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Post by theglenbucklaird on Jan 17, 2021 11:35:31 GMT
Not to mansplain but you know its a biopic, written by Vallelonga's son in consultation with Don Shirely's estate, right? I was able to watch it without any sort of whiterage and enjoy it for what I felt it was, an interesting interpretation and dramatisation of events I knew nothing about, rather than any sort of journey of racial resolution. Of course people are entirely able to watch it themselves and make their own minds up though. Out of interest, did you see Blindspotting? I know it's a biopic but that doesn't mean the story hasn't been dramatised/embellished or doesn't use shorthand to get points across and when the movie portrays Langella as virulently racist as it does then I don't buy his redemption and it treats the topic of racism as the problem of individuals rather than as a systemic and deeply rooted issue of American society which as I said I found reductionist. I also don't know how far I trust the film's accuracy in portraying their relationship, it seemed heavily biased towards Langella's account and Shirley's family were disapproving of the portrayal and claimed that they did not have a long-lasting friendship beyond their working relationship. To me the film just felt more like a feel good film for white people to pat themselves on the back for no longer being as racist as people were back then in a "see how far we've come" kind of way and which leant into tired white saviour tropes. I don't think I've ever seen a black person praise this film beyond its performances which were its most redeeming feature. As for Blindspotting, yes I did see and thoroughly enjoyed it though I don't think it was by any means perfect. I really liked One Night in Miami, four really big personalities and leaders of black civil rights. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall that night. Love to know what was discussed. I always thought Malcolm X would have been the dominant personality in the room but that didn't come across in the film
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Post by juicy_but_terribly_drab on Jan 17, 2021 14:08:56 GMT
I know it's a biopic but that doesn't mean the story hasn't been dramatised/embellished or doesn't use shorthand to get points across and when the movie portrays Langella as virulently racist as it does then I don't buy his redemption and it treats the topic of racism as the problem of individuals rather than as a systemic and deeply rooted issue of American society which as I said I found reductionist. I also don't know how far I trust the film's accuracy in portraying their relationship, it seemed heavily biased towards Langella's account and Shirley's family were disapproving of the portrayal and claimed that they did not have a long-lasting friendship beyond their working relationship. To me the film just felt more like a feel good film for white people to pat themselves on the back for no longer being as racist as people were back then in a "see how far we've come" kind of way and which leant into tired white saviour tropes. I don't think I've ever seen a black person praise this film beyond its performances which were its most redeeming feature. As for Blindspotting, yes I did see and thoroughly enjoyed it though I don't think it was by any means perfect. I really liked One Night in Miami, four really big personalities and leaders of black civil rights. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall that night. Love to know what was discussed. I always thought Malcolm X would have been the dominant personality in the room but that didn't come across in the film Yes! It was very interesting to see him played with more vulnerability and to see the more human side behind this almost mythic figure that you learn about in history books. It was cool to see his hobbies like photography and little things like that. I think they all had moments where they were the dominant personality though, the dynamic just shifted throughout, especially between Malcolm and Sam.
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Post by jojo on Jan 17, 2021 17:37:03 GMT
Thats generous for time. We gave up on Bridgerton after about half an hour. Really not our thing. We managed to watch The Queens Gambit in a day and a half - just incredible. We also really enjoyed Chernobyl last week. I really enjoyed The Queens Gambit considering it wouldnt normally be my choice of viewing but it was so well acted. I also really enjoyed a series about an orthadox Jewish woman who escaped her husband and went to Germany. I cant think of the name of the series at the moment but it was superb. Want to see Chernobyl -is it on Netflix? I can only seem to find it on Amazon and you have to pay extra for it Chernobyl is available via NowTV on the Entertainment package if you want to stream it. You should be able to find a free trial, or some kind of discount code. At the very least, you can sign up and cancel as soon as you've watched what you want as you aren't stuck with a contract as with Sky. It's one of the best tv shows of the last few years, so well worth a watch. Perhaps check that it's currently available though, as they sometimes put end dates on the availability of some shows - although they tend to bring them back within a couple of months. This is particularly true of the big shows they don't intend to be available via any other streaming services have, such as The Sopranos and Game of Thrones.
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Post by CG on the loose on Jan 17, 2021 17:51:28 GMT
Binged The Queen's Gambit last night and thoroughly enjoyed it. Am busily harvesting other recommendations from this thread!
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7,502 posts
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Post by alece10 on Jan 17, 2021 20:06:04 GMT
Is The Umbrella Academy worth a go?
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Post by n1david on Jan 17, 2021 22:02:49 GMT
A shoutout here for Call My Agent which is on Netflix. There are three series on there now and the fourth becomes available on Thursday. It's set in a Paris talent agency, the main drama is about the interplay of the various agents - all great characters - and they get a fantastic range of French actors to play heightened versions of themselves. It's hilarious, and and for those of us who enjoy theatrical pursuits there's a lot to enjoy about sending up the diva (of all genders). There's a UK remake in production, but the whole series is so very French I can't imagine a UK version working. And even if you hate the show, Paris looks absolutely stunning.
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4,458 posts
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Post by poster J on Jan 17, 2021 22:12:02 GMT
Is The Umbrella Academy worth a go? Yes, very much so, but stick with it (not all of them are good actors and the premise is a bit mad, especially the first 10 minutes of the first episode). I think season 2 is better than season 1. Have to admit I only watched it at first because Emmy Raver-Lampman was in the original Broadway company of Hamilton and I was intrigued at her transferring to TV, but I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would given I'm not a comics person normally, and I binged season 2 in a couple of days. Very much looking forward to season 3 (which they start filming in the next week or so).
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Post by jojo on Jan 18, 2021 12:48:37 GMT
Agreed. Umbrella Academy is a bit bonkers, and won't be to everyone's tastes, but apart from a few minor grumbles, I really enjoyed it.
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18,800 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 4, 2021 7:24:51 GMT
I Care A Lot. Rosamund Pike plays a grifter running a con where she finds wealthy old folk with no family and applies to be their legal guardian on the basis that they’re incapable of looking after themselves. Then she slams them in a care home and takes control of their finances. Things go wrong when she picks the wrong little old lady to con!
streaming now on Prime. Slick and very enjoyable.
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Post by alece10 on Mar 4, 2021 9:33:24 GMT
I enjoyed this film. What an absolutely horrible woman.
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2,389 posts
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Post by peggs on Mar 4, 2021 17:11:48 GMT
Yep I watched this to, satisfyingly enjoyable, RP is uber unpleasant.
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Post by lynette on Mar 6, 2021 18:25:20 GMT
I Care A Lot. Rosamund Pike plays a grifter running a con where she finds wealthy old folk with no family and applies to be their legal guardian on the basis that they’re incapable of looking after themselves. Then she slams them in a care home and takes control of their finances. Things go wrong when she picks the wrong little old lady to con! streaming now on Prime. Slick and very enjoyable. I’ve been reliably informed that this can’t happen in UK, different rules for old people’s care, but o my was it scary, eh?
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7,502 posts
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Post by alece10 on Mar 6, 2021 19:22:59 GMT
Coming 2 America on Amazon Prime. Don't bother.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2021 18:56:11 GMT
Anyone else really tired of the streaming sites moving to a more traditional tv style of dropping content? I thought steaming was about binging?
I signed up for Disney+ Star and the new content is all only dropping weekly.
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4,458 posts
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Post by poster J on Mar 7, 2021 20:44:27 GMT
Anyone else really tired of the streaming sites moving to a more traditional tv style of dropping content? I thought steaming was about binging? I signed up for Disney+ Star and the new content is all only dropping weekly. No, streaming is as much about allowing those of us who work long or irregular hours to watch content in the limited free time we have rather than being tied into TV schedules that don't fit our working hours. I don't know anyone who has enough free time to binge watch an entire series of anything in one go. The most I have ever managed was 5 episodes of Bridgerton in one weekend.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 7, 2021 22:06:01 GMT
Anyone else really tired of the streaming sites moving to a more traditional tv style of dropping content? I thought steaming was about binging? I signed up for Disney+ Star and the new content is all only dropping weekly. No, streaming is as much about allowing those of us who work long or irregular hours to watch content in the limited free time we have rather than being tied into TV schedules that don't fit our working hours. I don't know anyone who has enough free time to binge watch an entire series of anything in one go. The most I have ever managed was 5 episodes of Bridgerton in one weekend. I think the record button serves that section of society well. Many people have time to watch a series over a week or weekend. I don’t watch terrestrial tv so three 40 minutes episodes or 2 hours a night means I can watch a series like Your Honour over a weekend like I did this weekend. I watched 20 minutes of Bridgerton I think the struggle is the show and not the time.
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Post by stagebyte on Jun 28, 2021 22:15:33 GMT
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4,458 posts
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Post by poster J on Jun 29, 2021 0:26:33 GMT
There are other ways and means to see Apple TV shows that have worked for me to date. Great cast with proper musical theatre backgrounds - Kristin Chenoweth, Jane Krakowski, Ariana DeBose... I saw an interview with the latter recently and she said it is basically a love letter to the golden age of musicals, while still making fun of their tropes, and her character is rather like Maria in the Sound of Music. And from the trailer, Jane Krakowski appears to be parodying the Baroness from the same show! Very much looking forward to it. Central Park, also on Apple TV, is another one to try if you fancy a musical show sung by actors with musical theatre experience (Josh Gad plus seemingly half the original cast of Hamilton).
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Post by lou on Jun 29, 2021 12:01:23 GMT
Ted Lasso is definitely worth watching.
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Post by dippy on Jun 29, 2021 12:06:11 GMT
That does look like a very fun show, a bit crazy but definitely my kind of thing.
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7,502 posts
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Post by alece10 on Jun 29, 2021 13:19:52 GMT
I've just watched Huge In France. Only 8 x 30min episodes. Quite funny and easy to watch but with a bit of a shocking end.
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Post by lynette on Jul 1, 2021 1:29:53 GMT
In case anyone missed - new Lupin on Netflix and Bosch on amazon.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Oct 20, 2021 22:01:11 GMT
Hush - Netflix. Novellist writing her next book in lonely house in a wood is stalked by an mask wearing hunter with a crossbow. The twist? She’s a deaf mute so she can’t hear him or even scream. Nerve jangling!
Also, The Descent (Netflix again) bombastic group of outdoorsy gals with a past go sperlunking (which I now know means potholing) in a spooky cave and there’s something down there you don’t wanna share your packed lunch with…
Any Halloween recommendations? 🧙 🎃 🧛♀️
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Feb 1, 2022 21:35:36 GMT
The Invisible Man is on Netflix now. Very enjoyable and tense, highly recommended 👍🏻
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Post by crowblack on Feb 2, 2022 10:30:21 GMT
I've just finished Yellowjackets on Now TV, and it was enjoyable but didn't live up to its early promise and got really towards the end. And it's not the end, as they intend to do 4 more series!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 2, 2022 21:42:44 GMT
I've just finished Yellowjackets on Now TV, and it was enjoyable but didn't live up to its early promise and got really towards the end. And it's not the end, as they intend to do 4 more series! Groan. I’m on episode four but this has made my heart sink. I don’t see how they have spin this out for five seasons, no matter how brilliant the young person/old person casting is.
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Post by crowblack on Feb 2, 2022 22:13:47 GMT
I've just finished Yellowjackets on Now TV, and it was enjoyable but didn't live up to its early promise and got really towards the end. And it's not the end, as they intend to do 4 more series! Groan. I’m on episode four but this has made my heart sink. I don’t see how they have spin this out for five seasons, no matter how brilliant the young person/old person casting is. Sorry, I hope that doesn't spoil your enjoyment! It's still fun and with great performances and it's nice to have middle aged female leads who look natural, but I was hoping it would be complete at 10 episodes like The Terror.
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Post by juicy_but_terribly_drab on Feb 3, 2022 0:06:53 GMT
I've just finished Yellowjackets on Now TV, and it was enjoyable but didn't live up to its early promise and got really towards the end. And it's not the end, as they intend to do 4 more series! Groan. I’m on episode four but this has made my heart sink. I don’t see how they have spin this out for five seasons, no matter how brilliant the young person/old person casting is. I really enjoyed it and think it's worth sticking with for now, but I don't see how it can go on for as long as they plan it to without the flashback stuff either extending well beyond the point of their rescue, or the parallel timelines simply being dropped at that point and continuing the modern day storyline alone. Where this season ends I can understand there being maybe 1 or 2 more seasons of story left to tell at the pace they've been telling it, but 5 seems ridiculous and I can't see how it wouldn't be stretching the story incredibly thin, which would be a shame because I found the pacing pretty flawless so far. Apparently Showtime are known for extending their hit series well past their prime though...
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Post by TallPaul on Feb 3, 2022 8:52:14 GMT
I've just finished Yellowjackets on Now TV, and it was enjoyable but didn't live up to its early promise and got really towards the end. And it's not the end, as they intend to do 4 more series! Got really what towards the end, crowblack? I'm desperate to know. 🙂
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Post by crowblack on Feb 3, 2022 11:11:41 GMT
I've just finished Yellowjackets on Now TV, and it was enjoyable but didn't live up to its early promise and got really towards the end. And it's not the end, as they intend to do 4 more series! Got really what towards the end, crowblack ? I'm desperate to know. 🙂 Ah, how did that happen? 1980s soapy silly or horror black comedy style, rather than sticking with the emotional realism of the earlier episodes.
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