers have cleverly set up the situation so that not only the audience knows how things are different nowadays but the main character of the story also knows and thus we see all his reactions to the often ridiculous way things were done back in 1973. After the first episode you notice that he doesn't do much to try and convince anyone that he's from 'the future' but instead gets on with his new life which when you think about it is only sensible since otherwise he could end up in a mental institution! We're never actually told how he has ended up in 1973 but he'll occasionally hear sounds likely to be from the present such as hospital monitors and visitors such as his mother urging him to wake up so my conclusion is that he's in a coma and is having a vivid dream.

To sum up, those of you who were around and aware of how things were in the 70s will absolutely love this show, most especially if you're English. But it is so well written that I'm sure it must appeal to anyone with an appreciation for good drama with a bit of comedy thrown in.

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

should be required viewing

[10/10 · 26 June 2004]

Anyone wanting to figure out who to vote for this November could do worse than getting a dose of reality and watching this film. OK, I'll grant you that it is somewhat unfair at times and Moore even admits as much in the commentary, but it is presumably basically truthful (if it were not, he'd know as would everyone involved that they'd have their pants sued off for libel). Enormously effective at times, the film takes you on a roller coaster ride of emotions from the depths of despair to the highs of hilarity and who could fail to be moved by a mother's loss of a son serving in Iraq? She went from being supportive of Bush to despising the whole situation because now she understands from first hand experience what us 'liberals' are complaining about.

If you're a right winger of any description, you're going to hate this movie because it makes Bush look like the idiot he is, shows just how corrupt most of the leading players are and could have a helping hand in ousting the GOP from power come November.

It is my fervent hope that the DVD will be released in October to give the maximum possible number of people the opportunity to learn a thing or two before they vote.

I say Well Done! Michael Moore for having the skill and nerve to make this film as entertaining and to the point as it has turned out to be.

The Passion of the Christ (2004)

Somewhat over-done but good performances

[5/10 · 29 March 2004]

I suppose I ought to clarify firstly my religious leanings. I don't have any. I can't say I'm agnostic, maybe atheist but definitely not Catholic, Christian, Jew, Muslim or any other official or unofficial religion. I went to this movie with my husband who wanted to see it for some reason. I would have waited for the DVD. So bearing all this in mind I am judging the film as a movie and for its credibility rather than emotionally or with any leanings for or against any religion.

Firstly, I was surprised at the lack of story. I don't call 90 minutes of torture and walking from point A to point B to be a story. There was very little of Christ's life, simply snippets in the form of flashbacks as he encounters people along his tortuous journey which trigger memories in his or their minds. It assumed sufficient knowledge of the scriptures as nothing was explained. Evidently I was sufficiently indoctrinated as a child that I was not left wondering what the various references and flashbacks were about.

Secondly, I found the beating to be unrealistically harsh (not that I think the Romans or any other power group are/were incapable of doing such things but that a man could not survive them). I'd be interested to know what a doctor would have to say about the likelihood of a mere mortal being able to withstand so much blood loss, so much trauma to the skin and then somehow carry what appeared to be a tremendously heavy crucifix for 45+ minutes uphill. I'd challenge a healthy, strong man who had not been beaten to within (or beyond) an inch of life/death to be able to carry such a crucifix. This improbability spoiled the film for me because it is supposedly a true story and therefore Gibson had a duty to portray things realistically or else make it clear that Man has a heck of a lot of sins to be atoned for and therefore the beating was symbolic of that, rather than a true portrayal of events.

It was drawn out for emotional reaction, I am absolutely certain of this. It may or may not have been done in order to attract controversy and therefore attention/box office $$.

The acting was good by most of the players, especially the Roman boss guy who had to make the decision about Jesus' fate. It's a shame that more was not made of the Satan character, this was an interesting and intriguing storyline/character.

So if you're wondering whether to see it... if you're looking for a good movie then don't bother until it comes out on DVD. If you're a Christian/Catholic and want to bathe yourself in emotion and the glory of Christ then go see it. Be warned though you'll do a lot of crying. If you're Jewish I'd caution against seeing it as the Pharisees are painted in rather a poor light and little explanation is given for their sudden hatred (are they really so insecure that a man calling himself the son of god is a threat? today we'd think he was a crank). If you're squeamish in the least then you'll spend so much time with your hands in front of your face that you'll have wasted your money. If you're a scholar of religion I'd recommend seeing it out of interest at how religious groups view each other and how someone such as Mel Gibson uses his position to put his personal views across (who knew he was so devout?). If you enjoy watching people suffer and wish you were wielding the cat o nine tails then you'll enjoy the movie but I caution that maybe you ought to enter some sort of counselling program as you may be a psycho.

Keen Eddie (2003–2004)

I love this show!

[11 June 2003]

I'm British and am somewhat starved here in the US of decent comedy but this one totally tickled my funny bone. Very reminiscent as someone else said of Guy Ritchie in style (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels or Snatch spring right to mind). Definitely worth watching, especially during the slow summer months. I hope it catches on like Monk did. Maybe Fox will consider moving it to FX rather than canning it altogether if it comes to that. 9 stars, it's close to perfect.

The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

they reloaded... with rubber bullets

[6/10 · 16 May 2003]

Some aspects of this film are jaw dropping, the motorcycle chase springs first to mind, but overall I was somewhat disappointed which I suppose was inevitable as it had such a great predecessor.

The story didn't engage me like the first one did and so that impacted upon the whole film. The twaddle of Councils and ethics (a la Star Trek or Star Wars) dragged the story and the pace down and left me yawning in places.

On a positive note there were awesome fight scenes and humour was well used. Two new ghostly baddies enhanced the film, it's just a shame they weren't used more in place of the philosophical ponderings of Councils and officialdom.

Bottom line is that if you're already a Matrix fan I don't need to tell you to go see it. If you're not, see the first one and then decide. If that doesn't grab you, this one certainly won't.

American Idol (2002– )

Must see TV

[2 September 2002]

This show is a hoot. The first episode was a laugh riot with some of the contenders obviously in denial about their abilities. On the flip side there were some very talented young people trying out and it was easy to see which ones were likely to go far. The two presenters are idiots and this is the biggest down side of the show. Assuming it does return for a second season I sincerely hope they don't come back. Simon Cowell's honesty is refreshing and yes, he is borderline mean sometimes but it's better that the hopeless ones learn from the start that they're not going anywhere.

As I write this, the final show is tomorrow and while I think Tamyra should have been a finalist, there are two great singers up for the prize. If you want a show that involves the audience, provides entertainment and amusement you can't go wrong with American Idol.

Donnie Darko (2001)

Dark Delights

[9/10 · 27 October 2001]

This is a really interesting, imaginative and creepy movie. If you want something worth seeing this Halloween, see Donnie Darko or From Hell and don't waste your time on the others.

Overall it's well done, the acting is great by everyone, the characters are believable and there are some big stars with small parts (Drew Barrymore, Patrick Swayze, Noah Wyle, Katharine Ross) who use their screen time well and are not merely there to draw in the ticket buying public.

It will leave you pondering the possibilities and questioning the logic, as well as leaving persisting images of the nightmarish 'rabbit' which plagues Donnie throughout. You just might have dreams about it - you've been warned!

The Mummy Returns (2001)

This film is appalling

[2/10 · 19 May 2001]

Whatever you do, don't waste your money on seeing this drivel.

The story is nonsensical, the CG is well below what one expects these days and there is way too much use of it in the marching army scenes.

The movie is not without some merit (after all, it did have Brendan Fraser in it) but the few good bits are way outweighed by all the truly awful stuff. I dread the notion that there'll be a third in the series (and with the way this one ended it's hard to see how they could do it) but worse yet is imagining how they're going to make a whole movie around the 'Scorpion King' character.

Stay away in droves!