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Post by Rey Kahuka on May 20, 2020 13:44:13 GMT
First of all, I can't believe you don't love my idea for a horror thriller. Secondly, Hanks was great in this flick. He carried the movie in a way few actors could. But that doesn't change the awful writing in all those awkward scenes at the beginning and the end. There's a scene on a plane at the beginning where Hanks is talking with two other people and it's like the director yelled cut, then started filing the next scene without ever turning the camera off. There's this bizarre pause in the middle of the conversation, then the woman starts talking to the other guy again and it feels like it's supposed to be a completely different scene. And the end isn't so bad. It's implied he gets together with that other woman whose package helped get him through his ordeal. In an interview, Hanks says that's what happens after the fadeout. I think the reason I enjoyed it so much but it made you think to yourself at the end - what would you do in that situation if you were in Helen Hunt's shoes?
And how would you feel being either of the rejected guys - either Hanks or her new husband.
If memory serves (haven't seen it in awhile) - it showed Hanks at a crossroads - the roads - and his life too.
Which way was he going to go? He was lost in a sense as a human - he fought through hell to find the love of his life only to find out she had moved on in a way.
I never heard the theory he got with the woman who's package was lost - that's interesting - but still crushing in a sense - i.e. the whole Helen Hunt ordeal.
Yeah the crossroads is heavy handed metaphor to be sure, but I like it. I think the ending is potentially much more bleak if you don't use Hanks's interpretation. In reality that dude kills himself. He already tried to do it twice earlier in the film (once by hanging, once at sea by tossing his oars and accepting his fate).
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Post by klawrencio79 on May 20, 2020 13:47:10 GMT
Watched Cast Away last night for the first time, and I have to say it sucks. (Full Spoilers ahead) Hanks is great, the stuff on the island is incredible. But all of the establishing stuff at the beginning and the interactions at the end are awful. It's a terribly written film, it really is. There are 1,000 better ways to get him stranded on that island that would've taken less time and made more sense. Every scene not involving Hanks alone is terribly directed and filled with clunky dialog that just doesn't work. It's one of the laziest Oscar bait movies you're ever going to see. There's a reason it wasn't nominated for best picture despite starring Hanks at maybe his Hanksiest. Quite honestly, I enjoyed this movie the first time around, when it was called Joe vs. The Volcano. (And that isn't just a bad joke, I legit love that movie.) I'd love to remake Cast Away as a revenge thriller. If you're going to spend an extra half an hour once Chuck makes it back to civilization, at least have something happen. Chuck gets back, Kelly's new husband comes out and tells him she doesn't want to see him. He also insinuates he caused the crash to get Chuck out of the way and cash in on the life insurance policy, and that Kelly was in on it. Chuck stares at them in the parking lot through the window as this song kicks in: Cut to Chuck stalking their house in the rain. He kills the entire family one by one with the ice skate axe, and replaces their heads with volleyballs. He saves the husband for last, dragging him to the garage he's set up as a kill room filled with those maps of where he was stranded. Chuck rips out his teeth so he can feel what Chuck had to endure on the island, then strings him up with that vine noose. The film ends with Chuck heading back to the island to live out his days in solitude. (Setting up the inevitable sequel, once he finds out his FedEx boss was also shagging Kelly!) While I really enjoy Cast Away, the last half hour kinda ruins it. A ballsier move would have been to have him escape the break, he turns around to face the island and it fades into the fog, the score is heard for the first time since he's been to the island, fade to black, roll credits. The whole "tomorrow the sun will rise, and who knows what the tide will bring" bullshit is kindergarten-level taoism. Plus, the trailer spoiled the fact that he managed to make it home so there was basically no tension throughout. Still, I'm a sucker for movies where one guy basically carries the entire thing. Like Evil Dead!! Looking at the Oscars that year, it was the Gladiator year and the Oscars do love their epics. I also see Traffic was up for a lot and I'm a bit puzzled by that one. I like Soderbergh and the movie itself is very well-helmed, but it's as subtle as a samurai sword swing to your nuts. Blue filters for everything in DC, yellow filters for everything in Mexico, characters straight out of an after-school special. There are some good things in it, don't get me wrong, Del Toro is solid as always, the Don Cheadle-Miguel Ferrer stuff was really good, it's well shot, but the movie itself is rather forgettable beyond that.
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Post by klawrencio79 on May 20, 2020 13:48:30 GMT
I'm actually enjoying Ozark Season 2 thus far. I'll compare it with Walter White in Breaking Bad. A good guy - family man who gets sh*t on - and slowly turns into a bad guy because he becomes jaded by life's pitfalls, trials and tribulations and chooses to do anything at all costs to protect himself and his family - even if it means stepping on others/hurting others. Not saying I agree with this philosophy at all - in fact it's rather heartbreaking/disgusting to see some turn evil; however shows how many are swayed by money and power and the do anything at all costs mentality to survive. That's fine, but that's the theme and the execution of that theme in Season 2 kinda goes off the rails, particularly in the 2nd half of the season. I don't want to spoil it for you so I'll leave it at that for now.
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Post by Rey Kahuka on May 20, 2020 14:35:24 GMT
Watched Cast Away last night for the first time, and I have to say it sucks. (Full Spoilers ahead) Hanks is great, the stuff on the island is incredible. But all of the establishing stuff at the beginning and the interactions at the end are awful. It's a terribly written film, it really is. There are 1,000 better ways to get him stranded on that island that would've taken less time and made more sense. Every scene not involving Hanks alone is terribly directed and filled with clunky dialog that just doesn't work. It's one of the laziest Oscar bait movies you're ever going to see. There's a reason it wasn't nominated for best picture despite starring Hanks at maybe his Hanksiest. Quite honestly, I enjoyed this movie the first time around, when it was called Joe vs. The Volcano. (And that isn't just a bad joke, I legit love that movie.) I'd love to remake Cast Away as a revenge thriller. If you're going to spend an extra half an hour once Chuck makes it back to civilization, at least have something happen. Chuck gets back, Kelly's new husband comes out and tells him she doesn't want to see him. He also insinuates he caused the crash to get Chuck out of the way and cash in on the life insurance policy, and that Kelly was in on it. Chuck stares at them in the parking lot through the window as this song kicks in: Cut to Chuck stalking their house in the rain. He kills the entire family one by one with the ice skate axe, and replaces their heads with volleyballs. He saves the husband for last, dragging him to the garage he's set up as a kill room filled with those maps of where he was stranded. Chuck rips out his teeth so he can feel what Chuck had to endure on the island, then strings him up with that vine noose. The film ends with Chuck heading back to the island to live out his days in solitude. (Setting up the inevitable sequel, once he finds out his FedEx boss was also shagging Kelly!) While I really enjoy Cast Away, the last half hour kinda ruins it. A ballsier move would have been to have him escape the break, he turns around to face the island and it fades into the fog, the score is heard for the first time since he's been to the island, fade to black, roll credits. The whole "tomorrow the sun will rise, and who knows what the tide will bring" bullshit is kindergarten-level taoism. Plus, the trailer spoiled the fact that he managed to make it home so there was basically no tension throughout. Still, I'm a sucker for movies where one guy basically carries the entire thing. Like Evil Dead!! Looking at the Oscars that year, it was the Gladiator year and the Oscars do love their epics. I also see Traffic was up for a lot and I'm a bit puzzled by that one. I like Soderbergh and the movie itself is very well-helmed, but it's as subtle as a samurai sword swing to your nuts. Blue filters for everything in DC, yellow filters for everything in Mexico, characters straight out of an after-school special. There are some good things in it, don't get me wrong, Del Toro is solid as always, the Don Cheadle-Miguel Ferrer stuff was really good, it's well shot, but the movie itself is rather forgettable beyond that. Another thing they could've done was have him dream of making it home at some point while he's on the island, and used that footage in the trailer. Suddenly there's a whole new level of tension that the audience wasn't prepared for. They thought he was going to make it home, now they have no idea. An open ending would've been devastating to the audience, but I think it would've suited the narrative better. This conversation reminds me of my experience with The Martian. (Full spoilers ahead) I love that flick, and I actually read a bogus spoiler before seeing it that only served to enhance my viewing experience. I was on a completely different board and some douchebag started a thread with the header "The Martian- He dies before they can get to him." I was pissed, but I still wanted to see it. I sat through almost the entire movie convinced he was going to die, and it gave me an appreciation for how fucking hard he tried to survive. He never gave up, no matter how many things went wrong. And then at some point the movie just felt too upbeat for him to die. It truly felt like one of those uplifting survival stories, to the point where killing him off would've been a huge middle finger to the audience. At that point I figured he had to survive, which he did, but looking back on it, those earlier scenes where shit kept going sideways on him were much more powerful when I thought he wasn't going to make it back. I don't think it would've been a better movie had he died, but assuming he wasn't going to make it definitely made it more intense. So, thanks nameless douchebag for the bogus spoiler. Not sure what kind of dickery you were aiming for, but it worked out for me in the end.
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Post by Jep Gambardella on May 20, 2020 15:05:24 GMT
Watched Cast Away last night for the first time, and I have to say it sucks. (Full Spoilers ahead) Hanks is great, the stuff on the island is incredible. But all of the establishing stuff at the beginning and the interactions at the end are awful. It's a terribly written film, it really is. There are 1,000 better ways to get him stranded on that island that would've taken less time and made more sense. Every scene not involving Hanks alone is terribly directed and filled with clunky dialog that just doesn't work. It's one of the laziest Oscar bait movies you're ever going to see. There's a reason it wasn't nominated for best picture despite starring Hanks at maybe his Hanksiest. Quite honestly, I enjoyed this movie the first time around, when it was called Joe vs. The Volcano. (And that isn't just a bad joke, I legit love that movie.) I'd love to remake Cast Away as a revenge thriller. If you're going to spend an extra half an hour once Chuck makes it back to civilization, at least have something happen. Chuck gets back, Kelly's new husband comes out and tells him she doesn't want to see him. He also insinuates he caused the crash to get Chuck out of the way and cash in on the life insurance policy, and that Kelly was in on it. Chuck stares at them in the parking lot through the window as this song kicks in: Cut to Chuck stalking their house in the rain. He kills the entire family one by one with the ice skate axe, and replaces their heads with volleyballs. He saves the husband for last, dragging him to the garage he's set up as a kill room filled with those maps of where he was stranded. Chuck rips out his teeth so he can feel what Chuck had to endure on the island, then strings him up with that vine noose. The film ends with Chuck heading back to the island to live out his days in solitude. (Setting up the inevitable sequel, once he finds out his FedEx boss was also shagging Kelly!) I'd watch that!
I've only watched Cast Away once, when it came out, and I remember liking it except for two things: first, the emphasis on his dedication to the company. What kind of message is that? Be a good worker, sacrifice yourself for the good of your employer? Not sure I like that very much...
The other thing I didn't like is that the movie skipped over THE crucial moment when Tom Hanks was rescued. We don't get to see how he reacted at the moment when his ordeal was finally over. It would have been a difficult scene to write and act, so maybe that's why it was left out, but I wish I had seen it, and I remember playing in my head how I would have written it.
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Post by Jep Gambardella on May 20, 2020 15:20:44 GMT
In honour of Michel Piccoli, the great French actor who died earlier this week at age 94, I watched Jacques Demy's "The Young Girls of Rochefort" (1967). Michel Piccoli has a relatively small role in it. Catherine Deneuve stars along her sister Françoise Dorléac (whose existence I ignored - she died in an accident shortly after the movie was made). Gene Kelly is also in it, speaking and singing in French (not sure if with his own voice or if dubbed).
I had never seen this one, even though the director's previous movie, "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" is a favourite of mine. Both films are musicals, although very different from each other. "Cherbourg" is a regular movie (so to speak), except ALL dialogues are sung instead of spoken, whereas "Rochefort" is a more traditional musical, with characters and extras breaking into elaborate song and dance numbers. If you like musicals, which I do, it's a joy to watch.
Interestingly, at the very first scene I thought of "LA LA Land", and then sure enough when I went on IMDb after finishing the movie to check more information about it, I read in the Trivia section that Damion Chazelle considers "Rochefort" as a big inspiration for his Oscar-winning musical.
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Post by screamingtreefrogs on May 20, 2020 15:38:38 GMT
I'd watch that!
I've only watched Cast Away once, when it came out, and I remember liking it except for two things: first, the emphasis on his dedication to the company. What kind of message is that? Be a good worker, sacrifice yourself for the good of your employer? Not sure I like that very much...
The other thing I didn't like is that the movie skipped over THE crucial moment when Tom Hanks was rescued. We don't get to see how he reacted at the moment when his ordeal was finally over. It would have been a difficult scene to write and act, so maybe that's why it was left out, but I wish I had seen it, and I remember playing in my head how I would have written it.
I actually enjoyed the emphasis on the dedication to his company.
Not judging saying it's right or wrong depending on what a person does for a living - but there's some hardcore nuts out there who put their jobs ahead of themself/family.
Haven't seen 'The Firm' in a very long term - wasn't this a central theme of the film - put The Firm above all else in life?
I worked at Fedex as a kid - Upper Management was nuts - like a lot of companies - everything revolves around metrics - getting everything done as quickly and efficiently as possible to meet a deadline/deliverable - the lower level employees are pretty much bodies and they couldn't care less about you. It's a revolving door of cattle - out goes one body in comes the next.
The employees who manage to make it to the top - they got there by being ruthless and dedicated to their jobs - climbed the ladder so to speak. You see a lot of those managers at places like Fedex - they started at the bottom and climbed the ranks over the years.
Was a miserable job.
I remember watching Cast Away for the first time and thinking to myself - yep - I can totally see a Supervisor at Fedex behaving like this.
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Post by Carl LaFong on May 20, 2020 18:54:45 GMT
Two great Toni Servillo performances for the price of one in Viva La Liberta. It’s basically an Italian version of Dave. Our hero is the beleaguered leader of Italy’s main opposition political party in the middle of a general election campaign who finally has had enough of the press and public and disappears without telling anyone where he’s gone. He has an estranged identical twin brother who is a philosopher recently released from an insane asylum. Guess what happens next? Recommended. Have you seen it Jep Gambardella ?
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Post by screamingtreefrogs on May 20, 2020 18:57:53 GMT
I'm actually enjoying Ozark Season 2 thus far. I'll compare it with Walter White in Breaking Bad. A good guy - family man who gets sh*t on - and slowly turns into a bad guy because he becomes jaded by life's pitfalls, trials and tribulations and chooses to do anything at all costs to protect himself and his family - even if it means stepping on others/hurting others. Not saying I agree with this philosophy at all - in fact it's rather heartbreaking/disgusting to see some turn evil; however shows how many are swayed by money and power and the do anything at all costs mentality to survive. That's fine, but that's the theme and the execution of that theme in Season 2 kinda goes off the rails, particularly in the 2nd half of the season. I don't want to spoil it for you so I'll leave it at that for now. Just finished Season 2.
Love it! Definitely not as good as Season 1 and a bit slower - but still find it better than 90% of the shows on TV today.
What didn't you like about the execution? The fact that Marty strayed a tad with Rachel? The fact Wendy was looking like a villain in the Season Finale? The fact the preacher kidnapped somebody? The fact that Darlene turned against her husband? Sam started working at a strip bar?
All of the above?
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Post by screamingtreefrogs on May 20, 2020 19:13:27 GMT
I'm starting to think Ozark is leading up to Jason Bateman (Marty) vs. Laura Linney (Wendy) i.e. Husband vs. Wife They're both 'bad'; however I think we're going to see that Wendy is truly evil. Lets see what happens folks
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Post by Jep Gambardella on May 20, 2020 19:42:22 GMT
Two great Toni Servillo performances for the price of one in Viva La Liberta. It’s basically an Italian version of Dave. Our hero is the beleaguered leader of Italy’s main opposition political party in the middle of a general election campaign who finally has had enough of the press and public and disappears without telling anyone where he’s gone. He has an estranged identical twin brother who is a philosopher recently released from an insane asylum. Guess what happens next? Recommended. Have you seen it Jep Gambardella ? No, I haven't, but it sounds like I would enjoy it. How did you watch it? That mobi or mubu platform that you were talking about some time ago?
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Post by klawrencio79 on May 20, 2020 19:50:09 GMT
That's fine, but that's the theme and the execution of that theme in Season 2 kinda goes off the rails, particularly in the 2nd half of the season. I don't want to spoil it for you so I'll leave it at that for now. Just finished Season 2. Love it! Definitely not as good as Season 1 and a bit slower - but still find it better than 90% of the shows on TV today.
What didn't you like about the execution? The fact that Marty strayed a tad with Rachel? The fact Wendy was looking like a villain in the Season Finale? The fact the preacher kidnapped somebody? The fact that Darlene turned against her husband? Sam started working at a strip bar? All of the above? None of those things.
1. They spend some time in Season 1 and the first half of Season 2 establishing Cade Langmore as this sort of brutish, criminal mastermind who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. About halfway through, it's clear they have no idea what to do with him, so he just skulks around repeatedly saying how he wants Marty's money, calling Ruth "Baby Girl," and....that's it. He then accidentally kills Petty, another woefully underwritten character and then gets unceremoniously dispatched. They spent too much time trying to figure out where to go with him only to basically have him be a script obstacle and nothing more.
2. Ruth is strong, smart and independent. She doesn't care what anyone thinks of her....until the second half of the season where, in each episode, she's reduced to a blubbering mess, sobbing at the thought that one of the male family members thinks less of her. It's ridiculous. She holds her own against the cartel but turns into a sobbing mule in basically every other scene. It's lazy script writing.
3. Marty straying with Rachel is just about the only thing his character does in this season. The rest of the time, he's facing certain death and just has no sense of urgency. A sunny spin is that he's numb to it, but it's obvious that the show has too many cooks and there's no consistent tone for how the characters deal with things.
4. That entire Mason storyline, and essentially an entire episode devoted to him, was awful. Awful character, awful actor, awful B plot. Again, it's like they painted themselves into a corner with him and they didn't know where to go.
5. Too much time spent on Charles Wilkes' character. It's important to the storyline but the character was inconsistent from one episode to the next (and no, it wasn't shifting motivations; it was inconsistent script writing) and none of it was particularly interesting. It would have been better if he only appeared a few times but every time you see him you felt that something huge was going to happen.
6. Laura Linney SHOULD be a villain. If anything, her treachery deserves more screentime. It's just about the only thing interesting in the entire season.
7. I didn't mind Darlene killing Jacob, but the fact that Jacob was killed I think is a mistake. He was one of the best characters on the show. He's established as an instant threat the moment he appears on screen in Season 1. Smart, cunning, able to manipulate the chess board, but when it's time to go they commit character assassination on him earlier in his final episode (where he weepily says he's afraid of Darlene), and then just wipe him off the board. It's completely out of nowhere and instantly signals he's about to go. Amateur scriptwriting.
Just my humble opinion, but to me it just stinks of the lack of a singular voice. Shows like Breaking Bad, True Detective Season 1, they have one person in charge and everyone else executes that vision. I know the show cites Chris Mundy as its primary showrunner but the tone, characterizations and plotting are all over the place and clearly suggest multiple people making decisions. Thinks like that really stand out to me and cause me to dock points.
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Post by screamingtreefrogs on May 20, 2020 19:52:54 GMT
Just finished Season 2. Love it! Definitely not as good as Season 1 and a bit slower - but still find it better than 90% of the shows on TV today.
What didn't you like about the execution? The fact that Marty strayed a tad with Rachel? The fact Wendy was looking like a villain in the Season Finale? The fact the preacher kidnapped somebody? The fact that Darlene turned against her husband? Sam started working at a strip bar? All of the above? None of those things.
1. They spend some time in Season 1 and the first half of Season 2 establishing Cade Langmore as this sort of brutish, criminal mastermind who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. About halfway through, it's clear they have no idea what to do with him, so he just skulks around repeatedly saying how he wants Marty's money, calling Ruth "Baby Girl," and....that's it. He then accidentally kills Petty, another woefully underwritten character and then gets unceremoniously dispatched. They spent too much time trying to figure out where to go with him only to basically have him be a script obstacle and nothing more.
2. Ruth is strong, smart and independent. She doesn't care what anyone thinks of her....until the second half of the season where, in each episode, she's reduced to a blubbering mess, sobbing at the thought that one of the male family members thinks less of her. It's ridiculous. She holds her own against the cartel but turns into a sobbing mule in basically every other scene. It's lazy script writing.
3. Marty straying with Rachel is just about the only thing his character does in this season. The rest of the time, he's facing certain death and just has no sense of urgency. A sunny spin is that he's numb to it, but it's obvious that the show has too many cooks and there's no consistent tone for how the characters deal with things.
4. That entire Mason storyline, and essentially an entire episode devoted to him, was awful. Awful character, awful actor, awful B plot. Again, it's like they painted themselves into a corner with him and they didn't know where to go.
5. Too much time spent on Charles Wilkes' character. It's important to the storyline but the character was inconsistent from one episode to the next (and no, it wasn't shifting motivations; it was inconsistent script writing) and none of it was particularly interesting. It would have been better if he only appeared a few times but every time you see him you felt that something huge was going to happen.
6. Laura Linney SHOULD be a villain. If anything, her treachery deserves more screentime. It's just about the only thing interesting in the entire season.
7. I didn't mind Darlene killing Jacob, but the fact that Jacob was killed I think is a mistake. He was one of the best characters on the show. He's established as an instant threat the moment he appears on screen in Season 1. Smart, cunning, able to manipulate the chess board, but when it's time to go they commit character assassination on him earlier in his final episode (where he weepily says he's afraid of Darlene), and then just wipe him off the board. It's completely out of nowhere and instantly signals he's about to go. Amateur scriptwriting.
Just my humble opinion, but to me it just stinks of the lack of a singular voice. Shows like Breaking Bad, True Detective Season 1, they have one person in charge and everyone else executes that vision. I know the show cites Chris Mundy as its primary showrunner but the tone, characterizations and plotting are all over the place and clearly suggest multiple people making decisions. Thinks like that really stand out to me and cause me to dock points. Sounds like you hate the show
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2020 19:59:48 GMT
I would like to have a try of Stranger Things... but I don't think it's on DVD for some reason.
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Post by screamingtreefrogs on May 20, 2020 20:07:32 GMT
I would like to have a try of Stranger Things... but I don't think it's on DVD for some reason. I love Winona Ryder - show was recommended to me by multiple people telling me I'd love it.
Only gave it like 3 or so episodes - to me it was a kids show - couldn't get into it - don't think I'll ever go back to it.
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Post by Carl LaFong on May 20, 2020 20:11:45 GMT
Two great Toni Servillo performances for the price of one in Viva La Liberta. It’s basically an Italian version of Dave. Our hero is the beleaguered leader of Italy’s main opposition political party in the middle of a general election campaign who finally has had enough of the press and public and disappears without telling anyone where he’s gone. He has an estranged identical twin brother who is a philosopher recently released from an insane asylum. Guess what happens next? Recommended. Have you seen it Jep Gambardella ? No, I haven't, but it sounds like I would enjoy it. How did you watch it? That mobi or mubu platform that you were talking about some time ago? Not MUBI, Amazon Prime ... it’s free to stream for subscribers (at least in the U.K. that is.) www.amazon.co.uk/Long-Live-Freedom-Viva-libert%C3%A0/dp/B088FBR7Q8Whenever I hear Verdi’s La Forza del Destino from now on, I’ll think of this film, and not The Godfather.
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Post by klawrencio79 on May 20, 2020 20:33:53 GMT
None of those things.
1. They spend some time in Season 1 and the first half of Season 2 establishing Cade Langmore as this sort of brutish, criminal mastermind who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. About halfway through, it's clear they have no idea what to do with him, so he just skulks around repeatedly saying how he wants Marty's money, calling Ruth "Baby Girl," and....that's it. He then accidentally kills Petty, another woefully underwritten character and then gets unceremoniously dispatched. They spent too much time trying to figure out where to go with him only to basically have him be a script obstacle and nothing more.
2. Ruth is strong, smart and independent. She doesn't care what anyone thinks of her....until the second half of the season where, in each episode, she's reduced to a blubbering mess, sobbing at the thought that one of the male family members thinks less of her. It's ridiculous. She holds her own against the cartel but turns into a sobbing mule in basically every other scene. It's lazy script writing.
3. Marty straying with Rachel is just about the only thing his character does in this season. The rest of the time, he's facing certain death and just has no sense of urgency. A sunny spin is that he's numb to it, but it's obvious that the show has too many cooks and there's no consistent tone for how the characters deal with things.
4. That entire Mason storyline, and essentially an entire episode devoted to him, was awful. Awful character, awful actor, awful B plot. Again, it's like they painted themselves into a corner with him and they didn't know where to go.
5. Too much time spent on Charles Wilkes' character. It's important to the storyline but the character was inconsistent from one episode to the next (and no, it wasn't shifting motivations; it was inconsistent script writing) and none of it was particularly interesting. It would have been better if he only appeared a few times but every time you see him you felt that something huge was going to happen.
6. Laura Linney SHOULD be a villain. If anything, her treachery deserves more screentime. It's just about the only thing interesting in the entire season.
7. I didn't mind Darlene killing Jacob, but the fact that Jacob was killed I think is a mistake. He was one of the best characters on the show. He's established as an instant threat the moment he appears on screen in Season 1. Smart, cunning, able to manipulate the chess board, but when it's time to go they commit character assassination on him earlier in his final episode (where he weepily says he's afraid of Darlene), and then just wipe him off the board. It's completely out of nowhere and instantly signals he's about to go. Amateur scriptwriting.
Just my humble opinion, but to me it just stinks of the lack of a singular voice. Shows like Breaking Bad, True Detective Season 1, they have one person in charge and everyone else executes that vision. I know the show cites Chris Mundy as its primary showrunner but the tone, characterizations and plotting are all over the place and clearly suggest multiple people making decisions. Thinks like that really stand out to me and cause me to dock points. Sounds like you hate the show I hated Season 2. It took everything that Season 1 did very well and just abandoned it completely. Season 3 was much better, although 1 was still the best of the 3 thus far.
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Post by screamingtreefrogs on May 20, 2020 20:41:12 GMT
Sounds like you hate the show I hated Season 2. It took everything that Season 1 did very well and just abandoned it completely. Season 3 was much better, although 1 was still the best of the 3 thus far. Ruth's my favorite character.
Hope the show ends with her getting everything.
Hoping she's not a casualty in the future.
Also Tuck and the Mama's Boy who was a realtor - I wish no ill will towards them either - not really a big fan of Bateman's kids and still despise his wife.....
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Post by fjenkins on May 20, 2020 20:47:14 GMT
I would like to have a try of Stranger Things... but I don't think it's on DVD for some reason. First season was okay, it wasn't great and the following two seasons were unwatchable in my opinion. I got a couple episodes into season 3 and had to stop it was so awful. Very overrated show. The kid actors are good though.
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Post by fjenkins on May 20, 2020 20:50:14 GMT
We're on the last episode of The Outsider. It's okay, I didn't even know it was Stephen King but I said about by episode 5 "this is like a Stephen King formula" not realized it was actually his.
I'm about to start Last Dance.
Two movies I just watched that I thought were great: Upgrade and The Girl with all the Gifts (highly recommend) Two movies I was bored stiff: Thunder Road (holy crap this sucked) and The Big Sick (just okay).
Also about to start some Costner movies. Just finished Mr. Brooks for the second time, super solid movie.
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