AND …if Season 4 was too short and too serious, Season 5 manages to turn it around by being even shorter but also very silly. I mean, Lucifer was never far from self parody, but it’s like Austin Powers now.
From what I’ve heard, it’s only the first half of season 5; there’s more coming up at some point. I think the final episode isn’t finished yet due to Covid… and there’s a sixth season in the works.
I can’t speak to whether or not it’s good, I’m not caught up yet. But I’m still looking forward to it.
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Aside from 70s-era All In the Family, I’ve mostly been doing early 80s movies lately.
But first the modern - Lovecraft Country. Not what I expected. The setting is 1950s, and the focus characters are black people traveling the country to add entries to the Green Book - where they can safely stop and eat or stay, and where are the sundown towns that they cannot safely be in after dark. Then, as they go on a trip to look for Arkham (or Ardham?) stuff gets weird.
So far it’s really enjoyable. But there’ve only been 2 episodes and they cranked things up fast so I fear they might run into the same problem as True Blood - crank it up too far too fast and there’s nowhere left to go. It’s not suspenseful, but it is rather atmospheric. Looking forward to the next one to see where they take it.
Next up, I watched Cherry 2000, an 80’s-era post-apocalypse movie. The lead is a wealthy guy (he has a house, a car, and even a sex robot to share it with, and can casually toss down 50¢ for a drink and a donut) who has suffered a tragic loss after he tried to have sex in the kitchen with his sex robot while the dishwasher was overflowing and she short-circuited. So he sets out on a quest to get another one and implant her memory disc. But of course, the only way to get one in the after times is to hire a tracker to guide you through the lawless zones to scavenge it from the ruins. His tracker happens to be Melanie Griffith. So you get your 80’s-style action/adventure with a bit of romance and a happy ending. A light, easy watch that reminded me of the 80s.
Then, I tried Wacko, one of the early comedy horror spoofs. Some of the jokes from 1982 really do not hold up today. But overall it had me laughing, some bits were almost as tight as a Leslie Nielsen movie, and I liked that the Hitchcock theme kept playing throughout. It’s dumb comedy, but it’s funny.
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I’m watching The Leftovers and it is SO good. Not just saying that because my girl crush Regina King is in Season 2 either.
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Re: The Good Place:
According to this, Netflix will be getting the fourth season on Sept. 26. So, if anyone’s interested and hasn’t gone the route of the high seas…
As for me, lately, I’ve been re-watching Person of Interest. Almost done with the first season, which is still problematic in the all-seeing information gathering and extra-judicial/vigilante action… but I do like how it tends to show things, in spite of all the technology and surveillance working perfectly, still more often than not ends up going to shit when it meets the messy human side.
In my first time through, I remembered the first season as feeling rather rough and trying to find its footing, not really solidifying until around the end of the season. Maybe it’s just because of knowing where it’s going, but this time around I’ve gotten a lot less of that.
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Still watching old (1960s) episodes of The Saint. two things:
(1) until i read the wiki, i didn’t realize that the 1960s version was NOT the original, not by far – it goes all the way back to the 20s, as a radio program. it’s amazing how emblematic of the character Roger Moore became. and
(2) as for Roger Moore, the wiki also mentions that there is in fact ONE episode where someone refers to Simon Templar as “Mr. Bond,” so i’m super interested in finding that episode. and this was several years before he actually got to play the part! now i’m wondering if the Bond series ever returned the joke, especially during Moore’s tenure. that would be fantastic. anyone know?
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I don’t recall any Saint jokes in Moore’s Bond films, and I’ve read enough about the Bond series that I would probably have run across a mention somewhere.
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This page lists the characters from the saint who later appeared in the roger moore films
https://commanderbond.net/4555/the-saint-roger-moore-and-james-bond.html
I just saw the first episode-- about the dramaturge who knocked off his previous wives, and was about to poison his third for the insurance money.
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dang, missed opportunity!
that was a good one for the series – i didn’t pick up the secret until maybe halfway through.
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I just finally finished watching my movie for the weekend which was “Rachel Gets Strange” on amazon. To be honest, the first 3/4 of it were just people dealing with normal stuff. For some of us, it might be a little hard to stay interested. The climax however, was totally unexpected, in multiple ways.
When that hits, she’s got the guy she’s currently having sex with, her ex, and the guy who had a crush on her in high school all together - but also there’s this random girl (think Gina Linetti from Brooklyn 99) who just randomly stopped by because she saw a room for rent; and she just doesn’t give a shit. She’s kind of their voice of reason.
Then, it becomes actually kind of hilarious. Because real vampires aren’t exactly the same as Twilight fans pretending to be vampires.
It was enjoyable. The mostly dull, then flip things isn’t new, but I think they did it pretty well in this case.
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“I like the idea of plastic.” My favorite line, so far. What’s yours?
ZOMG, LISTEN TO ORSON WELLES SELLING PIE FILLING!!!
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Legends.
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Based on a series of thrillers by Leslie Charteris, starting in 1928 and ending in 1983, although the books after 1963 were ghostwritten. The radio series starred Vincent Price.
Charteris had an interesting life.
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George Sanders played him films, as well. I’m not sure if he did radio, but I wouldn’t be surprised. Simon Templar, that’s of whom you’re writing, correct?
And I forgot about Louis Hayward.
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Right, Simon Templar the character, aka The Saint.
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Mom was a big fan, even had some of the books. Roger Moore played him on TV; I remember well the Volvo he drove; I don’t know how well he drove it.
And…did anyone else know that Kurt Vonnegut was once a Volvo salesman?
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yes! the wiki mentions that he got the idea for the character while in the war, possibly working undercover for the british government. great stuff.
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Like Ian Fleming? Only Charteris didn’t write a “Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang” -style book, lol.
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yes, apparently!
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Until the End of the World. Just Part One, since it’s a 5 hour film
the criterion bluray looks amazing.
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