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GlorieuxJ
Reviews
Manhattan (2014)
Bad depiction of Robert Oppenheimer
I have always been very interested with the history of the Manhattan project and I really appreciate how this series brings to life the atmosphere of the Los Alamos laboratory in its early day with all of its grittiness and enthusiasm, but also with its obsessive secrecy. However, I also really object to the depiction of Robert Oppenheimer as an incredibly distant and God-like figure, totally disconnected with day-to-day operations. This depiction is very much at odds with those presented in the 1980 TV series "Oppenheimer" and the 1989 TV movie "Day One" or even in Richard Rhodes' 1980 best-selling book "The Making of the Atomic Bomb", all of which present Oppenheimer as a talented and inspired leader.
The Devil's Crown (1978)
Very Good Historical TV Series
Very interesting, nicely-made, and mostly historically accurate TV series about the lives King Henry II of England, his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine and his sons, including King Richard I (Lionheart) and King John I (Lackland). This series includes thirteen 50-minutes episodes covering the rise and fall of the Angevin Empire from 1150 when young Henry and his father Goeffrey Count of Anjou visit Paris and first meet with Eleanor of Aquitaine, then Queen of France, to 1216 with the death of King John. There are essentially no outdoor scenes in this series and it is most often much more akin to a theater play than a movie or even a TV show. Decors are highly stylized and patterned after the illustrations of medieval manuscripts. Nevertheless the acting and dialogs are excellent and the show always captivates your attention with the intricacies and deviousness of medieval politics.
Northern Exposure: Crime and Punishment (1992)
Very Interesting Coincidence
I am not really rating this episode, but I simply want to point out the very interesting coincidence that the main underlying plot for it, i.e., an extradition hearing (here for "Chris in the morning"), is the same as that of Episode 7 of the first season of Star Trek Deep Space Nine (entitled "Dax")that aired exactly two months later (02/14/93) and centered around an extradition hearing for Lieutenant Dax. In both cases the somewhat improvised defense was successfully made on the grounds that the person being sought for extradition was no longer the same as the one who had committed the alleged crime (parole violation for Chris, murder for Lt. Dax) as a result of an extensive change of their personality (becoming a radio show host for Chris, changing host body for Lt. Dax). The "icing on the cake" is that for both episodes the hearing judge is played by the SAME actress, Anne Haney.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Dax (1993)
Very interesting coincidence
I am not really rating this episode, but I simply want to point out the very interesting coincidence that the main underlying plot for it, i.e., an extradition hearing (here for Lieutenant Dax), is the same as that of Episode 10 of the fourth season of Northern Exposure (entitled "Crime and Punishment") that aired exactly two months earlier (12/14/92) and centered around an extradition hearing for "Chris in the morning". In both cases the somewhat improvised defense was successfully made on the grounds that the person being sought for extradition was no longer the same as the one who had committed the alleged crime (murder for Lt. Dax, parole violation for Chris) as a result of an extensive change of their personality (changing host body for Lt. Dax, becoming a radio show host for Chris). The "icing on the cake" is that for both episodes the hearing judge is played by the SAME actress, Anne Haney.
The War That Made America (2006)
An Interesting, but Uneven Film
Like many western Pennsylvania history buffs, I had been really looking forward to this much-heralded PBS program that was produced by Pittsburgh's WQED. However, I must say now that I was somewhat disappointed. On the positive side, I believe that overall this film did a fair job of explaining the main issues and describing the events of the so-called French and Indian War. In particular, its presentation of the Indians' point of view was somewhat new and quite interesting, although it certainly was at time over-emphasized. Also on the positive side, the blend of narrative and action scenes was well done and came across somewhat better than many of these typical documentaries made up of "experts" interviews and picture stills (a la Ken Burns). On the negative side, many of the battles did have a somewhat "staged" look and many important aspects of the war were overlooked. Most of all I was very disappointed and frustrated by how little importance was given to Forbes's successful campaign of 1758 against Fort Duquesne as compared to the earlier failures of 1754 by Washington and 1755 by Braddock. In particular, I was somewhat incredulous that there was NO mention of Colonel Henry Bouquet, the Swiss mercenary in the British service who was most responsible for Forbes' success. Finally I could not believe the complete omission of the 1763 Battle of Bushy Run that started as a re-run of Braddock's defeat but ended up as the victory that decided the outcome of Pontiac's War thanks to the wiles of the same Colonel Bouquet who certainly must rank as one of the most successful British commanders of this war.