Roadkill – 8

Kudos for telling a complex story of human and political intrigue involving two dozen characters in four packed episodes. Holding it together was a usually brilliant and compelling performance by Hugh Laurie. No matter the bad things he did or that happened to him, I never worried too much, because he, Peter Laurence, was Hugh Laurie and he could take it. I guess the American equivalent is Kevin Spacey in House of Cards, but Roadkill was more pointed and less smarmy. The title refers to all the women left on the side of the road as Laurence motors to 10 Downing Street, a nice theme that leaves something to think about as the story ends. Only drawback: instead of ending, the writer left one unlikely hook open to let us know there will be a Season 2.

Queen’s Gambit – 7.5

Everyone loves a good sports story, in which the underdog overcomes adversity and wins the big game. Three things distinguished this one: the hero was female, playing against men; the sport, unusually, was chess; and the men who lost to her were nice guys. The adversity was all inherent: her situation as an orphan, then a self-destructive urge toward booze and tranquilizers. Anya Taylor-Joy was an excellent choice for the lead–nice on the eyes but not distractingly pretty–and the men were easy to follow. In short, this was a fun escape during Trump’s post-election craziness.

Flesh and Blood – 8

A brilliantly acted and mercifully short story of three young adult children coming to grips with their mother’s late-in-life affair with a suspicious widower, played with equal parts sleaze and menace by a wildly-maned Stephen Rea. Somehow in four episodes we were given relatively nuanced and complete stories of each offspring’s romantic relationship; their relationships with each other and their mother; a vivid busybody who lived next door (Imelda Staunton); and a convincing mystery around the mother’s suitor. Oh, and a criminal investigation that weaved throughout. All the characters were deeply flawed and not terribly attractive, but in a way that wasn’t offputting (unlike, say, Succession or House of Cards). And the failure to tie everything up at the end was somehow satisfying.

Borat the Subsequent Moviefilm – 7

Taken for what it is–a raunchy and absurdist political comedy–this sequel to Borat (the original moviefilm) was less offensive, less remarkable, less groundbreaking but still rather astonishing. By now I am more familiar with the acting talents and intelligence of Sacha Baron Cohen (see, e.g., Trial of the Chicago 7), but I still have no idea how he gets away with what he films. The scene with Rudy Giuliani was a masterstroke, and I’m guessing it shaped much of what precedes it in the film, which makes the relative coherence of the “plot” more explicable but still impressive. The subjects he mocks are deserving and well chosen, and this time around I felt less need to immediately take a shower.

The Fight – 7.5

Perfectly competent account of the ACLU’s fight against abhorrent Trump policies, with a focus on the men and women leading the charge–very similar to Liz Garbus’s series last year about the New York Times reporters. More than a nuanced movie, it came across as a solicitation for the ACLU, certainly a worthwhile cause.

My Octopus Teacher – 7.5

Stunning photography, both above and underwater, made this a pleasure to watch, and the novelty of an octupus’s life, up-close and personal, made it fascinating. Like almost all nature docs, there was a fair amount of anthropomorphism: I submit that the title character was acting on (animal) instinct, not employing “intelligence” to teach his human visitor. Craig Foster’s disdain for Scuba gear was a bafflement: how could he be so patient in observing an octopus in its den when he must regularly and repeatedly resurface for air? Presumably whoever was filming him–another mystery–had an air tank, making possible the shots of pajama sharks swimming around. The overlay of Foster’s finding himself added little, but the brief lifespan of the octopus was enough.

The Trial of the Chicago 7 – 8.5

Pure catnip: an Aaron Sorkin drama with pithy dialogue, clearly drawn characters, a hopefully moral universe and a healthy dose of politics, past and present. Being in my personal revisit-Vietnam moment helped. Having just watched Platoon, the Ken Burns 10-part documentary, Da 5 Bloods and having read Oliver Stone’s and Randy Hobler’s memoirs, this moment of history didn’t seem so distant. The all-star cast was just that: all-star. Sacha Baron Cohen and Jeremy Strong were brilliant, and great fun, as Abbie Hoffman and Jerry Rubin. The one weak link was Eddie Redmayne, an Englishman miscast as Tom Hayden. Conversely, the most brilliant performance was by another Brit: Mark Rylance’s performance as William Kunstler. The echoes with 2020–street protests and a repressive government–made the story all the more compelling.

Time – 6.5

If nothing else, this film immersed me in an unfamiliar world, Black life in Louisiana. Maybe there was nothing else. The story covered 20 years between Sibil and Robert’s failed bank robbery and Robert’s long-awaited release from jail.  Without any other facts, though, no points were made about the justice or incarceration systems. Most remarkable were the outcomes for the couples’s four sons, although again we weren’t shown how that happened. Sibil was an appealing and impressive central character, but all we saw her do was talk. The story line was a bit hard to follow, as it jumped around in time: confusion was a substitute for profundity.

 

 

Baghdad Central – 8.5

A charmingly unprofessional six-parter set in post-invasion Iraq, with political and ideological overtones overlaying the conflicts: Arab-Western, British-American, Arab-Arab. Waleed Zuaiter excels as the unflappable former Iraqi inspector who navigates the political shoals while trying to find one rebel daughter and get medical help for the other. (Rather like the hero in Trapped.) Corey Stoll got to play the good American–the villain, surprisingly, is British in a British-made show. We knew the ending would be happy–exactly what I wanted–but it was a pleasure to see it unwind. Also fun was hearing Arabic, although Dari (!) and English were also spoken.

Trapped – 8.5

A worthy 10-episode drama for its Icelandic scenery alone, but the characters made returning to it night-after-night as welcome as the hearth in a storm. Best of all was Olafur Darri Olafsson as the bear of an unflappable small-town police chief, but the rest of his team, Hinrika and Asgeir, were also notable for their plain humanity. No Hollywood here. Andri’s wife Agnes had the kind of beauty that grew from inside, rather than hitting you on the head. The villains were clearly delineated as such by looks and manner, which helped keep things straight while the plot packed a half dozen separate crimes into this small coastal village where nothing ever happens.