#BarbaraSarafian

[passion-of-arts]

BIFF 37 – TAG 4 BIOPICS UND ANIMATION

Da sind wir auch schon beim 4. Tag des Braunschweig International Film Festival angelangt. Diesmal mit den Themen Biopics und Animation.

🤩🍿

[kiradurbin]

Super Short Reviews: winter / spring TV part two:

The Letter for the King (Netflix) – This moves so fast I almost got whiplash.  But I guess thats what the kids need this days – its got to go go go just like a video game. Amir Wilson (lead) is easy to root for even if the back story and surrounding politics of the world aren’t quite clear.  

World on Fire (PBS) – Will I ever get tired of WWII stories?  Not if they’re good!   This one starts with Helen Hunt’s broadcasting as an American journalist in Poland just as Nazi Germany is taking occupation. No Spolier: Things get a lost worse after that.  

Motherland: Fort Salem (Freeform / Hulu) – Somewhere between Hunger Games and Legacies lies a tale of women’s empowerment through a bizarre mix of witchcraft and military.   I could not connect with any of the leads but I’m definitely not the target age group.  Taylor Hickson reminds me of Natalie Dormer.

Council of Dads (NBC) – BLECH.  You cant just re-create the magic of “This Is Us” by throwing a bunch of people together.   Perfect example of when good actors (Michele Weaver, Michael O’Neill, J. August Richards, Clive Standon) get wasted on a bad show.

Spinning Out (Netflix) – Perfect for a hot day, as these people are either always in snow, or in ice, or ON the ice.  Kaya Scodelario from the Maze Runner movies and Willow Shields from the Hunger Games movies team up as sister ice skaters with a love / rivalry relationship who are constantly trying to navigate the campy craziness of their mom played by January Jones.  AND Johnny Weir is in it!!

Belgravia (Epix) – DirecTv keeps telling me I get Epix, but Epix keeps telling me I do not.  BAH!  But in the first episode at least, Harriet Walter and Tamsin Greig mine every second of delicious uppity British awkwardness... which creates a weird level of tension that will leave British period drama lovers hanging off the edge of their settee.

Reprisal (Hulu) – Another Robert Rodriguez rip off with a dash of Tarantino and a splash of Mad Men. Big thumbs down from me.  

The Neighbour (Netflix) – Spain. Random dude gets random super hero powers.  Skip it.  The thing about comedy is that you need to root for the main fellow even if he does silly things or makes bad choices.  With this dude there’s just nothing to root for.  Adrian Pino is quite funny as the sidekick and I hope he writes something better for himself soon.  

Baptise (PBS) – Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes.   Fantastic international cast: Tcheky Karyo, Barbara Sarafian, Tom Hollander, Talisa Garcia, Jessica Raine, Trystan Gravelle...  Fantastic binge-able story.  Oooooooo I hope there’s more.  

Dracula (Netflix) – UK Mini-Series. Goes from horror, to good drama, to excellent camp.  Highly entertaining and I highly recommend it.  (Harkour:  “You’re a monster!”  Dracula:  “And you’re a lawyer.  Nobody’s perfect.”)

DC’s Stargirl (CW) – Another BLECH. Very Lite PG YA summer fare.  I don’t know who approved this casting but its a huge missed opportunity in regards to diversity and inclusion.  Sure I guess its fun that she’s a girl but she looks like she’s one jello shot away from being a stripper.  Buffy did the blonde pretty girl thing 20 years ago and no one ever needs to do it again.  

Endlings (Hulu) – Really weird / odd Sci-Fi for the kiddos (if they can figure out whats going on.)

October Faction (Netflix) –  Three episodes went by as I was doing other things and then suddenly I realised, oh wow, I still don’t know what this is about?  The show should have focused on the teenagers (played perfectly by Aurora Burghart and Gabriel Darku)  but instead droned on and on following the parents around.  Too bad.

Hightown (Starz) – Some (bad) shows start slowly like a tease… this (great) show takes off like a rocket and you know its gonna land hard.  If you’re  lucky enough to get Showtime I suspect its a binge watch.  Monica Raymund is FIRE as the lead. Hope to see a lot more strong women characters like this in the future.

NOT REVIEWED:

Deadwater Fell (AcornTV)

Liar (Sundance)

Yanxi Palace: Princess Adventures (Netflix)

Run (HBO)

Paradise Lost (Spectrum)

Sanctuary (Sundance Now)

Penny Dreadful: City of Angels (Showtime)

Betty (HBO)

The Dress Up Gang (TBS.com) – made in 2017 but never aired until now.

Trying (AppleTV+)

Gold Digger (Acorn)