onenonymouse

This was fantastic sci fi and deserves at least one more season!!! How do worse shows get renewed over and over and gems like this get left behind?? The acting is superb, the plot is creative. Sure it's a bit slow at first but I loved getting to know the characters and their relationships. The religious element is fascinating and I want to know more about that. Jude is adorable and I need to know more about his mother and where he comes from (presumably the city seen in the last scene) and how he knows Tokyo when he didn't know karaoke (I think there's an explanation, not a plot hole). I wish when series get canceled the writers would at least find somebody to write the rest into a novel or something because I really want to know what they had in mind.

Half of the reviews think this is full of misogyny and the other half think it's misandry. Maybe not half and half, since possibly more men have reviewed it crying misandry. Personally I think the entire episode is just full of awful gender stereotypes all around. It's definitely got a fair amount of male fantasy (re: lesbian relationships in an all-male society, the pining of women for a man the second they see him, the need for a man to take charge of things). And the claim of some reviews that this represents some sort of utopian female society are bizarre, because clearly there are all sorts of problems with the society, which according to the writers clearly need a man to fix -- it's just that he goes about it wrong. But yes, it is also full of stereotypes about men being inherently violent and causing violence. And in the end it has a lot of anti-man rhetoric. So in my opinion this is just unfair to both men and women.

The biggest problem is that it's a silly story and the acting is mostly really bad. And the end is just more silliness.

This episode is basically a parody of the "expose" genre, with an added twist of government suppression and manipulation of the narrative even if the narrative is fundamentally wrong. It has the added interesting twist of casting Bruce Harwood as the informant, a year into his role as Byers in the X Files. In fact, it has a very strong X Files undertone to it.

All of the footage from previous episodes is used here, but used without the whole story. The people putting it all together don't really know what they are looking at, or what story it tells. They tell their own story with it, but it's not true. Those of us who have seen these previous episodes know this. It's fascinating to watch what story is told in an attempt to tie those clips together.

Not knowing the whole story, and therefore getting the story wrong, but also having enough fundamental aspects of truth that the government suppresses it -- that's very X FIles.

It's not an excellent episode by any means, but it's interesting enough.

This is a powerful movie. Nothing much happens, it's true. There are a lot of scenes of domestic life both before and in the face of incredible tragedy. I think it's noteworthy that this was produced by a woman and really does portray more of a family-centered story about the apocalypse.

Strengths of this movie include the acting, the honesty between the mother and children, the compassionate but not saccharine portrayal of an intellectually disabled child, and the complete absence of a happy ending. It strikes me as realistic more than almost any other nuclear holocaust movie. People neither start rioting and turn completely feral, nor do they suddenly band together in unbelievable shows of cooperation -- though more the latter than the former. There are still all shades of good and bad people after the worst happens. The end is dismal and real.

I am surprised that I didn't know about this movie before watching it yesterday and I will recommend it to others. I don't think we have the same existential fears in 2023 as when this movie was made, but we have plenty of others.

This would be a fantastic movie for Mystery Science Theater 3000. The acting and writing is like a high school film student level. Not to mention the score, editing, "special effects" (in parenthesis because my 15-year-old could do better), etc. Sure, it covers some interesting themes, but nothing can make up for everything else. Especially the acting.

I have to write more to be allowed to submit this review, but there isn't much more to write. When I see a film like this I always wonder how anybody managed to get it made. Also the main character isn't compelling as a person. Nobody in science would outright insult the people funding them, what was that even about?

It's entertaining, actually. I accidentally came across it on Netflix and thought I'd watch; I've never seen whatever it's based on. I liked it enough to watch the whole first season so far, which gives it some credit. The biggest issue, and it's kind of an overwhelming one, is that these are supposedly 16 and 17 year olds and the actors are all like 25 and look at least 25 or older, plus they mostly act older (at least with the drinking/drugs/sex, not that 16-year-olds don't but this is more mature) but then randomly whine like teenagers. If they'd just set it in a college rather than a boarding school for teens it would have made so much more sense.

Another issue: almost everybody is beautiful, except the one character who isn't, and that's part of her character.

But the story line is pretty interesting. The magic isn't stupid. The characters are mildly interesting. It's not a waste of time for mindless entertainment.

I have loved this show. There are good and bad episodes, for sure, but in general I've enjoyed the majority of the previous 24 seasons. Actually, as a pathologist myself I have appreciated that most of the medical part, at least in more recent years, is relatively accurate and well done (with leeway for TV, like timing of results). Obviously the scope of practice/behavior of the forensic pathologists is ridiculous, but it's TV.

Anyway, the first two episodes of this season were fine. Not great, but good enough. I have no idea what is up with Sam, whose current character is nothing like the original character. But I just enjoy this show for the basic entertainment value; I can forgive a lot.

This episode? Absolute and utter trash. The acting is awful (unfortunately, the teenage girl is possibly the worst). The script is awful. The camera work is beyond awful. The murder itself is uninteresting and the usual intrigue is just missing.

Shocked by the quality of this episode. What even happened here?

I'm surprised the rating is so low here, when other much worse movies are rated much higher. Granted I had never heard of the Wrong Turn franchise and still have no clue what it is -- I just randomly chose this movie to watch and no expectations going in.

The acting is not nearly as awful as many reviews suggest. It's not the best acting in a movie, but it's pretty decent overall. There is a lot of gore. It's somewhat predictable, but the whole thing was entertaining. I also don't think it was "woke" or whatever other criticisms suggest -- apparently having racial and sexual diversity qualifies as "social justice" now? The one guy with anger issues who ends up executed is actually portrayed as a liberal bigot. One of the gay guys dies first. I just genuinely don't see any sort of political agenda in this movie.

Of course it's unbelievable, that's true of the majority of horror movies. Of course cops would have been involved long ago, people can't just disappear in large numbers in the Appalachians, etc. I don't think this detracted from the basic entertainment value of the movie.

I thought the overall production value was good. Costumes were great. Whatever language they were speaking was really silly, especially considering their origin story (why wouldn't they just speak somewhat antiquated English?). The little girl character was weakly written and acted. And I would say that the overall good vs. Bad character of the Foundation wasn't 100% clear until the trip through the tunnel with all of the mutilated people. The boyfriend's decision to stay made some sense in the context of him not knowing about that (although having seen what they did to his friends, he should have suspected). There is a certain appeal to living a simple life in the mountains. Also I really liked the father character and I think Matthew Modine did a good job with him.

Anyway, not exactly great cinema but an entertaining movie that I think deserves a higher rating than it has, particularly if approached as its own thing and not part of whatever the previous franchise was.

I hadn't heard of this until I was reading reviews of The Wilds, and decided to watch it. (For what it's worth, The Wilds is a *very* different show that just happens to have a similar -- but actually different -- starting premise. The Wilds is entertaining, adequate television. Not remotely on the same level as Yellowjackets.)

This show is fantastic. The acting is absolutely wonderful throughout. The casting of the younger and older characters is supremely well done. The behavior of the teenagers is so well scripted and directed -- the side glances, the body language in general. I love horror and supernatural stuff, and I love how that element was integrated into the story of some teenagers traumatized by a plane crash.

I really think the characters are all interesting as individuals and as part of the group. Misty is bizarre as a teen, and it quickly becomes clear that she's truly, evilly insane. The acting on her character is so good. Shauna as a teen doesn't yet have a huge personality, which is kind of the point -- she was always in Jackie's shadow. But the adult Shauna maintains that sort of bland exterior that hides some serious trauma and weirdness (but I'm not sure how I felt about her repeated insistence that she doesn't like her own daughter, who seems like a perfectly fine person). Natalie's back story may be the most compelling; I liked that it's clear that her self-destructive behavior (drugs and alcohol and promiscuity) started before the crash. I love Taissa for her strength, but she may be the character who makes me the most uncomfortable because of how she is hurting her son and wife.

I could keep going but the point is I feel attached to the characters and very excited to see season 2. I think some people were disappointed that there weren't more answers at the end of season 1. Personally I think it was somewhat perfect as far as giving us just enough but keeping us hooked for the next season. One thing I really want to understand is what the heck was going on with Jeff -- clearly there was an ulterior motive behind his relationship with Shauna. I wonder if he was in some way connected to the cult-type people who kidnapped Nat at the end. It seems they are probably connected to Lottie, who was clearly developed as a cult leader out in the woods. And the cult must have killed Travis. So overall, I do think we have enough info to speculate, which is just where a show should be after 1 season.

Bottom line: must watch show for anybody who likes mystery, horror, psychological thriller etc. I will probably re-watch before the 2nd season, which I have read is starting filming soon!

The concept is fantastic. I desperately want to like a weird rancher story about a time traveling hole in the ground. With a murder thrown in. But I have watched all 4 episodes released so far and I have absolutely no clue what is happening. I like weird and bizarre. This is just incomprehensible. Half of it is so dark I can't tell what's happening anyway. The rest of it is just plain confusing. I also agree with other reviewers that there are very few likable characters. Except the little girl who literally is just a kid who likes to run around outside. I kind of like the sheriff too, she's kind of badass. But the two feuding families are not likable or relatable. Starting out with trying to cover up a murder doesn't exactly endear the characters to me. The bizarre crazy rich family is just that.

I'll probably watch the rest of the series to try to figure out where they're heading. But this isn't one I'm thinking about and waiting on the next episode because it makes so little sense that I don't even know what I would think about.

I loved this show up through episode 9. There are a lot of comparisons to Wayward Pines, and they are warranted (in fact I think in a lot of ways the creators of Lost deliberately nodded to Wayward Pines -- it's an obvious inspiration), but this show to me is actually much better. Wayward Pines tries too hard to be science fiction while getting the science all wrong. At least From just makes it all magical, which is a much better solution because magic can work however it wants. (Also the acting is mostly fairly good, with a few exceptions including the young boy Ethan, and a few mediocre performances, but overall very solid. I thought the acting in Wayward Pines was much worse.)

So the first 9 episodes of From are actually fantastic in my opinion. And when in episode 10 the kid Ethan says "that's his part of the quest and this is ours," plus with the other 2 in the woods forming a third component, it almost seemed like this was all going to come together in some spectacular way. But no. Absolutely nothing happened. This was not a season finale at all. Zero questions were answered, zero storylines were cleared up. The creepy person on the radio to Jim was great! I loved that! And of course Victor showed up again, which he had to and I was glad to see him because he's possibly my favorite character, but even that was totally unexplained.

Bottom line is that this was a horrible season finale to what was otherwise a fantastic show, and it's hugely disappointing.

Torn between rating 8 vs. 9. I went with 8 because like many negative reviews suggest, some of the characters are kind of stereotypical, and some aspects of the town residents' gullibility or perhaps lack of curiosity are difficult to accept. That said, there are many complaints about the acting and I don't understand that -- there are plenty of shows with awful acting but this isn't one of them. The youngest kid, Ethan, is not great (though I've seen far worse child actors), but otherwise the acting is fine to excellent.

The other major complaint I've seen in reviews is that this is a ripoff of Wayward Pines. I hadn't seen that show, so I went and started watching it. There are definite similarities, to be sure -- a town that can't be escaped, road on a loop, creepy stuff happening inside, a sheriff, public execusion/punishment. I think there's little doubt that some of the basic premise in From is borrowed from that show. But Wayward Pines is very surreal, not only in concept but in filming/execution, with a Twin Peaks vibe; time is funky there; the entire horror/monster component obviously is different. From is much more linear, easier to follow (perhaps less artistic? More simple storytelling), and is pure horror in many ways.

What I like about From: I think many of the characters are well written and fairly complex in normal human ways. The older daughter, Julie, starts out as the stereotypical rebellious teen, but actually by the end of the 9th episode (as much as has been released as I write this) is quite a bit more complex. I think Jim, the father/husband figure, is a weak point in the writing and mediocre as far as acting. Sara is a fascinating and disturbing character who is both compelling and abhorrent. And I think Boyd, the sheriff, overall is a very likeable character, although the big scene with his son in the clinic is super cliche. Kenny is extremely likeable and a good character. Fatima is loveable but written to be too good without enough human flaws. Oh and Victor is fascinating, I'm extremely interested to find out what happens with him in the final episode. He's also very well acted -- it's unclear if he's developmentally disabled or has a psychiatric condition due to long term extreme trauma, but I find him compelling as a character.

I like the relatively slow pace of the show. Many scenes are excellent horror, with a lot of anticipatory fear built up. There are some jump scares but it's much more than that. The slower pace in exploring the relationships of people to each other, how they've come to live and survive in the very limited environment, is something I appreciate. Even the ambivalence expressed about leaving made sense psychologically. I also really liked the completely magical component, which was unexpected in what is otherwise fairly straightforward horror. Not just the fact that this place exists outside of spatial reality, but the appearance of food and electricity from nowhere, the talismans that keep the monster/vampire/zombie things out, the existence of some sort of spirits or overseers of some sort.

I'm greatly anticipating the 10th episode, and depending on how it ends will be happy to watch a second season if there is one.

This is a well-written, well-produced, and well-acted series about consciousness and humanity. I am not very good at critically evaluating shows, but I can say that in my opinion this one is worth watching. Also, the end of the last episode sort of changes everything so I would advise withholding judgment until the end. Up until the end I was mostly fairly anti-synth, in spite of all the attempts to humanize them. Then at the end the purple eye creepy V thing was bizarre. I can't say the ending came out of left field because it really did fit with the show overall, but the way it changed everything was strange, and the entire savior synth-human baby situation was not appealing to me. I've just finished watching it and maybe I will revise my opinion as I reflect on it (and this is a show I think I will continue to reflect on).

One other thing I can say is that I found the actual identity of "the synth who sleeps" a surprise. In retrospect it makes sense but I, at least, did not put the pieces together and predict it.

Everybody has already said it, but this is such a bad movie that I feel compelled to say it again.

I only watched it because I had some movies on in the background while I was doing mindless work and the streaming service had this one come on next after another. I will say I never would have chosen it otherwise because I have personal reasons for wanting to avoid images of suicide -- if this is you, NEVER watch this. The suicides are graphic.

But really nobody should watch this movie because it's just awful. The acting is mediocre to bad. The story is beyond ridiculous. There are tons of dramatic shots that mean nothing and go nowhere. I was sort of interested in the beginning and thought it had potential. Then the whole stupid storyline about plants trying to kill people and the annoying whistling wind and the horrible acting and the stupid cinematography . . . Well, it's basically trash. I gave it 1 extra star for that tiny glimmer of potential in the beginning.

I'm actually surprised by how many mid-to-high ratings this has.

This was an interest concept in the beginning. It had a lot of potential to be social commentary and to have some deeper meaning. But instead it's just plain bizarre nightmare without any purpose. (Reviewers saying this does have some sort of deeper message or social commentary really confuse me. I love social commentary whether it's subtle or hits me over the head. But this movie doesn't have it.)

Starting at the point where the couple receive a baby and are told they will be released if they raise it, the film could have gone in a different direction. It could have been an exploration of raising children, even if it was a sped-up version of child rearing, and its impact on couples. Maybe the tedium and boredom that can come with parenting. There could have been something really important they had to realize about raising children before they got released, an actual potential positive message. And of course there's the obvious potential for commentary about cookie cutter suburbia, which this obviously is alluding to but doesn't really address head on.

Instead, the film just takes a bizarre direction of randomness. The kid is not a normal child in any way, and so there's no true commentary on parenting. The screaming is really annoying. The voice of the child is bizarre and creepy. From a purely horror/creepy movie perspective, though, it's not scary enough. The fact that there are basically 4 actors (ignoring the very brief schoolchildren in the beginning) is interesting but gets old. The relationship between the couple isn't really explored enough; she should get angrier and more frustrated with him, and vice versa; there should be more conflict and resolution. There is a bit of conflict that just sort of resolves somehow. We never truly get to know any of the characters. The ending just happens.

I give it 3 for creativity (otherwise it would get 0 if that was possible), but I didn't enjoy watching it and wouldn't recommend it to anybody.

Unfortunately the creators of this series weren't upfront about it being only loosely based on the Foundation series. *Very* loosely. Basically the only similarities are the general idea of psychohistory and creating a Foundation on an outer planet called Terminus. There are plenty of characters with the same names as in the books, but they are totally different characters with entirely different stories. Basically nothing that happens in the series is from the books.

That said, is the series good on its own? That's really the question -- I can just remove any expectations of this actually being about Asimov's Foundation series and enjoy it as sci fi. Unfortunately. It's just not good. The first episode was very promising, actually, and I eagerly watched the next 3 with my son. But it gets worse and worse. It's very difficult to figure out what is going on. Things happen for no explicable reason, like Hari Seldon is murdered, Gaal Dornick is swooshed into space or something (it's not even clear *what* happens), Salvor Hardin can read minds?

Some reviews are frustrated that so many characters were switched gender and race, but that's one of the only good things about the series. Asimov objectified women and didn't write good female characters. The only possible way to make an adaptation of his books in the modern world is to make some of the good characters female. (Of course, this also isn't an adaptation of the books anyway.)

Bottom line is this is a boring series with no clear direction, confusing, inexplicable things keep happening, and the writing is spotty. The fact that it's not even Foundation isn't even the reason it's not good.