What are you watching now?

George K · M Mik 4 Sept 2021, 15:22

@mik said in What are you watching now?:

Space Force.

Is that the "comedy" with Steve Carrell? I gave up after 2 episodes. Silliness without humor.

Mik · wrote on 4 Sept 2021, 15:43

It has its moments, and occasionally some heart. Overall it is a bit too much like The Office and Parks and Rec which were both about 'ha ha look how stupid ordinary people are'. But there are signs it is improving.

Horace · 9 May 2021, 17:00

Just finished What Killed Michael Brown?. Had to rent it from Amazon Prime, I don't think there's a free way to see it. Highly recommended. Unless you're a white progressive who enjoys your smug self satisfaction that you're on the right side of history. Maybe that lot should avoid this.

Shelby Steele is great. I'd never heard much of him (of course! he doesn't say the right things about race, so why would I have heard of him?) but the voice-over he wrote for that documentary was chock full of quote-worthy profundity.

Horace · H Horace 5 Sept 2021, 17:00

@horace said in What are you watching now?:

Just finished What Killed Michael Brown?. Had to rent it from Amazon Prime, I don't think there's a free way to see it. Highly recommended. Unless you're a white progressive who enjoys your smug self satisfaction that you're on the right side of history. Maybe that lot should avoid this.

Shelby Steele is great. I'd never heard much of him (of course! he doesn't say the right things about race, so why would I have heard of him?) but the voice-over he wrote for that documentary was chock full of quote-worthy profundity.

An excellent conversation about the documentary between Loury and McWhorter:

Link to video

Mik · wrote on 7 Sept 2021, 03:17

May I reiterate my appreciation of Ted Lasso? Great show. best character development of pretty much any show.

George K · wrote on 20 Oct 2021, 21:30

Binged through "Homecoming" on Amazon Prime.

Premise is that there's an extra-governmental company that is tasked with "helping" veterans deal with PTSD. Their "help" is rather nefarious, to say the least. Lots of time-shifting in the first season, but it works well.

Two seasons, a total of 17 episodes, each about 30 minutes long. Julia Roberts stars in the 1st season. Other cast members are Bobby Cannavale and Shea Wingham (Boardwalk Empire).

Not great, but not bad, especially when you can take it in 30 minute bites.

Link to video

George K · 5 Sept 2022, 14:12

City on a Hill:

Link to video

Sounds intriguing - corrupt FBI agent in Boston still interested in solving crimes, while trying to keep his life together.

But...

Kevin Bacon with a 1990s mustache doing a Boston accent? Think Al Pacino in "Scarface," but not as good.

Too many storylines that are only remotely related.

What made "The Sopranos" so good was that, despite Tony's true evil nature, there was just something likable about him and his family. There's none of that likability here - in anyone. Bacon's wife is a simpering whiny bitch, his mother-in-law is a nasty bitch. The DA is conflicted between justice and politics.

And, why set a show in the 1990s? Just to show old unattractive cars and CRT computer screens?

Watched 4 episodes and said "screw it."

George K · wrote on 20 Mar 2022, 12:05

"The Flight Attendant"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Flight_Attendant

American flight attendant Cassie Bowden is a reckless alcoholic who drinks during flights and spends her time having sex with strangers, including her passengers. When she wakes up in a hotel room in Bangkok with a hangover from the night before, she discovers the dead body of a man who was on her last flight lying next to her, his throat slashed. Afraid to call the police, she cleans up the crime scene, then joins the other airline crew traveling to the airport. In New York City, she is met by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents who question her about the layover in Bangkok. Still unable to piece the night together, and suffering intermittent flashbacks/hallucinations about it, she begins to wonder who the killer could be.

Interesting premise, and very poorly executed. You really want to know how it all happened, but the directors' style is off-putting, and the attempt at being a "dramady" fails miserably. I watched about half and said "screw it, I can live the rest of my life without knowing "whodunit."

Horace · wrote on 20 Mar 2022, 13:20

American flight attendant Cassie Bowden is a reckless alcoholic who drinks during flights and spends her time having sex with strangers, including her passengers

You had me at “American flight attendant Cassie Bowden is a reckless alcoholic who drinks during flights and spends her time having sex with strangers, including her passengers”.

George K · 10 Apr 2022, 01:49

Link to video

A remarkable talent - taken too soon (leukemia, iirc).

The composer of "City of New Orleans" and a great gittar picker (just watch the first few minutes.

George K · 11 Apr 2022, 02:11

Go to 12:54 for "City of New Orleans."

Go to 22:30 for "Sixteen Tons."

Ivorythumper · 11 Apr 2022, 11:20

@George-K said in What are you watching now?:

Link to video

A remarkable talent - taken too soon (leukemia, iirc).

The composer of "City of New Orleans" and a great gittar picker (just watch the first few minutes.

Amazon has a new doc on Harry Chapin that looks good.

We watch M Knight Shyamalan's The Servant, which is so creepy and well done.

I like Billions and Succession. Superpumped was OK, but not really bingeworthy.

taiwan_girl · 11 Apr 2022, 11:19

@George-K said in What are you watching now?:

Go to 12:54 for "City of New Orleans."

Is that the train you take on your trips?

(BTW - good song)

George K · wrote on 11 Apr 2022, 11:19

@taiwan_girl yes, it's one of the trains I've ridden recently. Others that have had more than 1 ride are the California Zephyr and The Empire Builder.

George K · wrote on 11 Apr 2022, 11:20

@Ivorythumper said in What are you watching now?:

I like Billions and Succession.

Yup. They're fun. I'm going to miss Damian Lewis in Billions.

"Yellowstone" is fun. It's like Dallas, but the people aren't as nice.

Doctor Phibes · 4 Nov 2022, 11:49

I just finished "Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story" on Netflix.

I already knew a fair amount of the story, but a truly shocking and horrific sequence of events. When I was a kid, he was enormously well-known and loved by the public, courted by Prime Ministers and Royalty, and yet somehow simultaneously managing to get away with sexual abuse of children on a massive scale.

Horace · 11 Apr 2022, 19:53

@Doctor-Phibes said in What are you watching now?:

I just finished "Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story" on Netflix.

I already knew a fair amount of the story, but a truly shocking and horrific sequence of events. When I was a kid, he was enormously well-known and loved by the public, courted by Prime Ministers and Royalty, and yet somehow simultaneously managing to get away with sexual abuse of children on a massive scale.

I watched that too. "Somehow managing to get away" doesn't really describe how clear his methodology was. He targeted people with zero social power, and ingratiated himself to those with all the social power, who protected him. He was too big to fail. He's lucky he lived in a time when society didn't have such an appetite for watching famous and beloved people fall.

Doctor Phibes · 4 Nov 2022, 19:54

@Horace said in What are you watching now?:

@Doctor-Phibes said in What are you watching now?:

I just finished "Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story" on Netflix.

I already knew a fair amount of the story, but a truly shocking and horrific sequence of events. When I was a kid, he was enormously well-known and loved by the public, courted by Prime Ministers and Royalty, and yet somehow simultaneously managing to get away with sexual abuse of children on a massive scale.

I watched that too. "Somehow managing to get away" doesn't really describe how clear his methodology was. He targeted people with zero social power, and ingratiated himself to those with all the social power, who protected him. He was too big to fail. He's lucky he lived in a time when society didn't have such an appetite for watching famous and beloved people fall.

I still don't really understand how he got away with for so long. There were hundreds of people abused over decades. He really was hiding in plain site.

Back in the early 90's, there was this BBC radio show called 'In the Psychiatrists Chair', where Anthony Clare, an eminent psychiatrist interviewed celebrities. Some of them are still available as podcasts, and he did a really good job of getting people to open up. I remember hearing the one with Jimmy Savile, and being genuinely creeped-out by it. Both me and my then girlfriend were convinced there was something really weird going on with him, and I remember we talked about it quite a bit.

I find the fact that he never got caught really quite depressing. Even right at the end, the BBC tried to close down the documentary, he ended up having to go to ITV instead.

George K · wrote on 19 Apr 2022, 14:33

"A Confesstion."

Another Brit mystery.

Apparently, everything in this story is true. Martin Freeman is a cop investigating the disappearance and death of a young girl. When he catches the perp, he elicits a confession without prior caution (Miranda). He also is led to another body to which he confesses.

There is forensic evidence linking him to the first murder, but because of the lack of prior caution, the case for the second murder is dropped.

The cop is devastated by the fact that the second murder case was dropped.

It's not so much a murder mystery as opposed to how the murder of two young girls affects everyone involved, including the investigators.

Freeman is, as usual, excellent.

The actual story:

Murder of Sian O'Callaghan

Ivorythumper · wrote on 4 May 2022, 20:46

"Barry" S3 is now on HBO. So far, "meh".

The New Coffee Room

What are you watching now?