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jhenchard
Reviews
The Singing Detective (1986)
Quite Simply The Best TV Drama Ever
Dennis Potter's The Singing Detective, directed in six parts by Jon Amiel, first aired on BBC1 from 16 November to 21 December 1986. I watched it then and just watched a repeat on BBC TV.
This is Dennis Potter's masterpiece and it is a sharp reminder how far Television has fallen in the intervening years.
Extraordinarily moving, as well as bitingly funny in the interactions of patients, nurses, and doctors, The Singing Detective was the climax of Potter's career, the summation of his key themes and use of non-naturalism and of his complex autobiographical investment in his work. He would not touch its heights again in the eight years left to him, prolific though he remained. (The 2003 American film version was a travesty.) It is unequalled in the entire spectrum of British television drama, and there may be no greater depiction of psychoanalysis in any film.
Essential viewing.
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (2023)
Not Aardman Animations Usual Standard
Warning - I didn't watch the whole film. In fact I only watched about 15 minutes before having to turn it off because it was so dire. So my review is based on that alone
I'm not sure of the backstory about how this came to be made but after growing up with the delights of Wallace and Grommet, Creatire Comforts, Shaun the Sheep and the first Chicken Run film all with innovative annimation, story lines and quirky British humour this was terrible.
Something has gone drastically wrong in the Aardman camp. Some very young children may find it visually entertaining but most adults are going to be deeply disappointed by this blooper.
18% Grey (2020)
This is a gem of a film
At the time of writing this I am surprised to see this film beeing rated so low.
In my opinion it is a little gem of a film.
A delightful story of the breakdown of a relationship and the ensuing road trip to try and discover wher it went wrong.
Some good acting and nicely paced with some quirky momments. Give it a chance and hopefully if will get more traction than it does at present.
The White Tiger (2021)
Excellent Adaptation
It's a long time since I read the book but this adaption is very good. I'm sure some people i India might quibble with a few points of authenticity but in general (having traveled there quite widely with a driver) I thought it very good.
Simply put this is highly recommended.
Killing Eve (2018)
One of the worst things I've watched in a long time. Totally ludicrous.
The first time this was on BBC television I turned off 15 minutes into the first episode because it was so bad. More recently I was stuck at home and decided to watch it all to see if my initial thoughts were wrong.
They weren't I can only report that this is complete and utter juvenile rubbish from start to finish (In fact it just gets worse as it goes on). I sometimes feel that there must be something wrong with me looking at most of the ratings here. Then I looked at the lowest ratings and saw others had written 'childish, unrealistic, and utterly stupid' and 'each episode is more farcical than the last' and 'It seems like a kids programme'. That about sums it up - please don't waste your time.
Childish in the extreme with a Laura Croft type 'baddy' that comes straight out of a comic book and a one dimensional plot that could have been written by an ten year old.
There is way better than this out their including some of the Scandinavian crime dramas and of course the wonderful French series 'Spiral' which makes this look infantile. Killing Eve is just an embarrasment.
Goldstone (2016)
Pretty Much Every Cliche You Ever Saw
This recently aired on BBC TV in the UK and could have been great examining all sorts of issues such as Aboriginal culture, land rights, people trafficking and corporate power. Sadly it was anything but great.
Got to say it had cardboard characters, a basic plot, cliches everywhere and dialogue that could not be understood at times. Some great Australian outback shots spoilt by this drivel of a film basically.
Let's see flawed alcoholic cop, young naive cop, bad town lady mayor, bad aborigine, very bad corporate business man and a few hookers mumble through a plot that some school kid could have dreamt up.
Add in a few ridiculous wild west gun scenes (yes even the man having to dig his own grave) not to mention the rifle shooting with a telescopic sight that has hydraulic smoothness and accuracy (Ever tried holding a telescopic sight motionless especially when running around a hill top?). Finishing with the obligitary spectacular car flipping whilst being shot at with a automatic weapon.
Ludicrous, vacuous piffle
Thirteen: Episode #1.5 (2016)
Gets More Bonkers as it Goes on, Don't Waste Your Time.
Started watching this as it was recently on BBC iPlayer. Not having high expectations of any TV drama these days I gave it the benefit of the doubt in the first few episodes.
The whole plot is so full of holes and it is so cheesy with various characters having 'histories' (eg affairs in the past) to try and make things more poignant. Complete and utter dumbed down pap; the sort of rubbish I might have written for a school essay when I was 13 or 14.
As someone else has written the police scenes with Ivy were ludicrous only to be eclipsed by the hospital scenes of the injured female police officer apparently receiving CPR for a head injury and bleed.
To be fair I didn't finish the whole of the last episode as I'd lost the will to live at that stage. Dire.
Sé quién eres (2017)
Over long and ridiculous plot
Started off well enough and had the opportunity to become a well constructed thoughtful drama.
Unfortunately it is marred by having the most ridiculous plot and trying to be far too clever. I really was trying not to laugh too hard when it turns out Ana has been kept in a basement prison for nearly 2 weeks with no sign of food or water, no signs of excrement, no dirty clothes and immaculately clean hair. Of course the captor just happens to have a medical drip handy as well when he returns to her.
Not to mention a police station where just about anyone can walk about at will it seems and a plot that is generally bonkers. 16 episodes of this was way too much. Do something better with your life is my advice.
Close to the Enemy (2016)
Truly Awful
Like many others here I've stuck with this in the hope that it will get better. With only one episode left I can say that, that is not going to happen. This has quite simply been one of the most vacuous pieces of tosh ever produced by the BBC.
Ham acting, a ridiculous plot, the historical errors and an unbelievable post war Britain are given a glossy production in the hope that we won't notice how bad things are.
Truly dreadful and completely bonkers; Blackshirts chasing Callum's brother? They were banned in 1940! Is the German scientist really building a secret time machine which will be revealed in the last episode? Perhaps it will all then become clear (just like in the episode of Dallas where it turned out the previous series had just been a dream).
Sadly I don't think that Polliakoff has that much imagination.
EDIT: I'm now adding the following in response to the people who have since posted reviews and seem to think that for some reason I must be a Brexit voter (as an aside I am white but not too sure what that has to do with my review) and have completely missed the point of the series as they claim this is some sort of allegory.
Well if it did have some deep subtle meaning in respect of life today someone should have told the producer (Helen Flint) who said
"Close To The Enemy is set in the transitional period of 1946 – the brutal second World War is finally over but the destruction of families and cities permeates everyone's lives.
As the Cold War takes its hold in Europe and the public realisation that the atom bomb could be used by any government, our hero Callum (Jim Sturgess) passionately believes that to safeguard the future you mustn't heed the past regardless of how terrible it has been. However, as the story unfolds, he finds that he is compelled to look backwards and eventually realises that you have to judge (for good or ill) those voluntarily or involuntarily involved in order to actually have a safer world."
So there you have it, straight from the producer, no mention of any allegory. Then again she could be just as confused as this mess of a drama.
Patagonia (2010)
Implausible ending
Watched this on its Welsh TV premiere as I now live in Wales (although I am not a Welsh speaker). The film was a pleasure to watch compared to much of the Hollywood fare that is served up and is certainly worth watching.
However, I have to agree with the previous reviewer that the film was ruined for my by the ridiculous endings to both stories particularly after the Grandmother died in Wales. It was completely ludicrous and ruined what could have been a much better film.
On the positive side listen out for Duffy (who appears in the film) singing a Spanish version of Hope There's Someone the beautiful Antony and The Johnsons track at the very end of the film.