Trilby16 Reviews

I Shouldn't Be Alive (2005–2012)

I Did Something Incredably Stupid and Lived To Tell the Tale!

[10/10 · 8 March 2024]

Season 5 has been made available again, and as it was one of my favorite shows some years back, I'm enjoying it again even though I've seen it. Except this time around I've had the thought that it should be called "I Did Something Incredibly Stupid." Or "I Don't Deserve To Be Alive." Or "Just Kill Me Already."

And what's with the very British narrator? I'm watching an episode about two Americans, stuck in a very American desert after their Jeep turns over on its side, and the narrator intones "It was getting to be almost 30 degrees. And they were kilometers from anywhere." We are Americans. Americans in the show, Americans watching the show. We don't want to hear Celsius and decimalization. How can 30 degrees be hot? You know why Fahrenheit makes more sense than Celsius? In the Fahrenheit scale, the range of 0 to 100 degrees is directly related to the HUMAN experience, not to a test tube on a Bunsen burner. That is the range within which most of us humans go about our daily business. And the old measurements which we Americans have stuck to relate to the human body. A "foot" is called a foot, why? Think about it. Then you have liters. Where does that even come from? Science, probably. I really don't care. Where does the measurement "1 cup" come from? From a cup. In less fancy times, you'd reach for a cup from your cupboard to measure a cup of something. Sugar. Flour.

But some like the precision of liters. Hah! Remember years back when we were getting warnings, hearing rumblings, about the coming change to our measurements? How did that go, eh? The only place it was implemented, and stuck, was in 2 liter soda bottles. Maybe beer, I wouldn't know.

And another thing-- the decimalizers seem proud of how easily these measurements can be divided, like how a kilometer is 1000 meters. So why stop there? How about hours that consist of 100 minutes? A day could be 10 hours followed by a night of 10 hours. So much neater, right? A week could be 10 days, with 10 months in year.

Anyway, back to the show! These poor ******s get themselves stuck, lost, whatever, in a lava field, a dense jungle, the side of a mountain peak-- in a storm! The middle of the ocean without a paddle, a canyon slot, miles from nowhere, have left no map for their loved ones of where they will eventually get lost. And you think, that's it then, they'll never get out of this predicament. There's no way.

But besides the actors in the recreations of these mishaps, the hopelessly-lost actual people are also IN the show, giving away the fact that they will indeed, against all odds, be rescued! Well, the title gives it away as well. But as a viewer you can't help being a bit on the edge of your seat when things look most dire.

But wait! Here come the helicopters (usually)! Or some other "dues ex machina," to save the stranded, lost, out of hope, almost dead people. I'm not giving away any spoilers when I tell you it's almost always helicopters. Or some emergency service. God bless those services! Really! Sometimes the predicaments these folks get themselves into are so painful and seemingly hopeless that I can hardly look, and I play a little game on my phone to distract myself.

Anyway, it a great show. The re-enactments of the dire situations are amazing. Like me, you may also find yourself wondering how they pull that off! And you may (like me) fervently hope that these people, the ones who survived, have learned a lesson from all that!

Saltburn (2023)

Not very good abut very insufferable

[1/10 · 4 February 2024]

I must admit, I only got halfway through it-- which was already a great effort on my part. A bit before the halfway mark I started asking myself: what am I getting out of this, can I stand any of the characters, and will my life or even my day be any better if I stick it out to the bitter end? The answer was a resounding NO!

I cut my losses. There is no there there. And once we got to the castle, I was afraid we'd stay stuck for all eternity, or another hour-- whichever came first!.

I always enjoy seeing Richard E. Grant, but the rest of the boring cast can go enjoy their awards and hosannas in some castle or other and toast each other's amazing talent away from public scrutiny.

The Offence (1973)

Theater of the Absurd

[2/10 · 21 January 2024]

Yeah, I don't know what to say about this hot mess. You cannot fail to see it was an adaption of a stage play. And all the performances are equally terrible, not least of all, Connery's. And he was very mean to his wife, in the movie.

How was this film made in 1973? I remember 1973. I was around then. This seems like it was made in the early 1950's.

At first I thought it was going to be a crime movie, but the only crime is the movie (HAH HAH). But then it quickly settled into Theater of the Absurd. At that point, I'm like, OK, this is pretty weird, but I'm up for weird! But at 1 hour 20 minutes, I start pausing repeatedly to see how much more there is to go! And getting more and more impatient, I'm doing that "sunk cost" thing where I figure-- I've put this much time into it, I may as well see it through. But no! So wrong! So not worth it to get to the end.

Suspect (I) (2022– )

Not a fan

[1/10 · 8 January 2024]

This is an odd show, what I want to call a concept show. The concept is 20 minute episodes of two people in a room talking for 20 minutes. Sometimes called bottle episodes. Def.: an inexpensively produced episode of a television series that is typically confined to one setting.

Yes, there's heightened emotion and James Nesbitt emotes with his usual intensity. But, short as they are, these episodes dragged for me. At episode 6, the range of the short episodes enlarged a bit to include a couple of exterior scenes, or more than one scene. But the whole things takes place in a single day. The last episode (no spoilers! I promise) finally brings some of it to a conclusion, but it is far from a satisfying conclusion, at least for this viewer.

Another problem I had with this show, and it's a common one, is that there's a person we're supposed to care about-I'm not giving anything away to say this is a dead person! How do you get the viewer to care about someone who's already dead? Hm... maybe with some ghostly sightings? But it's a losing battle. The other characters may care about that person quite a lot, but viewers? Eh. You can't "bring to life" a dead character by trying hard to show how deeply other fictional characters care about him or her. In my opinion.

Funniest line in an unfunny show: "I'm a venture capitalist-- I'm interested in creating value, not value judgments."

Dalziel and Pascoe (1996–2007)

An excellent detective show with one minor problem

[9/10 · 14 November 2023]

I won't leave you in suspense-- the problem, for me anyway, is Ellie, the girlfriend then wife of of Peter Pascoe. She is intrusive and unnecessary addition. Someone in the UK detective show business believes that women won't watch a great detective show unless there's a woman in it with woman issues, women friends, and refined, artistic womanly interests and pursuits --which sometimes take up a good portion of an episode. I'm not all the way through the series and I'm hoping for a break-up of this marriage before too much longer.

What I enjoy most about D & P is the language used by most of the characters, as if they all went to the same school and all read the same books. It's sometimes flowery and always at a high level of intelligence. The stories are good, if sometimes a bit difficult to follow. For me anyway. Many characters, lotsa names and plot points to remember, (plus the unwanted side-hustle of Ellie issues and Ellie's friends' issues) but a very enjoyable detective show in the great UK tradition, with great scenery as the detectives travel around, sometimes widely.

The Square (2017)

Well, that was kinda interesting, I guess.

[3/10 · 26 August 2023]

But ultimately it was, by turns, infuriating and very slow going. But I did have a realization by the end of it, which was that liberals who claim to want to make the world a better place, to make a difference, usually do nothing at all to accomplish either of those goals. But the ones who do make efforts in that direction are even worse. They're terrible people but will never realize that fact about themselves. Just terrible, boring, basic, unimaginative, and easily led by the nose.

I was amazed to learn of all the fancy prizes this movie has accumulated, and at the high rating is has here. It has its moments but, as others have said, it's too long by far. In my estimation, by about an hour. It made me wish I was watching it on YouTube so that I could have changed the playback speed.

A pretentious movie about the pretentious.

Utopia (I) (2013–2014)

There's violence- and then there's torture.

[2/10 · 9 August 2023]

Yeah, I couldn't get very far in season 2, which is actually a prequel to season one. Season one was a lot more fun as it had some characters you could sort of care about and root for. I'm just lost in season two. And I particularly object to the cautions aimed at sensitive souls at the beginning of some episodes. Nudity? Bring it! Scenes some viewers may find disturbing? Let me be the judge of that! Violence-- Hah! I could watch a guy punch another guy in the head all day long. But really very sick sadistic torture is not my thing. Maybe not yours either. Yeah, horrible people doing horrible things. Maybe it gets better as it hums along but I doubt it and I want to sleep tonight. So, to sum up: Season one, pretty good! Season two (which is really season minus-one) they needn't have bothered.

The Bear (2022– )

Watched half of the first episode-- twice!

[1/10 · 4 August 2023]

I kept seeing good things about this show so I started watching it once and gave up midway through it. Then I saw more good notices and tried it again with the same result. What's with all the hype and high ratings???

I waitressed in a variety of NYC restaurants when I was young. The backstage stories and drama I witnessed and was a part of were much more fun than this show. MUCH more.

One big sticking point for me was the main character calling himself "Carmy." Carmy is not a name! Short for Carmen or something. OK, but a nickname like that is for family and loved ones to use. Not employees and other strangers. Carmy is the same number of syllables as Carmen, so it's not a short form of a long name. IRL, I would call that person Carmen until he grew on me-- which would be unlikely to happen.

The Dropout (2022)

Excellent series, and an observation.

[9/10 · 10 June 2023]

Amanda Seyfried was excellent portraying Elizabeth Holmes, a very young college dropout whose ambition was-- no, not to change the world, but to make billions of dollars. She says that "change the world" thing over and over, but it never rings true. She brings no real expertise to her "invention" of a device that can never do what it's meant to do. Her only area of expertise is getting people to think she's brilliant and talented, and--most importantly--pretty and blond! Well, she IS very pretty and kinda blond.

Now for my observation. I notice in so many shows that almost every woman does this same thing: nods her head repeatedly as she says something that she wants the person she's talking to to accept and believe. It may be subtle nodding. Or it may be emphatic and decisive, depending on the situation. It doesn't necessarily mean she's lying! But it's SO ANNOYING. Men don't do this! I've never observed a man in a show OR in real life doing this.

While watching Amanda Seyfried act in The Dropout, I couldn't figure out if she very astutely gave this annoying feminine tic to her character because it is something that Elizabeth would naturally do, or if it was something that just came naturally to Amanda because it's something that she, like so many women, does without thinking. In one scene, she was nodding almost imperceptibly, all the way through, while the other person was talking to her, to showcase her ability to hear hard truths and her anxious agreement with the speaker.

Come on, women, we're better than this! Aren't we? Have some confidence that the person you're talking to will agree with you because of what you say, not because you're pleading for agreement with this weird nodding thing! Viewers, if you were not aware of this female foible before, you are now. Watch for it and you'll see what I mean.

The Split (2018–2022)

Too many women

[1/10 · 1 June 2023]

Personal disclosure: I am a woman, but I can still clearly see when too many women make a show woman-centric, and thus ruin it. I imagine this show's writers started out with a concept like: Let's make a dramatic series about Big Messy Family stuff, full of Drama and Intrigue and Romance at all the ages! Let's have it revolve around unbelievably wealthy and incestuous London Divorce Law firms with the chicest, toniest offices! Ugh.

This show. . . I could see from episode 1 that this show had too many women in it, and too many characters in general, to be to my taste, but I watched it anyway. I was intrigued by the high ratings it garnered. It doesn't deserve them.

As others have observed, the characters are uniformly rich-- not just middle-class, as some reviewers incorrectly stated-and their "problems" possibly stem from having too much time and money at their disposal. Their jobs are pretty cushy and they seldom have need of preparing to go to court or any of that nonsense, leaving them free to muck up their lives and those of their "loved" ones in ALL the ways.

Season 1 was predictably boring, and I was ready to quit, but season 2 actually got a bit exciting so I hung in. Season 3-everything is even more messed up than you could imagine, until the final episode when -wait for it!-each woman (and there are many!) gets to speak her truth to some other hapless character in ways so predictable and cliché-ridden that I had to pause it to go vomit with 15 minutes still left on the clock. Never to resume! My patience was at an end.

One last note: I used to enjoy Nicola Walker's performances, in Unforgotten, River, Scott & Baily. But in this awful series, she acts mainly with her mouth, twisting into weird half-smiles that vanish like breath off a razor.

Elementary (2012–2019)

In an alternate universe. . .

[10/10 · 9 May 2023]

. . .no one has ever heard the names Sherlock Holmes, Watson, and Moriarty. Don't get me wrong. I'm loving this series and grateful for the many episodes. Other reviewers have already explained what's so excellent about this series, but I am always nonplussed when other characters have no reaction-- whatsoever!-- to these famous names. It's strange, isn't it?

Jonny Lee Miller is fascinating to watch, with all his twitches, tensed-up body, downturned mouth, and odd brilliance. And Lucy Liu is a great foil as his sidekick. Jon Michael Hill is also notable but understated as a police NYPD detective who the duo work with frequently.

It's great series, but I always wince inwardly when the other modern characters show no signs of knowing these famous names! Not a one of them ever says, "Sherlock Holmes? Really? Like the book? I've heard that name before. . ."

The Whale (2022)

So boring. Such awful people.

[1/10 · 9 March 2023]

I stuck it out as long as I could because the rating is high, and somewhere I read something that made me think it would be good. It's not good. It has the tone of a movie that's been adapted (poorly) from a stage play. All too soon, you realize the whole thing may well take place in the dark, smelly (according to the whale's daughter) home of a house-bound, obese, online teacher of essay writing.

Every character is angry about something, except the whale who is just sad. All are from the poor working, or non-working, underclass. And did I mention that they're angry? It gets tiresome. They yell at each other about past sins. The only reason to watch some of it might be the prosthetics on the whale's face and body. Very realistic! But imagine a stage play that you were assigned to go see by a writing teacher, or dragged to by a friend or loved one, only for the two of you to leave at intermission. This is that-- only it purports to be a film.

No sense of place at all. We are left to imagine crummy small town outside the claustrophobic house or apartment, before giving up on any change of venue. In fairness, you do see a bird eating from a dish outside the whale's window, so we know there IS an outdoors and we are NOT actually in a playwright's stand-in for purgatory. And you may marvel that the two or three people who seem to care about the whale seem to care about him. After you've had your fill of that, cut your losses!

Christine (2016)

Not very good

[3/10 · 2 February 2023]

Just a short way into this movie-of-the-week, the title character accosts a young couple in a restaurant who look "very much in love," and gives them her business card because she's a TV journalist looking for uplifting stories-- in direct contradiction, or maybe in defiance, of what her boss just told her to do. I almost turned it off at that point, but I hung in.

A short time later, I was saying to myself-this is why people hate journos. And women, some women. All right, lots of women. Christine has lofty aspirations and is stuck in a local Florida news station. I say stuck, but she is lucky to have a job. Her naked ambition is hard to watch. Also her cavalier treatment of everyone around her, some of whom actually care about her, surprisingly.

A bit further in, I was thinking, this woman Christine is a vampire who sucks all the energy and joy out of any room she enters! But then I realized what the movie is really about! A woman who losing her mind! OK. That's a game-changer. Game on...

But now it's a while later and there are only 15 minutes left. They really need to wrap this up...

Uh oh-- didn't she stop at the car repair/gun shop not too long ago? I'm pretty terrible at following plots, but, as the playwright once said, if a gun is hanging on the wall in scene one, it better go off by the end! Or something like that. And it did. The End. Seriously. That is more or less the end.

Jesse Stone: Night Passage (2006 TV Movie)

Not an avid fan of this.

[4/10 · 22 January 2023]

There must be something I'm missing. . . I watched this because I was seduced by the generous 5 stars thousands of Prime viewers gave it. And even here-7.2?!

Some observations: Every character speaks slowly and deliberately, at all times, in every situation. I didn't even need to have captions on.

All the young blonde women (who I couldn't really tell apart) come onto Jesse. It's a bit cringey.

That bridge house he buys and then furnishes? I'd pay good money to have seen that moving day. I hope he tipped the movers well!

The thing where Carson's car is pushed sideways off the cliff? Very bad murdering. I'm not even a cop and I could clearly the mistake in that.

The term "the mob" is bandied about. What mob is that? The Mafia? Seems unlikely.

When there's finally a bit of action, it's quite tame action. Same measured pace as all the rest of it.

I'm concerned that Jesse no longer has his dog-friend going forward, who seemed like a very good boy. I hope he gets a new puppy before the next installment!

It's not an unpleasant show. Not lousy. Just peculiar. A slow start to a whole series of movies. Should've been a TV series probably, with a little more action.

Play Misty for Me (1971)

Don't be put off by the generally low ratings!

[10/10 · 12 January 2023]

This movie is a time capsule of 1971. Enjoy it for what it is, a suspenseful plot, gorgeous scenery, funny clothes and hairstyles, and a leisurely visit to the Monterey Jazz Festival. Apparently, Jessica Walters career was sidelined by her too-great portrayal.

I first saw this movie when it came out in 1971-- in a real drive-in!-- without any idea of what I was in for. Definitely the best way to see this movie, Clint Eastwood's directorial debut. I was surprised by how many iconic scenes were etched in my memory. And you will enjoy some old-fashioned diversity, thanks to the "Come on, people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together, try to love one another right now" vibe of that time. Enjoy!

The Fallen Idol (1948)

Quite terrible.

[1/10 · 8 January 2023]

I am astonished at all the praise heaped upon this boring whodunit. I only finished it, well, for personal reasons. The child who is in every scene (I think) becomes very annoying.

Random observation #1: In 1948, men would wake up, put on a full-on suit including a tie, and spend the day dressed like this until bedtime, when presumably they took the suit off-- for no actual reason!

Random observation #2: In 1948, children were not hovered over like now. Quite the opposite. Survival of the Fittest!

Random observation #3: Not all old movies are classics, or even very watchable let alone enjoyable.

Random observation #4: IMHO, people who adore this humdrum old movie are like Charlie the Tuna, trying to impress by showcasing their "good taste."

City Homicide (2006–2011)

One of the great police procedurals!

[10/10 · 31 December 2022]

This unassuming Australian cop show, City Homicide, is one of the best police procedurals I've ever had the pleasure of watching-and that's my genre. It's got a solid cast and always interesting cases to solve. It doesn't delve too much into the private lives of the murder team. Some, but not too much. I guess you need some of that stuff because, as The Grinder said "You need to know the characters are emotional-grounded or you won't watch!"

If you like cop shows, do not let this one get past you. At first glance it seems, well, fairly ordinary. But excellence is not ordinary. I want to say it is much better than it seems, than it feels, than it has a right to be. You get the kind of hum-drum office work, office politics, etc., and yet it's really great stuff!

No one in the ensemble cast outshines the others. They all shine together. And the perps are also terrific in their roles.

Treason (2022)

Absurd. Ludicrous. Irritating. Boring.

[1/10 · 27 December 2022]

I don't know why I watched the whole thing. Not one likeable character. Not a believable storyline. It's sad really that British shows are now imitating American shows, in their pace (hectic) and thrill level (dubious). They used to be better than that.

I am still convinced that what's-his-name was a traitor. Adam, that's right. Not sure how they will clear his name so that his kids don't have to live out the rest of whole lives with that shame. Maybe a sequel is in order! Joking.

Hard to tell who the good guys were, if any. I was surprised to find out that Oona Chaplain played Maddy. I thought Oona Chaplin was a much older woman... Welp, that's all I've got!

M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team (2003–2005)

Just the facts, ma'am!

[10/10 · 15 December 2022]

I'm really enjoying this crime show. If you like UK crime shows in particular, this one's for you. The episodes cover real police work (IMHO) with no meanderings-- quick and to the point! No homelives of the principals, no extra-curricular work romances, no back stories. Just a crime, an investigation and an ending which may seem somewhat abrupt. But it's not Crime and Punishment. It delivers.

It looks a bit dated. The head officer in charge of investigations reminds me of Della Street from Perry Mason, maybe it's the hairdo. But don't be put off. Give this one a try. I wish other crime shows were as good at showing really investigative work.

Keep Breathing (2022)

Promising at the start, then, not.

[4/10 · 7 December 2022]

Such annoying characters. The sort-of boyfriend has just a trace of an accent, but it SO got on my nerves. Is he pretending to be American for the role? If not, a little backstory, please. Have an accent or don't have an accent!

And the mother-- a horror, yes! And way too much time is spent on her. If I have to watch her dance again...

The father, young and then old-- that talcum powder worked wonders! Good job, Hair and Make-up!

That bear was pretty unthreatening. Gentle Ben? That's a bear, right?

I'm trying to hang in, but I might just bail. An OK beginning, but this is becoming a hate-watch now. I do like survival shows, but do I care if this particular peculiar main character makes it out alive? Not sure!

Suspects (2014–2016)

Very unusual and addictive series!

[10/10 · 23 November 2022]

I'm glad this series got a high rating-- it certainly deserves it. I went all in with 10 stars because I have no criticisms at all. It's amazingly realistic (I think-- I am not a cop) which is rare. At first, the episodes seem to end very abruptly. But that's it-- case solved, on to the next!

Also, a shout-out to the small-role actors-- but of course there are no small roles! This class of actors in Britain are phenomenal. Compared to the main players-- who are great, but clearly actors-- the many bit players, the perps, witnesses, etc., seem 100% real. I keep thinking, where did they find this guy???

Something that makes me chuckle in each episode are those shots of the elevated tracks outside the police station, with a train rumbling along. That's it! Just a-- i dunno-- an establishing shot? Very funny. In the third season, they toss in more exteriors of the building and less of the elevated train. Sometimes the train is seen through one window, other times through a different window of the same type. Like, WHY???But please don't stop. Perfect show for the person who, like me, craves and devours British crime shows.

One last side-note: It's fun to watch the public defenders who sit in on suspect interviews. These actors sit there, expressionless, motionless, they don't even appear to be listening. They have zero lines. It's like the casting people just pull someone in off the street and say "just sit here, say nothing, do nothing, and you'll get a check at the end of the day."

Which is not a criticism of the show! I wouldn't have it any other way.

Most Wanted (2020)

Very absorbing film

[10/10 · 21 October 2022]

I decided to watch this film for lack of other attractive options, that's all. But it was surprisingly good! The Daniel Leger character was sympathetic and interesting-- a boy who was scrappy, didn't complain, kept to himself, and prevailed. The last view of him, where he said he was grateful, was wonderful. He showed so much Buddhist calm in the moment, learned over 8 years in a Thai prison. Quit inspiring!

To think, I almost didn't watch it when Jim Gaffigan's name popped up as a cast member before it started. But I have to say-- nice acting chops from Gaffigan, as a thoroughly unsavory small-time fringe drug dealer and charter boat captain/owner.

The Serpent (2021)

Ashamed to admit I watched the whole thing!

[1/10 · 10 October 2022]

This is a terrible show. Awful. As others have said, the time jumps were confusing and just made a hard to follow show even harder to follow. During the first three episodes I kept asking myself, who are these people? Did we meet them before? What's going on exactly? Finally I had some understanding, so I kept going, wanting to see what would happen next with the guy's wig. Why was the actor wearing bad wigs throughout? Was the character wearing the wigs or was it the actor? Kind of an existential question to ponder...

Knippenberg was a very upset young man! He "upset" himself right out of a nice, comfortable marriage.

Sherwood (II) (2022– )

Awful. Boring. Preachy. Blech!

[1/10 · 6 October 2022]

Everyone in this town or ex-miners thinks deep philosophical thoughts, which they can express-- slowly!-- whenever the time is ripe. And there are enough characters and backstories so that everyone, every stereotype, gets a turn at bat. Ugh!

So bad. Why revisit this old miners' strike again? Now. Older UK shows are great! But Britbox can't make shows in that style anymore. They've been seduced by American garbage and strive to imitate that, for some unknown reason.

Well, I'm given this bad show too many hours already. No need to give it anymore minutes now!

Oh, I need more characters... Why? I see other, much shorter reviews than this one. OK, all good now!

Paranoid (2016)

Really bad, so very bad....

[1/10 · 25 September 2022]

I'm ashamed I watched the whole thing! But once a show shifts over from being an OK watch to a hate-watch, then I want to hang in to see just how bad it will get.

This show got VERY bad. The women! My god. Each one an imperfect embodiment of what's wrong with women. When this became apparent in, oh, Episode 1, I started wondering whether it was written by women who thought they were writing "strong women" characters, or women-hating male writers who were responsible for this risible garbage. Men, for the win!

And the ending! As these sorts of shows do, it got more feverish toward the end as the writers scrambled to pull together threads and character arcs, and get those smootches in at the very end. That is not a spoiler, btw.

I usually love British Crime shows, but this was like an American network crime show with accents. We should be copying the Brits, not the other way around. This show had too much relationship garbage. It was queasy unattractive relationship messiness.