Necrotongue

I rated the seventh episode with three stars, but it was close to being only two. The episode started quite well and for a moment, I thought I would have a good time. Then, the humor suddenly disappeared, there was a trip into the wilderness, and I alternated between being bored and being annoyed by the illogical behavior of the characters.

I enjoyed Strange Fruit’s European tour even the second time around. Watching those aging rockers attempting a comeback was fun most of the time, but I didn’t expect a guitar player of Brian’s stature to bring such discordant notes to the story. This is where the creators started pushing too hard, trying to pull at the viewers’ heartstrings instead of the guitar strings. As usual, I really loved Bill Nighy, but that was to be expected as I’m a longtime fan.

Not a bad film at all. I like these depressing, cynical films. The cast was great, so I was going to rate it four stars, but the ending was a low blow. The pacing of the film wasn't frantic, but I enjoyed all those situations where people were wolves to each other, and I had a good time.

The biggest problem with this film is that the creators bet on breathtaking shots of a futuristic metropolis. It's just that what was futuristic in 1982 wouldn’t impress anyone today, so the breathtaking shots are just boring now. The story did have something to it, but the pace didn’t suit me, the plot was too draggy and only a radical shortening of the running time could bring it to life.

I liked the film years ago and I still do as I found out today. An enlightening film about how a barely noticeable and almost harmless scam can turn into a brutal, bloody madness, and how a total pushover can stand behind a series of deadly coincidences. The creators interestingly alternated moments of almost complete standstill with absurd outbursts of violence, and I had a great time all along. I think the casting of Peter Stormare was a perfect move, he’s excellent at playing all kinds of psychopaths and sociopaths.

I wasn't expecting this film to be anything special, and it wasn’t, but I had fun. The cast was great, except for Jack Black of course, I’m not a huge fan of his. Those who stood out in particular were Robert Downey Jr. as Kirk Lazarus/Sgt. Osiris and surprisingly Tom Cruise, whose hairy Les Grossman with lumberjack arms was probably the funniest role I've ever seen Cruise play. The story had momentum, it was funny, which isn’t a given with comedies, and there were plenty of one-liners, so I have nothing to complain about.

I really enjoyed the first season of Fargo. Oddly enough, I didn't mind it when there was almost zero plot sometimes, unless it came right after an action-packed episode. The entire first season was dominated by Billy Bob Thornton and Martin Freeman, followed at some distance by Colin Hanks. I'm a little sorry that Keith Carradine’s character didn't get more screen time. Otherwise, I was very happy with the first season and had a good time.

I didn't even think that the creators could come up with a weak ending, so I wasn't surprised by its quality, rather I received exactly what I expected. A fantastic ending to the first season with a perfectly tuned atmosphere, full of tension and gripping action.

After the breath-catching eighth part came the action-packed ninth episode with an absolutely gripping plot, and as a bonus, Lorne Malvo added one of his seemingly harmless tricks. It seems that Lester has completed his transformation into a repulsive monster with his cold-blooded decision at the end. The character development of Martin Freeman is among the best I have seen in television series.

After the previous great episode, there was a slight disappointment that the slow pace returned and there was practically no development, unless I count the subtitle: "one year later," and the family changes of some characters. The story this time somehow stagnated, but I firmly believe in a great improvement.