Click on Image to see the transformation of Walter White. A stunning GIF made by Andy McDonald
Breaking Bad just ended; last night the final episode aired. I watched it as it aired, with commercials. I can’t remember the last time I did that. Wow! It didn’t disappoint. I have already gone on and on about why this show is so great in a previous post HERE so I won’t repeat myself.
I laughed at myself when I remembered how low I was aiming when I tried to figure out what would be a satisfying ending for this show. Creator/Producer Vince Gilligan defied my expectations with the final 8 episodes of this brilliant series. The ending was more than satisfying; it was poetic and authentic. I watched it with my mother-in-law, who had never seen a single episode prior to last night’s. She too was stunned by its audacity and vision. So thanks to the cast and crew for a wildly satisfying 6 year ride.
If you like dark drama with a streak of even darker humour, then this is for you. It is one of the best acted, most stylishly filmed and tightly written TV programs EVER (ok,ok, tied with Spartacus for the top spot) . It is one of a few series that went out on top.
Both Spartacus and Breaking Bad have concluded this year and they have raised the bar so high that it is hard to get effusive about any other TV programs, whether new or returning. They all seem like pale shadows.
So when I check out a few of this year’s new shows (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Sleepy Hollow, Dracula, The Originals), I will try to be kind and patient but it will require effort. I will go in with low expectations and hope to be surprised.
I am currently part way through the latest season of Strike Back (Cinemax season 3) and it has held up well. I will also be sticking with Castle, The Vampire Diaries and Supernatural for now. But it is hard to get too excited about their returns. I am looking forward to the next great TV show to steal my heart. I am open to suggestions/recommendations.
How did you like the Breaking Bad finale?
Late addition.
Great minds think alike. I guess I don’t have to ask how Sir Anthony Hopkins liked it.
I saw this film with my husband and friends on opening weekend a few weeks prior. It got really good reviews (90% on the Tomatometer and 7.7/10 at IMDB) and we were all fans of the cast and crew. We were pretty excited to catch the last instalment of the “Cornetto trilogy“. We got there early, were the first ones in and snagged the best seats in the house. I haven’t done that in a long time. It is just as well, because the theatre was soon packed with other fans.
This film did not disappoint. The World’s End is a comedic-apocalyptic-sci-fi mash up that begins with a group of middle aged men who had been great chums during high school. The first part of the film deals with their relationships, past and present. At the behest of the alcoholic, self appointed leader, aptly named Gary King (Simon Pegg) they reunite after various degrees of estrangement. Gary wants to conquer an epic home town quest that they abandoned 20 years prior. The “Golden Mile” is a 12 stop pub crawl route that concluded at the titular haunt, The World’s End pub. Gary is obsessed with succeeding this time. Why that is so remains a matter of debate. The other fellows seem to have long since forgotten about a night of excessive drinking that Gary considered his zenith. Poor Gary seems stuck in adolescence, whereas the other 4 (Martin Freeman, Nick Frost Paddy Consadine and Eddie Marsan) have settled down to 9-5 jobs, mortgages and families. As they embark on their quest, they realize that something is amiss; everything has changed in the town of Newton Haven. Hardly anyone remembers their legendary exploits. Logic dictates that the townsfolk have been body snatched. As they come to that abrupt conclusion, the movie shifts gears into action. The fate of the world seems to lie in their hands. Will they reach The World’s End pub before they reach the end of the world as they know it?
Fun action sequences and well choreographed fights are juxtaposed with a killer soundtrack and social commentary on such things as nostalgia, aging, arrested development, conformity, substance abuse, selective memory, bullying and suicide. There are laughs to be had along the way, more so with the self referential winks to those familiar with the previous instalments of the “Cornetto trilogy”. Is this latest film the best of these three independent stories? No, not to me. I rather favour Hot Fuzz but it is a fresher memory, so perhaps it is time to revisit Shaun of the Dead.
The ending had me guessing at what was real and what was in the minds of the characters long after I left the theatre. We all enjoyed it and I for one am looking forward to watching it again on DVD.
I am a middle-aged mother of 2 tweenage daughters. Today I found myself in the movie theatre with my youngest (aged 10, big 1D fan) and her 2 best friends watching the One Direction (1D) film This is Us in 2D. My husband was in the neighbouring theatre with our 12 year old (not a 1D fan) and her friend watching The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. My husband and I chuckled prior to entering our respective torture chambers as we pondered who had the worse fate.
Until that point, I had been aware, yet indifferent to 1D music. I came of age during an era of relative boy band void. When I was the target age of such groups, Donny Osmond and Michael Jackson were spreading their wings. Their music did not speak to me and by the time I was past it, in high school, I was into the New Wave (alternative stuff like The Stranglers, The Smiths, The Waterboys) and discovering classic rock (The Rolling Stones, The Doors). I guess Duran Duran was the closest thing, but not quite and I was never a huge fan of them any way. Regardless, I thought that I, a middle aged, au courant, professional career woman, music lover (Vampire Weekend, Muse, fun! The Killers) was immune to the boy band phenomenon. Then I saw this film.
I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the film (whereas my poor husband found himself in a theatre instinctively reaching for a nonexistent remote control desperately seeking a Fast Forward option). This film was very fun. It seemed a wholesome depiction of 5 extremely talented singers, some who also play instruments. The music was catchy; the lyrics formulaic yet there were awesome covers of Wheatus’ “Teenage Dirtbag” and Blondie’s “One Way or Another” in addition to familiar big hits. It wasn’t long (with the patient guidance of my daughter) before I could identify each member of the group by name and I found myself swaying in my seat with a goofy grin on my face. Yes, I admit it, I was having a good time in a practically empty theatre with a few young girls who were thrilled to be there.
This film was well directed (Morgan Spurlock) and creatively edited to provide a glimpse at 5 charming and handsome young men (Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson) from working class backgrounds, on a concert tour. Concert footage was interwoven with scenes of back stage antics, fan testimonials, interviews with the lads’ parents and occassional public outings where we witnessed their harassment by hysterical young girls. They appeared down-to-earth and rather appreciative of their current success. Wisely (or calculatedly) they never failed to credit the fans. That they love and miss their respective families could not be disputed. Indeed, many of their parents seem shocked at how their sons had been catapulted to fame. There was a palpable sense of loss when we watched the parents express their bewilderment.
The film was surprisingly aware at how unlikely this level of fandemonium could be sustained. I was particularly impressed by their self awareness, as they expressed misgivings about finding life partners who wouldn’t be influenced by their fame. One of my biggest complaints about this film was how the producers made repeated comparisons to Beatlemania. Seriously! How can one even discuss 1D’s recent rise to global popularity, in the internet era with that of the Beatles? Arguably the Fab Four remain one of the most talented song-writing teams and successful rock/pop band ever. 1D is unabashedly a manufactured pop band with a team of talented musicians, song-writers and producers behind 5 fresh and surprisingly heavily tattooed lads. The team knows how to craft songs that tug at prepubescent heart-strings and the lads deliver. “Are all songs about love ?” my daughter asked me. “Most of the popular ones are.” was all I could say. And the 1D lads are oh so young (19-21 years old) and seemingly happy to be heavily managed. It is laughable when they suggested that each individual member of the group was integral to the groups success. As if there wasn’t another talented handsome young U.K. singer with mediocre dance moves that young girls would swoon over, sigh. But they too will get older and some of the lads will becaome men who may even decide that they are tired of being told what to do. That is if the fickle tween market doesn’t decide for them. And then what?
But for now, they are a fun loving group of talented pranksters who don’t seem to take themselves too seriously. I hope they avoid the usual trappings of young fame (drugs, mismanaged funds) and find continued success a la Justin Timberlake. Only time will reveal the longevity of this band. You never know, they might beat the odds.
This film was made for fans, yet I, the casual viewer was entertained. It didn’t delve too much about their early life beyond being discovered as teens and brought together during their participation in The X Factor. But for those of us who could not manage to see them live (I lack the fortitude to navigate the chaos required to attend a live show with my daughter), this is a pretty good alternative. Call me pleasantly surprised.
This film still holds up after all these years. I think this is one of the best romantic comedy of the last 30 years. I watched it with my daughters and they were delighted by the humour and the characters. It deals with the evolution of a relationship between 2 people who keep running into each other over the course of several years. At first, they don’t get along and then slowly a beautiful friendship and possibly more develops. I can watch it again in a heartbeat, it is so funny, sweet and still rings true. And that diner scene, “I’ll have what she’s having.” is priceless.
I hadn’t watch this in decades, when I noticed it was available through our cable company’s On Demand service. So I watched it with my husband and eldest daughter; boy was I surprised at how much we all enjoyed it. Set in a future dystopian Detroit, fallen cop Murphy (Peter Weller) is resurrected as the titular cyborg. Yes, it is violent but also startlingly prescient. It weaves the essence of one man’s humanity through a crime story that layers on elements of corporate greed and vengeance. The stop-motion animation sequences are dated but brief. Otherwise, it was great film to revisit and introduce to my daughter. It is being remade, set for a 2014 release. One can only hope it is as good as the original.
What a pleasant surprise this film was. Our whole family enjoyed this romantic comedy horror mash-up retelling of Romeo and Juliet. It is boy meets girl, or rather zombie boy meets soldier girl. This film takes us inside the head of R (Nicholas Hoult), a zombie who can’t remember his previous existence. We experience the struggle within him as he meets and falls for Julie (Teresa Palmer). Before long she realizes that R isn’t simply a soulless monster that she was trained to annihilate. Now if she can only convince her dad (John Malkovich), the leader of the human survivors that zombies aren’t all bad…..
This film remains the standard to which all action shoot-em ups will be compared to. This film succeeds despite Arnold Shwarzenegger in the lead role because he is flanked by a fun script, a hilarious supporting cast (Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton) and a Charlton Heston cameo.
I had forgotten how much physical comedy peppers a script that is chock a block with funny one-liners and innovative chases and combative sequences (automatic weapon falling down the stairs comes to mind). Yes, it is completely violent and unrealistic and it knows it, with many winks to the audience. Considering my youngest daughter and I have a serious allergy to mindless action and endless chase scenes, we consider this to be a highly entertaining film that stands the test of time.
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What is Ann Watching? 