cerwen80

IMDb member since August 2021
    Lifetime Total
    25+
    IMDb Member
    2 years, 10 months

Reviews

The Acolyte
(2024)

pretty awful
I am THREE of the letters in LGBTQIA and I am sick of this. Why was it necessary to say "your mothers"? The usually word to use is 'parents'. That's what normal people say. It seems clear from the offset that once again, 'diversity' is being shoved in our faces rather than just try to tell a damn story. I am happy to have a diverse cast in media, I applaud it, but when it makes sense please, and don't draw attention to it like it's the only thing that matters, we are supposed to be normalising the existence of real people, not flashing them like some special badge. I mean if we'd seen her parents in the flashback, then it would have been much better, not shoved in our faces, just people there, normal like. But no, it has to be blatant.

To be honest I probably wouldn't complain so much if the writing was any good. Once again, a big budget show with absolute trash writing. Is the writers strike still going on? Is this being written by amateurs? I mean how is it that the jedi authorities do not know the capabilities of the species of one of their criminals? How can they not take precautions against a giant tentacle head?? And why are the Jedi not there on the ship they came on? Did they just stay behind for a coffee with the trade federation? Leaving the prisoners completely unsupervised, one of which is an ex jedi... and what the heck is with the 'acting' by the green Jedi woman? What the heck is that??? I have never seen something so wooden, even in low budget 90s tv shows.

This is shocking. After the fights showed some rather excellent choreography, this is absolutely bizarre.

Doctor Who: Dot and Bubble
(2024)
Episode 5, Season 1

This was fantastic for me.
This episode was great. It had a very interesting premise right from the start, with them being in their social bubble to such an extent that they are told where to walk without being able to see. The monsters and what they did were genuinely horrifying and it's been a long time since I felt this unnerved watching doctor who, it took me right back to "Paradise Towers".

I thought Ricky September was a very interesting character, the most popular one, but also the most capable, learning to live without the bubble. I grew to genuinely like him quite quickly and I felt a bit scared because I thought he might be killed off for that reason, and I was quite surprised by what happened. Our main character actually turned completely and this is something quite unexpected, we don't usually see that and it was great because I felt quite shocked. I didnt really see the undercurrents in the episode, but my brother was figuring it out. This character was not meant to be likeable. He said that he haslsnt noticed any black people in the place and it seemed like all the rich privileged people who rejected anyone not like them. Of course, I saw what he meant in how she responded to the doctor and then how he pleaded to be allowed to help them. Incredibly powerful stuff.

Most importantly... Anothr reviewer complained because we didn't get to see them suffer any consequences, but I think that was entirely the point. People like that can do terrible things and often do not face consequences, or not that the wider public can see. I think this is a fantastic way to look at this aspect of society and it was done in a very powerful way.

This was a big win for me.

Doctor Who: 73 Yards
(2024)
Episode 4, Season 1

Dog ate the last page of the script
I have to say that I was enjoying this throughout. It was a rather juicy mystery, made for quite a bit of tension and had me thinking of a lot of possibilities as to what this could be, what was going on and why. Over time a lot of things started to sort of link together and then we got to the end and the payoff.... and where was it?

The writers totaly left us hanging with pretty much no explanation as to how this happened, why it was 73 yards, why the doctor vanished, why people were running away from her scared to death, why her own mother would disown her, how she travelled back in time and was from that moment frozen in some form of loop? No explanation, nothing. How is this the ending? How is this a story? Up until the end i was going to score it a 9, but there is no resolution to the story, how can I rate this well? This is very very frustrating.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
(2024)

Very enjoyable
I never expected a lot, I've seen the other apes movies so I know they aren't the type of movie to floor me, but they are just well made and enjoyable to watch. This exceeded my expectations so that is good. I loved the world that they built and I really felt for the characters. This was a fairly standard story, the likes of which I have seen more in video games than in movies, and indeed there was a lot about this movie that felt inspired by games. It had a sense of adventure and exploration I relish in games like the last of us and horizon. I didnt feel as though it was slow or confusing at any point, everything felt like it fit in just right and the various plot elements played out well, with some good mysteries and some pleasant surprises.

Doctor Who
(2023)

Major problems here
This is not it.

I think back to 'Rose', 'The End of the World', 'The Unquiet Dead', etc. And this just doesn't match. I feel a very strong Disney influence here, like the recent MCU and live action remakes, the thinly veiled political statements and the concerted effort to include some kind of musical number and numerous dead-end references, also known as 'key jangling' and 'member berries'. RTD said he wasn't going to bend the knee to the mouse, but I don't believe that. This is not the kind of quality I expect from the man who gave use DW2005, It's a Sin, Cucumber, etc. This is a mess. Get rid of Disney. Worst thing they ever did. Aside from Chibnall of course.

Shôgun
(2024)

senseless gratuitous suffering
There is no value in portraying senseless gratuitous gory scenes of people suffering. It does not serve anyone, does not improve anyone's life, it just creates distress in anyone seeing it. We are empathetic beings and it is not normal to enjoy the suffering of others, in fact it can cause great distress in many people. I did not watch game of thrones for that very reason. Nor Braveheart. I stopped watching the walking dead when it went too far. I don't care how wonderful people may think the story is in this, so long as they decide it's appropriate to include stuff that I would not show to any child, then the show is surplus to requirements. Producers of these kinds of shows need to develop a sense of decency.

What If...?: What If... Hela Found the Ten Rings?
(2023)
Episode 7, Season 2

absolute garbage
Whoever wrote this doesn't seem to have watched Shang Chi at all. Just a cursory glance at the plot of Thor and Shang Chi and copied Thor's story mixing it with Shang Chi.... but fail to understand basic stuff, like the fact that Morris came to Wenwu's palace after Wenwu had found the sacred forest and met Shang's mother. Why would Morris be there at this time? It's just a minor quibble but it sticks out like a sore thumb as just one example of how clueless these writers seem to be.

Then they seem to have zero clue what Ta Lo even is... it's in another darn dimension and yet they suggest Hela can see what is happening near Wenwu's palace from Ta Lo??? What now?? The reuse and recycling of dialogue without any of the gravitas is also kind of insulting. This is just recycled garbage.

The Marvels
(2023)

surprisingly good fun
Well that certainly was no Thor 4 or Antman 3. Not even the type of issues that plagued wakanda forever. It did have some less heinous issues, but I'm surprised at the reactions. I'm thinking it could be that ms marvel and Wanda vision are required prerequisites. Also, the background of the antagonist is left til halfway through whereas I believe it really should be a prologue. Also some cuts are tonally clashing and really undercuts the emotions. There are plenty of lines that should be cut and some things which are foreshadowed that don't come to fruition. It's not perfect by any means, but I did enjoy it for the most part and it doesn't seem to suffer from 'the formula'. I really do wonder what are the major issues some other people are having, because I just didn't see the issues I've heard repeated by many different people.

Secret Invasion
(2023)

big letdown
This was not good. The main bulk of it was slow and seemed like maybe we'd get some good character development from Talos or Maria Hill or Colonel Rhodes or some other characters. That didn't really happen. The characters who seemed to be pushed to the fore towards the end, didn't seem to have any character development of any substance, they were pretty bland and I don't really find them interesting or likeable. The big macguffin didn't seem to make much sense and was said to be operating off DNA but that's not possible since a lot of the attributes involved did not work off DNA, they were esoteric energy or some such. The finale of that was pretty lame and didn't feel like there were any real stakes, it just ended up as a 'smackdown' of sorts and the 'plot twist' was something I saw coming a mile off. In the end, nothing was really achieved and we didn't learn anything. The vibe of the show left me feeling miserable and I have very little faith for the future of the MCU. I almost feel like this show wasted my time.

Below Deck
(2013)

garbage
After really falling in love with below deck Mediterranean, I was looking forward to seeing this version. Instead of a mostly classy hard working crew in a lovely environment, I got a bunch of incompetent children who take every opportunity to get drunk and just act stupid. It's literally like watching kids on spring break. I can't watch any of this, it's killing my brain cells. Captain Lee also comes across like an ignorant dullard who just doesn't give two hoots about anyone.

I just don't understand why there is such a stark difference here. I have to assume it's because this is in the America's and American culture is very different from European culture.

Below Deck Sailing Yacht
(2020)

Disappointing
After getting into Below Deck Med and becoming a big fan of it, I was hopeful for the other series'. After watching the american version and being disgusted by it, I imagined it may just be the culture of US reality TV, so when I learned that sailing Yacht was also in the med, I felt hopeful. First season was okay, if not a little chaotic, but upon watching through season 2 I have to stop watching. Why on earth have they got a crew of unprofessional, drunk sex obsessed kids??? I don't want to watch this, and quite frankly offended that the producers thought it was appropriate to show us a door with sex noises coming from the other side.

Honestly, class doesn't cost anything.

After seeing that The First mate Gary is remaining for the future series, I will not be watching any more of this. If I wanted that kind of thing, I'd be watching garbage like Love Island.

The Flash
(2023)

Dumb fun with bad cgi, but decent story.
Don't get me wrong, there were some pretty epic and cool things in the flash, but there was also some highly questionable stuff. I certainly didn't expect it to be quite so farcical, it was almost like a comedy caper, but it didn't step over the line like thor love and thunder did. The special effects were noticeably bad in a lot of places too. I'd say more bad cgi than good effects, but there were some good effects and the general vibe of the movie meant I didn't get offended by the bad cgi, I just sort of let it go. There was one particular bit that was so awesome I just.... I mean not awesome cool, but awesome that they did it. I don't want to say what it is, but people who follow rumours and memes will know. Its a throwback nod to something really old school.

I definitely enjoyed it but I can't really rate it highly. I would recommend it for sure, it was a really fun movie, but be prepared some some annoying over the top humour thrown in there and try to be patient with that 😁

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Profit and Lace
(1998)
Episode 23, Season 6

made me hate quark
Quark has long been my favourite character in deep space nine. This episode changed that. I'm going to try and write it off as an aberration. I don't know why the writers thought it would help Quark's character to have him engage in sexual harassment.

I found it very difficult to relate to him or empathise with him throughout this episode after that, but it did not end there. Later in the episode, we see him shouting at his mother in an abusive fashion. I have to say this was not the Quark I know and the writers don't seem to understand everything that Quark has been up until now. He may be a scoundrel, but he's not an abuser.

Star Trek: Picard: The Last Generation
(2023)
Episode 10, Season 3

entire season review
It started out bad and it took some convincing for me to give it a chance, but this has got progressively batter and towards the end, this has become some of the best star trek in a long time. I would place this above every single star trek production since 2005.

There are many moments where this won out for me. Shaw was fantastic and put the idiots in their place. I was so sick of the characters in modern trek acting like undisciplined children and There were numerous points in this season that directly addressed that type of behaviour. The language was also vastly improved. They didn't use as much slang from 3 centuries ago, so it felt more believable. They talked with respect and when tech jargon was used it was vague enough and yet logical enough that it worked, rather than confusing me or making me angry. Okay there were some stinkers like "subspace frequency" which was pretty aggravating, but there wasn't much. The lighting was improved. The ships do need more light, the crew spend a lot of time there, they need to have simulated daylight for their mental health and also to avoid eye strain, at the very least. They aren't short on power, they have a frickin warp engine. The crew respect each other, they support each other, they don't laugh at their crewmate's misfortune or make disturbing distasteful joke. They have solidarity and professionalism. They have light humour and good natured banter. This is what I want in Star Trek. I hope they take the positive energy from this show and take this forwards. No more discovery. No more picard season 1 and 2. No more of the frat house mentality of strange new worlds. Give us more of this.

This is Star Trek.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie
(2023)

I am a mario fan.
There were some things I wasn't keen on but it doesn't matter, I've played Mario games since I was 8 years old and for the past 35 years I've enjoyed many different instalments and this film filled me with so much joy. They even included the most beautiful music from Mario Galaxy, 'Wind Garden'. I take 1 point off because of the few odd things that didn't quite work, like Cranky Kong's voice for example, and the introduction of Peach didn't work for me... also, Bowser singing became more like Jack Black singing and while I like Jack Black, it took me out of it... but the rest of it was such a warm trip of nostalgia mixed with newness, it gets all my scores.

Get Out
(2017)

Made me question myself a lot.
Absolutely fantastic. When I saw the trailers for 'Nope' I asked myself "who is this Jordan Peele and why should I care?".

Now I know.

I gained so much from this. So much new understanding. So much that I need to question my own thoughts and actions with regards to some things. This movie is going to stay in my mind for a long time.

Right from the offset, I was quite surprised at how the subtle and insidious behaviour was coming across. I wasn't even sure exactly how I could tell, or maybe that is my own bad assumptions? I have to be honest, I don't think so. I think it's something to do with the framing and the placement of the characters and the editing... I would say that the director did an amazing job at telling the story and making us sympathise with Chris. It makes me wonder though, why did I find Chris so relatable in this movie and why was that remarkable... I have to wonder if there is a problem in film making, or maybe it's just me.

I know that I have myself said in the past "I love learning about different cultures", and I really need to examine that among other things.

Star Trek: Picard: The Next Generation
(2023)
Episode 1, Season 3

absolute garbage
Firstly, a DOCTOR who took the hippocratic oath doesn't have much business firing a weapon that is not on the stun setting, and most definitely does not vaporise an opponent that has already been knocked to the ground. Secondly, the dialogue between picard and the romulan is utterly contrived and confusing, he's talking about memories as if they are important one moment and then the next moment he wants to discard them. He hears an alert which apparently the computer has no clue about, even though the communication surely came through relays and the computer has all sensors and that, but the computer has no clue about it, then a second later once it's found, the computer has complete access to it and all the data it's receiving. The doctor is telling him it's all on the down low and not to involve star fleet, yet she's sending it through a GODDAMN STARFLEET COMM BADGE????

I am utterly mystified how people are singing the praises of this utter trash.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
(2023)

Same thing again
This was really disastrous combination. The Antman films have come to be known for comedic moments so when they pivoted to such a serious story with such a supposedly threatening and monumental bad guy, you expect a tone change, but then along comes a certain character and brings down the whole thing with absolutely pathetic humour and the worst looking special effects I've seen in years. This is on the level of Vinnie Jones as Juggernaut, or Jar Jar Binks. It's really bad.

Then there is the tropes that have become all too common for mcu movies at this point; large scale battle, cross cutting between individual characters, misplaced comedy... All detracts from at least one really powerful moment, that could have made the core of a fantastic movie, a moment when Scott regains his focus and works toward one goal rather than being drawn in all directions, that was very powerful.

This is just the latest MCU product though and exhibits the same issues that I have been starting to notice in the past few years. At this point it's hard to ignore and it's stifling any creativity and good storytelling. This will probably be the last MCU movie I pay for.

Knock at the Cabin
(2023)

A very enjoyable experience. Dave Bautista is captivating.
Par for the course for an M Night Shyamalan movie. I actually really enjoyed this. Maybe I just really enjoy watching Dave Bautista. I was thankful that they didn't rely on gratuitous gore to get the point across, that's the main thing I was afraid of. This was tastefully done and very emotional.

Also, I'd like to beg the question, why does a Shyamalan movie always have to have some 'twist' to it? Sure, I expect the movie to give me food for thought but is there some secret surprising 'twist' to the story? I didn't get that impression from the trailers and the movie didn't seem to be suggesting one and I just enjoyed each moment for what it was. In the end, I was satisfied with the way it went, regardless of whether or not I already knew the end or guessed the end or didn't guess it.

Black Adam
(2022)

Joly good
This was a treat. The imagery and the movement was fantastic, Black Adam was incredibly impressive. The story was good and engaging and the music was excellent.

This was a treat. The imagery and the movement was fantastic, Black Adam was incredibly impressive. The story was good and engaging and the music was excellent.

This was a treat. The imagery and the movement was fantastic, Black Adam was incredibly impressive. The story was good and engaging and the music was excellent.

This was a treat. The imagery and the movement was fantastic, Black Adam was incredibly impressive. The story was good and engaging and the music was excellent.

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special
(2022)

Changed my life
I rated this really badly when I first watched it, but I realised why. I intensely hate being forcefed festivity so that time of year is bad for me and This compounded that. When I decided to watch this with a friend recently though, it was my decision and it honestly changed my life. I know what Christmas is to me and I love it and I wish I could have it back. The season has been ruined for me by the commercial nature of it, but I know the true Christmas lies within my heart and that is all about love and caring. Unfortunately, I can't experience my own Christmas these days but maybe one day society will change and I will be able to have Christmas again. We'll have singing and dancing and we'll do nice things for each other and just enjoy being with our loved ones.

I have so many emotions, I can't say enough about this. I will keep this as precious to me. I will watch this whenever I want to feel that Christmas spirit. It probably won't be in October, November or December.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
(2022)

Mostly great but with some poor elements thrown in
I really enjoyed Shuri's story, the film was incredibly emotional and powerful and had me in tears a few times. Most of the scenes were incredibly done and blew me away but the finale was a bit of a jumble with too many elements going on at once. I feel the finale could actually have been much easier to follow if it weren't for the one character who seems to not really belong in this movie. Yes, Riri. Now, I don't mind her as a mcguffin in theory, but her character is so poorly presented, undeveloped and almost a mary-sue. She's just amazing and that's it. She can invent anything and make an amazing power suit without breaking a sweat and there seem to be no missteps or character development. She wants a suit, she makes a suit. She wants a vibranium detector, she makes a vibranium detector. She doesn't work as a character in her own rite, she is just there to be the thing that the characters are fighting over. I would be wiling to accept if that is all she was, but they are trying to make her more than that and she just sticks out like a sore thumb.

Interview with the Vampire
(2022)

utterly boring
I liked the concept. In a time where there is so much lazy race swapping, it was nice to have an actual fleshed out character and writing that acknowledges the differences and how the character experiences the world around him. Unfortunately, that's where the interest ends. Everything else is so dull and uninspired. The lighting is flat and boring and gives no sense of emotion. The costume and makeup do little to present the story about beautiful vampires, mystical creatures of the night. The framing has literally nothing to offer, I have not seen a single beautiful shot that stands out and makes me pay attention. The dialogue has zero poetry, there is no single line that made me feel like it was dancing on my eardum. After the first episode, the birth of a vampire, I found there to be nothing memorable and no desire to watch any more.

It's not bad television by any means, it's just standard, by the numbers and just 'OK'. I'd watch it if there was literally nothing else to watch.

Andor
(2022)

quality
I could tell 10 minutes in that the writing was quality. Just some really darn good dialogue that felt clever and well thought out. The setting is quality too. Having read that fanservice is not a factor in this show, makes me feel safe that the story will be pure and unadulterated. The pacing is also much to my liking. It certainly feels slow but I like that. TV is so fast paced these days, it's refreshing to have a chance to digest what they are giving to us. I am also not feeling desperate to watch the next episode, which is a good thing. After watching an episode, I feel satisfied and content. I will certainly watch the next episode, but not because I have to, because I want to.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law
(2022)

Showing women's strength
I loved how it showed a woman's emotional strength, because we deal with it all the time. It was also nice how Bruce demonstrated that he is clearly stronger than her with that big rock. It would have been bad if they'd implied that she was better than him. She's not better, just different strengths and weaknesses and I think it celebrates that.

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