wittmann_todd Reviews

Chicago Fire: The Grand Gesture (2018) Season 6, Episode 23

Gabby: The actions and mentality of a crack head.

[10/10 · 11 May 2018]

I am a faithful follower of Chicago Fire...I even binge watch previous seasons over and over again. I have given several User Reviews positively endorsing this series. My least favorite character is Gabby Dawson. Picture someone addicted to crack doing everything possible to get that next hit to the detriment of relationships, character and integrity. Totally self centered with a constant soap opera drama of every single thing in life; the consummate victim; "If only the world understood me." The "do-what-I-want-when-I-want" mentality. Matt can do soooo much better than this and I feel for him dearly. And I have commented on this since season 1. This last episode is the epitome of Gabby's self-centered life and it irritates the hell out of me. Otherwise, I thoroughly enjoy Chicago Fire and I will continue to be a die-hard fan. I started watching Station 19 and two things stand out which I wish Chicago Fire would adopt: 1. Quiet down the sirens on the run; 2. Show a little more procedural accuracy on the calls. Both of these Station 19 does well.

Blindspot: Everlasting (2018) Season 3, Episode 14

Ashley Johnson Deserves an Emmy!

[10/10 · 12 March 2018]

This episode totally broke the typical Blindspot mold of dark conspiracies and international intrigue. I laughed and laughed during this entire episode!! Ashley Johnson, aka, Patterson is superb here...she pulls off this "Groundhog" day well above her current star-grade. I look at Patterson totally different now and I like the look. The writing for this episode deserves award recognition. Even if you are not a Blindspot super-fan...this episode stands alone as pure, unadulterated, fun and smart entertainment for 42-plus minutes. You WILL enjoy this ride!

Chicago Fire (2012– )

A Great Emotional Ride

[8/10 · 16 February 2018]

I am such a fan of this series and have started again with season 1 binge watching. Now when a person binge watches a series many goofs and inconsistencies become apparent. For instance the same buildings on fire...numbers on engines being different in the same scene...and on. BUT...one cannot help but appreciate the gamut of emotions experienced in each episode with laughter, warmth, sadness, celebration, loss and deep caring. I have loved this ride and continue to do so and cannot understand why the reviewers ratings have dropped over 100 since the series began. I could care less about the criticism about realism. I enjoy the interpersonal dynamics. The manner in which the rescues are performed are not only entertaining but innovative and educational. Many of my fellow User Reviews look at the goofs in everything they watch (like Harrison Ford wearing an ironed t-shirt in the new Blade Runner) without appreciating the eye movements and facial expressions which endears a character to the viewer with the story line. I have nothing in common with such Reviews as they are written by people who want to be cute without substance. I would have given this series a perfect 10 EXCEPT for a few reasons below: 1. All other fire fighters in other houses are treated as inept, careless and sloppy. This culminates in S05E14 where the replacements of house 51 shows an overweight sloppy unnamed actor, people slouching in chairs and the like. There is a sexist commander in another firehouse. 2. All the chiefs are incompetent and ego driven throughout the series. Bowden is the only competent and caring chief in seemingly existence. The Chicago fire department would and could not function with this kind of depicted leadership and it does get irritating that the only good firemen are in House 51. 3. Gabby Dawson has irritated the heck out of me. Yet, she finally comes into maturity in mid season five...OTHERWISE...Gabby is a spoiled, selfish and self centered individual who cares about nothing except what she wants and when she wants it. An irritating child which I cringed about in the first four seasons. 4. The consistent release of tension and personal dynamics always seem to result in a couple throwing their shirts across the room engaging in release sex. 5. The theme of the house is honesty, honesty, honesty...but every episode involves much deception, secrets and failing to trust each other with just the basic of information. This does become irritating.

I will never stop watching this show...I love it. It makes me a better man and inspires me to reach out and pay attention to others much more than any church service can inspire. I have also learned many techniques on how to help someone in an emergency situation. Every character makes me smile and make me sad at the same time. The crossover between PD, SVU and MED make this fun seeing the same characters involved in the other Wolf Chicago series.

Conquest 1453 (2012)

For once we see the manipulative underhandness of the Greeks

[9/10 · 12 January 2018]

I absolutely loved this movie. My mother is Greek and I was raised more Greek than my German father's heritage. I know the Greek mindset and the subtle and not so subtle ways of manipulation and political intrigue. This movie in the first hour exactly portrays the clever manipulation of all parties concerned to achieve their respective goals. I am also an independent scholar of everything Byzantine. Too often a battle movie only centers on the war strategy, the action scenes and the political statement the writers which to convey. The Eastern Roman empire after their defeat at Manzikert in 1071 was in severe decline thereafter. The only manner, therefore, in which the "Byzantine" empire was able to continue for so long afterwards was by political manipulation and payoffs. The ending obviously shows the writers' intent on being a pro-Turkish movie at the expense of some minor points in its historical portrayal. But, there is nothing of historical discrepancy I found that was fatal to the story. In fact, the story does not go far enough in showing how Mehmet II rebuilt the city by rebuilding the population with Christians and even Jews. He showed religious tolerance and even re-established the Greek Orthodox Patriarchy. I could go on and on about the wonderful manner in which Mehmet governed Constantinople after the conquest, and it shows his unique genius. Therefore, I understand why the Turks emulate him so much. Regarding some of the historical discrepancies some viewers point out in their reviews, there is much about the battle we simply do not have a definitive account: Was a gate left open on purpose or by mistake? And was this gate the reason why the city fell? Did Constantine XI die in battle or did he commit suicide? How many men did Mehmet actually have? How many men did Constantine XI have? One thing is sure, many of us have been wrongfully assuming Constantinople was a weak city which was easy to conquer. There is no evidence of this. The empire was non-existent. Yet, in fact the walls of the city were in good repair having been strengthened before the siege. Therefore, I believe the director took what pieces of discrepant history he thought important to adapt to his theme of the movie. I have no historical problem with the director's approach. The set pieces and art direction were superb. The battle scenes wonderfully done. The acting breathless.

Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

Many of my fellow IMDB User Reviewers are Replicants

[10/10 · 7 January 2018]

I make a habit of watching a movie first before I read any reviews and without watching any trailers. Basically, I watch with virgin eyes. Thank God I have this unusual habit because the User Reviews on IMDB lead me to conclude many of my fellow User Reviewers are shallow, misogynistic air heads who lack creativity and artistic presence, and approach movies with a technical Replicant point of view, lacking anything human.

This is Ryan Gosling's best acting to date. I was blown away by much of the non-verbal communication present in this movie. The movie was long and some say scenes lingered, but they need to be...the whole premise of societal breakdown as a result of an unanticipated "miracle" is felt with the apparent "slowness". I was caught up in every moment and loved this ride.

I kept hearing Jeff Goldblum's voice in Jurassic Park, "Life finds a way."

Free State of Jones (2016)

A story which needed to be told.

[9/10 · 6 January 2018]

I have friend in Utah who is a direct descendant of Newton Knight and my friend contributed directly to some of the character of Newton Knight as a result of my friend's ancestry research. Until recently there has been a coddling of the confederate era as a noble cause to assert state's rights. There have been statues of confederate soldiers and "heroes". Historical markers throughout the south emulating the southern sacrifice. This movie touches a nerve that many confederate sympathizers fail to admit. The southern rebellion was simply about money...and the rich plantation owners...to the sacrifice of human rights and the common white man who fought the battles whilst the plantation owners and their family was exempted for military service. This is a point where the epic war movie, "Gettysburg" failed to address. "Gettysburg" was defending both philosophical sides, therefore, avoiding controversy and making everyone a hero. Newton Knight saw the war as what it was really about...the rich plantation owners. And it was this hypocrisy for which he rebelled against. I would have given a "10", however, the movie became a little too preachy towards the end as it portrayed the Free State of Jones a Union State. There has been no evidence that Newton Knight created a Union State within the confederacy. Newton Knight created an independent state from the Confederacy and the Union.

I am sorry this movie lost tens of millions of dollars at the box office. It did not deserve a loss. This was the fault of STX Entertainment which was obsessed with being a big screen competitor with the big boys. When STX started bullying its way around Hollywood to be a main player, I am sure (unsubstantiated) the competitors did whatever they could to make sure STX did not interfere with the status quo. Otherwise, I just plain could not see why this movie was not a success at the box office.

How Beer Saved the World (2011 TV Movie)

Enjoyable and logically entertaining.

[8/10 · 6 January 2018]

First, let me say I enjoyed this series. Highly entertaining and informative for the most part. However, I think the cartoons cheapen the presentation. When a documentary resorts to cartooning it is insulting, i.e., "The Greeks" and the new "Cosmos." I am not sure the intoxicating effects were the catalyst for the thirst for more beer. This premise is suspect, that being it was the overriding drive to be intoxicated which gave rise to subsequent technology. And there is no doubt beer led to many important discoveries as well as the foundation for other discoveries. There were other reasons for the taste for beer: It signified wealth and prosperity. Beer became its own currency for a time. Otherwise, I highly enjoyed the series getting past the basic premise of the desire to become light headed...yet that premise in the series remains and as such it is bothersome.

Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017)

Great kids movie...Adults only need the last 30 minutes

[3/10 · 18 December 2017]

After an hour into the movie I was ready to go home. The magic was not there. I cared little about any character, the strategy and the over emphasis on special effects. There was little to no comic relief and the little comic relief was childish and not clever.

***Spoilers ***

It was not until the death of the Sith and the battle with the guards that i started taking notice. The fight sequence was well done. I liked Kylo Ren wanting simply to wipe out everything both light and dark...anything which reminded him of the past and start something new. God knows i feel like that sometimes. It was a touching moment to see Luke and Leia holding hands in reunion....an end of an era...this scene brought me back to 1977 and the first two sequels...what a ride back then! This reunion redeemed an otherwise worst of the Star Wars saga movies into an acceptable segue. So skip the first hour and a half and watch the last 30 minutes and you will have everything you need to know for the next one which I hope will spend more time in intergalactic intrigue, suspense and more adult cynical comic relief rather than puppet penguins imitating the "Home Alone" face burn and the giant fish complaining about the damage to their cottages. I give it a 3/10 because this is a great movie for kids and the reunion of Luke and Leia...otherwise it is a big fat zero.

Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey (2014)

The original Cosmos still holds.

[4/10 · 17 December 2017]

I love Professor Tyson and have followed his work in all forums. He did a wonderful presentation in this series. His voice is easy to listen to and his mannerisms are animated enough for me to keep interest. But what is up with all the cartooning by Seth MacFarlane? I admire and respect Seth, but his contribution to this series severely distracted me and I thought it cheap and cheesy. I know a lot of people do not like generic dramatizations with actors, but at least they try to present a realistic picture of what the narration refers to and it is quite entertaining. If more series are going to use cartoon characters I simply refuse to watch them (PBS "The Greeks" did the same style of animation). The real actors I can relate to more than a cartoon character. And it shows integrity on taking history or physics in this case seriously. It was like watching "Family Guy" in a physics class....ridiculous...so much so that I could not stomach it after three episodes. I went back to the original Cosmos...which interestingly with a very few amendments still holds today.

Line of Fire (2002– )

True strategy without all the fillers.

[10/10 · 17 December 2017]

This series...all three volumes...can very well be used in military classes worldwide as it gives a technical, strategical, and yet practical explanation of the military episodes in lay terms. The animation is the positioning of the participants on the battlefield used as squares...so please do not let the term animation fool you. (Not like the new Cosmos which is one long cartoon interspersed with a real human narrating every now and then.) There are fillers with character actors playing parts and soldiers which may seem cheesy to some, but it appeals to the lay person. I rank this in the same category as "Soviet Storm" and "Battleground". So if you want a thorough chess-board type explanation of battles...this is for you.

Hellstorm (2015)

Rethinking the Nuremberg Trials...to the victor is the judge.

[10/10 · 27 November 2017]

Before I came across this documentary I was researching the trials of Nuremberg after the war. Notably the praiseworthy "Judgment at Nuremberg", 1961, which is claimed to be the best courtroom drama of all time and the American TNT miniseries "Nuremberg" of 2000. After having saturated myself, me a retired trial lawyer, with about a dozen other documentaries on Nuremberg, I found a "Hellstorm" reference. I watched it fresh from the analysis, criminal prosecution, legal strategies, claims of defense and a venerable cornucopia of legalese. My conclusion after watching "Hellstorm" is simple: Winston Churchill, Franklin Roosevelt, Josef Stalin, Arthur Harris, Eisenhower, the captains of the several Soviet submarines in the Baltic, Ilya Ehrenburg, along with scores of other American, French and Soviet commanders and soldiers would EASILY be convicted and appropriate sentences given under the standards of procedure I observed in my Nuremberg trial research. Even the pompous and super-warrior General Patton was disgusted by how low America had become in treating the Germans after the war. Allied violations of the Geneva Convention for the ethical treatment of POW's were too numerous to count. After the Battle of the Bulge, the Malmedy Massacre Trial involved 73 former members of the Waffen SS of which 43 were sentenced to death for killing around 362 American POW's. What about the counterparts on the part of our troops? The American Lieutenant at Dachau lining up 300 German soldiers against the wall and ordering a summary execution? Furthermore, what the civilian populations did to the Germans after the war rises to genocide. The forced 11 million German death march of refugees from the east. The retributions from the Jews, Poles, Czechs, Croats, and on and on. All these made the Japanese death marches and genocide look trite. To my knowledge, no commander or civilian was ever criminally prosecuted for these atrocities against the Germans. The victor defines what is a war crime and who should be prosecuted...and this documentary clearly demonstrates this.

Adolf Hitler: The Greatest Story Never Told (2013)

Greatly worth watching if you can put aside prejudice.

[5/10 · 27 November 2017]

I greatly appreciated this presentation from a German point of view in that it demonstrates how clearly prejudiced the world became during and after the second world war. Long before I saw presentations like this I often wondered how can one of the most educated and religious peoples on the planet in one of the most civilized countries be utterly duped by a madman? Even as a teenager this did not make sense to me. The first read I made which started me to question history as recorded and widely accepted was the book by James Bradley, "The Imperial Cruise." I was taken aback by the facts of what the "great" Theodore Roosevelt was up to and the extreme ethnic and racial prejudice he exhibited which he had inherited by Great Britain. Secondly, there is a great series by Germany entitled, "The Wehrmacht", which for the first time in my studies presented the arguments Hitler made in light of the rest of the world violating the Treaty of Versailles. Interestingly when one Googles anything as to this subject, one only gets Germany's violations of the treaty. I cannot find ANYWHERE the culpability of the rest of the world's violations which Hitler kept complaining of and which motivated him and Germany to take action. I would have given this documentary a higher rating if not for (spoiler alert)the handling of the holocaust. The German documentation and evidence of this event was vast that even at Nuremberg the secretarial staff was literally buried in paper. Yet I do find it interesting that there exists no photograph of Hitler I am aware of at any prisoner of war camp...any concentration camp...and any mass slaughter. One thing is absolutely certain in this presentation along with my other two sources listed above...Churchill was a megalomaniac (one who is obsessed with their own power)as well as wanting to maintain British dominance throughout the world. Simply put...the English did not want to share at that time and have never have liked to share. It was only after the war England had to accept second place and to get along with the rest of the world. I no longer hold Churchill in such high esteem and respect now that new light is shed on what really happened in various sources not limited to this documentary. With France defeated, Churchill was in a unique position to stop the second war from expanding into a world war, except that Churchill's paranoia, ego, racial prejudice, empire, and stubbornness got in the way. I actually blame Churchill more than Hitler for what happened after June, 1940. Spoiler alert>>>>The music was absolutely annoying along with the periodic stills of a side view coin style bust of Hitler depicted in a saint-like pose...I found this cheesy.