petergravescurtin Reviews

Death in Paradise (2011– )

Lost the plot when the characters are part of the "story"

[4/10 · 13 February 2023]

Apart from the character played by Ardle O'Hanlon, the other players and characters were witless, gormless and would not be accepted as the lowest constable elsewhere. They act like Inspector Clouseau at times. To have made it to "Detective Inspector" must be one of the in-jokes by the script writers.

And how (in script) would English "Inspectors" be sent to an island with a clear French heritage and name ??

Now the story-line is featuring the relationship between the blithering idiot DI and DS Cassells - too much. That's the sure sign that the script writers have lost the plot(s) and run out of ideas.

Put it out of its misery.

Passport to Freedom (2021)

An alternative view about two people who made differences

[8/10 · 26 October 2022]

On first viewing, I thought it was an American production. All the (Brazilian) actors speak in English and do not try to put on Brazilian or German accents for verisimilitude.

The sets are amazing, as standing-in for Hamburg in 1938-1942. Plus the casual anti-Jewish actions and brutality on the streets, almost (but not quite) incidental to the action. But demonstrating how casual that physical cruelty can be.

While others have decried some of the incidental matters (like American cars on the streets and badges of ranks), the dialogue is subtle and develops the plot(s) very well.

It's a story that needs to be told - from a source about which western history is too often ignorant. Brazil was the only South American country to commit forces to WW2 - 25,900 "Smoking Snakes" to Italy.

Dead Lucky (2018)

Need to understand Sydney and its milieu

[9/10 · 14 October 2020]

Many of the reviews - unfortunately by Americans - try to place this in an environment they understand - existing US gangster and cop shop shows.

Don't.

It casually introduces other elements - like overseas students trying to pay their university fees by working in corner convenience stores. Being exploited and underpaid is a running theme that many reviewers missed, relative to why one of the students ultimately goes missing. No spoiler there.

It also introduces (in a backhand way) Chinese prejudice against gweilos: when this same Chinese student is dating a man originally from Iran. And not telling her parents back in China.

It contains more twists than the usual cops and robbers inhabiting pay TV. Rachel Griffiths is outstanding, as are some of the minor actors playing overseas students. It needs quite a grasp of Australia and Sydney, particularly.