Echo9-71 Reviews

Becky (II) (2020)

Awesome genre film

[8/10 · 13 July 2023]

"Becky" is an awesome revenge film. This kind of film is not for everyone, and it's 6.0 rating on IMDB comes as no surprise. But don't let that fool you. This is no run-of-the mill 6/10 film. This has cult classic written all over it.

The plot, tone and direction of "Becky" pay wonderful homage to the B-film gore-fests of the 70s and 80s which defined the genre. And the soundtrack, especially the forboding synth motif, is another great nod to 80s slasher flicks.

But amid the nostalgia and gore, "Becky" surpasses its roots. It also draws, subtly and effectively, cinematic elements from 80s kids adventures like "Goonies" and "Home Alone", without losing focus on the raw nerve that was struck at the end of the opening act, and which lasts until the cathartic denoument.

The acting is excellent, especially by tween Lulu Wilson - our antihero - and (remarkably) Kevin James, who delivers real gravitas as the ruthless villain.

This is an off-beart, edgy and surprisingly well-crafted little movie. It's what you might get if the Duffer Brothers teamed up with Joss Whedon to make a slasher flick. Genre fans will welcome it and it also holds appeal to 80s nostalgists. Unexpectedly fun. It warms my little pre-internet heart to think there is a sequal yet to enjoy.

Time Team: Finlaggan, Islay (1995) Season 2, Episode 1

A Time Team classic

[10/10 · 19 May 2023]

After a ground-breaking first season (excuse the pun), the Time Team returns with a classic episode.

In this instalment they expand their scope, both geographically and professionally. Whereas during the first season they responded to requests from common citizens for help with local archeological mysteries and advice, here they join forces with a team of professionals from the National Museum of Scotland, to help advance an important project in Scotland's Outer Hebrides islands.

Not only is the archeology fascinating and important, some of the team's delightful and emblematic quirks, which would come to be so beloved, can be traced to this episode:

1. First appearance of Phil Harding's hat. Yup, that right, he went the whole first season bare-headed.

2. First appearance of Mick Aston's stripey jumper. For the next 19 seasons you'd think he slept in it.

Ghosted (I) (2023)

Bedazzeler - star-studded but cheap fabric

[5/10 · 22 April 2023]

This is a role-reversing action/romance. It's been done before (think Mr. And Mrs. Smith, True Lies, etc.) but perhaps never with a better overall cast. The leads - Evans and De Armas - are charming as usual, and have moments of genuine chemistry. However, it's the roster of supporting actors that is truly outstanding, and each delivers their little slice of the story with ease. (Tim Blake Nelson is the first to appear and nearly steals the show.)

I wonder how such a truly stellar ensemble of actors was assembled for this underwhelming little movie? Because, frankly, beyond the cast, there is little of substance here. The script, the action, and the drama: all are dull as dishwater.

I wonder if De Armas might work as an action lead with a better script, fight choreography and/or direction. I suspect not. But we'd need a better vehicle than this to say for sure.

Sprung (2022– )

Elmore Leonard should get a writing credit

[8/10 · 22 January 2023]

I had to ask myself, why does this (terrific) show remind me of the movie "Out of Sight" (Lopez/Clooney)? The answer: Elmore Leonard.

Ask yourself, what would it look like if Elmore Leonard wrote pure comedy? Well, let's puzzle on that for a moment.

I think we can all agree that the plot would involve a gang of disparate (and desperate) misfits whose well-planned criminal hijinks inevitably go awry. Some of those misfits will be recently released from prison. Some are clever. Some are inveterate screw-ups. Some are innocent products of cruel fate. All of them are just-gettin-by in a gritty, shades-of-grey world, and they are all strangely relatable.

Sure, there will be a bit of sex, some weed and booze, and a bit of threatented violence. This is the world of down-and-out criminals, after all. But really, nothing here would exceed the definition of "shenanigans" - nothing more than your average middle-schooler would roll their eyes at.

At its core this Leonard-like comedy would be human, hilarious and heartfelt.

And we could call it "Sprung." And it could be set seemlessly into the naturally bizarre and confusing early phase of COVID lockdown.

And we would definitely want a second season.

Who Do You Think You Are?: Katherine Ryan (2019) Season 16, Episode 5

Who does she think she is? Really?

[6 January 2023]

This show reveals Katherine Ryans' Canadian roots. Some intersting history of European migration to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland is revealed.

The most interesting part is how Ryan repeatly devalues her Irish-Canadian identity in favour of finding English ancestors. I was shocked by her explicit attempt to suck up to her English neighbours and her apparently snobby child.

If she was trying to be funny, this routine bombed.

Ditch the insecurity, Ms. Ryan: being Irish-Canadian is pretty awesome. It's much better than being a sycophantic wanna-be Brit.

Disclaimer - This review was written by an Irish-Canadian who has learned, thanks to this episode, that he has more English ancestry than Katherine Ryan.

I Am Groot (2022– )

I am... meh

[5/10 · 15 August 2022]

Here we have five 3-5 minute shorts featuring baby Groot. They are sometimes cute, with a few funny moments, but not especially clever or charming. Not particularly geared for kids, though some folks think so. Equally boring for all ages.

Keep your expectations low, and these wee shorts can be lightly enjoyed for what they are. Each is a curious distraction, of little consequence.

Only Murders in the Building: Persons of Interest (2022) Season 2, Episode 1

this episode proves that this is an exceptional show

[9/10 · 30 June 2022]

This is a great show. Ever since the first scene of the opening episode, I had the feeling this would be a special series. But it was this episode that really convinced me: I watched the whole thing even though Amy Schumer was in it. Seriously! The whole episode! I know! The first 14 minutes were great, and the last 20 were tolerable: somehow the writing and production was able to distract me from the fact that Amy Schumer was onscreen! Pure Hollywood magic!

Outer Range (2022– )

The giveaway in episode 1

[4/10 · 7 June 2022]

Everything you need to know is revealed towards the end of the first episode. In the middle of the night, with the belligerant Tillerson brothers at the door, dramatic tension is hightened by 10-year old Amy Abbott, who stands on the stairs badgering her father for a glass of water. Because 10-year-olds can't fill a cup from the sink all by themeselves.

Your brain: "Huh? What the...? Why is...? It makes no sense that .... Oh, come on..."

Not only does the writing require us to suspend disbelief about the sci-fi elements (OK), but also about normal human interaction, in the interest of contrived emotion. Welcome to soap opera country.

Multiply by 8 episodes.

Kathy Griffin: A Hell of a Story (2019)

American politics

[3/10 · 27 April 2022]

The ratings and reviews of this show are divided and extreme. Go figure.

So before I say anything else:

1. I'm not an American 2. I have always liked Kathy Griffin as a comedian 3. I have always loathed Donald Trump as, well, anything

That said, watching this discordant mess was painful. It failed on every level, as comedy, as political commentary, as documentary. Pitiful to see how badly Kathy was treated, and equally as sad to see how she reacted.

The Secret Garden (2020)

Proof that a remake was unnecessary

[5/10 · 25 April 2022]

The Secret Garden, a classic children's tale penned in 1911, has been brought to the screen several times.

The most recent re-imagining has many fine qualities, a solid cast for one, including very good work by the child actors. The kind-hearted but unflinching story remains largely intact - for some reason transported forward in time from 1911 to 1947 - and the moral should not be lost on audiences of all ages. More on the moral in a minute.

It is a visually beautiful film, in terms of cinematography. That said, it might be found too beautiful, almost surreal: there is a risk of the whole thing being be dismissed as fantasy, which would undermine the important moral at the heart of it and so fail the story entirely.

Direction and editing in serveral places leave much to be desired, both in terms of pacing and in terms of subtlety, more specifically the lack thereof.

For me, if nothing else, this amped-up and slightly modernized version of the story has highlighted how good the earlier versions were, especially the 1993 production. The latter holds up perfectly. (It is a period piece, after all). Indeed, it seems better with age. I realize now I had under-rated it, and have since corrected my score!

Star Trek: Lower Decks: Much Ado About Boimler (2020) Season 1, Episode 7

Superfunny but set a very bad example

[8/10 · 7 April 2022]

Mariner - an ensign - is appointed XO! Recipe for mayhem and hilarity! But it was bizarre (not "funny ha ha", just weird) that none of the more senior officers objected to her promotion being made contrary to centuries of universal military protoca. Not to mention it being a personal and professional insult to those officers. Could the writers not have given some sort of (far-fetched) reason?

Two months after this episode aired Star Trek: Discovery S03E12 went ahead and did the same thing. But where it is weird in a cartoon spoof, it was a collosal f-up in the drama/adventure.

What lesson can we draw from this?

Star Trek: Lower Decks, keep in mind you are the best of the current Star Trek franchises. Just because you're a cartoon, and a spoof, doesn't mean you can blithly igore centuries of universal military protocol. You need to set a good example. More naive and impressionable Star Trek shows look up to you. :)

Evil (2019–2024)

Course correction

[7/10 · 30 January 2022]

There is a marked shift between season 1 and 2. It begins as a creepy, mysterious, thriller with echoes of "The Exorcism of Emily Rose." Is evil tangible? What is real? What is psychopathy? Heady stuff. It is well structured to explore these themes through the three protagonists: a seminarian, a psychologist and a scientist. Like the best thrillers, there are dabs of comedy and personal drama.

Season 2 moves to a more transparent format: episodic supernatural fantasy. The drama is soapier, and the story, although more complicated, is less sopisticated.

I found the shift disappointing. Not only is season 2 less challenging, it is less consistent. That said, it will probably find a wider audience. Perhaps the move was necessary to save the series from cancellation, but in my opinion, it has made it less worthy of saving.

With a strong cast and production, an engaging premise, and little competition in its genre, the show remains promising. Here's hoping it will find a better balance between cryptic psychological thriller and pop-fantasy soap, as well as more coherence in plotline and tone, if not a return to its original sophistication.

For me, Season 1 = 9/10; Season 2 = 6/10.

Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)

atmospheric horror that deserved a better-written ending

[6/10 · 21 January 2022]

This is an solid, slow-burn, atmospheric horror movie; well-paced capped off with a thrilling third act. It very effectively combines a simple plot, and natural characterization, with good acting and direction. The result is a compelling story that is believeable and susupenseful.

At the end of the final act, I was thinking "high-fives all-around, good job guys" and was about to give this two thumbs up.

And then, inexplicably, in the last 5 minutes the filmmakers revert to cheesy B-horror cliches making for a jarring denoument that simply feels wrong.

WTF? Was that studio exec interference or just plain bad judgement? Nope. Because it's a prequel (to a movie I haven't seen yet), I guess it had to end with a bridge to the other movie. But it could have and should have been better, so the truth is, it's just bad writing. The last few minutes just don't match the tone or narrative arc of the first hour and a half, and it comes across feeling like a cheap add-on. Not a twist ("cool!"), or a surprise ("gotcha!") just lame ("seriously? Pffthtttt!") (That's the raspberry sound, BTW.)

This movie should have wrapped up nicely at 1:27:25. If it had: 8/10.

With the dopey last 4 and a half minutes added: 6/10.

PS - If you can, stop watching at 1:27:25 and just imagine a better CODA; e.g., Lana, the sensible one, getting on with her life as best she can, and the Ouija board washing up on some beach like in Jumanji.

Country Life (1994)

Someone deserves a spanking

[5/10 · 12 December 2021]

I can't speak to the quality of the source material, other than to acknowledge Chekov's fine reputation. I hesitate to read the book now, for fear that it will prove to be as bad as this film.

I was attracted by the the quality of the actors, and pleased by the production and tone of the film. The acting was indeed quite good, with perhaps one exception. I don't know if the character Jack Dickens was supposed to come across as a buffoon, or whether this was a case of over-acting by John Hargreaves. Either way, it was dissonant.

But the real disappointment was that the film ultimately failed to present any compelling or sympathetic characters among the marquee cast.

The supporting actors did yeoman work, and I found myself enjoying them more than the central players, e.g. The old farm hand, Livingstone, played by Maurie Fields. But among the principal figures, only Sally (Kerry Fox) was worthy of some sympathy, but not enough to overcome the growing feeling, as the story progressed, that their petty and silly putterings hardly amounted to a hill of beans. Initially, I could see some good qualities in Sally, Jack and the doctor, but as their core conceits were revealed, I found myself caring very little what happened with any of them, not to mention Sally's father and step-mother, the story's "catalysts".

Frankly, most of them deserved a good spanking. Come to think of it, and I regret to say, watching that might have made for a more enjoyable time.

Extreme Archaeology (2004)

contrived or incompetent - you decide

[4/10 · 15 August 2021]

"Extreme Archeolgy" is a wonderful idea, no doubt inspired by some of the most challenging hilltop sites, cave digs and underwater excavations seen on the classic "Time Team" archeology series. I was excited to see the very special archeology found at these types of sites. I was looking forward to seeing nifty technology, clever methodology, and expert planning.

I was disappointed.

Alas, these "extreme archeologists" seemed to be amateurs lacking common sense, or at least any thoughtful preparation. There were moments when they were lucky not to get themselves killed! How could this be? Can university professors be so reckless? Or had they conspired with producers to make these expeditions seem more dangerous than they needed to be...

Maybe some people will enjoy the psuedo-dramatic "reality TV" aspect of it. There certainly are plenty of perfect moments for viewers to yell at the team's foolish behaviour being displayed on their TVs.

Others may see it as a brilliant comedy of errors.

Regardless, there is little to be learned about real archeology or expeditionary technique. So, for me, watching this was waste of time. I had expected better from Katie Hirst and Alice Roberts - capable and engaging professionals who were not well served by the way this show was executed.

Science Fair (2019)

4 minute commercial, 5 seconds funny

[6/10 · 10 August 2021]

This 4 minute short begins with 3 minutes of dull set-up, going where you ask? It's going to present a less-than-thinly veiled 60-second Audi car commercial.

And just when you think you have wasted four minutes, it uses the last 5 seconds to end with a cute little bit of funny stuff. I laughed. But I did not buy an Audi.

The Tomorrow War (2021)

credit Chris Pratt

[5/10 · 15 July 2021]

The Tomorrow War = (Starship Troopers x Edge of Tomorrow) - common sense = 5/10.

Somehow Chris Pratt makes this watchable despite the huge plot holes. Huge, huge plot holes. Solid cast, great CGI, kudos for atmosphere and pacing, but the story has gaping wounds.

I wish they had run the script by real soldiers or scientists (or at least a couple of scifi/action fanboys) for "technical advice" before committing $200M to production.

So, hats-off to Chris Pratt and the technical artists and crew. I was able to make it through this movie because of them.

PS - At times I wondered, is this going to end up being a parody? Example, my favorite line: "It's not a souvenir, it's a reminder." Delivered with the gravitas and intensity. So what was the deep meaning that was being conveyed? 'Souvenir' literally means reminder. Silly.