goldenswim Reviews

Gray (2023– )

Strange. Good premise but loses momentum

[2/10 · 22 January 2024]

This has good potential and a good premise with a spy coming back from self imposed exile to find a mole but then it goes downhill fast.

The flawed characters all lie constantly and undermine each other. They are also just plain weird but I did love Tag's house and guest house.

It is hard to identify with Cornelia because we never see who she really is and she is just weird. The way she constantly touches people is just strange and the aging femme fatale angle is creepy.

If you like answers... Don't bother watching because the answers are not there. It isn't even a cliffhanger. Just dragging things out.

A Christmas Carol (2019)

Horrific. Almost ruined a Christmas Carol for me.

[1/10 · 17 December 2023]

This is a horrible re-telling of the Christmas Carol and I watched it until the mystifying ending hoping to see Scrooge find redemption. I was disappointed.

From the sexual child abuse to the voyeurism to the dead miners I lost any feeling of connection with Scrooge. He was very horrifically treated but he was a monster as a man. How could Belle have ever loved him? We don't know because she only appears in a disjointed sequence which isn't past or present but if only... This is so dark and then Mary Crachitt claims at the end she conjured the ghosts?

It begins shabbily with someone urinating on Marley's grave. I can't really see that desecration in Dickens' day. Which is typical of this version. They keep throwing in modern ways of thinking and acting. It doesn't fit.

I hated Scrooge. He was vile. So was Marley.

This story is a redemption story but this version does not show this. However this vile Scrooge desperately needs redemption as does wicked witchy Mary. If either repented and turned from their wicked ways they could find it.

The Way (I) (2010)

Beautiful and inspirational

[10/10 · 22 July 2023]

My brother walked the camino after he almost died of meningitis. It was life changing for him. He later died of cancer and this film allows me to walk the camino and see what he saw and imagine he is one of those on The Way.

It captures the journey and the impact so well. The story is so raw and the emotions so true. The culminating arrival at the cathedral brings me to tears each time. It is truly magical and the musical score adds so much. A well, well done film.

The journeys of the 4 main characters are so moving and well portrayed. The scenery is beautiful and haunting. It is a wonderful journey of change, growth, transformation and hope. I love this movie.

Persuasion (I) (2022)

Terrible version of a wonderful romance

[1/10 · 17 July 2022]

Looking forward to seeing this, I was so disappointed. Ann Elliott is turned into an unpleasant lush on this movie. The actress is truly beautiful so I could see how Frederick could never forget her but she is so unpleasant in this film I felt bad for him and embarrassed for her. When she announced at dinner "Charles wanted to marry me first," it was just horrendous. Frederick should have run for the hills. It was also so obvious he was pinning for her the whole time and she just had a smirk on her face. Just weird.

It's a lovely story and the letter is so wonderful but it lost all its intensity in this travesty. Depressing.

I also don't like multi-ethnic casting. Why bother with costumes and sets if you don't want to be historically accurate when it comes to the ethic makeup of this cast in early 1800s England?

Falling for Figaro (2020)

TERRIBLE

[1/10 · 15 February 2022]

This is just terrible. One star for scenery and one star for Twinkle twinkle. But just combine them because 2 stars is one too many.

Terrible chemistry between the supposed love couple. Neither are appealing so the viewer could care less if either find love. Terrible film. Terrible dubbing of voices when they sing. Terrible.

The Goldfinch (2019)

Disappointed but a hard book to do

[4/10 · 3 November 2021]

I read the book and was looking forward to the movie to "see" the characters. They were great. Except Hobie. Never saw him as a.blavk guy. However Hobie is just as sympathetic as the book so if you are not looking for the book... Hobie is probably the most agreeable character. Loved Boris as a young man. He seemed so right as did the young Theo. This is a difficult- impossible -book to put on film. Too long. I also felt the ending of the book felt hollow and so did the end of the movie! Beautiful cinematography.

I didn't like the flashback aspects either. Just tell the story.

Nomadland (2020)

Very thought provoking

[9/10 · 25 April 2021]

This is a haunting thought provoking film of what happens when life falls apart and for various reasons people become houseless. Not homeless for their home is a van, RV, car. It is not an idealized high class RV but tough living.

What makes this film so amazing is it is part film and part documentary. Many of the characters are not actors but real Nomads featured in the amazing book Nomadland. I checked the book out of the library after watching the film. Now I want to watch the movie again. Just a real thought provoking film. Highly recommended.

Wild Mountain Thyme (2020)

The only star is for the scenery

[1/10 · 15 April 2021]

What a terrible movie. The scenery is lovely. Gorgeous even. The story is supposed to be whimsical I guess but it's just weird awkward and boring. I watch some Irish TV and there are great Irish actors... so what is the deal with Christopher Walken? And the lady on the plane???? Huge disappointment. I checked it out of the library. Glad I did not spend $ on this.

The Night Manager (2016–2025)

Suspenseful, gorgeous scenery, believable plot

[8/10 · 24 January 2021]

Great series. The progression of the story and the motivation of the night manager is easy to understand. Lots of suspense and plot twists. A touch of lifestyles of the rich and famous criminals. The filming and scenery is gorgeous.

Emma. (2020)

Shame on you. Badly done.

[2/10 · 4 November 2020]

This has list all the charm of Emma and kept the least attractive aspects of all characters. Bill Nighy is great as Mr. Woodhouse but the rest are horrific, lack charm and it is a mystery why anyone would find anyone attractive to marry. The two stars are for the gorgeous settings. Some comic elements are good bit this is the worst version of Emma. Shame on you. Badly done.

The Funeral Guest (2015)

Had potential Spoilers

[3/10 · 9 September 2020]

Had potential but fell flat. The family was just over the top weird. She was supposed to be awkward but the family was more so. Spoiler... Why did none of her friends go to the funeral? She was all alone. They knew where she was. Pot brownies? I liked the main actress but the movie just flopped.

The White Slave (2016– )

Great telenovela set in Colonial Colombia

[8/10 · 9 August 2016]

This is a great story about a young woman in Colombia during the Colonial period who is raised by escaped slaves, eventually makes her way to Spain when the escaped slave colony is overrun and then returns to Colombia hoping to reunite with her slave family and the boy she loved as a child. So although she is white, she identifies with her black family who raised her. This shows the horrors of slavery in the Americas in often pretty gruesome ways. The lead actors - Victoria/Lucia, Nicolas, Miguel, Thomas, Milagros etc - are great. The story has lots of subplots and you see the various dimensions of the characters because this story unfolds over so many episodes. I loved the scenery and the haciendas where the story takes place. Did not like the costumes much, especially the dresses of the ladies which sometimes looked like rejects from a 1970s thrift shop. That was the only jarring note and why I gave it an 8. The lead actress is very beautiful. She will go far I'm sure. Still watching so not sure how it will all end, but really enjoying it!

East of Shanghai (1931)

Almost a mix between a silent film and a talkie

[7/10 · 29 November 2010]

This is a very interesting movie to watch. Almost a mix between a silent film and a talkie, there is very little talking in it with a lot of usage of titles to let us know what is going on. The first few minutes features no talking at all. A fascinating glimpse into the 30s though and an earlier film age/time. The "young" couple - married 8 years and apparently he is bored - have the opportunity to enjoy life/spend some money/go on a cruise when a wealthy uncle gives them so money to enjoy now instead of waiting till he is dead. Nice uncle! They go on a trip and eventually a cruise. Loved the cruising scenes including the pool. I have been cruising and the pools are much more crowded now it appears! She seems to meet her soul mate and have a largely platonic affair while he is quickly seduced by a "Princess" who turns out to be something less. Fun to see the scenes with the street vending. The makeup on the lead character is off putting, but it was a fun movie to watch.

The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)

Major disappointment (Spoiler possible)

[1/10 · 6 October 2008]

What a disappointment. I had been looking forward to seeing this and it was a bust! I've read the book and know a lot about the history of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII and this was just awful. The rape scene was the worst! When baby Henry was born and he did not go to see him was the second worst! I just wish they could have been more accurate with the facts of history but maybe this is just too big a topic/story for a short movie. Much better as a miniseries. I also think it just all felt rushed. It would have been nice to see some more pleasant interaction between Anne and the king. King Henry had a smoldering quality, but the chemistry was lacking with Anne. He really seemed to have more affection for Mary - why was a mystery. Just did not like the movie at all.

A Room with a View (2007 TV Movie)

Lousy actors and changed story (SPOILERS)

[1/10 · 14 April 2008]

After having loved the Merchant Ivory film I was looking forward to this adaptation but something was OFF from the moment it began when Lucy goes to Florence alone, with a bob, in 1922, and says her husband is not with her. Then we go back in time and back again as she remembers her first time in Florence with a Room With A View when she meets George who is her soul mate. Why he is her soul mate or why anyone would want to be her soul mate is not fully developed at all. Neither of these romantic characters were well developed or appealing. Of course, they do fall in love, although Lucy proceeds to run away and get engaged to someone else. Eventually they find each other and marry/elope. About the only good scene is when she rushes to him when he is in the pond... but do we really believe this either? What I hated is we discover George dies and then Lucy appears to be holding hands with the Italian cabbie at the end of the film. Horrible. Why not leave this as a romantic story with the two of them together? Must see the other film version again now... to get this rubbish out of my head!

Tara Road (2005)

The good, the bad and the ugly - but gotta love Maeve Binchy!

[3/10 · 23 April 2007]

Been really wanting to see this movie and it is just being released in North America now so here is my review...

The good - Anything by Maeve Binchy has to be great. Love her work. Her stories, her characters. Really liked "Danny" - he was just as I had imagined him. Also liked "Colm" and "Mona". Loved the scenery of Dublin and seeing what Tara Road looked like. The house is beautiful. Have always liked Andie McDowell... more on that later. The movie is good if taken on its own merit as a story on its own.

The bad - The characters of Ria, Rosemary and Marilyn were just not right. In the book Ria has curly unruly hair and undergoes more of a transformation in Ireland. Marilyn is supposed to be uptight and with short hair... didn't get that here. Rosemary is supposed to be gorgeous - again, not here. Many of the US characters seem more like caricatures than anything. And Andy Vine looks terrible - why would anyone find him attractive compared to Danny?

The ugly - it just differed from the book too much. The book is great and I wanted to see it put on film. This was different, in the same way Circle of Friends was different. If you are a Maeve Binchy fan you will enjoy seeing this on the screen, but it is not the Tara Road I read and loved.