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The Crown (2016)
Series 5 Tedious in the extreme
I liked series 1-3 a lot but The Crown has lost its glitter the last two series. In Series 5 some wonderful actors are badly miscast but struggle on dutifully with a leaden script. I got irritated by Prince Phillip's ill fitting blazer and sloping shoulders and Dominic West is nothing like Prince Charles. I remember these events as they occurred, the constant reporting of the Wales's marriage break up was boring then and even more boring now. We can't possibly know the ins and outs of other peoples marriages, nor do I want to. Not certain why so much of Ep 3 was about the early life of Mohammed Fayed. Interesting story in its own right but pretty irrelevant. I nodded off and Chariots of Fire was on so I assumed Netflix had switched itself off again. Imelda Staunton gets the Queens voice right but the words and phrases she uses don't sound right. The depicted conversations with John Major are ludicrous, The Queen could never have demanded a new yacht, how silly. That's not how it works. The Queen Mother is unrecognisable. Where was Sarah Ferguson btw? Perhaps she'll get her own spin off series. I only got to Ep6 so it might have got better but I couldn't manage anymore.
Dirty Grandpa (2016)
I was appalled by this film. Appalled, I tell you.
I was appalled the first time I watched this movie. and then outraged the second time.Just to be sure I watched it 3 more times with my friends, still the same. It is childish, puerile and offensive on every level. AND SO DAMN FUNNY. I laughed like a drain all the way through, De Niro is hilarious as the randy old Grandpa, Aubrey Plaza is insanely funny and quite filthy. Poor Zac Efron is a delight as the hapless bridegroom. The beach scene where he is wearing nothing but the cuddly hornet had me crying with laughter. The wedding scene where bridezilla Meredith (Julianne Hough) gets her comeuppance is wonderful. I also loved the two cops with their own very personal take on what constitutes the law and Tan Pam (Jason Mantzoukas) as the local dealer is someone I'd like to know. OK it's not high art, or Cinema with a capital C. But it is really, really funny. I wish they'd had "Spring Break" when I was younger. If you don't laugh at this movie we can't be friends.
Worzel Gummidge (2019)
A delight for all age groups
Excellent work by Mackenzie Crook in this updated Worzel Gummidge. I loved the original as a child but I like this even better. Two unhappy children are fostered to a farm where they are mistaken for fellow scarecrows by Worzel. The plot, about the seasons being locked, is simple enough for the youngest child to follow but the pace is cracking and the characters well drawn. Vicki Pepperdine is superb as the cantankerous Aunt Sally. There are some laugh out loud lines, as when Worzel enquires at the meeting with a murder of crows what they want in return for a favour "Cash...and guns." Scorsese, eat your heart out!
Joker (2019)
Beautiful but one-dimensional
I was anticipating perhaps too much having read some reviews first. Sadly, The Joker has left me feeling flat, emotionally. It's very good, romps along at a fair pace, ravishingly bleak to look at but the characters seemed one-dimensional. The Joker/Arthur (Joaquin Phoenix) starts off as already being more than half-way to serial killer. There's very little sublety to his character. There are a few attempts to show the real person underneath his illness but it needed much more. There are hardly any lighter moments to counterpoint the overall despair. We get it, people can be nasty, but I felt I was being bashed over the head at times. Phoenix is excellent, as is De Niro as the appalling Murray Franklin but again, he is a flatly written character with no redeeming features. Even the violent scenes left me unmoved, they were signalled so far in advance there was no shock value and I felt little empathy for the victims. There is a really good story somewhere in here. This wasn't it.
The Irishman (2019)
A Masterpiece of cinema
Having read the reviews I decided to see this at the cinema before it comes to Netflix. I am very glad I did. This is without doubt for me, Scorcese's finest work, a truly, epic masterpiece of cinema. As with all Scorcese's best work, it haunts you for days afterwards.
The three and a half hours does not seem excessive, I barely moved, neither did the rest of the cinema audience. This film did not drag or slowdown for me at any point. The de-ageing effects are only jarring at first sight but the eye adjusts, and it really helps the film's coherence to have the same actors playing the younger and older characters. As for the acting, well, De Niro is at his very best, particularly as the elderly Sheeran. Pacino plays Hoffa slightly over the top but then perhaps Hoffa was really like that. Joe Pesci is outstanding as Buffalino, quietly spoken for the most part, but with that underlying menace. And it's wonderful to see the excellent Stephen Graham (Provenzano) looking like he belongs with such a distinguished cast. His scenes with Pacino, in particular, are electric. There are some very amusing scenes, the lake house back and forth dialogue about lateness is hilarious in it's banality as is the car scene banter about the frozen "fish". The audience were laughing, but it seemed like nervous laughter. That underlying menace leaches out of the big screen.
Some have commented on the lack of dialogue for Anna Paquin (Peggy). That's is actually the point. It's what she doesn't say that it devastating. It is beautifully restrained and she holds the screen perfectly. Lucy Gallina (as a young Peggy) is also riveting, playful and affectionate towards Buffalino while accusing her father with just a look.
De Niro comes to into his own in the post-Hoffa part of the film. Again, there are some very funny moments to leaven the mood. The coffin purchase scene is as funny as it is tragic. The scene in the bank where a frail Sheeran goes to see Peggy could almost have descended almost into mawkishness under a different director and played by an ordinary actor, but De Niro pulls it out of the bag. You almost feel pity for Sheeran, but you just can't and neither should you.
As with all Scorcese's best, it pays to watch and listen carefully right until the last frame ( ref.Taxi Driver). The film's final line spoken by De Niro, is utterly chilling.
If you don't get to see this at the cinema, then watch it on the biggest TV screen you can find. Then watch it again.