Brett Garten, Movie Extraordinare
Cinematic Sommelier
8.2
This score excludes everything after season 2. The first 2 seasons of this show are nothing short of brilliant, and the other Nolan brother at the height of his complex storytelling powers. The second two seasons made me sad, and left me not sad that they cancelled the show and took it off HBO Max. The premise, acting, and the twists of the first 2 seasons are amazing. The first season finale being one of my all-time favorite HBO episodes.
9.1
For a group of community college kids sitting around a table a majority of the runtime, this show is nothing short of brilliant. The variety of how its funny, the chemistry between the cast, and the overall high quality of the show is off the charts. Endless wit from beginning to end in a showing generational talents – Lightning in a bottle. It even made me like Joel McHale, and I thought that was impossible.
7.3
It’s basically “Breaking Bad,” but instead of making meth, this teacher/coach decides to sell himself to rebuild his life. A great cast, a lot of great laughs. The only complaint I have is the clunky ending. It ends like hitting a brick wall. Very strange, and unfortunate. But then again, this kept it from overstaying its welcome. Solid B-tier HBO television.
7.9
One of my favorite action sleeper hits. Costner and Cook have fantastic chemistry as the mentor/mentee in the murderous arts. Costner does a great job of portraying the struggle of leading a double life while also exuding a calm coolness almost the entire time. The twist at the end always elicits a cheer from yours truly. It blew my mind the first time I watched it.
6.1
In a story arch as unlikely as the “50 shades” trilogy, our main character Kim goes from nymphomaniac to professional assassin in the blink of an eye, with little to no explanation. This may also be the only film I’ve ever seen other than “Old School” (you’re my boy, blue!) where an elderly man is killed simply by the power of a nice pair.
The soundtrack had me in stitches as it never matched what was going on on screen. The acting was laughable. But it was an entertaining hour and a half, I’ll give it that. A thank you to “Cinema Speculation” for this odd rabbit hole to travel down.
Brett Garten, Movie Extraordinare 