Category: TV

Luther – BBC TV

On By Rick McIn TVLeave a comment

John and Laura got me hooked on Luther. Not as good as The Wire. But very, very good.

Luther

Luther is a British crime drama series starring Idris Elba as the titular character, DCI John Luther.

… premiered on 4 May 2010 …

Elba has been nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film for each consecutive season; he won at the 69th Golden Globe Awards. …

Series one was met with positive reviews, according to aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes, where it holds a 95% approval rating …

The show’s second series was met with equally positive reviews and holds a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 12 reviews. …

Click PLAY or watch a season 1 trailer on Vimeo.

https://vimeo.com/61914262

The 16th episode of Luther (end of season 4) aired Dec 22nd. I’ve seen them all now. Highly recommended if you can handle the intensity. The villains are terrifying.

Rebus – Even Dogs in the Wild

On By Rick McIn books, TVLeave a comment

The Inspector Rebus books are a series of detective novels by the Scottish author Ian Rankin. The novels, centred on the title character Detective Inspector John Rebus, are mostly based in and around Edinburgh. …

ian-rankin-even-dogs-649x337

Ian Rankin’s 20th Rebus novel …

In Even Dogs in the Wild, Rebus is dragged out of retirement – again – to act in the semi-official capacity of consultant detective, assisting in the investigation of a shooting at the house of another retired geezer, long-time foe “Big Ger” Cafferty. …

Even Dogs in the Wild by Ian Rankin review – a satisfying return for Rebus

The rumpled detective is back in a twisty, darkly topical and immaculately executed tale of Edinburgh’s underbelly

Author Ian Rankin purchased back the TV rights. He wants the original actor who played Rebus, Ken Stott, to return in a new production.

Homeland Season 4

On By Rick McIn ethics, government, Islam, TVLeave a comment

The fourth season of the American television drama series Homeland premiered on October 5, 2014, and concluded on December 21, 2014 …

Click PLAY or watch a trailer on YouTube.

A Hollywood simpleton’s version, for sure. But it’s a good glimpse into the ethical dilemmas of western boots on the ground in the Muslim world. I recommend Homeland.

Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison is a manic CIA intelligence officer assigned to the Counterterrorism Center. She fanatically wants to defend America … at any cost.

In the fourth season, Carrie is working as a CIA station chief in Islamabad, Pakistan.

Carrie’s failures are symbolic of the failures of the USA in that region.

On Metacritic, it has a score of 74 out of 100, based on 22 reviews.[22] On Rotten Tomatoes, the season received an 82% rating based on 49 reviews with an average rating of 8.0/10. The critical consensus reads “Homeland is back on top, with a renewed energy and focus not seen since its first season.” …

I’d agree. Seasons 1 and 4 are the best, so far.

… According to media reports, Pakistani officials were unhappy over the depiction of Pakistan in the fourth season. …

Homeland will be returning for a fifth season.

farewell David Letterman

On By Rick McIn humour, TVLeave a comment

Late Show with David Letterman debuted on August 30, 1993 …

I was an early fan.

Click PLAY or watch his Velcro Suit on YouTube.

Ron Shewchuk and I liked how he revered the trivial. And trivialized the famous.

Jessica Winter was a bigger fan:

David Letterman Raised Me

His subversive comedy transformed the entertainment landscape—and made me who I am today.

But it’s been decades since I’ve been able to muster enough interest to watch more than a Top 10 list.

I’ll certainly be following the Late Show with Stephen Colbert starting September 8, 2015. But I’m assuming my interest will dwindle quickly. Unscripted celebrity interviews are like torture.

into Orphan Black …

On By Rick McIn TVLeave a comment

The first episode of season 1 is a grabber, to say the least.

Orphan Black is a Canadian science fiction television series … starring Tatiana Maslany as several identical people who are, in fact, clones. … Orphan_Black_Clones The series begins with Sarah Manning, a con artist by trade, witnessing the suicide of a woman, Beth Childs, who appears to be her doppelgänger. Sarah takes on Beth’s identity and occupation as a police detective after Beth’s death. During the first season, Sarah discovers that she is a clone, that she has many ‘sister’ clones spread throughout North America and Europe, and that someone is plotting to kill them and her. …

Click PLAY or watch a season 1 trailer on YouTube. https://youtu.be/HL5QFufq–A

I’ve finished season 1. Just downloaded season 2 from iTunes. 🙂

House of Cards – season 3

On By Rick McIn ethics, government, product endorsements, TVLeave a comment

Robin Wright was excellent again this year. As she always is. Directed two of the episodes.

Lars Mikkelsen is superb as Russian President Viktor Petrov (More evil than Putin!)

Michael Kelly as Doug Stamper should win any and all supporting actor awards this year.

Mahershala Ali is very believable as Remy Danton. Derek Cecil is superb too as Seth Grayson.

Spacey? Well. You love ‘im or you hate ‘im. I guess that’s great acting. It’s a very good role.

house-of-cards-season-3
Even with the fairly unbelievable plot lines, House of Cards is must viewing.

The Americans (2013 TV series)

On By Rick McIn TVLeave a comment

The Americans is an American television period drama series created and produced by former CIA officer Joe Weisberg. …

Set during the Cold War period in the 1980s, The Americans is the story of Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys), two Soviet KGB officers posing as an American married couple living in the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. with their unsuspecting children …

The first season of The Americans received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it received a 90% approval rating …

Click PLAY or watch a Season 1 trailer on YouTube.

I was hoping for more Cold War spy capers, less personal drama. But I MIGHT continue to season 2. I’ve heard it gets better.

Fargo – the TV series

On By Rick McIn movies, TVLeave a comment

Fargo … is inspired by the 1996 film of the same name written and directed by the Coen brothers, who serve as executive producers on the series. It premiered on April 15, 2014, on FX. Future seasons will follow an anthology format with each season being set in a different era along with a different story, cast and set of characters.

The first season, starring Billy Bob Thornton, Allison Tolman, Colin Hanks, and Martin Freeman, was met with considerable acclaim. It won the Emmy Awards for Outstanding Miniseries and Outstanding Directing, and received fifteen additional nominations including Outstanding Writing, another Outstanding Directing nomination, and acting nominations for Thornton, Tolman, Hanks, and Freeman. It also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film for its first season.

On July 21, 2014, FX renewed Fargo for a ten-episode second season to premiere in fall 2015. …

Click PLAY or watch a trailer on YouTube.

Billy Bob Thornton as Lorne Malvo was crazy scary. Of course Billy Bob is always scary. He won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Movie or Miniseries.

Similar to the original film, each episode begins with the superimposed text:

“This is a true story. The events depicted took place in Minnesota in 2006. At the request of the survivors, the names have been changed. Out of respect for the dead, the rest has been told exactly as it occurred.”

However, like the film, this claim is completely fictional …

It’s very good. But very violent.

Transparent (TV series)

On By Rick McIn TVLeave a comment

Transparent is an American comedy-drama television series produced by Amazon Studios that debuted on February 6, 2014. …

The story revolves around a Los Angeles family and their lives following the discovery that father Mort (Jeffrey Tambor) is transgender. …

I watched the first 5 episodes of season 1.

Not bad. Quirky. Some interesting dialogue. Every member of this extremely dysfunctional family is interesting.

But I was turned off by TOO much emphasis on sex. Seems they are working through some sort of fetish checklist.

I’ll quit. And move on to Fargo. Fargo the TV series.