Movies and TV

[Mudcat]

High-Rise (2015) - This is one of those avant-garde contrivances that seems likely to generate a cult following. I think I may be past the point in my life of joining one of those. At least, this movie did not engage me at all. I'm sure it was trying to raise a metaphor or two about societal class structure, and the inevitability of chaos if we continue down our current path - and whatnot - but I just found it a yawn.

And I must add that I now finally have a male addition to my list of actors that just don't work for me - at all - despite being well reputed. I have seen enough of this guy to make it official. Joining Jennifer Lawrence and Keira Knightly and Anne Hathaway and Julia Roberts is - TA DA! - Tom Hiddleston.

2.9 out of 10 for the flick.

 

[Matty]

Watched the Red Oaks premiere. It's equal parts smart and funny and light-hearted. Very good. :

 

[MrX]

Watched the Red Oaks premiere. It's equal parts smart and funny and light-hearted. Very good. :

Excellent! It only gets better.

 

[Matty]

5 episodes in now. : Lead guy is from fookin' Wales!

 

[MrX]

Wales! Well, how about that?

 

[MrMonkey]

The Killing season 1 presently! Going by watching the show it CONSTANTLY rains in Seattle!

 

[Mudcat]

The Shallows (2016) - There are many interesting and wonderful ways for human females to look - and Blake Lively has definitely found one. Having said that, thumbs down to this movie depiction of surfer babe versus shark.

It cruised along at a somewhat okay level for awhile but got increasingly absurd as it took the final steps to the climax. Throw in some contrived emotional schmaltz - ---> no.

At least it had the good taste to not be particularly long.

3.9 out of 10.

 

[Matty]

Daughter of the Red Oaks club owner looks like the lovechild of he two Breakfast Club chicks.

 

[reno cool]

ha ha, not bad Matty. The 3 main girls in that show are all pretty cute. Not sure how much of it is because they're supposed to be from my era

 

[Mudcat]

Arrival (2016) - As of now (but with still some good candidates to view) this has my vote for Best Picture of 2016.

Director Denis Villeneuve has become, for me, the king of making movies that seem to be about something but are really just thrillers. Prisoners seemed for a good while to be about the philosophical question of the okayness of torture. Would you? In the most extreme conditions? But that question ended up being peripheral. Likewise Sicario seemed to be about the inherent impossibility of policing the war on drugs - and it seemed like it was going to say something deep about it - but it was really just a thriller in the end.

Nothing wrong with a good thriller and those are both decent thumbs up movies. Just not quite what they seemed to be advertising.

Arrival is a movie that seems to be about the paramount importance of clear communication - and I'm not going to say that wasn't an important part of things - but it also had a structure that reduced the importance of that in the end. Not totally though. A nice point was made. I'm avoiding spoilers and will just leave it at that.

But it's really good. Just a thoroughly thoughtful, intelligent, absorbing production. Amy Adams is truly one of the best out there. You look at this and then you remember Junebug and Enchanted ---> chick has got some ridiculous range.

8.2 out of 10

 

[Matty]

Watched all of Red Oaks. T'was excellent. Beyond the cheesy 80's sex comedy tropes, the show is really good at portraying imperfect relationships in a way that feels genuine, vs the cartoonish way characters were developed in the actual 80's.

Hope there's a Season 3.

9.1 Matty Rains our of 10

 

[MrX]

Genuine. Yes, that's it.

It's not easy to find things that feel genuine.

 

[reno cool]

I only watched like 6 episodes and yes really good, at least compared to most other shit. But there's nothing all that spectacular. Just goes to show you that you don't need outlandish, unrealistic shit to have a good show.

 

[Tron]

Baskets

Not sure if I've talked about it yet. It's a TV show on FX in its 2nd season I believe.

It's very different. You will get LOL's from this show that are unlike any other LOL's you gotten from your other 30 min TV shows that you LOL at.

S2 got off to a rough start, though.

 

[Mudcat]

There was a young lady named Sally,
Who enjoyed the occasional dally.
She sat on the lap
of a well-endowed chap,
And cried "Sir! You're right up my alley!"

 

[Matty]

There was a young lady named Sally,
Who enjoyed the occasional dally.
She sat on the lap
of a well-endowed chap,
And cried "Sir! You're right up my alley!"

 

[Mudcat]

There was an old Countess of Bray,
And you might think it odd when I say,
That despite her high station
rank and education.
She always spelled "Cunt" with a K!

 

[Mudcat]

Those limericks occur in the first episode of the Netflix series The Crown. Despite what you may surmise from that, it is a very classy, engaging, educational production which I am enjoying.

King George VI liked his bawdy limericks - it's a historical fact.