wtmerrett Reviews

New Amsterdam (2018–2023)

Great Start But Lost the Thread

[4/10 · 12 November 2023]

I watched the 1st 2 seasons and enjoyed the show and characters. For some reason I did not see season 3 or on until the latest season 5 showed up on Netflix.

So I thought I would start again from the start. Once again, the 1st 2 seasons were great but then what happened in season 3?

Did the writers and producers lose their minds? All of a sudden Max is running around trying to save the world.

One incredibly stupid story line after another had caused me to stop watching all together.

I almost left when Anupam Kher who played Dr Kapoor left the show as was by far my favourite character. I stayed to see what they might add with his loss. It seemed they decided to add incredible stupidity to each script.

Do yourself a favour and do not even start watching New Amsterdam. It will save you frustration later.

The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die (2023)

Not Really Necessary

[6/10 · 18 April 2023]

A nicely done extention of the series but it did nothing to move the Uhtred story forward.

I realize the final battle historically actually occurred and the participants shown were there (except the fictional ones of course) but was the entire movie necessary.

I feel it was not.

I liked the ending of the series and was happy to imagine what may have happened after it ended.

The Last Kingdom was a fantastic series from Bernard Cornwell's exhaustively researched books and I was happy to rewatch the entire series from start every time a new season was released.

Could you miss seeing this film and still feel the series ended well?

Yes, absolutely.

S.W.A.T. (2017– )

Crap

[1/10 · 5 October 2022]

Extremely poor writing and unbelievable story lines.

Anyone with a brain that even marginally uses it should be insulted by how bad this show is and how they expect viewers to believe this garbage.

A SWAT team by its very name would never be used to do the work of beat cops or even detectives but that is what the writers expect you to believe I managed to watch a whole 3 episodes and was horrified more and more as each went along with the amazingly horrible writing. The actors were doing their best with what they were given but bad writing can't be overcome with decent acting.

Another case of " how did that get made"?

True Blood (2008–2014)

A Sad Offering

[1/10 · 6 May 2022]

Just found this series and thought I'd give it a try. Anna Paquin is always good so I thought.

I was ready to turn it off after 5 minutes when I saw how poorly it was shot, lite and directed.

Overactly by mostly hopefuls who are not doing themselves any favors in their careers by being in this dog series.

Horrid direction .

Horrible lighting.

Horrible low quality video work.

Just crap.

Taboo (2017)

Taboo is well worth the effort

[10/10 · 20 March 2022]

I very rarely give a 10 review unless the entire production was outstanding.

This one is!

The first things I noticed were Production Design and Set Decoration. There are extremely well done and accurate for the early 1800's timeline in look and feel.

Next are Wardrobe, Makeup and Hair to be given rave reviews as they are all fantastic. Very accurate in look and design.

The scripts are well written and the character development plays out slowly and nicely. As well, each character stays true to their nature and does not stray from whom they are.

The direction is subtle and well done with no heavy-handed manipulation as some directors can do when their ego gets in the way.

The story is interesting and not widely known so it makes for an enjoyable viewing experience.

My only complaint is that James Delaney has short flashbacks that I feel detract from the story and do not enhance it, as the writers appear to feel.

Pieces of Her (2022)

Disappointed

[2/10 · 6 March 2022]

I enjoy Toni Collettes work so was happy to find another series with her. Unfortunately the series as not worth your time as it is poorly written and directed.

Apparently it is based upon a book that I have not read by an author I have never heard of. After this , I won't be searching out any Karen Slaughter books.

Minke Spino has a number of directing credits to her name and should know how to direct properly by this time but sadly , I guess not.

Give this one a miss.

Vikings: Valhalla (2022– )

Meh

[4/10 · 26 February 2022]

It can be a daunting event trying to write a new series based upon work done better by others. The original Vikings was a decent series with properly developed characters so the audience knows who each person is in relation to the others. This is missed so much in writing it totally amazes me.

Vikings: Valhalla is an attempt to capture an audience who has an interest in the era and the stories. But it is a poorly written attempt so it is doomed from the start.

The benchmark for this genre has to be The Last Kingdom series baaed on extremely well researched and written books by Bernard Cornwell.

I would not attempt to write anything near this era when you will be immediately compared to The Last Kingdom and will be found lacking.

With all the ways to get content to viewers now and the overwhelming amount required we are seeing poorly made films and TV shows being offered up that should not have been made as either the writing, directing, producing, editing.....etc are substandard due to lack of properly qualified people to fill those roles.

Unforgotten (2015– )

Another Great British Crime Drama

[9/10 · 2 January 2022]

I am usually writing bad reviews as I seem to make my views known about poorly made shows.

Unforgotten is a very well made show and I thought I should say that. I have always been a fan of Nicola Walker as an actor and am never disappointed in her performances. She has not let me down yet.

There is a wonderful humanity about the writing and the way the characters deal with the crimes they investigate here that is sadly missing on most American crime shows. I will make one huge exception, and that is Mare of Eastgate, a great series to watch.

I was not happy with the way this series ended but understand why.

The White Lotus (2021–2025)

Stop! Don't waste your time.

[1/10 · 27 December 2021]

I managed about half of the 1st episode before I had to stop watching this garbage.

Another situation where the same guy Creates, Writes and then Directs. That is always a bad idea as they fall in love with what they believe is a great idea and aren't far enough away from it to see it objectively. If they could step back they might see what we see, it's crap. Not one amusing line or situation to be had in the half I saw and that is far enough in to know where this trainwreck is headed.

And this was supposedly rated as one of the best shows to watch. Who determines these ratings and how did they get out of the insane asylum they should locked up in.

Yellowstone (2018– )

Enjoyable Trainwreck

[7/10 · 12 November 2021]

The 1st seasons were very well written but I find that season 3 had a drop in writing and what we have seen of season 4 is more of the same.

I have always been a Costner fan from his early days in Silverado etc and the rest of the cast, though not well known have done a great job. Kelly Reilly is wonderful in her roll as Beth, and always great to watch.

Taylor Sheridan has done some great writing and as mentioned the early seasons were well done but he seems to be more enamoured with the cowboy life then anything else. I understand the role he plays is a show cowboy able to display his horse skills but enough is enough. There are way too much time wasting sequences of rodeo's or horse skill events that do nothing to move the story along and just showcase Sheridan's skills. I hope he has some better writing in store for the 4th season and if not, end it at the end of 4.

Mare of Easttown (2021)

I Had High Hopes

[6/10 · 3 June 2021]

Kate is always good so I had high hopes about this short series A nice little slice of life story about a life in a small economicly depressed town in the Rust Belt.

The characters are fairly well developed which is a nice change so we get to know them. The writing was not bad until the last episode when they talked about a fun that had been "missing for a while". Through video footage you could see that it was taken away and used and returned within a couple of hours. It was not missing by the old man who owns it as he was in bed the whole time. This very poor writing was not mentioned at all in the storyline and screwed the ending as far as I am concerned. Poor writing and poor direction.

Halston (2021)

An Interesting Peek

[8/10 · 16 May 2021]

Ewan MacGregor is doing his finest work here. His portrayal appears to be spot on, or at least my view of it, having never met Halston.

A nice little biopic about a story not widely known.

Well done by all involved.

I don't say that often.

Line of Duty (2012–2021)

Under-Rated Police Drama

[8/10 · 5 May 2021]

I have enjoyed all seasons of Line of Duty and eagerly awaited being able to see Season 6.

British police dramas do not follow the normal American formula and for that I am grateful. I don't know British actors as well as American ones as you can always tell the bad guy in American shows by the actor. The bigger the actor, the bigger the role.

As Line of Duty Season 6 unfolded I found it did not grab me from the start as other seasons have done, but it built up as it went along.

The twists and turns to unmask "H" were well done and as Carmichael entered the scene we quickly came to hate her and could not wait for her to be shown to be "H".

Alas the season ended with a whimper, not a bang and left me totally unsatisfied. I know they producers need fodder for Season 7 but come on, don't pull a Star Wars ending and not end.

Carmichael was left to be the bitch she has shown herself to be and lives for another season.

Promising Young Woman (2020)

Finally a Different Point of View

[9/10 · 28 April 2021]

Emerald Fennel wrote a great screenplay and did a fine job directing her work. Most writer/directors are too close to it and can't see the mistakes.

Carey Mulligan shone in this role and played Cassie to perfection. I bet she had a blast doing it too.

It is interesting to get a female take on a situation that just about every woman has had to deal with at least once in here life. The behaviour behind closed doors of so called nice guys. Cassie knows how to deal with them. A very sweet revenge flix that had me cheering for her.

Love and Monsters (2020)

Nice Little Film

[7/10 · 20 April 2021]

I was surprised to find I enjoyed this film as I usually don't go in for monster or horror movies.

The actors are not well known and this most likely helped getting it made as there were no huge paychecks to generate.

A different take on things helped as well as the premis was not the usual fare.

Very well done special effects and some fine acting from the cast made this an enjoyable watch. The director did a good job and was not heavy handed in his direction.

High Seas (2019–2020)

Garbage

[1/10 · 13 December 2019]

Possibly the worst direction, writing and acting I have seen in recent memory. How so these terrible shows get made?

Close (I) (2019)

Confusing at Best

[2/10 · 6 March 2019]

I watched the entire film and still have not idea who the bad guys were or were supposed to be working for. The three main characters, Zoe, Sam & Rimi were not interesting enough to build an entire film around but that didn't stop the horrible director Vicky Jewson from doing it anyway. Oh, did I mention that she also wrote this garbage. A Writer/ Director combo has always be a terrible mistake as they fall in love with the crap they have written and do not have the second guessing of a good director to bring them back down to Earth. Vicky Jewson has done two or three small things so now it's time to waste some money on this disaster. And the financiers made the mistake of letting her do so. Shame on them. Give this a miss. Oh, did I forget to mention Sophie Nelisse, a stick pretending to act. Atrocious line delivery. Keep scrolling on Netflix folks....nothing to see here.

Acts of Violence (2018)

Willis Sells Out Again

[2/10 · 30 January 2019]

Bruce Willis does not need to work. Bruce Willis's name will get a film green-lit. These are two facts that starting out film-makers know and exploit. The 26 names listed as Producers or Exec Producers know this and used it to get this piece of crap made. Poorly written with bland boring dialogue, lousy acting (Melissa Bolona alone should never be given a line of dialogue to say in front of a camera again) and horrible direction, it once again says bad things about the film business when films like this get made. Director Brett Donowho has made a few shorts and docs but has miles to go before he should be directing live actors as he did a really poor job of this one. Bruce took it as a paycheque and walked thru his few scenes, when he should have stayed home.

Wanted (2016–2018)

Enjoyable Series

[7/10 · 22 December 2018]

I liked the premise of the two strangers getting drawn into a crime world and the whole "fish out of water" situation. The characters were fairly well developed and information comes out about their pasts in small snippets as the series goes along. Nicely written. The writers had a character arc that they followed and a story end that they stuck too. But they also fell victim to the third season issue of extending the story to get three full seasons when they really only had enough for two great seasons. This falls squarely on the producers getting pressure from network execs to give them more to air. Worth a watch but I have seen better.

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)

Tom Does It Again

[9/10 · 31 July 2018]

Tom Cruise at 56 is in better shape then most of the male population on the planet. He has to be to pull off what is asked of him in this latest offering in the Mission Impossible franchise. One amazing action sequence after another from the get-go keeps viewers palms sweating while sitting on the edge of their seats. All the usual suspects are here from the other films along with new villains to dislike. I was impressed with the CGI as it was seamless with the live action. Once again Tom spends his time running, jumping, fighting ,driving, shooting and flying a helicopter as well as any other action star. Most action stars of Tom's age have stopped but he carries on. And we the movie going public are the lucky ones that he does. A well put together action film with believable good and bad guys who keep you guessing as too which is which. Well done Tom!

How It Ends (2018)

Another Piece of Crap

[2/10 · 17 July 2018]

How do these films get made? I really want to know. Just who do you have to know to be able to sell your garbage script too and then convince them to actually spend money on making it. This film starts out with an event that is not explained but causes a complete shut down of society and it quickly goes into "every man for himself" mode. The protagonist, Will, has to get from Chicago to Seattle to get to his wife with the help of his Father-in-law who supposedly spent many years in the military. Hard to tell this as none of his training comes into play and he is not a great deal of help....until he dies. They travel on backroads as the interstates are dangerous...they say but we do not see why. Each small town offers another situation to deal with more weirdos and wanting to keep them out or steal the car of just get the gas they have on board. Those Caddilac CTS's must be very good on fuel as they never fill up after the 1st time and still have a full gas can in the truck all the way. Every time they have a gun fight they don't seem to get more weapons on bullets but still have more for the next fight. I truly dislike when directors don't have characters make real decisions where they would grab every gun and bullet they can get their hands on as ...who know!! Then the film ends abruptly with no conclusion. We are left to decide if they make it or not. It is because the writers had no idea how to end this nag? Do yourself a huge favour and give this a pass.

Downsizing (2017)

Lost Storyline

[2/10 · 4 June 2018]

I am aghast once again that this was made. It has an interesting premise that a shrunken population will have less impact on the planet so people agree to it as their contribution to help save the Earth. At first you get to see how the world is set up for the little people and how their money and material goods from the large world will work out to allow them to live a wealthy live when they are small. This in itself should have been explored more but many holes in this issue were not addressed. The plot then lost it's way as the story turned a few corners and we ended up in a disaster movie with the immanent end of the world. I understand when you are asked to suspend belief for a good story but this was not a good story or well told. Matt Damon has come a far way from his role as Jason Borne where he shone. His decision to be involved in this crap has me questioning who's advise he is following, and to ask him to stop listening to them.

Machine Gun Preacher (2011)

Still Unknown

[5/10 · 30 March 2018]

I can't begin to imagine how hard it must be for the people who were born in these regions and have had to try to survive in the situations this film depicts. I applaud Sam Childers for his work and feel this film is a fairly accurate depiction of his work. I understand the Director Marc Forster has many credits to his name and is highly respected. I just don't like his work on this film very much. The wide shots and medium shots seem to be all he used in this picture and as such we didn't get drawn into the characters at all. I did not really care enough about anyone as I didn't get to see who they were. A story that needed telling but a film that could have been much better.

The Cloverfield Paradox (2018)

Netflix to the Rescue

[1/10 · 8 February 2018]

If Netflix had not ponied up 50 Mil to Paramount to buy this piece of crap Paramount would have had a 40 Mil flop on their hands. As it is, they can show a 10 Mil profit on the books. As I said, Netflix to ... you know. This is just a very poorly written screenplay. The tiny scene at the start where they plant the seed about beasts and monsters coming thru from another dimension is so blatently bad foreshadowing it makes me sick. The entire borring movies passes and then at the very end a horrible CGI creature rears up through the clouds to show how bad it has gotten in that dimension was what....supposed to be the payoff for having and sat through this garbage? Where did Paramount spend their 40 Mil as it was not on actors....where is not a name amongst them....so what sets?......not great sets either, so it must have been on special effects and CGI. Some producer has a new island or holiday mansion payed for from this one as the money was not spent on screen. Netflix bought it and streamed it free after the Superbowl as a way to grab the cable subscribers they are not getting now and hopefully will sign up. Not a bad expendation to increase viewership with the possibility that better movies will show up in the future on Netflix.

Glitch (2015–2019)

Interesting 1st Season Only

[4/10 · 4 December 2017]

I enjoyed the 1st season and it has an interesting premise but apparently the writers and producers only had thought as far as the 1st season. The 2nd season totally sucked. The writers did not know where to take the story after the 1st season ended and also had no idea how to properly end the 2nd season. The directors were also not very well chosen as more then a few times the characters did things that a normal person would never do....such as shake hands with some one only an hour after taking a bullet in the same shoulder. Really director....if the actor was not smart enough to shake with the opposite hand then it is your job to DIRECT them into appropriate behavior. Hence the name "Director". Damn I hate poor direction. Emma Freeman directed 9 episodes of this show and has won awards for her direction so she may know better but all I can comment on is what she did on this show and her work here was poor. The producers were motivated to do a second season when they knew the story and premise was truly only good enough for a single season.