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Reviews
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: The Elysian Kingdom (2022)
Well, TOS Had Lazarus...
Well, the Original Series had "The Alternative Factor," one of the worst episodes of TOS ever made. And now, SNW has this.
All these years later, Marc Cushman's book "These Are the Voyages" explains what happened with Lazarus and that nearly incomprehensible episode. Once you learn why it was so screwed up, the whole thing is entirely forgivable.
So, I hope years from now, we find out what happened here. I have found SNW to be very gripping and very exciting up until now, with good situations, good acting, and answers to problems based in science, reason, intellect and intuition.
Man, not this week. I have zero clue what motivated them to do this ridiculous piece of dreadful Renaissance Fair cosplay, I just hope it never happens again.
Senior Year (2022)
About as Dumb as It Gets
The movie was good while she was a teenager (first 5-10 min), but after a 20-year coma, she wakes up, somehow in normal condition. Alright, I can overlook that.
But for some reason, *No One* bothers to take a moment to explain what has happened in the world around her in 20 years. She wants to know if someone in the car is watching a TV. "No, that's my cell phone," as if it should be nothing to her. Really?
For god's sake. It could have worked; why do movies like this have to be so stupid? An absolute ETM Non-Recommendation.
Inventing Anna (2022)
Apparently, We Are Supposed to Feel Sorry for a Sociopath
Convicted criminal and sociopath Anna "Delvey" Sorokin burns everyone who is unlucky enough to cross her path, taking their trust and ungodly amounts of money, and somehow, at the end of the series, we are supposed to feel sorry for her, and she is exulted into being the hero of the whole story. Everyone else in her story is apparently just jealous of her, and poor girl, they are just mean to her (?). Boo-hoo for Anna.
Truly unbelievable that with each passing day, the entertainment machine in our society glorifies users and scam artists, and steps on the throat of everyday citizens, but this show keeps that ball rolling most certainly.
For some reason, the producers most especially felt the need to trash Rachel Deloache Williams, who was victimized for over $50,000 by "Delvey." She is made out to be a vapid hanger-on, which is completely opposite of the truth.
Go ahead and Google 'Vogue Magazine Rachel Deloache Williams' if you want to know her real story, and how this show tries to completely destroy her.
Why a show produced by women would actively seek to destroy a female victim that is every bit equal to the shaming of Monica Lewinsky is beyond me.
This is my first experience with Shondaland; I'm guessing it'll be my last. If the rest of the shows from her organization are discharge of this manner, I'm out.
Two stars for production value; I wish I could give the rest a negative 14.
Love Hard (2021)
I Guess FaceTime Doesn't Exist
Our lovely lead character meets her perfect match online. They text and talk and exchange pictures. He even sends her a picture of himself, holding a sign with her name, so he must be real, right?!
Apparently in this alternate universe, FaceTime, Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, Facebook Live, Instagram and well, just about anything that allows you to see someone in real time does not exist.
It turns out he's a weird nerd, surprise!
Talented actors and a nice looking production. An astonishingly stupid premise from 1950.
So great science fiction...I guess.
An ETM Hard Pass for Ridiculousness.
Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)
Missing the Warmth and Humor of the Show
Star Trek: The Motion Picture is completely missing all of the warmth and humor that was the trademark of the TV series.
It is stiff, wooden and boring. It has *loong* scenes of the crew staring at the viewing screen, and many, many, *many* of them at that.
When this film came out, for fans of the original TV series, it was great to see the characters back together and seeing the refitted starship Enterprise was awesome.
But the characters are given nothing to do; the addition of the two new characters adds nothing.
The visual effects are the only great thing about the film that make it worth a watch. After 40 years, Douglas Trumbull's work still holds up as some of the best ever captured on film.
I am a huge Star Trek fan and wanted to love this movie, but it's impossible. (I have seen the director's cut too; it does not save it in the slightest).
5 stars for ST:TMP:
10 stars for the visuals,
0 stars for the rest of it.
For a perfect rendering of why the television series is so beloved, leave this behind and go straight to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
Go Back to China (2019)
Fantastic Film About Family and Becoming an Adult
After a fantastic debut with "Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong"
in 2015, Emily Ting has done it again with "Go Back to China." It has a great script that is both funny and heartwarming, without being schmaltzy or corny.
It's a simple premise - rich and spoiled Sasha, living in the U.S., has already spent half of her trust fund in a very short time. Her father Mr. Li freezes all her accounts and makes her go back to China - to work for him.
Excellent performances that are absolutely believable and set in the real world are delivered by Anna Akana as Sasha, Richard Ng as Mr. Li, and Lynn Chen as Carol. Kelly Hu makes a 'too-short-and-wish I'd seen her more' appearance.
All actors make the great dialogue sparkle (Ting directed and scripted the film), making for an absolutely pleasurable viewing experience.
Cinematographer Josh Silfen presents us with a gorgeous pastel color palette. He has once more taken the "low" out of low-budget, and instead delivers a vision every bit as slick as the films that are coming out from the big studios.
(Silfen and Ting worked once prior on her previous film, "Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong," an absolutely lovely romantic film).
A story about growing up and learning your place in the world, all while dealing with your family, made with love and adoration, it gets an ETM Highest Recommendation. See it if you can!