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Reviews
Red Election (2021)
Engrossing thriller with some interesting characters and some flaws.
This series was addictive and thrilling. I loved the lead characters except for the somewhat mawkish PM. The writing has a lot to be admired and the acting was generally great (IMHO and in contrast to most reviews here - perhaps other reviewers are American?). I was on the edge of my seat and really looked forward to each episode. The accents were fine for me and I liked both the female leads. That's the good news. The downsides included irritating plot holes, an MI5 staffed by half a dozen people (including two boy nerds who were the entire IT, communications and research staff), a nuclear power station that had less monitoring and control (and staff) than the average home, and a totally unsatisfactory ending. We can only assume a second series is planned to tie up the flapping strands, but looking at these comments you'd have to wonder if that's likely. I hope there is!
PS 'Le Bureau' was as thrilling and has a much better and more believable script.
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)
A mixed up hash of a movie
One part action drama, one part romance, a part pseudo-realistic update, two of pantomime and half a part political correctitude: this film is an unconvincing mess carried out with a complete lack of the subtlety and cleverness that would be required to pull off such a demanding mix.
The casting of Costner as Robin just defies belief, completely wrong for the part in every way (including but not only the much-commented hopelessly jarring accent).
The writing was unclever, much of it sickly and obvious as only Hollywood can do. Despite using some beautiful countryside and the extraordinary town of Carcassone as backdrops, many of the scenes look like something out of badly funded amateur dramatics (the Turkish city scenes with sand thrown over paved road so obviously, the ludicrous housing in Sherwood Forest and accompanying tools and weapons they made out of nothing (what about the bows made out of the thinnest roundest greenest little branches you could find, about as much chance of launching a true-flying arrow as would a cup of mashed potato).
Lady Marion morphs from a resolute and capable well-trained fighter in efficient charge of her country fiefdom into a simpering ingénue in the space of twenty minutes. I mean, if you want to create a fun effect by this sort of transition for some useful dramatic purpose, fine, but in this film it is completely purposeless and just adds to the irritation and general disjointedness.
I have no idea why I purchased this DVD apart from the fact I had high hopes and it was in the bargain basket - obviously I should have 'read the signs' better. If you're after a clever, insightful retelling of an old story this is not it -- you'd be better off staring at a blank wall for two hours.
North Square (2000)
The most enjoyable TV series I've ever seen
Like others I hung around disconsolately for years waiting for the second series that never materialised. But what we did get was a fabulous fast-paced, funny, insightful, fascinating, witty walloping drama with a brain. The acting is superb from the whole cast, I still luxuriate in watching and re-watching some of the pointy moments and the characterisations within. Rose's smile when she agrees with McLeish that he'll make the best godfather ever. Morag when she asks the evil prosecutor why she (the prosecutor) is childless. Ah ... Morag!! Each of the lead women were to die for (I'm male) -- I'd happily have married any of the female characters.
McLeish/Davis is superb in his presentation of the rough (and flawed) diamond gradually revealing a heart.
The story lines are not subtle, but they are damned satisfying, a real pleasure to get lost in.
Like some others I'm mystified that so few people seemed to watch this at the time, why it received so few contemporary plaudits, and why so few know about it today. Most of all I can't understand why it's not available now on DVD. It's almost criminal that such a high point of TV production, still just modern enough not to seem dated, is not available in any form anywhere (legally I mean).
Perhaps it's perceived as having no appeal to 95% of the population and no appeal at all to an American audience. None-the-less such a rarely intelligent production deserves to be available and promoted to the sizable minority who did and would enjoy it.