Wednesday, February 28, 2018

UnREAL Season 3.


It's been around 18 months since UnREAL smashed onto Stan 's screens and in the USA Lifetime, the station for ladies of a certain age and gay men.



So is UnREAL any good on it's return? HELL YES!

We have long suffered without a view into the wonderful world of fake love, forget fake news, it's ALL fake love on Bachelor, Bachelorette, MAFS, all this bullshit. Am I wrong? Hello Sophie Monks!

UnREAL is amazing, the cast sensational and flipping it around to men fighting over one woman, hell yes.

Constance Zimmer is the queen of this series, she shines every time she is on the screen and bad news on Tuesday night commercial networks, free to air TV in Australia, the gays will be streaming...

Unfortunately the first episode didn't rate amazingly in the USA, however it's already been given a fourth season and apparently those 8 episodes of season four are already in the can.

TV season is back in full swing so expect more reviews, comments and gossip right here. Also a Black Panther review coming soon...

Monday, February 26, 2018

Reality Fail #107


Channel 7 is up shit creek without a paddle. MKR is finally out of favour and new copycat of runaway 2017 hit Australian Ninja Warrior, Australian Spartan was well a bit average. Last night it aired ahead of the closing of the Winter Olympics and fell well short of the magic million.

The debut episode reached 816K compared to this years power player, MAFS. MAFS has been serving it up to MKR this year and last night it had it's biggest airing, over 1.5 million viewers.

If Channel 7 keeps this up after scoring the Olympics and rolling out their biggest reality show, it's going to be a long year for the average commercial network.

Leaving the Network with House Rules, First Dates, Seven Year Switch and some new one Take Me Out.

The Olivia Newton John drama is also set to air this year and of course the family friendly lame drama 800 Words will be back whilst Channel 7 favourite Gibney drama Wanted will return most likely for a third season.

Australian networks need to realise the public aren't as dumb as they may think. Australian Ninja Warrior was a hit because people wanted and saw something new. But when a carbon copy shows up, it's well kinda lame. The trick to Ninja Warrior was it came, it conquered and it left the screens long before people grew tired of the series.

MKR is already feeling like it's been on TV a lifetime and it only started after the Australian Open.

Channel Seven needs a win, fast, the Commonwealth Games are coming in less than 40 days, however as the Winter Olympics have shown it hasn't all been glory at the network.

Australian TV needs to wake up, STAN is up around a million subscribers and Netflix has 7.6 million subscribers. Reality is dying fast, only the new and innovative shows will draw a crowd, cooking, singing and weight loss are all so five minutes ago....

Sunday, February 25, 2018

Movie Matinee Madness - Lady Bird


It's been the year for strong and interesting female roles. After seeing the mother/daughter real life drama of the brilliant I, Tonya last week, this week it was mother and daughter drama in Lady Bird.

I loved mother Laurie Metcalf in the underrated Getting On and critics have adored Saoirse Ronan, so I was excited to see a 93 minute coming of age gem.

Yes 93 minutes, editor can you take a LONG hard look at more films in Hollywood? Please and thank you.



I throughly enjoyed this film, the tale it told and the way coming of age was made to look hard, because fuck me it is.

School, Thanks Giving, Christmas, New Years and Prom all roll past in this rocky drama about a young girl with big dreams. It ends rather quickly with a nice moment and a sweet message.

I won't spoil it but this is for all the fab loving mothers out there.

This and I, Tonya are just especially films. 4 Stars.

Saturday, February 24, 2018

Movie Matinee Madness - A Moment in the Reeds


As Mardi Gras approaches in Sydney for it's 40th anniversary it's time for the Mardi Gras film festival! And time to wheel out the foreign films, mmmmmmmm sex with a Syrian refugee...



From Finland comes the tale of a uni student returning to his family Summer cabin to help his father renovate before selling the unused Summer house since the death of his mother/wife. Ok plot given away, that is the basic story then it's like The Block meets 50 Shades, but a gay version.

Young blonde boy meets Syrian refugee contracted help, father leaves boys in the cabin while attending a "work" matter, warm up the sauna, queue awkwardly long non graphic sex scenes, boom we have a movie.

The relationship and tension between the young actors is cute, but once the sexual tension is gone, we are left with not much of a story to unfold. It's an interesting and most likely common tale of displaced people across the globe, particularly in and around Europe.

I enjoyed the film, it's not for everyone, it's slow, it's fairly basic and the subtitles come and go.

There are only four people in the entire movie but it does belong to the two boys. There is of course the beautiful setting, it's not going to win a best foreign film prize anytime soon, but it's still rather sweet, 3 Stars.

Friday, February 23, 2018

WACO


A mini-series, and something a little more light than The Fall which I have smashed two seasons during the Winter Olympics US mid-season 2017-2018 TV break.

Years ago I had a trip to Texas and as we drove across the state we stopped in Waco, visited the Wal Mart and continued on our way. However I also knew of the drama that went down in Waco.

The Waco siege was a 51 day siege which resulted in massive casualties, something the US is dealing with on a daily basis, but with people power it looks like maybe the tide is starting the change.

Taylor Kitsch plays David Koresh the cult leader and is joined by Melissa Benoist AKA Supergirl as one of his wives.

We see Michael Shannon, Rory Culkin, John Leguizamo and an all star lead this drama. And it is dramatic, it has received mostly positive reviews and decent viewership across two US networks.



Waco wraps up next week when OH so much TV returns when the Winter Olympics go BYE-BYE! I will looks forward to seeing how the 51 day siege unfolds however I think it will also be heartbreaking.

Thursday, February 22, 2018

Homeland Season 7.


It's ON! Season 7 is explosive it's here and in Australian Homeland is airing same week as the USA on SBS. Man SBS, from Handmaid's Tale to Homeland, they could be leading the overseas dramas aired in Australia.

So let's see first up what I thought about the dramatic sixth season HERE.

I touched on Season 7 when I got moist over Sunday Night TV. With Divorce on HBO almost wrapping up and The Walking Dead returning for it's second half of the current season this week, Sunday nights are a monster.


The White House, politics, crazy right wingers and Carrie going insane...

Homeland is full on and the drama and conspiracies are turned up to 11 in this season. The plot is thick and juicy this season and man o man what will happen to Carrie? She is in debt, had her computer hacked and is going solo for her latest mission. We are only two episodes in and I am hooked.

I'm unsure how the series is rating in Australia on SBS however in the US of A, it's rating above season one episode on episode however it's down on last season. I'm sure on demand it would be getting way more viewers and then there are all the pirates out there.

Homeland is great TV, well written, great casting and it looks a million bucks. I will be sad to see it wrap up next year if season eight does turn out to be the final season...

Sunday, February 18, 2018

Movie Matinee Madness - I, Tonya


After the slightly awful conclusion to Fifty Shades, I, Tonya was a complete breath of fresh air.



Margot Robbie is simply brilliant as Tonya Harding and Allison Janney sublime. It's a great time for an ice skating film with the Winter Olympics in full swing.

The story about Tonya and Nancy gripped the world and put ice skating as an elite, highly competitive and ruthless sport on the map.

The film has a great supporting cast and a great story to run with but the real stars are Robbie and Janney. Every scene Janney is in she lights up the entire screen.

The language is course, the obstacles Tonya faces are tough, but my gosh does she shine.

I loved every minute of this film and I loved former Neighbours, Brisbane born Robbie showing us and the world maybe Australian films are in a rough place right now (fuck this The BBQ) but man we have some top talent.

So producers out there in this fine brown land lets fund some exceptional stories using our talent making it big in Hollywood and start slaying again. Bojana Novakovic from Satisfaction also has a smaller and supporting role, but man she is another terrific young local talent.

I, Tonya, it's all sorts of brilliant. 4 Stars.

Saturday, February 17, 2018

Year of the Bitch


It's Lunar New Year once again and following the same week as Valentine's Day, it's been a busy week. So busy for me means less posts, late posts including my Fresh Friday Countdown only dropping today, Saturday Morning after a hectic week of working, wining and dining and bringing in the Lunar New Year...

The ABC published a brilliant piece on Lunar New Year, HERE. It's interesting and wonderful time of the year, last night we had more fireworks in Sydney and for younger folks Lunar New Year means lucky money...

But with all things fun comes some awkward questions, more here

So dear readers, Happy New Year, well Lunar New Year.

Things start to quieten down next week and hopefully I will have an I Tonya review for y'all soon....

Ok Bye..

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Movie Matinee Madness - Fifty Shades Freed


Happy Valentine's Day, it's time for the final and overdue instalment of the Fifty Shades trilogy, Fifty Shades Freed. E.L James books have now reached their climax (fancy marketing distributors) and with the soundtrack coming out last week (see here for more on amazing film soundtracks) the movie acts as a giant marketing vehicle for the soundtrack and maybe Audi as well.



I have to admit I am eyeballs deep in Dornan's devilish good The Fall with Gillian Anderson and loving it sick, so it is hard seeing Dornan as such a dull cleanly shaved bondage lover.

Dakota Johnson is horrific (again) as Ana Steele-Grey, yes we see a wedding at the start of the film, with, you guessed it a song filled montage.

Montage's are common in the final piece to the Shades puzzle. The drama is brief and Rita Ora is painfully bad as as Mia Grey, Dornan AKA Mr Grey's adopted sister.

His past from Detroit comes to bit Dornan on the butt? Yes we do see his perfect bubble butt in this edition, no sausage but we are treated to a gentleman who does believe in a Brazilian. Nice.

So the film, it's like a trashy soap opera not a big budget Hollywood film (that said the first two have made close to a billion dollars) or a Marvel superhero film.

Fifty Shades Freed was never going to get good reviews, it's more event cinema. Marketing has been done well, I after The Fall have also fallen in love with Jamie Dornan however I will be happy NEVER to see Dakota Johnson in another film or TV show for (hopefully) a while.

2.5 Stars, it's finally over, but for those looking for more sex this film seems to have a lot more particularly in the first half.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Sunday Night TV just got EPIC


Well Monday's in Australia, but really Homeland is back and Alan Ball returns to HBO with the sensational Here & Now.

Carrie Mathison is back and insane and paranoid as ever, but I think she has reason to be. A female Donald J Trump is in the Whitehouse and proving to be as divisive as the actual Twitter in Chief.

Here & Now is a completely different beast, like Six Feet Under with a sprinkle of sexy True Blood and 11:11 sci-fi Alan Ball has delivered a new gem to HBO.

Homeland has been a favourite of mine, evolved over the past six seasons and this season moves on from the loss of Quinn and continues last years story.

After losing Quinn (Rupert Friend) and formerly Brody (Damien Lewis - soon to reappear on Billions) Homeland has done some serious cast changes over the years. However Danes and Patinkin have remained. The show has had highs, lows, executions and various interesting and involved storylines with this year really being a continuation on the past with the next season set to be the final curtin call.

Here & Now is in a completely different field, fresh slate, sensational cast (see HERE) and a great little family drama.

I am keen on both and they provide a nice distraction from man flu, the Olympics and the piles of reality trash on Australian TV.

Great stories and great characters along with great scripts will always outshine the mundane, these two shows prove this. I am an enemy of average and these shows bring hope to a lacking world of entertainment and media companies. So thank you HBO and Showtime, this is what we need right now, brilliant.

Saturday, February 10, 2018

9-1-1, Heartbreaker


9-1-1 is now easily my favourite new show of the season. Also it's already been renewed for most likely a longer second season.

ABC (US commercial station) has yet to deliver a new show worthy of my viewing and Inhumans has been a major Marvel disaster (ratings wise and no doubt it cost a mint to make).

CBS has delivered S.W.A.T which I am willing to give a go, mainly due to David Lim, however I am yet to watch it.

The CW has given us the improved Black Lightning, slow to start but getting a lot better as the season and the family of Mr Black Lightning develops. Dynasty is a ratings nightmare for The CW and will be banished to Fridays soon. It's been a bit of a hit with the gays and picked up by Netflix to screen weekly however after a long winded camp 22 episode season one, season two is highly unlikely.

FOX has rested the majority of my stories at present, Gotham, Star and Empire however 9-1-1, the latest Ryan Murphy series has gone from strength to strength. I wrote about this series around a month ago after watching the Pilot.

I enjoyed it but didn't love it, now six episodes in and after the brilliant Valentine's Day episode Heartbreaker, this is a top show. With DVR ratings included this show is consistently getting over 10 million sets of eyeballs per week and it was an easy option for Fox to go with season two so early on.

It's a shame we have to wait till the end of the month (Feb 28 to be exact) for an episode titled Full Moon (Creepy AF) which to me sounds brilliant.

Murphy is not exactly kicking goals with the second outing of American Crime Story but this will still have him in demand with TV execs at FOX and Netflix.

Finally NBC have had a tough start to the year also, Blindspot is dying a slow death on Friday evenings and Law & Order: True Crime, did not light the world on fire. Despite the love for true crime and crazy American crimes, this show failed to fire. Rise or Glee Version 2.0 or maybe since it's on NBC Smash Version 2.0 is likely to be a hit and even better for Australian's it will stream weekly on Stan.

All five major networks are already working on 2018-2019 pilots and reboots seem to be in, Charmed and a number of others will possibly replace some of this years failures and ending series.

9-1-1, it gets two blog posts in as many months, great, easy to watch and highly addictive. Murphy has another certified hit on his hands and FOX have made a good call giving this an early green light for the writers to get cracking on season two.

Thursday, February 8, 2018

Black Lightning - Three episodes in...


I was really not sold after the first episode of the CW's latest superhero series Black Lightning, however now three episodes deep of this 13 episode debut season, I'm sold.

Different to Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl and The Flash, Black Lightning is political, diverse and a good lead in for Black Panther at the cinema.

Going great guns with ratings in the US, this is sure to get a second (most likely longer) second season. The CW is struggling a bit at present, Vampire Diaries is gone, The Originals is concluding and the are only left with a few series that are not DC comic series.

That said Black Lightning feels fresh, the music used is great and the solid cast do their best to bring something new to a very crowded group of DC shows.



If your a fan of your superhero shows, this will sit well on your TV schedule, however if you are over them steer clear. Critics and audiences so far are moist for this so does this spell the end for one of the CW's existing superhero dramas?

Tuesday, February 6, 2018

Melbourne (Again)


Oh dear Melbourne, after a five day cruise around Hobart, Port Arthur and a few days at sea, this morning I landed (or docked) at Port Melbourne.

And Melbourne has sprung a glorious day in town, with trams flying by, shows playing (currently Priscilla's return season and something at the Art Centre along with various others) and people drinking coffee by the truck load.

A bustling morning in Melbourne is a very different picture to Sydney's (NSW) Making it Happen. Well sorry Glad Bags but nothing is happening in Sydney except contractors being paid large pay packets for projects way over budget and way past their original due dates.

Melbourne has always been a favourite spot for me to visit and the vibe in Melbourne is definitely more up than the downbeat "I can't afford a first home" Sydney.

When comparing the two cities Melbourne is really moving up and up, trams proudly state they are made in Melbourne for Melbourne. Where will Sydney's new trams/light rail vehicle's be sourced from? What about the Metro trains?

Look don't get me wrong Sydney has it's beaches, the bridge (meh, done Bridge Climb, tick, next...), the Opera House and it's multicultural flare but other than that, we have angry people, rude shop assistants, cranky old people listening to Alan Jones in the morning.

Actually listening to Alan Jones would make me fucking livid, so maybe I should leave the old people alone. Like the ones on the cruise I just did pouring their pensions into the pokie machines. Got to love the Beryl's and Cheryl's of the world.

Well Melbourne, it's off for a swim, trip to the casino for a world class pizza and maybe another look at the shops. What a great city that Sydney could learn from, come on Glad Bags hop on a plane down South and see what an operational city looks like, might make you look at George Street, the way I do. Like a US invaded Syria, how are those new weapons going Christine Pyne? Let's keeping following America, the land of the fat, dull and slightly orange.

Saturday, February 3, 2018

Hi from Hobart...


A few days into the cruise and I just arrived at Hobart.

A lovely little city and the weather is just heaven. The people on the cruise are also highly amusing and heavenly. Tomorrow it's off to Port Arthur, Tasmania and finally a day at sea and then it's hello Melbourne.

Australia all over, here I go again...