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Cross (2024)
Alex Cross is Missing
I am surprised Patterson has anything to do with this mess. One would think that Patterson has enough money and that after reading a script or two, he would walk away from this mess. I can't decide if. Aldis Hodge is miscast or.doesn't like Alex Cross. Morgan Freeman set the mold for the character in. Kiss the Girls and in Along Came a Spider. Then Tyler Perry did his worst to destroy Cross. And now Hodge is everywhere and no where with his Alex Cross.
Hodge can't carry all the blame, there are several writers who helped fashion the character and the story line. This Cross seems to be preoccupied with chasing down his romantic interest and apologizing to his kids. And his kids seem woefully unprepared to deal with the real world. Wouldn't Cross teach his kids at minimum not to speak to strangers?
And Ryan. Eggold's character is so obviously slimely, I can't believe any woman would trust him.
Watch if you must but you have been warned..
Law of the Jungle (1942)
A C- film at best
Not the worst movie, but milks stereotypes of Africans and African-Americans with one or two surprises. The copy I saw on YouTube was so grainy, I did not recognize Arthur O'Connell.
The plot was actually pretty good, but I imagine the film played third after the A movie and first B movie. When I was young it wasn't unusual to go out for a night at the movies. This meant a reel of modern news events, a travelogue, at least one cartoon, and then the A movie followed by one other two B films. And sometimes the B movie turned out to become the real hit of the venue. Think Lilies of the Field with Sidney Poitier as an example.
Law of the Jungle is not a super B movie but it has its moments. The best is the meeting between Mantan Moreland and Laurence Criner aka Chief Mojobo who is not only the chief of the warrior tribe that captured the three leads, but is a lodge brother of Jeff Jones (Morland). To say more might give away an important plot point.
Bad Boys: Ride or Die (2024)
Disappointed
There have been some terrible premises on which movies have been built, but this time the limit has been met. After surviving a heart attack at Mike Lowery's wedding party, Marcus Burnett believes he is invincible and cannot die. And now you know the rest of the story. There are gunfights, Marcus, Martin Lawrence, lets fly volleys of invective, and then more gunfights, more invective, and repeat.
I like buddy movies, and I enjoyed Bad Boys I and II, and even Bad Boys for Life had moments, but Bad Boys: Ride or Die was more like Bad Boys: Die of Boredom. Yes, the movie made money, and enough to convince some producers to pony-up cash for another. Let's hope not.
I gather the writers felt by changing characteristics-Mike becoming more adult like, and Marcus more risk-taking-the audience would be so surprised that they would ignore the poor writing and even poorer acting skills.
The Rebel (1959)
A Show For Our Time Once Again
I remembered the TV show The Rebel staring Nick Adams, but it was through the fog of 65 years as I was 13 at the time the show began its run on TV. There it was running on Prime, so I started series 1, episode 1. As the episodes began running, I thought it might be of use for some streaming service to start running the show again.
Johnny Yuma is a literate young man who survived the Civil War but has been away from home for a year after the war's conclusion. Now he is traveling through Texas and takes an occasional run into another state or territory writing down what he has seen and what he is currently seeing as a sort of personal psychotherapy: Yuma is struggling to make sense of a world that doesn't make sense. Someone surrendered and the war is over and everyone is moving forward as if nothing happened.
As the episodes played out, most dealt with healing as people tried to suppress or forget or persecute (if you were on the Northern side). What disturbed me was given the current political divide-red state vs blue state-it appears we never got past 1861.
Watching can become a challenge as you recognize actors who became either known character actors or future TV stars. The writing was top-notch for the most part as the episodes run as small plays. Not many TV shows hold up over the years. The plots are thin and the acting awkward. I believe The Rebel deserves a second showing; I would hate seeing it recast and put back on TV as some newish action series.
Under the Vines (2021)
god awful
My wife likes this series and was happy to find season three beginning on Acorn. The reviews suggest this is a popular series, a dramedy I believe. I like many of the English shows from Are You Being Served to Darby and Joan with Doc Martin sitting on top as the show with the quirkiest of quirky characters. Many of the best shows like Fawlty Towers or The Office feature a character(s) who aren't likeable but you feel comfortable knowing they won't succeed.
Under the Vines is positively blooming as a weed patch filled with quirky characters but here many, too many, are just totally dislikable, they're just mean bordering on evil. Worst of all, there are just too many of them and they suck what little joy there is right off of the screen. I find the whole series just soul-sucking- nasty. The rotten characters are winning.
The two leads, Daisy (Rebecca Gibney) and Louis (Charles Edwards) have no chemistry. They have that English coupling of opposites who are destined to attract, but they are more representatives of opposites who just become more opposite.
My wife is hoping for a season 4; I would have been happy to have seen it end at season 2.
The Union (2024)
A Miss for Sure
What a waste of talent. Mark Wahlberg, J. K. Simmons, and Jackie Earle Haley look like they are at least having fun, but otherwise everyone else is as dour as is the script. The premise of the film sounds as though this will be a fun run like Knight and Day or any fish-out-of-water spy flic, but you will be disappointed.
Wahlberg's character. Mike McKenna, has a good backstory as a philandering roughneck construction worker: a guy who walks the steel without any safety equipment, McKenna gets "recruited" by an old high school flame, Roxanne Hall (Hale Berry) to become a secret agent by participating in a one-week training course.
Then the picture takes us through the typical storyline: mission goes awry, good guys betrayed by one of their own, good guys fight back and Mike the roughneck saves the day, the intel, his friend, and the agency and then returns home to New Jersey , his mother, his friends, and intime to give his best-man toast.
Nothing new, no humor, not even entertainmeny,
A Walk in the Woods (2015)
Nolte and Redford are great together
First, this is a comedy with witty dialogue, two characters who get themselves into ludicrous situations, even some dangerous but still laughable, but they emerge somehow better for the experience. Think Bill and Ted, Bad Boys, Beavis and Butt-Head, and the Man from Toronto; but in this case the protagonists are 73 and 79 years old, not 23 and 29.
If you are the same age as Nick Nolte and Robert Redford, you have a bit of nostalgia with actors you sort of grew up with. If you are around 23 and 29, then you might have heard their names and decided to take a look after hearing your parents talk about these great actors.
Regardless, after a slow start A Walk in the Woods will supply you with some laughs beginning with Kristen Schaal appearing as possibly the world's worst hiking partner. Then as these two continue their walk with Redford the straight man, and Nolte supplying the punch lines.
I liked the movie as did my wife, and my son and his wife liked it, but my grandchildren didn't get it and nor did they enjoy it.
Define yourself by age group for this one.
Invasion Roswell (2013)
Awful of so awful it's a Cult Classic
How bad does a movie have to be before it's good? Exterminators A. K. A. Invasion Roswell tests the limits. I caught this on Prime and kept explaining to my wife that it's a bad homage to the bad SF movies of the 1950s; she just shook her head at me and said "whatever" which is wife speak for my husband is an idiot.
The plot is nothing new: aliens were discovered at Roswell, and now they are back and are taking over the Earth while decimating entire cities. But a small band of "elite" old retired fighters (5) come back together to save all of humanity. Sort of Space Cowboys meets Independence Day with a tad of Killers from Space (1954).
The film has a decent cast but I suspect they were all told to play it over the top. The CGI spaceships look like they were borrowed from a video game, and the team's weapons look like Nerf guns. And some of the dialogue is so bad, I don't see how the actors were able to say it without laughing.
I don't believe any cliché was forgotten in the making of this film. And my favorite allusion, there are many, is uttered by David (Daniel Hugh Kelly) as homage to James Cagney (Cody Jarrett in White Heat) when he says "Made it, Ma! Top of the world!".
Maybe a candidate for the designation cult classic?
Murdoch Mysteries: Why is Everybody Singing? (2024)
Why is everybody singing?
Outside of finally (?) seeing the capture of a recurring enemy, I miss the reason for turning the episode into a musical. The writers have had fun over the years mixing modern inventions and real people from history into plot lines, so why not a musical. Actually, a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta might have been more appropriate but harder to write. Not that the writers couldn't have pulled it off but it was probably easier to do the musical. Still stuck for an answer to the question, why do it.
I was impressed the cast did their own singing and dancing. And everyone from the cast had an opportunity to showcase their unexpected ability to show off unexpected talent: Johnny Harris was the standout and not a surprise.
The mystery wasn't as satisfying as in past episodes nor was the resolution. I assume if you're watching season seventeen that you're not new to Murdoch Mysteries but a long-time fan. My biggest concern was that this might be the send-off to a series I have watched faithfully. I understand the series has been green-lit for season eighteen. Now I am hoping for seasons nineteen and twenty before we bid adieu to one of the greatest casts in series history.
Polar (2019)
How is it possible this film isn't at minimum a cult classic
If you like the John Wick series than you should give Polar a chance. Duncan Vizia (Mads Mikkelsen) is a hit man who works for a company named Damocles and he is fourteen days away from retirement, but it's going to be a long fourteen days.
If you read the summary below the title clip then you know the entire plot and the villain. What's fun is watching Vizia dispatch the assassins and army of same who have been ordered to kill him.
The film has more than its share of body count, I quit counting after a 100. But there are some moments of dark humor; Vizia tries to have a "normal retirement" having a pet for company so he won't be alone in his Montana cabin. Unfortunately, Vizia doesn't have a deft hand with pets, but then attempts a novel solution, he tries to be a pet parent to his shy next door neighbor Camille. Camille presents with an interesting back story: when thirteen she was working as a Santa helper, a first job she loved. But she tells Vizia that the Santa unexpectedly beat and raped her. Vizia's employer, the unctuous Mr. Blut (Matt Lucas), has a predilection to wearing the color red, could he possibly the Santa from 20 years ago? The possibility seems more than coincidence when Blut has her grabbed and imprisoned.
Vizia's long-term contact Vivian had been told to lure Vizia into bogus hits that were really attempts to have him killed. Vivian has continually urged Blut to just pay Vizia; it's better then having to look over their shoulders for the rest of their lives. Blut disagrees and has Vivian to try a new way to lure his nemesis.
As you watch the story unfold, it all seems to be nothing but another Wick-like body count movie. But don't let assumptions urge you to give this film a pass. It has twists and surprises that set it apart.
I chose to watch because I am a Mads Mikkelsen fan. I recommend you watch his Danish TV series Rejseholdet (Unit One). Until then, give Polar a chance.
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024)
Welcome Back Axel Foley
For those of us who saw the original Beverly Hills Cop, this was action movie, comedy, and some nostalgia. It was nice seeing cameo appearances from Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser, and Bronson Pinchot. And in this film Taylour Paige is perfect not only as Alex's daughter but his partner as well. Plus, Axel also gets a new police officer partner played by Joseph Gorden-Levitt.
And I doubt it is a spoiler to say you know what role Kevin Bacon will have in this film. The plot is nothing new here: bad guy threatens good guy who then disappears, but before doing so sends message to old friend who comes looking to find same.
What makes the film work is that Eddie Murphy surrounded himself with excellent actors, found a good story, and a good director. Eddie Murphy slides back into the Alex Foley persona and takes everyone on a great "road-trip." The sharp dialogue, the "fish out of Beverly Hills" juxtaposition, the "friends" in bad places-it all works thanks to Murphy.
You will enjoy the villains because they are bad villains. And you know they will be busted by Alex. But before that happens you will be laughing so hard you might (the letter P) yourself, because of the nonstop action, the sight gags, the destruction of property, and the dialogue only Eddy Murphy can get away with.
If you can't enjoy this film then it's time to . . . You know.
Before I forget, there is a great sound track attached to this film. I can only hope there will be another film in this franchise, but if not Axel leaves on a high note.
Prisoners of the Sun (2013)
You are a prisoner
When I found this film, and I read Egyptian pyramid and lost city and gods of ancient Egypt and John Rhys-Davies, I felt compelled to watch. But when the opening credits started rolling and John Rhys-Davies was the lead actor, alarm bells started ringing.
I recommend you watch the firs ten minutes for exposition so you know the players, i.e. Good guys and bad guys and the basic plotline.
Then fast forward 53 minutes to 01:04 leaving our actors trapped in the tomb with the exclamation, "Oh, something's wrong," and about 24 minutes left to go. You will suffer some cheesy dialogue or maybe monologue as it's not clear if any of the "actors" are actually listening to one another. Then you reach the unspectacular climax, and you are grateful if you listened to me and did fast forward as I suggested.
As you shake your head in disbelieve that you wasted about 35 minutes of your life, just be thankful you didn't watch Doctor Mordrid.
The Flash (2023)
And it has the Real Batman
Usually, I am not a fan of films that use time travel or multiple dimensions due to timeline changes, but this time it works and does so stupendously. Ezra Miller gave a great performance as Barry Allen and Barry Allen. I believe this is one of the best superhero films. Sasha Calle was excellent as Kara Zor-El. But for me seeing Michael Keaton as Batman took me back to 1989 and seeing the first Batman movie. I was 43 then and vacationing in Puerto Rico with my family. Batman mania was everywhere Kids were on the streets selling lanyards with the Batman logo. We saw the movie at the Carolina Movie Theater Complex.
Then there was the brief scene watching the changing timeline with glimpses of George Reeves' Superman, Christopher Reeves' Superman, and Adam West's Batman plus a few others. I am sure for today's audience the nostalgia had no meaning.
I just enjoyed this film from start to finish. And I would encourage those watching this on a streaming channel to watch the credits with the falling dog and then fast forward to the end of the credits for a great cameo from Jason Momoa.
I've read some of the reviews and I believe they just don't get it. This is not Citizen Kane or The Godfather; this is just entertainment to be enjoyed with popcorn. Kick back and enjoy the ride. The CGI is fine, the story works out well for a timestream flic, there are good action scenes, and some great tongue-in-cheek humor, especially revolving around Batman. This is what a super hero movie should look like. Anyone remember the first Iron Man film before everything got lost in the Marvel Universe?
The Judge (2014)
Too Good To Miss
It's tough to find a film with no bad actors, with an adult plot, and with scenes that make your laugh, and scenes so realistic they break your heart. Anyone out there who has had to be a carer for an adult parent suffering from disease will need a Kleenex for a scene in a bathroom with Downey and Duvall.
I am not sure if I ever say Robert Duvall turn in a poor performance. And after I saw Robert Downey Jr. In Chaplin, I knew he was a great actor who was robbed of an Oscar. After that there were some hits and misses until he did Iron Man in 2008 and carried the Marvel Universe forward to becoming a huge franchise.
In this film you will see two actors in two great performances. That alone should be reason enough to watch this film. But the story will draw you in to figure out why a respected judge seems to have gathered so many enemies, and why a cut-throat defense attorney would have even one friend.
As to the finish of this film, I don't know, that is for you to decide on how it went.
The Out-Laws (2023)
It doesn't get much worse than this
There are some bits that are laugh out loud funny but the movie as a whole sort of bombs. No doubt you read the plot summary so you know the players. Pierce Brosnan has some good moments having fun with his role (Billy McDermott), but to be honest, I have been a Brosnan fan since Remington Steele. And I wish there was more for Ellen Barkin (Lily McDermott) to do.
One great scene is when Julie Hagerty (Marge Browning, mother of the groom) is sitting in a restaurant with her husband Neil (Richard Kind) waiting to meet the parents of Parker McDermott, their son's fiancée. Hagerty sits there with her look of innocence as Pierce Bronson says he believes that in her youth she likely a wild girl. Hagerty looks surprised and shocked and she blurts out that she did a lot of orgies where everyone did everyone. Her son looks shocked but her husband knew, he even drove her to some.
After that unexpected bit, the film goes downhill fast. Really fast. Casting Adam Devine as the groom was the biggest mistake. I gather he is one of the groups of what now passes for comedic actors: over-the-top with yelling and screaming and making faces.
My wife looked at me and wanted to know why we, basically me, were watching this unfunny mess. I said I watched it because Pierce Brosnan was in it. She countered with this film is so bad that Pierce Brosnan wouldn't watch it. She is probably right and it's likely Pierce Brosnan did it for the paycheck which affords him the opportunity to do other projects like Fast Charlie or The Great Lillian Hall.
Just skip this one or if you must then watch it up to the end of the early on restaurant scene.
Father Brown, Detective (1934)
A Much Too Good Persuasive Priest
Unfortunate that this is the sole outing of Father Brown with Walter Connolly as the lead. His Father Brown captures the essence of G. K. Chesterton's eponymous detective.
Paul Lukas basically plays Paul Lukas as Flambeau, the master thief who has an ongoing competition with Father Brown. Although Lukas had an expansive and impressive film career, he played the same character whether he was Flambeau or Prof. Pierre Aronnax (20,000 Leagues Under the Sea) or Stein (Lord Jim).
In this film Flambeau announces his intention to steal ten diamonds including those on the cross belonging to Father Brown. It's fun to watch Father Brown leave a trail of clues for the police to follow as he leads Flambeau on to a possible repentance. But can Flambeau change into an honest man? I can only hope not as Flambeau is a most interesting thief.
Fingers at the Window (1942)
Excellent Entertainment
Except for the improbable event that Edwina Brown (Laraine Day) so quickly trusts Oliver Duffy (Lew Ayres), this is quite an interesting movie. There is an axe-murderer is terrorizing Chicago and the police are baffled. The psychiatrist helping the police believes this is the work of a lunatic. The plot has been used by multiple mystery writers; the villain murders several people to cover up who his real target is. Regardless, this is a surprising good film.
Lew Ayres turns in a good performance as the actor turned detective when the woman he meets seems to be targeted. And Laraine Day is quite good as the scatterbrain who trusts too quickly.
We know the man behind the axe murders but the motive isn't known until the very end. Somehow the improbabilities hold together, and we have an entertaining movie to watch.
I caught this on Hastings Mystery Theater on YouTube and was glad I did or I wouldn't have found this little gem
While I watched this on a summer morning in heat and humidity of Savannah, I felt it would be better to watch on a cold rainy day in December.
War of the Worlds: Extinction (2024)
You can only hope for Extinction
I did not watch the first "film" in this series and barely made it through this film. All I can compare it too is a Tom Baker Dr. Who adventure except that the Tom Baker episodes were more fun.
William Baldwin barely phones in his performance on a landline. And he's the best actor in the bunch. The plot is typical: there is a device that can destroy the Earth but who will get to it first, Baldwin the alien general with a gigantic battlecruiser and army of three, or Earth general, Michael Pare, with his small battle pod and army of four which consists of his wife, two daughters, and one daughter's boyfriend. Money was not spent on cast for sure.
Or will common sense prevail and all saved? No way am I giving away the ending. If I sat through this mess then so will you.
I can only hope this wasn't conceived as a trilogy and we will be spared a third film. But who knows.
This is featured as a TUBI original and as such the only cost is sitting through a bunch of commercials and most of us already know how to do that.
I suppose if you must, you can view the earlier film War of the Worlds: Annihilation to get the bigger picture, and the prologue to the current film will make sense. Both films are on TUBI. And TUBI is better than PLEX as while they run fewer commercials until you approach the end of a film where commercials get bundled into packs of twelve running one right after the other.
After the Flood (2024)
Too long and really too long
First, this series is way too long. With some cutting this story could have been told in four episodes or better, three episodes. Joanna Marshall, a police woman, wants to be a detective to emulate her Dad, pokes into an accidental drowning which she believes to be a murder. She suspects everyone but misses seeing obvious clues, and constantly misreads people who are involved in a coverup, and as a result places people in danger.
And there are numerous subplots including one concerning her mom, and an affair she had in the past. Then there is one concerning her partner and the baby they are having. And there is a concern about the town she lives in being flooded out. Basically, this is a soap opera with all the required twists and revelations.
By the end of episode three, you just won't care. It's a shame to see the wasted talents of a decent cast. I really hope there won't be a chance for a second season.
I believe the worst parts of this series are the big reveal that you knew was coming by the end of episode one. And if you were expecting to see a flood that would wash away the bad players and cleanse the town of its filth, literal and figurative, then be prepared to be disappointed. Brit Box let me down with this series.
Four Fast Guns (1960)
Guns are fast but not the film
Grade C story, grade B+ direction, grade B- actors, grade C- acting, and grade B+ ending, so a grade C+ film.
I really stumbled across this "Western" film. I had clicked on a Charlie Chan film while searching through YouTube and Four Fast Guns popped up instead.
Edgar Buchanan had star billing. Yes, Uncle Joe from Petticoat Junction and from over 150+ films and TV shows where he earned fame from being listed as uncredited or with characters named: Bartender Dan, Applejack, Uncle Willie, Old Willy, Dr. Samuels, Uncle Harry, and Will "Bill" Dowdy to name a few. So, when the credits began for Four Fast Guns and Buchanan was the star, I had to watch. Especially as Buchanan intoned the opening lines with "This man came along the trail one Sunday morning in '73, taking it slow and easy, keeping his eyes open and his gun hand ready. He came from nowhere, I guess. Anyhow, he never said from where and we never asked. He was going to stop off in Purgatory, to make his stand like he lived - alone. This is Number One. He called himself Sabin."
And then there was the action from the get go as Sabin is about to be gunned down by what is termed "a town tamer." After killing the man who would have murdered him, Sabin rides into the town of Purgatory where he is taken for the sent for town tamer.
The plot is typical in that there is a villain (monster) holding a town (castle) captive, and the townsfolk gather enough money to hire a fast gun (knight errant) to save them and free the villain's wife (damsel-in-distress).
For the most part it works. The director, William J. Hole Jr., makes the most of shooting in black and white, and he know how to "show" the audience by not showing them. But he doesn't know how to keep the story tight and focused. Most of the "starring" actors are recognizable-James Craig, Brett Halsey, Richard Martin, Paul Richards-but aren't names you know. Usually, they turn in a good performance, but here there is a feeling they could have all done better.
The ending is true to the film and could have been powerful and memorable but instead it comes off as mediocre. The final shot was worthy of a Clint Eastwood Western, but here it comes close to laughable.
With someone else at the helm, this might have had a chance to be a High Noon. Instead Four Fast Guns has ended up a forgotten film.
I still recommend giving this film a viewing because the majority of what's there on the screen is pretty darn good.
Atlas (2024)
The six is for effects
The writers latch onto a current concern: what happens if AI develops to a point where it decides it's time for us to go and it's bye-bye humanity. The special effects are good and I like imaginings of what the future will look like and what I will miss out on, unless maganuts destroy everything first.
I assume most who decided to watch Atlas did so because they like a good sci-fi space opera and wanted to see how Jenny from the block is holding up.
There isn't a lot new here as plot goes: madman (mad robot, same thing) is determined to kill everyone except for a few chosen; heroine is off to stop him. And plot twist (not really), heroine finds soul mate.
The film is pretty much a one woman show as Ms. Lopez is on camera 100 per cent of the time. As she has to work in a confined space for much of the film, acting as such is how well Ms. Lopez can use her voice to create mood and sense of urgency. Basically a decent pop corn flic.
Hellboy (2019)
I loe you Lobster, no, I love you Hellboy. I love yoooo
What happened to having a sense of humor? I caught this on Netflix and figured what the Hellboy, I'll give it a watch. What a hysterical mashup of just about every fun flic: Time Bandits, John Wick, Solomon Kane, Big Fish, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and Gremlins.
Hellboy mocks serious enough to have a few serious moments, but the bulk of the film is just one big wisecrack. You will watch this film at least twice. After a first viewing, you will sit there with pen and paper (or more likely with your iPhone and its record app) to note dialogue because there are just too many lines to remember.
Another plus for Hellboy is its cast. Ian McShane alone can utter the most ridiculous lines with a straight face. Daniel Dae Kim is perfect as Major Ben Daimio; and David Harbour has great fun as Hellboy. Plus, Stephen Graham lends his voice to Gruagach making the CGI character become, well, become whatever a pig-monster is. Brian Gleeson turns Merlin into an Irish leprechaun, and Thomas Haden Church has a great cameo.
The plot is not new. The world is being menaced by an evil power set on destroying mankind and we need a hero to save same.
Hellboy is entertainment from start to finish. The film actually has good actors who can act. Special effects are good and the film is a great popcorn flic. It would be a shame not to give it a chance.
Shardlake (2024)
The first of more to come, I hope
Many years ago on Masterpiece Mystery, the series Cadfael written by Ellis Peters and
staring Derek Jacobi was very popular, it ran for 15 episodes. Cadfael was set in the 12th century; Shardlake takes place in the 16th century during the reign of Henry VIII, and this is series I which consists of four episodes. The author of the Shardlake series, C. J. Sansom, completed seven novels and was planning for more, but his death on 27 April 2024 has ended hope for additional novels.
Matthew Shardlake is somewhat crippled due to a birth that left him with scoliosis and a brachioplasty affecting his right hand. The opening sequence with Matthew dressing clearly presents the viewer a understanding of Matthew's condition. Unable to join the church, Matthew becomes a lawyer, and becomes involved with the court of Henry the VIII, initially by serving the princess Elizabeth, but in this series, he serves Lord Thomas Cromwell.
One of Cromwell's men was murdered while looking into the finances of a monastery in the old port city of Scarnsea. Shardlake is sent to solve the murder, but Shardlake's true purpose is to find a reason to close the monastery and forfeit its wealth and lands to King Henry.
This is a well-done series. The cast is excellent and is led by Arthur Hughes as Matthew Shardlake, and Anthony Boyle as John Barak. While the producers make sure to attract viewers by advertising it stars Sean Bean as Thomas Cromwell. Bean is there, but his appearance is brief. Hopefully the audience will stay as the location shooting is amazing and the cast is replete with excellent actors.
If you are a fan of mystery, and historical mystery, you will enjoy this production. I hope it stays around to finish up the six remaining novels.
Currently this is running on Hulu. For some reason, I had some difficulty in watching as there were issues with the story jumping around a bit. I had to downgrade my Hulu subscription to with commercials, and that seems to have affected the quality. The commercials may be to blame. Regardless, I recommend Shardlake.
Murdoch Mysteries: Station House of Horror (2023)
Trick or Treat, Smell my Feet! Ha Ha
I have been a fan of Murdock Mysteries since episode one, so I was stuck trying to figure out this episode until I saw the date it premiered: 30 October 2023. This was likely a homage to the Simpson's Treehouse or Horror with its current run of XXXIV episodes as of 2023. Unfortunately, the Murdoch attempt falls flat as none of the episode stories has the humor of a good Simpsons jab. And even the horror tales on the Simpsons have laid more than one bad egg. But the writers, of Murdoch Mysteries and the Simpsons, have over the years succeeded in poking fun at popular figures, real and fictional, and popular movies etc. At least pretend you get the joke and the episode might be more trick than treat. And if you can view this through the eyes of Nelson Muntz then you can end with a mocking Ha Ha.
Road House (2024)
More the Quiet Man bumps into a Road House
If you claim you are doing a homage then read the original script and try to follow it as a guide. Swayze brought some charm and personality to Dalton. I can't blame Gyllenhaal who looks great, and his body no doubt shames a lot of 40 year-olds who are more belly fat then Abs. And he seems to be enjoying himself, but he can only do what he is told to do.
There is a bit of The Quiet Man (a much better movie) here as Gyllenhaal like Wayne's character doesn't want to fight because of what happened in his last professional fight.
Watch this "remake" for a few good action scenes, and there is a tad of sarcastic dialogue for a quick chuckle, but there is little else to recommend it.