I am addicted to the series “Foyle’s War” (six extraordinary seasons –2002-2010–on BBC Television) now available through Netflix. Set in a small coastal town, Hastings, in Great Britain during World War II, a middle-aged police chief, Detective Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle (the underrated Michael Kitchen) assumes the responsibility of solving murders in the midst of the confusion of war. While war rages around the world, perpetrators both civilian and military assume they can commit all sorts of heinous crimes with impunity: murder, robbery, espionage,...
“Safe House”–A Safe Bet
It seems only fair to see a dick-flick after having recommended rom-coms for Valentine’s Day. And did I pick a winner–my husband gave it a 10, which is very rare for him. The movie is “Safe House” and it stars and is produced by the exceptional Denzel Washington.
No ordinary action-pic–although it has ample car chases, staccato bursts of exploding bombs, violent fights with guns and knives, and impossible jumps from one rooftop to another–there are still enough surprising plot twists to keep you surprised throughout.
The story is fairly routine–I...
Valentine’s Day–Rom-Coms (aka Chick Flicks) Anyone?
It’s that time of year again, when guys dread having to let their female partner/friend/spouse choose the movie while they fight back tears having to pass up another testosterone-charged action film (like “Drive” or “300”). Well, guess what? There are a few I thought are just right for snuggling together on the couch with a chilled glass of wine. They have witty, lightweight scripts, without the cringe-inducing mawkish, saccharine dialect of films like “The Ugly Truth (2009). To me comedy is the most difficult to write, since humor is a very delicate but...
Netflix Instant Queue–BBC’s Your Best Bet
For those of you who like to curl up with a DVD at night mailed to you directly from Netflix, only to be disappointed after watching it for ten or fifteen minutes, or finding that the DVD is defective and unwatchable, let me suggest some of the winners we have seen on Instant Queue in the last several months. Watching a movie via Netflix streaming isn’t much different from renting a DVD, but for TV fans it offers a unique way to view one episode after another of addictive series such as “Mad Men”, “Damages”, or “Breaking Bad”. Viewers can now watch...
‘Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy”–Not Enough Tinkering for My Taste
This cinematic remake of the landmark mini-TV series from 1980, starring Alec Guiness, is updated with Gary Oldman in the starring role that Guiness made so famous. Based upon the John le Carré espionage thriller, “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” dramatizes British secret intelligence–nicknamed “The Circus” –during the early 1970s Cold War.
Control (John Hurt), the chief intelligence operative, is forced into retirement because a covert operation failed to identify a double agent or “mole”. Forced into retirement along with Control, Smiley (Gary Oldman)...
“The Iron Lady” — Meryl Streep Nails It
Winner of the best actor 2012 Golden Globe for her stunning performance in “The Iron Lady”, Meryl Streep plays Margaret Thatcher, the iconic Prime Minister second only to Winston Churchill in power and impact on Great Britain. “The Iron Lady” is, at times, an exceptional meditation on old age and it is, once more, a virtuoso performance by the genius that is Meryl Streep.
First and foremost, however, “The Iron Lady” is a portrait of Thatcher as a woman whose tremendous sacrifices to family and identity were viewed, both by her and by her advisors, as necessary in order...