Current Watching

[imp]

I have a confession. We watched 'Emily in Paris' and enjoyed it. It's trash and ridiculous, and jam-packed with really annoying and/or obnoxious, one-dimensional characters, but the script's funny enough.

It's Lockdown, Day 768, right, so don't judge me.

[Hot Pepsi]

I couldn’t last 20 minutes with that.
But I did watch The Map of Tiny Perfect Things, which is the premise of Palm Springs/Groundhog Day combined with the characters and heavy emotion of a John Green teenagers-cope-with-tragedy story. It’s ok. The leads are good. And Josh Hamilton plays the dad. I recall seeing him as the aimless young man in Kicking and Screaming, so it made me feel old to see him playing the dad trying to get his aimless son on track.

I’m watching the one and only season of Briarpatch. It was on USA but now it’s on Peacock. It’s a bit like Fargo or a Elmore Leonard-type story set in west Texas. Lots of characters and plot. Maybe too much, really. But I’m enjoying it overall.

[Tony C]

Talking about Icelandic things we watched The Valhalla Murders on Netflix right through its eight episodes. It was mildly diverting (the ultimate ‘damning with faint praise expression) but not worth the investment in
the end. I’m fine with the reduced pace of Scandinavian procedurals - hence my thorough enjoyment of the glacial The Investigation’ recently - but I need a little more vested interest in the characters than I could muster here. A couple of strands left dangling unsatisfactorily at the end too.

[ad hoc]

Yes watched that last year. Like you I found it a bit meh. Trapped was much better

[Walt Flanagans Dog]

I think it has been mentioned on here, but can't turn up any search results (even through the wormhole), but watched Class Action Park, about the notorious amusement park in New Jersey. A mixture of grim humour and tragedy, with perhaps one of the more alarming statements being that Trump was looking to invest in it but one look at the place was enough to change even his mind.

On Sky Documentaries for the next month or so.

[Wouter D]

In other shows, Halt and Catch Fire. How has this never been mentioned around here? It's a period drama set in the early '80s, set around the early days of the Texas - and then California - personal computing industry. Between the topic, the music and the cars, there's not much not to like. Just four seasons, but I suspect that's going to be enough to tell a good story without watering it down.

Belated thanks for this recommendation; we just finished watching all four seasons. Quite a ride.

[Hot Pepsi]

I think it has been mentioned on here, but can't turn up any search results (even through the wormhole), but watched Class Action Park, about the notorious amusement park in New Jersey. A mixture of grim humour and tragedy, with perhaps one of the more alarming statements being that Trump was looking to invest in it but one look at the place was enough to change even his mind.

On Sky Documentaries for the next month or so.

As I probably mentioned on this thread or others, my family went to Action Park. Had a great time. We had no knowledge of all the lawsuits etc. We'd just seen the ads on WPIX.

My favorite part of that documentary is the quote from Comedian Alison Becker. “There’s also a part of me that was like, if you can’t do [the rides], fucking get out of Jersey.”

That was the vibe I got from most of the white kids from New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania that I encountered growing up in the 80s. That's still, to some extent, the stereotype I have of those places. But in college, I met a lot of kids from New Jersey and around Philadelphia who were more of the prep school squash team type.

[Felicity, I guess so]

"King Rocker" on sky arts catch up
Stewart Lee mockumentary about (real) Midlands postpunk figure Robert Lloyd (Prefects/Nightingales)

[WOM]

Trapped was much better

Just finished both seasons and enjoyed it very much.

[WOM]

Belated thanks for this recommendation; we just finished watching all four seasons. Quite a ride.

Oh, good. I'm glad you liked it.

[Bored Of Education]

I'm watching as broadcast, so have seen three of the five episodes. The production is slightly flimsy in parts, not always convincing that its world carries on beyond the camera shot. I read somewhere that the episode count had been trimmed too, suggesting budget issues. Overall that is a minor consideration as performances are strong and the characters engaging enough that there is a real emotional kick as events unfold.

Just finished it. I agree about the production to a point but, as you say, the characters are strong enough and the observations about the times get stronger as the episodes go on (the progress in hospital treatment of AIDS victims, for instance). I was thinking recently how odd it seems that I was born just over 20 years after the Second World War ended but that doesn't seem as odd as, 20-25 years later, I was living in a time when mortgage companies could ask you about your sex life when you applied (along with other atrocities pointed out in the series).

Trying not to give away a spoiler but there is a single sentence of dialogue five minutes before the end that caused a physical sharp exhalation of air from my wife and I like we had been punched in the stomach. I don't think I have seen a horror film that has produced such a shocked reaction.

Anyway, well worth watching especially at only 5 episodes.

[Tony C]

Just watched ‘News of the World’ on Netflix: Tom Hanks being Tom Hanks for two hours with all the moral backbone that it implies. Not knocking it, I like Hanks very much and in these difficult times his steady hand on the tiller is just what I want in a film. It also features the best performance from a child actor I have seen
in a long time.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Yesterday was a snow day so we watched a double-header. The first was Love and Mercy which I assumed was a documentary on Brian Wilson, but turned out to be a fictional bio. As I've mentioned here before music bios are not a favourite genre of mine, generally they're repetitive and predictable, but this is pretty darn good. So good it won a couple of Golden Globes and fistful of other awards (why hadn't I heard of it? Duh!) It flips back and forth between the Pet Sounds era Brian — played by Paul Dano, and the trainwreck Brian — by John Cusack. The latter features Paul Giamatti doing a brilliant turn as the evil manipulative Dr Eugene Landy. As these films tend to it didn't tell me a whole lot I didn't know (except he met his wife and saviour Melinda in a Cadillac dealership, where she sold him a car, and they have five kids — making seven total for Brian.Yikes!) The short scenes and lack of lineality, are really effective. There isn't a lot of exposition, instead lots of in studio stuff with the Wrecking Crew, all nicely cast, but not dwelt on. The other Beach Boys, well sketched, Dennis is the rowdy, Mike Love's the asshole and so on. Their father was a pathetic violent prick, which we know, but he also isn't overplayed. Very much worth watching.

The second feature was Miranda July's Kajillionaire. Which I'm still digesting. I was about to type "It's about," but the truth is I'm still working on what it's about. I think the importance of love, and what happens when it's lacking is central, though that doesn't begin to cover it. Richard Jenkins and (unrecognisably) Debra Winger play a couple of — literally — penny ante crooks who eke out a living with their daughter named Old Dolio, played by Evan Rachel Wood. The latter is the key character. Bereft, inarticulate, an adult in age only, she is genuinely pathetic but not in any sentimental sense. The character who unlocks Old Dolio's frozen personality, and moves the story along, is Melanie (Gina Rodriguez) a Latina her own age. I'm guessing a lot of people won't take to this film. It's not fast paced and some scenes are, if not inexplicable, abrupt and quirky. However I'm still thinking about it twenty-fours later which, in my book, is nothing but a good thing.

[Sits]

Just finished it. I agree about the production to a point but, as you say, the characters are strong enough and the observations about the times get stronger as the episodes go on (the progress in hospital treatment of AIDS victims, for instance). I was thinking recently how odd it seems that I was born just over 20 years after the Second World War ended but that doesn't seem as odd as, 20-25 years later, I was living in a time when mortgage companies could ask you about your sex life when you applied (along with other atrocities pointed out in the series).

Trying not to give away a spoiler but there is a single sentence of dialogue five minutes before the end that caused a physical sharp exhalation of air from my wife and I like we had been punched in the stomach. I don't think I have seen a horror film that has produced such a shocked reaction.

Anyway, well worth watching especially at only 5 episodes.

Yep, I made an audible gasp there too. I've never seen Keeley Haws as good as this, and she's been in a lot.

Edit: as this is a quote replying to a quote replying to the original post, we are talking about It's A Sin if that's not clear. Well I think we are!

[San Bernardhinault]

Yeah, I was like that with Kajillionaire. It was excessively and self-consciously quirky, in the way that lots of US Indie Films are at the moment. But I think I really liked it.

Watched Barb and Star go to Vista Del Mar yesterday. It was entirely predictable modern US comedy. There were a small handful of funny and/or clever moments in it, but there’s a whole load of landfill comedy films starring people who used to be on SNL, and on the whole this fits the mould.

[Tony C]

Concerning ‘News of the World’ I just found a review which reflects my views exactly.

https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/n...ie-review-2020

[Benjm]

"King Rocker" on sky arts catch up
Stewart Lee mockumentary about (real) Midlands postpunk figure Robert Lloyd (Prefects/Nightingales)

This was very entertaining, and makes a good companion piece to the Cold War Steve film that Sky Arts showed before Christmas.

[Bored Of Education]

Just watched ‘News of the World’ on Netflix: Tom Hanks being Tom Hanks for two hours with all the moral backbone that it implies. Not knocking it, I like Hanks very much and in these difficult times his steady hand on the tiller is just what I want in a film. It also features the best performance from a child actor I have seen
in a long time.

Absolutely every word of this.

[Bored Of Education]

Yep, I made an audible gasp there too. I've never seen Keeley Haws as good as this, and she's been in a lot.!

Yes, my wife said it was the grittiest she had ever seen her play. The only thing I could think of that was near was her part in The Bodyguard but that was a bit camp and silly in comparison.

[Sits]

Yes that was good, but this was something of a departure for her I thought.

Although I preferred her in Line of Duty but I think that’s much more solid work my Mercurio too.

[Hot Pepsi]

I’ve stumbled on the most 80’s thing that ever 80sed, a 1985 film called Girls Just Want to Have Fun. Jonathan Silverman, Sarah Jessica Parker, Helen Hunt and Shannon Doherty play teenagers in Chicago trying to get on a dance TV show.

It’s the sort of thing that looks like a parody of every conceivable cheesy 80’s trope and fashion fad. But it was actually made in 1985 and not supposed to be ironic.

It’s crap, but just remarkable.

[Uncle Ethan]

Concerning ‘News of the World’ I just found a review which reflects my views exactly.

https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/n...ie-review-2020

Yes. Watched this the other night, being a Western addict. Enjoyed it.

[Sits]

I’ve stumbled on the most 80’s thing that ever 80sed, a 1985 film called Girls Just Want to Have Fun. Jonathan Silverman, Sarah Jessica Parker, Helen Hunt and Shannon Doherty play teenagers in Chicago trying to get on a dance TV show.

It’s the sort of thing that looks like a parody of every conceivable cheesy 80’s trope and fashion fad. But it was actually made in 1985 and not supposed to be ironic.

It’s crap, but just remarkable.

And quite a cast.

[WOM]

I've never even heard of that. And it seems remarkable that Shannen Doherty was working a full 5 years before 90210. Now I want to see it.

[Ginger Yellow]

I've been making my way through Babylon Berlin in anticipation of dropping NowTV. Loving it for the most part, but just got to the season 2 finale and it's all gone a bit silly.