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Reviews
Elvis Found Alive (2012)
Obvious Fan Fiction
A friend told me about this film and had totally believed it. I will say it was well researched and has a lot of great archival footage. It is interesting as a hypothetical portrayal: What if Elvis had faked his death and were found alive? What would he say in an interview? But the problem here is the acting. "Elvis" sounds like he's reading a book. He does not speak like a normal person would speak extemporaneously. He over-pronounces words and phrases and pauses in all the wrong places, as does the interviewer. He says things about his thoughts and feelings that no one would say unless asked directly. Others have pointed out he doesn't have the voice of a 77 year old man. Additionally, a Tennessean living under cover in California is not going to still have a thick Tennessee accent. It may be worth a watch if you're interested, but it's pure fantasy. I give it 3 stars for the history in spite of the misleading pretense and bad acting.
My Crazy Ex (2014)
No way is this show about real crazy exes
I've watched a few episodes of this show now, and I'm convinced it's pure fiction. The scenarios are just too cornball to be believed. A dude that pretended to be twins to date two best friends? Please. Getting recognized and enlightened by stranger who saw the masked porn your ex secretly made with you because of your unique tattoo? Highly unlikely. A dog-napping ex that dressed up like a dog in the bedroom? Come on! An ex that secretly dressed a doll in his ex's clothes and romanced it? Get real! The acting is so bad, both by the re-enacting actors and what I firmly believe are actors portraying real people with crazy exes. Complete balderdash. I have no idea how this show averages 7 stars. I feel my three is quite generous. Don't waste your time unless you want to exercise your eye-rolling muscles.
Liebes Kind (2023)
A good mystery
I found this 6-episode series to be riveting and binge-watched it on a Friday night. It unfolded slowly, revealing new information with a measured pace, and kept me guessing right up to the last episode and satisfying ending. I docked a point for some face-palming decisions by the characters that had me talking back to the TV, but real people make stupid decisions also, so I can't complain too much. The psychology of the characters was was well-developed, except for the culprit, but again sometimes why people do what they do doesn't totally make sense. Overall, I'd recommend it if you like a psychological thriller and don't mind a bit of gore.
Take Care of Maya (2023)
Mandated reporting sometimes gets it wrong
Overall, I thought this documentary was interesting and worth the watch. What happened to the Kowalski family was tragic. However, I'm a bit concerned how several reviews here are vilifying the hospital and its staff. All healthcare providers are mandated reporters of suspected child abuse. Not reporting suspected abuse is a crime. The hospital staff didn't set out to destroy a family. Clearly, they thought this could be a case of Munchausen's by Proxy and the ketamine coma treatment was beyond the pale. The family had to go to Mexico to get it. It's not approved here, and ketamine is a controlled substance. What does that tell you? Yet, the mother, Beata, wouldn't listen to concerns expressed by several doctors. She had given too much weight to Dr. Kilpatrick's warning of possible death due to blood clot from immobility and not enough weight to other doctors' warning of possible death due to high dose ketamine. Imagine Maya had died due to the ketamine coma treatment. JHACH had a legal obligation to call out what they believed was a dangerous practice. That Beata refused to listen to medical experts and then took her own life after being separated from her daughter for 3 months further calls her parenting into question. Could she not anticipate that her children would be deeply traumatized by her suicide? As Jack begged of her, all she needed to do was comply with DCF, but she wouldn't. Sadly, Beata was misguided, with tragic consequences.
Unprecedented (2022)
Unprecedented Indeed
This documentary was well done and polished. As others have said, there wasn't much new if you're following the January 6th hearings, but I think it's worth your time - at least episode 3. It seems like one for the history books. Overall, it is quite stunning the access this team had to the Trump family during such a pivotal time in US history. In the end, I don't think it will change any minds, but I don't think it was meant to. The MAGA crowd will come on here and vote it down, which it doesn't deserve.
The Night Of (2016)
A top notch series that sticks with you
This crime drama was truly outstanding, right up there with The Wire. The writing, direction, acting, and cinematography were fantastic. Like The Wire, this is not a series that ties everything up in a bow by the end. It is gritty, dark, and sad, but also gripping and sometimes even humorous. John Turturro was amazing as Stone, and Riz Ahmed made for a compelling Naz.
I was intrigued to learn that the series was a remake of season 1 of the BBC's series, Criminal Justice, and eagerly watched that series right after finishing The Night Of, just to see how similar they were. It is interesting to compare the two. Some lines are taken verbatim. Not surprisingly, adaptations were made to fit the American criminal justice system and its culture compared to the British, but there are other noteworthy changes:
* The socioeconomic status and circumstances of the victims are totally different. The other plausible suspects are different.
* In TNO the accused (Naz) is a person of color and the victim (Andrea) is White whereas in CJ it's the reverse (Ben, Melanie). CJ hardly scratched the surface of racism while TNO addressed it head-on.
* In CJ, the protagonist has a cellmate with a very significant role in the story, but no such role exists in TNO. The Freddie of TNO is sinister where the Freddie of CJ is suave.
* In CJ, Stone had eczema, but it was not as integrated into the plot as in TNO. There was no cat subplot in CJ, which enriched the story of TNO.
* TNO really dialed up the brutality of the murder and the prison context, and we can readily see the transformation in Naz as he is immersed in that culture. In CJ, it seems that Ben hardly changes though he is certainly traumatized. He comes off as whiny or even indignant at times.
* Similarly, the impact on the family is not as significant in CJ as it is in TNO.
* Stone and Box were much better developed in TNO compared to CJ.
* And finally, I have to marvel that the sentences are much lighter in CJ compared to TNO. Five years for a manslaughter plea deal with a likelihood of getting out in 2.5 years? It was stunning that Ben didn't take that deal when they had him "bang to rights."
There were a number of other differences, which may also relate to differences in what you can do with 8 episodes compared to 5. All in all I felt that, while CJ was good, TNO was superior. TNO emphasizes alliances while CJ emphasizes contracts. TNO is more about loss and, for most (Naz, Stone, Box, Helen, the cat, even Freddie), partial redemption. CJ is more concerned with the message that, while their system is rough, they ultimately get it right.