rpjfairbrass Reviews

Happy Valley (2014–2023)

Brilliant

[10/10 · 26 March 2021]

What a wonderful series, cast, direction, script, lighting in fact everything is fantastic. A pleasure too to see a gritty drama with women taking the lead.

King of New York (1990)

Thank the Lord for new movies

[2/10 · 30 December 2020]

What a dreadful movie. Probably quite edgy for its time (1991) but now it's decidedly dated. The sound track in particular was so loud as to almost drown out dialogue. The only memorable things were 1) Laurence Fishburn over playing the part and 2) Christopher Walken who was great

Reservation Road (2007)

Some reservations

[6/10 · 27 December 2020]

Lead performances were strong as were those of the supporting cast. With a strong and powerful opening the movie lost pace the ending too was a little weak.

Unhinged (I) (2020)

Chase movie

[5/10 · 27 December 2020]

Crowe and supporting cast are strong although the 'plot' is a little tired. Direction is well paced. I felt though that Crowe's character descended into madness a little too quickly

The Glass Man (2011)

Sloooooooow

[1/10 · 27 December 2020]

Lead character was good and believable but supporting cast was weak as was the direction and lighting. The movie began well but lacked pace after about 30 mins

The Mandalorian (2019– )

Men

[10/10 · 7 August 2020]

I loved this. My only criticism would be that there aren't enough male characters and the 20 mins or so that passed before a female character spoke was too short.

This Is Us (2016–2022)

Forget the music

[10/10 · 27 July 2020]

Beautifully scripted, directed and acted. The cast were great, the whole thing could've been really saccharine but with sensitivity in direction and performance this was avoided. The only really negative thing was the incessantly cloying music, 9 times out of 10 it was entirely pointless only serving to spoil what would otherwise have been perfect

The Occupant (2020)

Don't move out

[2/10 · 27 March 2020]

This is a great movie, really well paced with a script to match and a cast that does it more than justice. The reason I gave it such a low score though has nothing to do with the quality of the film-it's fantastic-NO-the for the 2 star rating is because I hate to see the bad guy get away with it.

Official Secrets (2019)

Who knew?

[7/10 · 12 March 2020]

Sometimes we all need reminding of certain inescapable truths and in this case the inescapable truth was that between Blair and Bush an illegal war was fought in which countless innocents died or were maimed. Both men a disgrace to their respective offices.This film lacked the intensity the story deserved caused I felt by lacklustre direction and clunky script. Timely nevertheless. We should never forget or excuse Blair or Bush for their duplicity

Chaos (II) (2005)

Bullets, busts and bull

[4/10 · 6 March 2020]

This is a take on The Bank Job but nowhere near as good. JS was memorable in The Bank Job less so in this. If cars, chases and big bangs are your thing then this is for you. Me? It's filming by numbers

Fahrenheit 11/9 (2018)

The trouble with MM is..........

[2/10 · 4 March 2020]

There's something about MM's delivery and cocktail of provocative material that leaves you not believing a word he says despite the fact you know there's something nasty going in the town of Flint. He's a messenger that in delivering his message makes it less credible. Louis Theroux given the very same topic would've been infinitely more compelling

Righteous Kill (2008)

For $2 rent? Maybe?

[4/10 · 3 March 2020]

Don't these two guys get tired of this cop/guns stuff? This is predictable nonsense, more or less. I don't know what DiNero and Pacino got paid but less on the 'talent' and more on the script would've been a good decision.

Joker (I) (2019)

Brilliant

[9/10 · 2 March 2020]

This is a great movie, beautifully shot, wonderful script and an outstanding performance from Joachim Phoenix. Churlishly I didn't give it 10 out of 10 because I thought the last 5mins or so was unnecessary. Nevertheless utterly fantastic, worth every penny!

Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Don't

[2/10 · 25 February 2020]

Can't believe how stupid this film is. Predictable script, with a story line that challenges patience. This is rubbish presumably trying to masquerade as art. My advice-watch it with eyes wide shut and the volume at zero

Face/Off (1997)

I snoozed

[4/10 · 24 February 2020]

If rounds of gun fire were a reflection of content this movie would be great but as it is it's not. It's a bit like Tarantino without the wit or imagination

The Stranger (I) (2020)

Poor

[3/10 · 18 February 2020]

If at anytime you were wondering why so much of what we watch on our screens is American then here's your answer. A convoluted story that loses your interest almost immediately, a script that avoids any inclination to be original or challenging and a cast that struggles to make this nonsense entertaining. Add to all this my feeling that this was shot on video and not film and you have a recipe for an early night.

You Were Never Really Here (2017)

Darn your socks

[4/10 · 28 January 2020]

Do some film makers forget they're making a film to hopefully entertain an audience in some way? I suspect they do. It was either the editing or the direction that created the mind numbing glacial pace in this dreary movie, a reasonable story and strong casting ruined by what felt to me me like art-house pretension or sheer self indulgence

Dunkirk (2017)

Oh What A Horrible War

[8/10 · 24 January 2020]

A beautifully shot movie despite both descriptions sounding odd given the Dunkirk landings were a killing ocean. Great cast although each were for the most part given only relatively small roles. Sound track was pretty forgettable and I'm pretty sure the matinee idol looks of the leads were improbable.

Safe (2018)

Better than expected

[6/10 · 8 January 2020]

Although the theme music is disappointing and somehow does not reflect the mood of the drama the drama itself matures really well as the story progresses. A good cast and strong script add weight to what otherwise could be a 'seen it all before' movie. Tight direction and snappy editing too.

Messiah (2020)

Slow

[2/10 · 3 January 2020]

The predictability of the casting of the 'Messiah' and the slow pace of direction make this a less than compelling watch

Filth (I) (2013)

Just got better

[8/10 · 28 December 2019]

From a shaky start this movie just got better and better as it went along. Some of the sets were a little stereotypical I thought but this was well compensated for by the performances. The scene where Marsen goes off his head and does bonkers dancing is very funny. All in all well worth the dodgy opening.

Midsommar (2019)

Don't bother

[1/10 · 25 December 2019]

An utter waste of film, props, cast, writers, money etc etc. Truly awful

The Tudors (2007–2010)

What a waste of money

[1/10 · 9 September 2019]

The historical inaccuracies in this ridiculous dramatisation take the breath away. The casting of this production is so Catherine Cookson. As a rough guide to the chronology of events it's useful but as a piece of drama which aims to accurately portray the period its truly dreadful

The Tudors (2007–2010)

Move along, nothing to see here

[1/10 · 30 August 2019]

Aside from the appalling casting and the trite nature of the dramatisation this really is quite dreadful. From perfect skin and LA teeth any attempt at realism was obviously binned in favour meaningless gloss and pointless nudity. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME.

Suburra: Blood on Rome (2017–2020)

Mmmm?

[7/10 · 1 May 2019]

I got into this by about the middle of the first season. Good performances, well written and directed honestly with no tricks. The subtitles were irritating in that some them weren't on screen long to read. The intro graphics were I thought poor, nowhere near as inventive as those for The Good Fight and the rap music was intrusive and for the most part added nothing to the on screen drama