June film and television

Murderbot - this is a sci-fi comedy drama with a Deadpool sensibility.  Murderbot is a security robot that has developed free will and if the company find out he will be scrapped.  He finds humans incredibly irritating but if he lets them die he will be scrapped.  Therefore he keep his clients (a well meaning but slightly incompetent bunch of scientists) alive. He’s addicted to watching schlocky sci fi series and spends most of his time watching those and using them to understand human behaviour. Silly and funny but also endearing,  this makes me laugh and the episodes are all less than 30 minutes long which is another bonus as far as I am concerned. (series streaming on Appletv+) 

Heretic - I am loving High Grant’s post romcom career.  He plays a brilliant creepy monster in this horror thriller.  Witty and smart with plenty of stuff to unpick.   It had an annoyingly open metaphysical sort of ending which I think was supposed to be meaningful but I just found a bit frustrating in the same way that the ending of Inception was annoying.  (Film, streaming on Prime) 

Magic Farm - sharp little comedy about a tv crew who film quirky cultural trends visiting a small town in south America. The story they expect turns out not to be there so they make up their own fake story about a music trend to film instead.  Meanwhile there is an illness taking out chunks of the population, toxic chemicals, riots and all sorts of real life stories including a 'me too' scandal, pregnancy and some sweet and sad little love stories that are just passing them by.  A great commentary on social media focusing on the shallows while missing the depth.  This movie looks great, with lots of vivid and unusual cinematography; one of my favourites was a camera on the back of one of the local dogs as it runs around the town, but there was also a great lense effect at the start and end of the film.  This is a grower and I really enjoyed it by the end. (Film, streaming on Mubi)

The Salt Path- I haven’t read the book (there I said it!). I fully intended to read it before going to the cinema but I didn’t,  so I have no idea how it compares.  It looks beautiful - the scenery is just gorgeous, and the performances of the two leads are pitch perfect. Is it going to change my world?  Probably not, but enjoyable enough all the same. Also, is it wrong to say that in the ‘walking yourself back to good mental health’ category I prefer Reese Witherspoon’s 'Wild' ( Film, at the cinema) 

Department Q.  An enjoyable if slightly predictable cop drama with some nice comic touches. I guessed the basic outline of who were the baddies by episode 3, but it was all very stylishly done if a bit longwinded. Loved the parallels between the basement office and the hyperbaric chamber (makes sense if you watch it) But I found the amoral acceptance of deliberate violence from the police because he is a nice guy in other ways a bit strange. Enjoyable nonsense… (series streaming on Netflix) 

Deep Cover -  entertaining crime caper.  I do love Nick Mohammed doing his incompetent insecure thing and Orlando Bloom made me laugh quite a lot as the pretentious actor.  It’s just packed full of so many things happening so that you don’t have to think too much.. Fun (film, streaming on Prime) 

Echo Valley - a thriller starring Julianne Moore dealing with a fraught situation created by her daughter.  It’s a great cast with good performances but the plot was pretty ridiculous.  The daughter (Sydney Sweeney) is so unlikeable I found myself grumbling at the screen, but it was fun to see Fiona Shaw as a friend who isn’t fazed by anything at all - take a friend who would bury a body with you and double it.  And Domhnall Gleason was fab as the sleazy baddie.  (film, streaming on Prime)

The Handmaid’s Tale  - Last month I was grumbling a bit that it had gone soft for the last season… it’s made up for it since.  Just love Bradley Whitford as Commander Lawrence, a snake who has found his conscience. Serena, from appearing to be a baddie with a bit of a self-serving heart in series one has turned into a brilliantly complex character; I can never predict which way she will go.  And June is like Terminator in a red dress, a machine who just won’t stop.  Love it. (Series, streaming on C4 )

Overcompensating - an American coming of age comedy.  Very silly and sometime gross out in that particularly american way, but I enjoyed it quite a lot. Every one of the characters newly at college has been trying to be something they are not, with often very funny results.  It was let down by the ending which made me cross, as it was one of those cliff-hanger things where they are clearly hoping for a second series.  So it was entertaining enough but the ending sucks (series, streaming on Prime)