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shadowkat1. Revenge - this soap is winding up nicely. Some decent twists and turns.
Also Victory Grayson has managed to create her own perfect enemy in Emily Thorne.
As Jack tells her and everyone at the table: "You had an affair with David Clarke then proceeded to abandon his daughter to the wolves, worse set them on her. You destroyed that little girl. She was just a little girl." She did more than that she created a version of herself. As William Devane's Granddad Grayson states so aptly to Emily: "You remind me a great deal of Victoria. You are so much alike." Amanda Clarke has become the woman she hates to seek Revenge, just as Victoria Grayson has created Amanda.
Poor Daniel. Poor Charlotte. I love how Conrad kills Victoria's tale about David raping her. "You are spinning that tale? How low can you go for your own self-preservation? He never raped you. You were having an affair and it wasn't just for one night, it had gone on for weeks."
Yet, within the tapes...David says something that makes me wonder. He says that Victoria is in prison, with his daughter, that she may not feel as if she has a choice. A prison of her own making. One can't help but wonder if Victoria would have eventually destroyed herself if Emily Thorne never came into the picture.
And we get a bit more back story on Emily and Daniel. Apparently Emily-Amanda met Daniel before she became Emily Thorne. He's the one who suggested the poetry volumn by Robert Black...Fire and Ice. And for a moment we think he's her weakness, all she can see...but no, as she states, she is blinded by Revenge. All she sees is Revenge.
She does however have second thoughts about hurting Charlotte and Jack and attempts to stop either from accessing information that will destroy them. But Nolan allows Jack to see the tape, and the truth slips out...to Emily's advantage.
The final twist...who accessed Emily's secret place and saw her secrets. And left the RSVP invite..."Emily Thorne Will Attend"...Amanda-Emily or Tyler? Both are loose canons, and I'm guessing one or the other is the shooter.
2. Ringer - well, at least someone knows that Siobhan and Bridget changed places. Took the show long enough. Any other show on TV? They'd have figured it out by November. The pacing on Ringer is abysmal. And they spend far too much time dropping red herrings and false leads. Watching it after Revenge...probably wasn't fair. That said, this week's episode was more interesting than last week's and at least propelled the action forward. The actor playing Malcolm Ward must be on vacation or something, she leaves him messages but we never see him.
* This week Henry finally is told that Siobhan and Bridget swapped places. That Bridget is playing up the facade with Andrew. Henry is a bit too slow to figure it out on his own. Not sure why, he's provided quite a few hints.
* Siobhet is catching on to the fact that her sister was up to something. What she hasn't quite figured out yet is that her sister is still alive. She gets really close a few times. Honestly, why she hasn't leapt to that conclusion from the evidence she compiles in this episode, I've no idea. To be fair she is a bit distracted by Juliet and Juliet's alcoholic Mom, who pops up to help Juliet through the rape scenario - only to make things worse for her kid. Andrew is a bit of a buffoon through all of this and it is sort of hard to feel sorry for him. He's such a doormat.
* We find out that Juliet tried to jump Mr. C's bones in the hallway before he raped her. This puts Juliet's tale under suspicion. But not to worry, it's only long enough for Mom to break down and make things hellish. Prompting Siobhet to share her own ugly experiences with divorced parents growing up. Something about red cowboy boots.
And how Juliet's Mom's acting out has less to do with Juliet and more to do with Andrew and Siobhet. After Mom leaves in disgrace. Tessa, the nemesis, arrives to confess and bond with Juliet over how she too was raped by Mr. C. (*eye-roll* This was so poorly written and acted that I find it difficult to believe. I'm told there's a major twist in store. But what - that both girls are lying? Groan.)
*FBI guy still can't connect the dots. Instead he sets up the guy in prison to be beaten up so he'll connect the dots for him. The guy confesses to all the crimes instead. FBI guy is not thrilled. He wants the big head honcho. Meanwhile in NY, he thinks he's found Bridget finally. Henry is turning Siobhan over to the cops as Bridget. He believes she is Bridget and that she killed Gemma. Right on part of that statement...she is responsible for what happened to Gemma, but she's not Bridget.
FBI guy finger prints her - finally - and discovers nope, not Bridget. Now Henry is confused. Which is why he is finally told the truth.
Next episode? Siobhet may actually figure out her dead sis isn't actually dead.
3. The River - this is the new horror/adventure serial by Spielberg and company on ABC. It reminds me oddly of the film Event Horizon...where a rescue team goes to a spaceship on the far reaches of Space to try to find survivors and ends finding a lot more than they bargained for. The Spaceship entitled The Event Horizon found a way to leap into Hell and back. It's a psychological thriller. The entire film is a mystery - what happened to the crew, why are there no survivors, why are the survivors insane, and where did The Event Horizon go. The River also reminds me a lot of Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity...the new trend in horror - found footage and shaky handheld cameras.
The problem with The River is that the characters aren't that interesting. I suppose they could become interesting with time. But right now they like standard stock characters and I can see their emotional journeys and plot threads, a mile away. I more or less can guess what will happen, who will die and who won't. Also that each week we'll put a major character in jeopardy, only to save them.
What works:
The use of the nature program to comment on the back story of the characters, which make up an almost incestuous unit due to the fact that they spent so much time together in isolated wilderness locals on a nature study boat. The flashbacks with Emmet, the naturalist, are fairly realistic and interesting.
The creepy dolls and use of ghost-lore. The monsters are unseen ghosts. Spirits.
And the idea that Emmet Cole in his search for magic and the source of all reality,
took a bit too casual an attitude. His quest for truth, reveals things Emmet would rather not see, and leads to his and potentially his family's destruction.
The set-up isn't a bad one. The mystery much like Secret History's is what happened and where is the father? What did he unleash? What went after him?
What doesn't work?
The writing is fairly clunky and the dialogue cheesy. It borders on cliche. The angry son who didn't know his Dad. The guilty wife who clearly cheated on Dad (I'm betting she did it with his long-time producer, Clark Quietly, but I could be wrong). The producer who is after a story...but may also be searching for a means of assuaging his own guilt? The innocent non-English speaking native gal who channels spirits and ghosts. We've seen these characters before. And of course there's the young assistant to Emmet, the daughter of his cameraman, who has a burgeoning romance with his son.
She also has a mystical birthmark.
Unfortunately the only compelling actors are Bruce Greenwood who plays Emmet and Paul Blackthorne who plays Clark Queitly. I also sort of liked the black guy camerman whose name I forget, and I'm guessing is cannon fodder soon. Everyone else is sort of just there. Or grating.
The camera shots or "shaky handheld camera" by scared filmmaker - is a gimmick that wears old fast. I know, I know it is meant to lend an air of credibility and reality to the proceedings...but I was just bored and annoyed by it. Plus it gives me a head-ache. While the reality show format is believable more or less, it gets old after a while.
Characters much like Ringer and all horror films do dumb things. Lena, the camerman's daughter and son's love interest, get a bad cut on her leg. He sews her up. She hobbles about for all of 15-20 minutes, before she's out in the water helping him move the rafts and the boat. This is not only dumb. It's like she was never injured at all. In a series such as this one - it is critical that when a character gets bitten, scratched, or chewed on - it has consequences and they are consistent about it. Otherwise, why would we worry about the characters? If you show me Lena recovering from a wound in five minutes...I'm less likely to worry about her again. Also killing off a character you haven't bothered to develop or make me care about...isn't going to work well. Once Upon a Time did a better job with this - it killed off a character the audience loved. That tells the audience that the show isn't safe, anyone can die. The characters aren't safe. This is important in horror. If the audience believes the characters, the lead characters or the one's they care about or are most invested in - are safe, they'll stop worrying. For example - I didn't worry all that much about Tess when she got taken by the ghost child - was merely curious as how they would get her back. And half hoping she was gone - annoying character, Tess - and that would lend an air of gravitas to the proceedings. But no, perfectly okay. Just a bit on the muddy side.
Other dumb things? They go out into the jungle to save Emmet...but really have no idea where he went or guide. So they get lured by what sounds like a child crying to an old graveyard and a bunch of dolls hanging on trees. And decide - to camp there for the night. Even after one of the characters tells a story about spirit trees.
Ookay. I don't know about you? But there's no way in hell that I'd camp in a forest glade with handing dolls. If it's creepy in the daylight, it's going to be worse at the night.
The writer's need to give the characters better reasons to take stupid risks. And more definite plans. At the moment the characters appear to be just wandering aimlessly into ghosts, so that the writers can have the scary traumatizing moment.
It's like watching Ghost-Hunters.
While I was mildly entertained by The River - the doll bit was downright creepy and actually furthered a couple of character arcs, it's not worth the DVR space to tune in each week. I may jump in now and again, I don't know, depends on mood and how many other tv shows are on.
Also Victory Grayson has managed to create her own perfect enemy in Emily Thorne.
As Jack tells her and everyone at the table: "You had an affair with David Clarke then proceeded to abandon his daughter to the wolves, worse set them on her. You destroyed that little girl. She was just a little girl." She did more than that she created a version of herself. As William Devane's Granddad Grayson states so aptly to Emily: "You remind me a great deal of Victoria. You are so much alike." Amanda Clarke has become the woman she hates to seek Revenge, just as Victoria Grayson has created Amanda.
Poor Daniel. Poor Charlotte. I love how Conrad kills Victoria's tale about David raping her. "You are spinning that tale? How low can you go for your own self-preservation? He never raped you. You were having an affair and it wasn't just for one night, it had gone on for weeks."
Yet, within the tapes...David says something that makes me wonder. He says that Victoria is in prison, with his daughter, that she may not feel as if she has a choice. A prison of her own making. One can't help but wonder if Victoria would have eventually destroyed herself if Emily Thorne never came into the picture.
And we get a bit more back story on Emily and Daniel. Apparently Emily-Amanda met Daniel before she became Emily Thorne. He's the one who suggested the poetry volumn by Robert Black...Fire and Ice. And for a moment we think he's her weakness, all she can see...but no, as she states, she is blinded by Revenge. All she sees is Revenge.
She does however have second thoughts about hurting Charlotte and Jack and attempts to stop either from accessing information that will destroy them. But Nolan allows Jack to see the tape, and the truth slips out...to Emily's advantage.
The final twist...who accessed Emily's secret place and saw her secrets. And left the RSVP invite..."Emily Thorne Will Attend"...Amanda-Emily or Tyler? Both are loose canons, and I'm guessing one or the other is the shooter.
2. Ringer - well, at least someone knows that Siobhan and Bridget changed places. Took the show long enough. Any other show on TV? They'd have figured it out by November. The pacing on Ringer is abysmal. And they spend far too much time dropping red herrings and false leads. Watching it after Revenge...probably wasn't fair. That said, this week's episode was more interesting than last week's and at least propelled the action forward. The actor playing Malcolm Ward must be on vacation or something, she leaves him messages but we never see him.
* This week Henry finally is told that Siobhan and Bridget swapped places. That Bridget is playing up the facade with Andrew. Henry is a bit too slow to figure it out on his own. Not sure why, he's provided quite a few hints.
* Siobhet is catching on to the fact that her sister was up to something. What she hasn't quite figured out yet is that her sister is still alive. She gets really close a few times. Honestly, why she hasn't leapt to that conclusion from the evidence she compiles in this episode, I've no idea. To be fair she is a bit distracted by Juliet and Juliet's alcoholic Mom, who pops up to help Juliet through the rape scenario - only to make things worse for her kid. Andrew is a bit of a buffoon through all of this and it is sort of hard to feel sorry for him. He's such a doormat.
* We find out that Juliet tried to jump Mr. C's bones in the hallway before he raped her. This puts Juliet's tale under suspicion. But not to worry, it's only long enough for Mom to break down and make things hellish. Prompting Siobhet to share her own ugly experiences with divorced parents growing up. Something about red cowboy boots.
And how Juliet's Mom's acting out has less to do with Juliet and more to do with Andrew and Siobhet. After Mom leaves in disgrace. Tessa, the nemesis, arrives to confess and bond with Juliet over how she too was raped by Mr. C. (*eye-roll* This was so poorly written and acted that I find it difficult to believe. I'm told there's a major twist in store. But what - that both girls are lying? Groan.)
*FBI guy still can't connect the dots. Instead he sets up the guy in prison to be beaten up so he'll connect the dots for him. The guy confesses to all the crimes instead. FBI guy is not thrilled. He wants the big head honcho. Meanwhile in NY, he thinks he's found Bridget finally. Henry is turning Siobhan over to the cops as Bridget. He believes she is Bridget and that she killed Gemma. Right on part of that statement...she is responsible for what happened to Gemma, but she's not Bridget.
FBI guy finger prints her - finally - and discovers nope, not Bridget. Now Henry is confused. Which is why he is finally told the truth.
Next episode? Siobhet may actually figure out her dead sis isn't actually dead.
3. The River - this is the new horror/adventure serial by Spielberg and company on ABC. It reminds me oddly of the film Event Horizon...where a rescue team goes to a spaceship on the far reaches of Space to try to find survivors and ends finding a lot more than they bargained for. The Spaceship entitled The Event Horizon found a way to leap into Hell and back. It's a psychological thriller. The entire film is a mystery - what happened to the crew, why are there no survivors, why are the survivors insane, and where did The Event Horizon go. The River also reminds me a lot of Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity...the new trend in horror - found footage and shaky handheld cameras.
The problem with The River is that the characters aren't that interesting. I suppose they could become interesting with time. But right now they like standard stock characters and I can see their emotional journeys and plot threads, a mile away. I more or less can guess what will happen, who will die and who won't. Also that each week we'll put a major character in jeopardy, only to save them.
What works:
The use of the nature program to comment on the back story of the characters, which make up an almost incestuous unit due to the fact that they spent so much time together in isolated wilderness locals on a nature study boat. The flashbacks with Emmet, the naturalist, are fairly realistic and interesting.
The creepy dolls and use of ghost-lore. The monsters are unseen ghosts. Spirits.
And the idea that Emmet Cole in his search for magic and the source of all reality,
took a bit too casual an attitude. His quest for truth, reveals things Emmet would rather not see, and leads to his and potentially his family's destruction.
The set-up isn't a bad one. The mystery much like Secret History's is what happened and where is the father? What did he unleash? What went after him?
What doesn't work?
The writing is fairly clunky and the dialogue cheesy. It borders on cliche. The angry son who didn't know his Dad. The guilty wife who clearly cheated on Dad (I'm betting she did it with his long-time producer, Clark Quietly, but I could be wrong). The producer who is after a story...but may also be searching for a means of assuaging his own guilt? The innocent non-English speaking native gal who channels spirits and ghosts. We've seen these characters before. And of course there's the young assistant to Emmet, the daughter of his cameraman, who has a burgeoning romance with his son.
She also has a mystical birthmark.
Unfortunately the only compelling actors are Bruce Greenwood who plays Emmet and Paul Blackthorne who plays Clark Queitly. I also sort of liked the black guy camerman whose name I forget, and I'm guessing is cannon fodder soon. Everyone else is sort of just there. Or grating.
The camera shots or "shaky handheld camera" by scared filmmaker - is a gimmick that wears old fast. I know, I know it is meant to lend an air of credibility and reality to the proceedings...but I was just bored and annoyed by it. Plus it gives me a head-ache. While the reality show format is believable more or less, it gets old after a while.
Characters much like Ringer and all horror films do dumb things. Lena, the camerman's daughter and son's love interest, get a bad cut on her leg. He sews her up. She hobbles about for all of 15-20 minutes, before she's out in the water helping him move the rafts and the boat. This is not only dumb. It's like she was never injured at all. In a series such as this one - it is critical that when a character gets bitten, scratched, or chewed on - it has consequences and they are consistent about it. Otherwise, why would we worry about the characters? If you show me Lena recovering from a wound in five minutes...I'm less likely to worry about her again. Also killing off a character you haven't bothered to develop or make me care about...isn't going to work well. Once Upon a Time did a better job with this - it killed off a character the audience loved. That tells the audience that the show isn't safe, anyone can die. The characters aren't safe. This is important in horror. If the audience believes the characters, the lead characters or the one's they care about or are most invested in - are safe, they'll stop worrying. For example - I didn't worry all that much about Tess when she got taken by the ghost child - was merely curious as how they would get her back. And half hoping she was gone - annoying character, Tess - and that would lend an air of gravitas to the proceedings. But no, perfectly okay. Just a bit on the muddy side.
Other dumb things? They go out into the jungle to save Emmet...but really have no idea where he went or guide. So they get lured by what sounds like a child crying to an old graveyard and a bunch of dolls hanging on trees. And decide - to camp there for the night. Even after one of the characters tells a story about spirit trees.
Ookay. I don't know about you? But there's no way in hell that I'd camp in a forest glade with handing dolls. If it's creepy in the daylight, it's going to be worse at the night.
The writer's need to give the characters better reasons to take stupid risks. And more definite plans. At the moment the characters appear to be just wandering aimlessly into ghosts, so that the writers can have the scary traumatizing moment.
It's like watching Ghost-Hunters.
While I was mildly entertained by The River - the doll bit was downright creepy and actually furthered a couple of character arcs, it's not worth the DVR space to tune in each week. I may jump in now and again, I don't know, depends on mood and how many other tv shows are on.
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Date: 2012-02-12 04:26 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-02-12 09:50 pm (UTC)Speilberg has four tv shows on. Falling Skies, Terra Nova, The River, and SMASH. I think he's competing with JJ Abhrams. Right now, they are both going to have to work hard to get close to the success Ridley Scott is having with The Good Wife. But then I always liked Ridely Scott better. Has better taste in writers.