Lately I've been watching....

My fairly regular look at TV series and films I've seen recently, with mini reviews, my star ratings, and the trailers.  For more of these posts, please click the 'Lately I've Been Watching' tag at the end.  I've watched a lot of stuff!! 



3 Part Series: Black Mirror (Season 5)
Netflix

Charlie Brooker never disappoints, and these three hour long dramas were totally up to standard.  The first was a clever and amusing look at virtual reality video games, while the second two were set in the present rather than the future, and showed the dark side of our technological advances, and social media.  As technology becomes ever more invasive and impossible to hide from, I found the second of these stories the most frightening; it depicted the influence of social media, and also showed how much information we leave about ourselves online.   BTW, if you think the hologram Miley Cyrus on tour was far-fetched, think again; it's already happening.  Not with her, but others.

5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Series: Billions (Season 4)

I just adore this high-finance-in-the-fast-lane series, and the twists and intrigue don't slow down for a minute in Season 4.  Although incredibly fast-paced, with never a moment of downtime, the dialogue and acting is so good that the characterisation doesn't lose out for a moment.  Damian Lewis as Bobby Axelrod is my favourite, as ever.  Ended on the perfect 'end of this phase but what's coming next looks even better' cliffhanger.  Excellent - if you've never seen it, start at the beginning!

5 stars plus ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Netflix Film: I Am Mother 

SciFi/Post Apocalyptic film - human life is said to be extinct, but in a secure unit, thousands of human embryos are kept by 'Mother', a droid who chooses those to be born.  'Daughter' is happy in her life, but longs for brothers and sisters; as she gets older, she becomes more curious about what lies outside.  Then, one day, she hears a real human being crying for help...

I enjoyed this film a lot; it's unpredictable, and the suspense side of it is edge-of-your-seat stuff.  Nice one.

4.5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Series: 3% 

Brazilian series, with moderately good dubbing.  In an un-named place, 97% of people live in the broken-down, slum-like 'Inland'.  When Inlanders reach the age of 20, they can register for the yearly 'process', which, through a series of tests, picks 3% of those who apply to go to live in the luxurious 'Offshore'.   But not all the Inlanders are in favour of the 'process'; these are the anarchists who work for 'the cause'; they wish to infiltrate the process and destroy its unfairness in order to establish equality.  I'm half way through Season 3; I liked Season 1 the best, as it dealt mainly with the candidate test, which was fascinating, but the characters and plot are developing in an interesting fashion.

4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Series: Dark (Season One)

German, dubbed well.  In the small German town of Winden, ancient caves hold a secret - a wormhole that allows travel in time, back in 33 year periods.  People go missing, never to be seen again.  Soon, lives start to crumble as the ties become evident between the missing children and the history of the town and its citizens.  

The story is great, and I enjoyed seeing the characters deal with life back in 1986 and then further back, in 1953.  However, it can be hard to keep up with who is who in their past/future lives, as different actors are used for the younger versions, rather than the same ones ageing up or down; the plot threads and relationships between the large cast of characters are very complicated as it is, without having to remember who is supposed to be who - not easy, as the different versions have different faces.  I tried to watch a couple of episodes one night when I was tired, and found I couldn't keep track of it.  I'll watch the second season when it comes out, if I can remember what was going on.
 
4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Film: Deadwood The Movie 

I liked the Deadwood series, though it wasn't one of my favourites.  This is a good film, and I am sure anyone who loves the series will enjoy it very much; it's a continuation.

3.5 stars (3 stars for how much I enjoyed it, but 4 stars from an objective viewpoint!) ⭐⭐⭐⭐