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shadowkat1. Finished binge-watching Stranger Things via Netflix, which is about eight episodes long and surprisingly good in places. Well-cast, and written. Reminds me a little bit of the old 1980s television series "Eerie, Indiana" but a notch or two above it from production, direction, casting, and writing perspective. [As an aside, there's something to be said for shorter television seasons. Tighter writing, better performances, etc. Writers, actors, etc don't have time to get burned out in eight episodes. Everyone's handing in their A game.]
Stars Winona Ryder, but seriously watch for the unknowns - the teens and the sheriff all standout.
She's okay, I guess, but I felt at times that she was a wee bit overboard, while everyone else was putting more understated and realistic performances. Actually, the two weak links in the show were the former movie stars: Winona Ryder and Matthew Modine, neither of which have aged well.
The focus isn't on their characters however, it's on everyone else.
The story is about a boy who goes missing after a major mishap at a government lab. A government agency has been conducting unethical and somewhat illegal experiments with mind-control and parallel universes. During one such experiment, it inadvertently punched a hole between the universes, resulting in a nasty monster entering into our world. It takes place in Indiana. Although for a while I thought it was in upstate New York or Maine. Most of the scenes are shot in the woods. Probably filmed in Vancouver. The government agency is run by a bunch of assholes, who spend the majority of the film terrorizing everyone they come across until they finally get defeated by the monsters they created. These stories tend to be rather karmic.
The plot? You've seen before. The villains? Are sort of uncomplicated and rather one-dimensional tropes. But the protagonists or lead characters - are well-drawn and interesting. And the metaphors rather timely: fear of the government watching us, fear of no control, of monsters jumping in on us without warning, and this sense of never being able to get ahead or feel safe - that permeates this seemingly sleepy and safe small town, where nothing much happens.
It's worth a look. Particularly if you are a fan of Stephen King or Stephen Spielberg horror movies.
2. Started binge-watching Daredevil S2 -- which isn't nearly as good as S1, yet still better than most of the superhero shows. Less on the campy side and more on the realistic/noir end of the spectrum. So if you prefer your super-hero shows on the campy/flashy side, best to skip. Just finished part I of the S2, or the section that focused on The Punisher, right up to Electra popping up.
It's still insanely violent, with a couple of torture sequences that I could have done without.
But the first section or four episodes, feature The Punisher, who I thought was well-cast and developed. It also helped define Daredevil's dilemma, which carried over from last year. Where is the line between being a hero and a ruthless vigilante? And has he jumped over it already?
In some respects, Daredevil is more interesting and realistic than Batman...less gothic. But Marvel always tended to be more grounded in the characterizations and world-view than DC. Marvel's characters all get their powers from screwed up science experiments, with few exceptions. And many of their heroes aren't quite heroes. There's an edginess to the Marvel Universe which isn't quite in the DC one, at least on paper. In film, the DC films are rather gritty and grim, while the tv shows are rather comic-booky and remind me more of the comic book versions (well with the exception of Gotham which is way over the top in the noir department, and possibly the most insanely violent show that I've seen on television...yes, it outdoes Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead. I couldn't get past the first season.) While Marvel's netflix series are gritty like the books, if not more so, and their film counterparts are much lighter and flashier.
I'm not overly familiar with the comics. I read some of Frank Miller's Daredevil arc back in the 1980s, when he took it over for a bit. But not a lot of it. Reminded me a little of his Batman arc. More familiar with The Punisher, which I read a one-shot graphic novel and saw a really bad 1990s film version. I think they did a better job with The Punisher in this story than they did previously.
He's not as pretty as he was in the film. Thomas Jane (whose currently in The Expanse) played him in the film version. But he works as a former military guy who went hard-core vigilante after his entire family was murdered by the Irish Mob. (Think urban Rambo.)
I watch the series because I adore the three leads and the actors who play them. I think I'm a little bit in love with Matt Murdoch. And his relationships with Foggy and Karen are great. Love both Foggy and Karen, who are bright, brave and proactive. Also the writing, direction, etc continue to be above standard. And...there's no commercials.
I've realized my patience for commercial television is rapidly waning. If it weren't for NY1, I'd kick it to the curb once and for all.
Stars Winona Ryder, but seriously watch for the unknowns - the teens and the sheriff all standout.
She's okay, I guess, but I felt at times that she was a wee bit overboard, while everyone else was putting more understated and realistic performances. Actually, the two weak links in the show were the former movie stars: Winona Ryder and Matthew Modine, neither of which have aged well.
The focus isn't on their characters however, it's on everyone else.
The story is about a boy who goes missing after a major mishap at a government lab. A government agency has been conducting unethical and somewhat illegal experiments with mind-control and parallel universes. During one such experiment, it inadvertently punched a hole between the universes, resulting in a nasty monster entering into our world. It takes place in Indiana. Although for a while I thought it was in upstate New York or Maine. Most of the scenes are shot in the woods. Probably filmed in Vancouver. The government agency is run by a bunch of assholes, who spend the majority of the film terrorizing everyone they come across until they finally get defeated by the monsters they created. These stories tend to be rather karmic.
The plot? You've seen before. The villains? Are sort of uncomplicated and rather one-dimensional tropes. But the protagonists or lead characters - are well-drawn and interesting. And the metaphors rather timely: fear of the government watching us, fear of no control, of monsters jumping in on us without warning, and this sense of never being able to get ahead or feel safe - that permeates this seemingly sleepy and safe small town, where nothing much happens.
It's worth a look. Particularly if you are a fan of Stephen King or Stephen Spielberg horror movies.
2. Started binge-watching Daredevil S2 -- which isn't nearly as good as S1, yet still better than most of the superhero shows. Less on the campy side and more on the realistic/noir end of the spectrum. So if you prefer your super-hero shows on the campy/flashy side, best to skip. Just finished part I of the S2, or the section that focused on The Punisher, right up to Electra popping up.
It's still insanely violent, with a couple of torture sequences that I could have done without.
But the first section or four episodes, feature The Punisher, who I thought was well-cast and developed. It also helped define Daredevil's dilemma, which carried over from last year. Where is the line between being a hero and a ruthless vigilante? And has he jumped over it already?
In some respects, Daredevil is more interesting and realistic than Batman...less gothic. But Marvel always tended to be more grounded in the characterizations and world-view than DC. Marvel's characters all get their powers from screwed up science experiments, with few exceptions. And many of their heroes aren't quite heroes. There's an edginess to the Marvel Universe which isn't quite in the DC one, at least on paper. In film, the DC films are rather gritty and grim, while the tv shows are rather comic-booky and remind me more of the comic book versions (well with the exception of Gotham which is way over the top in the noir department, and possibly the most insanely violent show that I've seen on television...yes, it outdoes Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead. I couldn't get past the first season.) While Marvel's netflix series are gritty like the books, if not more so, and their film counterparts are much lighter and flashier.
I'm not overly familiar with the comics. I read some of Frank Miller's Daredevil arc back in the 1980s, when he took it over for a bit. But not a lot of it. Reminded me a little of his Batman arc. More familiar with The Punisher, which I read a one-shot graphic novel and saw a really bad 1990s film version. I think they did a better job with The Punisher in this story than they did previously.
He's not as pretty as he was in the film. Thomas Jane (whose currently in The Expanse) played him in the film version. But he works as a former military guy who went hard-core vigilante after his entire family was murdered by the Irish Mob. (Think urban Rambo.)
I watch the series because I adore the three leads and the actors who play them. I think I'm a little bit in love with Matt Murdoch. And his relationships with Foggy and Karen are great. Love both Foggy and Karen, who are bright, brave and proactive. Also the writing, direction, etc continue to be above standard. And...there's no commercials.
I've realized my patience for commercial television is rapidly waning. If it weren't for NY1, I'd kick it to the curb once and for all.