NP but Quality TV

[rich]

enjoying series called Deutscheland 83, a young spy working for the HVA in
Bonn and Brussels as an aid-de-camp in the West German army, circa
1983--Reagan paranoia mucho and lots of Bowie and passable 80's pop. lead
guy weirdly looks like Oscar from the Tin Drum 15 yrs down the road. oh,
and two trysts by and in a lake. i do need to read more about the women of
the Stasi. fascinating

rich

On Fri, Jan 1, 2016 at 11:15 PM, David Morris <fqmorris at gmail.com> wrote:

> Unrealated, but I just watched the movie Mr. Holmes, and really enjoyed it.
>
> David Morris
>
>
> On Friday, January 1, 2016, Allan Balliett <allan.balliett at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> If you're in North America, the new episode of BBC's SHERLOCK starring
>> Benedict Cumberbatch will premier at 9PM on PBS. (Yes, you can stream it
>> from their website)
>>
>> If you are in Europe, you've already missed it, of course (but it will
>> show again in a couple of days)
>>
>> -Allan in WV where the VPN has once again come in handy and we'll be
>> setting down to a meal of Hoppin' John and Sherlock in a few moments
>>
>> SHERLOCK: THE ABOMINABLE BRIDE SPOILER-FREE REVIEW * 01 JANUARY 2016
>>
>> After two years of waiting, we have taken a parallel side step that still
>> propels us forwards.
>>
>> What transpires in this 90 minutes was so top secret the press weren't
>> allowed to view the completed episode before its first airing on BBC One
>> and in UK cinemas. Sherlock: The Abominable Bride is crowd pleasing and
>> rather self indulgent (while all the better for it), razor sharp in the
>> scripting, tangled in the narrative, occasionally broad in the comedy, all
>> while capable of cutting to the heart of the characters in new and exciting
>> ways.
>>
>> Indeed, the characterisation is resolutely familiar to the canon stories,
>> while also forging ahead with the characters as we know them in the series.
>> It's an incredible feat by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, playful and
>> daring in equal measure. Sherlock and John are gone, Holmes and Watson are
>> instead present and correct. Benedict Cumberbatch is a stiller presence as
>> this version of Holmes, clipped, often polite and full of acid wit, but
>> still frequently curt and losing none of the brilliance. Watson meanwhile
>> is a boiling kettle of frustration coupled with gentlemanly honour and more
>> human observation, clearly essential to Holmes in ways even he does not
>> realise - there is genuine concern for his friend here, both emotional and
>> stern, and not unwilling to stage an intervention when necessary.
>>
>> Always known as a television show rich in cinematic flair, The Abominable
>> Bride ramps this up still further in full justification of its cinema
>> release. This episode looks utterly ravishing in the hands of director
>> Douglas Mackinnon, not least thanks to the work of production designer
>> Arwel Jones and costume designer Sarah Arthur in ensuring that the world
>> onscreen feels truly Victorian. Despite the old-fashioned looks though,
>> there's no way you could mistake this story as glacial in the telling. The
>> episode features some rollicking, action packed adventure, fashioned around
>> a genuinely chilling ghost story that has other concerns bubbling along
>> under the surface.
>>
>> There are numerous other observations that rocket to mind. It is
>> intrinsically a cutting look at Victorian gender politics, sometimes in
>> laugh out loud, show stopping form; in others, emotional tragedy.
>> Appearances of numerous characters who never appeared in the trailers is a
>> very conscious decision. The new, period ways of implementing the trademark
>> onscreen graphics are works of subtle, clever genius. At times, it
>> intentionally plays as a subversive package of greatest hits from the
>> canon. And everything that occurs after an hour in we're simply desperate
>> to talk about. But this is a spoiler-free review, and that first reaction
>> is one to savour.
>>
>> We wouldn't want the series to do this forever, but we'd gladly visit
>> again, from time to time.
>>
>
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