mari_lopes15 Reviews

A Teacher (2020)

Not Perfect But Highlights an Important 'Gray' Area of Inappropriate Behavior

[8/10 · 29 June 2022]

The acting however is superb! All actors do a great job. The two main actors especially are excellent!

This series is not perfect. The first half is definitely more intriguing then the second. The pacing is also not always consistent.

The most important thing about this show though, in my opinion, is that it highlights a gray area in grooming and inappropriate relationships. Everyone is well aware of the Harvey's and their unacceptable behavior, for example. But this show brings up the gray are of what if the person in power is a total emotion wreck and not an intentional predator? What if the victim is almost 18 and seems mature for his age?

As a mother and an almost 40 year old I say no. This is extremely inappropriate and should be taken seriously. He is almost 18, but does that mean he is capable of understanding consequences? The maturity between age gap of 18 and 28 is extremely different.

Also, the writer is very subtle at grooming but the steps the teacher is taking are absolutely grooming. I did very extensive research on grooming when teaching my daughter about it and all the steps are there. The teacher does not seem to do it intentionally predatory, but it is nonetheless.

I actual especially love how subtle everything is because it feels real. It is something that could happen in anyones neighborhood and some people wouldn't bat an eye. I did dislike the last two minutes for that same reason though. The show is so subtle and realistic while the last two minutes feel very 'on the nose'.

Overall I think the series was so well done!

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019)

Disappointing

[5/10 · 19 July 2020]

It starts off well but loses its way about 2/3 of the way. The script tries to add too many elements and ends up not developing any storyline well. The story feels rushed and it becomes hard to connect with anything or anyone. It also has some pretty big plot holes that are hard to ignore. The whole conflict of the first movie is maleficent trying to break the curse which she cannot until she realizes she is the true love. If it was so easy to break the curse by breaking the spindle, half of the first movie would not even make sense. I enjoyed the first one and I really wanted to like this one. Unfortunately, the script was just a big disappointment. Cinematography, costumes and visual effects were however stunning.

Dirty John (2018–2020)

Great Season 2!

[10/10 · 10 July 2020]

I had rated this series a 7 during the first season. It was certainly interesting but everyone was so hard to relate to and empathize with that I had a hard time with it at times. Season 2 has changed my rating from a 7 to a 10 though.

The costume and aesthetic of the eras are so good. The story takes you from the 60s to the 90s and you really feel like you're actually in those decades.

The characters have so many layers and the actors are so good. I have a love/hate relationship with every single main character which proves how well developed they are.

I was familiar with both stories and I immediately thought the Broderick story would be a great pick for this series. So I had a feeling it would better than the first season, but this is better than I even thought it'd be. I can't wait to find out what season will be about.

It Chapter Two (2019)

Gave Me Nightmares....Literally

[9/10 · 17 May 2020]

I was initially going to rate this 6 or 7. I thought it was good, but a little too long. I'm always telling everyone who knows me that I do not believe in ghosts or demons and therefore don't get overly excited about this type of movies. So I go to bed hours after watching it and wake up in the middle of the night after terrible nightmares from scenes of this movie. I mean heart pounding, sweaty, too scared to even move in the bed type of nightmare. So I it's scarier than I would have thought.

Grey's Anatomy: Judgment Day (2018) Season 14, Episode 20

Hilarious!!!

[10/10 · 2 May 2020]

I do not smoke, eat or use any drugs of any type. I'm probably actually one of the very few people above 30 who have never even tried marijuana. Even so, I thought this was one of the funniest episodes ever. It felt like Greys from the first couple of seasons. All the subplots worked well and the stories were interesting. I even liked the way the sexual harassment story line was handled. Im sure it'll get much darker and serious, as it should, but it was a great way to introduce the plot and helped balance out the funny parts of the episode. I normally don't like Merediths sister but I cracked up on "Death by acute liver disappearance" and the sober walking. The always great Bailey and the "funeral" for the Avery family was another highlight. I laughed so much in that scene I was almost crying from laughing. There are many other great moment I can even count them. I wish Greys would have more episodes like this.

Glow Up: Britain's Next Make-Up Star (2019– )

Has Potential but Needs Changed

[4/10 · 14 April 2020]

I thought the concept of this show was good. The contests are very talented and the challenges were fun to watch. However, it seriously needs new judges and a new judging system. As many mentioned here before the judging is the most inconsistent I have ever seen and I watch a lot of competition shows. The whole face-off challenge should be completely eliminated. They make a big deal of the two red chairs but it doesn't really mean anything since anyone can go to face-off. The face-off seems like a completely different show altogether. In the end, it really doesn't matter how well you do in the entire competition. If they don't like you in the 5min of the face-off you're eliminated. I wish they would just stop at the red chairs. One of the contestants in the red chairs gets eliminated - the end. How in the world one contestant is in the bottom the entire competition and ends up in the final makes absolutely no sense. Many great contestants were wrongfully eliminated because of bad judges and judging system. Change that and I'd certainly come back for another season.

Grey's Anatomy: You Be Illin' (2014) Season 10, Episode 18

Coronavirus Quarantine Content

[24 March 2020]

Watching this for the first time during the Coronavirus quarantine I'm sure makes this episode have a whole different meaning. Good episode though. Greys Anatomy is finally starting to feel like what it used be before the plane crash and the awful seasons that came afterwards.

Eat Pray Love (2010)

Ok Book...Bad Movie

[4/10 · 3 December 2018]

So I read the book about 10 years ago and I remember enjoying it. Now let me say this, I was in my early 20s in a foreign country traveling as an exchange student simply because I wanted an adventure and to see some of the world while I was young. I'm now in my 30s (closer to the characters age) and I'm unsure if I'd connect with the character as much nowadays. It is not easy for someone with responsibilities, a house, a good job and a family to leave no matter how hard things get at times. This makes me think she was much more selfish than my early 20s self would have recognized.

Regardless of how you feel about the book, I do think the movie is bad. It does not explain how the main character was unhappy with her marriage and life for a long time. The husband also states many times he had no idea of her unhappiness which I don't believe is true in the book. It does not show their struggles with starting a family. The movie also fails to explain how she pays for the trip. She gets an advance from her publisher to write about her trip experience. So the trip is technically her job and she works on her book constantly while traveling.

I reviewed this movie as a 4. The places and food are just as amazing as described in the book. However, the characters are not easy to connect with (except for Viola Davis). The main character is one of the most selfish characters I have ever seen. Even though I do feel that she is much better in the book than she is portrayed in the movie, she is generally not an easy character to connect with for most people making it very hard to care for the movie.