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Road to Perdition (2002)
This is a very well constructed and well acted fikm
I have watched this a few times now and forgot just how good it is.
Sam Mendes' films are not glitzy and fast paced but slowly develop their story, and normally have very good musical sound tracks accompanying them.
Tom Hanks, Jude Law, Daniel Craig and Paul Newman are all at their very best. The plot sucks one in and the ending is both macabre and brilliant.
Mendes is a great director, and this is a tribute to his cinematic skills.
The Handmaid's Tale (2017)
Series 1 excellent. Series 2 - dull!
The problem is the amount of action. In series 1 the viewer is drawn into the plot and there is plenty of action so it makes for great viewing.
Series 2, on the other hand, is as dull as ditch water. There are a lot of long drawn out scenes and then additional flashbacks as more padding. Obviously the producers are looking to make a 3rd series but it is absurd. Elizabeth Moss and the cast do their best but even their quality acting fails to relieve much of the tedium.
Disconnect (2012)
This is a really spot-on contemporary film
I don't often feel prompted to write a review of a film on IMDb but this film was so good that I felt I had to promote it to other film addicts like myself.
It is one of those films that really reflect the situation of many people's lives at the time we are living in. Disconnect is a perfect title for summing up the main theme - how people are so wrapped up in what they do and the technology sucking them in that they tend to ignore those who are closest to them, often thinking that nothing is amiss, whereas there are often problems bubbling away beneath the surface.
The most striking aspect of the film is the script that really makes it so powerful, which is accompanied by some excellent individual acting performances and very powerful directing. I think the writer and director represent two very promising talents to watch in the years to come.
The Americans (2013)
A very high quality spy drama
The best thing about the Americans is the setting during the Cold War that recreates the political tension between the US and Russia.
The plot follows the lives of two Russian spies as they enact operations in the US under the guise of being two Americans, Philip and Elizabeth Jennings, living in suburbia with their son and daughter and running a tour operator. The series manages to maintain the level of drama and suspense throughout as the net is slowly closing in on them as Stan Beeman (who is also their friend and neighbour) and his FBI colleagues close in on them.
From a political perspective, the series examines the differences in the doctrines of Russia and America, and Philip in particular finds it difficult to resolve the two whereas Elizabeth is much more hard core about staying loyal to the mother country. There is also conflict within the family between the parents and their teenage daughter, Paige, who comes to find out about their secret activities.
It is not often that one comes across a gem of a series like this one and you will find yourself being sucked into its world. Really high quality performances are put in by the two lead actors, as well as Noah Emmerich (Stan), Frank Langella (Gabriel, a Russian controller) and Lev Gorn (Arkady, a Russian spy working out of the Russian Embassy).
Borgen (2010)
One of the best series I have ever watched
If you like the American House of Cards, then you will like Borgen (Government) which is a kind of European equivalent but much more realistic.
The acting is utterly superb as the action follows Birgitte Nyeborg, who is a consummate politician and tactician. Around her are subordinate characters, but who are also of equal interest ranging from Kristina, a TV1 journalist and news presenter who ends up becoming her political spin doctor for the New Democrats, Kasper Juul who is at the centre of series 1 and 2 in his role as her spin doctor whilst PM for the Moderate Party and various politicians, of whom particularly Svent Age Saltup - the leader of the Freedom party and Bent, Birgitte's Moderate Party colleague and mentor - are particularly good.
Along side the drama in Borgen is the drama taking place at TV1 with Torsten Friis and his team of political journalists. Their lives are intertwined with the politicians and, like them, they suffer the same highs and lows.
Mixed in with the political drama is the personal drama of the characters as we see the impact that the high pressure political circus can have on individuals' private lives.
By the same Danish producer as 'The Killing', DRpraesenterer, this is a not-to-be-missed series.
Planetary (2015)
I found this a truly fascinating documentary film
Guy Reid has produced one of the best documentaries yet on what are the challenges facing homo sapiens in terms of its future relationship with planet earth - as one of the speakers says, "we are of this planet, we do not live on it."
To me, it seemed to raise the following key points:
1) Mankind cannot continue the current model of post-industrial age economic growth without this ending in our species' ultimate destruction.
2) Some kind of new model needs to be devised that will enable us to maintain a more symbiotic relationship with the environment. Some very interesting references were made to the way nearly all indigenous societies view their role as protecting and working with nature rather than separating themselves from it.
3) A huge part of the problem is the increasing urbanization that has taken place and the rise of "mega cities", where most inhabitants basically 'couldn't give a crap' about the environment, given that they have very little contact with it (one speaker said some grass growing in a pavement crack might be all they see in a week). In my opinion, governments around the world need to work on a radical new approach to implementing a new model of urban planning where inhabitants are not concentrated into such huge conglomerates.
4) Many of the commentators were asking for a change in social relations - a sort of brotherhood of man, where there are no boundaries and borders. One speaker talked about the fact that, under the current system, we seek to separate ourselves, building ever bigger houses to get away from each other. Another said that if you view planet earth from a fixed point above it, you do not see the barriers created by man but rather one homogeneous biosphere.
To be frank, I don't think this is ever going to happen unless there is some apocalyptic event that breaks down normal national barriers and interests. It is in our innate nature to focus on our own selfish interests and this mindset is almost impossible to change.
My only problem with the film was it very successfully highlighted the current disconnection between homo sapiens and nurturing the planet, but did not devote enough footage on how to achieve a new model that enables our species to thrive without the associated economic growth and abundant materialism we currently enjoy - and that many in society seek. Experts like Professor James Lovelock and Charles Eisenstein (one of the film's interviewees) have some interesting suggestions to make on this.
Boardwalk Empire (2010)
A series that totally grips you from start to finish
After Breaking Bad, this is one of the best series I have watched in a long time.
I think it is the high quality of the acting and an intricate plot revolving around the fortunes of Nucky Thomson and his cronies that make it. I remember really enjoying Steve Buscemi's acting for the first time in Fargo, and he puts in an equally quality performance in his leading role in Boardwalk Empire. However, it is not just Buscemi - actors like Michael Pitt, Jack Huston, Stephen Graham, Michael K. Williams, Kelly Macdonald, Gretchen Mol, Michael Shannon and Shea Wigham all put in great supporting roles. There is so much on television nowadays that is completely unwatchable because it appeals to the lowest common denominator - the four magnificent series of Boardwalk Empire are an exception to the rule. For anyone looking for their next series to get into, I cannot recommend it more highly.