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Reviews
American Gods: The Bone Orchard (2017)
The style is undeniable, the substance may be overwhelming for the writers
American Gods is a beautifully shot show. We are quickly thrown into the deep end of a mythos we will spend the rest of the show chasing. Whether it does justice to the character or not is a question of preference.
The acting is quite good, the writing is crisp and the actors are excellent especially Wednesday.
Watching on Hulu unfortunately I know, and can confirm, the series spiral of quality. But don't let that stop you from enjoying the visual buffet that season 1 offers. Just don't expect any closure and don't fall in love with the talented actors who couldn't weather the god sized egos behind the scenes.
Shameless: O Captain, My Captain (2020)
Unwatchable
We hit
Healthcare, abortion, the Mueller report, conservatives and the environment. All without adding a single ounce of gravitas to the story line.
Shameless used to respect its characters and it's audience more than this.
What shame this show ends with a proverbial flush.
Krampus (2015)
From the Writer/Director of Trick r' Treat another holiday tale
If the Brothers Grimm & Dr. Seuss wrote the story of Krampus we'd get this movie.
Black comedies are hard to pull off, add Christmas expectations and it's a recipe for disaster in the wrong hands. Luckily, Krampus (with tongue planted firmly in cheek) pulls it off.
From the slow-mo opening of the horrors of holiday shopping to the twist at the end. The play on Christmas traditional expectations are on full display. What Daugherty did for Halloween he has now done for Christmas, and gives us a movie that, like its near cousin, descends into the wilderness of visual and dark comedic excess in order to deliver its players to a moral that, somehow, manages to be universal and thoughtful. The methods at which he goes to make the point will be at odds with what you anticipate when going to a movie about the good old holidays, but that's precisely what makes it so distinctive.
Many will perhaps find the tone unsettling and imbalanced for the nature of this premise, but "Krampus" is much smarter than it lets on
This is everything that a holiday fable should be: brooding, cautious, dark, humorous and thoughtful.
American Horror Story: Great Again (2017)
As subtle as a sledgehammer
Ryan Murphy used to be a great writer and director. I was an early adopter of Nip/Tuck and appreciated his audacity to put on TV things most people squirm at.
However, like Nip/Tuck & even Glee, AHS has devolved into Murphy's agenda platform and everything suffers. The writing, the characters, even the "shock" has steadily dissolved into the Murphy has an ax to grind show. It's his show, he can do what he wants. But it's been all down him from Murder House. Wildly disappointed with the same old shtick. If you look at the review demographics, the only people rating AHS highly are the under 's who still think this kind of stuff is "edgy".
If you've seen one season of AHS, you know how this one ends. Hopefully it's the last time we have to settle for this tripe.
The Mist: Pilot (2017)
High expectations; low pay off
I really liked the 2007 movie and am an avid Stephen King fan. When I heard Spike was taking a crack at it I was really excited!
20 minutes in we have a great creature throwback, but we also have stereotypical gender queer kid and his closed minded father partnered with the main character's daughter off to a party. Her mother recently fired as a teacher for teaching sex ed in school outside of the approved curriculum (the stand up for free thought hero who also forbids her daughter from going to a party, the uptight parent). Her father encourages her to go as long as she takes the queer kid who says he could "fall for a guy or a girl" since he doesn't "fall for gender". Said daughter drinks in a cautionary tale leading to her rape.
Honestly it felt like every broad stroke trope was thrown against the wall and whatever stuck made the script.
I checked out about 30 minutes in gagging on what passes for "character development".
Maybe I'll take another crack at it when I feel like being preached at by a lazy writer.