K8-S Reviews

Keeper of the Ashes: The Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders (2022– )

Good documentary if you can ignore Chenoweth

[7/10 · 15 June 2023]

I'm not sure what the creators of this series were trying to achieve by giving Chenoweth a platform to advertise her stage school or even by her participating. She came from the same town as these tragic murders and she's famous - so what?

This is a harrowing true crime and it doesn't need anything extra added to it. The documentary is informative and well made, so if you can ignore Chenoweth's hair flicking and irritating trout pout grinning periodically, it's worth a watch.

If the creators have any sense, they will edit Chenoweth out before selling it to other networks - she should be ashamed of herself for cashing in on this awful event.

Pig (I) (2021)

Slow to start but stick with it, it's worth it

[9/10 · 3 October 2022]

Starts off very slowly (this is not your usual Cage action movie by the way) but stick with it, it's worth it for the fabulous restaurant scene, with underrated Cage at his best.

Wonderfully filmed, this subtle film is about loss and grief and coping with the aforementioned. Direction is good with picturesque cinematography.

I'm glad to see that Cage is back to his 'Leaving Las Vegas' Oscar standards after making a few rough choices with other movies.

As one previous reviewer put it (and what swung me to give the movie a go) 'He's looking for his truffle pig, and it's Nick Cage. That's enough for me'.

Chapelwaite (2021–2023)

Dark & tense

[9/10 · 30 April 2022]

This is Stephen King done well. Superb tension prevails throughout. It is a slow burner but a great story. Adrien Brody takes the lead and directs, which makes it slick and interesting. Christopher Heyerdahl is unrecognisable (almost)! The characters are well formed and the richness of the story makes for good watching.

I very much enjoyed this series and I could only watch it during the day, some very dark, foreboding moments which makes your imagination run riot.

Cold Brook (2018)

A gem of a find and a beautiful film

[9/10 · 28 April 2022]

I found this lurking in the depths of Amazon Prime, I love the three main actors so it was a natural choice. The film is heartwarming and the cinematography is beautiful with great direction. Kept me Interested from start to end. The relationships between the main characters are well captured there are some great, funny moments too.

Death on the Nile (2022)

Really not that bad

[7/10 · 14 April 2022]

People love to hate Kenneth Branagh for some reason and the problem with filming a remake is that you always have a lot to live up to.

The reviewers who say that they can find nothing at all to like about this film clearly didn't notice the amazing cinematography of the backdrop of the Nile, the lavish set design, the great music score and costume design.

I think people have lost sight of the amount of work that goes into making films and the talent behind the camera, not just in front of it ....I'm also not sure what people want from a film where here you have some great actors, a classic story and well, a little bit of everything.

Russell Brand has a serious role in this film which amused me. French and Saunders are in it! We watched it on a rainy day and it made for a perfect afternoon. No, it might not live up to earlier versions but it's still worth a watch.

Bridgerton (2020– )

Look beyond the controversy

[7/10 · 10 April 2022]

Found myself home alone for a week and was looking for a guilty pleasure to indulge in. I had started Bridgerton previously and thought it wasn't for me after the first episode but decided to give it another try. Once I got past episode 2 I was very much into it!

I haven't read the books associated with this series but understand from other reviewers that each book is based on a different Bridgerton sibling.

Season one is good. The stories weaving around it kept me interested, there's lots going on.

Season two....mmmm, not so good. Second seasons always have a lot to live up to anyway but for me, I found the character of Kate Sharma to be highly irritating. I disliked her so much I didn't want it to be a happy ending for her and was hoping that she would die after her riding accident to bring an end to all this unnecessary farce and make things a bit more interesting. This is nothing to do with the capable actress who portrays her but the way she was delivered to us in the series. I couldn't understand why Anthony would want to marry the older, sour, grumpy, irritating and troublesome sister when the younger one was so kind, pretty and nice. None of it made any sense.

Overall, the series is slick, beautiful, funny, charming and sexy. The costumes and scenery are amazing and the musical score is wonderful. I'm looking forward to season 3.

If you look beyond the controversy you will find a fun, light and entertaining series, which is exactly what it was meant to be.

Deep Water (I) (2022)

A good old fashioned slow burner

[8/10 · 18 March 2022]

If you liked 9 and a Half Weeks, Unfaithful, Fatal Attraction etc this is a film for you. A good old fashioned slow burner based on Patricia Highsmith's book with that underlying dark tone that keeps you wondering. I think the unstructured damning reviews come from a generation that needs action and needs it now (if you're going to make a review good or bad, put some substance into it and explain your reasoning) but for those of us that remember this genre and enjoyed it, it's a welcome return. This is the best I've seen Ben Affleck for a long time and the film has some interesting characters.

This is a film about the games we play, deceit and jealousy.

Clarkson's Farm (2021– )

Worth watching for Gerald!

[9/10 · 21 June 2021]

Love him or loathe him, Clarkson is very entertaining. You will learn something about farming and appreciate where your food comes from. The people that help him are great characters, we loved watching this!

The Predator (2018)

Messy editing ruined an ok film

[5/10 · 5 June 2021]

I'm not sure why this film was called 'The Predator' as it's in no way a remake of the first one. I'm no film making expert but I think something went wrong with the editing ...I saw it on tv so wondered if it had been cut for tv badly but reading the reviews apparently it was like this in cinemas too. Bit's were missing, one character would ask another if they were ok after they show pain, you'd expect an answer but then it cuts to the next scene and that character is fine. There's lots of examples of cutting to new scenes and not explaining what's happened in the last.

One of the main characters is a child. Why do this in a very adult film? If you're an adult who's spent all day with kids I'm sure the last thing you want to see is more when you're trying to relax. There are thousands of Disney films with kids, if I want to see them I'll watch one of those.

The film seemed to 'start' very quickly, no intrigue or suspense.

Positives. There is some humour and the CGI is ok. There are some new elements and good differences. If you like science fiction it's worth a watch but prepare to be confused.

Army of the Dead (2021)

Just a bit of fun, you know zombies aren't real, right?

[7/10 · 25 May 2021]

2020 was a bad year for everyone, particularly filmmakers doing the best they can in a difficult situation.

This movie really isn't that bad, I like zombie movies and yes, it does have all the standard zombie cliches but I would expect that. The soundtrack is great! There's some subtle humour here, lost on many reviewers it would seem. It's reasonably fast moving with a bit of gore, a bit of action and a couple of surprises. A lot of money was spent on this film as it was planned for production before corona hit and you can see that. There are some loose ends but if you have half a brain you can fill in the blanks. If you want something entertaining to watch with a few friends and a beer or six, you could do worse. Give it a go and if it's not your thing, try something else.

Remember, when you leave a bad review about anything, you're downgrading the hard work that goes into films and businesses ....the years of training that stunt men, lighting engineers, makeup artists etc put themselves through. It seems there's a generation of people out there that find nothing good in the world and diss everything and can't break out of the circle of negativity. Try and look for the positives in life and have a bit of fun (like watching a zombie movie), stop taking everything so seriously. If you look at the negative reviews of this film and check out the reviewer profile, you will notice a lot of them have nothing good to say about any of the films they have watched. Maybe they need to try another genre. Think before you bash some words on a keyboard and click send - maybe you are a zombie? One reviewer commented that a character they saw at the beginning of this film they never saw again - they must have had their eyes shut for the rest of the film.

The I-Land (2019)

Keep with it

[7/10 · 12 September 2019]

Yes the acting is a bit crappy in parts but the concept of this is reasonably original. If you can ignore the other reviews (one reviewer obviously just didn't get After Life - you're not supposed to like his character!) and get past the first episode it does improve. Worth a watch if you like sci fi.

Van Helsing (2016–2021)

Interesting characters built on a familiar story

[7/10 · 22 January 2018]

I quite like the characters in Van Helsing, none of them annoy me, which is unusual for this type of series. Yes it has familiarities to other shows but it's ok, I've seen much worse and season 2 seems to be just as good as 1 so it's heading in the right direction.

Ófærð (2015– )

Outstanding

[9/10 · 27 September 2017]

The best thing I've seen on TV for years, you cannot miss this. Plot keeps you guessing and guessing again, great depth of characters, beautifully written and acted with brilliance.

Great shots of the amazing Icelandic scenery, giving a real feel for the surroundings and weather.

Badlands, Texas (2015–2016)

Dragged out way too much....

[4/10 · 15 September 2017]

As previously mentioned, lots of the same stuff is repeated over and over and over again, some of the 'characters' are quite annoying and very anecdotal. The first episode is the characters droning on about how hard life is living there, who cares!!!! They chose to live there. This needs to be condensed into fewer episodes. What was also a little confusing is there's footage of the victim being interviewed along with all the other characters but it isn't made clear initially that he is the victim.

On a positive note, the scenery is spectacular and the story is quite interesting.

Z Nation (2014–2018)

Less stressful than TWD

[8/10 · 5 August 2017]

Good characters and the makers aren't scared to kill off main characters to keep things interesting! If you like zombies I can't see how you wouldn't like this. If you can get past the ridiculous zombie baby scene at the beginning it does get a lot better. Lighthearted fun that keeps you interested.