What Are You Watching

[kinuta]

Show Me A Hero    Mediocre

Public Morals         Unwatchable, pulled the plug.

[jlhoots]

Show Me A Hero    Mediocre

Public Morals         Unwatchable, pulled the plug.

Ouch!!

Apparently we don't agree on these. I thought Show Me A Hero was very good. Not The Wire, but still well done.

I've only seen one episode of Public Morals. Will watch the 2nd episode tonight.

 

[JSngry]

An ok movie, I could have done without all the "action" sequences and the effects therein, more or less fluffyfiller in between real story, but here's a question, Dustin Hoffman might have made a great Holmes, just probably with no accent, please.

[A Lark Ascending]

"Danny and the Human Zoo"

A BBC film loosely based around Lenny Henry's entry into show business. Enjoyable but not as gripping as I'd hoped. Sort of fizzled out at the end. Though it did get a good feel for life outside London in the early to mid-70s. 

Edited September 2, 2015 by A Lark Ascending

[kinuta]

Show Me A Hero    Mediocre

Public Morals         Unwatchable, pulled the plug.

Ouch!!

Apparently we don't agree on these. I thought Show Me A Hero was very good. Not The Wire, but still well done.

I've only seen one episode of Public Morals. Will watch the 2nd episode tonight.

 

The cast were good in SMAH and it was competently made. The thing that sank it for me was simply the story.

As a non American, the story of local politics and public housing in Yonkers was just not interesting.

If a similar film had been made about public housing related political shenanigans in Tokyo, I doubt it would have seen the light of day.

The thing that made The Wire work was the interaction between the cops, the dopers, the politicians and, in season two, the unions. It gave it a wide canvas to paint on.

Public Morals was just plain awful, I can't really add more than that.

[erwbol]

Better Call Saul, Season 1, BluRay sourced 1080p mkv files.

[A Lark Ascending]

Found this a bit dull to be honest. Some lovely photography but there didn't seem to be much substance to the story. 

[kinuta]

Found a copy of the 1983 tv production of The Sign Of Four. Creaky and flawed but Ian Richardson is brilliant as Holmes, choosing to make him a slightly warmer, less self centered and sardonic character. It's a shame he only appeared as Holmes in this and The Hound Of The Baskervilles, his might just be my favourite interpretation.

The Sign Of Four - Desmond Davis (1983) TV

[JSngry]

Narcos, a Netflix original "based on" Pablo Escobar and the US/Columbian govt interactions in and around all that. 10 episodes, Brenda started watching early this AM, by the time I woke up she was on, like Episode3 and we both decided to ride it all the way to the end in one sitting. Probably not a "great" show, but really well executed, imo. Plus, I tend to always get into those things where the gangster starts out doing bad for good reasons and then inevitably pivots into just doing bad, period, but still having that Righteous Indignation Card to play when it fits. The ongoing practical uses of a finer-tuned sense of what is what when it is are obvious.

This is definitely one of those things, and oh, yeah, at one point, the Columbian president does chide the US's pique at them refusing the US's offer for "resources" to combat Escobar by pointing out that perhaps the US's resources might be better targeted domestically, since it is the exploding demand that is driving the exploding supply. Touche, check, and mate, although, you can't much make a series out of just that, can you.

[kinuta]

Narcos, a Netflix original "based on" Pablo Escobar and the US/Columbian govt interactions in and around all that. 10 episodes, Brenda started watching early this AM, by the time I woke up she was on, like Episode3 and we both decided to ride it all the way to the end in one sitting. Probably not a "great" show, but really well executed, imo. Plus, I tend to always get into those things where the gangster starts out doing bad for good reasons and then inevitably pivots into just doing bad, period, but still having that Righteous Indignation Card to play when it fits. The ongoing practical uses of a finer-tuned sense of what is what when it is are obvious.

This is definitely one of those things, and oh, yeah, at one point, the Columbian president does chide the US's pique at them refusing the US's offer for "resources" to combat Escobar by pointing out that perhaps the US's resources might be better targeted domestically, since it is the exploding demand that is driving the exploding supply. Touche, check, and mate, although, you can't much make a series out of just that, can you.

It was all right but ended just dangling in the air, which leads one to conclude that a second season is coming.

Methinks that might be a outstaying its welcome.

[Shawn]

Narcos has already been renewed for season 2.  

 

[JSngry]

I was content with it ending how it did.

[A Lark Ascending]

Passes the time but this may be a case of much of the humour getting lost in translation. I'm not sure if this post-dated Britain's 'The Thick of It' - the latter is much more acidic.  

[kinuta]

Ray Donovan 

This season is really good.

 

Watched some of Hand Of God.

Thought it was rubbish , pulled the plug.

 

Now watching the second Ian Richardson as Sherlock Holmes film, The Hound Of The Baskervilles. Good.

[A Lark Ascending]

Love and Betrayal in India: The White Mughal (BBC 4)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/18SDBJqWwgc7VLDM7MhGK2S/a-love-story-that-broke-the-conventional-boundaries-of-empire

Intriguing story of an early 19th C love affair and marriage between an officer/diplomat in the East India Company and an Indian princess and its political repercussions.

Presented by William Dalrymple (and based on his book), an historian who I've yet to read anything by (I have The Last Mughal on the shelf waiting!). Want to explore him having attended an educational conference workshop a couple of years back where his work was used as a means of presenting an alternative view of the British Empire. 

Dalrymple did a wonderful job in rubbishing Michael Gove's preconceptions when he attempted to singlehandedly re-write the English history national curriculum a few years back.  

Loved this bit which he ended the programme on:

At a time when respectable academics talk of a 'Clash of Civilisations', and East and West, Islam and Christianity appear to be engaged in another major confrontation, the White Mughals provides a timely reminder that it is indeed very possible – and has always been possible – to reconcile the two worlds. It is only bigotry, prejudice, racism and fear drive them apart. But they have met and mingled in the past; and they will do so again.

Edited September 9, 2015 by A Lark Ascending

[kinuta]

Longmire.

I'm very late to the game, I had to wait until I was in the right mindset to appreciate this.

The stories are uniformly good and the cast work well together. 

It would have been an easy copout to make Longmire a shoot first take no prisoners type macho man but luckily that isn't the route taken.

I'm enjoying it.

[jazzbo]

I don't do Netflix so I won't see Season Four for some time, but I watched the first three seasons of Longmire since broadcast and really like it. Especially the third season.

I finished Season 3 of Heroes. . . will move on to Season 4 soon. Been watching a lot of shows Lucinda likes, and having fun with them, especially Psychic Detectives.

[jlhoots]

I like Longmire too.

The Craig Johnson novels are fun as well.

[Shawn]

The Worriker Trilogy (BBC) - Episode 2: Turks & Caicos

I loved the first episode of this spy series (Page Eight also starring Bill Nighy, with Rachel Weisz) but didn't know it was part of a series because in the US it was released as "Page Eight" and I thought it was a standalone film.  Amazon Prime has the entire series for streaming so I'm a happy camper.  

Hell of a cast too...Bill Nighy, Christopher Walken, Winona Ryder and Helena Bonham Carter plus a fine cast of character actors including James Naughton, Dylan Baker, Rupert Graves, Zack Grenier and Malik Yoba.  Typically excellent BBC production.

[kinuta]

The Worriker Trilogy (BBC) - Episode 2: Turks & Caicos

I loved the first episode of this spy series (Page Eight also starring Bill Nighy, with Rachel Weisz) but didn't know it was part of a series because in the US it was released as "Page Eight" and I thought it was a standalone film.  Amazon Prime has the entire series for streaming so I'm a happy camper.  

Hell of a cast too...Bill Nighy, Christopher Walken, Winona Ryder and Helena Bonham Carter plus a fine cast of character actors including James Naughton, Dylan Baker, Rupert Graves, Zack Grenier and Malik Yoba.  Typically excellent BBC production.

Turks might be the weakest of the three but Salting The Battlefield is good stuff.

[jlhoots]

Homeland - season 4

[Shawn]

 

Turks might be the weakest of the three but Salting The Battlefield is good stuff.

Well, I enjoyed it.  It was laid back but had a great atmosphere and I enjoyed seeing all those character actors working together.  It was nice to see Winona Ryder given a good part for a change.  

Oh yeah, I'll basically watch anything with Bill Nighy, I think he's quite possibly the coolest person alive.  

[A Lark Ascending]

The Worriker Trilogy (BBC) - Episode 2: Turks & Caicos

I loved the first episode of this spy series (Page Eight also starring Bill Nighy, with Rachel Weisz) but didn't know it was part of a series because in the US it was released as "Page Eight" and I thought it was a standalone film.  Amazon Prime has the entire series for streaming so I'm a happy camper.  

Hell of a cast too...Bill Nighy, Christopher Walken, Winona Ryder and Helena Bonham Carter plus a fine cast of character actors including James Naughton, Dylan Baker, Rupert Graves, Zack Grenier and Malik Yoba.  Typically excellent BBC production.

Watched all three when they were screened here a while back. Enjoyed them very much indeed. 

Last night:

"A303 - Highway to the Sun."  Missed this when it first screened and on its repeats but found it on the iPlayer.

Very nice, gentle programme about a road I often find myself on. Never knew Weyhill Fair was so important - only know it from a song (which they played a snippet from). 

[jlhoots]

Happy Valley - season 1, finally released on US format DVD!!

[A Lark Ascending]

Happy Valley - season 1, finally released on US format DVD!!

Hopefully with subtitles! 

Never seen this right through before - one of those things forever on at Xmas while you are doing other things. Pleasant 90 minutes if rather corny in this day and age. 

Edited September 15, 2015 by A Lark Ascending