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Fear the Walking Dead (2015)
I shouldn't really be rooting for Team Zombie
Given the phenomenal multimedia success of the Walking Dead (spanning comics, books, apps, computer/board-games, toys and at this point probably rice crispy cakes) a further milking of the zombie cash cow was probably inevitable (and that's not a complaint). The latest iteration of this franchise is Fear The Walking Dead, a series set chronologically before it's sister show (The Walking Dead) following an unrelated group of survivors in L.A.
Perhaps one of the most compelling parts of a zombie apocalypse, for me at least, are the formative moments when society goes to hell in a hand basket. I was pretty pumped for FTWD in this regard as it was promoted as occurring during the initial days of the zombie outbreak - a potentially exciting time-frame not explored in the original Walking Dead show. Alas I feel for the most part FTWD has failed to capitalise on these interesting moments and in doing so has missed the opportunity to carve out it's own identity. Instead we kind of get 'The Walking Dead Lite' - a less interesting version of it's ongoing predecessor. For example, the second half of the first season takes place within a gated community and season two (so far) has been set on a boat. Both of these locales feel pretty far removed from the 'eye of the storm' and unless your favourite pastimes include listening pensively to radios, or poking floating zombies with a stick, these environments are simply not very engaging. This problem is reflected more broadly in the shows inconsistent tone, particularly in terms of production values, which seem to drop noticeably throughout the first season culminating in an infamously god-awful and unnecessary CGI shot of a boat (seriously, just get the work experience girl to film a real one in a marina).
Probably the biggest problem with FTWD, however, are the characters. I think for a serialised show like this to properly work we need to care about what happens to them after the adrenaline has worn off from the initial outbreak. While there were some poorly written characters the original show (Lori) there was always enough to keep us invested as viewers. In FTWD no-one is really very likable depriving the show of some much-needed heart. Beyond circumstance, the dialogue from the three main teenagers feels interchangeable. They collectively come across as pretty emo, particularly Chris, who reminds me a little bit of Kylo Ren force slamming his bedroom door shut. Moody, selfish teenagers do not make endearing survivors. Honestly, by the end of the first season I was pretty much gagging for the zombies to plow through their way main cast like an all you can munch buffet. I know I am not the only one and for a show like this it is a kind of a problem.
That said, I am aware this review may come off as overly negative, so I will add that I am still sticking with FTWD for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it shows promise. Despite my points above there have been some genuinely good moments (including a memorable scene where we find out what is causing a traffic jam). I am hoping the show settles into it's groove and the main characters eventually feel a little bit more... human (if it does I will come back here and adjust my rating accordingly). Secondly, being a big fan of The Walking Dead (even the crispy cakes!), I want to see how this little corner of the universe plays out. Who knows, it may even eventually link up with the main Walking Dead continuity, but hopefully only after the teenagers have been dog-piled by the hungriest zombies in L.A.
Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008)
Dishonest
Among this films multitude of sins you can count quote mining (contorting information from even Darwin himself), the blatant misrepresentation of it's supposed subject matter, evolution (which has nothing to say about the origin of life), and the offensive suggestion that being an atheist denotes a lack of morality to the extent that we all harbour genocidal tendencies.
Amazingly, the film doesn't even bother to define what the terms 'Intelligent Design' (read: 'God Did It') or 'Darwinism' mean, most likely to deliberately muddy the waters and reframe the discussion as one of free speech rather than evidence vs. magic. In terms of propaganda, this was probably a shrewd move on the part of the filmmakers because if they did actually shed any factual light on the precepts of ID it would disintegrate like a vampire. To set the record straight the term 'Darwinist' is redundant. There is only the theory of evolution. It is not a cult of personality but rather a hard-studied scientific construct supported by the work of thousands of scientists over hundreds of years. Furthermore, it is a bit rich to make an emotive plea for free speech in terms of a 'level playing field' considering that religion has a less than stellar history in such matters. In science if you can't back up what you have to say with evidence then it is of no use to the system. This uselessness is unintentionally (and ironically) embodied in Expelled as it is thick on rhetoric and wafer thin in terms of actual substance.
Plagued by dishonesty and misinformation throughout this film lacks the very moral values of transparency and fairness it claims to promote (for examples check out the trivia on IMDb.com). As well as being hypocritical it is also kind of cowardly. If you are going to make a documentary on this stuff at least have the integrity to say what you actually believe in instead of obfuscating the issues at hand and, frankly, lying. People deserve better which is precisely why rationalists balk at the idea of letting these folks loose in the science classroom. Overall, having set the bar so low, I would say that Expelled deserves to be looked back on by future generations and ridiculed and puzzled over in equal measure. 'Did people really think like that?' I am afraid so.