sserio Reviews

The Wheel of Time (2021– )

What I think so far...

[8/10 · 28 November 2021]

I am 4 episodes in (that is all that has been released so far) and I am loving it. I have read the books multiple times. Though there are significant changes, I am adapting to them and taking the show in for what it is.

If I had one complaint, it would be sometimes the effects are a little wonky. There are some changes from the books that I question or am not too fond of, but as I said, I am adapting to them for this telling of the story. I was pleasantly surprised by the ending of the fourth episode and I am looking forward to more.

From what I have seen, those that are leaving negative reviews (while I am sure some are legit) are mostly trolls who want the show to fail. The show has some shortcomings as it gets off the ground, but overall it is a wonderful experience.

The Three Stooges (2012)

Childhood Revisited

[10/10 · 2 May 2012]

I have always enjoyed the antics of the Three Stooges and was both nervous and excited when I heard about this movie. After seeing the trailer, my nervousness went down and my excitement increased. Finally, I had the opportunity to check it out this past weekend and left the theater feeling uplifted happy, still giggling at the antics and wisecracks throughout the film.

The film makers and actors bringing the Stooges to life and taking me back to my childhood. From the moment that the "Three Blind Mice" music started, complete homage to the original opening of the shorts, I was hooked. Much kudos to the actors Sean Hayes, Will Sasso and Chris Diamantopoulos for their portrayals of the the classic trio. Also kudos go out to Skylar Gisondo, Lance Chantiles-Wertz, and Robert Capron who portrayed younger versions.

The ending brought a loud ovation from the audience in attendance. All I can say is if you don't like this movie, you never liked the stooges to begin with.

The Raven (I) (2012)

A fulfilling experience!

[9/10 · 2 May 2012]

This past Saturday, I decided to see a couple movies and one of them was The Raven. Knowing that the story is a fictional account, I decided to go in and just take the movie for what it was and not analyze it over historical misses or other such things that critics seem to hate. I live in Baltimore and love Edgar Allen Poe and have even been anticipating this movies release.

Throughout the whole movie, I was enthralled with what I was witnessing on the screen and never once looked at my phone to check the time... a key sign that I am enjoying the movie. In fact, the only ambient influence that I noticed was the crowd reaction, which came at appropriate times for their given reactions. When the credits started rolling, there was even a small clap... a rare event at movie theaters these days.

So, in closing, I would say not to listen to the professional critics who are often so full of themselves that all movies are beneath them anyway. Perhaps they just didn't like the death of a particular character in the movie (You'll have to watch it to see who... I don't want to spoil anything). But for me, this movie left me fulfilled and wanting more. The only disappointment was that my favorite Poe story was absent... The Black Cat.

Rome (2005–2007)

Don't listen to the Naysayers

[10/10 · 14 September 2005]

Having watched the first three episodes, I am anxiously looking forward to seeing the rest of the episodes. All of the intrigue that was Rome is presented well, considering that no one involved lived during that time that could give accurate details on Roman life. For that matter, all historical presentations that are over a hundred years old are filled in with speculation and assumption and for that no one can discredit the attempts at accuracy.

For all of the naysayers, listen well. You complain that the show is full of pointelss dialogue. Rome was one of the first political empires to exist. When you have a Senate, it becomes very political. As for the accuracies to design, as I said, we can only speculate in accordance to available artifacts, as to how the place really looked. The designs do look as I picture in my own mind. Another complaint that I saw was about the sex with one such comment relating Rome to "Skinimax". The fact is this is set prior to Christian corruption, shunning the act of sex. So yes, there was a lot of it.