Miss Austen Regrets, 2008 (Grade B)

PBS - Masterpiece Theater Production based on the life and letters of Jane Austen, tells the story of the novelist's final years, examining why, despite setting the standard for romantic fiction, she died having never married

starring: Olivia Williams;  Greta Scacchi; Imogen Poots;  Phyllida Law; Tom Hiddleston;  Hugh Bonneville;  Adrian Edmondson;  Jack Huston

sez says: this was a  lovely diversion, well acted (esp Williams version of Austen) and nicely produced --costumes etc. were great.    And because much of it is based on  actual letters it provides at least the illusion that you are seeing something of the real life of the author. I enjoyed it. If your taste runs in this direction, you'll probably like it too. But it probably won't win over in converts if this type of drams isn;t your cup of tea to begin with.(Grade B)

The Unit, 2006, Season One (Grade F)

Noted playwright David Mamet created this television drama. So we thought it would be worth checking out. It is a story that follows an elite special forces unit charged with carrying out top-secret military operations for the U.S. government.  While the men live dare-devil-comic book hero lives they also have to live with countless secrets whcih create problems for their families.

Staring Dennis Haysbert; Scott Foley; Abby Brammell and others.

sez says: the first couple shows were ok--becasue Mamet wrote them, but they were just ok , in part because the actor were not up to the writing.  Generally the acting was weak all round--and then the writing got weaker and the stories didn't even hang together.. so we gave it up nad wound; suggest anyone else waster their time on this (Grade F)

The 39 Steps, 2010 Masterpiece Classic PBS (Grade D+)

Director:
Produced By Masterpiece Theater as a Masterpiece Classic
Starring: Rupert Penry-Jones; Lydia Leonard;  Patrick Malahide


PLOT: A spy on the run accosts Richard Hannay, a former intelligence agent, in his London flat. The desperate man gives him a coded notebook and then is shot dead by German agents bursting into the room. Hannay battles the intruders and escapes. He returns with a constable, who sizes up the evidence and decides that Hannay himself is the killer. Hannay is thus plunged into the cloak-and-dagger intrigue that precedes the outbreak of World War I. Pursued by police, but also chased by German agents who want the secret notebook, he makes his way to Scotland, where a German spy ring is executing a plan that will render Britain defenseless against invasion. Along the way, he is joined by combative suffragette Victoria Sinclair, who at first mistakes him for a liberal politician, but is unfazed to learn that he is an accused murderer and, she thinks, a "delusional maniac" on the subject of German espionage plots. Dangers and surprises lurk everywhere ...

sez says: why a remake of this classic? I guess, like me, people want to see what they have tried to do/new with this fabulous old Hitchcock movie.  So you've got something of a built-in audience fueled by the power of Hitchcock's genius.   I assure you --this in NOT a better version. The production values (sets, costumes, etc) are all around really good, but the story is silly and veers from here to there based on happenstance and luck -- and then people who were just in the water come out of he water in dry clothing.  The end is a real cop-out. I won't say what happens but I can say it made me moan and ask out loud, why did they have to do that.  Not much reason to watch this except as a mild diversion when you don;'t want to have to think about wha't going on on the screen. (Grade D+) 

Emma, 2009 (Grade A-)

Director: Jim O'Hanlon
Masterpiece Theater Classic Production --multi-part mini-series
Starring: Romola Garai, Michael Gambon, Jonny Lee Miller, Louise Dylan, Jefferson Hall, Jodhi May, Robert Bathurst, Tamsin Greig.

sez says: well I have to admit loving costume dramas, so it is no stretch for me to like this, the latest version of the perennial classic book, that ever-so-often gets made into movie. At first I didn't think I like Garai's version of Emma--then it grew on me, till I became fond of her take on this famous literary character.  And, what do you think? Did all the right people eventually get married to each other?  OK the down side of these stories is that you always know how they will end -- but I don't care, I love them anyway.  (Grade A-)  

Murder Rooms: Mysteries of the Real Sherlock Holmes (Grade C to C+)

Starring:  Ian Richardson; Charles Edwards

mjc says:  I am always looking for a good mystery to watch (some might say, desperately looking) and so far this small series based on a professor and Arthur Conan Doyle out and about solving mysteries has been enjoyable.  It is difficult to plot a mystery, especially in movie form, that is faithful to the audience.  That is, that presents possible suspects and solutions in such a way that the viewer has a chance to solve it, without resorting to a deus ex machina.  This accomplished that goal and with Ian Richardson driving the scenes he was in it worked as drama too (scenes without him, alas, fell flat more often than not).  For the genre, C+

sez says: the stories in this series are not terribly compelling but the acting is first rate and the set design, staging is excellent -- the sets are superior in every way -- the costuming is strong too --so too bad the story lines are so -- well, so-so.  Grade C 

Unscripted, 2005

HBO Series with 10 Episodes
Directors: George Clooney & Grant Heslov
Staring: Krista Allen, Bryan Greenberg, Jennifer Hall, Frank Langella
IMDB Link:  Unscripted

sez says--this series has a Cinema Verite feel to it. It is not a documentary--but you feel like you are watching people in real life situations struggling to find their way into the the world of professional acting. Much of the story takes place in an acting class--where Frank Langella, as the 'instructor' creates a grossly exploitative character who is also strangely sympathetic. He bobbles around trying to help his students, being jealous of them, and using them (esp the women) -- all the while he struggles to explain what it takes to be an actor and how deeply within yourself you must delve to find the strength and commitment to excel in the craft.  But the class is only one aspect of the series, there is the everyday lives of people in the class--each more compelling than the next. It is real easy to recommend this. It is real easy to watch. And it is real easy to like the characters. You leave it feeling you know something of the soul and the underbelly of the world of the actor--or at least of the aspiring actor.

mjc says:  this  was so simple in its execution and yet delved deeply and realistically  into the struggle of aspiring actors.  I say this knowing nothing about the "reality" of that life, but the series was so persuasive of its point of view that it convinced me of its authenticity.  Powerful piece.

GRADE: B+

The Corner, 2000

Director Charles S Dutton
HBO Mini Series from 2000

sez says --this has a lot of the same cast as THE WIRE (which is a far superior production is every way).  There are 6 parts to THE CORNER -- we only watched thefirst two.  It was too boring to watch any more. And that is saying something--we seldom give up on a series, especially one this short.  But there was nothing to hold on to --or to compel you to want more.  To give it its due, it is an effort at a sympathetic portrayal of people living in a drug infested world.  It demonstrates that these people are much more than drug addicts and street punks and whores. Each person has history and all, except for the most forlorn, have urges toward decency, toward caring for others, toward being self critical, even toward having a sense of humor.  It is true we don't see these aspects of the down and out very often in our stories --- but making this point it is not enough, all by itself, to make a story interesting.   The truth is, it is no big secret that good people get lost in bad situations. GRADE D

mjc says:  Maybe I've just seen too many films about drugs: users, pushers, good cops, bad cops, politicians, but it is time to move on as, from a recent report I saw on LA, the users, pushers, etc seem to be doing.  Perhaps a series like this has contributed to the ability of folks to move on, I hope so but I can't watch any more of this.