Reviews

The only thing that saved this piece of mess was Lamorne Morris' charm (Sean). There was too much nonsense in the first act that a conclusion seemed rushed, forced and inauthentic in the second act- the formulaic montage did nothing to help! The jokes were crude and totally cringeworthy especially on the emphasis of child pornography- why they felt the need to have the main character "canoodle" with an underage boy I don't know. The joke about a baby wanting to get f*ed was absolutely disgusting and for that alone this movie should be banned!!! Give this movie a pass!

Never Have I Ever... is an enjoyable series which is easy to watch and I found something very endearing and homely about it. HOWEVER does anyone else find the fact a 29 year old is playing a teenager (and kissing 18 year olds) pretty creepy? Also Devi, the protagonist is insufferable and quite an unlikable character. Her only bit of redemption comes 2 minutes before the end credits of the last episode. Hopefully there is more character development if this title is picked up for a second season.

Coming off the high of watching "GLOW" on Netflix, I was in search of another series that depicted badass women in leading roles. "Good Girls" seemed to fit that criteria, as the blurb summarised that it was about three regular women, struggling, trying to beat the odds and take care of their families. It seemed promising enough. The pilot however seemed to drag but as this is often the case, I decided to plough on. The issues that presented themselves, however in the pilot never got any better but worse as the series went on. These issues centred around poor character development, lack of chemistry with the cast and messy writing. The writing most significantly seemed perfunctory and pedestrian and at times pointless. SPOILER ALERT- the band-aid in the sauce?! So many plot holes, it was jarring!

I don't mean to compare but it's hard not to, what so perfectly stood out with the writing of GLOW was that it was natural, nothing felt contrived or unnecessary but every sigh, mumble, pause felt needed. With Good Girls, I felt that all of the conversations were forced. Less in Mae Whitman and Retta's scenes but definitely in Christina Hendrick's scenes. It was because of this that I did not much care for the character's or their issues. The only character I could connect with and feel some empathy for is Ruby's but the other two women's motivations got muddled and irritating along the way.

I gave this series a good go, I really wanted it to get better and be more but it fell flat and would not be surprised if it is not picked up for a second series.

From the very first scene, my intelligence was insulted. Women are made to feel less than, scoffed at and humiliated because they do not fit a certain mould. I know this is part of the premise of the movie but it is ludricrous.

Amy Schumer's character is an intellligent, funny and loveable woman (which makes her beautiful) but those around her, even her friends, belittle her and themselves. She has an empowering moment where she "feels pretty" but it seems to come with a cost. Her intelligence is dumbed down because no way can you be beautiful and smart at the same time! It is cringeworthy. She even loses her friends because her new found self confidence turns her into a nightmare.

Her redemption comes when she falls for a lovely guy but even this subplot falls short of anything of substance when he starts trying to be something he is not- there's a particular scene at a dinner party- I won't spoil it but needless to say it was unnecessary as was the hot brother making moves on Amy Schumer's character.

I get that the message was "it's on the inside that counts" but it was lost along the way. Her friends tell her that they are not friends with her because she is beautifu but because she is a great gal. The message should have been "you are beautiful because you're smart, funny and a great friend." There's also this underlying tone that regular girls are poor, can't afford cosmetics or get dates. That, in itself was hilariously vulgar.

It's 2018 and women are still being dumbed down and written as caricatures of themselves, categorised as either drop dead gorgeous or smart and regular. You can't be both. Give me a break!

Honestly, I am glad I didn't pay for my ticket otherwise I would have asked for a refund.

It could have been so much better!

I feel some of these reviews are unfair but I appreciate the different points of view.

I think the series did a good job with shining a spotlight on some serious issues; in particular suicide, bullying and rape. The acting was good on the most part with some standout performances by Katherine Langford and the one who played Clay (forgot the actor's name). However, I found the one who played Jess to be very wooden and unconvincing.

There are a few reviews stating that Hannah bought things on herself and that she went through a lot of issues that everybody goes through in high school and she should have just got over it. Whilst that is the pedestrian way of looking at it, this series is looking at how others' actions impact negatively on someone else and how people react differently to situations. In this case Hannah Baker felt that suicide was the only option. That's the whole point of the show. She told us her perspective which I empathised with. She was isolated, she tried to befriend people but every time she was knocked back. She was quite innocent and naive on her outlook and expected the best from people and she was dealt a bad hand every time, apart from her friendship with Clay.

The rape storyline was another plot point that I see others dismissing and almost as if it was the vicrims' fault rather than Bryce's. Yes, Hannah should've reported Jess' rape- I'm not excusing that- but her decision to go to Bryce's party was not premeditated and she had no way of knowing her fate would be the same. She fought off as much as she could but she had already "clocked out" on life a long time ago. She just couldn't do it anymore and the build up of guilt, shame and loneliness was enough for her to contemplate and execute her suicide sadly.

Now for the plot holes... 1.Tony's character was kind of surplus and jarring at times. He didn't add much to the story and didn't know any more or less than the others who had listened to the tapes. Perhaps more will be revealed in series 2. 2. Hannah had no need to put Clay on the tapes and put him through that torture. A friend would not do that. If she expected him to be her "avenger" she should have made him separate tapes or better yet write it in a note. The supposed twist just made it all seem clunky and awkward. What Clay did was minor and I was expecting more. 3. Did Jess know before the tapes that she was raped? Why was she flirting so much with Bryce? 4. Why was Justin still friends with Bryce whilst still trying to protect Jess?! That was very warped. 5. No note for the parents? Who were so loving and supportive of Hannah. That was cold. In this instance, Hannah was selfish.

All in all, I would recommend this show; it's gripping plus raises awareness. It's not all bad.