mickeycz

This program combines seasoned professional character actors with child actors who portray children. The mix of the two is done very well in that each episode Just let me say I've become a tremendous fan of Raquel Cassidy as Miss Hardbroom with her over the top badness. Bella Ramsey was Lyanna Mormont in GOT so she is also a very talented, very young actress. The children in the program remain children, thank God. The writing is not so cliched that I can recite dialogue along with the characters as happens pretty often in mediocre fare. Books were published well before Harry Potter and I suspect JK Rowling read them in her youth since some ideas could have been poached, even on the subconscious level. This is a bright spot for children's programming, the best of which adults simply gobble up! It's entertaining!

I usually really like movies with a dystopian future theme. but there are exceptions. Water World, any of them to do with climate change, The Matrix. The best of them are often adapted from novels, such as A Clockwork Orange, The Hunger Games, Blade Runner and so on. This show is a mish mash pasting together of some other film with new scenery with John Cusack as a dreadfully dull bad guy. Dull says it all about this thing. If it tried for humor there might have had some success. As it is, meh.

From the first moments of viewing it was obvious this film had a lot going for it. I enjoy cinematography, which can either be art, often capitalized, or not art. This film is Art. I also like to see the budget captured on film. This did it for me. The editing had a few things I could quibble with, but that is often too subjective, unless there are glaring errors we've all seen before, such as inadvertent inconsistencies from one cut to the next. The script was excellent. And as to the music? The use of Beethoven at opening and close with the movie motifs were just a fabulous homage to the movies from someone who must be a genuine admirer of the craft of film-making and the stories they can tell. The rest fit the scenarios well. Story telling was a theme of the film, switching back and forth from the various tales of the present, the past and the fantasy tale of the bandits. The actors were superb, and even though the adults all had to contend with the dreaded acting with an adorable child issue they carried it off. And the child was adorable and totally believable flitting about the hospital and being the new best friend of some of the characters. Innocence captured on film is not often seen, but there it was. Obviously this took years to make, so the youngster's scenes must have been shot early or she would have visibly matured. It was lavish and large and beautiful to watch and a nice story, well executed, with a travelogue included of every continent. Lovely acting, marvelous costuming, and hit on all my personal buttons in a positive way. I recommend this film to anyone.

OK, no awards could ever be given for this movie. Also, I would never want to 'spoil' anyone's experience of this film by revealing plot details, but I will let all know that this does not come from a comic book, which movies I often enjoy. I think the comic elements are unintentional, sort of like 'Santa Claus Conquers the Martians' is. Or possibly it's more early Whovian, with good vs evil. At least, in its amusing awfulness, it is sort of, kind of, original. And the categories are: Sound--I think there was some taping of audio in a toilet. It sometimes had that 'hollow' sound to it. Lighting--Fluorescent works well, so go with it. (Sarcasm) Actually some scenes were better lit than others. Screenplay--dialogue so poor it seems as if just everyone was miscast. No one could pull off the dialogue, especially with these actors. Costumes--off the rack Canadian gear. There are costumes for a few characters. Editing--It looks as if there is only one camera, so it cuts back and forth--a lot. Casting--looks like friends and family. or maybe fellow students. Music--has original music at least. Cinematography--sadly lacking. Anyway, this is a terrible movie with great entertainment values. You might throw popcorn at the screen though.

Over the top acting abounds!