Reviews

American Cable stations and writers.......take note!! As someone who pays a fortune for cable with all the repetitive trash, ......we need something new. "Astrid" is a prime example of creative writing, good acting and well, everything.. Something new. I appreciate that the writers do not downplay Astrid's condition and how she deals with it. Also, we see that she suffers from it. With that said, we love this show. This episode in particular took a bit of an aside and added humor. Was there really a "zombie" who came alive in the funeral parlor during embalming? I don't want to say much but Astrid and her friend Ralph, along with the police solve the issue. I really want to say.....oh heck.........WARNING: stop here if you don't want to read spoilers. There's a poisoning death and a chemical explanation to the inexplicable (unbelievable) truth. All is resolved. I love Astrid's friends and hope there's more with them. She needs the comfort of the group to support her special needs. And of course, there's Raph.

I love Bill Hader! I was so impressed to actually see Helen Mirren introduce this series as though it was a real quality documentary series and not "mockumentaries." If you've ever seen "Grey Gardens," you haven't seen strange. But you can look for info on that. This program does a great job of making the original program even funnier (the original was more sad). Bill Hader plays the daughter and the other guy is the mother in a previously rich family, not fallen into poverty and nuttiness (as in the real story of the relatives of Jackie Kennedy). I almost fell on the floor laughing when Hader shows up with sweatpants on his head. He's sweet, funny, and sad at the same time. To me the ending is what brought the entire show down. It was a shocker! There were a few missed opportunities to make it funnier. Oh well, I still love Bill Hader.

Here we have yet another movie made in Canada, pretending to be the United States.

There's also the star, a 39 year-old woman, pretending to be 17, and a good detective.

Everyone in this movie acts other-worldly "Cute," including the men. The entire upper middle-class town is just too perky and cute. The predominately white folks have immaculately clean homes and gardens. They posture, deliver perky lines and act like the Stepford wives and husbands. There's not a bit of clutter in any of their homes (or someone would mistake it for a real town and not a movie set.

With the cute name of "Aurora Teagarden", she has to be called something cuter, so call her "Roe." She's something of an older and plumper Barbie doll with unsuitable clothing for a mature woman her age, perfect makeup and a beautifully made up Braid. At one point she buys a dreary green-colored dress which clings to her stomach and between her legs. Everyone who sees her goggles at her in this drab dress and gives her lavish praise on how good she looks! At this point my daughter, age 13, practically fell on the floor laughing.

The police force is so stupid that it takes the bumbling of an amateur to find the real killer. Of course it's because she breaks multiple laws, such as breaking-and-entering and tampering with evidence. She even plants some. Everyone she knows warns her not to get involved but she gives off a sweet smile and totally ignores good advice.

So what to do? Use evidence as "bait" to trap the killer.

Not to worry....it's a Cozy mystery and she'll be back. Otherwise, it would stop being cute (and remotely realistic).

We absolutely loved Bates Motel when it started and we were glued to the TV, even watching reruns.

SPOILERS...SPOILERS....IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED! Well, the writers thought it wasn't good enough, so they introduced the unwashed brother....who turned out to be Dillon's father....due to a devastating incestuous relationship with Norma. Of course Norma reacts like every victim of a Pedophile. she's angry and withdrawn.

Okay, now we are in the latest season. Brother/Father is still around and the incest angle is still pursued with Dillon shouting "He Isn't a Monster!!" (GEEZ, REALLY?) Obviously, the writers think incest is about the same as drug-dealing. The Uncle/Father looks sad. Let's feel sorry for Daddy/Uncle.

This angle is just way too much. The focus is no longer on true horror (such as Norma finding a very ripe corpse in her bed). The series is now all about relationships, and they're not worth watching.

By the way, the hairdresser for the women should be fired. Norma's hair makes her look like an old hooker (white blonde, black roots), and Emma always looks like she just got out of the rain. The makeup for their faces is dead-white.

Okay, this guy called Cole comes from something like 40 years from the future where the world is devastated by a plague. There are no facilities, no food no nothing above earth for survival. Some of the surviving scientists (?) make their way to the upper levels to miraculously find a time machine....and it works.

So if this guy is transported to the past by so many years....how did he automatically know how to drive an SUV, use a gun, karate chop some guy, and overtake lots of armed guys and such? Somebody already mentioned plot holes. Yep, there's that. Plus it makes absolutely no sense. Another SIFFY production that takes the name of a very well-made and popular SCIFI movie. Unfortunately it has little of the entertainment value. We liked the female and the sets are good, though.

The guy in the male lead is really a weak actor too. Did they purposely give him facial hair and a posture that makes him look like a "monkey?" Well he does. Our entire group of nine agreed (after we stopped laughing).

Maybe that's how this series earns its title. Well, Eleven more to go.

It is quite rare for me not to love a British mystery series. I watched this one with the lead actor Kris for five shows and stopped watching. However, today our PBS channel showed the first episode with Ben Miller and it was wonderful (and the reason for the 3 stars). I understand that Ben Miller wanted to leave the show to spend time with his family. But why on earth they picked this guy to replace him is beyond me! He has absolutely no personality. He just seems to smirk through the episodes so he can get his paycheck. The writing is good, and other actors are fine. I just can't see them all working well together in the fictional police station or even as actors. SPOILER ALERT!! Hopefully, they'll rescue what few viewers they have left and bump this guy off for another actor too.

My wife and I had a great time with this movie. We knew ahead it was a SyFy special, so we had popcorn and notepad in hand. Here's some interesting facts we learned by simply watching "Rage of the Yeti:"

1) Yeti's explode when you shoot them

(2) Yeti's don't look part man, but they are partly invisible

(3) Four people can be in a vehicle without seatbelts, get rammed by a giant Yeti, roll multiple times down a hill, and come out without a scratch

(4) Yeti's get even grouchier if you catch one and put it in a helicopter (a big safety issue for helicopter pilots!)

(5) Hundreds of people are killed by the Yeti's (and they have major weapons), but two main stars can hit one with a hatchet and stab it ....result...dead Yeti

(5) You can be in "the Arctic" with as much cold weather clothing as I wear during winter in the deep south.

You too can learn all these fascinating facts by watching this movie. We had more fun watching and writing down all the ridiculous things that happened.

I would love to read YOUR new movie facts. Just remember....You have to watch this movie.

I'll just jump right in and say SyFy has a good series with "Haven." The main characters of FBI Agent Audrey Parker and Haven Deputy Nathan Wournos have their own quirks. Parker is uptight, brusque and by-the-book, while Wournos is laid-back and literally feels no pain. Together, they make an interesting pair. Of course it's been done before but the stories so far have not.

It seems that everyone in Haven has a secret, and each episode reveals those secrets. After she is sent to Haven to find a fugitive, Agent Parker stays to find out more about her past (which may be her birth mother and family ties). I think her character could use a bit more energizing because she seems unfazed by even extraordinary events. For example, she's more aggravated than shocked by being hit by lightning in the first episode, and mysteriously bound by rope in another.

One thing that stands out besides the decent story-telling, is the absolutely gorgeous scenery. Although the setting is supposed to be Haven, Maine, it's actually filmed in Canada.

UPDATE: I've watched all the episodes in the Second Season, and so far...so good.

One thing I absolutely LOVE about "Supernatural" is they don't stay all dreary gloom-and-doom. This show has such terrific writers, who let Sam and Deam battle demons and monsters.....but occasionally add humor to keep from staying in a rut.

In this episode, Sam and Dean are transported into the world of Television and they think it's the Trickster at work. The Soap Opera (with the guys playing doctors), Game Show (the hilarious Japanese "Cracker" game)and the absolutely wonderful Knight Rider show with one of the guys as the car were our favorites. This is rounded out by the side-splitting "Genital Herpes" commercial. It seems as though the Trickster is at it again and the guys are forced to play along. The seamless working of the fake Commercial was so terrific, I wondered if we were going into another one after that. Unfortunately, we actually got a real commercial break.