While I was watching the movie, I was already thinking about what I could write here because it’s kind of sensational to witness a bad Guy Ritchie film and an outstanding Hugh Grant performance at the same time. But sometimes, somebody else already has the words you’re not finding. In this case, I stumbled upon an IMDb review by user arabnikita that perfectly nailed it. Thus, I will borrow arabnikita’s words:

“This is how I imagine the pitch for this film went.

Producer: ‘Hey Guy, we got a bunch of money from some brands and countries and they want us to make a commercial… I mean a movie.’

Guy: ‘Can we travel around the world, drink nonstop, and pretend to care about the whole thing?’

Producer: ‘Say no more!’

I love Guy Ritchie’s films and will watch anything this man makes, but Operation Fortune didn’t even feel like it was made by Guy Ritchie. Frankly speaking, as I watched the first half, I was getting the impression that many of the scenes were filmed on a phone and then were stapled into the film. The second half does change for the better, but it can’t shake the sensation left by the half-baked scenes in terms of visuals, audio, and production.

The story is about a mercenary team that is hired to get a briefcase with some stolen weapon. To be honest, the plot felt like listening to a drunk guy telling a story as some scenes got a lot of attention, some didn’t make any logical sense, and everything was flashy and colorful. The worst part of it all was that there were no trademarks which Guy Ritchie is known for, such as snappy dialogue, sharp humor, and interesting storytelling. The actors were likable and had some level of charisma, but most of the time it felt like watching a few buddies having fun instead of a dedicated cast making a film.

The film that kept coming to my mind the entire time was Grown Ups 2, where Adam Sandler took his friends for a nice vacation and accidentally made a movie at the same time. I wouldn’t say I was infuriated by any element of Operation Fortune, but after enjoying The Gentlemen and Wrath of Man, I expected Guy Ritchie to put in more effort. The action was decent and the second half was kind of exciting, but that’s about it. Whether you like his work or not, I would recommend avoiding this film as there is no logic, no humor, and most importantly, no Guy Ritchiness whatsoever.”

Source: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw8822761/?ref_=tt_urv

Jerry Seinfeld is a comedian I deeply respect, though I’ve never been a fan of him or his self-titled sitcom. Despite this, I recognize that Seinfeld has touched many people worldwide with his work, which is an outstanding achievement.

Now, Seinfeld returns on Netflix with “Unfrosted,” a 90-minute comedy that is just the right length for a movie like that. This presumably Kellogg’s co-financed story about Pop-Tarts is colorful and a bit over the top, reminiscent of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit“, “Lemony Snicket,” or “Barbie.”

While the story is fairly predictable and unsurprising, the jokes and puns span from 1980s and early 1990s knee-slappers (Level: Dad Joke) to moments of absolute genius. This blend is what I’d expect from Jerry Seinfeld, and perhaps also the reason why I never became a fan him. Yet, Seinfeld delivers his signature style, and that’s noteworthy.

The movie’s best feature, without a doubt, is the cast. When a Jerry Seinfeld calls for a casting, it seems everyone in Hollywood wants to be involved, no matter how small the role. I won’t list everyone here because the list is far too long, but Hugh Grant, and the Mad Men Jon Hammand John Slattery stood out, making me laugh the hardest. Their performances, coupled with the jokes around their roles, highlight Seinfeld’s brilliance.

Someone else might have made more out of the story, but I had fun watching the movie. It’s not a piece of art or an innovative flick; it’s just perfect entertainment for a Sunday evening.

After watching Season 1, I was really enthusiastic about Resident Alien. But now, after having watched Season 2, it’s time for disenchantment. I still find this show highly entertaining, but it seems to have lost its ease.

Season 1 consists of ten episodes, which seems to be a perfect length for shows with an average episode duration of about 45 minutes. However, Season 2 comes with 16 episodes, requiring more dramatic composition. It feels like the writers couldn’t decide on one direction. Instead of building up to a tense climax, the show creates numerous loose ends which, fortunately, are eventually resolved. Most of them. There’s still room for a cliffhanger. There are many events happening in Patience, Colorado, but only a few of them significantly drive the plot. I am both glad and sad that Season 3 will only consist of 8 episodes.

But the humor remains on point and serves as good compensation for the tedious, lengthy parts. Once again, there are plenty of Easter eggs that make me smile, many of which others may not understand. I’m pretty sure I didn’t catch every reference.

Resident Alien Season 2 is fun to watch, but if it had been the first season, it wouldn’t have made me a fan.

Update: When I wrote that post, I had only seen the first season. Meanwhile, I finished season 2, and now I’m waiting for season 3 to come to Germany. So the following review only applies to season 1.

I hadn’t heard of the series before Netflix recommended it to me. With the familiar face of Alan Tudyk, it caught my attention. I know him from “A Knight’s Tale,” “Firefly”, and “Tucker and Dale vs. Evil.” He’s one of the less commonly known actors, I guess, but I really like the roles he chooses, and I love how he brings life to his characters with little funny or absurd details that make the usual unusual.

The same goes for Resident Alien. The plot is pretty trivial: an alien crashes in the boring city of Patience (the name…) in Colorado (why do aliens always land in the USA?), disguises himself as a local outsider, lives undercover in a small-town community, and gets unwillingly to know the people. The alien replaces Dr. Harry Vanderspeigle, who happens to have the bad luck to meet the alien after the crash, and moves into his lonely cabin at a lake. Coincidentally, the local town doctor dies, and Harry gets called to the crime scene. And so the climax begins.

As the higher-developed aliens seem to know everything about the human species, they don’t understand why humans do human things. Again, this is not new: the super-intelligent, highly logical, and non-emotional alien 🖖🏻, but Tudyk just fills the role in his very own manner.

Also, not new: the aliens want to eradicate mankind from the surface of the Earth because humans behave like assholes and destroy their own home planet. Again. They’ve done that already multiple times, e.g., with the Mayas. As I mentioned previously: humans doing human things.

But then again, there is this thing with the feelings and emotions that are unknown to the alien species, but through Harry’s body copy, the alien suddenly is confronted with being human not only from the outside but also from the inside. That leads to questioning his mission.

Besides Alan Tudyk, the other members of the cast also form a great ensemble: Sara Tomko, Corey Reynolds, Alice Wetterlund, Levi Fiehler, Judah Prehn, Elizabeth Bowen, and many more.

And it’s the subtle details that make me smile, like the names “Patience” or “Mayor Hawthorne”, and that make Resident Alien a lovable show.

Just when I hear the name Dick Turpin, a rush of memories hit me. Remembering all the fun I had as a kid watching Sidney James and the “Carry on…” movies.

The historic person of Richard Turpin (1705–1739) was an English highwayman, son of a butcher, whose exploits were romanticized following his execution in York for horse theft. In the early 1730s, Turpin became involved with the Essex gang of deer thieves. The Essex Gang is also part of the new show available on Apple TV.

He is also known for a fictional 200-mile (320 km) overnight ride from London to York on his horse Black Bess, a story that was made famous by the Victorian novelist William Harrison Ainsworth almost 100 years after Turpin’s death. Ainsworth’s legend of Black Bess was repeated in works such as Black Bess or the Knight of the Road, a 254-part penny dreadful published in 1867–68. In these tales, Turpin was the hero, accompanied by his trusty colleagues Claude Duval, Tom King, and Jack Rann. These narratives, which transformed Turpin from a pockmarked thug and murderer into “a gentleman of the road [and] a protector of the weak”, followed a popular cultural tradition of romanticizing English criminals.

Apple takes the historic facts and turns it into a 6 part comedy show (so far), with a 30 minutes runtime per episode. Noel Fiedlung portrays the highway man, and I think his kind of humor is polarizing, and thus, I think there will be many people not liking the series at all. I know Fielding from his appearance in the IT Crowd. I like his sense of humor, but it took me one episode to get into it.

Dick Turpin is not a must-see, but a fun-to-watch.

The long-awaited video game adaptation hit Amazon Prime a day earlier than announced! I don’t know why, but I don’t care either way. It’s only fair to start the “Watch” section of my blog with that hell of a series.

I have to admit I never played Fallout, but I am well aware of its world. The setting of the story, the atmosphere, the sarcastic humor, and, of course, the criticism of capitalism. As far as I can say, all of that is perfectly matched in the show. Maybe that’s why I like the world of Portal so much and vice versa the Fallout series; I see a lot of parallels here. Maybe I should give the Fallout game a try after all. And what I heard is, there’s a big run on Fallout 76. Or to say it with a quote from the show: “There’s a lot of earning potential with the end of the world.” But I am a chronological kind of guy and will start with the very first Fallout game.

Also, the soundtrack, the cast, and the special effects are very aligned with the overall quality of the writing and the story. Now I can’t wait for season two. But that takes time. And time brings me back to Fallout (Spoiler ahead), because “time is the ultimate Weapon. That is how we will win the great game of capitalism. Not by outfighting anyone, but by outliving them.”

I just loved these 8 episodes, and the more subtle message of the show: After all, the Ghoul is the most human of them all.