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Ross (3284 KP) rated After Life in TV
Apr 11, 2019
Gervais tries to break the mould again
Once again we see Ricky Gervais try to break the mould for a sit-com, this time by covering some pretty deep and heavy topics. While the humour is still there, it comes through fairly infrequently and is a little off kilter, when compared to the drama of the series.
Gervais plays Tony, a journalist on a local free paper who has recently lost his wife to cancer. Tony has simply given up on life and, while he cannot bring himself to end it, he seems to have decided to just do whatever he wants, no matter the consequences. He is rude to people in the street, makes his colleagues' working days miserable, and while he visits his dad in a care home regularly he clearly hates it and is just doing it out of duty.
Most of the comedy comes through in Gervais doing what he does best - being rude and nasty and way over the top in insulting people. The humour here is more for the shock value (calling a 6 year old a tubby little c**t for example) rather than a more considered layer of humour. As Tony has decided he can just do whatever he wants and hang the consequences, he takes a stand against stupid rules (the scene where he takes his nephew for tea in a café was brilliant).
I preferred the drama side of the series - him trying drugs, meeting new people and gradually softening over the series were some very touching moments and very well written. However when weighed against the comedy it just seems incongruous. I think Gervais needs to think about whether he wants to write a drama (and tone down the comedy a little more) or a comedy (and try less to push the boundaries).
Tony's epiphany was a little rushed/hard to spot. It seems that after 5 episodes of not caring about anything, the 6th starts off with him suddenly being a changed man out of nowhere. There were small moments where he seemed to soften but there was no sudden realisation big enough to justify the change of heart in the last episode.
This was a pretty hard hitting, emotional series, but I think it lost a little of the impact by having Gervais in it and trying to shoe-horn his sense of humour into it.
Gervais plays Tony, a journalist on a local free paper who has recently lost his wife to cancer. Tony has simply given up on life and, while he cannot bring himself to end it, he seems to have decided to just do whatever he wants, no matter the consequences. He is rude to people in the street, makes his colleagues' working days miserable, and while he visits his dad in a care home regularly he clearly hates it and is just doing it out of duty.
Most of the comedy comes through in Gervais doing what he does best - being rude and nasty and way over the top in insulting people. The humour here is more for the shock value (calling a 6 year old a tubby little c**t for example) rather than a more considered layer of humour. As Tony has decided he can just do whatever he wants and hang the consequences, he takes a stand against stupid rules (the scene where he takes his nephew for tea in a café was brilliant).
I preferred the drama side of the series - him trying drugs, meeting new people and gradually softening over the series were some very touching moments and very well written. However when weighed against the comedy it just seems incongruous. I think Gervais needs to think about whether he wants to write a drama (and tone down the comedy a little more) or a comedy (and try less to push the boundaries).
Tony's epiphany was a little rushed/hard to spot. It seems that after 5 episodes of not caring about anything, the 6th starts off with him suddenly being a changed man out of nowhere. There were small moments where he seemed to soften but there was no sudden realisation big enough to justify the change of heart in the last episode.
This was a pretty hard hitting, emotional series, but I think it lost a little of the impact by having Gervais in it and trying to shoe-horn his sense of humour into it.
Emma @ The Movies (1786 KP) rated The Amazing Spider-Man in Apps
Sep 25, 2019
The Amazing Spider-man, starring Andrew Garfield, came out 10 years after Maguire's ill-fated first attempt, on 3rd July 2012. Co-starring some greats, including Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Martin Sheen and Sally Fields. You might as well read the last summary for this one too, but add in the fact that he's out to solve his parents' mysterious death.
Peter is less nerd, more loser this time around. And generally he comes across as a bit more sad than before. But you'd expect that as we started the movie with a sad farewell. He has a bit of a "moment" with his dad's old briefcase to push that fact home a bit more.
No field trip for this Peter, instead he gatecrashes an intern enrolment to get a nosy at what might have to do with his parent's past. We learn lessons from this film too... in this one it is super easy to break into what must be highly classified labs.
Peter's transformation happens a lot quicker in this one, much to the trauma of everyone in the subway carriage with him. His little morning rampage gives me visions of Wolverine destroying the sink in X-men Origins: Wolverine... and now I come to think of it, doesn't Cyclops have a meltdown with his powers in a bathroom? What can we learn about this? Superpowers make you hate bathroom fixtures.
Did anyone else notice the guy who runs Jurassic World? Is he trying to pick up tips on how to super charge those dinosaurs? And while we're talking about mystery appearances, I'm torn about Spidey helping The Reaper rescue his son.
Honestly, my favourite line has to be... "Yeah, nobody likes your meatloaf." Sheen and Fields reacting to each other is just priceless.
Uncle Ben dying in this one is a lot more dramatic and sets Peter off on a bit of a crusade that leads to some better green screened wall walking. And some handy falling through a roof into a wrestling arena, gives him an idea for his costume, and we see a montage of him honing his skills and tech... we're a little bit past shooting some white gunk out of our wrists at this point. I like that he points out everything is spandex, yes Parker, there should be other options.
After the big costume reveal I feel like the film drags a bit. It's good, and I enjoy it, but I feel like there's a lot of film for not a lot of plot... does that make sense? Possibly not, but I know what I mean, so it's all good.
Just goes to show you how much I was paying attention in the last one. I missed Stan Lee's cameo. This one was much better, listening to music in his library while it gets destroyed in a fight behind him. Stan Lee, I love you. Genuine hearts all around.
The crane moving scene is, well, a little bit moving. One good deed deserves another, and let's fly a flag in the background for added effect.
We started sad, we end sad. I definitely prefer this film to Spider-man. It isn't without its own flaws though. While Spider-man was just over two hours, it didn't feel like that's how long you were watching for. The Amazing Spider-man felt like 2 hours 16 minutes of screen time. But the ending... she's angry at him, and then he whispers to her, and she gives that little smile, and as she dips her head he knows she's going to forgive him. And we're left with a spark of joy.
Peter is less nerd, more loser this time around. And generally he comes across as a bit more sad than before. But you'd expect that as we started the movie with a sad farewell. He has a bit of a "moment" with his dad's old briefcase to push that fact home a bit more.
No field trip for this Peter, instead he gatecrashes an intern enrolment to get a nosy at what might have to do with his parent's past. We learn lessons from this film too... in this one it is super easy to break into what must be highly classified labs.
Peter's transformation happens a lot quicker in this one, much to the trauma of everyone in the subway carriage with him. His little morning rampage gives me visions of Wolverine destroying the sink in X-men Origins: Wolverine... and now I come to think of it, doesn't Cyclops have a meltdown with his powers in a bathroom? What can we learn about this? Superpowers make you hate bathroom fixtures.
Did anyone else notice the guy who runs Jurassic World? Is he trying to pick up tips on how to super charge those dinosaurs? And while we're talking about mystery appearances, I'm torn about Spidey helping The Reaper rescue his son.
Honestly, my favourite line has to be... "Yeah, nobody likes your meatloaf." Sheen and Fields reacting to each other is just priceless.
Uncle Ben dying in this one is a lot more dramatic and sets Peter off on a bit of a crusade that leads to some better green screened wall walking. And some handy falling through a roof into a wrestling arena, gives him an idea for his costume, and we see a montage of him honing his skills and tech... we're a little bit past shooting some white gunk out of our wrists at this point. I like that he points out everything is spandex, yes Parker, there should be other options.
After the big costume reveal I feel like the film drags a bit. It's good, and I enjoy it, but I feel like there's a lot of film for not a lot of plot... does that make sense? Possibly not, but I know what I mean, so it's all good.
Just goes to show you how much I was paying attention in the last one. I missed Stan Lee's cameo. This one was much better, listening to music in his library while it gets destroyed in a fight behind him. Stan Lee, I love you. Genuine hearts all around.
The crane moving scene is, well, a little bit moving. One good deed deserves another, and let's fly a flag in the background for added effect.
We started sad, we end sad. I definitely prefer this film to Spider-man. It isn't without its own flaws though. While Spider-man was just over two hours, it didn't feel like that's how long you were watching for. The Amazing Spider-man felt like 2 hours 16 minutes of screen time. But the ending... she's angry at him, and then he whispers to her, and she gives that little smile, and as she dips her head he knows she's going to forgive him. And we're left with a spark of joy.
Phillip McSween (751 KP) rated The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) in Movies
Jan 29, 2018
Inspirational
If I'm being honest, I didn't expect to like this film. Everyone in the past twelve years since its release that has recommended it to me can only talk about how sad and downright heartbreaking it can be at times. Why would I want watch a film like that? After sitting through The Pursuit of Happyness, I have my answer.
Chris Gardner (Will Smith) is just trying to make money and take care of his family. After investing his entire life savings in a company that goes nowhere, he decides to risk it all and go out for an unpaid internship with a stockbroking company. The message here is extremely powerful, a message he delivers to his son about halfway through the film: If you want something, go get it. And, in the process of getting it, don't let anyone tell you that you can't have it.
The film revolves Gardner's struggle to work for no pay and still manage to take care of his son. You can't help but admire his hustle. Despite numerous shortcomings and failed attempts, he continues to push toward his vision. It's inspiration at its finest. And, just as people warned me, it's also heartbreaking to watch. I mean, the guy can't seem to catch a break. Ever. He takes a step forward then eight back. I appreciated the film being delivered in this fashion because of how real it felt. I never got the sense of sugarcoating. This man was broken, yet he found a way to piece himself back together.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention Jaden Smith's performance as Chris jr. He carries the innocence and sadness of a kid that's a victim of a situation he doesn't seem to fully understand. While it's heartbreaking to see them struggle, it's heartwarming to watch them struggle together.
My one complaint would be the movie ending a bit too abruptly for my taste. Other than that, what a great film! I give it a 92.
Chris Gardner (Will Smith) is just trying to make money and take care of his family. After investing his entire life savings in a company that goes nowhere, he decides to risk it all and go out for an unpaid internship with a stockbroking company. The message here is extremely powerful, a message he delivers to his son about halfway through the film: If you want something, go get it. And, in the process of getting it, don't let anyone tell you that you can't have it.
The film revolves Gardner's struggle to work for no pay and still manage to take care of his son. You can't help but admire his hustle. Despite numerous shortcomings and failed attempts, he continues to push toward his vision. It's inspiration at its finest. And, just as people warned me, it's also heartbreaking to watch. I mean, the guy can't seem to catch a break. Ever. He takes a step forward then eight back. I appreciated the film being delivered in this fashion because of how real it felt. I never got the sense of sugarcoating. This man was broken, yet he found a way to piece himself back together.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention Jaden Smith's performance as Chris jr. He carries the innocence and sadness of a kid that's a victim of a situation he doesn't seem to fully understand. While it's heartbreaking to see them struggle, it's heartwarming to watch them struggle together.
My one complaint would be the movie ending a bit too abruptly for my taste. Other than that, what a great film! I give it a 92.
Debbiereadsbook (1197 KP) rated Off Base (Out of Uniform #1) in Books
Oct 22, 2019
bloody LOVED this book!
I lovefinding new to me authors, and narrators and Ms Albert and Mr Stevens are bothnew to me! Zach ishiding himself, from his fellow SEALs, his family but most of all his hidingfrom himself. Moving off base seems to be the best solution but then his worstnightmare needs a place to stay and Zach can’t say no to Pike, and Pike’s cats.So, he grits his teeth and bares it. Pike, however, is gritting his teeth foran entirely different reason. He has a massive crush on Zach but can’t let Zachknow. The two men call an uneasy truce to do up the house, but neither can stayaway from the other for long. That stayingaway lasts only so long and it really was a joy to behold to watch Zach andPike get closer, and begin their friends with benefits thing, but it was alsopainful. Both men knew they shouldn’t do this, and it messed with everyone’s head,mine included! Zach is verymuch in the closet, and Pike is not. That alone causes Zach to have kittensabout every.single.little.thing! Everything, near the beginning, caused Zach topanic, but watching the man fall, watching him come out of himself and thatcloset, watching him fall in love with Pike?? Twas a beautiful thing!I loved thatit was ZACH who made the decision to do something about their situation, andPike did not push Zach, even though he really wanted to.Much of thatbeauty though, is in the delivery, and Tyler Stevens narrates. This is thefirst of his work I have come across and I need more, lots more! I loved thenarration, as much as the story itself! Stevens wasable to wrench so much emotion, particularly for Zach, into his narration, itwas almost listening to your best friend pour their heart out to you.The voicesfor Zach and Pike are very different, getting the point across about the manydifferences between the two men. ALL the voices are distinctive enough for meto not have any trouble with multi person conversations. Stevens reading voiceis deep and clear and very VERY easy to listen to.Someinteresting characters in the book, Ryan and Josiah (apologies if that’s nothow you spell, I’ve not seen it written down!) do they have a book?? Would LOVEto read or listen to their story! And Apollo. That man is sad, it’s too soon,but maybe, just maybe. . . .and OH!! His book is next! I just looked!I have booktwo to listen to next, but that is by a different narrator so it will be interestingto see how Apollo’s voice carries from one narrator to the next. 5 stars forthe book5 stars forthe narration5 starsoverall**sameworded review will appear elsewhere**
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Bob Mann (459 KP) rated Endless (2020) in Movies
Oct 19, 2020
Alexandra Shipp's acting is OK (1 more)
The British Columbian scenary
A Ghost "Ditto" - but without the star quality
Riley (Alexandra Shipp) and Chris (Nicholas Hamilton) are teenage lovers about to be torn apart... but not in the way you think. Riley is about to turn her back on her talent for comic book art to follow her parent's wishes: to study law on the other side of the country in Georgetown. Chris is from the other side of the tracks - aren't they always in these films? - living in a one-parent family with his mother Lee (Bond-girl Famke Janssen).
But fate is about to push them even further apart as - with an advert as to why drinking, texting and driving don't mix - Chris is killed in a car crash. Tragedy - when the feeling's gone and you can't go on! Can their love for each other reach beyond death itself, and if so, at what cost?
We've been here before of course with the Demi Moore / Patrick Swayze hit "Ghost" from 1990. That was an Oscar winner (Best Supporting Actress for Whoopi Goldberg and screenplay by Bruce Joel Rubin). Will "Endless" - a teen-love version - match this potential? Unfortunately, without a potter's wheel in sight, it doesn't stand a ghost of a chance.
It feels like it's not for the want of trying from the five youngsters* at the heart of the action, with Eddie Ramos and Zoë Belkin playing the lover's best friends and DeRon Horton being the limbo-trapped ghost-guide equivalent to the subway dropout from "Ghost". (* I say "youngsters", but most seem to be in their late twenties!) )
All seem to invest their energy into the project. Unfortunately, with the exception of Alexandra Shipp, the energy is not matched with great acting talent. Poor Nicholas Hamilton (the bully from "It") seems to have a particularly limited range, with his resting expression being "gormless".
None of the adult actors fair much better, with Famke Janssen being particularly unconvincing.
As I said, the exception here is Alexandra Shipp, who had a supporting role in "Love, Simon" and a more centre-stage role as "Storm" in the otherwise disappointing "X-Men: Dark Phoenix". Here she remains eminently watchable, but is hog-bound by a seriously dodgy script.
If you read my bob-the-movie-man blog regularly, you will know I reach for my flame-thrower at the appearance of voiceovers. And the start of this movie made me shudder with fear as a "tell, not show" approach was followed. It's a mild blessing that the script - by Andre Case and O'Neil Sharma - used this device purely as a slightly lazy way to set the scene and the voiceover didn't rear its ugly head again.
However, on a broader basis, the screenplay doesn't excite - predictability is its middle name - and it contains lines of dialogue that are absolute stinkers. There are whole sections of the movie that defy belief, with a police investigation in particular appearing completely incompetent. The result is that it adds neither drama or tension.
Through my career in IT I've had the great fortune to travel to a number of small cities in Canada, and all have appealed with their consistently picturesque qualities and consistently quirky individuals! Here we have the cities of Kelowna and Vernon in British Columbia playing California, and the drone cinematography (by Frank Borin and Mark Dobrescu) displays the dramatic lake-filled scenery to the full.
With so many cookie-cutter movies out there, it feels like the non-horror "Ghost" recipe (or "Heaven Can Wait" / "It's a Wonderful Life" / "A Matter of Life and Death" / delete per your preference) is well overdue for a makeover. Unfortunately, director Scott Speer's attempt just isn't good enough to fill the void. And that's a shame.
(For the full graphical review, please check out the bob-the-movie-man review here - https://rb.gy/mzq6jx . Thanks.)
But fate is about to push them even further apart as - with an advert as to why drinking, texting and driving don't mix - Chris is killed in a car crash. Tragedy - when the feeling's gone and you can't go on! Can their love for each other reach beyond death itself, and if so, at what cost?
We've been here before of course with the Demi Moore / Patrick Swayze hit "Ghost" from 1990. That was an Oscar winner (Best Supporting Actress for Whoopi Goldberg and screenplay by Bruce Joel Rubin). Will "Endless" - a teen-love version - match this potential? Unfortunately, without a potter's wheel in sight, it doesn't stand a ghost of a chance.
It feels like it's not for the want of trying from the five youngsters* at the heart of the action, with Eddie Ramos and Zoë Belkin playing the lover's best friends and DeRon Horton being the limbo-trapped ghost-guide equivalent to the subway dropout from "Ghost". (* I say "youngsters", but most seem to be in their late twenties!) )
All seem to invest their energy into the project. Unfortunately, with the exception of Alexandra Shipp, the energy is not matched with great acting talent. Poor Nicholas Hamilton (the bully from "It") seems to have a particularly limited range, with his resting expression being "gormless".
None of the adult actors fair much better, with Famke Janssen being particularly unconvincing.
As I said, the exception here is Alexandra Shipp, who had a supporting role in "Love, Simon" and a more centre-stage role as "Storm" in the otherwise disappointing "X-Men: Dark Phoenix". Here she remains eminently watchable, but is hog-bound by a seriously dodgy script.
If you read my bob-the-movie-man blog regularly, you will know I reach for my flame-thrower at the appearance of voiceovers. And the start of this movie made me shudder with fear as a "tell, not show" approach was followed. It's a mild blessing that the script - by Andre Case and O'Neil Sharma - used this device purely as a slightly lazy way to set the scene and the voiceover didn't rear its ugly head again.
However, on a broader basis, the screenplay doesn't excite - predictability is its middle name - and it contains lines of dialogue that are absolute stinkers. There are whole sections of the movie that defy belief, with a police investigation in particular appearing completely incompetent. The result is that it adds neither drama or tension.
Through my career in IT I've had the great fortune to travel to a number of small cities in Canada, and all have appealed with their consistently picturesque qualities and consistently quirky individuals! Here we have the cities of Kelowna and Vernon in British Columbia playing California, and the drone cinematography (by Frank Borin and Mark Dobrescu) displays the dramatic lake-filled scenery to the full.
With so many cookie-cutter movies out there, it feels like the non-horror "Ghost" recipe (or "Heaven Can Wait" / "It's a Wonderful Life" / "A Matter of Life and Death" / delete per your preference) is well overdue for a makeover. Unfortunately, director Scott Speer's attempt just isn't good enough to fill the void. And that's a shame.
(For the full graphical review, please check out the bob-the-movie-man review here - https://rb.gy/mzq6jx . Thanks.)
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Charlie Cobra Reviews (1840 KP) rated Gemini Man (2019) in Movies
Jul 7, 2020
Innovative and Intriguing, Double The Will Smith Fails To Push The Movie From Good To Great
Contains spoilers, click to show
So before I saw this movie I actually saw Will Smith on The Stephen Colbert Show. They rolled a clip from the motorcycle fight scene from the movie and I was taken aback by how fake some of it looked. And not the action of it but the movements of the younger Will Smith clone. On the show Will Smith said that this is the first film where the entire character of the young clone was completely digital and there was no MOCAP or digital de-aging. I'm not sure if it was this new way of having the character there that caused the movement to look so fake but some of the scenes had parts that were downright laughable. Since I knew this already I tried not to go into the movie with too high of expectations. And because of this and really giving it a chance I think I was more able to enjoy it then others who will definitely be turned off by it. I hate that for some people it will hurt there ability to suspend belief because that's one reason we all go to the theater. To get sucked into another world where anything is possible and forget about the real world for an hour or two. This really was a good movie besides that being it's greatest fault. There are even some scenes where it looks totally fine and really good. Most scenes like that are zoomed into his face during dialogue and the amount of detail they did was really fantastic. I mean Will Smith did a great job as this disillusioned assassin, Mary Elizabeth Winstead did a good job as a rookie agent meant to be surveiling him, and Benedict Wong was cool as Baron his friend and ex-colleague. Even Clive Owen did good as Clay Varris, head of a top-secret black ops unit codenamed "Gemini". The plot wasn't very complicated, Will retires and starts learning that people he killed were innocent and then people start trying to kill him before he can learn the truth. He finds out that a younger clone of himself is trying to kill him and he tries not to kill him as he tries to take down the man responsible for this. Nothing remarkable but there were some pretty good action scenes especially the finale where they fight in the town. As I said I give this movie a 6/10.