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A few reviews . . (film or TV) — Page 181

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Hot Enough For June - 1964 - 6/10

Aspiring writer Nicholas, on the dole, lands a job with a glass firm.
Which is actually a front for MI6, now sending ignorant amateurs into the field.
In this case, Prague 1964, still very much behind the Iron Curtain.
Even as an innocent, our faux spy (Dirk Bogard) catches on quick.
And tumbles for his Czech minder, Sylva Koscina.
This starts as a satire, gradually grows more serious, though the tone stays light.

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Arctic Circle - 2018 - 6/10
AKA - Ivalo

A sexually transmitted disease breaks out in northern Finland.
Mating is OK, hosts are OK, but pregnancies turn into spontaneous, bloodied abortions.
If it spreads, extinction of humanity on a mass scale within generations.
Scientists and law enforcement work in tandem to track down and isolate carriers.
For a cure? They need to find patient zero.
Potentially gripping thriller is weighed down with too many characters and side plots.
Minor characters are more like cameos, several of the breakaway plots simply vanish.
I suspect writers had enough material for a great 6-part series, but the show was 10 episodes.
Padding, and obvious padding at that.

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Behind Stone Walls - 1932 - 5/10

The dinner party was breaking up anyway.
The District Attorney (aspiring Governor) is taking wife Esther to theatre.
Until the courthouse phones, saying only HE can handle an extradition.
With that, Esther slips off to play hide the sausage with the best friend.
Grade-C Pre-Code is loaded with sleaze.
Adultery, murder, blackmail (financial and sexual), and sly courtroom deals.
Acting is stilted, directing stagey, dialogue a river of pauses and gushes.

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On Becoming A Guinea Fowl - 2024 - 7/10

Driving home from a costume party, Shula sees a body in the road.
Her Uncle Fred – dead. She phones her father, who is drunk but still begs for money.
A cousin appears, waving a bottle and bombed out of her mind.
Police eventually take charge, and Shula goes home to settle herself.
Until an auntie quartet arrives, wailing, hollering, issuing demands.
Why, I wonder, is professional woman Shula is still living there?
This “comedy” will play better for members of big, boisterous, nosy families.
And while the aunties may say, “We love you, our children” it becomes clear they loved Fred more.
For ostriches and those who always look the other way, avoid this.
Otherwise, an eye-opening view of Zambia.

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’49-‘17 - 1917 - 6/10

Stifled by Eastern refinements, the Judge hankers for the wilder West of his youth.
Back when he was an original ‘49er.
He sends his young assistant to restore ghost town Nugget Notch and fill it with suitable inhabitants.
Unfortunately, by 1917, most weren’t as comfortable with shooting irons as the Judge had been.
There are a few mysteries to unravel, pardner, as well as the town cutie lusted after by the gambler.
And Jean Hersholt as Gentleman Jim steals the money, the scene, and the movie.
Fun little Silent kinda moseys along, although it barely runs an hour.

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The Girl On The Late, Late Show - 1974 - 6/10

So whatever happened to Carolyn Parker?
Big star a few decades earlier, now disappeared.
So wonders the producer of a New York morning show, who flies out to Los Angeles.
Mixed concoction of Noir, TV formula and laziness.
The premise is solid, but the plotting, the writing, lacks edge.
Stars in cameos include Van Johnson, Walter Pidgeon, Yvonne De Carlo.
Noir heavyweights John Ireland and Gloria Graham are given mere moments.
While a failed attempt, this is worth tracking down by Noir fans.

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Litsid - 2018 - 5/10
AKA - Madame K // Whores

So, in your wildest dreams, imagine Hallmark decides to create a series about a brothel.
Filled with lots of young, attractive females who love their work, giggle and laugh, and share happy moments.
Complicating matters: this is Estonia, 1939, on the eve of World War II.
Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union are squeezing the small nation.
Meanwhile, the house is kinda / sorta busy with well-dressed officers, glib politicians, and athletes.
The ladies are all smiles, historic accuracy – unsure, the storyline pure puffery.
Followed by a spinoff series, which I have no interest in.

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 (Edited)

The Last Shark - 1981 - 5/10
AKA - L’ultimo Squalo

The annual windsurfing regatta is scheduled for the weekend.
Meanwhile, a great white has arrived in the neighborhood, and it has a taste for long pig.
The mayor and local skippers take precautions, but this is one wily fish.
It can tear things up, it can build, as well. It’s big, it’s fast, and it is not anorexic.
Blatant ripoff of Jaws proves laugh out action after a lethargic start.
For viewers who slow down to gape at car accidents, there are piles of unhappy meals.

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Final Destination: Bloodlines - 2025 - 7/10

Aww, man. And the day had been going so well, too.
Who would have guessed such a small thing would have dire consequences?
Not only for Iris, in the middle of the conflagration, but for her family down the line.
Major reboot of a franchise I had lost interest in.
The Rube Goldbergs in this are cleverly thought out, well executed.
While not a comedy, the humor here is pitch black appropriate.
Tony Todd has a nice role in this, his final appearance in the series.

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Apple Cider Vinegar - 2025 - 7/10

Quasi-true retelling of Belle Gibson, health influencer.
She had terminal brain cancer, but survived it. Incredible!
How? Good food, exercise, New Age medicines.
Once online, once with her own book and web app, she garnered millions of followers.
And – surprise – she reaps financial windfalls.
Hucksters and frauds extend back to cavemen.
Short series manages to be funny and infuriating, based on a true con artist.
For trusting souls who hope YouTube health videos will cure those ailments, here’s your guru.

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Sweet Mama - 1930 - 6/10

Goldie, member of the burlesque troupe, is stranded when she receives word her boyfriend is arrested.
She races back to New York, only to find Jimmy has already been sprung.
By his boss, nightclub owner and racketeer, who likes withdrawing money from banks.
Twist on a common trope, Goldie is determined to rescue her man.
Lively Pre-Code trots merrily from beginning to end.
Short film, under an hour, owing to most songs being cut after audiences hollered “Enough already!”.
Alice White captivates, others hit and miss, the gangster undercurrent adds an angle.

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Murder In Sarlat - 2017 - 6/10
AKA - Meurtres à Sarlat

Clues include references to ancient feuds between peasants and aristocrats.
Oh, and a big clue jutting from the chest.
The paired investigators apparently had an anonymous fling a few years earlier.
So he, a wad of insecurities, starts whining, wondering if he was unmemorable.
This was unnecessary, as the mystery, the history, the suspects, are all fine.
Ignore the forced romance, and focus on the slithering heels.