Reviews

Season four was a snooze fest. No wonder the actress who played Mina wanted to leave. This episode features a fake baby, more troubles for AJ's mum, and absolutely no reason for me to watch S5... except I'm a completionist and need to finish the whole series.

Overall, season four was quite boring. Relationships took centre stage rather than medicine, which is why people watched the previous three seasons. I understand it was probably rushed and churned out due to covid, but surely all that time allowed writers to come up with something fresh and exciting instead of this rubbish. It's disappointing.

On the surface, this movie has it all: nostalgia, great cast, ghosts, good special effects, somewhat of a plot... So why is it so average?

It takes a long time to get to the point, with 98% of the action restricted to the third act. Familiar characters move this along at a steady pace, with a few favourite ghosts thrown in for good measure (you would have seen them in the trailer, so no surprises there). Nothing shines in this movie, but nothing sucks about it either. It inhabits a comfortable safe zone with everything you'd expect to see, no surprises.

Recommended for rainy afternoons with a bucket of buttery popcorn.

Good musicals use songs to forward a narrative. Bad musicals tell a story, stop to sing about it, then continue the narrative before stopping to sing about it again.

This film does the latter. Just like Heathers: The Musical, they have taken a perfect film, shoved a bunch of songs in there which add nothing, just to repackage existing IP and sell it to fans of the original. The charm from the original film is severely lacking here.

I liked the actors playing Janis and Damien. Everyone else seemed like they were reciting lines for a high school read-through. Angourie Rice was a competent Cady before the Plastics version; after becoming Queen Bee she was still caught in the before version, lacking charisma needed for the role.

This version encapsulates the narcissist generation where everyone is the Main Character on their own social media, which is great for an update of the film. There are other things I liked about it, but they are few and far between.

Rarely, a film comes out which features a stellar cast... and you've never heard of it. I found this gem on Prime to kill some time and boy, am I glad I watched it.

Cillian Murphy delivers yet another outstanding performance as John, whose mother has died a year previously. Nobody in the town knows much about John, but suddenly he's in the spotlight when a train crashes into his yard and John is caught encompassing a different persona.

A stellar cast including Susan Sarandon and Elliot Page round off this strange drama. The narrative is easy enough to follow, despite the bizarre characters. I'm sure discussions between the director and lead actor were quite something to behold!

Give this one a try. Recommended for people who love Cillian Murphy, weird narratives, or Norman Bates.

So often in movies and TV, someone dies and then we straight into the funeral. Afterwards, everyone is sad, but they move on.

This hour of television is unlike anything I've seen. The viewer is right there through every stage from the unexpected death, the final moments, the day by day how-do-you-go-on after a loved one's death. Every stage is right there onscreen: the uncomfortable awkwardness, the sheer grief, the unspoken beauty.

Prepare to feel all the feelings. Prepare to have all your previous grief rush back at you even though you thought you were through the worst of it.

Huge kudos to the entire cast for their genuine emotions flowing through unabated. I imagine filming this took a massive toll on everyone, especially Claudia Karvan and Dan Wyllie. Although the subject matter is the worst imaginable, this is performed with extreme sensitivity, rawness, and beauty.

The main problem with this film is that it's super boring. What starts as an interesting and promising premise turns into a road trip love story with no relation to the premise.

...which is fine, but the movie is sold on a lie and it is so boring. The two leads meander along, throw in some conflict and some lovin', and they think it's enough to keep viewers interested. Dear reader, it is not.

The cast is let down by a poor story, inane dialogue, and an idea that love can conquer all. (It cannot.)

Recommended if you've got nothing better to watch, like love stories, or appreciate the subtleties of the human condition.

This show sucks. Here's why:

1. Ally is pathetic. She literally falls over when a cute guy talks to her. She ties her entire existence and self-worth to being in a relationship. She readily gives her power away to people who don't value her.

2. CANNOT STAND Vonda Shepard's voice. I do like the idea of promoting an unknown artist, but there's way too much Vonda.

3. As a legal drama, it fails spectacularly. Most of the cases would never go to trial, let alone win. Every Cage & Fish litigator would have been held in contempt every trial.

4. Every character in the show is super annoying. Ally, as explained earlier. Renee is decent but she still values men over everything else. Georgia has no narrative besides Being Billy's Wife. Nelle is introduced as cold, nicknamed Subzero, but we never see that side of her. Ling is an unbelievable character, also tying everything she is back to sex. As does Elaine. Fish is just plain gross. Cage is weird. Billy serves only as The One Who Got Away. Every character lacks depth. They're all vapid.

5. Every episode is the same: Ally frets over a relationship whether she's in one or not. Renee is the voice of reason. Fish acts like he knows everything. Billy and Georgia unknowingly torture Ally. Nelle, apart from the first few episodes she appears in, pops up randomly, says something funny, disappears again. Ling antagonises everyone. Elaine spies and tries to push some new invention/idea/gossip. Cage acts weird. When half the cast leave, new people come in to full these roles.

6. No one had a great time filming that show. The women worried about their weight. Portia de Rossi experienced disordered eating, while Jane Krakowski reports feeling like a "fat cow" compared to everyone else because they were US sizes 0-2. Courtney Thorne-Smith also descended into negative thoughts about her weight because of the media criticism. Lisa Nicole Carson suffered poor mental health, which impacted her ability to work, and was kicked off the show. When I watch it, all I see is sadness in their eyes.

This show is a badly aged relic of the past. Avoid it.

For once, Ally and her pathetic man problems aren't the focus of this episode, which is what makes it so great to watch. Everyone outperforms themselves here, from Fish and Cage in court with their bells and whistles (IYKYK) to Ally and Ling suing a church because they won't fund a dying kid.

As always, Haley Joel Osment dominates the screen and is a joy to watch. Even Lucy Liu's Ling reveals a side we haven't seen, showing a depth of character previously missing.

Nelle's eye makeup... well, it wouldn't be Ally McBeal without some sort of nonsense.

In all, a great episode which shows off the talented cast and writers in ways not seen previously in this series. If you're at the point where the endless anti-feminist Ally is getting on your nerves, this ep will restore your faith.

Not just talking about the chilli burn here, this episode is arguably the most heartwarming episode of television ever produced.

Superhot chilli sauce creators descend into a North Carolina town to impress hot sauce god Vic Clinco. We meet four new characters in this episode, including a young upstart who has created a hot sauce in memory of his dog.

What I really loved about this ep was the community vibe. Everyone at the hot sauce event genuinely wants to see everyone else succeed. We follow series regulars Aurea and Bobby try out their new sauce range at the event, leading to a purely wholesome moment for Aurea.

This episode doesn't burn like a Superhot, but it does warm gently.

It's the dancing baby episode!

The show is both praised and criticised for its feminist twist (even though it was created and written by a male). You can't be a great feminist drama when you have episodes like this. Only a few short episodes ago, the ladies of Cage & Fish were complaining that the men were ogling at the delivery woman. You can't ogle women! Yet here we are, with all the ladies obsessing over a male model at their sculpting class.

Then we have the adorable dancing baby, arguably the internet's first viral sensation, representing Ally's biological clock at the tender age of 27.

View this episode as satire rather than narrative from the last century.

Imagine you're a teenage girl in love with the biggest celebrity the world has ever seen. Imagine he chooses you.

Priscilla Presley lived every teenager's fantasy, and every woman's heartbreak.

This film sensitively handles the power imbalance, choosing to show their relationship through Priscilla's eyes. With a male director, this could have easily become a male gaze fantasy, but with Sofia Coppola, it becomes far more realistic.

That's not to say there are uncomfortable moments which feel heavy to watch. For example, when Priscilla is parading clothes under the eye of Elvis and his male entourage, or when Elvis gaslights her. These scenes elicit sympathy from the viewer for Priscilla's plight. A young, lonely, naive woman who just wants the fairytale romance she's been promised.

I wasn't convinced Jacob Elordi could pull off a convincing Elvis, but he did an adequate job. I think his youth and non-exposure to the pop culture phenomenon that is Elvis played a big part. Cailee Spaeny protrayed Priscilla's naivety well, although I thought the height difference between her and Elordi made Priscilla all the more childlike... Maybe that was the goal.

I must mention set design. It was beautiful! The Christmas trees stuck in my mind, as well as a scene near the end where Elvis sits in a red room, framed by metal love hearts. Perfection.

Recommended for everyone who has/had a celebrity crush and wondered "what if?"

It's been 24 hours since I saw this film, and I can't stop thinking about it. Loved it! I want to watch it again to catch all the things I missed the first time.

This story has been told before, with varying degrees of success. I got strong Brideshead Revisited vibes, and completely agree with another review saying the film is the lovechild of The Talented Mr Ripley and Call Me By Your Name.

This version is exquisitely shot, although at times I found the dialogue a little clunky. The close ups of Barry felt jarring, but that's the whole point. I found myself strangely fixated on Oliver as he became more fixated on Felix and his family. At first, I thought there weren't any layers to peel back, to unpack the story, but the more I think about it, the more layered the performances are. Definitely requires a rewatch!

I'd recommend this if you liked Midsommar, or feel like a disturbing story where the viewer is the voyeur. Or if you just want to see what the fuss is about.

Reading about the history of this film, I discovered (as other reviewers pointed out) that this film was produced as a two-part production which was then stitched together and released theatrically. While this explains how disjointed it is, it really is two separate stories in one piece of media, as a viewer neither narrative is fully explored and feels unfinished.

These days, we're more likely to see one story cut into two feature-length films, so to see the opposite feels a bit jarring. There are plenty of films which feel like separate stories, such as Downsizing.

As for the two stories, I'm not sure 'misadventures' is the right word. The premise is classic Disney: what can go wrong when an inventor tries his whacky invention? The first half is enjoyable, where Merlin Jones exposes a court judge's life of crime. But the second half, which explores hypnotism, seems to lose the plot (so to speak).

It's interesting enough for fans of classic Disney, Tommy Kirk, and Annette Funicello, but for casual viewers, give it a miss.

I knew what I was getting into when I clicked on this. The premise doesn't pretend to be anything other than terrible, so what you see is what you get. If you're in the mood for dirty, gross humour, you're in the right place. Look no further.

I love that Jerry O'Connell makes terrible movies. This is one of his best worst movies. Think Tomcats, but better at being worse.

If you're expecting the finest acting in an Oscar-bait artistic film, you know you're not gonna get it.

This is best viewed on a date night after a couple of wines and a charcuterie board, because there's plenty of cheese going on here. Bravo!

I LOVED the first half hour! It was magical, wonderful, Wonkatastic.

Then it died soon after plot point 1 signalling Act 2. I should have listened to Hugh Grant's complaints about the film. It gets bogged in melodramatic sentimentality with forgettable songs. Reminded me of Hugh Jackman's The Greatest Showman at times. Every great idea starts as a dream, and there's no shortage of big ideas and daydreams here.

Timothee Chalomet is a competent Wonka, but the dialogue did no favours. He'd say a Wonka-ism like, "scratch that, reverse it"... and never utter it again. The other characters are forgettable sidekicks. As far as I can see, the Oompa Loompa was included just for continuity's sake and holds no narrative purpose. As mentioned Hugh Grant has been quite vocal in his criticism, saying he only took the role for the money. As an Oompa Loompa, I quite liked him.

On the way out of the cinema, I listened to people around me. Not one kid liked it. A couple of adults did. Most just wanted chocolate.

Stellar cast, fine acting, let down by an awful script. A truly terrible screenplay which should have been binned immediately.

Meryl Streep brings class to every role; I assume she owed the studio a film or needed money to do this role. Edward Furlong does what he does best - playing a moody teenager. Liam Neeson is just a guy "protecting his family" by doing dodgy things. Underrated actress playing the younger sister, who is firmly entrenched in the male gaze. By the end of film her only reason for existence is to give attention to boys.

Let's talk about this script. The premise is good: a teenage boy is the last person to see his girlfriend alive. This is a family drama focusing on the parents in a what-would-you-do scenario. There's victim blaming ("the girl got herself killed"), promiscuity shaming, unwarranted violence against women ("I didn't mean to hit her"), and plot holes you can drive a truck through. Teenage Jake would be considered a person of interest, yet his car and bedroom somehow demands a search warrant, and he is finally arrested with zero evidence. This leads to his parents making some extremely poor choices, ultimately leading to a hug fest in the final moments.

Give it a miss.

I know zero about the source material, so I can't say whether this is true or not.

This film doesn't seem to know which audience it belongs to. It's too scary for children, too tame for people over twelve. (Here in Australia, it is rated for people over 15.) It also seems like two separate stories which don't quite mesh at the end but leave it open to possible sequels, which is what most films do these days to rake in the dollars for franchises. The story isn't fully fleshed out, leading to an unsatisfying ending.

Josh Hutcherson does his best here, but is let down by a poor supporting cast with the exception of the actress who plays his sister Abby, and Matthew Lillard, who is great in everything he does.

I suppose this film is good for a slumber party of tweens defying their parents. If you're outside this age group, you probably won't enjoy it.

Recently discovered a ton of trashy made-for-TV movies on Prime, and I am in Heaven. This film stars a lot of "it" people from the 90s, which is a definite win.

It's completely unoriginal but you know what? We're still having conversations about consent today. We are still living a trope where no one believes the victim, where she (because the victim is usually a woman) is afraid to speak, and everyone sides with the perpetrator while the victim is the one on trial.

Still.

With regards to the film, the leads play their parts well, showing their acting range. Although we remember Candace Cameron Bure and Mark-Paul Gosselaar as fun, cute, sweet characters, they both come out of these roles to portray real people with very real issues which cannot be resolved neatly within half an hour. Credit where credit's due, they do an amazing job.

There are two highlights in this episode: Gus' song, and the scene between Fiona and Debbie where they talk about sisterly support.

There have been storylines in this show which are just plain silly, but this season has drawn in the reins to produce some of the best television ever. This episode exemplifies great writing, great acting, and just the right about of humour because life is never always drama.

There's a lot that happens in this ep. All of it takes a backseat to the two highlights mentioned previously. The song Gus performs for Fiona has me reliving the moment on YouTube, while the sisterly chat really drives home that not everything can be resolved neatly. Am looking forward to how this plays out... although I am aware that the cast, as well as the audience, felt a decline in quality around about this time.

I'm conflicted about this film.

The two leads have zero chemistry together, which gives their messed-up relationship no credence whatsoever. In real life these two would have never gotten together in the first place. Someone decided two "on their way up" stars should make a movie, and it wasn't a great decision. They do their best, but it fails to carry the movie.

I liked the script though. Sometimes relationships aren't a clean breakup where people just decide that they want to be out. There's indecision, better the devil you know, maybe it's not so bad after all, the uneasy feelings of breaking it off permanently. This film encapsulates all of that. It does feel a bit repetitive for all the breaking up and getting back together, but it's perfectly captured.

Hated the direction! Inexplicable moves from colour to black-and-white, weird camera angles, lighting changes, jumping from one shot to the next. I suppose it was meant to feel jarring and analogous to the relationship being portrayed, but it was super annoying and discombobulating for the viewer. Ultimately this is the thing that made me give this film such a low rating. It felt like the director was trying to be edgy (in a very 90s way) but it did not work at all.

Not a great movie. I wished I liked it a lot more, but unfortunately the pieces just don't fit.