Change Your Image
christinielsen
Reviews
True Lies (2023)
Too much and yet way too little
I really wanted to like this. Steve Howey is usually talented and enjoyable. The rest of the cast are normally credible supporting characters. This is so badly written that Ana de Armas and Daniel Craig wouldn't be able to make it watchable. I personally really resent it when showrunners assume that we, the general public, could not possibly put together what we're watching without a preschool level description of what they want us to see. The endless descriptive prattle, especially when they're on a mission, is not much beyond juvenile. Maybe if the Networks would pursue original content, rather than lazily reworking old material that was hardly groundbreaking the first time around, we'd get to see more than one season of most new shows.
Buying Beverly Hills (2022)
Pure luck that this agency is a success
I'll admit I only managed to watch the first 30 minutes of episode 1 before I just couldn't take it anymore. Nepotism is alive but not well in this series. Alexia is showing a client a 6.9 million dollar home. She admitted to being flustered because the seller was present, however, that is not an excuse to suck at your job. She could not pull out a correct or accurate fact about the listing of her life depended on it. She repeatedly gave the client wrong answers to her direct and simple questions, from the type of stone on the kitchen counters to an inaccurate description of the fireplace and the wrong price per square foot on the listing. Only the brokers daughter would get away with this crap. Then there's the petty bickering and backslapping between other employees of this big "family". There are way too many, much more enjoyable and quality real estate shows out there to waste your time on this one.
Blonde (2022)
Not sure why Andrew Dominik would write and make this movie
I got as far as an hour in before I just could not take it anymore. The filmmaker clearly has no respect or compassion for Marilyn or any other woman in the film. I realize it is not a true story, however, when you are dealing with the life of a real person, making up complete trash is not acceptable. What a waste of Ana de Armas' talent. I don't know why someone would write and direct a film about a person they clearly think was inconsequential and nothing but an unstable plaything for men in power. The only people I can think of that may get something from this movie would be the same people who read the tabloids and think because something is in print it has to be true.
So You Think You Can Dance (2005)
There is nothing I like about the newest format.
I have been a fan since season 1 and have adjusted to each new tweak in format as it came along, until 2022. This newest format doesn't have much going to recommend it. For starters it's too rushed. We went from auditions to live shows in a blink. This didn't leave any time for us as viewers to get invested in any of the dancers, or their fates. Next in the line of fire is the new voting. Going from mass audience voting to only using the studio audience, I've been in that studio and it's not a lot of people, is a joke. Millions of opinions down to dozens of audience members deciding on "America's Favourite Dancer" is laughable. Then the judges decide who goes home...and then there's the judges. Leah and tWitch are great. JoKo is loud and pretty obnoxious. I'll hang in there for the love of dance and loyalty, this time. I hope they reassess after this season, and go back to what made this a competition show in the first place because legacy loyalty only goes so far and I won't sit through this format again.
9/11: The Falling Man (2006)
We Will Never Forget
I was an Ambulance Dispatcher working the day shift on 9/11. On our floor we had giant television screens, tuned into the news, so that we would know if anything major was happening in the city. The horror of watching the attacks and the hours of images I saw that day, while taking emergency calls for our own Canadian city, stayed with me for a very long time. Here we are 20 years later and I finally committed to watching a documentary about that day.. Judgement about how or even when a person decides to die isn't something I spend much time thinking about, but this documentary did make me think about it. I can tell you that it didn't take me long to come to the conclusion that once I realized that there was no way out and no chance of rescue, I hoped I would have the courage to take control and jump, rather than wait meekly for death to take me. The day really wasn't any easier to watch this time around, but we need to remember. Change doesn't happen because we ignore history's problems, it happens when we remember them and are horrified enough, to make sure it's never repeated.
9-1-1: Suspicion (2021)
This show used to be about emergency services, now...
This season the show has turned into a straight up nighttime soap. Way too much time on the individuals and their problems. I'm all for building the characters and their lives into the story line but, they need to apply the concept properly. It is easily possible to blend both, just check the spin off 911 LoneStar where they handle the balance very well. If you're out of stories call it a wrap, otherwise maybe some fresh blood in the writers room.
Bargain Mansions (2017)
Seriously, a joke
I can't take anything Tamara Day says as credible. Since when is it ok to "work" any construction site in high heeled boots and skinny jeans. Her self taught "expertise" is a long way off. Her kitchens are a joke and the staging is so crowed it often looks like packrats live in the newly renovated house. What on earth was HHTV thinking?
Life in a Year (2020)
Reality check-nope
Ok, to start I love Cara D, but. Why on earth would they cast a 22 year old Jaden Smith as a 17 year old and then cast a 29 year old Cara opposite him. Really, there were no 20 year old actors available to play the female lead. No wonder women think they need to look 20 for eternity. The movie may have been great but I couldn't get past the casting to even watch the whole thing.
Absentia (2017)
Could both the FBI and BPD be that stupid
Season 1-great premise, acting and most of the writing, EXCEPT the level of stupidity that both agencies and agents investigating Emily show really is unbelievable. I get the need for plot twists and building the story and outcome, but there is just no way that every cop, including city police and feds, could possibly be that stupid and gullible. The only smart cops are Emily and the female detective. I can totally accept that the women might be light years ahead of the guys, but that still doesn't mean that every male homicide detective is a moron. I'll keep watching because the acting is top notch but if the other episodes are just more of the same idiocy I won't get through all 3 seasons.
Brave New World (2020)
Brave, fresh and smart
Of course they would cancel one of the only new and fresh series of the year! Great casting, smart writing and a story that builds and grows as the episodes unfold. In a time where television is mostly redos of old shows and ideas it's a shame that the network can't see past first ratings. At first watch the viewer may get the wrong idea and not invest in letting the story and characters develop. I actually appreciate the fact that you don't know everything in the first episode. That's what makes it worth tuning in next week. In a time when so many series drop as a whole, ready for us to binge at will, it was really nice to have a show worth waiting a week to see.
Million Dollar Beach House (2020)
Beautiful Properties Listed by Imbeciles
How these overblown nobody's ever managed to talk someone into this being a series is unbelievable. They do not come across as intelligent, qualified, real estate professionals. Makes me ill to think these idiots manage to make $$$ commissions.
World of Dance: The Semi-Finals 2 (2020)
I was so locked into this until this eposode
It sucks that the judges place pulling at the heartstrings above excellent dance. Do a dance about cancer and win, blah, blah, blah
Free Dance (2016)
Beautiful
At the start thought it might be just the same old, same old, but it turned into so much more than that. The music and dancing throughput was lovely. The finale was breathtaking, both the music and dance, and brought tears of joy to my eyes.
Bad Mothers (2019)
I really wanted to like it, but
This series should have been at least an enjoyable way to wipe away a few hours on a rainy afternoon. The writing is so bland, predictable, irrational, and just plain BAD. The delivery isn't much better. Considering most of the quality stuff coming out of Australia, just skip this one.
The Blacklist: The Kazanjian Brothers (No. 156/157) (2020)
I appreciate the effort but,,,
While I appreciate the effort of the cast and crew to give us a season finale in this mess, it was a miss for me. I really didn't like the cartoon fillers. They were of poor quality and very flat. Can't wait for next season and a return to regular production. This series has always been a favourite of mine and I won't hold this season against them.
The Crown (2016)
Some things you can fudge, the eyes are not one of them!
I am a huge fan of The Crown. Seasons 1 and 2 were outstanding, as was the job done by Claire Foy and Matt Smith. Obviously the new cast was going to take some warming up to. The biggest and most glaring problem is Olivia's brown eyes. Everyone on the planet knows that the queens eyes are blue. If you're going to go to the trouble of trying to make the actors look like their roles, even changing the cast every two years to keep up with the aging, then you should not get something so basic as eye colour so wrong. Aside from that, Olivia and Tobias are alright. Hopefully I'll warm up to them as time goes on. The other big glaring difference is that we've gone from 2 full season of episodes between 55 and 60 minutes long to about 45 minutes. I'm pretty sure that there is no shortage of material to write about so it must be about budget. Since my Netflix fee has gone up by $6.00 per month in just a few years, maybe they could afford to give me drama series episodes 60 minutes long.
L.A.'s Finest (2019)
I really wanted to like this.
I was excited to watch this. I like both Jessica Alba and Gabrielle Union. Two strong female leads, it should be very good at the least. Since both actresses are usually capable, believable and enjoyable I must conclude the the shows downfall is due to the really bad writing and directing. There's nothing new here, story lines are all been there done that, and there isn't anything about the leads that makes you want to stick around to get to know them.
When They See Us (2019)
A must watch!
First, to the few reviewers who rated this series very low due to a) the kids couldn't have been this stupid b) the cops would never do this and c) it's all just lies.
Have you been living under a rock-Rampant racism based on stereotypes happened more often than not in the past, and is still happening all too frequently even now.
Even taking into account the obvious bias of the writers, I don't know how those police officers ever looked their own children in the eyes after the way they treated these children. And I hope they never had another good nights sleep. There is no excuse that would ever justify when happened here.
This series is very difficult to watch, but watch it we should. Like so many other past events that reflect the worst of us, we need to remember what happened to ensure that it never does again. Great job Netflix.