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kmhowie
Reviews
La templanza (2021)
I hate dubbing
My rating of 5 is arbitrary. It took me about 5 minutes to give up on it. I refuse to watch a show that was made in a foreign (non-English) language that is offered only in a dubbed version. There appears to be a way to watch it with Spanish audio and English subtitles but I could not get this to work.
Yellowjackets (2021)
Total rubbish
I was skeptical of this show to begin with given the advertised plot but some positive comments about it prompted me to give it a shot. After suffering through three episodes the prospect of slogging through another seven was just too much. Poor acting combined with a script that was just plain silly made this one unwatchable.
Astrid et Raphaëlle (2019)
Superb characters played by superb actors/actresses
I loved this show and look forward to a second season. The evolving relationships between the main characters is a joy to watch. The depiction of Astrid's personal life was also enlightening, although I'm not qualified to judge its accuracy.
The Tomorrow War (2021)
Abundance of cliches
Someone once said that history was just one damned thing after another. This movie was just one damned cliche after another. I think I laughed at a lot of things that were not intended to be funny. The CGI stuff was like a video game. And not a very good one at that.
The Handmaid's Tale (2017)
Quit after episode 4
I liked seasons 1-3. Season 4 has been a real disappointment. I watched through episode 4 and don't plan to continue. For a one-hour show, almost nothing happened. One could accurately and completely describe the "plot" in about two minutes. It seemed that half of the screen time was taken up showing Elizabeth Moss exhibiting an almost endless variety of facial contortions. I have better things to do with my time.
Tunn is (2020)
Disappointing
Overly convoluted plot involving events that come close to starting another world war being dealt with by a bunch of second rate political hacks and the police force of a remote Greenland village. Nice scenery though.
Atlantic Crossing (2020)
So much research, so much wrong
Much has been made of how much research the producers conducted in making this series. Yet they also go out of their way to point out that it is not a documentary and that it is only "inspired by actual events". Why, then, do they get so many simple details wrong. During the speech announcing the Lend Lease program we see the president's advisers listening on a large vacuum tube radio. So far, so good. But we then see a crowd of people watching the speech live through the windows of a store well stocked with what appear to be high quality television sets. This was 1940 and TV sets were nowhere near the mass produced product this scene depicts.
Mignonnes (2020)
Attempts to depict a real problem
Lost in all the hubbub here is that the director is attempting to depict a real problem faced by many girls in societies that have customs that we find objectionable. She should be commended for her effort. The idea that the girls are being exploited is absurd. Many of those here that are being critical would probably object to the girls gymnastics tournaments that my daughter performs in. If someone is looking for something to object to, they can always find it.
Deadwater Fell (2020)
What was the point?
This was a real nothingburger. Even David Tennant couldn't save this mess.
The Americans (2013)
Silliness
If the FBI had been as incompetent as they are depicted here, and if Soviet spies could have gotten away with the things they did without blowing their cover, we would have lost the Cold War.
The Plot Against America (2020)
Unrealistic actors.
Main characters were just not believable. Story was plodding. For a David Simon production, very disappointing.
A Primeira Tentação de Cristo (2019)
Critics are the pot calling the kettle black
First of all, this is a lousy movie. But I suspect that most of the people here that are trashing it have not actually seen it. They are just being told by the bigots in their pulpits and in the right-wing publications they read that it is something they should rail against. These people deserve the same level of disrespect that they regularly direct at those whose lifestyle is different from their own.
The Aeronauts (2019)
Could have tried for a "little" more realism
At 37,000 feet the air temperature would have been maybe -50F and god knows how low the pressure would have been. And these people were up there wearing everyday clothing with no gloves or head protection? Get serious.
His Dark Materials (2019)
High hopes but big disappointment
Don't understand all the buzz about this show. Based on all the hype about it, I expected something really good. I put up with the first three episodes, thinking that it would get better. But it never did. I can find better things to watch.
Carnival Row (2019)
Celluloid salad
Good production values but a mishmash of what was being passed off as a plot.
Chernobyl (2019)
Could have been a lot better
First of all, just because a show is about some serious subject doesn't automatically make it a good show. Most of the reviews have been glowing and they make much of the things about it that really are good. I find myself agreeing with most of them. My problem is with the characters, the situations they are placed in, and the dialogue. These are simply not believable. It does not help that so much of the storytelling is dependent on a fictitious character of whom far too much is expected.
Dunkirk (2017)
A lot to like but could have been so much better
I saw it yesterday and I am sad to say that it did not live up to my expectations. It was a movie that I expected to like and wanted to like but it just came up short.
There was a lot to like but there was much that was superfluous and too many ways that I believe it could have been made better. I believe that more context would have useful. A few lines of introduction as to how the situation developed was not enough. Somehow there should have been some way to convey more vividly what a disaster it would have been had things turned out differently. Only passing mention was made to the decision by Hitler to halt his tanks. The possibility of a reversal of that decision, by all accounts, created a sense of impending doom over those who were aware of the situation. This could have been used for more dramatic effect, of which there was otherwise not much.
Another facet of the story of Dunkirk which I think got extremely short shrift was the assembling of the flotilla of small boats which crossed the Channel for the rescue. To many people this was THE main story of Dunkirk. It almost appeared that the side story about this was inserted so that the acting talents of Mark Rylance could be put to use. It seemed to add nothing to the main story.
The battle scenes were great cinematography but I don't think there would have been lost if there had been fewer of them.
I often feel guilty when I am critical of a movie like this but I don't think that simply making a movie about a serious topic does not always make for a good one.
Fortitude (2015)
Season 1 great. Season 2 went off the rails.
My 9 rating was for season 1, a rating that I do not bestow all that often. I thought it was well written and directed. The acting was superb, particularly Sophie Grabol, Michael Gambon, and Stanley Tucci. Season 2 started off well enough but really fell apart in about the third or fourth episode. The supernatural mumbo-jumbo combined with gross overacting by some of the main characters made the show almost unwatchable. I stuck it through until the end but it got no better. If there is a season 3 I will not even start it.
Manchester by the Sea (2016)
Highly overrated. Too many critics engaging in groupthink
Based on the reviews that I read, there have been few films that I have looked forward to any more than this one and then have been so disappointed in. It was showing in only three theaters in the Seattle area and I had to drive quite a distance to see it. I remember You Can Count on Me and, despite how long ago it was, I recall it as being among the best films I have ever seen. But this one left me cold and I could not wait for it to be over. There was nothing particularly original about the plot. The fact that it was about such a serious subject as profound grief and its effect on an individual does not automatically make for a good movie. Neither was I as blown away by Casey Affleck's acting as others so seem to be. This is more a reflection on the limitations of the role than on his acting skills. After leaving the theater and chatting with a few others who had seen the movie, I found none that were particularly enthusiastic about it.
The Man in the High Castle (2015)
Promising but Disappointing
I had high hopes for this one based on reviews that I had read but I was disabused of my expectations after about 15 minutes into the first episode. I suffered through to the end of it, thinking things might improve but they didn't. I had not read the book but the premise of the story appeared to be a good one. The sets were good, as all the reviews had indicated. The problem was that wooden characters, played by B-list actors and actresses, speaking implausible lines in a multitude of improbable situations, did the show in. There were times when the action bordered on parody, such as when the cop commented on the ashes falling around him. I know this was considered a profound moment by many, but it just didn't click with me. Amazon could do better.