TV/Movies Megathread

[Josquius]

Yeah I still wish though that not every plot ever was centered around the OH SO IMPORTANT inner conflicts of a couple of key characters.

Yeah me neither. That's one of the reasons I mostly ignore TV and films coming out of "the Hollywood school of writing". It seems inevitable that it's going to be about that OH SO IMPORTANT conflict, and that at least half the time is going to be about "HOW DO WE KICK IT UP A NOTCH AND INCREASE THE STAKES?"

It's getting a bit tedious. It doesn't help that the pacing is often very similar.

Yeah, For All Mankind went all in on this with the space programs of both superpowers resting on about 4 to 6 people's interpersonal relationships.

But the peak of this had to be Sons of Anarchy, which over the seasons devolved into its own parody. After some point all every supporting character (various badass independent-mined bikers) did was to sit around waiting to be an errand boy in the lead family's (like, 3 people) feuds.

Agreed.
I wanted to enjoy For all man kind. The latter series especially sound cool.
But...its just Mad Men but with the marketing bits dropped out for space programme bits. And done less well.

[Josephus]

Yeah I still wish though that not every plot ever was centered around the OH SO IMPORTANT inner conflicts of a couple of key characters.

Yeah me neither. That's one of the reasons I mostly ignore TV and films coming out of "the Hollywood school of writing". It seems inevitable that it's going to be about that OH SO IMPORTANT conflict, and that at least half the time is going to be about "HOW DO WE KICK IT UP A NOTCH AND INCREASE THE STAKES?"

It's getting a bit tedious. It doesn't help that the pacing is often very similar.

Yeah, For All Mankind went all in on this with the space programs of both superpowers resting on about 4 to 6 people's interpersonal relationships.

But the peak of this had to be Sons of Anarchy, which over the seasons devolved into its own parody. After some point all every supporting character (various badass independent-mined bikers) did was to sit around waiting to be an errand boy in the lead family's (like, 3 people) feuds.

Agreed.
I wanted to enjoy For all man kind. The latter series especially sound cool.
But...its just Mad Men but with the marketing bits dropped out for space programme bits. And done less well.

I don't see the Mad Men connection so much (other than the time). I did like the alt history stuff in For All...that wasn't so much in Mad Men. Like the Soviets getting to the moon first and how the US reacted. But it didn't hold up for four seasons.

[Jacob]

Hey Jacob, just noticed Guns of Navarone is on Netflix.

Turns out it's not on the inferior Netflix we have in Canada

[Duque de Bragança]

The documentaries about Bergman said that he had made comedies earlier in his career.  Has anyone seen those?  I will acknowledge that, in the films of his that I have seen, he can do a witty scene or two, but the "Wild Strawberries" guy doesn't seem like he would be a barrel of laughs.

Wild Strawberries is still, say, lively. 
Plus the Virgin Spring got ripped off by Wes Craven who gave us The Last House on the Left.     

Wait until you get to his psychological dramas, then you can complain. 

[crazy canuck]

Hey Jacob, just noticed Guns of Navarone is on Netflix.

Turns out it's not on the inferior Netflix we have in Canada

That's unfortunate. I watched it not too long ago. It looks like it was recently removed.

[Tamas]

I don't see the Mad Men connection so much (other than the time). I did like the alt history stuff in For All...that wasn't so much in Mad Men. Like the Soviets getting to the moon first and how the US reacted. But it didn't hold up for four seasons.

No I think Josq is right. Mad Men did the exact same thing Mankind tried to do: use the historic backdrop of the 60s to reflect on society of the time and its evolution via the personal lives of the characters. Mad Men was about a thousand times more subtle about it with far superior writing (I don't want to say acting too because it's not like an actor can do much with weak writing). e.g. Don Draper's wife had the same "housewife who thought she'd be happy as a housewife but wasn't" thing going on. Did she ever sat down in a bar to explicitly explain to the barkeep her plight of living in the shadow of her husband like the main wife of Mankind did? Hell no, yet it was obvious.

That's for the difference between good writing and not so good writing - if the characters have to spell out feelings exactly (like they always did in Mankind and most other series), that's compensation for writing and/or acting being unable to convey them.

[Jacob]

Hey Jacob, just noticed Guns of Navarone is on Netflix.

Turns out it's not on the inferior Netflix we have in Canada

That's unfortunate. I watched it not too long ago. It looks like it was recently removed.

 

[Josquius]

Killers of the flower moon.

I knew nothing of this film before hand other than it was getting a lot of postive buzz, Oscar noms, and it was about some murders of native Americans in the interwar period.
I didn't know who was in it or the director.
It...Is good.
Really great costuming and sets and general vibes.
Most historic setting films look at things very zoomed in or use obvious cg to mask they're not actually in that period. This one though it doesn't shy away from open camera shots of wide ranging areas that all look genuine.

A period of history and area I also know next to nothing about. It's interesting. Visibly a modern 20th century period but with wild West natives as sub humans attitudes persisting.

Plot wise they tell just enough to be engaging and don't do as would be expected in such a film and try and leave the murders a big mystery. Rather the mystery, for a far away guy in 2024, is in the setting and why things are so fucked.
Slightly negative though, the passage of time isn't too obvious unless you know a bit of history - like alcohol suddenly being hard to get and Hoover sending an FBI guy down when the whole thing started just after WW1.

I'm not getting quite why the native women all married white guys though. The native guys are all alcoholics would be a guess and somewhat implied?

[celedhring]

I'm not getting quite why the native women all married white guys though. The native guys are all alcoholics would be a guess and somewhat implied?

Law required them a white legal guardian to access their fortune.

[Syt]

First half of Cheers S5 was a bit of a slog. Diane was completely delusional (more than usual) while Sam acts the complete jerk towards her (more than usual). It's improved, fortunately, since they got engaged (and with Shelley Long leaving by the end of the season, I'm kinda glad since it seems they milked the relationship for all it's worth at this point).

Another fun cameo, though. Brent Spiner as guy who was accused of attempting to murder his wife, but his wife dropped the charges.



This episode originally aired 5th February 1987. Star Trek: The Next Generation's Encounter at Farpoint premiered 26th Sep 1987.

[HVC]

He looks super 80s.

[Josephus]

Another fun cameo, though. Brent Spiner as guy who was accused of attempting to murder his wife, but his wife dropped the charges.


This episode originally aired 5th February 1987. Star Trek: The Next Generation's Encounter at Farpoint premiered 26th Sep 1987.

Right. A cameo implies he was well known. I think at this point he was a bit actor grabbing any role he could.

[HVC]

He's also memorable in night court. 

[Syt]

Another fun cameo, though. Brent Spiner as guy who was accused of attempting to murder his wife, but his wife dropped the charges.


This episode originally aired 5th February 1987. Star Trek: The Next Generation's Encounter at Farpoint premiered 26th Sep 1987.

Right. A cameo implies he was well known. I think at this point he was a bit actor grabbing any role he could.

Apologies, English is but my second language.

[viper37]

Hanna

I watched the remaining of the 2nd season and the 3rd one.

I am stunned.  Story wise, you'd be tempted to dismiss it as Jason Bourne with teenage girls, but it's so much more than that if you take time to sit and really watch what is going on with everything.

The acting is so good.  And Ray Liotta appears in the final season.  Damn.  From the youngest girls to the elder agent, everyone was so damn good.

The action, the psychological dilemmas, the non-unidimensional characters, their evolution through the series, the torment they each face...  I highly recommend it to anyone who likes espionage series.

There's a bit of science fiction and mystery involved, as it's gradually revealed, so it's not straight up intelligence like, say, Jack Ryan, but it's really good.