Marty Supreme

 

Nominated for 9 Oscars, Marty Supreme, is a story about a shoe salesman in NYC in the early 50's, who is sure he is destined for greatness in a sport that nobody in America cares about, table tennis, and will do most anything to achieve it. Crackerjack and perhaps even Oscar worthy performance by Chalamet, but I am not quite certain the film is equal to it. This is going to hit a lot of people in different ways, some will love it and some will hate it. The cinematography and 1950's set design are great, but the choice to use a 1980's soundtrack was decidedly out of place and the script meanders a bit too much in the middle making this go on for far too long. Still i think this is a film worth seeing, but this wont be winning picture.

How to Get to Heaven from Belfast

 3 childhood friends reunite in Donegal Ireland for the funeral of their schoolmate and in the process start to uncover the mystery surrounding an event from high school that binds them all together. Really well done by the writer/creator of Derry Girls, Lisa McGee. HTGTHFB has that same bone dry humor and quick witted writing as DG, but this gets a wee bit darker when the plot kicks in. I loved Derry Girls so it comes as no surprise how much I enjoyed this. It's nothing groundbreaking, but still done with style and humor. Heavy Irish accents abound, so be prepared to turn on subtitles.

Hamnet

 

 Winner of the Golden Globe for best picture, Hamnet is the story of Will Shakespeare's early life. He meets his wife, falls in love and then has three children. His son Hamnet ends up dying of the plague and he and his wife each have their own ways of coping with the grief. A very slow burn here, so it wont be for all tastes, but if you are patient, you will be rewarded with a extremely powerful film. Top-notch acting, direction and script makes this a wonderful experience and the payoff at the end is something that will go down in movie lore and it just may change the way you see or read Shakespeare's Hamlet next time. It's been nominated for 8 Oscars and at this point its just a matter of how many will it take home. A brilliantly made film Highly Recommended.

All Creatures Great and Small

 

Reboot of the classic series. In 1937 Yorkshire, James comes to work at a veterinarians office in the English countryside and has to deal with the people and their animals. Beautifully filmed and acted this is the definition of wholesome television, it maybe a bit corny at times but its heart is always in the right place. If you like shows like Call the Midwife and know what to expect from British television there is no way possible this show will disappoint. Aimed at an Older crowd but it's still outstanding television from PBS Masterpiece theatre.

Riot Women

A group of middle-aged women in Bradford, England form a punk rock band to complete in a local talent contest. In the process, friendships are formed and bonds are made. The plot sounds cliche I know, but this is anything but typical. Each of these women has their own story and each thread is compelling. This was incredibly entertaining, its not just one of those bad musicians turn into good musicians and win the contest stories, the brits are too sophisticated to descend into such cliches, instead we are treated to a really first rate drama about the invisibility of middle aged women in society. It's only 6 episodes and ends on a cliffhanger, so there will be more. Fantastic stuff. 

PONIES

 

After their CIA husbands are killed by mysterious circumstances, their two wives join up to try and find out what happened. Fairly standard spy thriller with your typical twists and turns, but this one is set in 1977 Moscow and the whole show has a 70's feel to it and a killer soundtrack. The script isn't perfect, but it is a cut above and Emili Clark and Haley Lou Richardson are fun as the leads. Worth it.

Steal

 Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark) plays an office worker at a large investment firm in London. When it's robbed of 4 billion dollars and a police investigation is launched, an inside job is suspected. Solid crime thriller out of the UK with a cast I just loved and an above average script. Steal takes the usual twists and turns and ends in a good spot. This is nothing ground-breaking, but it is well worth the time and only 6 episodes so its short and sweet. Go for it.