orrtyone Reviews

The Killing (2011–2014)

A who done it on steroids

[7/10 · 2 May 2011]

I decided to wait before I added my two cents worth of comments. After the pilot I would have agreed with most of the comments made here. Well, I have seen 6 episodes now and I am still enjoying the series. Will I watch it to the end, probably not but I hope to see the last episode or at least read about it. I did find myself at the edge of my seat at every episode but it wasn't the suspense, it was the lighting. I was finding my eyes being drawn away from the character by one form of back lighting or another. I get the impression that the director really likes lamps. Its difficult to make out the expressions on the characters' faces which is a shame because I think the acting on a whole is good. After 6 episodes there are no changes to the story, just more details. I would be interested to hear what the earlier posters would have to say now. It is very hard to hold onto viewers for a full season without giving them some closure on the way, just ask the producers of "Lost" when they ran out of ideas and started dragging out the plots.Its one thing to create 20 suspects in a movie or a mini series. After the third episode there was no suspense. I knew that nothing would change till the end. There are two solid points for me in this series and that is that there is virtually no swearing and minimal gore. (call me old fashioned) well, I just watched episode 11 and only about 5 minutes was spent on the murder. It looks like we have another Lost series. They are already stretching it out.

Breaking In (2011–2012)

going over the top

[3/10 · 8 April 2011]

This sitcom might have been easier to take if the writers did not try to squeeze all of the characters into one 30 minute episode. But I am tired of ideas coming out of college dorms and being accepted as great ideas. To compare this to a show like leverage is like comparing a root canal to winning the lottery. This is nothing but another case of dumbing down America. I would put this sitcom in the same level with "Storage Wars" and "extreme couponing". Almost all characters are spoofs of famous actors which in itself is not a bad thing but to introduce so many over the top character including a plot in thirty minutes is nuts and the producer should have seen that on the story board. The only reason I gave it a 3 is because I think the actors were trying hard but like so much American TV the writing falls short in so many cases. So many TV shows have been copied from British TV that I think America has forgotten to think for itself. I believe there is still hope especially when I watch shows like "Justified". Its original, humorous, serious at time and has great stories. This pilot looked more like a tribute to Jim Carey (early years) than anything else.

Skyline (2010)

maybe cut scenes for an online game

[2/10 · 4 December 2010]

Well, if all you are interested in is special effects then I suppose its worth it. The problem with this movie is that they forgot to hire writers (sigh). The dialogue is only there as a filler rather than a story. Its 88 long minutes of explosions and flying body parts. They use stupid decisions to keep the action going. Eric Balfour should stick to TV. It is hard to believe that there was 10 million spent on this movie especially if it was only one year in production. Although I would venture to say that about 98% was spent on special effects. This group of producers and writers have some impressive movies behind them but all in special effects. Not even the special effect match those that they had done in the past. There are very few who can cross over from the technical end to the creative side successfully. Its sad that they took a good premise and trashed it. Thats my opinion for what its worth

Memphis Beat (2010–2011)

music helps make the show

[10/10 · 26 August 2010]

I never thought that Jason Lee would be a fit for a part like this but after a couple of episodes I can't imagine any one else. Who ever is involved in the music end of the show really knows what they are doing and has a lot of respect for Memphis music. I think they are letting the supporting actors grow on their own. I really believe this is a winner but who knows with corporate executives now a days. If you think back on all the top TV series almost none started strong. This show needs some time but not very much. The main supporting actors are all seasoned in their own right. I would also like to say that the editing is also well down.One thing that irritates me about shows today is the common theme of loud music for back ground and constant swearing. this to me means that the story is not strong enough to carry it's self and production is aware of it. this show has none of that and I hope they keep it that way.