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Reviews
Dune (2021)
Like Star Wars slowed down. And in beige.
I had no idea of the background to this, having not read the book or seen any previous film adaptations, so came to this as a general sci fi fan, rather than a Dune fan. And I'm afraid it is just dull.
No real spoilers here, but the plot seems to be just generic goodie planet vs baddie planet, fighting over trading, a hero with mystic powers, pew-pew battle, but very, very slow with little interest in any family or back story. Star Wars at half speed.
Yes, cinematography good, but usual swooping spaceships and baddies standing in front of massed ranks of chanting minions. And some generalised Hans Zimmer music. I can see why it won Oscars for technical stuff, but not for best picture.
Perhaps if there are some more movies in a series then, if you can stand 10 hours cumulative watching, it might be epic, but as a single film.... niche entertainment.
Murder in Provence (2022)
Strangely leaden and laboured
A series from another era - the sort of ponderous plots with various suspects wheeled across the scene, clunky dialogue and wooden acting that used to be typical years ago. Scenery is nice, but adds to the cliché of drama by numbers in front of nice views to please Sunday evening crowd. All a bit disappointing.
The Favourite (2018)
Great acting, dull storyline
Sumptuously filmed and character led movie, but ultimately unsatisfying. The plot is nothing new - Royal courtiers jostling for position, some scandals, some plotting, and people falling in and out of favour. Not a lot really happens beyond the entirely expected. A disappointment.
A Very British Scandal (2021)
Stylish telling of a dull story
A lot of money has been spent on this - with great locations, lavish sets and fine acting. But ultimately it's pretty boring. Unpleasant posh lady marries unpleasant posh man and they spend three episodes being unpleasant to each other. Neither character has any redeeming qualities, there is little insight into those characters, and when it comes to the big court scene at the end it's really neither here nor there who wins.
A visual feast. A snooze of a story that didn't really merit a three part series.
The Pursuit of Love (2021)
Style over substance
I've not read the novel, which I'm sure is an entertaining read, but it seems it doesn't adapt well to TV - the way in which the director tries to get some pazaz is the now clichéd way of pop music, slow mo, captions, ooo so shocking looks, snappy editing, etc etc. All been done to death in recent works and doesn't hide the fact that not a great deal happens and the dialogue is weak - little spark of humour - making for a visually OK (if bit lame) piece that is, well, just rather boring.
Treadstone (2019)
Punchy punchy, shootie shootie
If you like your action thrillers to mainly be lots of fights and plenty of people getting shot and stabbed at every opportunity, you'll like this. If you want a decent script and acting, then look elsewhere.
Very nicely filmed with good locations. But the plot's pretty obvious and the dialogue is as clunky as it comes. Which means the fights or stabbings every 10 minutes really start to drag.
It needed a rewrite (several times over). I have up after a few episodes as it was just too obvious and a bit boring.
The Pale Horse (2020)
Stylish, but hollow storytelling
Looks great - long, lingering shots, strong acting, lovely sets. But all at the expense of telling a story. You're left guessing what's going on from the endless nothings. And when most of the plot is thinly based around tired old clichés of occult and dreams, it all gets a bit boring. A disappointing rewritten Christie novel, for no real gain.
Cleaning Up (2019)
Plodding drama by numbers
A woefully predictable drama, with leaden dialogue and cardboard cutout characters and scenarios. The lead character has little sympathy, and every scene looks like it has been generated by a writing-by-numbers book.
If you've read any synopsis of the basic plot you don't need to watch it - nothing unexpected happens, and there isn't any spark in the characters. Two episodes was enough to trudge through.