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Reviews
Mystery 101 (2019)
Paint by the numbers
Leaden dialogue. Anyone who knows the structure will know just about everything that is going to happen before it does. Given that its sort of like rowing a boat on a pond to let it just flow along till you come to the end. I knew the killer the moment I saw him, but that was because in this type of mystery the killer must always appear very early and look completely irrelevant. The character fit the bill just about perfectly . Cardboard characters, but hey it's a TV series. All in all about par for the course for American art these days. Makes you realize just how much the world has changed since this came out. Don't think the complacency of this show is possible today.
Highston (2015)
Too close to the bone
This pilot comes too close to revealing the true horror of the mental health establishment. That, in my opinion, was why t was not picked up. But its sharp, entertaining and full of potential for development. It's just a shame that we live in a world like this. Highston and his whole family are interesting characters, just too real for twenty-first century television. Just goes to show that more is going on in the media then simply looking for shows that could be successful. Cast was also perfect too. I wonder if they were planning to keep Sha2q and Flea as regulars or were going to have different celebrities on future shows. I guess we will never know..
An Amish Murder (2013)
Wonderful movie
A movie where people act well. Also the people are connected rather than being a bunch of strangers accidentally thrown together by chance. Someone actually thought that writing counted. Of course it is a tv movie. Otherwise it would have had executives mucking it up.
Love of My Life (2017)
Wonderful movie.
Carr-Wiggen is the mind behind this concoction surrounding a (maybe) death sentence. This movie, like "If I were You" has a gorgeous theatrical situation. At last a movie where the characters are not complete idiots, though at least a portion of each of them is an idiot. Carr-Wiggen has a talent for mixing the serious with farce. The movie has the flavor of bedroom comedy played out in a pudding of nostalgia, with new plums being pluckd up along the way. Love plays out like a piece of music, with all its variations. The tucked on ending a suspect came from some business mind, not Carr-Wiggen
One thing that always recommends a movie to me is the actors seeming to enjoy themselves, and in this one they have a ball.
The Chair (2021)
How many recent movies have a scene with a woman sitting on the can? why?
A lot of university professors with nothing interesting to say. Our hero is a self indulgent child. But he talks of "the absurd" so I.guess he's cool. Oh, and also, he's cute, in the opinion of one co-ed.
Leaves of Grass (2009)
No, no, no, no, okay.
This movie had far too many of what i call "No, no, no,no, okay," scenes which is about the lowest way to satisfy the Hollywood rule of always having conflict and which are a sign of amateur writing. The erudition was show-offy and fake. Socrates, in the Symposium talks nothing of the steady life. The talk is of love, Eros, and Socrates describes him as a messenger between humans and the gods who is himself not beautiful but a beggar.
Permission (2017)
An advance for the "no" in nobody.
This is a story about two nothings who stumble their way to being nobodies. This must be a new low in weak insignificant characters. Although watching it can make you root for the end of the human race, the movie is a well told story.
My Father the Hero (1994)
Father daughter charmer. Actual coherent plot
This is a wonderful movie completely missed by the critics. It is amazing, reading the reviews. Roger Ebert, the dean of the tribe, complains about a scene that looks fake, failing to be aware of the role of lying in the movie and in this scene.
What is especially nice is how tastefully the movie skirts a very dangerous area so gracefully. Funny, charming, and touching. What more do you want?
My only complaint is that certain important points come a bit too late, but this is a quibble.