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Reviews
The Night Agent (2023)
The Hair! Oh! The Hair
Title reference to the VP. Watch it and you will know why.
This is a Robert Ludlum style - bad people in the whitehouse. Starts off good, but the acting. Oh my word! The acting was like a 10th grade play, during rehearsal. The story was sort of predictable, but entertaining. But it felt so amateurish.
The lead character was "ok"; the lead girl was much better. Everyone else: cringeworthy performing and scriptwriting.
The location shots seemed very bizarre, as if there was no expense for sets - they just turned up at a parking lot to film action.
The ending area, where a house was blown up, really looked like they had gone to Ikea for the set, and couldnt follow the instructions properly (as we all have that problem).
I guess this was a low-budget item - I only vaguely recognized one character from anything else I have seen, so money was no object (i.e. It simply didnt exist).
But it was ok, enjoyable to watch, just I hope they dont do a second series.
Cam (2018)
It was ok...
Various reviews on here - some good, some bad. Those complaining about the ending - I dont think matters too much. It was a work of fiction and an air of mystery. The ending was ok - although no specific explanation.
I didnt like the camera action throughout - too fast paced, and the focus on on-screen "tips" made it impossible to really track what was going on.
Given it was a film about the "cam" world, whilst it tried to be authentic, it wasnt. I dont really know why they bothered trying to be sexy and erotic - it wasnt.
In many respects, the out-of-cam story was better than the cam-story - but it all happened so fast, it was nearly impossible to keep track of who-was-who.
I nearly switched off, based on the reviews, but I did get to the end. I can see it as a modern day black-mirror style mystery. But it felt like a young writer, directory and cameraperson were putting this together.
It does allow for some follow ups, but it needs to be seriously more professional and acceptable, to view (ie no grainy camera work, no so-fast camera work that makes you dizzy taking it all in).
Trust (2018)
Utterly brilliant
Donald Sutherland - brilliant - excellent makeup.
Harris Dickinson - brilliant.
I knew the vague story of this, from being a boy at the time. Dont have much interest in Getty.
But this story is so totally engaging. The characters - mostly vile/rich people, but Harris excels himself as the innocent young and troubled child.
Add to this the music - I even went and brought the soundtrack - extremely enjoyable.
But the story, the acting, the scenery, the reminisce of the 1970's - an excellent but sad story, ultimately. And so totally engaging - you feel sucked in.
The directing and story layout has you there. If you like good drama, but this is real-life (as much as it can be) - go there.
Really, sometimes you find something so excellent, you just have to get into it.
And the really sad part?
It has only 10 episodes, and no chance of a season 2.
Project Blue Book (2019)
Written for 6 year olds
The subject of this series should be interesting , but alas, the writing, scenery, effects look like they were done as a high school project.
Aiden Gillen is a brilliant actor. In this, he is not at all up to par.
The UFO stories are really, utterly boring. This series is classic "lets get it done in one episode" and none of the acting is real. The General seems the most genuine character. But Aiden let himself be sucked into this.
I am just so bored watching this - got as far as ep#3 and time to give up.
Of course, many people like this series and its allusion to X-Files. I did not like "Close Encounters", "Star Wars", "Harry Potter", "Star Trek" What can I say? If you are reading these reviews, you will have loved these series.
Something with more fact, and more story. (The facts of these episodes may be genuine, but the supporting cast are more hollow than an empty box.) Oh and we have some russians in the series. They have to be the bad guys. And some mysterious person or organisation. I dont want to wait til the last episode to figure it out, because, I am guessing, that its another Infant School writing production.
To everyone else, enjoy it.
Making Out (1989)
brilliant series
Comedic - yes; good acting - yes. engaging - yes
typical brit-style series with a lot of young and recognizable faces.
London Kills (2019)
Gave up on ep2
The actors in this are great - Hugo Speer, and Sharon Small.
This series looked like it was created for 6y olds. The opening scenes - some grizzly murder - but no attempt to show anything that would shock. Really, nothing.
Ep2 tells a different story - a bunch of people, who you have no interest in. Case solved in minutes. No background. No details. Really astounding work to solve difficult cases in a few minutes.
There was no reality; no drama; no atmosphere.
Rarely do I give up, if its this bad, but this one did win an award for "stop - right - now !"
Valkyrien (2017)
Totally Entertaining
This series starts off as a boring and predictable series. Some Doctor doing the "Frankenstein" piece.
But its nothing like that. The story line is a mix of "yeah, so what", and "hey! these are great characters". Leif is a standout - his humoristic attitude, yet involved in a series of events which is totally novel, and set in the fictitious(?) caves under Oslo.
I think all the acting is brilliant - and the script is simply, not predictable.
I was so concerned to start watching this, but I am so glad I did.
Phoenix Forgotten (2017)
film would have been better at 10 minutes long (probably 9 mins too long even then)
I really dislike found-footage. the shaky camera just invites nausea. but i enjoy films, and enjoy peoples aspects on a story.
there is no story here. its predictable from the beginning, and simply a waste of actors and film.
yes - the last few minutes shows "what happened", but really, its irrelevant. because there is no story. no character building.
there is some nice scenery. there are no effects.
if you have never seen a found-footage film - go for it. but its just one of those annoying films. i had to resort to ffwd to avoid wasting too much time watching it.
MotherFatherSon (2019)
awful. really. truly. awful
Great actors.
The End
The story was, written by a six year old? The directing by a 3 year old.
I wasted 8 hours sitting through this. I dont know how they got
everything so wrong. Its as if a 6 year old had written a story
and the proud parents glossified it.
I feel so sorry for such great actors and new faces, that they allowed this to happen.
I rarely write reviews.
This story is about a Murdoch-esque character, but you dont give a hoot. An election by the most unelectable candidates evarr ! Deary deary me.
I have the last 10 minutes to go and wish I did not.