Reviews
Andor (2022)
not all starwars shows have to be bad
Adult and gritty show set in the star wars universe. Unlike almost any other star wars show, it makes you feel like the characters and situations are real. The protagonist andor has an interesting backstory and root for him, but he is not too good to be true. Early on they establish he is looking for his sister, who he lost on his home planet, and has reason to hate the empire. I really want to see more starwars shows like this that take an adult approach that have interesting plots and realistic motivations. Heck, I would actually like to any shows or movies, starwars or no, that did that. The trouble with kids shows is that it's too easy to make then one dimensional.
El Cid (2020)
Interesting plot drives this historical series
Series has a lot of conspiracy plans throughout, which kept me interested. It doesnt have production values of game of thrones, but wasnt bad either. Of course couldnt be totally historically accurate, this isnt a documentary. Worth watching if you like historical dramas.
Westworld (2016)
interesting premise and good acting so far, but wondering about payoff
one warning, so far the show could be considered horror as much as anything else. this is because the androids are made so human, that their destruction and abuse by guests becomes very distasteful. but that is probably necessary given the atmosphere it wants to create. obviously this premise has been used before in the earlier movie, but this version really dramatizes the "playing god" to an extreme, and the resulting effect on the androids. many dark corporate conspiracies are hinted at, and ed harris (blackhat) is busy abusing androids to gather information leading to ???. I'm really wondering if there will be a payoff to all these intrigues, or like many sci-fi series, will it lead no where. so I just rating a 5 until I see if the payoffs are worth it.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
turned the entire story into a chase scene.
jackson has turned the entire hobbit story into a chase scene. the hobbit story had many entertaining scenes that involve word play and other devices. for example, in the story, when bilbo is noticed by smaug, he creates riddles to put him off from the truth. in the movie, they make Smaug omniscient, and the whole scene is reduced to yet another chase scene.
Also, it was a bad idea to add the extraneous material about the coming invasion of mordor. After LOTR, it made sense for Tolkien to add this material in references later. but inserted inside the hobbit story, it just slows down, and muddles the story. I think jackson has shown he is a hack, and many of his decisions were made to maximize profits. I won't be seeing the last of this "trilogy".
Grilled (2006)
uneven, but it has it's moments
first and third acts were pretty good. Uneven middle with some sequences that didn't add up. Especially something they tried to make you believe about Sofía Vergara's character. No one would buy it for one second.
But leads (Ray and Kevin) were very funny in spots, especially if you like dark comedy. These roles are a bit more serious than most people will be used to for these actors. But their characters seemed genuine, and provided laughs throughout. Smaller parts were made for laughs, but fell flat in places. One exception was Kim Coates, who was an over the top arms dealer in a brief but funny role. In total, I think it was worth seeing.