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Hardcore Pawn (2009)
How to rip off the poorest people in Detroit
So Hardcore Pawn (I really need to be careful when I say this out loud) is the store of a family owned pawn store in Detroit, Michigan, owned by Les Gold, Seth Gold (son), and Ashley Gold Broad (daughter). You quickly realize that the customers are wildly belligerent, but after watching a few episodes, you start to realize there is two sides to the story. After watching a dozen or so episodes, you realize that they basically offer customers about 10% of the retail value on pretty much any item and that they might go as high as 20% through negotiation. Then you realize they'll resell the item for retail, and the difference is pure profit. You'll hear Les say things like "This is more than fair" and "That's fair value", but it's really just things to say to prey on people who desperately need money. I can't emphasize how desperate these people are - to get to the point of selling items for 10% of their value, it starts to get depressing to watch because you begin to understand the nature of the business. The show basically focuses on interesting or unique items, as six seasons of watching people try to pawn fake or cheap jewelry probably wouldn't get anyone watching. It's worth a watch, but at over a hundred episodes, it gets boring.
Michael Che: Shame the Devil (2021)
First time viewer. Not very funny at all.
So I found his Netflix Special listed under "Raunchy Comedies". I'm not entirely sure what's so raunchy about his routine. He seems to drone on and laugh at his own jokes, talks about a BLM riot having only white women attending. Okay, that's kinda funny, for a giggle. Then onto R Kelly and talking about the 15 year old girl he raped. I just stopped right here, because he's just not that funny. Nothing seems to tie anything together, other than "You can be anything you want to be....in San Francisco" at the beginning of the show - but that routine got tired quickly.
It's a different world out there when you're literally handed jokes from the writers on SNL, and then going out there and writing them yourself. Why he got a Netflix special is beyond me - it's an hour of him sitting there, slow walking through mediocre jokes. I just about fell asleep.
The Back Pages (2017)
Gave it a shot, but just couldn't watch it to the end...
I get that this is shot, written and directed by indy everything, making a show isn't easy. However, the acting and storyline is just cringy. I'm in S1E3, the the old guy just can't stop overacting - his lines make me cringe. Not only that, the whole dialogue seem entirely scripted. There are people who have probably never acted before.
I'm sure the storylines are great, but I can't waste any more of my time trying to get through this. I guess i'm not a fan of indy projects. TV shorts like Love, Sex, and Robots and Black Mirror are more my speed. The Back Pages suffers more from everyone with a lack of experience in all their roles, including the director.
Resident Evil (2022)
Had to give a star for Lance Reddick...but overall - it's horrible.
I mean, right from the pilot episode you've got angsty teenage girls who do nothing but make bad decisions and always do what they want (to drive the storyline of the entire show), to the same sisters at the last episode sniveling and being overdramatic.
I really only watched this because the acting from Lance Reddick (Albert Wesker) and Paola Nuñez (Evelyn Marcus) was enjoyable to watch. But watching those two teenage girls made me wanna put my head through the TV.
Also, do you really think a teenage girl is gonna have the same hairstyle when she's all grown up? We get it... she's the same person.
EDC 2013: Under the Electric Sky (2014)
Reality vs Expectations are wildly different.
What an amazing movie! So uplifting and positive! Discussions of PLUR and seeing everyone having an amazing time! It's almost like a 90 minute commercial for the event, that Insomniac holds at the Las Vegas Speedway every year in May. I watched and came to literal tears from seeing the stories, and thought, I need to experience this at least once in my lifetime!
So I did in 2022.
Let's be clear - the reality of the actual event vs. The expectations you have from watching this commercial are wildly different. The one thing I will absolutely agree on is the production, stages and DJ lineups - nothing comes close. However, everything else is just way too biased and not the experience you'll have if you decide to attend. Consider this is a festival, that this year averaged 166,000 people PER DAY. It was the busiest festival they have ever had to date. The entire festival people roll as a couple, friends, or groups. Everyone keeps to themselves mostly. I feel that you need to be under the influence to experience what the movie had to offer. Attempting to view the main stage - if you were in a wheelchair, good luck, it was crazy packed at the main stages pretty much all the time, and getting to and from them was a challenge by itself.
For some people it may have been amazing, but let's be real - if you went solo and sober, it's wildly different than the movie portrays. Bring drugs and friends, then it might be more a 7 or 8 out of 10.