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Reviews

The Bear
(2022)

Lip Goes to Culinary School
Playing virtually the same character he played on Shameless, Jeremy White (Lip in Shameless) continues in a somewhat tatted and physically and emotionally scarred role but this time replacing substance abuse with culinary school. An amazing actor, but will he ever break out of the Chicago kid role? That remains to be seen.

This time, White takes his talents to the role of a guy whose brother has died and left him a Chicago Beef restaurant. Having been trained in the ultimate of kitchens and worked in the ultimate of restaurants, and having been reviewed as an amazing up and coming chef, he now assumes the role of "chef" and owner in a fledgling Chicago sandwich shop trying to implement the techniques of both cuisine and management he learned in school.

The supporting characters and restaurant scenes ring true, the script and characters were very well researched as anyone who has worked in restaurants will attest. White as an actor remains compelling as ever.

The eight episode run is only 30 minutes per episode and is very addictive and watchable for fans of White and restaurant people. The music score is top notch. Enjoy.

Welcome to Flatch
(2022)

Not a BBC knockoff
It's produced by "BBC Studios" as evidenced by the credit at the end of each episode.

It is, however, a much inferior knockoff of HBO's "Somebody Somewhere" which literally had the exact same introduction scene of the farm, all the way down to the silo shown. That show actually turned out to be cute and funny with likeable characters. This show, not so much.

Kamikaze
(2021)

After first two episodes, will watch more
It could go either way. First, it could get pretty dark and there seem to be hints it will go in that direction. Second, it could get pretty silly, which would be a shame.

Although set in Denmark with Danish characters, the dialog is in English. You will follow the protagonist dealing with depression and confusion following the loss of her parents and brother in a plane crash as any person, much less an 18 year old, would.

But, at the same time, you see glimpses of an event which happens in the future which makes you wonder how she got in that position and I guess that is enough to keep my interest at this point. Hope it stays that way.

Worth a watch if it comes up on your watch list.

Isolation
(2021)

Better than the current rating
"Isolation" is a story told through multiple short stories, some of which are interrelated, of a pandemic that swept the world. Stories from New York, San Diego, Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Seattle, El Paso, Miami. And Berlin comprise the movie.

While it is a very extreme version of the "pandemic" that actually did just sweep the world, it is very engaging and watchable. Some conspiracy theories are presented, some are extreme, some are plausible. Everyone still has electricity and water, there is food, there are no zombies, but there are clearly perceived enemies.

Overall, it was enjoyable, well written, acted, and directed and, if you do a shot after every story, it is probably more enjoyable.

Ghosts
(2021)

Everyone said the same thing about "The Office"
"The British version was so much better. Why mess with perfection?"

I haven't watched "British TV" since Monty Python in the 70's. I took "The Office" on face value and that's exactly what should be done with "Ghosts". If you do that, you will find a very humorous sitcom without a laugh track or an obvious agenda which will give you, at a minimum, a couple giggles every episode. While the leading couple, specifically the husband, is horribly miscast, the remaining ghosts and supporting characters (eg, the neighbors) seem to make up for that faux pas.

Definitely worth a watch with an open mind and without any preconceptions.

Queen Bees
(2021)

Too Much Rom, Very Little Com
Have you ever made a recipe that, when you read the list of ingredients you think, wow, I like all of those, that should work together really well. So you make it following the directions and sit down to eat and something is just missing?

That's Queen Bees. Given the list of very accomplished stars, the premise, the trailer, everything should work together really well. But it doesn't. In fact, it fails... just short of miserably.

The Rom was cringeworthy. The Com was virtually non-existent. The plot twist was predictable from the very first line uttered by the character.

So sad because the recipe looked so good.

Death in Texas
(2020)

A Mama's Boy Finds Redemption - Surprisingly Good
As the movie opens, we find our boy Billy getting paroled after spending seven years in the pen only to discover his beloved mother is dying from liver failure. Billy wants to do everything he can to save his mom but has to dig way down in the slop in order to have any hope of so doing.

Several very good performances from veterans Lara Flynn Boyle (mom) and Bruce Dern as a very unlikeable cartel mobster. Relative unknowns Ronnie Gene Blevins in the lead role of Billy and Stephen Lang as one of mom's caregivers also turned in memorable performances.

All in all, it was very watchable with a couple good plot twists, a moderate to high amount of violence, and a good ending.

I've Got Issues
(2019)

I Wanted To Like It But ...
Maybe I missed the point. The movie is essentially a series of vignettes, each one with their own title card, with recurring characters. I think the movie was attempting to explore the meaning, or meaningless, of life on earth as a human being. But the series of short clips failed miserably if that was the goal.

From keys locked in a car, to malfunctioning soda machines, to holistic healing, to a guy getting a job as a KKK intern in charge of recycling (which sounds funny but it wasn't)... none of it made any sense and wasn't the least bit funny which would have at least given it some redeeming quality.

There are a lot of people who give a movie a "1", this movie actually deserves it. How this movie is currently holding a "7.2" rating is beyond me.

Rent-a-Pal
(2020)

Not a Horror Movie
So get it out of the "horror movie" genre. Once you view it as a character study, a dark one at that, it may be better reviewed. With a low budget, the director / producer / writer managed to put together a very well done, character-driven, engaging little movie. The cinematography was very good, the tension was palpable, the dementia was well portrayed. Thoughts of "Requiem for a Dream" and even "Taxi Driver" went through my head as I watched. Definitely recommend for what it is.

United We Fall
(2020)

Turned it off and talked to wife instead
Just the laugh track alone was bad enough to make me turn it off and talk to my wife instead. It was that bad. Jane Curtain should have just remained a hilarious memory. And it's sad because I love sitcoms. I enjoyed Sasso's character in "Mom", another comedy with an overbearing laugh track but the writing and story lines there keep it worth watching.

I Know This Much Is True
(2020)

So Much Good, So Much Bad, So Much Darkness
After the first of six episodes, what impresses me is the good, the bad, the dark. Not knowing anything about the 900 plus page novel on which this series is based, but having some knowledge into mental illness and the public treatment it receives, the realistic nature of the scenes and dialogues between the two brothers rang true. One problem I had was with casting. Mark Ruffalo has always been a neutral to somewhat positive name in my book but he shines here. Melissa Leo is a positive to very positive name and she turns in an absolutely amazing performance. Juliette Lewis gets a negative to very negative and she continues that tradition as playing a character who is as annoying as she is... guess that would be "type casting". Rosie O'Donnell is also cast but was not in the first episode. With her very negative rating, she may actually kill this series for me but will wait and pass judgment on that later. All in all, the first episode is a winner and will look forward to the remaining five episodes with an open mind.

Washington
(2020)

For Lovers of History, Freedom, and Independence
I am certainly glad this was not a Netflix production. While being skeptical going in, I will say the History Channel handled this documentary, which spans the life of George Washington, very well. Interspersing dramatic recreations with segments from experts on the life of Washington and several other historical experts, the three part mini-series told the story of the life of the founder of our country in an historical, non-biased, fashion. The actor, Nicholas Rowe, who played the part of Washington was outstanding. Each of the three episodes is approximately one hour and thirty minutes without commercials and, if you are a lover of history and liberty, your time will not be wasted.

Harpoon
(2019)

Definitely Try It
It seems like people want everything from every movie and are judging and reviewing on an Academy Award scale. This was a solid movie with a good story, not overly long, several plot twists, interesting enough camera work, and a good unexpected ending. Not sure what else you want. Being the slightly squeamish type person, I had to cover eyes on a couple scenes but that's ok. It reminded me a little bit of Tone Deaf (2019), dark and quirky with several laughs. Either you like it or you don't. Pop some corn and enjoy it without overthinking.

McMillions
(2020)

I'm Lovin' It
Just watched the first of six episodes and found the style and characters very interesting. Several laughs. I do not remember the actual incident(s) but the story is so far very well told using people from both the FBI and McDonald's who were involved in the investigation as well as explaining why some people were omitted ("No." lol). The visuals, the pacing, the narrative were all very good and am looking forward to the future episodes of this documentary.

Abby's
(2019)

Worse than talking to your wife
For whatever reason, my wife always wants to talk about some crap around this time at night. I am a big sitcom fan and saw this and thought, well, it must be better than talking to her. WOW was I wrong. It actually could have been decent with better writing, no horrid laugh track, and better supporting actors in addition to the two leads. But this is just a horrid mess. How does crap like this even get funded, much less green-lit by a network? OH NBC, "nothing but crap"... that explains it.

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