christiansefton-60769 Reviews

Death and Other Details (2024)

I lasted two episodes

[3/10 · 30 March 2024]

Smug characters and acting, especially Beane, Patten, Zhou, Garcia and Seremi; producer's fault I guess.

Sound is dreadful- actors mumble; watch with subtitles or you won't follow it. Nobody opens their mouths. It's not that you can't hear it, it's just not clear. I do hope the sounds guys didn't get any awards for their work.

And my God it's slow. Got a few minutes into the 3rd episode and realised life is too short.

Mandy Patinkin is hidden so far under his beard I can't see him act

Interesting camera angles and music, and the shots on the Queen Mary are exotic, but concentrating on it is too much like hard work.

Normal People (2020)

The only show I've ever had to join a support group for

[10/10 · 5 January 2024]

I've no idea how as a then 43-year-old happy-enough man I managed to become so smitten with this programme. I also can't explain the unbelievably diverse demographics of the online chat and podcast group I joined afterwards; sharing the same emotions with 67-year-old Grandads and 21-year-old students. Maybe it was the COVID lockdown that allowed me to quite rightly take my time with this series.

It needs your attention, it's a very quiet watch. But the rewards are great. It's sweet agony to watch sometimes- not uncomfortable, not gritty, not cringeworthy, just as close as TV gets to truly reliving the delicious and unavoidable pain of first love as you can get.

I won't put parts in this review that I don't like (it can take itself perhaps too seriously for some) because I forgive the writers for this.

Writers. I forgive you.

Men Up (2023 TV Movie)

Life affirming TV with a lot of heart

[8/10 · 5 January 2024]

Didn't know what to expect from a drama about a drug that treats erectile dysfunction and impotence. What I got was frank yet not gritty (as is usually the case), set in 90s Wales but not bleak, about sex but not sexy; all in all, it felt real, and did it's best to address as many different experiences of the men undergoing the trial as possible. I really enjoyed it. There are some excellent, believable performances in there too with (thankfully) no fake-sounding Welsh accents. There are 5 men to follow and somehow you end up caring about all of them, and their partners. Stefan Rhodri and Mark Lewis Jones' characters have some beautiful moments and stop Iwan Rheon stealing the slow. Definitely worth 87 minutes of your time.