ar_brierley

I enjoyed this film very much! It's nice to watch a movie that's gentle, kind and heartwarming, rather that full of noise and 'action'. Bill Nighy is, as always, outstanding in the lead role, I could really empathise with his situation, and feel what he was going through. The support cast is great too in their roles, and the production and set designs are very authentic and of their time from what I know. Thoroughly enjoyable film, with an uplifting message to it, although rather a tearjerker (for me, anyway). Wish there were more like it :-) .... .... .... .... .... .... .... .... ...... ...... ........ ......... ...... ...... ....... ...

'Luckiest Girl Alive' is an amazing and powerful story, which will sadly resonate with many women. Mila Kunis is awesome in the lead role of Ani, and Chiara Aurelia as her younger self gives a powerful and authentic performance. The movie is based on the book of the same name by Jessica Knoll, which was supposedly 'fiction' but which was in fact based on her own personal experience of being gang raped as a teenager. The depth of her pain, suffering and humiliation at the hands of others is evident in the film, and is superbly portrayed by the 2 women. This movie should come with a warning, as its stark realism may trigger those who've been the victim of sexual assault. Congratulations to all involved in this brave film.

I REALLY enjoyed watching this movie, with its rich visual feast of gorgeous sets and costumes in a 1950's desert utopia. The story is very intriguing, you could say it's a "sign of the times" (without giving anything away), but be sure to watch closely or you may miss some of the clues as to what's going on.

Florence Pugh is, as always, AMAZING in the lead role, she is a true star and seems to handle every role with consummate ease. Harry Styles again proves he is as good an actor as he is a singer & showman - just like Justin Timberlake was a decade ago. Olivia Wilde's direction is excellent, and she also plays a significant support role in the movie.

But for me it's the period settings and the gorgeous clothes, cars and homes that blew me away, they were SO perfect!! I loved this movie, it is beautiful, intriguing, and sinister, well done!!

My Policeman is a beautiful movie about human relationships and emotions, and how life can play out. Harry Styles and David Dawson are both excellent in the male leads, as is Emma Corrin (always perfect in every role, in my opinion!), and also Gina McKee and Rupert Everett. The story is very interesting and believable, and shows the damage that society's bigotry of the past (and present, in many cases!) can do to people's lives. The setting is the gorgeous south coast of England, and it's beautifully filmed with a lovely musical score. I thoroughly enjoyed this sensitive, intelligent movie, and highly recommend it to those wanting something more than the usual "action packed" naff stuff around today.

This movie was a HUGE shock to me, it was so very beautiful and it made me cry!! I was not expecting much, as I'm an older lady who does not often watch 'young people's' movies because I invariably find them uninteresting (to me). But this film is SO well done and has such a lovely and relevant story, that I was hooked from the very start!! The 2 lead actors are amazing in their roles, both very believable. The production values are first class, and the story highlights SUCH an important issue in our world today - that of TOLERANCE & ACCEPTANCE of others. We are each a UNIQUE creation, and consensual adult love in all its forms should be celebrated. There is so much hatred, bigotry and suffering in the world today, we need more films that bring us together, like this one. Congratulations and Thanks to all involved in its creation!!

I didn't expect much, due to the low ratings, but I was pleasantly surprised and thoroughly enjoyed watching this compelling film!! Aubrey Plaza is SUCH a good actress, very underrated, a real star!! She shines as the young woman with a large student debt, living in share accommodation and having to work a crap job for low pay. Then an unexpected 'opportunity' comes her way to make some decent money for once. A powerful portrayal of a good person pushed to the limits trying to get ahead. The support cast is great too, largely unknowns, but very talented in their roles, however Aubrey steals the show!! An Interesting story very well executed, congratulations and thanks!!

I don't understand all the low ratings and negative reviews here. This is a FUN romcom, not meant to be taken seriously, so chill out guys!! I've loved this movie for years, used to watch it often with my family, great memories of fun times, we never tired of it. Just like 'How to lose a guy in 10 days' and 'We're the Millers'. No, I'm not an uneducated idiot, have post grad degrees & high paying job. Just love the silliness and light hearted nature of this, plus it does have some 'deeper' messages about not taking people at face value; plus the ending is uplifting and the 2 leads are perfect. Great movie to de-stress with, Enjoy!!!

I sat spellbound watching this hauntingly beautiful film!! I didn't know what to expect when deciding to watch it, and hadn't read any reviews. But once it started, I couldn't tear my eyes away from it!! The acting is superb, especially the Indigenous cast! Plus Simon Baker is SO good in this one, very 'understated' in the lead role as the flawed detective. The cinematography is amazing too! While at first I didn't 'get' the black and white (I wanted the rich red earth and blue sky of the outback), I soon realised that this monochrome actually highlighted the superb subtlety of the characters and acting. Also, there's no 'sensationalism' like violence and annoying high speed chases to detract from the immersive experience. The aerial photography shows the moon-like landscape of endless holes dug for opal mining, and the long straight roads seem to stretch on forever. This is a movie for 'thinking' people, who are able to appreciate the nuanced and pitch-perfect delivery of a sadly familiar theme in Australia's dark history following white colonisation. Brilliantly done!! Thank you so much to all involved for this experience.

This is a documentary about a young Canadian guy called Marc-Andre, who was driven to climb mountains solo for no other reason than the sheer love of it and his 'need' to climb. It's as though climbing is to him like breathing is to the rest of us, he HAS to do it to feel alive. And he'd been doing some amazing climbs before anyone had even heard of him, he just walked up to a steep mountain and climbed it, no fanfare or support or funding or even anyone knowing he was doing it, he didn't like attention or money or fame, just to climb alone. His dream was to climb the treacherous Torre Egger in Patagonia alone in winter, which was unthinkable and had never been attempted before. This documentary is beautifully made, with minimal encroachment on the climbing, giving us a 'fly on the wall' glimpse into this amazing young man's achievements.

This show is AMAZING!!!!! It has it all - international espionage, a beyond-evil villain (Hugh Laurie is astoundingly quiet, but Oh So deadly), a gorgeous heroine whom you can't quite figure out for most of the series (Elizabeth Debecki, divinely glacial!), and the SOO hunky Tom Hiddleston walking a tightrope the whole way through. The production values are awesome, with extraordinary scenery as we're taken inside, fly over, and sail around, some of the most stunning abodes on earth. The storyline is very well laid out, and while I doubt that any REAL person would survive in such an evil environment the way Tom's character does, it's still within the bounds of believably, and we're on the edge of our seats the whole time. Special mention to Tom Hollander as Corcoran - an acting tour de force of sub-surface malevolence!

Just finished binge-watching S1 of the Diplomat and it's brilliant!! If you like geopolitical games, international espionage and fast witty dialogue, then this is the show for you! The scenario is very up-to-date on world affairs (made this year), and has a brilliant cast of actors who appear mostly unknown (to me, anyway), apart from Rufus Sewell who any BBC period drama watcher would know. The storyline is quite intricate, and I didn't always 'get' the subtle plot intrigues, but overall it's easy to follow in the main, and the lead actress playing the titular 'Diplomat' is incredibly good in the role! I thoroughly enjoyed this, watched it straight through cos it was so good, and can't wait for S2 which surely MUST be made, based on the based on the incendiary ending.

Sherwood is a really well done British drama based around the facts of the miners strikes in the early 1980's and Maggie Thatcher's right wing government's campaign to destroy the unions and the lives of working class people, which sadly they succeeded in doing. The story is backgrounded against the divisions of those times, and how they decimated livelihoods throughout mining communities leaving them impoverished, unemployed, divided and without hope while corporations took the profits and left nothing but the wreckage of their greed. The divisions amongst the people, those for, and those against, the strikes, have lasted through generations, and this drama demonstrates how deep the wounds can still be. We CAN have progress, but it should be done in a sustainable way so there are no "losers" as reference were in this case, the lives and livelihoods of ordinary people must NOT be a 'zero-sum game' for the rich and powerful.

This is a lovely gentle series of local 'whodunnit' crimes set in a rural village in Devon. The countryside and aerial coast photography is gorgeous, will definitely encourage more tourism! Kris Marshall is as good as ever, continuing his 'bumbling genius' detective role from Death in Paradise. The support cast are wonderful, the local accents are delightful to hear, and the stories are interesting and varied, without murder and other gruesome crimes. The humour is wry and amusing, I think, and it's just a lovely comfortable show to watch, especially for those of us from the 'colonies' hankering for our British entertainment, rather than the usual brash American stuff.

This movie is a tour de force of exemplary writing, acting and direction. Emma Thompson is amazing and courageous in this role, which in less talented hands could have been a 'warts and all' portrayal but instead is a powerful story of self love and affirmation. Daryl McCormack in the male lead is likewise perfect. I love the way the 2 characters interact and progress through the movie, almost helping each other 'peel back' the layers of their outward personas to reveal hidden strengths and vulnerabilities underneath. A thoroughly mature and intelligent movie, expertly crafted, about sexuality and self awareness.

This is a really great show, I watched it all in one go! The acting is amazing, especially from the leads playing Maxine and her Mum Vicky. The story was really interesting, and very timely given the focus on gender diversity becoming much more accepted in society now (thank heavens!!). Shows like this are both informative and entertaining, especially for people who wouldn't normally watch documentaries and other sources of information on different issues in society. The program shows how difficult life can be for those whom we ostracise as "others", and hopefully can help people to be more accepting of all our beautiful diversity as human beings.

This is a brilliantly made drama, based on a true story. The acting is incredibly 'real', the 2 leads are amazing, and the whole thing is creepy-real from beginning to end. If you want actIon, this is NOT the movie for you, but if you want slow-burn tension and intrigue then this is the one to watch. The eerie music really matches the dark, sombre mood of the subject, and they've perfectly captured the significance of this horrific crime on the region, state, and country. Finally, this film salutes the brilliant hard work done by law enforcement over many many years, they NEVER gave up on this, and we as a society are eternally grateful for that.

This film is transfixing and beautiful!! It is moody and atmospheric, with plenty of pathos. Like a darkly filmed Shakespearean drama, or threatening, like 'Shutter Island'. Christian Bale is amazing in the lead role, and Harry Melling as Poe is mesmerising to watch!! The story is basically a solid intrigue, with just 1 silly scene (I think), towards the end (about 'ritualistic' rubbish). The solution to the mystery is fine, but it's the filming, the brooding atmosphere, the scenery, and the exemplary production values that really steal the show for me!! If you like misty, somber, Dartmoor-like themes, you should enjoy this. I found it SOOO enjoyable!!

I too was really looking forward to this one, I love British spy stories. Unfortunately the story is so unbelievably useless that it's like watching bumbling Keystone Cops. The head of MI6 is a Machiavellian parody, his deputy has a meteoric rise backed by Russia (which he apparently didn't realise) and then he's continuously able to slip away from his bodyguards whenever he wants, in order to make nefarious contact with Russian spies!!

The only believable part is the Russians & the CIA are the bad guys, what else is new 🙄 Disappointing writing, surely we can do better than this........ ......... ......... ..

I was feeling low, and was looking for something 'uplifting' to watch. I accidentally came across this little gem, but it was no 'accident'! This movie lifted my spirits so much! It's a beautiful little story, well acted by Reese and Mark in the lead roles. It took my mind off life's problems, and I was 'rooting' for Lizzie to come through and for Mark to win out, the whole way through. City of San Francisco is also on show here, great overhead shots of the Bridge and Bay, on clear days, gorgeous!! This is just a fairytale for adults, but it's a lovely, kind, gentle, & frequently humorous one. Give this film a go, it will warm your heart - It certainly did mine!!

Irreverent is a really well-written comedy, gentle and quirky, lots of 'in jokes' that only Aussies will get (sorry Yanks!). Colin Durrell in the lead is SO good, becoming more likeable with every episode. The supporting characters are great, with skilled actors delivering ridiculous lines with deadpan accuracy. This is SMART comedy, very witty & dry, not 'laugh out loud' stuff most of the time, even better than that (I think). I found it an absolute joy to watch, and so uplifting!! Congratulations to all those involved, we need more of this intelligent stuff to enjoy; so much of the rest is just sensationalistic hyperbole; this one is a REAL GEM!! Thanks so much for raising my spirits.

This is another awesome series by Netflix!! Right up there with The So I'll Network! Really 'lifts the lid' on how Spotify, & probably other streaming services too) screw over the artists, most of who only get about $12 a month for their music streamed on the platform. No wonder Taylor Swift removed her music from there for a few years; but eventually went back, that's why monopolies are bad for the masses, good for only a few at the top. The early episodes are great, and show the founding of the company and the innovation and initiative shown by Daniel Ek. But once the company becomes mega successful & he's a multi billionaire, they become tyrants & have to "feed the beast" of profit-at-all-costs to keep investors & shareholders happy. Just like Facebook, Google, etc. Such a sad world of corporate greed these days 😞

The Wonder is an unusual and eerie film, with great acting and story. It's set in Ireland during the potato famine, and contrasts what passed for "love" in a strict Catholic family, with the real love shown by a compassionate stranger from another place. Florence Pugh, in the lead, is magnificent as she always is, I could watch her in anything, truly mesmerising talent there. Tom Burke is superb as the male lead, and SO sexy here too! The young star, Kila Lord Cassidy, is also excellent, as is the supporting cast (some in repugnant male roles of the time). If you like historical movies, with great acting and an unusual story, you'll love this; I certainly did!

This documentary is really well done, not much "time wasting" with fillers or going over the same stuff again and again. It documents the tragic case of Vanessa Guillen, who was sexually harassed and murdered while ON DUTY at Ford Hood in Texas, and how the military immediately went into 'damage mode' by not investigating her disappearance, and by covering it up for 2 months. They should be ashamed that there is SO much sexual abuse and intimidation in the military, which either gets reported but no action taken, or else doesn't even get reported through fear or repercussions. God Bless Vanessa, her legacy lives on through her family's love and advocacy to make positive changes to help others.

If you're looking for comparisons, this is kind of like themes/ideas from The Matrix, Interstellar, Sliding Doors, Inception, etc., so if you liked that type of film you'll probably enjoy this (I certainly did!).

It's an intriguing, and engaging series, well worth watching, if you like something 'out of the ordinary'. The acting is first rate, especially the boy who plays Isaac, he's amazing!!! Jessica Raine is always a pleasure to watch, of course. The story is interesting, you don't know at first what's going on, so it offers a few different options, you need to pay attention to catch the quick 'flashes' that make sense later. Hoping for Seasons 2 & 3 to be made, for sure!!

This is a brilliant study in the human psyche and how we can all react in very different ways when something unexpected goes wrong. In this case it goes very badly wrong, and the characters act in different and unexpected ways. The tension builds, and although some reactions are not what most people would do (I think), they are believable and possible under the harrowing circumstances here.

The acting is impeccable, the settings are amazingly well done, and the writing is truly brilliant. David Tennant and Stanley Tucci are awesome as the 2 main characters, with first rate actors supporting them. Definitely very very watchable, please suspend your disbelief and give it a go, it is worth watching for the human interest factor alone.