Sjhm Reviews

Titanic II (2010 Video)

What?

[2/10 · 24 March 2024]

Okay, this is terrible, and since cheesy b-movies are my thing, and I have a guilty weakness for Asylum's particular brand of schlocky horror , this was a distinct disappointment.

Sailors are a superstitious bunch, so good luck getting anyone to work on a ship named after the most notorious wreck in shipping history - starting from a complete failure in logic. The lack of any research doesn't surprise, the entirely predictable script seems to have ripped bits from every other seafaring movie committed to celluloid, and why is it all so dark?

The fact that the writer/director (and leading man) is from a famous theatrical dynasty explains how this disaster got greenlit. I suspect that the title was purely to capture an audience expecting something that looked as beautiful as James Cameron's offering, this has more in common with films such as AVP2, lots of running, lots of screaming but it's all so dark and the characters are all so bland that it's hard to care one or another.

The Last Thing He Told Me (2023– )

Slow... so slow!

[4/10 · 23 May 2023]

Honestly, at this point three episodes in I am wondering what i am watching, whilst being totally amazed that an adult woman can be so dumb.

If your husband runs off, leaving you and his child in the lurch and in the dark, get yourself a lawyer, and every so-called member of law enforcement, take their badges, scrutinise them, note names, numbers that's what those badges are for. Be smart.

Unfortunately none of that happens. Hannah just wanders around aimlessly and Bailey is endlessly whiney, literally nothing that they do makes any kind of smart sense.

I can only hope it gets better, but it doesn't look like it.

Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story (2022)

Creepy display of manipulation and power broking

[9/10 · 23 September 2022]

My mother was an actress working for the BBC in 70s and 80s so in light of that, and the revelations about JS, I was fascinated by this.

It is somewhat unevenly paced, and yes it doesn't go into why Savile did such things or even explain anything about who knew what and when.

What it covered, in quite terrifying detail, was how a clever and manipulative man created a successful smokescreen of charitable good works and cementing his position amongst the establishment and kept this façade undented for over fifty years.

He literally hid in plain sight. "My case comes up next Thursday". Over and over again. He said it in virtually every interview.

The documentary isn't perfect. But as a lesson in what to look for when you are being manipulated it's quite profound.

The Vampire King (2017)

Atrocious

[2/10 · 13 September 2019]

The star of the film wrote and directed it.... Apparently this is the Director's Cut. Which apparently means that he edited it too. Unfortunately, it seems as though this was several jobs too many. It gets two stars for the premise which although not unique, is different enough to be interesting. However, the dialogue is hackneyed, the lead is not interesting or charismatic enough to carry the story, the pacing is slow, far too slow, the acting flat and uninspired, and the action dull and quite derivative. The idea had potential, but the execution is dreadful. A shame.

Storm Seekers (2009 TV Movie)

What a mess

[1/10 · 20 August 2019]

This movie doesn't know what it wants to be, and the result is an absolute mess. It ticks off all the tropes along the way, the uncaring director more interested in schmoozing politicians than in what is going on in front of him, the concerned researcher on the ground who can't get his boss to listen, and a plane load of people from the seasoned veteran flying the aircraft to the journalist who is on the flight for reasons and in the perfect place at the right(wrong) time. At the apex we have the controversial female storm chaser with a plane load of emotional baggage who is also perfectly placed for that essential I told you so. Having ticked off the checklist of stock cardboard characters, the action is dreadful, the dialogue veers wildly from scientific mumbo-jumbo to almost noir-like monologues from the main female character which serve to explain her. The info dump of her emotional issues is scattered through the film which only serves to add to the confused mess that the movie is. The side story of the journalist's daughter is another utterly predictable complication. It's a shame, this could have been so much more than a bland, by the numbers movie, stumbling incompetently in the footsteps of others.

Secret Obsession (2019)

Adds nothing to the genre, it has been done better before.

[3/10 · 18 July 2019]

This is a slightly confusing mess of a movie. Firstly, it's badged as Teen on Netflix, which usually suggests that the cast are young, and the storyline involves young people of high school age, so it makes no sense at all that this is an adult situation, with an adult cast. The writing isn't bad, just cliched, the acting isn't great, but acceptable (just), the story... it has been done before. Many, many, times. There are plot holes, that is for certain. I think this is the most exactly average movie I have ever seen. It loses even more stars because some of the plot holes, aren't holes, they're obviously deliberate. Which pulls you right out of the story. I don't mind things that have been done before, I don't even mind an average movie, because sometimes average is very entertaining, What I don't like is everything being utterly predictable. Knowing what is going to happen before it happens. Disappointing.

The Protector (2018–2020)

Intriguing story with supernatural elements

[9/10 · 3 March 2019]

I have never seen a Turkish story before, but I can honestly say that this one is well worth it. As others have said, the acting is good, the plot is strong and makes sense, it is distinctly different from American shows in the same genre which is a good thing, there is just enough CGI to bring the supernatural elements to life without drowning the human story out. The hero is a revelation, the actor does a great job of making him cocky, but likeable, torn between love and a duty he barely has a chance to get to grips with before being thrown in at the deep end. I am so glad this has been given a second season, it is in my watch and rewatch list.

Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018)

Beautiful, dark Re-telling of the Jungle Book stories

[9/10 · 8 December 2018]

I have never been a fan of Disney, which means that normally I would avoid this kind of film. However I saw that this was directed by Andy Serkis, and I wanted to see it. Everything about this, apart from the CGI, was superior to the Disney offering. Andy Serkis captures the dark tone of Kipling's stories far more effectively, and whilst the CGI may not be perfect, the expressions and body language from the motion capture are wonderfully authentic. This is where Serkis excels, one of the finest character actors alive today, he truly understands the power of physical expression. I love this film.

Queen America (2018–2019)

Poignant, dark, funny in all the right places, ticks all my boxes.

[10/10 · 26 November 2018]

A classical tale of ambition with a powerful modern setting. The mystifying world of the Beauty Pageant, where everything is about scoring points, and there are many scores to be settled. Catherine Zeta-Jones has never been better. As Vicki Ellis she prowls through each scene like a tigress, strong, independent, defiant almost, yet vulnerable. A latter day Mildred Pierce (Joan Crawford, 1945) or Charlotte Vale (Bette Davis, Now, Voyager 1942), but this is no 1940s noir, absolutely modern this is the fast-paced era of social media, where things go wrong in Vicki's seemingly perfect world. First she must deal with a client who wrecks her own chances, and then takes on a client in which she has very little faith. She is forced to ask for help, while struggling with a family secret that threatens to blow everything out of the water. The writing is crisp, sweet, sour, funny, sad, it packs a lot into each half hour episode, the situations are believable and the dialogue spot on. The cast are wonderful and give it their all, no coasters here, Zeta-Jones is a huge stand out, but as the young hopeful, Belle Shouse is far from overwhelmed by the presence of a well-known star, she gives her sweet, naïve young Miss Claremore just enough acidity to fit right in. Based on what I have seen so far, I would choose to purchase this one to keep forever, and it is rare that I do that. This is one of those series that you instinctively choose for your desert island collection.

The Forest (2017)

Intriguing and Atmospheric Chiller

[9/10 · 3 July 2018]

The series is atmospheric, chilling, and the truth when revealed is sordid and shocking.

The story follows Captain Gaspard Decker as he arrives in a small, close knit village as it's new Police Chief. He's barely arrived when a local teacher, Eve Mendel, expresses deep concern about a missing girl.

Decker is a former soldier, who is clearly supposed to be something of a new broom, he's a little reserved to begin with, while it is clear that his colleagues, especially his Lieutenant Virginie Musso, are cosy and comfortable in their lives and existence in the village, he prefers things to be more formal.

As the case moves on, Virginie's knowledge of the village, and her assumptions are challenged. As her view of the order of things in Montfauchon is turned upside down, Decker's commanding tone, and more reserved manner make more sense to her.

This quiet, and slow-building story might not be to everyone's taste, but it's well-written, well-acted and convincing in its sordidness. Gaspard's authoritative reserve pays dividends as he investigates the crimes, the disappearance of three girls, the cold case from more than ten years before, and the mystery of Eve herself. The scenery is stunning, and as a portrait of a village under extreme circumstances, and indeed the nature of that way of life, it works. Well worth viewing.

Little Dead Rotting Hood (2016)

Has potential, but sags quite badly in the middle.

[4/10 · 1 July 2017]

Overall, I enjoyed this movie. The premise wasn't bad, if a little thin, and there are some super long scenes which make you wish that they would get to the point. I would have liked them to have developed the plot line whereby the heart of the story had some more explanation. ***spoiler*** The girl dies in the first few frames of the film, her grandmother buries her and then commits suicide over her grave, giving the body the lifeblood she needs to resurrect. So Little Dead Rotting Hood of the title crawls out of the grave, apparently knowing she had to find super-secret Grandma's note book, but not retrieve Grandma's red cloak and sword...

Quite a lot of the action takes place before LDRH actually gets into her stride, there's the addition of a mysterious female character who's supposed to mis-direct you but has little to do other than serve as a plot signpost and you see through her in about three minutes. The same with the ultimate villain character, she knows too much to be exactly what she appears to be, there just seems to be something too off about her to be a credible surprise.

Eric Balfour does not disgrace himself in a part which is the everyman heart of the story, divorced dad, two children, argumentative wife, local boy smarts, all the usual boxes are ticked, but he still manages to bring some empathy and intelligence to the role.

Krampus (I) (2015)

Competent if confusing Christmas horror

[5/10 · 4 December 2015]

But forget comedy, because it just wasn't funny. At all. Young Max gives up on Christmas because his horrible dysfunctional family are just horrible and dysfunctional.

The good bits... the creatures are cleverly and creepily realised. Krampus is a Christmas devil you would be scared of. It's an interesting idea.

The bad bits, the family characters were terribly clichéd. The actors tried, but there really wasn't anything for them to work with. Hands down the best character was Omi, but even she broke character to tell them all the tale of her childhood encounter with Krampus in perfect English, she had only spoken German up to that point. Another character has to cover this strange and clumsy gear change with an awkward line which said "Ah English, I thought so."

The ending was beyond strange. I couldn't work out if Max had succeeded or not. Overall, somewhat disappointing.

Fantastic Four (2015)

Dreadful, what were they thinking?

[2/10 · 13 August 2015]

I went into this film with the decision that I was going to give it a chance. Unfortunately my resolve faded fairly quickly. How can something so short seem so interminably long? The story, yet another origin story (why do we need to keep rebooting with the origin, we all know how the four were made) was fairly original, I grant you that, but the execution? Terrible. Much has been made of how good Chronicle (director Josh Trank's previous feature) was. I saw Chronicle, and stylistically speaking, this is almost a retread. As though Trank has one original idea and he was going to mix up the elements a little and apply the result to the Fantastic Four. The problem is that this is Marvel, this is a long-established story with much loved characters that were almost unrecognizable. The tone was quite dark, however it was also dull and lifeless. The four leading actors were bland and unremarkable, it was hard to care about their fate. Only Victor Von Doom offers us anything like the twisted personality that Von Doom is supposed to be. Unfortunately his screen time is limited, and making him a borderline creepy stalker, to counteract the maybe romance between Reed Richards and Sue Storm (that goes absolutely nowhere) was just pointless. Miles Teller never comes out of sulky teenager mode, there's no fire or passion, he's just one note, as Reed Richards, that's almost an unforgivable sin. Jamie Bell looks really uncomfortable as Ben Grimm, he is a fine actor, but the script gives him nothing to get his teeth into. The Storm siblings have been re-written as an unnecessary socially modern family, with Sue being adopted (has nothing to do with the plot, and really only serves to flag up the complete lack of chemistry between Kate Mara and Michael B Jordan. As siblings they seemed to barely know each other. So disappointed in the film, that's £13 and one hundred minutes of my life wasted.

Jurassic World (2015)

Has the wow factor with strong feelings of deja vu

[7/10 · 11 June 2015]

I enjoyed the film, but after the long anticipation, the actual event was a little bit of a let down. Essentially, the plot of the 1993 original has been given a make-over. You have all the same characters, in slightly varying numbers, doing pretty much the same things which guarantee the same result. It is as though twenty-two years later, the makers of the park have learned nothing from the original disaster. Sequences of remarkably similar unfortunate events happen in the same way to drive the story forward.

Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard do their best, but the plot is a thin thing to hang a maybe future romance, some in peril children (nephews this time), a lot of dino-action and a strange sub plot which has the curiously militaristic security of InGen relying on Raptors to chase down the park's newest out of control creation.

I wanted to be thrilled, and sometimes I was. There were plenty of jump-scares, and the indominus rex is stunningly realised, but the sense of deja vu detracted from the overall effect. It's fun, and it's a good way to spend a couple of hours, but lower your expectations a little. You will enjoy it more.

Taxi Brooklyn (2014)

Terrible. Simply terrible.

[2/10 · 2 June 2015]

I realise that the networks like to test things out, and that many, many pilots get made each year... My question is, out of all the shows you piloted, what made you pick this one to buy episodes?

Action, comedy, crime... These are the genre tags. And sure, we have action, lots and lots of action, a lot of it seemingly contrived for Jacky Ido's character to drive his super souped-up taxi and catch the bad guy.

Comedy boils down to hideously awkward situations where people talk about sex. The situational comedy (I could tell the points where I was apparently supposed to laugh, I just failed to get started) just wasn't funny.

Crime. Now here we get to the deliberately unfunny and really quite depressing part of the program. The juxtaposition of unfunny sex jokes versus some quite brutal crime was uneasy to say the least. Mob hits on characters versus Cat's mother oversharing her planned dirty weekend with Cat's Captain... far from funny, creepy and really inappropriate.

Desperately uneven pacing, a lead female character who is miserable, bad-tempered and aggressive 99% of the time, split from FBI husband, French taxi driver who's a brilliant driver because he was ONCE (one time only) a getaway driver for a bank robbery, a best friend who turns out to be evil kingpin... there are so many sins in this writing I am at a complete loss where to start.

Eleven out of twelve episodes follow this lumpy formula, but then we have the twelfth episode where the entire feel, writing, characterisation changes. I think the final episode is the biggest sin of all. It crams so much into it's 43 minute run time, it's unbelievable. And every single character is on a crash course to oblivion. There are literally so many threads crammed into each minute it becomes a joke.

A completely lost opportunity, I love Besson's work, have done for years, and if this was supposed to be based upon one of his films the show developer and script writers have clearly misunderstood everything. A shame, because I wanted to enjoy this, and I found myself despising it the further in I got.

Caprica (2009–2010)

Fascinating glimpse into the world before Battlestar

[9/10 · 26 April 2015]

I loved this series. I came to it late, after it had been taken off air, and wish it wasn't. I did find the origin stories interesting, Eric Stoltz played it perfectly, balancing the emotions of Graystone the father with Graystone the ruthless businessman, and with Joseph Adama's unwitting help sewing the seeds of the cylon wars to come. I did find his actions curiously cold and calculating in how he obtained his daughter's avatar programme to fuel his business deal. The Adamas storyline for me was the more affecting, the struggle to fit in, with Joseph Adama doing everything to leave his Tauron life behind (including changing his name), but still unable to quite let go, in contrast to his brother Sam's refusal to leave his home world behind, yet both of them growing closer in adversity, and Sam becoming almost father to his nephew as Joseph struggled with the loss of his wife and daughter. Polly Walker's icy turn as Clarice Willow a stand-out amongst fine performances that made up a very satisfactory drama.

Red: Werewolf Hunter (2010 TV Movie)

Terrible

[2/10 · 17 April 2015]

A cast that tries its best despite what has to be the weakest script in creation. Some dodgy CGI. Unfortunately the leading actress does not convince, Felicia Day's expression basically remains exactly the same throughout, and her chemistry with her fiancé is almost non-existent.The pluses, the villain is excellent, sinister and menacing enough without being too hammy, and the premise, it's a good one. That was the most frustrating part of the film, the potential to be good, if strictly B Movie hammy, was utterly wasted in the rather lacklustre direction and a script that kept running out of ideas. Even the action scenes lacked propulsion. The climactic fight was mostly anti-climactic, and with the conclusion to that fight being pretty much telegraphed before it began, using the great circle method of ending a story (grandma dying whilst killing a werewolf kicks off the opening scenes child Red picks up a silver knife, ending the film with grandma dying is supposed to pack an emotional punch, because now Adult descendant Red has to decide what she is going to do about fiancé who killed grandma) only works if there have been enough emotional punches along the way to set up their final tragic encounter. There weren't. By this time you are actually rooting for the fiancé who was dragged into this mess by Red in the first place. She kills him. But she's been bitten. The final scene is clearly supposed to be a few years later and we see Red reading to a little girl on the couch. Presumably this is Red's little girl by dead fiancé, but when we last saw Red she was bitten, so she's a werewolf? At this point it was impossible to care. I love hammy creature features, but this didn't even slip into the 'so bad it's good' category.

The Back-up Plan (2010)

I want to say "Don't blame the actors..."

[2/10 · 17 November 2014]

I like romantic comedies, occasionally (war movies and sci-fi are my go to normally). I know people are inclined to pan her, but I like Jennifer Lopez, and she has pulled off many fine and occasionally very funny performances in films as diverse as Angel Eyes and Maid In Manhatten. But here everything is forced. She's having a perfectly wonderful time, but the smile never quite reaches her eyes.

I like Alex O'Loughlin too. He's caught a couple of bad TV breaks losing out on two series before striking gold with Hawaii Five-0. He's a fine actor, when he's paired with someone who gets his style and gives him something to play against.

This, in a nutshell, is my problem with this film. Firstly, it must be said, the script is beyond terrible. It is very difficult to make cheese romantic or funny. This script does neither.

Artificial insemination as the punchline... laugh... I thought I'd never start.

The essence of romantic comedy is that the couple should sizzle. Alex is a handsome and athletic leading man, taking his shirt off and sitting on a tractor... sorry, one this is a horrible hackneyed and embarrassing cliché, two, other than goat's cheese and his inexplicable turn at night school (never really explained why he's going to night school to be an accountant but hey, they needed to give him something to do), he really has almost nothing to work with. He tries to give flesh to his character, Stan, and the script never makes Stan more than a cardboard cut out. Alex simply isn't the kind of actor who can work with nothing. Frustratingly, there are occasional glimpses of what might have been if he had anything to work with.

Jennifer Lopez is an attractive woman with a great body and a pretty face, and yes, she can act... but this turkey... she is just going through the motions. The script has the feel of having been written for her. It has very clear milestones, which it gleefully ticks off and moves on to the next predictable trope. Again, she is capable of far more, and the script offers her nothing.

Secondly, if ever there was a mis-match, this pairing is it. They are both pretty, pretty people, they have their own unique charms, but nothing about their romantic encounters sizzles. It is unforgivable in a romantic comedy that the leading couple have no chemistry.

There are some amusing moments, they are few and far between. Too few, and far too far between. The plot is lazy. It's a shame, because on paper it could have been fun. It's just painful.

Hawaii Five-0 (2010–2020)

Refreshing

[4/10 · 5 August 2014]

A reboot that takes a different view, but does not trash the spirit of the original series. I adored the original series, I grew up on it, so I did have misgivings about Hollywood's habit of taking an old, well-loved series and giving it a do-over. This reboot is great though, gripping and fun, and it doesn't fall into the trap of attempting to recreate the original while still paying homage to the original. This 5-0 is a thoroughly modern experience. Leads Alex O'Loughlin (McGarrett) and Scott Caan (Danno) are perfectly matched and the series' success is largely due to their charisma and on-screen chemistry. With the beautiful Hawai'i locations, this is high octane fun at its best.

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

NO. Just...no!

[4/10 · 13 June 2014]

Originally, I came home from the theatre and gave this a 6. I enjoyed it marginally more than the other blockbuster. But I have come to realise that 6 is unfair to the other movies I've given a 6 to, and the absolutely dreadful and badly cut together script for this film dials it down to a 4. Not even the dream team of Sir Patrick and Sir Ian with their mini-mes, McAvoy and Fassbender can drag this film up. Hugh Jackman is a great tough guy. He has made Wolverine his own, and usually that would be a good enough reason to watch, but not this one.

The good. The CGI is spectacular.

The bad. The plot. It leaps about from seventies to the future. Backwards and forwards, half the time the timeline of the story is so fudged you don't actually know what is happening. For instance, you clearly see Bobby (Iceman) die. Killed by the robots. But a little later he's alive and well. This is apparently caused by the few embattled X-Men leaping back in time so that they were "never there".

The hook is Logan going back to the 70s to prevent Mystique killing Trask. Because if she kills Trask (who designs the robots), after his death they take her DNA and are somehow able, because Trask's design exists to make his design really work just from a basic prototype. Trask really, really hates mutants. In fact his fellow mutant-hater Stryker comments on this. The reason for Trask's hatred and cruelty to those different to himself are completely unclear. We know why Stryker hates mutants. But Trask. No idea, and his answer to Stryker's question doesn't explain anything. It also seems a very strange hook to hang the story on. A scientist in the 70s develops a rabid hatred for mutants, and unilaterally creates a robot to destroy this one MAYBE threat. (Which wasn't any kind of threat until he started tinkering).

The CGI is spectacular. It is big, loud and utterly summer blockbuster. But without the humanity in the film, and the message that Xavier is more humane than most humans, we did actually get from the first movie thank you very much, without any real honest motivation for what Trask was doing, and the dizzying leaps back and forth in time this film is hard to follow or care about the fate of the characters. I have nothing against Jennifer Lawrence, she's a fine actress, but Rebecca Romijn's natural grace and calmness would have made for a more interesting protagonist. Jennifer simply isn't as graceful or as magnetic. (At least in this film). Mystique's reactions to the files she finds in Trask's office safe seem curiously out of character for the beautiful and deadly Mystique.

This is supposed to be a superhero movie. On this showing there was nothing that super, and certainly not that heroic about the film. Jossing every single thing that went before also seems to be an error of judgement. Watching it, I was basically praying for it to end. Not the way I want to feel about an X-Men film. Thoroughly disappointed.

Godzilla (2014)

CGI trumps plot and script

[4/10 · 13 June 2014]

I get this is blockbuster, designed to put bums on seats to watch a spectacle. And boy is it spectacular. The problem is that the characters are basically one dimensional and the script is a thin series of clichés designed to fit between the epic CGI set pieces. Where the '98 Godzilla trumps this one, you actually care about the fate of the characters, their motivations are clear and make sense, which renders the final battle more interesting. This Godzilla has all the elements, the giant creatures, the embattled humans, the "son of dead scientist" fighting for his life and the lives of countless others. Him randomly meeting a lost child in the subway, an incredibly clumsy device, the child's parents surviving the attack of the mutos, without apparently messing up their clothes or hair... and then we have the deal breaker (at least for me), this IED expert whose job is to defuse bombs gets on an aircraft and becomes an instant expert in the HALO jump? Pardon me? The biggest problem is that the bits of humanity that happen in the gaps between CGI are not long enough for us to get much of a handle on the characters, and the general level of unfocused-ness about the plot makes it very hard to care about their ultimate fate. The actors do their best, but ultimately, when I got up to leave at the end, I didn't feel invested in the outcome. Big, noisy, but curiously detached and despite the huge set pieces not actually that thrilling. Disappointed.

Person of Interest (2011–2016)

Confused and somewhat disappointed

[6/10 · 12 June 2014]

I loved this series from the beginning, season one was great, season two kept up the tension and I was still in love with the concept - yeah, it's silly but so what? Does all entertainment have to make sense? It's gripping, well-paced (it has to pack a lot into 45 mins) and has two leads that work perfectly together. Jim Caviezel plays a very convincing middle-aged, damaged ex- CIA/Special Ops guy who has fallen down a bottle for a long time and had been considering suicide. His slow awakening from the point where he's a homeless and very dirty bum living on the street to the tough guy taking down the criminal before the criminal can destroy the life of an innocent is beautifully realised. And sure, he's a little stiff at the beginning, and that is totally believable. This is a man who has deep frozen his emotions in bottles of Wild Turkey. In Michael Emerson, the geek billionaire who has his own battles with his humanity, somehow the casting department has hit gold. Contrasting actors, whose on-screen chemistry make for some truly magical moments, set in a modern techno-thriller setting... great I love it. Kevin Chapman was an inspired cast as Fusco, the dirty cop who slowly realises he can regain grace, and his awakening as a character is one of the joys of the series. Then we come to Carter. I have to admit I was not a huge fan of this character, she seemed a little too trusting of what she was being told, which given her history was somewhat ridiculous. She had already been through the cynical manipulation to get her to do something that she intrinsically knew was wrong (her army days flashback took care of that), so her sudden trust of the manipulative CIA official (I am not American, but even I know that CIA is not supposed to operate on American soil) was bizarre. However, Carter grew on me through two seasons and even though she was never my favourite, the balance that these four characters achieved through to the end of season two kept my attention and my enjoyment of the series. Then we come to season 3. Now I am a fan of mixing things up, changing things, trying new directions, but suddenly we are confronted with a whole new slew of characters. They just kept adding characters. It got way too much. The central core of two, Reese and Finch, suddenly became largely sidelined in their own story. In order to add in all these characters, the story became stretched as more and more screen time was given to Root and Shaw. Now I love Amy Acker as an actress, she is always good value, but her rise together with the take-no-prisoners Shaw has divided things up too much. Shaw's dominance over Reese became more and more irritating. Then we come to the trio of episodes mid season 3. Oh dear. Not a fan of Carter, but through two and a half seasons we had this well-written, intelligent character who's struggles with what was right and what was legal were understandable and relateable. Suddenly virtually everything we have come to know about Carter is turned over as she turns vigilante. Through two and a half seasons, Reese has said to virtually anybody who would listen that Finch saved him, now suddenly it's Carter? Then we have the kiss. Actually for me the kiss worked. Two people who were uncertain if they were going to survive the night, and did care for each other. It wasn't romantic, it was caring. Good. Great scene. That's one scene in three episodes. The three episodes which lead to Carter's death were the heaviest handed gear change I have ever seen in a series. It was as though the writers hadn't seen or read ANYTHING that had gone before. From mid-season until the end, the series became more and more littered with characters, as the promise of a second machine rose into view, and the handling become less and less sure. Characters ran around seemingly directionless and powerless to change matters as Decima rose up to wipe out the Machine's effectiveness with their Samaritan system. Beyond wishing that the head of Decima should be wiped from the face of the planet as soon as possible, I found this new reality less and less involving. Now the team is broken. Carter is dead, the others are scattered, and according to Jonah Nolan as season four opens we are going to find these characters settling in their new lives, and the mission, the reason for watching, gone. In my book, not a great idea. I will watch, in the hope that something can be salvaged, but the last half of season three was a massive disappointment.

Outlander (2008)

Stunning scenery, gripping story in the Beowulf mould

[9/10 · 19 April 2014]

In terms of realism, it perhaps lacks something in the depictions of the Vikings, but come on, this is a science fiction actioner. And as such it works very well. The characters have dimensions to them, the plot is straightforward, and in terms of the big set pieces this is done very well indeed. Jim Caviezel is excellent as the "human alien" Kainan, whose space ship crashes in 709 AD Norway, and unleashes the monster, the Moorwen, who destroyed his own people. The gradual acceptance of Kainan into the vikings' group forms the emotional heart of the story as he comes to care for the people he's landed among. This isn't Shakespeare, and it is a great deal better than many bigger budget and more highly advertised films (Beowulf itself, for instance). It is well worth checking it out on DVD. A good evening's entertainment.

Transcendence (I) (2014)

Intriguing storyline which goes to the heart of human existence

[8/10 · 18 April 2014]

Truly the questions this film asks leave me wondering. So let's start with the film itself, as a scifi thriller, it's beautifully executed with some stunning visuals, to the extent that sometimes it has the feel of a travel advertisement. The story hangs together well, with strong central performances which keep you engaged. Some of the ethics are quite complex, and you have to ask if the machine's intent is really hostile, or is that just the interpretation characters are putting on it because they don't understand. And we fear what we do not understand. The intent here is clearly to tell a story in such a way that you walk away thinking about it. Job done. I came away thoroughly entertained, and thinking more about singularity and transcendence than I have in quite a while. If you are after a Saturday afternoon blockbuster with a lot of action, this might not be the film for you, but if you prefer your action with a little more intrigue, this is a great film.

The Passion of the Christ (2004)

Profoundly disturbing

[4/10 · 31 October 2013]

This is a film about faith. And commitment. It's beautifully shot, and Jim Caviezel's performance as Jesus is truly inspired. The use of Aramaic and Latin lends a powerful authenticity to the proceedings, and the events depicted are from the Bible (or certainly from the King James Version which I possess). These are the good points.

I was raised a Christian, and as such I have to say that the lengths that the Director goes to in this film horrify me. I have no doubt that Mel Gibson's faith is profound, and his leading man, Jim Caviezel, is known to be a devout man. Truly only a devout man would have had sufficient faith to carry him through making this film. The level of sadism presented in the story goes far beyond the depiction of the last hours of Jesus' life into areas of cruelty which are simply horrific.

This is where I have a problem with the film. I have read the Bible, cover to cover. I have a good imagination and I am well versed in matters historical, including all the nasty parts. Frankly there are many crossing points in the movie where depiction turns into voyeuristic sadism. Jesus suffered and died on the cross for mankind's sins. I know that. But there is knowing a thing, understanding a thing, and then having that thing laid out for you in minute and brutal detail. The effect was that I felt deeply uncomfortable with myself for having watched. In the same way that I would feel revolted with myself if I slowed down to view the details of a car crash on the other side of the road.

Putting this as simply as I can: a man's torture and death should never be the subject of a film made for entertainment. Not in this way.

I would like to give the film many more stars for Jim's performance, and his co-stars… but I can't get away from the level of sadistic brutality, I am sorry Mr Gibson, but this was simply too vicious.