Agatha Christie's Hjerson - 2021 - Sweden

Agatha Christie's Hjerson - 2021 - 6/10

 
She is a showrunner for the popular MILF TV show, running out of ideas.
What if we do a series with famed inspector Hjerson, retired after a case error?
Odd couple premise based on obscure Christie character (actually a character of a character).
One watches formula mysteries for plots, twists and clever characters.
Plots here are half baked, meaning each 2-parter needed a more imaginative rewrite.
Twists range from adequate to obvious.
Our characters are quirky, though not on Poirot level.
They also lack chemistry and the female, Clara, grows more grating each outing.
OK enough if it’s airing.

Quintessentially British - 2022 - UK

Quintessentially British - 2022 - 6/10

 
The passion for gardening, clothes from Savile Row, West End theatre.
How about temperamental motor cars, rich literature, or cricket?
Midway through this happy go lucky documentary, I said quietly, “These are English traditions, not necessarily British.”
England is one part of Great Britain, and this doc excludes Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Feel good remembrance of what was.

We traveled there for decades.  Over time, we noticed the distinctly English identity of London subsumed a trifle more each visit.  London now equates with New York, San Francisco, Paris, Mexico City, multicultural Babylons.

Holy Spider - 2022 - Iran

Holy Spider - 2022 - 7/10
AKA - Ankabut-e Moqaddas

 
The serial killer dubbed “the holy spider” has strangled ten at least.
Police are hunting, but – well – victims were only prostitutes after all.
He is happily married, a war hero, with a steady job.
Still, prostitutes, drugs, and decadence corrupting sacred Mashhad.
Someone ought to do something!
Intense, dark thriller based on the true story of Saeed Hanaei during 2000-2001.

Consent - 2017 - UK

Consent - 2017 - 6/10

 
The barristers work the trickier cases such as rape.
Was it consensual?  Date rape?  Martial rape?  Or a fitty puck?
And what happens when they get entangled in their own marital conflicts?
Texting, sexting, adultery, recriminations, revenge.
Over-busy play tries to cover a lot of mileage, goes mostly nowhere.
Spartan sets bring all focus to the dialogue.  Mostly jousting banter.
Seats in the balcony, this capture.
Audio poorly caught, cameras are far removed.

Twenty Plus Two - 1961 - USA

Twenty Plus Two - 1961 - 6/10

 
She sees her old flame, actually the man she promised to marry, until she mailed him a Dear John letter.
Now he tracks missing heirs.  This time, a big one, an heiress gone for a decade.
Latest lead, the murder of a film star’s fan club secretary.
Yes, pretty slender, as is the plot itself.
The construction is odd, with an extended flashback midway (making one realize how dumb the investigator is).
Swanky jazz score and a strong supporting cast.
Janssen himself is stiff, surprising since this is so similar to his Richard Diamond series.

The Unchastened Woman - 1925 - USA

The Unchastened Woman - 1925 - 5/10

 
Deciding to surprise her husband with news she is expecting, instead she spies hubby canoodling on the couch with the scheming secretary.
What to do?  Why, sail to France and deliver the baby there!
When she returns, she draws a flock of admirers, driving her husband wild with jealousy.
Turgid, stodgy, melodramatic, angst-ridden, what else?
Theda Bara in another “irresistible vamp who drives men crazy” role.  I don’t get it.

Faking Hitler - 2021 - Germany

Faking Hitler - 2021 - 6/10

Art forger Konrad Kujau peddles recently “found” paintings by Adolf Hitler.
Wealthy collectors are dwindling, and proving increasingly suspicious.
In a brainstorm, he decides his next forgery will be a diary by der Führer.

 
Whereupon a news magazine gets wind of it and offers huge money for each journal.
Based on true events, this was an 80’s headline.
Principles Konrad and Stern reporter Gerd Heidemann are the core and best part of this series.
To help dramatize this, a pointless character is inserted for sex, romance and parental drama.
Meaningless liability.

This Must Be The Place - 2019 - USA

This Must Be The Place - 2019 - 6/10

 
Near-wordless short sees young female attempt to join a small crew of females.
Entry involves pain and ritual, as well as obstinacy.
Rewards strike one as minimal.  Advantages of the five ‘n dime variety.

The Secret Garden - 1993 - UK

The Secret Garden - 1993 - 7/10

 
Mary, newly orphaned, is shipped off to live with her morose, absent uncle.
The manor and estate are not so much in decline, but hibernating, comatose.
Mary Lennox is a deeply unhappy sort, neglected by her parents while they were alive, then abandoned.
Nevertheless, she begins to bloom, and in so doing, reinvigorates the household.
Children’s film that adults can relish, as well.  Gorgeously photographed.

The DVD always struck me as a missed opportunity for extras.  And the extras I longed to see were manor tours.
Grouchy Mrs. Medlock with the rooms, cook and her kitchen, Martha and the back stairs and hallways, Ben with the garden.  If only creators realized how valued these bits are to viewers.

Next Stop, Greenwich Village - 1976 - USA

Next Stop, Greenwich Village - 1976 - 6/10

 
Circa 1953, 22 year old Larry decides to make the Herculean move!
From Flatbush to Greenwich Village.
There, the aspiring actor mingles with a boho set.
Writers, poets, thespians, wannabees, hustlers.
A film of moments, Village lite, and bad casting.
The actor playing 22 year old Larry is too old for the role, everyone else fine.
Shelley Winters unforgettable as his insufferable noodge of a mother.
Early film appearance of Christopher Walken who radiates presence.
Dave Brubeck music a highlight.

Alien vs. Predator - 2004 - Czech Republic

Alien vs. Predator - 2004 - 6/10

 
Coulda, shoulda, or maybe shouldn’t have.
Viewed outside the chronological canon, this remains a spotty actioner.
Weyland Corp. heads to the frozen wastes, then deep into a hitherto unknown underground environment.
Why?  OK, forget that it’s a little vague here
With the party are armed mercenary types … whom Mick Taylor could snuff with a chuckle.
Once the two main characters get going (A & P), then this is solid hunt or kill mayhem.
The human representative is OK, and having Lance Henriksen is a shrewd nod.
Enjoyable, for me, although I realize none of the installments after Aliens has ever measured up.

Two Women - 2022 - France

Two Women - 2022 - 6/10
AKA - Deux Femmes

 
Out making his cash runs, the village banker is murdered, car soon set ablaze.
Paris dispatches a veteran commissioner and a fledgling (female) magistrate.
Set in 1965, the inspector disrespects his female counterpart and hones in on the village outsider.
Colette, independent and financially well off.
She has sexual affairs, and, on the sly, assists with illegal abortions.
As ever, “guilty until proven innocent” applies in France.
The “two women” function as models for how females were (are) regarded.
This should pair well with Happening (2021).
Based on the real case: https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affaire_Georges_Segretin