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Frayed (2019)
I kept waiting for it to get better, and it didn't
Well, that's a LOT of hours of my life I'll never get back! I've just finished watching the entire 2 seasons of this. It's extremely unusual for me to not look at the reviews on here, and get a general feel for what the series is about, but for some reason I didn't! Actually, based on the mainly good reviews, I guess they wouldn't have helped me. I get a feeling that most of the high scoring reviews are from people that have JUST watched season 1.
I'm a Brit, but I love Aussie movies and series. They are usually a lot more laid back, with gentle (and funny) humour, ordinary looking characters (as apposed to the Hollywood botoxed actors), and storylines that don't race along at 100mph.....at least the ones that I usually watch anyway. This series was supposed to be an Aussie comedy, and was set in the 80s (my favourite decade for movies and music), so I was looking forward to it.
I found this pretty difficult to give a rating! It was just all over the place! It had a promising start....a riches to rags story, and some elements of it were amusing, but I can honestly say, I never laughed once throughout this entire series! There was only one really likeable character, all the way through, another who's character changed completely (maybe understandably), and one matriarch of the family, but all the rest were incredibly irritating, immature, childish, selfish and crass and would just repeat the same boring behaviour over and over throughout the entire series. Then, out of the blue, one episode changes the direction of everything, and the comedy goes out of the window from then on, and it becomes more of a tragedy. The very last episode was the only one that got a reaction out of me....and it most definitely wasn't laughter! It was also incredibly frustrating, and leaves the audience hanging.
Professor T (2021)
I love this series
I did watch some of the original Flemish Professor T, but gave up after several episodes, although I can't remember why exactly.
I was therefore delighted, when this British series began, with Ben Miller. He somehow conveys so much emotion, even though he doesn't always have dialogue. I think he portays Professor T amazingly well. I love seeing into his mind, when there is no dialogue eg. Inside the prison, when he can't stand the noise of the beating on the metal bars from the inmates. He puts his hands over his ears, and the tempo of the beating, becomes the tempo of the drum beats in a piece of classical music!
I WAS surprised that he coped so well in prison, but then I suppose he had to! Up until the very last episode, I think those conditions actually made him stronger, and helped him confront his OCD. This series is full of surprises, and you never see them coming, at least, I don't! The final episode of season 3 is heartbreaking, but I suppose there is a possibly of it having a happy ending, as I now see that there's going to be a season 4! There are so many great characters in this, and each one holds your interest. The beautiful scenery, filmed in Cambridge also really adds something, as does the wonderful music. I also really appreciate the fact that despite it being a detective/police series, graphic violence is not shown, which makes a massive difference. I miss so many highly rated movies and shows just because I can't cope with watching graphic violence, which is thrown into the vast majority of stuff nowadays.
Warning: if you have suffered childhood abuse, as I have, there may be a few brief flashback scenes in this, that may be triggering. They are certainly not enough for me to not love the series though, and I look forward to season 4!
Dad's Army: Battle of the Giants! (1971)
Not quite as good as I'd hoped, but I still enjoyed it
I nearly turned the TV off, 20 minutes from the end as the middle section of this extended episode was just too drawn out and silly (the race between the two lorries) however, I decided to stick with it, and it got a lot better. As always, Jonesy saved the day, despite an "attack of Malaria", and having had an entire bottle of port! LOL Actually, another character REALLY saved the day....an unexpected suprise!
As per usual, this episode was filled with high jinx, from all the beloved characters that we've come to know. It included a rather touching tribute to the entire platoon (with the exception of Captain Mainwaring, who doesn't have any medals) when they were ordered to wear their medals for a public march through the town.
This episode was all about initiative, and working as a team....and they certainly achieved that, in their own unique way! Haha.
Upload (2020)
Wow! This series is fantastic!
I have JUST finished watching season 3 of Upload. Wow! This is a fantastic show! It has an incredibly complex storyline, which constantly surprises you, with twists and turns that you never see coming! ALL the characters are interesting and complex. Despite watching season 1, then season 2, when season 3 came out, I decided to start at the beginning again.
As the seasons progresses I would say that the storyline gets darker, although thankfully, the violence in this is very unrealistic, which is perfect for me. The storyline gets more complicated in season 3, and as the series progresses, you get to see the very grim reality of the real world. Although it's a comedy, it does cover incredibly deep subjects, and really does give food for thought about what the future may end up like, with the rapidly advancing uses of AI.
I really hope that this series continues, because it's extremely well written, and very original.
Panthera Britannia (2022)
Surprisingly good documentary!
Rather confusingly, I have found this documentary has 3 differing titles in the uk: It's either called "Big Cat Britain Declassified", "Panthera Britannia" or "Panthera Britannia Declassified". Whenever I see "Declassified" in a title I am put off, as it smacks of one of the Discovery Channel's American over the top, sensationalist "documentaries" however, this was very different from that exaggerated style. I personally found the repetitive "Pirates of the Carribbean" type soundtrack REALLY annoying, esp as it repeats over and over 100s of times throughout the1 hour 20 minute run time! Also, I nearly gave up after the first 5-10 minutes, as it seemed like it was going down the "cryptozoology" path, and anyone who has lived 59 years in the uk, knows very well that the big cats that we have had in Britain for decades are very real. They are not the native species that we had 100s years ago, but are thought to be either escaped animals from zoos or previously privately owned ones from back in the days when people were allowed to keep them as pets, until a law came in that prohibited that.
The documentary really covered every aspect of big cats that have been sighted in Britain. It also dealt with the many physical tracks, scat, and hair samples that fit the profile perfectly, including DNA hair analysis. Analysis of puncture wounds found on dead livestock matches perfectly too. Many leading experts in this field were interviewed, and photos and videos were analysed too. No stone was left unturned, as it were.
I found it fascinating, and would highly recommend.
The Hunt: In Search of Australia's Big Cats (2020)
I really enjoyed this
I love Australian documentaries. They are always done in a laid back style....non of the over the top nonsense of loud music, drums pounding, over acting, "trying to be cool" type stuff. This was essentially about three big cat researchers, that are trying to prove that Black panthers and Cougars live and thrive in Australia. There have been alledged sightings and photos taken over decades, but never any real scientific proof. The researchers go to the areas of recent sightings, or kills, and examine scats, and the killed animals. It's very clear, from the way the animals have been killed, that it's been done by a big cat, but despite all the evidence, and countless game cameras being put up, the cats remain hidden. I hope they do a follow up to this, once they finally have scientific evidence. This is NOT a short film, as the description says. Allowing for adverts, I would estimate that it's 1 hour long.
Cat Hunters: The Search for the Beast of Exmoor (Pilot) (2021)
Ok
I'm a Brit, so I have known about big cats in Britain all my life, but thought I'd give this a watch. I think it must be made for the American market....lots of unnecessary dramatic music , exaggerated efforts to try and make it "exciting", and a narrator that sounds as though he's straight out of Mary Poppins. His narration was unbearable, so much so, I nearly turned it off after the first 5 minutes. Give me Chris Packham or David Attenborough any day! There was a lot of repeated stuff, telling you again, what they had just seen done. As per usual with these types of programs, there was no conclusion about anything.
I Am Not Okay with This (2020)
I can't believe they cancelled this!!!
I'm a bit late watching this, but I have finally watched the entire series tonight, knowing full well that Netflix had cancelled any further seasons. I enjoyed it, and was very intrigued by the last two episodes. I think this could have been a fantastic series! I'm guessing, as per usual, it wasn't violent enough for today's audience. It's a running theme that I notice, that movies and series that don't depict graphic violence and gore, don't seem to score as high as ones with a medium level of such things. A sad sign of the times I suppose. There are a lot of people out there, like me, who don't want to watch that stuff! It's a shame that we are not catered for the majority of the time.
Three Pines (2022)
What a breath of fresh air!
I'm so glad that I found this series! I'm very fussy when it comes to detective series, and as so many are chock-a-block full of graphic violence, blood, gore, torture etc, I can't watch them. This series does include violence/murder, but it's done in a subtle way, and for someone like me, is absolutely fine.
There's only been 8 episodes so far, but I'm absolutely hooked. In fact, I was so looking forward to last Friday night, settling down, and watching this, that I completely forgot that there WAS only 8 episodes! I was soooo disappointed!
There are unrealistic points, in that so many murders are committed within such a small community, much like Midsomer Murders, but that can get easily overlooked. I love the small town setting, the various different characters that have chosen to live there to get away from it all. Seemingly, many of them appear to have moved there for possibly nefarious reasons!
In such a short time period, I feel that we've got to know the investigating team very well. They are all likable characters, and Alfred Molina, who plays Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is especially fascinating to watch.
The series highlights very well, the awful real life situation of disproportionate rates of violence, sexual violence and murder against Indigenous women and girls in both Canada and the US. I'm not sure that many people are aware of the staggeringly high numbers! In the US, the National Crime Information Center in 2016 documented 5,712 reports of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls, according to a report by the Urban Indian Health Institute. In 2014, the federal Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) reported that nearly 1,200 Indigenous women had been murdered or gone missing in Canada between 1980 and 2012 - but advocates say the real number was likely much higher. The Quebec village of Three Pines, where the series is based, has a dedicated arts centre that highlights these missing Indigenous women and girls. I congratulate the writers of this series, for highlighting this terrible situation.
If you're into fast paced, shoot em' up detective series, then this may not be your cup of tea. This is a world away from that.
Your Christmas or Mine? (2022)
What a treat!
Being on my own in this big ol' world of ours, Christmas is always a very hard and lonely time of year. Like Asa Butterfield's character in this film, my mum also passed away at Christmas, so that was very poignant for me. I'm not a huge watcher of "happy family Christmas" movies, because they are just too sad, or over the top smoulchy, but as this is a British film, and Asa Butterfield is in it (I love his character in "Sex Education"), I thought I'd give it a go.
I've done a lot of crying, but it was also a wonderful story about love, loss, friendship and family. I really enjoyed it.
We need more British films!
Strange Evidence (2017)
Interesting series, but I hate the special effects every few seconds!
Better late than never! I've just recently started recording this on uk tv. I enjoy a good mystery, but I also love to hear the scientific explanations of supposedly strange phenomena. I especially enjoy the lab experiments. I don't know if I'll be able to stand watching the whole series though, as the constant special effects every few seconds really spoil it. We get it! It's a series about strange phenomena being caught on cctv or camera! The repeated showing of said strange phenomena also really puts me off! I've just watched an episode of a pint glass of beer exploding, in a pub. They must have showed that footage 20 times!! I found myself fast forwarding through bits, just so I wouldn't have to watch that same scene over and over and over again!
On the Trail of UFOs: Night Visitors (2022)
Good documentary but horrible flashing light special effects, which spoilt it somewhat
I decided to watch this, as I've seen all the other Small Town Monster productions, and they ARE very different from the normal UFO programs. As the presenter always says, she "collects stories". She interviews people, and let's them tell their story. This particular documentary mainly features the cattle mutilation phenomenon however, there are are other sightings such as lights in the sky, UFOs, orbs and even flying box-shaped orbs. All very interesting. Of course, there were no conclusions made, other than the link between sites of "high strangeness" seemingly always being situated between 37°N and 40°N. Also that these types of areas very often omit high levels of electro magnetic radiation.
As these interviews are not done in the usual sensational way, sometimes it can be a little frustrating, as they can skip over pretty quickly, some details that I woul have thought would have warranted further investigation eg.. I "think" one of the interviewees said that they were waiting on a vet to arrive, to examine another mutilated cattle. He rang them and said he was 10 minutes away, but just as he crossed a river, bright lights appeared, and he found himself 260 miles away!!! It then took him 1½ to drive to their house!! I had to rewind, and listen to this bit again, to make sure I had heard it correctly! If I DID hear this correctly, that is staggeringly, yet it was just said as a matter of fact, and wasn't questioned! Another frustrating thing that I think they should have looked into more, was that they had found high levels of EMR on the couple's ranch, and yet absolutely none at their house. This doesn't make sense, if the couple owned normal tech devices, such as WiFi, smartphones, DECT cordless phones, tablets etc. I think they should have questioned that.
Cons:
Don't watch this if you are sensitive to flashing lights and the really annoying flashing images that tend to dominate these UFO documentaries. I was very disappointed to see that the STM production team feel it necessary to add all this unnecessary special effects to their documentary. I nearly turned it off after the first 15 minutes of this stuff! I have severe M. E. and find it exhausting, and horrible to watch.
Encounter (2018)
Haha....if you don't mind the original Star Trek type aliens, then you might like this!
Barring Luke Hemsworth's character, and the old professor, non of the characters were likable. So much so infact, that I nearly turned it off after the first 15 minutes. The acting was dreadful, and the storyline should have really been an episode of The X Files, rather than an entire movie. The storyline was very bizarre, with a totally unexpected ending. The special effects came right out of the original Star Trek series!! Haha!
If you want to watch this, don't read any spoilers, because the whole point of this movie, was the ending.....and I must admit, it did get me crying!!
I miss out on a lot of good Sci-fi movies, because the majority of them contain violence/gore/horror, which I don't like.
This movie has none of that.
So if you're willing to watch a creature feature with a difference, then give it a go.
Australien skies (2015)
Not as good as the Min Min lights one
I'm kind of watching the director's three "Australian Skies" documentaries in reverse order.
I watched the Min Min lights one first, and was so taken with the way that it was done (quietly, with non of the usual UFO/mysterious phenomena documentary gimmicks), that I decided to watch them all!
I was really looking forward to this, but to be honest, I was pretty disappointed.
The quiet, unassuming style that I enjoyed in the Min Min lights one, was still there, and the Australian laid back approach is the reason I intend to watch all three documentaries, but it was the actual footage shot by the main guest, that I just couldn't get on board with.
I am an open minded sceptic, but have always had a particular fascination with UFOs, although sadly, haven't had any sightings myself.
The guy that had allegedly photographed and videoed 100s of UFOs claims that he attracts them, and "has a feeling", when they are about to reveal themselves. I had no problem with that, but the footage that he has shot, just wasn't believable, barring perhaps the odd few. Anybody that knows anything about photography, knows that if you point a camera up to the sky, (whether day or night) the images captured of an alleged UFO are extremely likely to be distorted, as the lens tries it's best to focus, giving the impression that an image is morphing, changing colour or appearing as a perfect sphere with a beautiful shimmery interior. Even a torch will create that type of effect! To my eye, nearly all of the footage that he's captured looks like helium balloons, plastic bags, birds and even seeds floating down.
I think he's an honest guy, and truely believes that he is somehow communicating with UFOs, but I REALLY have my doubts!
I think the downfall of this documentary is that there were no photographic experts there, to play devil's advocate.
It's very much left up to the viewer as to whether they believe these are genuine sightings or not.
I look forward to Australian Skies 2, but I really hope it is better than this one, and is more objective!
Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)
A bit disappointing. Good for kids, and hard-core fans though.
I have been waiting months for this to become available at a reasonable cost. I finally saw it last night, and to be honest, I was pretty disappointed. I haven't seen the originals for decades, but I loved them. From memory, this was very much a re-hash of the same plot line.
Being a certificate 12A, this is obviously aimed at kids, and with so many references to the originals, aimed at hard core fans too. I was reading the trivia on the IMDb site afterwards, and there are a lot of nods to the originals, that I didn't get, as I haven't watched them for decades, so my advice is to watch the originals before watching this. It may be more enjoyable that way.
Despite it being a long film, I found the fact that the kids weren't at all afraid of the ghosts, and instantly knew how to use equipment that was decades old, just unbelievable.
Unfortunately, not as good as I'd hoped.
There's No Such Thing as Ghosts? (2020)
Not a balanced discussion at all! Very disappointed.
I have to say, that this is definitely not what it was portrayed to be....a balanced discussion on whether there is such a thing as ghosts!
I am an open minded sceptic on most things, but I never watch the ghost hunting programs, as I just don't put much faith in their content. So.... I decided to rent this, to gain a little more incite, from both sceptics and believers. I was extremely disappointed however, because 90% of it, was from believers, psychics, ghost hunters, and the film crew, who were also just sitting in on proceedings. Those proceedings turned out to be just the same old stuff.....let's all sit in a so-called "haunted house", and try and make contact with ghosts! There was two of these sessions, and one took up the majority of the program! Another section that took up a great deal of the time, was from a person who lived in a house with "demon" activity just relating his story. I don't doubt him.... I just was looking forward to getting to hear what the scientists and/or human psychologists have to say about this phenomena.
As to the other side of the argument....a few minutes was spent with three sceptics, one being a professor, who teaches classes on human psychology and the paranormal, or some such topic. He barely got a word in! It turns out, that one of the women who lived in a haunted house, took his classes, and now is a sceptic! I wanted to know why! I was really interested in why she had changed her mind, but she only got a couple of minutes on camera!
If you're a fully fledged believer in ghosts, then you may enjoy watching this, as its basically the same kind of set up as the ghost hunting programs. If you are just open minded, and was looking for a balanced argument, then I wouldn't bother.
Secrets in the Ice (2020)
Very interesting
I enjoyed this series. It's quite unique, I think.
The one thing that really grated on me, was the narrator's voice!
I've heard him before, on other series, and it almost drives me to turn the TV off!
Last Train to Christmas (2021)
Wow! A very different kind of film!
I almost didn't watch this! It's past Christmas now (mid January)and I definitely don't watch Christmas movies other than over the Christmas period. I was also put off a bit, seeing the picture of Michael Sheen in that dreadful mullet wig! But then I thought, I've never actually seen him in a bad movie, so decided to give it a go.
It was riveting right from the very beginning!
I had also presumed it was going to be a comedy, which it isn't really. It's more of a time travel drama, with heart.
Michael Sheen never fails to amaze me, with the vast array of characters that he portrays!
The camera is right on his face almost the entire time, in this, and he is incredible! I must admit, I did get a bit muddled up, with the time travelling family members, but I understand most of it. This was an even more poinent, and moving story for me, as I have no family at all. Was i enthralled the whole way through, and would highly recommend.
The Mezzotint (2021)
We all need a good old British Christmas ghost story!
Ohhhh! Creepy, Creepy!!
I don't like horror, violence or gore, but I always make sure I watch the BBC's Christmas ghost stories.
They are atmosphere, creepy and just the antidote, to all the Christmas cheery tv! Lol
This was excellent, as always. I only wish it had have been an hour, instead of 30 minutes.
Beyond the Spectrum: Being Taken (2018)
Very interesting documentary
This is a very well done documentary. I nearly turned off after the first 10 mins, as it seemed that they were taking all their information directly from Wikipedia....actually, they were highlighting the fact that Wikipedia can be VERY misleading, depending upon the author's views. If you find yourself flagging at this point, I would encourage you to stick with it.
It was refreshing to see Stanton Friedman expressing his frustration that people seem to think that UFOs and ETs "are only ever witnessed in America"! When asked the old familiar question that sceptics ask "if UFOs exist, why don't they land on the White House lawn", he bluntly says that "the White House doesn't rule the world, and that UFOs have landed all over the world, and people have had abduction experiences all over the world"! I personally get sick and tired of 99% of these types of documentaries being centred upon the US!
I think you will enjoy this, whether you are a believer or a sceptic.
Code 404 (2020)
I really enjoyed this! Something very different!
I wasn't sure about this initially, but I've now watched season 1 and 2, and I really like it!
Mixing comedy, with a police drama is difficult, and yes, very often the situations are absurd, but you just have to sit back, and not take it too seriously. Personally, I don't think it's laugh out loud funny, but it is amusing, all the way through. With one of the cops being brought back from the dead, with AI, it is completely unpredictable, as his AI system doesn't work particularly well! Lol
I love the two main actors, and despite it being a comedy, their genuine friendship is heartwarming, touching, and very believable.
It is rated 15, but I would say, that that rating is mainly based on strong language. There are shootings, and injuries, but it definitely isn't gory, and the violence is not extreme, as it seems to be with the majority of cop shows nowadays. I can't watch anything that shows extreme violence or gore, so this was a joy to watch, as there was nothing that I had to hide behind a cushion for!
It looks like a 3rd season has been commissioned, so I look, forward to that!
Holy Water (2009)
Not as good as I had hoped, but still entertaining
It's been a long time since I saw an Irish film, so when I came across this, I thought I'd give it a go.
I was however, underwhelmed. I didn't laugh once. The characters' plan and execution was just too ridiculous to believe (think Allo Allo), and the main characters seemed a bit over acted. It's a shame, because I think the entire storyline could have been done so much better! I don't think it was a complete waste of time though, and would recommend if you want to turn off your brain for the evening and just want something a bit different.
Video Killed the Radio Star (2009)
Excellent!
I've only watched 3 of these episodes so far, and I love them! Discovering how these early music videos were put together, and what went on behind the scenes, is fascinating. I hope these contunue ti get made. We have lost sooo many of the music legends from this era! The only 3eason I didn't give this a higher rating than 8, is because I think that they are waaay too short! I could watch an hour of this for each artist!
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch (2020)
Very Interesting
This review comes after watching both season 1 and 2, as they were released, here in the uk. It's very interesting to actually be able to view Skinwalker Ranch. I actually find it quite relaxing to watch, as I have become used to all the team members now. A very likable group, although I wish "Dragon" would drop the stupid name...it niggles me a bit. He's not 10 years old! Lol. Like many others, I was initially baffled as to why he was having a say in the type of experiments that they do, as he was a Security man however, he, like the rest of the group, is very well spoken, and I think he contributes to the overall discussions very well, especially as Security in season 2 seems to now be handled mainly by another guy.
Part of me, wants to say that this show displays typical "American over the top dramatics", but actually it's not nearly as overly dramatic, as I thought it might be. The only real niggle is that they DO still do the "dramatic face" shot from everyone, whenever there is a surprise, which is completely unnecessary. There's non of the extremely annoying Americanisms such as "Let's rock and roll", "Yeah baby!" etc etc every few minutes. I think I would have turned off, if that were the case! Lol Travis Taylor makes me laugh though...he's such an intelligent guy, who has, if memory serves, 5 degrees in the various sciences, and yet he has the most adorable country boy accent. Yes, I said "adorable", and yes, I DO have a bit of a schoolgirl crush on him 💜 lol.
I was familiar with Skinwalker Ranch before watching this series. I even bought the book a few years ago, although must confess I haven't read it yet! I am however, familiar with quite a lot of the "high strangeness" that has gone on for decades , not only on this ranch, but within the entire area. Bringing in people who have experienced strange phenomena on the ranch, and in the local neighbourhood is always very interesting. The ranch was owned by Robert Bigalow for 20 years, working with the US government in studying the phenomena. Unfortunately, all of that data is confidential, so from that point of view, this series is unique, in that it's being shared with the public, for the very first time.
The team's scientific experiments are always interesting, although I wish they would go into a bit more detail about the results, as it's difficult to figure out just HOW high the readings are for various things, if your not a scientist. I also wish that they would repeat ALL the experiments several times, as that is what is needed to produce any real scientific data. Some of the odd results are a bit dubious in my book, like the clock rolling off the windowsill, the dead cow, the fact that they didn't find any of the dyed water, and the securityguard's phone going crazy (he does have a cracked screen...maybe that has something to do with it). I also don't understand why they don't cover the ranch in cameras, instead of having just a few scattered about. Another thing that I don't understand is why they can't set up telescopes with built in video, pointed in the general direction of the UAPs, so maybe one of them can get a closer look at these lights, to see if they are solid vehicles or just light. It's kind of frustrating. Maybe they'll do it in future episodes. Even if they all wore Go-Pros on their heads or chests, that might mean they would be more likely to get live data when something happens, although I do appreciate that the temperature varies hugely there, from freezing cold to boiling hot, so they would probably be too uncomfortable.
So....in summary, I would recommend this series. I think it gets better as it goes along, especially as you become more familiar with the different team members, and the different technologies used. The majority of the mysterious happenings are actually based on readings from various different pieces of scientific equipment, so if you're expecting to see a Skinwalker, a ghost or a giant wolf, you will be disappointed.
My ratings from one episode to another vary from 6/10 to 9/10, so I've given it a overall total of 8/10.
Secrets in the Ice (2020)
Very interesting
I enjoyed this series. It's quite unique, I think.
The one thing that really grated on me, was the narrator's voice!
I've heard him before, on other series, and it almost drives me to turn the TV off!