Necrotongue

The creators didn’t forget the humor, but they definitely dialed it back. Honestly, it felt like things were getting a bit too serious for my taste. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel works best when it leans into its wit and lightness, especially after the heavier tone of the previous episode (which made sense there). I’m also not quite sure where Season 4 is heading yet. Unlike the earlier seasons, there doesn’t seem to be a clear goal for Midge. At this point, it feels like her biggest win might just be getting a new curtain. Overall, I’m left feeling a bit unsure for the first time. / Lesson learned: Don’t look a gift apartment in the floorboards.

The third episode felt a bit different. The humor was definitely there, and it landed well, but at the same time, the show was saying goodbye to one of its characters, and I was worried about how that would go. I’ve seen comedies get way too sentimental when they lose a character—HIMYM being the worst offender with Marshall's endless flashbacks of his dad, which completely ruined the mood for me. Thankfully, my concerns were unnecessary here. The reality of the situation didn’t allow for any over-the-top callbacks, and I felt like this was a really dignified farewell, both to the character and to the actor. Even though the episode wasn’t quite five stars in terms of plot, I threw in an extra star for how well the goodbye was handled. /"Yes, Midge? Yes, yes, Midge? Yes?"/ Lesson learned: You can never truly know someone completely.

But yes, I know it was more like a good four pieces, but I really liked the series, so I'll give it a little extra now and then. I had a much better feeling from the second episode of the fourth season than from the opening episode, because the creators gave me more opportunities to laugh, utilizing Miriam's parents, which always works for me. Abe and Rose got significantly more space than last time, and as far as I'm concerned, it's the right way. The atmosphere of the American sixties was traditionally great and once again perfectly showed why all those militant feminists and representatives of all groups associated with capital letters are so funny to me, when TODAY they are "heroically" fighting for their rights. / Lesson: The devil is in the details.

While the opening episode of Season 4 wasn’t one of the best I’ve seen, I have to admit that the mental breakdown made for a solid opener. The story did slow down a bit as the episode went on, but I still had a good time with it. / Lesson learned: Why shouldn’t Jewish kids get their birthdays rescheduled when it suits the family? After all, Christians didn’t hesitate to move the birthday of the most famous carpenter from summer to December when they couldn’t quite stamp out those pesky pagan traditions.

I’m giving Lou a very generous three stars, and honestly, that’s almost entirely thanks to Allison Janney. She pretty much carries the whole movie with her spot-on Clint Eastwood vibes. Without her, there’s not much else to praise, aside from the gloomy, damp, cold atmosphere they managed to nail. The writing, though? Pretty lazy. It feels like the scriptwriters didn’t bring anything new to the table. I mean, by the final showdown, I half-expected Lou to be limping and wielding a SPAS-12 one-handed—because that’s the kind of cliché the movie was leaning into. And really, was there a single original idea in the plot? It was so predictable that even the “twists” weren’t surprising. If you can see a twist coming from a mile away, does it even count as a twist? That's probably a question for the philosophers. Anyway, after re-reading this, I’m not even sure I can justify that third star, but here we are. Bottom line, Allison Janney was fantastic, but she deserved better than this half-baked script. / Lesson learned: Life jackets are cool, but kevlar’s cooler.

I was really enjoying this one up until the final act, which is where the creators kind of lost me. The story had a solid plot, strong performances, and Patricia Owens as Ellen nailed it with those captivating, smoldering looks into the camera. I had my suspicions about how things would play out, but the filmmakers threw in a couple of twists that actually managed to throw me off, which doesn't happen often, so I was ready to bump up my rating for that alone. But then came the ending. They crammed the whole finale into the last few minutes, and it really affected my overall impression. It just felt rushed and kind of sloppy. In the end, I couldn’t justify going higher than three stars, which is a shame because it had potential.

Labeling this as a horror film feels like someone was indulging in some magic mushrooms (honestly, I can’t think of any other explanation), but despite that odd classification, the movie managed to leave a decent impression on me. It's definitely not for impatient viewers, as the pacing drags like a frozen snail through honey. But somehow, the thick, eerie atmosphere keeps you hooked. Since I wasn't in a rush and found the story intriguing, I actually enjoyed the slow burn over the hour and a half. The film is filled with some really unpleasant characters (though there are a few decent ones sprinkled in), and their presence adds to the tense, unsettling vibe that runs through the whole thing. It makes for an uncomfortable watch—in the best possible way. I was all in on the mood it created. / Lesson learned: How can you trust others when, at times, you can't even trust yourself?

Another one of those crime/noir flicks that seemed to thrive in Britain at the time. It didn’t blow me away, nor did it feel particularly groundbreaking—just one of many films of its kind. But now that I say that, it almost sounds like I didn’t enjoy it, which isn’t true at all. I actually had a pretty good time with it. Sure, with a limited cast of characters, the villain wasn’t hard to figure out, but I have to give the filmmakers credit—they managed to keep up a solid smokescreen and maintain the suspense right until the end. Also, Susan Beaumont as Margaret was a joy to watch, and this film only reinforced my opinion that throwing cubism my way (whether good or bad) is a total waste. / Lesson learned: If you steal something too hot to handle, you're bound to get burned.

The Siege of Pinchgut is an intriguing film shot in what used to be the largest British penal colony, and despite becoming increasingly less believable as the plot progressed, I still enjoyed it. Now, I’m no firearms expert, but I couldn’t help thinking that Pinchgut was well out of range for some of those gunshots. Plus, having some firsthand experience with demolition work, I found their attempts to chip away at concrete downright absurd. Trust me, no one’s hacking through solid concrete as easily as they showed here. That said, if you set aside the implausibilities, it’s still an engaging story with solid performances. What stood out the most was the fact that I didn’t know who to root for. Almost everyone, apart from the Fulton family, had their fair share of moral baggage, which made the whole thing feel refreshingly complex. / Lesson learned: If you step in shit, at least don’t spread it everywhere. 3*+

I had a great time yesterday revisiting some old classics, so I was hoping for a similar experience today with Beautiful Stranger. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite hit the mark. The one thing I can definitely praise is the cast—they delivered solid performances across the board. But the real issue for me was the story itself. Unlike yesterday’s wild ride with Dr. Latimer, which still managed to feel believable in its own way, this film just didn’t convince me. It felt a bit like being at a symphony and hearing a few off-key notes throughout the performance. Maybe it was because the filmmakers spent too much time on the romantic moments, making the crime elements feel rushed and overly simplistic. In the end, I struggled to really connect with it, and it barely scraped by with a three-star rating from me. / Lesson learned: Slow down when you're navigating those cliffside turns. 3*-