Last Seen

Patrick Brammall (Colin from Accounts) shows us his range can go beyond comedy as he plays a former alcoholic policeman turned 911 (000) dispatcher who had his daughter go missing 11 years prior. When he receives a call from her, he launches on a quest to find her and repair his broken family. AppleTV+ strikes again with a really good Australian production. There really isn't a lot here that hasn't been done before in one form or another, but it is still an excellent show with good writing, good acting and compelling subject matter. There is one episode left in this 6 part miniseries, but I wouldn't hesitate to give it a go. I said it before and Ill say it again with the exception of HBO, there isn't currently a better production company than AppleTV+

 Unabomber

Rock solid portrayal of Ted Kaczynski is a true crime drama that focuses more on what made Ted who he is than the manhunt to catch him or the crimes he committed. Russell Crowe plays the Harvard Professor that uses Ted to figure out how the Koreans made their Manchurian candidates and Shailene Woodley plays the FBI behavioralist who tracks him down. Extremely well acted and well cast and this deserves more than a 6.2 IMDB rating. It seems there was enough material left out that this subject matter could have easily expanded into a mini-series, but its less a critique than it is a suggestion and the film shouldn't be punished for what's not in there. Worth it

The Invite

 Seth Rogen and Olivia Wilde play an estranged couple who invite Ed Norton and Penelope Cruz (who still looks incredible) over for a dinner party and one thing leads to another, which leads to drama and a reckoning. Extremely well written, but also extremely talky drama will not be for all tastes, it's basically a play put to film, but there is certain something here in Wilde's direction and the acting that many will find appealing. Your enjoyment of this is going to depend on how much you like these four actors, your tolerance for slower moving films and your willingness to stay for the payoff.

The Audacity

 Billy Magnuseen plays a Silicon Valley, billionaire, tech CEO whose company is in danger of failing, so he starts to blackmail his therapist in order to get inside info and keep it afloat. This is a scathing look into the business of AI and an IMDB rating of 6.2 shocked me a little bit as this is criminally low. The Audacity succeeds in an effort to capture the atmosphere of Silicon Valley. It has very dry and sometimes dark humor along with quirky, unlikeable characters and their neglected children. These people are awful and the show wasn't created for you to fall in love with them, you won't, but that's intentional, and probably the reason for the abnormally low rating. Zach Galifianakis shines in support as the richest kid on the block. Netflix just recently added this to their lineup, but it was an AMC production and I think once more people see this you will slowly see its ranking rise into the 7's. Recommended and Worth it

Lucky

 

ATJ plays Lucky, a grifter, that gets in over her head with the wrong people. It's hard for me to be completely objective on this one as Anya Taylor-Joy is my favorite actress. I waited for months for this just because she was in it. However, Lucky has a great supporting cast featuring Annette Benning and Timothy Olyphant and although the script isn't anything groundbreaking, it takes enough twists and turns to keep you guessing and keep your attention and watching Anya Taylor Joy work is as good as it gets. Worth it.

Furious

 Emmy Rossum plays a battered ex-cop turned FBI agent who starts to track a female serial killer out for revenge. Outstanding stuff here both on the screen and in the writing room. There are many fine performances and some really well written complicated characters, but none better than Rossum, an Emmy (get it?) nomination would not surprise me one bit. It's not quite over yet, but I cant imagine this going off the rails to a degree where I would think its not worth it. Highly Recommended.

Alley Cats

 Some British feral cats wander around making observations and being cats. Not much in the way of a narrative, but still manages to be very entertaining. It's from the mind of Ricky Gervais and it's only 6, 15 minute episodes, that really aren't much more than clever banter, yet Alley Cats still manages to be screamingly funny. From a cost benefit perspective, its hard to top the amount of laughs you will get over the time you have to spend to get them. Go for it.