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Reviews
The Winter King (2023)
Just awful, don't waste your time
I was so looking forward to The Winter King being on the same par as The Last Kingdom also based on Bernard Cornwell books. However, I'm left greatly disappointed after having slogged through the first episode of The Winter King. The dialogue was stilted and cringe worthy, the casting was bland, the wigs looked like they came out of grandma's dress up box, the direction was odd and wonky, and the editing was just bad. All of it was just.... ugh! I haven't read the books so I can't speak to the adaptation (given the other reviews, it looks like only the names of the characters were left intact) but given how truly terrible the first episode was, I think I will seek out the books just to erase this show from my memory.
Treason (2022)
Written by grade schoolers
I had high hopes because of several of the actors in this show but after two episodes, I cant go on. I just can't suspend belief enough to keep going. For a show containing players from MI6, the CIA, Russian spies, and top British Intelligence, you would expect some tension and intrigue. However, these people are just dumb and seem inexplicably inexperienced. So many coincidences and plot holes left my husband and I rolling our eyes and quite often, literally laughing out loud. Throw in a clueless wife who obviously learned nothing from being in the military and a security detail full of buffoons and this just delves into the absurd.
Watch The Recruit instead. It's far better.
The Noel Diary (2022)
Fell short, filled with cliches with a bad ending
As an adoptee, I was really interested in adoption being part of the storyline. Sadly, the writers used it as an after thought, never really giving the topic any real substance nor justice.
The writers also missed several opportunities to give the story depth. It's like the characters walked up to those subjects and knocked on the door but no one answered.
And that ending? So cliche, so awful and one character is just so mean that they didn't deserve a happy ending. And are we really not supposed to ask about that finance that was simply ignored at every step of the way?
Was nice to see Bonnie Bedelia in a movie and the two main characters had good chemistry. Story had potential just wished the writers would have thought things through a bit more.
Keep Breathing (2022)
Deep, cerebral story that so many are missing
People are really missing what this movie is supposed to be. It's not a survivalist movie. It's also not a thriller, but Netflix is the one to blame for creating a trailer that truly misrepresents this movie.
This is the story of a young woman's journey to self-discovery and healing from a painful childhood that has left her cold, emotionally detached, full of anger, alienating all who try to get close. After a plane crash leaves her alone in the woods, struggling both mentally and physically, she's forced to reflect and reevaluate her poor life choices. The flashbacks were integral in giving us a window into her past as to how she became the way she was, understand her trauma, and help guide her toward a future worth living.
Very well acted, especially by Melissa Barrera who plays Liv, with a screenplay full of metaphors and allegories that made for a deep, cerebral story which I fully enjoyed.
Love in the Villa (2022)
Cringe worthy
I like a good rom com and was drawn to this movie mostly because it was set in Italy, so how bad could it be? Ha, ha, turns out, it could be really, really bad! Sadly, even the promise of "Bella Italia" couldn't save this terrible movie. There is no chemistry between the two leads and their ridiculous, childish behavior borders on just plain mean. I love a good "enemies to lovers" trope but there is nothing romantic about trying to one up each other with childish pranks that are simply mean and just not funny.
The only reason I didn't give it one star was because it was set in Italy and the cats were cute!
The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window (2022)
A great satirical take on the Psychological Thriller genre
A lot of people don't get that this is satire. It takes all the tropes from the popular Psychological Thriller book genre and throws them into one movie. If you read this genre, you will more than likely get that and enjoy this series because it's very clever.