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This Is Us (2016)
A Story About Love, Family, Life, And Grief That Will Stand The Test Of Time
Premiering in 2016 and wrapping 2022, "This Is Us" has incredible re-watch value. It appears that series creator Dan Fogleman planned for a beginning and an end. There are many threads laid down every season to the final season, but what is surprising is how many of these came from the start of the series until the very last scene of the show. On re-watch and contrasting the final season I thought to myself, "how the hell did Fogleman manage to pull this off?" "This Is Us" also does not often tell it's story linearly in most of its episodes, which also makes for a fun dynamic, and at times, making it incredibly more effective in it's power. The messages and themes it portrays about love, family, love, life, and grief are incredibly resonant, and this series will stand the test of time.
The entire cast is amazing, Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia are wonderful as leads, and "The Big Three" (regardless of which actor is portraying the characters in the non-linear storytelling), are all wonderful, and hopefully have bright have futures in the entertainment business, if they do not already (at the time of review it is January 2024). The appeal of this show is so broad that it's hard not to recommend, let alone talk about. Some people say this show slumps, some people also say some of the things that happen are not what they expected in a good way. But that is also taste of life; people taking the most sour lemons and trying to succeed in turning them into something resembling lemonade, a message that should reside with anyone, especially anyone with a family.
The production of the series can also be appreciated. The choice of music, how shots are framed, the acting, writing, "This Is Us" rides most of the series at hardcore S-tier level without becoming graphic or gory. It also won't feed you so much sugar that you will turn diabetic--sometimes the series series the reality sugar-free. There are lessons to take from this, like being a good person, or appreciating what you have got before it's too late. Once again, all messages that should resonate with just about everyone, a universal appeal that is hard to beat, and a 10 that is deserved.
House of the Dragon: The Lord of the Tides (2022)
The "Game Of Thrones" effect is in full steam
Throughout this episode, I found myself reeled in as I did with classic GOT. Dare I even say I felt some GOT Season 4 vibes here. I must admit, it has taken some time to invest in these characters and digest the story, but the creators and writers are on-point, and it's clear they have a landing they intend on sticking.
Paddy Considine's performance in this episode was an absolute knockout, this might be the purest of characters in the Game Of Thrones universe that I have seen, and such a deeply compelling character with a compelling actor to match. Hopefully an Emmy is in the cards for Paddy it is so well deserved.
It's also well demonstrated here that House of the Dragon can continue to do time-jumps without breaking its plot, unlike its predecessor show it spawned from.
Melancholia (2011)
Relentless, raw, and ultimately unforgettable.
This is Von Trier at the top of his game, providing an incredibly riveting and disturbing drama. While it is not as intense or controversial as Von Trier's other works, it is just as effective. This will be a film that you will think of for days following the initial viewing, particularly if you are obsessed with cinema.
Von Trier is not a romanticist, he does not hold back, and he does not dabble in consumerism. As a result, Von Trier has crafted a unique cinematic experience unlike any other. Some will find the film too difficult to tolerate, others who make it all the way to the end will be awarded greatly.
While the ending of the film is already known quite quickly, the plot doesn't suffer as the characters' worlds begin to unravel. It is soon discovered that the film is a literary metaphor for crippling psychological disorders, brilliantly written and directed by a man with enough experience of such to go around. As someone who is affected in some similar (but definitely not as extreme) ways, the movie spoke to me personally about my declining state of mind in 2012, when I initially saw the film.
The artistic representation of Von Trier's film is nothing to be missed as well, it's even worth viewing on Blu-ray as opposed to digital, it's too beautiful to be hampered by heavy digital compression. Also, what a cast. Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg are both electric as the two female leads and sisters.
Highest recommendation.
Big Little Lies: Tell-Tale Hearts (2019)
Erosion
If you were given the impression that season two would focus exclusively on the fallout from the events of the first season's finale, you're in for a surprise. If season one was a slow burn, season two at this point has its foot all the way down on the gas, and it doesn't seem like that it will be letting up anytime soon.
The episode is creating a very ominous vibe that appears may last for the remainder of the second season. The secrets, the lies; they are unraveling on our characters very quickly, whether they are still kept secret or not.
With five episodes to go for the rest of this season, there is no question at this point that Big Little Lies is headed to no calm and all storm, and there is no predictability as to what could come next. That's what makes the series so wonderful--we have no idea how these characters are going to land because Big Little Lies is in no way formulaic television.
Testament (1983)
Testament is a masterpiece in storytelling about nuclear war that leaves an incredible lasting impression.
This film is simply a masterpiece-It deserves more far more than 5,000 votes at the time of writing (I will be the 4,999th), and it deserves to be seen by every single human: It's that important. While it may not be a film that some can stomach more than once, it must be seen. Our children must also see it as well.
I've seen Testament not once, but twice, and I'll possibly watch it again soon. The first time I saw this film was after I had found "The Day After" from a superstore in the bargain area, knowing it was about nuclear war and had a stellar cast, but that was pretty much it. Horrified but moved by my initial viewing of "The Day After," I went in search of similar films. In the process I ran into "Threads" which horrified me even further, and then I found "Testament." Shortly after, the DVD of the film was part of my movie collection. My second viewing of the film was on a Monday evening by myself, and it's now the following Sunday, and I have thought about this film in detail every day following the viewing.
What was particularly unusual about this film was that instead of using graphic violence or mushroom clouds to move the viewer, it presented them a story about a family and their surrounding community that we grow to have a great deal of empathy for, who then get caught in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust. What affects the viewer here is watching this family and the community endure the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust, which is absolutely tasking to watch. As with "Threads," "Testament" has a much closer focus on the effects of radiation poisoning and famine that would most possibly engulf our entire planet from a nuclear exchange. It's very unsettling to watch, and because we have grown to care about these characters, even more emotionally moving. There's a saying I've heard that this movie proves true: It's that the ones who died in the blast are the lucky ones. To quote another film "Wargames," "We're just three miles from a primary target. A millisecond of brilliant light, and we're vaporized. [..] We'll be spared the horror of survival."
Yes, Jane Alexander is wonderful in this film as you may have heard, she absolutely embodied the role of Carol Weatherly. The rest of the cast is just as excellent. William Devane is great as Carol's husband Tom, and clearly the two of them have some marital struggles, but you can tell by the way that they look each other that regardless of their struggles, there's so much love there. Tom loves his kids just as Carol does, and his kids are as perfect of a suburban family you could ask for-they fight, they bicker, but at the end of the day (and even the world), they are a family.
What was also particularly unusual about the film was no matter how normal everything looked on the surface after the nukes dropped, nothing was normal ever again, no matter how normal it continued to look. Underneath the polished exterior of California suburbia, everyone begins to change on the inside as the ionizing radiation from the nuclear aftermath begins to interfere with their cellular processes, breaking down cells that are necessary to maintain a functional immune system. This is done in a very PG-rated way indeed, as the film spares the viewer from overwhelming them with unsettling images.
Instead, the film overpowers its viewers with their own emotions, as we watch death hit one person after another of characters we have care to grown for, then the next, and then the next one after that. It never ceases, as it should. This is extinction level nuclear warfare, and this film will lead you to question if we would actually survive as a species from something like this. We most probably would not.
Along with the great cast and the direction done by Lynne Littman, James Horner provides a touching and moving score as well that takes great caution from being too over-the-top. It seems like a traditional drama score, contemporary even. But there is clearly something more under the surface with the score, which without question was intentional just as the film shows how normal things may look when they are not. I found myself listening to the isolated score following the 2nd viewing of the film and found myself haunted and moved by Mr. Horner's masterful work.
I guess you can consider the Testament the masterful finish to an already prestigious multi-layered cake of films about nuclear war made in the 1980s, films of which depict situations that might have happened if the films had never been made. The unfortunate truth is that no matter how masterful any of these films about nuclear war may be (even if they are full 4-star classics such as "Testament"), none of this cake is easy to stomach. Nuclear war has devastating consequences-and in the world of "Testament," instead of an actual birthday cake with several candles, in its place are graham crackers with a thin layer of peanut butter sturdy enough to hold up a single birthday candle.
In my opinion, Testament is probably the most important film about nuclear war that I have ever seen. Dare I say that it deserves to be a part of the United States National Film Registry. You should absolutely watch it, no question. Will you be depressed afterward? Absolutely. Will this film haunt you for days, maybe even weeks? Probably, but you will get over it while still never forgetting it. You may also walk away from this film appreciating the life you have a little more.
As an added note, it's a shame that there isn't a Blu-Ray release of this film available yet at the time of writing. I would own it, particularly if it was in 4K (a long-shot I know, but one can dream).