Change Your Image
traderhman
Reviews
Foundation (2021)
First 2 episodes, season 01 were good, but then such a bore.
I've never read the books, or heard of this story. The first 2 episodes of season 1 gave me so much hope. They were quite engaging and the story was developing really well. And then it just started skipping around in several different directions, in several different times, and it just got boring. Everything is so segmented that it is really hard to care about any of the characters. I swear you focus more on figuring out what, where and when you are in the story, that it just isn't engaging anymore. And it is not because the SciFi is so intellectual, that us mere mortals can't follow it, it is just a bad story, with bad acting and bad writing.
Darby and Joan (2022)
Easy to watch and keeps you interested.
I happened upon this show on my Acorn subscription. I wasn't expecting anything, because I had never heard of any of the actors, however, it caught my interest and I have been enjoying it very much. I think the key is that it is an easy show to watch. There is the main mystery unravelling around Joan's husband which is an ongoing plot point. And then there are small mysteries in each episode that get concluded by the end of the episode while simultaneously revealing more information about Joan's husband. The writing is good. The characters, although sometimes unusual, seem real and interesting. The drama doesn't become annoying by watching the characters self sabotage themselves at every turn like most of the soap opera'ish series I've seen. The scenery is awesome, although some of the dangerous species in Australia are concerning. ;-).
Anyone looking for the extreme detail and meticulous clue gathering of a CSI show will be disappointed. Most of the plots are rather simple and solved with minimal sleuthing, but that is part of the shows charm. Even the dangerous encounters won't get you too far onto edge of your seat as the criminals give up the goods rather easily, so the show is light hearted in that regard.
Anyway, I'm enjoying it and would like to see another few seasons.
Look Both Ways (2022)
Major snoozefest
I was kind of looking forward to this movie when I saw Lil Reinhart was in it. Turned out to be one of the most boring movies I've watched in a long time. It wasn't a bad movie, just incredibly slow and boring. There wasn't any feeling to become invested in the main characters. I did find the parents to be entertaining though, from their initial reaction of horror, to their eventual joy in having a grand child. And the sidekick/roommate managed to creep into your heart, but that was about it. Oh, and the child actors they cast as Rosie were quite cute.
If you need some background noise while you are working on something else, I think Look Both Ways is a good choice.
Hello, Goodbye and Everything in Between (2022)
Hard to care....
Normally, when you watch a movie like this one, you are rooting for a happy ending because you grow to care about the characters. That was not this movie. The main characters are likeable enough, but there is not any chemistry and the relationship does not feel believable. In the end, you don't really care whether they stay together or not. Not a movie where you walk away feeling happy about the human perseverance of love.
Venus as a Boy (2021)
Completely disconnected from anything 'normal'.
If the intent was to display how 'different' and 'out of touch' the art culture is with everyday people, then mission accomplished, I guess. Otherwise, that was just some bizarro story about the starving artists and the rich elite they have to satisfy to succeed.
I get the message that Hunter wanted to be true to himself and his art and he was going to stand on principle, and I thought that was about the only good part of the story. However, that was a long journey for a pretty common movie theme. I can't imagine a large segment of society relating to this movie. I'm sure the 'critics' will love the diversity and portrayal of culture, but that is their world. For most of us, it was just a P. T. Barnum spectacle that wore off after the first 20 minutes, IMO.
One last point, what the heck is with all the smoking? I thought we were past glamourizing cigarette smoking in the movies?