bethcrim-03260 Reviews

Unknown: Cave of Bones (2023)

relieved by the skeptical reviews here

[2/10 · 13 May 2024]

Very glad to read here that many people took strong exception to the wild speculation and borderline lunacy of this program.

As others said, started out interesting. Some science appeared to be happening though I do not know enough about excavating paleontological sites to know if they weren't destroying the place. They certainly contaminated it by building fires all over the place.

People also called the project leader for being an egomaniac. When he went to the cave he had a William Shatner-gone-to-space moment of "no one in all time and space got more out of this than I did". Of course he "found" cave art or something everyone else missed. Of course he looked around for 10 minutes and "knew" there were "dozens" of "graves" "down there". Based on what exactly?

The whole thing just exploded into the worst wild speculation. They were all so happy to jump to conclusions that these alleged hominids must have had a sense of the afterlife (after all the cave is just like a cathedral!). Maybe they buried their dead then sang kumbaya. Hey, maybe, right? One idea is as good as another in this-is-not-science land.

Horrible Bosses (2011)

not for Gam-Gam but a guilty pleasure

[9/10 · 25 April 2024]

I see earnest negative reviews for this movie so OK, it's not your cup of tea. I won't watch it with my husband because he might be critical and ruin the fun.

As another reviewer said, it's rare for me to laugh out load for almost all comedies, maybe smile weakly. This one I found hilarious and laughed all the time. It's crude and far-fetched and profane and hysterical all at the same time.

The main component is how the actors inhabit their very different personalities and appear to be having a great time (I don't see Jason Bateman hating it). I still have 50 characters to go in this review but all I can say is give it a try and again, if it's not funny for you so be it. Not every movie is for everybody.

The Signal (2024)

would like to like the ending but didn't really

[7/10 · 13 March 2024]

First, I am not sure who was watching a dubbed version of this show. Mine was in German with some people speaking English occasionally, but with subtitles. Maybe that makes for a better viewing experience.

I didn't have a problem with the pacing. I thought it was OK and also that the story was suspenseful. Some of it was a bit of a stretch, required characters to understand coded messages and happen to use a radio at key junctures. I also didn't really understand how the father and daughter got out of the desert...twice. Dune buggy off screen? Also if that was an atom bomb why wasn't the father freaking out about his daughter being exposed to fallout?

As for the ending, well I admit I was let down. I get that the message is that humans aren't ready for first contact, the political wrangling, bomb, etc. I felt that the big reveal would not actually make much of a difference after a news cycle or two. People would want more proof. Also did the father a nd daughter hallucinate the mother at the very end or was that an alien in disguise?

May December (2023)

what tripped me up

[3/10 · 18 December 2023]

Many other reviews touch base on reasons why the movie is a let down. I thought it was reasonably OK in terms of all the Big Time Acting. I enjoyed the setting because Savannah looks like a different and unique kind of town. I was really distracted by the size of the house.....grounds....estate? Did they inherit it from Gracie's family maybe? Who pays the taxes when one of them is a radiology tech and the other bakes cakes out of other people's sympathy? Or is it just the notion of rich film makers that people in the south live at Tara? Also the final scenes were ridiculous in their lack of subtly.

Leave the World Behind (2023)

maybe this is a Twilight Zone reboot?

[4/10 · 9 December 2023]

This film brought to my mind the classic TZ episode about the monsters on Elm Street, what with the outages and paranoid people and signs in the distance of a prophecy fulfilled - New York City tearing itself apart. The weirdness with the animals, the planes falling from the sky....all Zone. With that framing I am OK with the many unexplained mysteries, you're in the Zone, of course things are going to be messed up. And there is nowhere out. Presumably everyone found and moved to the bunker. It has a nice DVD collection and stocked pantry. Assuming the son even survives, it would be a downer if he didn't. We'll never know.

Leo (I) (2023)

and my favorite character was...

[9/10 · 24 November 2023]

...the drone/robot. The makers of the movie had such fun with it and I did too. I watched it alone as a 60-something Mom with grown kids so I have no idea if young kids would catch some of the more questionable content. I wonder if the youngest kids would find the alligators scary.

Many have complained about the songs. I found them forgettable but not obnoxious though I was surprised by the one about "don't cry" (though in the end he took it back).

Overall I think it was a good mix of valuable lessons for young kids and amusements for adults. I had to do a double-take about Sandler being Leo. For some reason while watching the movie I never thought it was Sandler, I assumed it was the other guy. Not sure what to make of that.

11.22.63 (2016)

enjoyable show but confused by ending

[8/10 · 5 November 2023]

I found this one of the more suspenseful and enjoyable series I have watched recently. Some people don't like Franco in this . It didn't strike me as really needing him specifically. Any number of other actors could have done a good job. But I wasn't really bothered by him either. I thought he showed more emotion and drama than some give him credit for. I also liked Chris Cooper.

Having not read the book (which I may, now) I have no insight as to how the show treats the source material. I agree with other reviews that the pacing was off part of the time. The middle sort of dragged. For this reason I took a break and watched something else before going back.

My main problem is that I don't understand the ending. Other people have not commented so maybe I don't get it. Basically how come Sadie was an older woman but James wasn't shown aged at all? Why didn't they plug in an older actor for that part?

Emily (2022)

Reader, I Didn't Marry Him

[6/10 · 5 October 2023]

LIke many others I went into this movie hoping to like it or at least be entertained. After an extended period of time I had to get up and move around because it's so long and glacially-paced. I have no idea whether this movie captures Emily's essence or spirit. I don't mind a little creative license. My favorite movie, Jane Eyre with Toby Stephens, veers off the rails in many ways but you still felt like the director "got" Jane a nd Rochester. Anyway, this movie is atmospheric. I did enjoy the romance though it was bonkers based on the time period. We are supposed to believe that a pious cleric would romp around the landscape having sex all the time with a respectable young girl? Where was a marriage proposal? Oh, right, everyone knows that Emily died a virgin so that wouldn't have worked. Not even if he asked and she said no? Wiser minds than mine will puzzle this out.

Our Planet (2019–2023)

Beautiful show I wish I hadn't watched

[3/10 · 13 September 2023]

This review is mostly comments about whether young children would want to watch. Of course the photography is stunning, very hard to know how they got a lot of the footage. David Attenborough is great. But I stopped watching several episodes in. I felt like it was "Our Planet of Suffering Wildlife". I get it, it's about global warming and other human impacts. But it was just non-stop animal suffering. In the story about the walrus they even replayed the footage of them falling off a cliff in slow motion! WTH was that all about? That would have given my kids nightmares. So that is why I think maybe parents should view it first, see what they think.

And Just Like That... (2021– )

disappointed

[3/10 · 14 August 2023]

I watched Season One. It was OK despite how incredibly annoying Charlotte became with her mannerisms and never-aged face. Miranda and Che, OK (sorry, Steve). I read that Aiden came back in Season Two and I was enthusiastic to see this. But the second episode may have derailed me. Carrie's friend and her Birkin bag? Cringe. Carrie doing retail therapy for shoes, ugh. Charlotte is still annoying. The MILF situation at her school, argh. I will grant that Carrie's grief feels authentic and touching, though her failure to call 911 will always strike a wrong chord.

I will always love Anthony though!

The Out-Laws (2023)

only one good thing about this movie

[1/10 · 1 August 2023]

Truly a terrible movie in all respects that I turned off after about 25 minutes. The one redeeming element was giving Poorna Jagannathan (from Never Have I Ever) a role that apparently had nothing to do with being Indian. She is great and I'd watch her in almost anything except this terrible waste of time movie. That is all I have to say but according to IMDB rules I need to drone on for the required 600 characters so I will just add that I do enjoy some Adam Sandler movies but I seriously question even his taste in producing this one. Didn't he realize how bad it is? Or is the Netflix money too good?

Severance (2022– )

unbelievably boring

[1/10 · 28 May 2023]

Watching this with hubby who watches little TV or movies. He seems to like it which keeps me from saying how utterly boring and pointless I find the program and wish to heavens we could quit. We've seen 3 episodes and I don't have it in me to find out how many more to go.

Meanwhile I started watching Silo and I'm on the edge of my seat and sorry I can't binge watch the whole thing. I wonder if there is some way to say let's try something else? He also loved Resident Alien which I found to be stupid and boring as well. I guess our tastes are too far apart. He liked that Beatles program where they are in the studio and I had to beg off that also, it was so boring.

Hard to believe how much media I consume when I keep using the "b" word. But there is SO much out there, why spend any time on programs that fail to "click" or engage me?

John Mulaney: Baby J (2023 TV Special)

didn't like it as much as others did

[4/10 · 30 April 2023]

When I came here to write a review I was surprised to learn that other people laughed until they cried. At the most I got a chuckle. I watched most of it (I think) until I noticed that my husband had fallen asleep, and he's a fan! I have no particular issues with the contact. Glad he found his sobriety. More, it just wan't all that funny, or at least as funny as he thought he was. The pacing was off. The bit about the intervention dragged on and on, could have used much more punch. The bit about ordering takeout from rehab was funny. Struggling to remember what else he talked about than all the drugs he used.

Jericho (2006–2008)

reasonably entertaining with strong caveats

[8/10 · 30 March 2023]

I've watched many episodes so far but not all so I do not know how it ends or what the cliffhanger might be. My problem is that enough time has elapsed in the show that I'm having serious disconnect with their idea of reality. For example an offhand comment about the town running out of food. No biggie. Just harvest a bunch of corn and put it in a barn. What is that supposed to do? An out of towner says urgently "they are coming!" as in maybe biker hoards? No, in that case a sorry group of irradiated refugees (though very sad). In another example at first there is some looting but the mayor simmers everyone down and the store runs more or less as usual though the owner takes everyone's little treasures instead of cash. Just in general people seem clean and comfortable even when an EMP fries the town. Plenty of time and energy for longing glances and a marriage on the rocks. I think these people should have had bigger problems!

Chris Rock: Selective Outrage (2023)

not particularly funny

[3/10 · 6 March 2023]

I'm not comfortable being the first to write a review especially when I assume other people will come here to say it was great and very funny. Personally I found the constant use of the "n" word tiresome, not cutting edge. The stories about his children are not particularly interesting. I didn't get to the Will Smith part because I got bored and turned it off. In my opinion the hallmark of a truly great standup would be laughing so hard you miss half the monolog. Not this one. I don't really have nearly 100 more words to say. I guess the Meghan Markle bit was marginally funny but only elicits a weak smile not a burst of laughter.

Shotgun Wedding (2022)

fell flat in many ways

[2/10 · 28 January 2023]

I wonder if there was a item in the movie clause that Jennifer Lopez would have maximum figure exposure so they had her sprawl on a bed, take off her pants, and reach to a top shelf while sticking out her rear end. OK, we get it, she looks sensational at a womanly age. She also tears around the movie in a corset despite saying she could not breathe.

Beyond that it was pretty boring with barely-there character description and people apparently there just to make a sizeable group. Just background noise.

I thought the couple lacked chemistry and their repetitious arguments about how to get married grew old fast. For a comedy it wasn't particularly funny. The action nothing very special. Kinda which I had given it a miss.

Lady Chatterley's Lover (I) (2022)

throw reality out the window?

[8/10 · 4 December 2022]

I did enjoy the movie though Emma Corrin was way too thin with her jutting bones. I liked the actor playing Mellors though he doesn't particularly have any rough edges. I thought they did convey a love affair more substantial than mere lust though there was plenty of that for our viewing pleasure.

The problem I had was the ending. We are to believe that a young woman who, earlier in the movie, said she missed her social life in London being stuck in the country, will end up happy and pregnant in a remote cottage. Presumably even if there even were other people around they would shun her as being a fallen woman. What is she supposed to do all day for the rest of her life?

It would have made more sense for them to end up in a different city where there would be other people around, maybe cosmopolitan about living in sin and maybe she could find something to do with her time rather than wait around for the next rainstorm.

Monsters (2010)

who are the monsters here?

[8/10 · 23 October 2022]

I read a number of reviews, some more petulant than the others, and only one so far made the point that the film is FULL of monsters just not ET. At one point a character says the aliens will leave you alone if you leave them alone. The problem - and all the gas masks - was the military using chemical weapons to antagonize the aliens into stomping around. Meanwhile the locals get sprayed with the deadly chemicals including children. And at the very end you even get a touching scene of two of the aliens just interacting with nobody around to shoot at them. So why not just live and let live? Maybe accept other peoples for being themselves and not a threat? Maybe act with compassion and not gouge people for ferry fare? Like that. To me the walking around the landscape is secondary to the message.

Catherine Called Birdy (2022)

enjoyable but don't look for realism

[8/10 · 23 October 2022]

Like most people here I mostly enjoyed the movie though a bit too long in the tooth for being the target demographic. Birdy as portrayed in the film is a bit too relentlessly self-centered to entirely cheer for her. To be honest I was ready for her to be married off. Just her mistake to reject out of hand several amiable and even good-looking young men with potential. Not the point. It's all about a young girl's self-determination which is part of the problem in trying to lose oneself in the time and place. As someone else pointed out they confused bride price with dowry, oops. Father bellowing for the "doctor" - what? Black noblewoman (though they lamely tried to explain that away by referring to Moors). The gay friend was a sweet touch though. The old guy wasn't actually all that repulsive, he was fun loving and they implied he would die and leave her rich within a year anyway. But, no. In the end she got what she wanted though presumably the family was still poor (though able to throw a banquet). Picky picky. Best to just let all that go and enjoy the amusing parts.

The Man Who Fell to Earth (2022)

too slow paced

[6/10 · 18 September 2022]

I see a number of reviews here after the person watched the first episode and laud it with praise. It was pretty good and I wanted to like this show because it's not juvenile but the pacing is excruciating. I decided to bail out. There are other SF shows that don't waste a frame. One that comes to mind is Almost Human.

As an aside I see short reviews here but IMDB wants me to drone on and on for 600 characters which doesn't reward pithiness. I credit the show for good acting and what hints as interesting plot elements which are too slow to appear. I did get bored with Chiwetel's facial expressions but I am sure the director was much of the reason for that.

Greenland (2020)

how you know everything is going to be all right

[8/10 · 24 August 2022]

I enjoy end of the world movies. I've worn out my "Deep Impact" DVD and have seen another of others such as the stupid 2012. I found this movie very suspenseful, lots of forgetting it's just a story! So that was good. They left a real howler for the very end. They emerge from the bunker in 9 months (hello nuclear winter?) but it's OK because birds are chirping! In the Greenland wastes! I would be like how much insulin does the bunker have now that all the Rite Aids have been pulverized? Details details.

Only one film that I know about really takes an honest look at life after the end times and it's truly horrific and hard to forget (except that I forget the title). It's OK because I never want to see THAT again.

Secrets of the Whales (2021)

Amazing documentary

[10/10 · 6 August 2022]

Enjoying every episode so far of this most excellent documentary. Others have covered it's high quality. I'll just add a couple of quibbles which didn't affect my score.

1- Sigourney's narration grew old. Way too saccharine at times. Also, don't call a mother whale "Mom". She's not your Mom.

2 - The "how they did it" segments were great but they don't always explain the under-water footage. Is that a photographer down there? Remote control device? Who are the belugas smiling at?

One concern is that they show pristine locations and I can just see tour guides taking people there and maybe ruining it.

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

I thought it was fun

[8/10 · 23 July 2022]

After working hard all week I wanted some silliness - mission accomplished. I thought it was just mostly silly and fun and I liked the classic rock. Rather disturbed by complaints about "agenda". Did they mean didn't like the trans kid? Get over it. It's not the 1950s.

Persuasion (I) (2022)

the fatal flaw for me

[6/10 · 16 July 2022]

I could deal with this version not being particularly true to Jane Austen but since there are better movies I can let that pass. Wild anachronisms? Ok, call it "historical fantasy". Drinking? Not crazy about it. Peeing under a tree? Gross, but what is a drinking woman to do, wait for the next privy? No, the fatal flaw for me was Frederick. Zero charisma, personality or any appeal really. It's OK he's not handsome but he contorts his face weirdly too often. Not worth mooning over.

God's Favorite Idiot (2022– )

not terrible but I eventually lost interest and turned it off

[6/10 · 20 June 2022]

I like Melissa McCarthy though I was surprised that she wasn't just a lush but heavy drug user, though to be fair I think that was only in the first episode. Mostly I felt like they were going nowhere slowly with the story line. I was several episodes in. Just didn't sustain my interest. I never found it particularly funny either.