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Speed Demons (2018)
Interesting but needs focus
Entertaining documentary about the world of land speed racing. It covers the beginnings of the ultimate land speed record to the latest attempts, amateur hot rodders going for class records and Chuck Yeager using archive footage and interviews. Which is where this documentary fails a bit. It needed to focus on one aspect. Either the ultimate land speed record or the amateur hot rodders going for class records in their home built cars (and motorcycles). And while I would never denigrate Chuck Yeager or his accomplishments, they did not belong in this program whose main focus is purportedly LAND speed records.
I don't recall any glaring technical or historic errors.
Worth watching but could have been better.
Sherlock: The Reichenbach Fall (2012)
Moriarty is back, unfortunately.
This episode borrows very little from the Conan Doyle story. It uses most of the name and Sherlock Holmes falling from the original story. It's still not too bad even with the goofy Moriarty on the scene. The guy is too cartoonish to be taken seriously.
Sherlock: The Hounds of Baskerville (2012)
Decent
This episode is very loosely based on the book "The Hound of the Baskervilles". It also benefits from not including the clownish Moriarty among the characters.
Sherlock: A Scandal in Belgravia (2012)
Diverging more
This episode is not too bad for most of it. It's based very loosely on "A Scandal in Bohemia" but goes more for sensationalism which is the trend for the series. It's still somewhat enjoyable until Professor Moriarty makes his appearance. The character is too over the top to be a convincing criminal master mind. Keep in mind, Moriarty did not figure prominently in the original stories.
Sherlock: The Great Game (2010)
Different direction
This story diverges even further from the original stories, basically borrowing only the name and the basic plot of the "The Bruce Partington Plans". This story veers away from the intellectualism if the original of the original stories towards the sensationalism of modern television.
Sherlock: The Blind Banker (2010)
Still not too bad.
This episode was not based on any of the original stories. It's a new adventure created with elements of few of the original stories. Still pretty entertaining. Fans of the real Sherlock Holmes might be disappointed however.
Sherlock: A Study in Pink (2010)
Actually pretty good
Pretty good re-imagining of the Conan Doyle story, A Study in Scarlet. It used many elements of the original story but with significant tweaks beyond just changing the setting to modern times. Not too jarring for fans of the original stories.
Pandora's Promise (2013)
Commercial for nuclear power.
Basically an extended interview with 3 or 4 people who were formerly against nuclear power and are now in favor of it. Their reasons seem to be mainly a matter of convenience. The one thing I was looking for, advancements in technology that address the serious problems with nuclear power, wasn't mentioned. And apparently this had no impact or these peoples change of heart. A lot of smoke and mirrors was on tap. The anti-nuclear side was represented by the biggest crackpot they could find (she claims millions died at Chernobyl). A discussion of the impracticality of cutting demand is set against a backdrop of cities with lighted signs. It is clearly stated that impoverished people around the world would have their lives miraculously improved if they had nuclear power. One of these people states flat out that being against nuclear power is being for fossil fuel. Unsubtantiated claims about the environmental impact of various energy sources are made. An unidentified device is used to show the numbers on it's display are different in different places. Through in some Democrat bashing and some nifty charts and graphs and you have "Pandoras Promise". I wonder if the makers of this film are familiar with the story of Pandoras Box?