anysuggestionsblog Reviews

Victoria (2016–2019)

A TV Series, A Queen

[9/10 · 16 February 2017]

The ITV series is a British drama series on the life of Queen Victoria. Throughout the first season we meet Victoria on the day the old King dies and she is claimed as the new Queen. We see her through her coronation and the decision to marry Albert. We watch on as her love for Albert grows and her love for Lord Melbourne, her first Prime Minister, changes. And in the final episode of the season we see the birth of their first daughter - Victoria.

Jenna Coleman stars in the series, playing the central character of the woman known as Victoria. And boy does she do a good job. Portraying Victoria as the quick-witted, head-strong woman we know her to be. Also possibly being marginally prettier than Victoria was in reality. Coleman perfectly captures the young queens struggles to be viewed as a ruling monarch, rather than a figure-head.

I do fear, that ITV have taken some liberties with how the young Queen is portrayed, possibly showing quite a skewed version of real events. Victoria is shown as an amazing young woman who stood up for herself in the face of immense opposition and always had the best intentions for her country at heart. Which to a certain extent is, of course, true. Victoria was an amazing young woman who stood up for herself in a primarily male dominated industry and did change the way that many things were done, always with the best intentions for her country at heart. However, what the series does fail to show, is to the extent that Victoria was, for lack of a term more befitting a royal, spoilt. And to a degree pig-headed and stubborn. As of course any teenager would be. Having the people surrounded by her, constantly striving to keep themselves in her good books. Because of the portrayal of the Queen through rose-coloured glasses, or camera lenses, as the case may be, the series received a fair bit of back-lash from viewers.

A quick Google search of 'Victoria TV series' results in various titles that proclaim the show idolises and embellishes the Queen's life. Which it does. A series that showed the true events would be labelled a 'documentary' and without David Attenborough as the narrator would therefore fail to see the high ratings that the series enjoys. We may also have to keep in mind that this woman is still very much in living memory. She's the current Queens and Prince Consorts grandmother, meaning, very possibly, that the portrayal of the Great Queen Victoria would have to be in a positive light so as to keep the Royal favour.

First Girl I Loved (2016)

First Girl I Loved - A Review

[8/10 · 16 February 2017]

Kerem Sanga's First Girl I Loved is a coming of age story following confused high-schoolers trying to figure themselves out in respect to who their friends are, sexual preference and how to accept who they are in the face of so much uncertainty and the constant world of judgement that is high school.

Anne, our protagonist, Cliff, the best-friend, and Sasha, the love interest, are like most high- schoolers in that they are confused about almost everything. We follow their stories through a mixture of flashbacks and flash forwards in an almost cyclic view as we see Anne coming to terms with her sexuality.

For those who attended school in any capacity, you will recall the confusion, the desire to fit in and the fear of judgment from peers whilst simultaneously attempting to understand ones likes and dislikes and to keep it all together with no less than a smile. Both Anne and Sasha comment on the pressure of how they are perceived by their peers with the under confidence of some of the characters and the ability to be unapologetically themselves becoming slightly frustrating for someone who wishes they too stood up for themselves when they were younger.

First Girl I Loved isn't all about teen angst and the confusing ride of the ups and downs of friendships. We are given an insight into the world of Softball with subtitles coming up for the hand signals given between a coach and his players and the comic relief in the text messages between the two girls. In a technologically advanced world the mobile phone has really been a big hit providing Kerem Sanga with another medium for the characters to express emotions, one which the younger members of the audience will relate to quite readily.

This heart-rendering and complex film comes away with the universal message that nothing can be that bad, even in the face of everything falling apart, with a little bit of self-acceptance life can be a whole lot easier.

The Grand Tour (2016–2024)

TGT (The Grand Tour OR Top Gear Two)

[9/10 · 11 February 2017]

I've recently finished perusing the first season of The Grand Tour. Created through popular demand by the public to see three idiots create stupid and ineffective tests for cars that few can afford. But they make it fun, light and entertaining so it's always worth the hour.

Exclusive to Amazon Prime, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May were forced to change networks after the tall idiotic one got fired from the BBC after he, a 50-something year old man, chucked a tantrum and punched a producer. And of course you can't have Top Gear without all three idiots, so the small one and the slow one decided that they don't leave a man behind after all and followed suit...in leaving, not in punching producers.

But as three hard-hitting journalists, I think they have sorely forgotten to ask the most important question of all: Has the punched producer followed the trio over to Amazon Prime? Who's to guess? With the dramatic drop in viewing figures of the first season without the trio, I'm assuming that more than just the affected producer will be asking to join the trio's new show. Top Gear Two has its similarities with Top Gear One, but seeing as most of the copyrighted titles that Top Gear is famous for; The Stig, Star in a Reasonably Priced Car, The Cool Wall etc. are owned by the BBC, there have been a few changes to the set-up.

Namely, The Stig is now some weird American who's only job seems to drive the cars and complain how everything's communistic... possibly being the only thing that I do not care for in the new layout. Surely the re-emergence of Ben Collins would be more aptly suited here? Celebrities are given quick cameos that are both interesting and hilarious, and the puns made as they go for a quick walk-down Conservation Street really do wonders to lighten the mood after they've just killed off a very popular figure of society, not to mention the newly introduced segment of 'Making James do Things he Doesn't Like', is certainly one to get those cheeks aching. The episodes that would have been classified as 'specials' in the Top Gear format are now more about the three bickering and their exchanges which personally, I've always found the most entertaining aspect. The build challenges in the season were by the far the most entertaining. Proving to be barely- able-to-catch-my-breath funny, the shows producers really allowed the three to bounce off one another which was something that I always felt was slightly contained in the original Top Gear lay- out. Which is the feel you get throughout the whole season. The shows style is a lot more relaxed, allowing the presenters to really express their ideas and thoughts on whatever topic they're discussing even if it isn't car related, with only gentle reminders to keep on topic in those instances.

Even with the similarities between this and the original Top Gear, the trio are able to really show their artistic and journalistic flair as they are no longer restrained by the rules and regulations of the BBC. It is extremely clear that they now possess more lee-way in respect to what they do and how they go about it. The show is slightly coarser and certainly reflects the personalities of the three presenters more acutely than the BBC allowed allowing them show off the chemistry between themselves that just makes the show work and the playful teasing and bullying makes for light-hearted fun and laughter.

Instead of being confined to a studio and having the odd overseas 'special', the show is set-up in a large tent, which is moved from country to country as they travel. They are always up to date on the local news and events making the jibes and jokes relevant not only for a worldwide audience but also for a local one.

An overall assessment of the first season of The Grand Tour would be to say that it was certainly a success. Definitely more-so than the 23rd season of Top Gear, which in no uncertain terms, bombed. But I heard that Joey's on it and is funny as well, so it might even be worth a go.

Passengers (I) (2016)

Passengers - A Re-imagined Sleeping Beauty

[7/10 · 10 February 2017]

This film was certainly different to anything I'd ever seen before. Set in space - brilliant. Good looking guy doing some heavy lifting - why not. Beautiful girl lying down, unmoving - isn't that how we all like our women? A threat to thousands of unsuspecting, very unhelpful people - if you don't have that, do you even have a movie? As you can see all very unique and completely new aspects of film-making, really pushing the film industry in a new direction. Opening minds. Broadening horizons.

You may have heard of some of our main mans films, Bride Wars, Jennifer's Body, Five-Year Engagement, and his most famous part to date, a little television series, that I believe picked up quite a following, known simply as Parks and Recreation. Christ Pratt may seem a like a foreign name to you now, but mark my words young children, this man could be something, if only some movie director would give him a chance, in say a Marvel superhero movie. But hey, that's just my uneducated opinion.

The unmoving girl referred to earlier, is played by that chick who, I want to say, was in that movie where everyone had to kill each other? The one with all the weapons. You know which one I'm talking about. It was directed by Quentin Tarentino? No? Then she was definitely in that film with the guy who was in The Godfather and that other guy who was in those stupid Hangover movies. (Speaking of the Hangover movies, if you haven't seen Obama on Between Two Ferns pop onto The Youtube and educate yourself.) You know the one I'm talking about. He's always in all those Jennifer Lawrence films. Argh, for the life of me, I just can't seem to think of her name.

Moving right along then. I'm surprised more people haven't caught on that Passengers is basically a re-imagined Sleeping Beauty. Aurora (Lawrence) is woken up by Jim (Pratt), and they are hurtling through space at horrific speeds upon the spaceship, Avalon, a name for a Disney kingdom if ever I heard one, and a kingdom they sure do make. The catalyst that sends them on their journey to save the entire unsuspecting, still sleeping, inhabitants of the ship should've been named Maleficent. Even though it's portrayal of the evil fairy wasn't nearly as good as Angelina Jolie's, at least it gave it the good old college try.

The character development throughout the film was a bit so-so, even though the whole time Pratt and Lawrence's characters were playing out their love story I couldn't help thinking; 'But he's with Anna Farris! That makes him unqualified to be with her.' (See what I did there? Do you see it?)

You do however, get to see the motive behind their reasoning for being on the ship, and the film does introduce some interesting prospects of the future for the human race. And even though the differences and struggles between classes is played in a humorous light, it does however, suggest that perhaps we, as a species, will always struggle with class hierarchy and the implications that money brings into the conversation of class structure and entitlements. Or perhaps, like a high-school English teacher, I'm reading too much into it and the references to differences in class is simply to make it more relatable to the intended audience.

The supporting acts were played brilliantly, especially the robot barman, Arthur, whose brilliant conversation drove the film when it could very easily have been quite boring. The question left to ask is: where do I get myself one of those?

The film was throwing the popcorn in the general direction of your mouth and missing good. The suspense really had you on the edge of your seat, and the love story and following conflict between such a small central cast was displayed brilliantly and certainly showed off each actors ability to lie to large audiences. And don't even get me started on the cinematography. It was vastly, brilliantly and universally wonderful. Pun most definitely intended.

Stranger Things (2016–2025)

Stranger Things - A (Really Long) Comment

[9/10 · 10 February 2017]

***Contains Spoilers***

Stranger Things is filled with everything you could want in a thriller. You've got the lovable goofball, the damsel in distress, the strong independent woman who don't need no man, the young love, a missing red-head, and of course Winona Ryder. So if you haven't seen it, definitely put aside like 8-10 hours and get on that.

Set in the early 1980's, the show should bring back some nostalgia for those old enough to have been around during that time. Playing on the belief (and recent confirmation) of government funded experiments by the American's, Stranger Things does an excellent job of piecing together a thriller through eight Chapters, also known as episodes, which take you through the story of a sleepy town in Indiana. Leading to startling discoveries that if you weren't a child younger than 12, you wouldn't have believed it until you saw it.

Even though science fiction TV has been extremely popular in the past, (i.e. Doctor Who, Star-Trek, etc.), I have always found it took me a season or two to really get into the story lines. Creating suspense through it's use of fictional horror and the classic dark rooms and night-time scenes, Stranger Things will definitely have you leaving the light on as you go bed for those with a softer disposition.

The toothless wonder, Dustin Henderson, by far my favourite character with his perfectly timed dry wit and adorably cute smile. Played exquisitely by Gaten Matarazzo, he actually has no front teeth in real life, meaning his condition, cleidocranial dysplasia, was written into the show just for him. Why we haven't heard of him before is a mystery to me, fingers crossed we'll see him more often in the future, with or without teeth.

Which brings me to my second favourite character. Even though she's really only in the first two episodes and we don't get to know her a lot, it does confuse me as to why she kept crossing my mind throughout the rest of the season...oh that's right, because no one was looking for her!!!

Why was no one looking for Barb? I mean yes, the government looking officials planted her car at the bus stop to make it seem like it she had run away, but let's be just a tiny bit logical here. We have a Sheriff, with his own sad backstory, going out of his way, like seriously out of his way, to find the answer behind a little boy, Will's, disappearance. So why don't we see the same enthusiastic investigating for Barb's disappearance? Should I be going down a whole feministic, equality, gender double standards rant route here? Should we be looking at the clearly confusing parenting going on by Barb's parents? Why Was No One Looking For Barb? That question will forever haunt me, more so than the monster that comes out of walls in the dark.

At least one person was looking for barb, and also stuck in a tricky love triangle at the same time. Nancy's got some game, I won't deny her that. Set-up to be the smart, pretty, shy girl, with her cape-less wonder side-kick, Missing Barb, by her side, Nancy appears to turn to the dark side, Anakin Skywalker style eventually finding her way back in order to help Will's older brother, Jonathan, find Will from the Shadow Realm. Oh, that's brand new information for you? Seriously dude, you need to watch it!!!

Even though Nancy's story-line, goes up, down and all around, I am slightly disappointed with who she ends up with at the end. Yes, Steve turned out to be a big-haired jerk at the beginning but he did help defeat the monster in the end AND lets not forget he told his even jerkier friends to bugger off. I mean, he's certainly no Jonathan, who only believed you when you said that Barb had been taken, and not run away, by the monster that took Will that everyone else in the town was saying didn't exist. Nice work. You did good.

Finally we come to Winona Ryder, portraying a desperate mother, that can, at times, be slightly annoying, but we forgive her because she's a desperate mother. She didn't even need to steal our hearts, because seeing her desperation and commitment to getting her son back, especially when she hear's his voice, makes you just want to lend her your heart. (See what I did there?)

All in all, Stranger Things is a fantastic watch, thrilling right to the end scene and providing revelations that just make your hair stand on end. It even got me thinking a couple times throughout the season if things like this actually do happen and the cover up is just that good. I suppose we'll never know. It seems we all just need to wait for that day when we're called up from sitting at home on the couch watching TV and find it's our time to save the world from a terrifying monster that somehow manages to go unnoticed despite being massive, ugly and killing numerous people. Yep, that's the day we're all waiting for.

With the Season Two trailer released earlier in the week, we can only hope that it lives up to its older brother and the hype that, probably won't be as big as Game of Thrones, but will no doubt be there just the same.