Film and TV review.

Sluffy wrote:Two cracking films that are currently on iplayer for the week that I'd like to bring to your attention if you have not seen them before -

Sin City - a sort of a comic book presented film - full of comic book type violence and a few sexy girls thrown in for good measure!

I guess you will either love it or hate it - I love it!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b008m2f9/Sin_City/

Sin City is great. The best dramatisation of a (actually several) graphic novel I have seen and beautifully done. It also has enough complexity to justify more than one viewing.

xmiles wrote:

Natasha Whittam wrote:

Hipster_Nebula wrote:
As a whole, Homeland was an excellent series for me, and (without spoiling it) some of the things that might have made the finale "exciting" would have spoiled the flow for season 2. It does annoy me when people don't get the ending or plot they want and then declare a whole series "shit."

Firstly, they didn't know there was even going to be a season 2 when they made season 1. Secondly, I did enjoy the series as a whole, but the last episode was a major let down and highly predictable. I thought it was going to be brilliant, especially as the Radio Times had it down as being in the top 20 tv endings of all time.

Sorry Hipster but Nat is 100% right. The series was enjoyable but the final episode was rubbish. I can't go into detail without spoiling it for those who haven't seen it, but all the loose ends were not tied up, coincidence and timing were pushed beyond believable and the set up for the unnecessary second series is lame and predictable. And as for the hype about the twist ending making it one of the top 20 of all time - it's not!

Xmiles, i totally get someone not liking a show or hating an episode but surely you must realise the nature of TV series.

If you tied up "all the lose ends" at the end of every season what the hell would happen in the next one?

I can't think of any great show that ties everything up in that way.

the people I've spoken to who didn't like the finale wanted all the main characters to either be killed and or arrested and executed.

Sin City is a great movie. Top quality entertainment.

Hipster_Nebula wrote:

Xmiles, i totally get someone not liking a show or hating an episode but surely you must realise the nature of TV series.

If you tied up "all the lose ends" at the end of every season what the hell would happen in the next one?

I can't think of any great show that ties everything up in that way.

the people I've spoken to who didn't like the finale wanted all the main characters to either be killed and or arrested and executed.

I didn't want all the loose ends tied up, just a finale to match the rest of the series. All of a sudden it became totally stupid and the ending was just so lame. Oh, I've just remembered that Brody is the bad guy but I'm just about to have surgery that will make me lose my short-term memory. Bugger.

Hipster_Nebula wrote:

Xmiles, i totally get someone not liking a show or hating an episode but surely you must realise the nature of TV series.

If you tied up "all the lose ends" at the end of every season what the hell would happen in the next one?

I can't think of any great show that ties everything up in that way.

the people I've spoken to who didn't like the finale wanted all the main characters to either be killed and or arrested and executed.

I certainly don't believe it was necessary to kill/arrest/execute all the main characters to achieve a satisfactory conclusion. The weakness was not due to the open ending but the fact that a second series was being set up. Some of the loose ends I referred to are gaps in the plot which may or may not have been left there for resolution later. On the other hand they may be due to sloppy writing and I will never know unless I watch the whole of the second series.

My disappointment with the finale was definitely aggravated by all the hype. There were several points where I was reminded of 24 due to the implausibility of some plot developments. The ending itself is not really a twist and is very predictable and to call it an all-time great is ludicrous.

Will I watch the second series? Probably not.

Hardly the shows fault that lots of people thought it was good. And thats TV, unless you're used to watching 3 episode specials surely you're used to TV that sets up the next season?

I'm not having a go at anyone, plenty of people didn't like it, but i find it confusing that people are annoyed it was "setting up season 2" surely thats obvious.

I've said before i didn't think it was a great ending, but it whetted the appetite for season 2, I'd have given it 7/10

Hipster_Nebula wrote:

I'm not having a go at anyone, plenty of people didn't like it, but i find it confusing that people are annoyed it was "setting up season 2" surely thats obvious.

Setting up season 2 is why so many programmes are utter shite. I accept you have to leave something to the imagination, but you need to make season 1 as good as possible.

Take Dexter for example, there are no cliffhangers. Everything is tied up in the final episode - it got a season 2 on the strength of season 1. It now has a season 8.

Fair enough, i've never seen Dexter so i can't comment on that.

But on the whole shows i've seen will leave things hanging here and there to keep the interest going for the next season.

Anybody watch The Bridge? I thought it was excellent. I'm not usually a fan of detective series featuring a brilliant serial killer and two mismatched detectives but this worked for me. Saga, the Swedish detective, is a character you are unlikely to forget.

Did anyone watch Blazing Sadels on ITV4 last night? It's only the 2nd time I have seen it and had been a few years since I saw it last.

I am surprised ITV got away with putting it on in the first place with how PC the top channels are these days. Either way it was a very funny film IMO.

I've seen Blazing Saddles many times. I know what you're saying about the racism in it, but you have to bear in mind it is a) set in the Old West and b) a spoof. It caused a furore in its day though, as did Mel Brooks' 'The Producers', which is the funniest film ever made IMO.

Blazing Saddles is one of my favourite movies ever. Richard Pryor was to have starred in it along with his pal Gene Wilder but various issues intervened and he ended up being a co-writer instead. Cleavon Little was good, but he was clearly not in the same league as Richard Pryor.

There again, I wouldn't call ITV4 a major channel, anyway. Its a male orientated channel and could possibly get away with things more than what ITV1 could ever do. Even ITV2 gets away with TOWIE and Celebrity Juice!!!

Keegan wrote:Blazing Saddles is one of my favourite movies ever. Richard Pryor was to have starred in it along with his pal Gene Wilder but various issues intervened and he ended up being a co-writer instead. Cleavon Little was good, but he was clearly not in the same league as Richard Pryor.

Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor... a match made in heaven. Sad they only did 4 films together.

Did somebody say they were a fan of Six Feet Under?
It's my birthday in 5 days and somebody is buying me the complete collection. Hope it's as good as I've read it is. Somebody else is buying me Arrested Development, a US comedy series, with a 9.4/10 rating on imdb.com.

I'm seven episodes into the West Wing, which I'm sort of getting into, but haven't touched for a few weeks, as I've been sidetracked by my Doc Martin boxset.

Yes, Natasha, I'm single.

doffcocker wrote:

Yes, Natasha, I'm single.

Never apologise for watching too much TV, it's my hobby too. I watched the first two seasons of Six Feet Under and while it had its moments I didn't go back for season three. But Hipster loves it.

As for Arrested Development, let me know how you find it, I keep catching clips and it looks good. I love Jason Bateman.

doffcocker wrote:Did somebody say they were a fan of Six Feet Under?
It's my birthday in 5 days and somebody is buying me the complete collection. Hope it's as good as I've read it is. Somebody else is buying me Arrested Development, a US comedy series, with a 9.4/10 rating on imdb.com.

I'm seven episodes into the West Wing, which I'm sort of getting into, but haven't touched for a few weeks, as I've been sidetracked by my Doc Martin boxset.

Yes, Natasha, I'm single.

My favourite show of all time Six Feet.

If you like drama, proper drama, in a family setting with dark humour you'll like it.

It's also extremely depressing.

Hipster_Nebula wrote:
It's also extremely depressing.

I love anything like that.

I really liked the first season or two of Six Feet Under, loved the dead people talking to their attendants. The gay stuff was not my cup of tea, as was the male full frontals, and I became less of a fan. When the dead people stopped talking, I lost interest.

Anyone following the Voice ? It's the final next week and I want the big buxom Welsh singer, Leanne to win it.