The film follows the Baywatch lifeguard team as they monitor the most dramatic beach in the world, but when new recruit Matt Brody (Zac Efron) joins the squad after leaving his Olympic swimming career in disgrace, head lifeguard Mitch Buchannon (Dwayne Johnson) must teach him the value of teamwork. Meanwhile, the beach’s safety is threatened when a local drug smuggling ring is discovered. Yet the problem here is that Baywatch just isn’t ludicrous enough....
2.3 All Out Of Blood Aidan’s storyline this time revolves around the woman he hooked up with in the bar at the end of last week’s episode. Julia, as it turns out, has just been accepted to complete her residency at the hospital, and is making Aidan very happy. Josh encourages this, saying that as long as Aidan has his blood-drinking urges under control, then he should be enjoy it....
3.2 Adam’s Family One of the most frequent accusations thrown at Being Human, certainly on the Den Of Geek comments, in any case, is that positioning Russell Tovey as a figure of fun has proven less effective as the show has developed. In truth, Being Human has always handled comedy and drama rather well, and it is fair to say that responsibility for the bulk of the laughs lands in Tovey’s lap....
I mentioned, when reviewing the previous episode, that Beowulf’s main flaw was rather bland, somewhat two-dimensional characterisation. That is still something of a problem, but this episode went some way towards addressing it. Rheda’s characterisation and, especially, Joanne Whalley’s performance offer a well-balanced blend of toughness and vulnerability. On the one hand, she demonstrates a capacity, if not a liking, for ruthlessness when she tricks a little girl into giving up her mother....
Big Fish & Begonia is the rare example of a major animated film to emerge from China; unlike its neighbouring Japan, the country isn’t all that known for its contributions to the medium – one of the more recent exceptions being Kung Fu Panda 3, a third of which was animated in Shanghai. With this in mind, maybe we can forgive the animation house behind it, the newly-minted B&T Studio, for the odd narrative wobble here and there....
“Trespass” focused a lot on the fact that Elena ultimately left the pack for moral reasons. We keep getting reminded that, as werewolves, the Danver clan has to do some more than morally ambiguous things in order to ensure their safety. Is a preemptive strike against someone who threatens your life acceptable? What if the threat was veiled like it might be if you were a werewolf? “I’m going to tell the world what you are!...
In last week’s 15 Million Merits, we were presented with a motion-sensitive future where citizens are literally imprisoned by entertainment. And in this final episode, The Entire History Of You, we’re introduced to the most intimate form of technology yet seen – a tiny computer that sits behind the ear, silently recording our memories like an internal Tivo. These memories can then be searched and reviewed like videoclips on an iPod; anything we’ve ever experienced can be called up and watched again and again....
Black Sails Season 3 Episode 2 Black Sails opens this week with a nice dream sequence in which Miranda Barlow climbs out of the sea and tries to talk to Flint. The eerie lighting, inexplicable action, and slow movement made for a great dream. I tried to read her lips, but could not. Whatever she’s saying will either be a cleaver revelation or impossibly obvious. I’m hoping for the former. I just want to say it again – the pirate fashions on this show are sexy as hell, but they bear little to no resemblance to what these guys really wore....
Indeed, BlacKkKlansman is about power in all its different forms. Abuses of power. Powerlessness. One race’s power over another. The police’s power over its citizens. The power of cinema to affect the politics and perceptions of the masses. And the power of the individual to change history. John David Washington (son of Denzel) stars as Ron Stallworth, the first African-American detective in the Colorado Springs police department. Frustrated with the records room, Stallworth bags a gig working undercover....
It looks like Beckett’s last-minute firing from last week’s episode from the Feds is sticking. I guess the Feds are just that strict…even on TV. Back in New York City, Beckett is as bored as can be, complaining to Castle that she has not been unemployed since she was 15. It turns out that she could not be reinstated by the police commissioner because of budget cuts. But a quick phone call from Captain Gates may turn all of that around....
7.14 Resurrection I try never to watch the previews for episodes on shows I am reviewing so that those carefully edited scenes don’t led me astray when I start writing. As a result, I rarely know what an episode is going to be about until I sit down to watch it. So when it became clear very early on that Resurrection was carrying on the 3XK storyline, I was so surprised and pleased, I actually yelped....
Porridge was developed from an earlier series Thick As Thieves which Clement and La Frenais had written for John Thaw and Bob Hoskins. Made and shown by LWT in early 1974, the six part series featured the adventure of two ex-cons. Although it was much praised, ITV execs felt the writing was too clever and may have gone over the heads of the intended audience. The BBC were looking for a major comedy series from the duo to replace The Likely Lads and so very much welcomed Porridge....
Sam and Charlotte Cooper (John Goodman and Diane Keaton) have grown apart over the course of their 40 year marriage and they’re looking forward to having their extended family home in Pittsburgh for Christmas dinner. Over the course of a hectic Christmas Eve, we follow four generations of Coopers through their own individual trials on their way home. You may recognise this kind of seasonal ensemble film – look no further than Garry Marshall’s Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve for examples of the kind of slushy thematic piecemeal movies that exhaust every romcom convention....
I’m really confused about this episode of Chuck, not because the plot confused me or the jokes didn’t work, but it posted the lowest equal viewing figures of the season! Why? In terms of this show it hit almost all the right buttons from the outset, with the wonderful Morgan dream parodying the Hart To Hart title sequence, the crazy tiger moments, and Casey’s unsuccessful attempts to make Morgan a spy....
By resisting the urge to make any larger judgments about religion as a societal force, Come Sunday, a new Netflix biopic about the real-life Bishop Carlton Pearson from Maria Full of Grace director Joshua Marston, manages to get into those messier struggles of the balance of faith and religion. The result is a quietly contemplative character piece, grounded by a characteristically terrific performance from Chiwetel Ejiofor in the central role....
As the fall season gets under way in the US, one of the surprise hits of last year marked a triumphant return to NBC this week, the fabulous Community, back for its sophomore year and more college-related situation comedy. Conforming to the sitcom conventions it so often spoofs, the show ended its first season with a classic love triangle cliffhanger. Britta declared her love for the engagingly smug Winger, only to be left standing when he leaves to walk into the arms of 18-year-old Annie, the baby of the group....
2.5 A Morning Song In the fallout from last week’s episode, Corky is waking up in the bed of a newly hired prostitute and Annie is still missing after her disappearance from the precinct. But in the meantime, the Druids, led by Philomen Keating (Lee Turgesen), storm the precinct in the early morning hours when there are few coppers on duty. They quickly take over the place, release Maguire from lockup, and search top-to-bottom for the counterfeit plates Maguire had on him when he was arrested....
Coraline Jones (Dakota Fanning) is an adventurous, precocious 11 year old girl with a problem. Her parents Mel and Charlie (Teri Hatcher and John Hodgman, respectively) don’t pay her the slightest bit of attention. They’re academics who mostly work from home, and like most folks who work from home, they have a bit of trouble compartmentalizing. They spent infinitely more time hunched in front of their computers, clattering away, than they do with their only daughter....
Well, Leonardo Da Vinci (Tom Riley) is still a genius. The bulk of the episode sees Da Vinci, with the injured Lorenzo Medici in tow, trying to evade his arch nemesis Girolamo Riario, who is chasing the brilliant artist/sculptor/engineer/biologist/snappy dresser to find the evasive Book of Leaves before the Palpatine-like Pope Sixtus the Fourth. Da Vinci evades capture in Florence’s sewers and when cornered by his arch nemesis Riaro and his men, he uses a freakin’ bazooka to blow out the ceiling and escape....
Damnation: Episode 10 (Season Finale) Does God forgive all those who repent and seek redemption, including murderers and scoundrels? It would seem that Damnation would have viewers believe so in the season finale, “God’s Body.” The characters are all guilty of something – pride, fornication, greed, racism, and debauchery. Apart from farming, drinking, resisting industrialization, and the occasional traveling carnival, the locals haven’t much else occupy their time. It’s tempting to create backstories and character motivations where none exist....
