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medanthro
Reviews
Midsomer Murders: Echoes of the Dead (2011)
Cliches
As another reviewer said, this one has been the most contrived and prepostous so far.
They are many shots of the school through out the episode for no reason except maybe hinting who the killer is. Lesbian lovers seem to be a popular selling point in this show, here again, but come on, how many lesbians out there. They are often discreet and invisible.
Why the hell so many characters in detective shows turn on the lights while feeling there is a stranger in the house at night? Shouldn't that be the last thing you want to do? Why does any girl whats to turns on the light and go to the window to expose herselft? Still no curtain? Your friend was just murdered in the same house.
Used to think UK TV shows were wittier than American ones but I guess it is all about the market. After all, crime genre was invented in the UK for selling newspapers?
The Tree of Life (2011)
The American imagination and the meaning of life
We are all conditioned by our culture. When this American director tries hard to explore the deeper meaning of life, he readily turns to Lord and Dinosaur. Not much social conditions of the particular time and space was addressed or referred to in order to understand human feelings of life and love. Indeed, religious beliefs - inevitably Christian ones here - are one important factor in shaping people's perspectives and emotions. However, the director doesn't deal it well IMHO. The music, the bible citations and inspirations are superficial, overwhelming, and imposing. As to dinosaurs and things like that, they are not relevant to ordinary people lives in the movie. Unfortunately the director probably grew up and lives in the era of dinosaur movies that became the easy cultural sources he could draw metaphors from.
I don't mind a movie without clear plots. But I expected to see people - real ordinary people in everyday human conditions that they have to struggle with and how they make sense of their life in a particular identifiable cultural and historical moment.
The young actors are good. One star for them. It could have been a touching story about a young boy's troubling development - emotionally and sexually - and his relationship with other family members.