Recent Films and TV Shows that were good...
- Thread starter overscan (PaulMM)
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I really enjoyed the TV show the Last Of Us. I hope they keep doing character development, great acting and awesome storytelling and it doesn't turn into dumb action.
jeffb
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As a follow up, this just got better and better. Last ep was the best and apparently mirrored the game quite closely. There are rumours of a second season so I'll keep my fingers crossed. Pedro Pascal really good as the thoroughly broken Joel. Bella Ramsey as Ellie, just brilliant. Highly recommend.
martinbayer
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Maybe it's just me, but I like pre-apocalyptic shows so much better than post-apocalyptic ones...
Ah. Like "Frasier" and "House."
"Star Trek" in recent years is really binary:
"Discovery" and seasons 1&2 of "Picard" are not just poorly written trash, they are anti-good. They actively suck. They want to suck.
But then...
Season 3 of "Picard" did a 180. While it leaned a bit too heavily into the memberberries, it was *really* good. It introduced (and, sadly, killed) two of the best new Trek characters in 25 years. And "Lower Decks" and "Prodigy," while being oddball animated shows, are quite good for what they are.
"Discovery" and seasons 1&2 of "Picard" are not just poorly written trash, they are anti-good. They actively suck. They want to suck.
But then...
Season 3 of "Picard" did a 180. While it leaned a bit too heavily into the memberberries, it was *really* good. It introduced (and, sadly, killed) two of the best new Trek characters in 25 years. And "Lower Decks" and "Prodigy," while being oddball animated shows, are quite good for what they are.
martinbayer
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Can't really say - I think I've seen a few minutes of Frasier, but even less (double digit seconds perhaps?) of House. I hate any and all medical themed TV shows with a passionate vengeance.
Ok, then "Dallas" or "Friends." Both pre-apocalyptic.
martinbayer
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I estimate the screen time I've seen (rather than intently watched) Friends while channel hopping is in the single digit minutes as well (I'm more of a The Office kind of guy), but I did indeed watch Dallas regularly as a kid with my parents. Larry Hagman was absolutely awesome in that show, especially in juxtaposition to his previous role as a NASA astronaut.
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The other day I listed my favorite TV shows since high school, that is 1999.
Sooo
- From the Earth to the Moon (never gets old, even with 1998 CGI - in your face, For all Mankind !)
- E.R (got completely hooked to that one, from 1996 to 2003 when they butchered Lucy Knight - made me sick, the way they dispatched the character !)
- Seinfeld ("the pigman !" - WTF ??!!)
- Spin City
- Ally McBeal (all those chicks, plus John Cage whackiness...)
- 24 (season 2 and season 5 only - the latter is awesome: Jack Bauer great Watergate day, with a Nixon wannabee and a not-so-paranoid Martha... did I said, Watergate ?)
- Dark Angel (must have been because Jessica Alba)
- Alias (must have been because Jenifer Garner)
...
And then nothing for twelve years, until - BETTER CALL SAUL.
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Rhinocrates
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Rather like the joke that they got Stanley Kubrick to fake the moon landings and he was such a perfectionist he filmed on location. Nonsense, of course - he hated travelling. Instead, he actually had a full-size replica of the entire moon built in his studio.
That movie is going to be awesome. The running joke is that Nolan detonated a real nuke for the filming of Trinity test
Rhinocrates
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I didn't think that I would like it. I find zombies the very least interesting monsters (Ian Holm would never give a speech about how beautiful they are) and the pedant in me objected to the use of graphics of slime mould to represent mycelia in the opening credits (yes, I'm like that).
That said, I thoroughly agree. The stories, characterisation, and performances are fantastic.
Rhinocrates
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For those who need something to tide them over until Nolan's film comes out, HBO made a film about the Manhattan Project in 1989 called Day One. It has David Strathain as Oppenheimer and Brian Dennehy as Groves. It's well worth tracking down.
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A few younger people I know have complained "too slow, not enough action" for The Last of Us (and Andor). You also need to actually watch them, not just casually glance while playing on your phone.
I'm finding it refreshing.
jeffb
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I watched "SISU" last week and thoroughly enjoyed it.
SISU is a bit of the ultra-violence, Finnish style. Some of the lighting and camera angles border on the surreal, but they match well with the stark, post apocalyptic theme of the film: chasing Nazis out of Lappland during 1945.
Most of the military hardware is accurate with the exception of a cluttered T-55 mascarading as a Panzer.
I took exception to scruffy Waffen SS, but can dismiss that as artistic license given how late in the war the film is set.
SISU should be required viewing in Russian cinemas before they next consider which neighboring country (e.g. Ukraine) to invade.
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There was also this competing project to HBO's Day One, starring Paul Newman, Dwight Schultz and John Cusack among others.
en.wikipedia.org
Not having seen Day One, I could not give a comparison.
Fat Man and Little Boy - Wikipedia
Not having seen Day One, I could not give a comparison.
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Rhinocrates
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I have seen that too. In comparison, I'd say that Fat Man and Little Boy adopted the form of a drama with considerable artistic liberties and I thought that is was simplistic. Day One was more a dramatised documentary that strove for fidelity and the central performances were terrific. I definitely prefer Day One. There was also a BBC series made in 1980, also called Oppenheimer. I can't remember so much about that since I haven't watched it since it was broadcast.There was also this competing project to HBO's Day One, starring Paul Newman, Dwight Schultz and John Cusack among others.
Fat Man and Little Boy - Wikipedia
Not having seen Day One, I could not give a comparison.
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jeffb
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Rhinocrates
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Rhinocrates
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I know it's not recent, but it's certainly relevant today with the rise of tech lords. The character of Jerry Grogan can easily be interpreted as a Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk. His company, the 'Fusion Corporation of Kansas', is clearly named as the result of a bet over whether the writer, Troy Kennedy Martin, could get 'Fuck' past the censors. Please ignore the remake with Mel Gibson.
en.wikipedia.org
And hey, music by Eric Clapton:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eteUUZ8U4Bs
Edge of Darkness - Wikipedia
And hey, music by Eric Clapton:
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jeffb
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Ha! This was required watching back in the day! Denzel Washington is good sure, but he's no Edward Woodward. Was it only 1985?
I'm old enough to remember watching Kojak! "Who loves ya baby?"
martinbayer
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A reboot is currently on CBS: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Equalizer_(2021_TV_series)
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I don't know if this ones been mentioned, but I stumbled across this very cleverly done
The Great Martian War 1913-1917 Full Documentary
last night.
I say cleverly done, because it portrays a Martian invasion of earth, in the time frame and very much using the First World War as the basis of it's metaphor.
And even better, it's on YouTube.
View: https://youtu.be/6aj5whlRTYs
Regards
Pioneer
The Great Martian War 1913-1917 Full Documentary
last night.
I say cleverly done, because it portrays a Martian invasion of earth, in the time frame and very much using the First World War as the basis of it's metaphor.
And even better, it's on YouTube.
Regards
Pioneer
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1963 HMS Eagle was still in refit. Also the RN were using Sea Vixens and Scimitars rather than Seahawks. But at least the film tried.Absolutely lovely movie!!Speaking of Henry Cavill, the 2015, "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", is a fun little movie.
Inclunding a stunning portrait of the HMS Eagle crossing the Italian waters....
It was easier in the old days you just asked the MOD for some public information films of warships and cut them into your show.
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McCloud, Columbo, Banacek (I’ll rock the sports coat and turtleneck look to the office in remembrance of George Peppard’s iconic look), McMillan and Wife, The Rockford Files, Mannix, The Streets of San Francisco…….Ha! This was required watching back in the day! Denzel Washington is good sure, but he's no Edward Woodward. Was it only 1985?
I'm old enough to remember watching Kojak! "Who loves ya baby?"
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McCloud, Columbo, Banacek (I’ll rock the sports coat and turtleneck look to the office in remembrance of George Peppard’s iconic look), McMillan and Wife, The Rockford Files, Mannix, The Streets of San Francisco…….Ha! This was required watching back in the day! Denzel Washington is good sure, but he's no Edward Woodward. Was it only 1985?
I'm old enough to remember watching Kojak! "Who loves ya baby?"
Don't forget 'Barretta' . . .
cheers,
Robin.
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Watched this with my kids (11 and 13) and we all thought it was a great movie. Universal themes that everyone can relate to, excellent graphics work, great characters. Death was indeed perfectly realised.
Makes you realise how far Disney's star has plummeted.
Ayup. And here's the kicker: to first order the cost difference between a *good* version of this and an utterly forgettable version of this could well be zero. Because it was the writing that made the movie good. Exact same caliber of CGI, direction and acting would have only gone so far had it not been written well.
Death does not *need* to be portrayed as a terrifying thing; I've seen many representation of it as a sympathetic character doing an important and ultimately useful and merciful job (if you recognize "was I a good boy" and don't *immediately* get a lump in your throat, we're not at all alike). That said, if Death is to be portrayed as something fearful, it should be *really* fearful, and something that cannot be defeated, only delayed. And preferably something that cannot be truly comprehended. "Puss" did that well IMO.
Come now. They have a *huge* catalog of movies to remake. In fact... it's probably about time they start remaking some of the remakes. I can't wait to see what they do with "The Cat From Outer Space" remade for a modern audience.
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If you like Luke Cage you should check out the rest of the Marvel/Netflix series. Daredevil is particularly Good. (Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, and Defenders.) Then Disney bought Marvel and nuked them all. The blind guy lawyer Peter Parker has in the last Spider Man movie is the same character/actor.
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"Don't do the crime if you can't do the time, yeahhh...."McCloud, Columbo, Banacek (I’ll rock the sports coat and turtleneck look to the office in remembrance of George Peppard’s iconic look), McMillan and Wife, The Rockford Files, Mannix, The Streets of San Francisco…….Ha! This was required watching back in the day! Denzel Washington is good sure, but he's no Edward Woodward. Was it only 1985?
I'm old enough to remember watching Kojak! "Who loves ya baby?"
Don't forget 'Barretta' . . .
cheers,
Robin.
What, no Thomas Magnum? The one TV Detective who will take you out into the woods, shoot you in the face with a .45 and bury you in a shallow grave. Because that's what a MAN does."Don't do the crime if you can't do the time, yeahhh...."McCloud, Columbo, Banacek (I’ll rock the sports coat and turtleneck look to the office in remembrance of George Peppard’s iconic look), McMillan and Wife, The Rockford Files, Mannix, The Streets of San Francisco…….Ha! This was required watching back in the day! Denzel Washington is good sure, but he's no Edward Woodward. Was it only 1985?
I'm old enough to remember watching Kojak! "Who loves ya baby?"
Don't forget 'Barretta' . . .
cheers,
Robin.
jeffb
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Well, to quote Bart, set your faces to stunned because Star Trek: Strange new worlds Season 2 looks like it's crossing over with Lower Decks with an appearance by 'Mr Boimler'.
And Mariner. I'm lukewarm at best about SNW... it's a vast improvement over STD, but then, so is watching slime mold.
jeffb
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Well, like you say, it comes down to the writing. Fingers crossed.
Hope they don't screw it up, Mariner's kind of a boss and relegating them to comedy relief would be a waste.
Well, SNW is also burdened with STD production design. I don't know how you screw up such an iconic, beautiful, dignified, recognizable yet fundamentally simple design as the NCC-1701, but they did it.
Don't get me started on the many and major canon-violations in SNW. Boimler is my least favorite part of Lower Decks (gosh, the one white guy in the main cast, and of course he's a simpering coward and a weakling; I'm shocked they didn't make him a MAGA hat wearing villain), but I can only imagine he'll be a highlight on SNW.