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Jul. 3rd, 2011 03:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkatJust finished watching, the finale of S1 The No. Ladies Detective Agency - which apparently only had seven episodes? And the Liam Neeson flick Taken (I don't recommend) and Covert Affairs (an antidote to Taken).
Taken is the latest Luc Besson flick and it's by far the worst I've seen from Besson, who did La Femme Nikita and The Professional. Basically one fight/chase scene after another, and lots of horrific images of drugged and scantily clad teen girls - with Eastern European sleazeballs selling them as commodities. The film makes you hate - in no apparent order: men, eastern europeans, the French government, albanians, and arabs. It's also unrealistic. I kept thinking, oh come on - there is no way he's going to be able to do this all by himself and not get thrown in prison at some point. Also his daughter and her mother are somewhat dumb. Poorly written and poorly directed. I felt sorry for Neeson. Skippable. Makes Covert Affairs actually look amazing in comparison. Unfortunately for both - I've been watching and posting on The Wire. The Wire sort of ruins you for these types of films and tv shows.
It's raining. I think. In the 70s. Sort of drab. And I feel unmotivated to do much. Other tv shows on DVR include Burn Notice (not really appealing to me at the moment for some reason), Falling Skies (hmmm), Game of Thrones (seen), Terminator Salvation Day (maybe), Outcasts (hmmm), and Necessary Roughness...also, hmmm. Wasn't Friday Night Lights on this week? I'm going to hunt that one down. In the mood for it.
Taken is the latest Luc Besson flick and it's by far the worst I've seen from Besson, who did La Femme Nikita and The Professional. Basically one fight/chase scene after another, and lots of horrific images of drugged and scantily clad teen girls - with Eastern European sleazeballs selling them as commodities. The film makes you hate - in no apparent order: men, eastern europeans, the French government, albanians, and arabs. It's also unrealistic. I kept thinking, oh come on - there is no way he's going to be able to do this all by himself and not get thrown in prison at some point. Also his daughter and her mother are somewhat dumb. Poorly written and poorly directed. I felt sorry for Neeson. Skippable. Makes Covert Affairs actually look amazing in comparison. Unfortunately for both - I've been watching and posting on The Wire. The Wire sort of ruins you for these types of films and tv shows.
It's raining. I think. In the 70s. Sort of drab. And I feel unmotivated to do much. Other tv shows on DVR include Burn Notice (not really appealing to me at the moment for some reason), Falling Skies (hmmm), Game of Thrones (seen), Terminator Salvation Day (maybe), Outcasts (hmmm), and Necessary Roughness...also, hmmm. Wasn't Friday Night Lights on this week? I'm going to hunt that one down. In the mood for it.
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Date: 2011-07-03 07:44 pm (UTC)Glad to hear you're enjoying s2 of The Wire, btw - it's really divisive among fans for some reason, personally I thought it was brilliant. I really need to re-watch the whole thing.
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Date: 2011-07-03 09:38 pm (UTC)It hasn't. Shame - it sounds wonderful. Will have to hunt it down on netflix.
I wrote a story at the age of 17 that sounds oddly like it's plot, except no pterodactyls and in the Pacific in the 1940s.
I could never bring myself to watch Taken; it just looks horrid.
Wise move. I spent most of the film pissed off, but unable to stop watching - bit like a train wreck - you can't look away. Definitely Besson's worse film. Odd, too, because I usually like what his stuff. I blame Hollywood - it clearly was a paint-by-numbers vigilante studio flick. Cliche after cliche.
Glad to hear you're enjoying s2 of The Wire, btw - it's really divisive among fans for some reason, personally I thought it was brilliant.
I agree. Personally - I think it is even better in some ways than S1. Although at the moment I like both seasons equally.
I'm trying to figure out why S2 was so divisive for fans. Was it the whole focus on the white slavery plot-line? (which is a major problem in the US actually) Or the dock worker/stevedore plotline - as opposed to the drug-dealer/projects plot thread that people had gotten used to and wanted to get back to? Or the fact that McNulty really isn't as involved in the case?
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Date: 2011-07-03 10:40 pm (UTC)I'm honestly not sure if there's one specific reason. I know some people complained about racism because they introduced a lot of white characters in one of the few TV series where most of the cast are black. Others liked seeing it as a pure cops-and-robbers procedural and weren't interested in having it expand (further) into social criticism. Etc etc.
I have this idea that on a meta level, s2 is deliberately playing on some different tropes than s1 - more classic 70s working-class, Scorsese and Lumet. And then shows how it's all the same story; the junkies on the corner, the corrupt cops, the dying industry, etc etc as the show goes on - all those bits that look like isolated stories are all part of it, and nobody gets to stand outside and go "Boy, I'm glad we're not as screwed as they are."
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Date: 2011-07-04 12:46 am (UTC)Friday Night Lights - didn't even watch till I found them on Netflix last winter. I got so hooked so fast - what a wonderful show! I'm going to enjoy seeing the last ep next week. I have the hots for Coach Taylor....
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Date: 2011-07-04 03:32 am (UTC)You forgot the American diplomat that was part of the slave trade set up.
I liked "TAKEN". It wasn't the best I have ever seen, but it was an entertaining, though violent 90 minutes or so.
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Date: 2011-07-04 03:37 am (UTC)That's Ironic, considering the new characters added were all white "criminals" and previously all the criminals were black (which I considered a bit racist except that at least we had black cops to even the mix). I mean - what exactly do the fans think they are saying when they say that it is racist to add white "criminals" who kill people and they'd rather just see black criminals??? I wonder about people sometimes - do they realize what they are saying? I remember thinking the same thing when people online stated that Buffy was racist because Buffy was killing vampires and demons who clearly represented persons of color and minorities (uhm..let's think about that for a minute, shall we, people?)
Others liked seeing it as a pure cops-and-robbers procedural and weren't interested in having it expand (further) into social criticism. Etc etc.
Hee! Ironically, the fear of yet another cops-and-robbers procedural was the very reason I avoided watching the Wire for so long - and almost gave up on it based on just the first two episodes. That chess scene you showed me - convinced me otherwise. And S2 really has convinced me.
I have this idea that on a meta level, s2 is deliberately playing on some different tropes than s1 - more classic 70s working-class, Scorsese and Lumet. And then shows how it's all the same story; the junkies on the corner, the corrupt cops, the dying industry, etc etc as the show goes on - all those bits that look like isolated stories are all part of it, and nobody gets to stand outside and go "Boy, I'm glad we're not as screwed as they are."
I agree. S2 really does remind me a great deal of those classic 70s character pieces, Prince of the City, Serpico, Dog Day Afternoon,
Mean Streets, Taxi Driver...the gritty dramas that explored the characters and captured the feel of the streets - which we rarely see in films now, unfortunately.
Also in the commentary - Williams who plays Omar points out that S2 really captures the reality of Baltimore - where both white and black kids are dealing.
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Date: 2011-07-04 03:40 am (UTC)We clearly have different tastes in film. ;-)
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Date: 2011-07-04 03:44 am (UTC)It is rather enjoyable. Certainly one of the better scripted series on network television. And I agree...Kyle Chandler's Coach Taylor is adorable. The two most adorable male characters in my opinion are Coach Taylor and Tim Riggins.
Oh if you ever watch The Wire? The guy who plays the kid Wallace in the first season - grows up and portrays Vince Howard in Friday Night Lights.
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Date: 2011-07-05 01:56 am (UTC)Reading how much you are enjoying The Wire (and an NPR piece on it) has convinced me to put it on my Netflix list.
Have you seen Breaking Bad? I found it remarkable...
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Date: 2011-07-05 04:47 pm (UTC)Actually no. Have you seen the film? With Billy Bob Thornton?
Tyler Kitsch (Tim Riggins), Buddy Gerety, and Connie Britton are the only three characters from the original film that cross over into the series.
Riggins is meant to be the great football star, the guy all the girls love, but can't make his life work...it is a social critique of sorts. In the film he turns into an insurance salesman. I find his arc interesting, a bit cliche in places perhaps but no more so than anyone else's. ;-)
Have you seen Breaking Bad?
Loved the first season. Could not make it through the second, gave up on the whole thing entirely after 6 episodes.