Smudge wrote:

Baywolfe wrote:

I started this last night. Wow...what an opening act.

I loved the book, and I've no doubt this is a quality show because BRYAN Goddamn FULLER (watch Hannibal if you haven't already), but I'm not subscribing to yet another pay service just for one damned series.  I'll wait it out and rent the DVD's or stream it or whatever when it becomes available.

BIG LITTLE LIES

This is a seven part mini-series produced by HBO, and it's another in a long line of HBO home runs. It's a mystery, with some unusual wrinkles which I can't go into because of spoilers.

It's quite well done, especially considering that there are a number of reasons why the story, on the surface, should not appeal to me. It took me until the end of the second episode before I was hooked, but I was intrigued after the first. Excellent production values, and REMARKABLY good, and consistant across the board acting (I've never seen Reese Witherspoon perform at this level before) . I get most of my TV series using P2P sharing, but I can also often find the same series in open directories. If you have trouble finding a series, send me a PM and I might be able to help.

Seriously, don't miss this one.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3920596/

Emmeran wrote:

For fucks sake do I even dare to challenge him to read Finnegan's Wake?

Leave dead Irish Poets be.  They are what they are.  "Writing in English is the most ingenious torture ever devised for sins committed in previous lives. The English reading public explains the reason why."

One of my all-time favorite films is My Dinner with Andre.  I fully expect a large percentage of people to not get this movie. It does not bother me at all.  I was pleased when I rented it several years ago to let me wife watch it, and she did get it.

Smudge wrote:

Baywolfe, I'm curious if you've ever seen Callan. I was never able to find the early episodes, but I watched the final two and half years of this series. I viewed the final episode this evening. Quirky and low budget, but I thoroughly enjoyed the run. Spy stories and mysteries are where the Brits really excel, and this was no exception.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com … @._V1_.jpg

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061238/

No, I haven't.  I watched The Equalizer when it was on and I remember reading an article that mentioned Callan but I don't think any episodes were available back then.  I agree about the Brits and their Mystery/Espionage shows.

Peter Davison, the fifth Doctor Who, did a series for Mystery! called Campion that was pretty good.  I know they're available.

I love that kind of bleak le Carre style spy novels too. Thanks for the tip.

I was looking for something else, and stumbled on this; an encyclopedia of Film Noir. A handy reference, and a source for ideas perhaps:

https://noirencyclopedia.wordpress.com/index-of-movies/

Ghost Stories was a 20-episode Japanese anime series which appears to have aimed at being a more serious version of Scooby Doo.  The main differences are that there are are actual ghosts (not just creepy dudes in masks), and the main characters are elementary school students instead of teenagers.

The original did poorly financially, so when rights to make the English-dubbed version were sold to an American production house, they offered a much wider degree of latitude in making dialogue changes than usual.  The voice actors largely improvised their lines and used their freedom to make something more like South Park than Scooby Doo.

For a taste, here's a video of clips comparing the original to the dubbed version.

If that butters your muffins, you can start with Episode 1 here.

Nobel



Very solid and taut political thriller which revolves around Norway's participation in the Afghan war. This is available on Netflix, or via torrent. The spoken language is mostly Norwegian, so make sure you get a version with English subs.

I give a strong recommendation. I really liked this show. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that there's going to be a second season.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4591834/

If you're like me -- I'm not ready to go to sleep at night until I've taken in at least a couple of murders -- then you'll appreciate this site. For me, it's an incredible asset because the shows they are discussing, following and commenting on comprise about 75% of my media viewing. I have watched, am watching, or want to watch almost every show in their list, and more significantly, they update me about the status of availability of new seasons of shows that I'm committed to watching until the end. And all under one roof where I don't have to work that hard to find the info.

Some others here might find this to be a useful resource as well:

https://thekillingtimestv.wordpress.com/

choad wrote:

BBC - From Out of Town (2017)

The clash of big bad city and virtuous small town chronicled by Hollywood's film noir in the 50s sheds a revealing spotlight on bigotry inflamed today by Trump, according to Adam Smith.

Available on mvgroup.

This sounds interesting Choad. Thanks. The MVGroup is great repository for documentaries.

Well, this just went on my list, not that I have any idea when I'll have the chance to see it.

Update to post above:

Sundance, which distributes The Bureau, is making the first two seasons available for free. They are also making season 3 available if you sign up for a free trail of their service, and I may take advantage of that offer since I haven't been able to discover another source of season 3.

I've watched a couple more episodes of this series, and it just crackles. This is, quite simply, one of the best television shows I have ever watched. If you like spy stories, grab these free series while they are still available.

https://www.sundancenow.com/the-bureau/series/2536461

Last edited by Smudge (2017-09-16 19:15:28)

Today on mvgroup.org...

PBS - The Vietnam War: Series 1 (2017) (1-10)
Ken Burns, Lynn Novick

Snow of the Andes - Bolivia: Coca and Cocaine (2017)

Another great resource here for my permanent bookmark file:

This site provides a good overview of Nordic, US and UK crime and film noir drama. Click TV Shows under the country and take a look at the comprehensive listing.

http://nordicdrama.com/

Season 2 Starts this Saturday.

12 min.

GooberMcNutly wrote:

Baywolfe wrote:

Season 2 Starts this Saturday.

I've wanted to watch that, but I need to re-read at least the first book just to recall it. But I still use an important piece of wisdom from the book: If you are lost, just find someone who looks like they know where they are going and follow them.

The show captures the spirit of the books but doesn't use anything except Dirk from the books (except for a nod here and there).  You do need to watch the first season or you won't know what the hell is going on in the second season.  In fact, even if you watch the first season, you won't know what the hell is going on but that's normal.

Smudge wrote:

This looks like it might be good (I just heard about it for the first time about five minutes ago, so I offer no personal endorsement). The current IMDB rating is 9.4, but I doubt that will hold up over time. It wasn't available via my normal channels yet, but I expect it will be in a day or two.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5290382/

I watched the whole thing last weekend.  It's gorgeous, because it's Fincher, and most of the cast is terrific...but the script is mostly boring as fuck.  For Chrissake, how do you make the birth of serial killer profiling boring?

Things always liven up, though, when there's an interview scene.  The actor playing Ed Kemper, in particular, is phenomenal.

Fauda



I watched several episodes of this series a couple of years ago, but I was only able to find the first three; the rest simply weren't available with English subs. Netflix has since taken on the series, and as a result the entire first season (12 thirty five minute episodes) is now available, with the second season due to air sometime next year.

This is heart pounding, edge of your seat political thriller, which gives you a taste of what it's like to live in the Middle East. While its made in Israel, it shows the conflict from both sides of the fence in a somewhat balanced way (but let me be honest -- it IS an Israeli production).

"Fauda" (Arabic for 'Chaos') depicts the story of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Doron, a commander of undercover Israeli unit, the Israeli Special Forces, operating inside Palestinian territories, and his team, are hunting down Hamas terrorist Abu-Ahmed. On the other side of the fence, the life of Abu-Ahmed and his family, who has thus far murdered 143 Israelis, will never accept the State of Israel, and will continue Jihad for as long as it takes.

I blasted thought this series in three days (four episodes a night) which is unusual for me as I don't normally binge watch shows. It was consistently excellent throughout. I recommend Fauda for an evening when you are concerned that you might nod out, because it would be impossible to drift off during this show. It provides adrenalin filled action start to finish.

Trivia: The main character in this series (Doron, played by Lior Raz), around whom the story revolves, is also one to the show's two creaters and writers.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4565380/

Last edited by Smudge (2018-04-13 07:54:47)

GooberMcNutly wrote:

Dora the Exploder coming soon!

Excellent spoof trailer from College Humor about five years ago.

I know what I'll be watching this week.

Game, Set, and Match



I read the three books which make up this excellent, multi-part spy story, and was surprised to recently discover that in the late eighties it was made into a highly regarded British mini-series starring Sir Ian Holm. After spending the better part of an hour searching in vain for torrent copies, I  found the entire series was available on YouTube. I used a stream grabber to capture the episodes, which took me less than an hour in total, and have the entire 13 part series (actually there are two complete copies of the series available -- one with a double length first episode, and 12 in the set, and another uploaded from a different source featuring 13 roughly equal length episodes -- grab one set or the other, but don't mix and match).

If interested, follow the YouTube link below for the first episode, and look for subsequent episodes in the right hand column, or search YouTube using the series title.

From Wiki: Game, Set and Match is a 1988 television serial directed by Ken Grieve and Patrick Lau and written by John Howlett. It is based on the books Berlin Game, Mexico Set and London Match by Len Deighton. The two directors worked separately on different episodes.[1] Filmed on location in Berlin and Mexico, the project included a large international cast with 3,000 extras and a budget of $8 million. While critically acclaimed, the ratings for the series were a disaster. Ian Holm was nominated for a BAFTA award for his portrayal of Bernard Samson. It was aired in 1989 in the United States as part of the PBS show Mystery.

The quality of the YouTube copies is decent; about what can be expected from a high quality, but pre-digital production.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092360/

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMfpowh1Mjc

Episode 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3cDtZ4zSsw

-----

Edit:

Well this is a tough one. The story, the script and the cast are excellent, but the visual quality of the recordings is poor. It's like watching an old VHS tape from the video store which was nearing the end of its life. I'll probably watch the entire series, but I can't in good faith recommend it to anyone unless they, like me, are a total spy film junkie.

I'm going to continue to search to see if there are any better quality files out there, but I'm not holding out much hope. The problem is that the series was never released on DVD, so the only copies floating around were recorded on home VCRs. But those master tapes must exist somewhere. Eventually they will make their way into circulation.

Second Edit:

The visual quality was at its worst in the first episode. Overall, the series was largely watchable, with a few sections of poor quality. Of course, the 1988 production was not up to the visual standards we have become used to now.

The production, however, was simply one of the most impressive pieces of storytelling I have ever witnessed. If you like the genre, don't miss this. It really doesn't get any better.

Last edited by Smudge (2018-04-13 07:55:57)

choad wrote:

ABC Four Corners - The Paradise Papers (2017) (45 min)

BBC - Elizabeth I's Secret Agents (2017) (3 parts, each 1 hr)

available on mvgroup.org

Thanks for these.

I stumbled on this recently, and it's an awesome resource for quality film and television ideas. The suggestion to check out "Dag" (above) came to me from here. I placed this one in my permanent bookmark location; I'm sure I'll be referring back to it again and again:

http://theeurotvplace.com/

Platymingo wrote:

Smudgy,
Dag is alright. Just watched ep 1. I'll catch up pretty quick. If you come across torrents to fill in the missing one let me know.

Check your PMs for a couple of links.