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ladyjane99
Reviews
Bobby's Triple Threat (2022)
Enjoyable, but...
The concept is good, but the chefs going against the titans sometimes make better dishes, yet get less points. The random judges have their own preferences, of course. It'd be more interesting, if they changed the titans each season. Who reckoned these chefs to be the titans? Mei Lin beat the titans and won the belt in Guy Fieri's Tournament of Champions, so she's more of a titan than any of the titans. Food Network recycles these chefs, getting tired of the same faces. It'd be great to see new chefs enter the scene, which TOC is now trying to do. But, of course, not all chefs want to become TV personalities nor have the time.
A Salute to NCIS: Los Angeles (2023)
Great TV-show, not so good Salute
This was the best NCIS spin-off in my humble opinion. From what I read, it was cancelled due to high production costs. Maybe you could've had less explosions, etc. It could also have scheduled on another day. On Sundays after sport was poor timing, because recordings often had only half of the episode. The characters were great and formed a family of their own. As much as I enjoyed the actors recollections of the show, I did not enjoy the Entertainment Tonight's ADHD format, which was at times hard to follow. This show was worth a better salute. It was moving to see the actors' reaction to Miguel Ferrer's passing away.
Guy's Grocery Games: All-Star Egg-stravaganza (2021)
Hilarious episode
This was a very entertaining and humorous episode, though they were now airing this as new season 32 episode 2 in April 2023. Eggs are a powerhouse on their own. Maybe Guy Fieri hates eggs or this was all just for show. Food Network has many great chefs who can cook healthy food. Yet there are no TV-shows for it. So many people have high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. All they are offered are cooking shows and competitions with high fat and cholesterol content. Food Network should have at least have one, just one, show that would offer us healthy recipes to enjoy. Well, you can still enjoy eggs moderately even if you have cholesterol issues.
Mamma Mia! (2008)
Perfect Bullseye for A Summer Movie
Fantastic, fun, and entertaining. If you like Abba songs, you'll love the movie, and maybe you'll like it for the humor and just plain fun and silliness even if you don't like the music so much, though this truly is a musical with a lot of songs crammed in it. I don't usually care for musicals, but this somehow hit the spot. I wish more movies were shot in the beautiful Mediterranean islands, because the setting was absolutely gorgeous. Watching the movie was like being on vacation without having to travel anywhere. I still remember watching Abba win the Eurovision Song Contest with "Waterloo." So glad they made the musical into a movie for even more people to enjoy.
The Last Don (1997)
Boring Movie Out of A Good Book
About the most boring movie ever made on the subject. The book was good, but wasn't transferred into a movie that would have held one's interest. Maybe it was the use of the Don himself as a narrator, maybe the flat performance of Danny Aiello, maybe the fact that none of the characters came out with any depth...whatever "it" was, it resulted in an uninteresting movie.
The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)
A Good Remake
It is refreshing to see good remake at last. I pass most of them having been disappointed so many times, but since this story has always been one of my favorites, I had to go and see it. The realization of this old story is very well balanced, doesn't drag, and the characters seem very real indeed. Great production work, directing and acting. An enjoyable experience.
Ocean's Eleven (2001)
Was it worth it?
You expect a lot with a cast like the one in this movie, which probably is one reason you may end up disappointed. Somehow all these good actors just didn't work. Can't remember the original, though I saw it years ago, and can say the same about this one. Remakes very seldom work, but apparently lack of good original scripts makes the studios shoot out all these remakes. The funny notion was that Julia Roberts walked on the high heels like a farm girl. She could've have had heavy boots on just the same. Otherwise a fantastic actress, but if she isn't used to heels like that, why make her wear them. For me this was a waste of time and money.
What Women Want (2000)
A mediocre comedy
This movie could have been funny but it never quite made it, instead it ended up rather lame. I don't think I laughed even once, smiled a few times, but never laughed. Mel Gibson was alright, yet did not get a chance to show his full potential as a comedy actor (hey, the Lethal Weapons and Bird on A Wire were better!). Helen Hunt, despite spending years on Mad About You, is not a comedienne. There should be comedy shining through playing the straight role, but there isn't. This movie makes and ok rental, and I regret I didn't go see Miss Congeniality instead.
Uuno Turhapuro (1973)
One of the most beloved Finnish characters
Uuno Turhapuro may even be the most beloved Finnish character in the field of comedy, at least the movies still hang in there among the top Finnish comedies ever seen. Well over a dozen films on one character sounds amazing, but somehow Uuno never lost the touch and people wanted to see him again and again. He was the basic bum, didn't work, loved his couch and fridge, and thought he was a real ladies' man--in his torn, dirty undershirt and with his messy hair and teeth badly in need of dental work. But he was sooo lovable, even with his somewhat disgusting looks he was funny as could be, and he could talk his way through anything. I have never seen a better composed comedy character on screen. These are the only movies I've gone to see and missed half the dialogue, because people were laughing so hard. I wish they were available abroad, the Finnish humor might translate well through this character.
American Beauty (1999)
No Big Deal
I it all the attention films get that suddenly seem to make one rise above the others? After seeing the American Beauty I have no idea what makes it seem so great and to me it seems it was a lot of hulabaloo over nothing. Acting was good, but definitely not Oscar-worthy. My first impulsive opinion of the movie was that it was weird, if anything, but if it pictured what the American society these days, so be it (hopefully not!) This movie didn't offer anything new, really. Well, could be I missed the point...but it is always just a matter of opinion.
Niskavuoren Aarne (1954)
Family Saga At Its Best
The Finnish Niskavuori series is a family saga at its best and portrays some of the best actor and actress performances, but you could expect as much with one the best Finnish directors, Edwin Laine. It's a shame that movies like these do not get world-wide distribution, because they deserve it, but the language barrier is one very big obstacle. The powerful storytelling of the Niskavuori series was created by Hella Wuolijoki who portrayed the times, customs and people the way they were.
The Niskavuori family always had strong women and weak men, whether they were born into the family or married to it. The women were patient, wise and ran the business affairs being definitely the corner stone of the family, while men had affairs, drank or otherwise didn't prove to have the spine to keep the family together.
Aarne was one such male character. Instead of wanting to continue the tradition of running the family farm, he had an affair with a teacher, left his wife and moved to he city with the teacher. Anything like that was a scandal in those days. Later, of course, he returned back to the farm, which again was a manifestation of the strong attachment to land and tradition that Finnish people share.
Edwin Laine also directed a remake of the movie, I think it was in the 80's, which was just as good as the original. The drama preserved its originality and somehow didn't seem like "the old days," though the movie was of course still set in the same era.
The Haunting (1999)
The Hill House May Cause Insomnia
The camera work, special effects and sound effects in this film are truly enjoyable, and give you all the creeps you need. Plus add a good cast to go through the haunting experience, and you've got a pretty good movie. Makes me wonder why critics were putting it down. I enjoyed it, and liked the fact that it actually had a plausible story. Not something unbelievable out of space or a cosmic creation, or a revengeful ghost killing everyone. Maybe that was best about the movie, killing the characters and thinning out the cast was not the main point but it were the creepy sounds, the things you didn't see and then the visual effects that kept you in suspense. Well, there are these haunted houses in New England... (though the "castle" of this movie was in Britain.)
Deep Blue Sea (1999)
It May Be Blue But Is It Deep?
The one word that came to mind after watching Deep Blue Sea was "stupid." Every single time something was to happen in the movie, you knew it was going to happen, because the characters were ever so stupid to just stand there waiting for something bad to happen. So you see a few scenes with dummies (now I mean the dolls) torn in half by sharks and tons of water everywhere.
This movie lacks the suspense and growing uneasiness Jaws offered, and, of course, one compares it to Jaws since it is a shark movie. Now I liked Die Hard 2, Cliffhanger, and Long Kiss Goodnight a lot, but Deep Blue Sea, nah, wasn't worth the time it took to see it. Renny Harlin can do better, at least he did before.
Arlington Road (1999)
Refreshingly unpredictable thriller
Once for a long time a movie that keeps you at the edge of your seat. The beginning throws you right in the middle of it and the build-up makes you want things to happen even faster, because you don't know what's going to happen next and how it all is going to end. Like one of those books that you can't put down till you reach the end.
Great acting, great camera angles, and excellent pace make this movie worth watching. Well, yes, the ending may seem unfair or unjustified or disturbing like another user suggested, but it might as well be real life, which normally doesn't have the usual justified movie endings. The kicker ending makes the movie redeem its worth, a normal ending would've made it just "one of those movies."