Change Your Image
TotonotinKansas
Reviews
Kim's Convenience (2016)
Sitcom perfection
Kim's Convenience is delightfully entertaining. For my tastes, everything (characters, episode plots, setting) just simply seems to work perfectly. The actors have a convincing reality in their portrayals, nuanced, not one-dimensional. I suspect they enjoy being part of this production. The story lines are fresh, inventive, and laugh-out-loud funny; usually centered on simple and minor foibles of family and friend/coworker interactions. While there are some romantic relationships featured, there's no reliance on sex jokes, and thankfully no annoying "canned laughter" in the background. I love the creativity and flow displayed in each and every episode. Brilliant!
Murder of Couriers (2012)
Fascinating
I greatly enjoyed this film about bike couriers, made by couriers themselves. They occupy an amazing lunatic fringe corner of bike culture, urban daredevils who recklessly risk all at breakneck speed and inconceivable physical effort to get documents and things delivered in downtown settings as quickly as possible, infuriating many drivers and pedestrians in the process, unloved and underpaid. Mostly young, male, live-for-the-moment types; they appear to consider themselves indestructible, and act accordingly. One courier made an amusing complaint about spending more time riding elevators than his bike. Pedal like a adrenaline-fueled kamikaze pilot all day, then party all night, "You can do this hungover". After-hours racing, bike polo, track stand balancing, pedaling backwards, fixed- gear controlled skidding, they show all the tricks. Its easy to imagine their potential to become accomplished racing cyclists. There are some females in the courier ranks,and an older male (50- ish?) is shown. What was most impressive is their deep sense of group identity and unity, it is a very exclusive tribe. It was honest, not glamorized, a collarbone gets broken. One particular female talked about the inevitability of eventually needing to leave the lifestyle behind. She seemed sadly aware she would miss it very much. It would have been good to hear more about the older courier, what was his story? All in all a marvelous urban culture study, great film. Take care you guys, good luck!
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)
The Inside is empty
Slow, dull, boring. I can't believe I'm saying such about a Coen brothers movie. After watching I thought what's wrong with me, I love Coen brothers movies, they're among my all-time favorites, what did I miss, why did I not "get" this? The setup is so appealing; the Greenwich Village folk music scene of the early 60's, great right? New York in the winter, old cars, subways, apartments, sidewalks, snow, all the visual points were perfect. It appears there was supposed to be some meaning to the cat escaping through the apartment door early and then the same scene repeated near the end but the cat does not escape, the meaning escaped me. A hint of early Bob Dylan following Davis on stage as Davis goes out the back door to get his ass kicked, didn't stir me. By the end I found that I felt entirely apathetic about what I had just watched, there was pretty much noting entertaining about it. This movie offered nothing beyond the period imagery. I wonder if it didn't have the Coen label would there be 9's and 10's in some of these reviews?
Valhalla Rising (2009)
Different
The range of reviews here is pretty amazing, this movie is either loved or hated. I fall on the side of liking it very much, although that took a while, I wasn't too sure immediately after seeing it. I think it is more likely to appeal to people who are open to a movie that dares to be very different. There are things about it that I understand and agree with some who hated it, such as the boat voyage sequence which was long and somewhat boring - as the actual voyage obviously must have been. So the filmmaker effectively conveyed that sense of drudgery. Viewers who hated it seemed to have preconceived notions of what the movie would be and they were disappointed, just as the voyagers had preconceived notions of what they would find in the new land, and they ended up disillusioned and desperate. To me this movie was thought-provoking, beautiful even in its tragic horrors, an epic poem set to film. I'm glad I watched it, found myself reflecting on it long afterward, and watched it again.
The Assets (2014)
Oh ABC, you had me, then...
ABC, just go on back to the mental junk food of half hour long strings of juvenile sexual innuendos peppered with near-continuous canned laughter. Based on a mere 2 episodes, I give The Assets an "8" for the potential of what might have been as compared to what the major networks are more comfortably determined to feed us. I was hopeful it would continue to hold my attention.
A couple of criticisms; the flashbacks seemed a little too frequent and hard to tell when they ended. And regarding Grimes' home life scenes; I didn't care for the stereotypical sullen teen, and Grimes' repeated line to her husband "you know I can't talk about that", I wondered how soon that would get tiresome. Those minor annoyances might have smoothed out in future episodes, BUT WE'LL NEVER KNOW! Hey Netflix, HBO, somebody, anybody!
The Ames spy scandal is worthy of quality dramatization, in spite of the fact that, yes, we know how it turned out (Titanic, Lincoln, any WWII movie - we knew in advance how those turned out). There are so many true stories out there so worthy of being dramatized; read about Douglas McKiernan, the first CIA agent killed in the line of duty - an incredible story!
Porter Ridge (2013)
It will be interesting to see how this goes
I recently caught the last half of one episode of Porter Ridge while channel-surfing from a hospital bed, don't have cable at home and I'd never heard of this show. Slightly medicated, I watched thinking; I can't understand what that guy is saying, he appears to be babbling about some modifications to a stripped-down truck, then - oh, that's why there's subtitles, and then the unexpected appeared - a very bad Elvis lookalike. As I caught on to the antics of the eternally-topless Terry and his cohorts, I found myself smiling throughout the rest of the episode. It seems the cable world abounds with "reality-based" offerings, this is the only one I've come across which I feel inclined to seek out again sometime. It comes across as an obvious parody of the genre, well aware of its own deliberate silliness. Interesting that a redneck-themed show be set above the Mason Dixon Line (Indiana?), good to give Tennessee and Kentucky a break now and then. Hope this fun show succeeds, it has great potential I think.
Justified (2010)
I enjoy the show, but,,,
Overall I consider this show quite enjoyable. It is strongly character-driven. The plot lines can seem to meander and plod along slowly at times; you can sometimes tell when a conclusive moment is approaching but it often seems to play out in slow motion, but there can be twists and surprises along the way. While obviously comprised of good guys and bad guys, I was actually relieved that the character of Arlo died. I found him irritating to watch and listen to, finally, thank you writers - that was "justified"! Now I'm looking forward to the character of Duffy meeting his end somehow, please.
I find the addition of Patton Oswald's character, driving a 70's AMC Gremlin, a little odd. "Barney Fife" has been done, and can't be improved on. And the car is old enough to have become a collectable, a more suitable beater would be a '98 Dodge Neon or similar, they are just as funny-looking.
Character portrayal was stereotypically over the top in the episode featuring the "hill people". That sequence seemed almost a rip-off of Li'l Abner.
But my biggest beef is simply scenery, southern California does not look anything like Kentucky, like so many others have said here.
But, I still generally find the show entertaining and will continue to watch.
Premium Rush (2012)
Flat tire
Finally, a movie that brings some much needed attention to that most perplexing life choice; multispeed or fixed gear. The movie's hero rides a beatup "fixie" whilst his occupational and romantic rival is total hi tech new multispeed with all the trimmings, carbon fiber, index shifting, etc. Brakes?, we don't need no stinking brakes! The hero makes a point of never stopping or hardly slowing down for anything except when he has reached his destination. Actually one of the neatest things to see an urban cyclist do is stopping a bike to wait for a light to change or whatever - without taking a foot off the pedals - its a delicate balancing act, to keep a bike paused with your feet locked in place. But that sort of realistic detail would not have fit the movie's tone of constant action and motion. They do show how the fixie is slowed - by jamming the pedals making the rear wheel slide - that's a pretty neat trick in itself. The corrupt cop character was entirely one dimensional and almost cartoonish. The hero's rival rides an expensive carbon fiber bike and his other transportation (in New York City) is a very big very new pickup truck, and he's a bike messenger? This movie manages to hold the viewer's attention, at least to the extent that the viewer wants to fully understand what's going on, by the use of flashbacks to fill in the missing pieces. Otherwise, there is no suspense, you pretty much know how its going to end. The hero could have died or been seriously injured about 7,000 times throughout the course of the movie trying to complete this delivery, he finally gets to the destination with this smiley face ticket, hands it to the old bored-looking lady, no tip! Funniest line that wasn't meant to be funny; "I need a flashmob!"
House of Cards (2013)
To Each, His/Her Own
I watched the first few episodes, it just didn't hook me. All the characters seemed disgusting in some way. I realize the setting is Washington / congressional politics - where disgusting is a mandatory trait and expected, but I get more than enough of that just by watching the evening news. I usually have an inclination to be able to relate to, or empathize with at least one character in some way or on some level in any show I watch - I couldn't achieve that at all in this show - give me somebody to like, anybody - not a one. Some say it is credible for showing the real Washington scene, the real sort of behind-the-scenes shenanigans and deal-making, however I believe the show's portrayal of the character's thought processes in the episodes I watched indicated a very unrealistically high level of intelligence; the "real characters" just aren't all that smart IMO. Is there any national political figure who can scheme and manipulate as cleverly as that portrayed by Spacey? I really doubt it. Also, Spacey's syrupy southern drawl was a bit overdone and became annoying, bless his heart. What I did find interesting and somewhat appealing was the settings and camera work, it does effectively capture a mood and atmosphere appropriate to the subject matter. Overall, I think liking this show depends upon one's tolerance for the subject matter itself, and that's where I came up short, but it was worth a try.
Adventures in Paradise (1959)
Nostalgic Trip
I was about 7 years old when this show was first broadcast, I was captivated by the boat, the scenery, the sense of free-spirited adventure. It was one of my favorites even though as a kid the plot intricacies didn't always hold my attention. I always kept AIP in the back of my mind, I'm sure it contributed to an interest in sailing which continues to this day. I had an opportunity to view some dvds of the original shows recently. It was interesting to see how they held up, at least in my mind, in the context of 50 years of TV evolution. It was a bit like being in a time machine, I was a kid again. Like most other "serious" shows of the era, AIP was somewhat formulaic; the passengers brought the drama on board with their baggage, usually a bad guy with a gun, and an attractive femme fatale who would fall for Capt. Troy, who would bring her to her senses in the end with gentlemanly resistance, there would be a fist fight and the bad guy would be hauled away. Seems funny now to see that all the women passengers wore dresses, heels, and jewelry on board the Tiki, the June Cleaver standard of the times. Even with these criticisms, I still consider it a great show of its era, and an awesome nostalgic trip for those like me who originally watched it back in the day. Great to see it well-rated here, I couldn't agree more.
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)
Lens cap ?
I can't help it, I love this movie! Absolute fun entertainment. For those who like to categorize everything; I'd call it Retro-Fantasy-Escapism-Action-Adventure with a touch of Sci-Fi. This movie perfectly captures the character of the old Saturday Matinée serials blended with comic book tone and pacing, combine Flash Gordon with Steve Canyon. Yes, it is simplistic, cheesy, campy, unrealistic, but - that's what its trying to be, give in to the fun. You know from the beginning that the good guys will triumph at the end and the world will be saved, but I purely enjoyed sitting back and watching how they got from point A to point B. What was a little surprising, in a good way, was the strength given to the female characters who are prominent factors in the action. At first I felt the CGI background and detailing was too obviously fake, but thinking of it as a live-action comic book, the underdone CGI seems perfectly suitable. No significant negatives for me, however in the flying scenes with Polly and Joe in the cockpit just cruising along and conversing, it seemed there should be some engine noise. Considering how this movie was made with all background and details added later, I feel the acting was incredible, they had no scenery to relate to in their actions. Not sure if this is exactly a spoiler; I've watched it on DVD several times, and at the end I don't see a lens cap, maybe just another instance of Joe continually bugging Polly? Or the movie maker trying to prompt saps like me into buying the DVD to go back searching for such tidbits? Well done, waiting for more!
The Mothman Prophecies (2002)
What I learned from this movie
Hunting monsters makes your lips chapped. Worst product placement ever! But seriously, I felt this movie was visually excellent, the script just couldn't come close to matching the quality of the imagery. The suspense, which took a while to reach a certain level, seemed to simply linger on a plateau and the climactic scene couldn't quite push it up to the top. I had great expectations going into this, but felt disappointed by the time it finally ended. Not long after watching this movie some unknown object struck the windshield of my wife's car while she was driving alone at night. She was unhurt but the windshield had to be replaced. Damn Mothman can cost you some money, let me tell you! The only thing more arduous than sitting through this film is coming up with ten lines to review this stinker! Just a few more clicks and I'm done, come on, COME ON! YES!!! Finally. Five stars for the pretty camera-work.