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Reviews
Broadchurch (2013)
A series you won't be able to forget
This is a great series, that I first watched nearly a decade ago when it was first released. I've always admired David Tennant greatly, and he was made for his role in this. He has played a couple of really dark roles more recently, and done them very well, but this sort of flawed hero seems to me to suit him best. It was one of the first times I had really seen a lot of Olivia Colman, and I felt she really stole this show. Nowadays one sees her everywhere, with mixed suitability I feel, but at her best as here, she really is very, very good. I hadn't seen a great deal of Jodi Whitaker before this series, either, and she too came across very powerfully. I feel she was woefully mis-cast more recently as Doctor Who, totally in contrast to David Tennant who was my favourite ever in that role (which I have watched since Episode 1, Series 1). But as the grieving mother in Broadchurch, she showed a fine range of acting ability and really tugged on the heartstrings. The best other role of hers before this was, I think, the very vulnerable girl in Venus. Again, a heart-tugger.
Broadchurch is not a revved-up fast-moving thriller, but it draws you along inexorably, and will, I am sure, be a classic that people will watch again and again for decades.
Vigil (2021)
A very tense thriller, well worth watching
The Brits do this sort of film so well. Setting a thriller on a sub is not particularly unusual, we've seen a lot of submarine-based movies and series, including the outstanding Das Boot. But this is different in that it brings a reluctant heroine in the form of DI Amy Silva, who is totally out of her comfort zone being helicoptered aboard a British nuclear sub to investigate a suspicious death. We've seen Suranne Jones as a cop before, and she is always good. She manages to convey real toughness while remaining very feminine. Rose Leslie, as her onshore support DS Longacre, does a fine job too. She was good in Game of Thrones but I think is better still here. The series moves right along, it is about one episode longer than I would have preferred but at no time did I feel bored, so maybe they are right and I'm wrong. Anyway, I have already recommended the series to others and will do so again here. Certainly a good eight out of ten, maybe nudging nine.
Unbelievable (2019)
Best series I've watched in a very long time
First, the acting by the three female leads was superb; the two cops flawlessly played by Merrit. Wever and Toni Colette, and. Kaitlyn Dever's performance as Marie Adler was simply heartbreaking. A shout out too to. Danielle Macdonald, who also gave a heart-wrenching performance. In fact, there wasn't a poor performance in the whole series. The story is not an easy one, it would be hard to say anyone would enjoy it, but it is absolutely compelling and should really be compulsory viewing for everyone, ESPECIALLY law enforcement officers who deal with this sort of victim. Detective Duvall provided a role model, Detective Parker a cautionary tale about how good intentions are way short of being enough. Hard to think how a show could have done a better job than this. Superb.
The Good Liar (2019)
Two of Britain's finest actors in a quirky story of ageing with malice
This film really is about the quality of the acting, particularly Mirren's. She pitches to perfection the apparently gullible old lady with a sting in her tail. The film is intentionally misleading for about the first three quarters, a classic story of a thoroughly nasty ageing con-man (Macallum) who preys on the greed of others to totally dupe them out of their money. He's not fussy about who they are, he has a different scam for each. As the film shows, his biggest lies are those he has told to himself throughout most of his life. A real sleeper, that left me feeling delighted to have watched it.
Last Ride (2009)
Superb acting from Hugo Weaving, of a totally repulsive and frightening individual.
It takes a lot of guts to push for truth to character rather than going for the easy way out, softening the edges. In this film Hugo Weaving's character has been so severely scarred by life that he has become a total sociopath, with no capacity for empathy, let alone love. It would have been easier for Weaving to have softened him a bit, shown signs that really deep down he did love his son. But that would not have been this guy, who is as hard as nails and totally self-concerned. Even when takes his son camping, it is all about himself, recapturing the few happy times in his youth. When his son makes that picture shake, his reaction is vicious. All this makes it a hard film to watch, in the same league as some other Australian films like "The Boys".
Matching Weaving step for step, Tom Russell's portrayal of the wary boy wishing his father would show him some affection but fearing the worst, is brilliant. Never overdone or mawkish, showing extraordinary subtlety and maturity for one so young.
Finally, the ending is suitably enigmatic, leaving us with questions about what really happened, and what might now.
A brilliant film, but if you like feel-good with a happy ending, don't go to this one.