194. Web-Series Reviews – 45

More web-series/documentaries reviews…

Giri/Haji – Giri/Haji (Japanese: "Duty/Shame") is a British television series which premiered on BBC Two in October 2019, and was released internationally on Netflix on 10 January 2020.

Kenzo Mori (Takehiro Hira), a Tokyo detective, travels to London in search of his brother, Yuto (Yōsuke Kubozuka), who was previously assumed to be dead. Yuto has been accused of murdering the nephew of a Yakuza member, which threatens to start a gang war in Tokyo. As Kenzo attempts to navigate the unfamiliar territory of London to uncover whether his brother is alive and guilty, he becomes acquainted with DC Sarah Weitzmann (Kelly Macdonald) of the Metropolitan Police and Rodney Yamaguchi (Will Sharpe), a young half-Japanese, half-British sex worker. While searching for Yuto in London, Kenzo must also support his family back home in Tokyo. Kenzo's investigation brings him into contact with dangerous elements of London's criminal underworld.

My Take – Ok series.  Watch the initial 4 episodes fully and the next 4 episodes in 10-second-forward-speed-mode!!  BBC cancelled the series after the 1st season!

 

The Jinx – The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst – This is a 2015 HBO documentary miniseries about New York real estate heir Robert Durst, an accused murderer. It was written by Andrew Jarecki, Marc Smerling, and Zac Stuart-Pontier.

The series was directed by Jarecki, who had previously directed the feature fictional film All Good Things (2010), inspired by Durst's biography.Durst had professed admiration for the film All Good Things and telephoned Jarecki after its release, offering to be interviewed (this conversation was recorded and incorporated into the documentary). Durst sat with Jarecki for more than 20 hours over several years, despite having never previously cooperated with any journalist.

The Jinx gained widespread exposure when Durst was arrested on first-degree murder charges for the death of his friend Susan Berman, the day before its finale aired.

A review from IMDB...

I don't typically watch documentaries and many I often find boring. I also don't typically write reviews. The Jinx however, is the most compelling and dramatic thing I've ever seen. On one side it has the feel of a featured film murder mystery like Gone Girl. Almost seeming written, and even features an amazing intro and theme song similar to True Detective. On the other side you acknowledge this is actually a documentary, and the interviews from the man himself are chilling. For lack of a better comparison, It's like an episode of Dateline NBC on super steroids and 10 times more interesting. I love how it was broken into separate episodes rather than a lengthy one piece. This gives them the ability to leave cliff hangers for the next episode and that makes you want to binge watch (which I did). This series also leaves you wanting more, and you'll find yourself searching the internet for other details about Robert at the case itself. This puts anything else that calls itself "reality television" to shame. Overall, I find it to be more powerful and dramatic than anything I've ever watched in a feature film or on television.

My Take – Excellent series!!  News article on 17^th Sept 2021 – https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/17/us/robert-durst-murder-trial.html marking an end this story😊!!

 

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness – This is a 2020 American true crime documentary streaming television miniseries about the life of zookeeper and convicted felon Joe Exotic. It was released on Netflix on March 20, 2020. The series focuses on the small but deeply interconnected society of big cat conservationists such as Carole Baskin, owner of Big Cat Rescue, and collectors such as Exotic, whom Baskin accuses of abusing and exploiting wild animals.

A review from IMDB...

Filmed over the course of several years by clearly passionate and committed filmmakers, this superb series takes many gripping twists and turns. I watched for seven hours straight, only breaking to Google every now and then.

Although it's about the exotic animal business in the USA, it actually has multiple layers of interwoven themes.

Populated by flawed humans interacting with magnificent animals, nobody is presented as a pure goodie or a baddie - every real-life character has elements of both, presented in such an insightful way that you'll find your opinions and loyalties shifting as you get carried along on this interesting journey.

Perfectly paced, great soundtrack, interesting bonus to have the main protagonist's "own" music featured. I finished this feeling educated and entertained, sad and conflicted, curious and fascinated.

It's a highly recommended experience.

My take – Go for it!! An engaging series!!  Just heard yesterday that Part 2 of this series is coming this year😊!!

Cheers till next time! 😊

Today’s Observation

Public money is like a holy water – everyone helps himself to it! 😊