202. Web-Series Reviews – 52

Mouse – Another interesting Korean series😊!!  Jung Ba Reum (Lee Seung-gi) is a rookie police officer, working at a police substation whose life changes when he encounters a psychopathic serial killer. This drives him and his partner Go Moo Chi (Lee Hee-joon) to unearth the truth behind psychopathic behaviors. This also raises the questions, whether it is possible to scan a psychopath in the mother's womb using fetal genetic testing? And if the child in the womb is a psychopath, will it be wise to have that child?

A review from IMDB...

This show is a fantastic thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The serial killer parts, particularly in the beginning, are very dark and somewhat scary, giving a great opening to a show that fully deserved all of its 20 episodes. Each and every episode is packed with twists and turns and some amazing plot points you won't see coming. At the start of the series, I felt like there were a lot of plot holes, but they are definitely resolved by the end. The writing is really brilliant in that it makes you question everything, but it's solid enough writing that it makes sense even as you question it. There is most definitely a dystopian element to the show, as well as a bit of a sci-fi twist, so go into the show expecting those things.

The acting was fantastic in this, and there was a very good score to go along with some dark and creepy cinematography, giving an eerie atmosphere throughout.

Was this show perfect? No - there were definitely some things I disliked, but it is very interesting and different from anything else I have seen, making it worth a watch.

My Take – An excellent series!! A definite watch!!

 

The Little Boy Blue – The story about the murder of an 11-year-old boy, Rhys Jones in Croxteth, Liverpool, in 2007 and his parents, Melanie's and Steve's ordeal, and how Rhys's murderer and associates were eventually brought to justice.

A review from IMDB...

Pretty much every British person watching this already knows what's going to happen... but you'll still be hootin' and a hollerin' as events unfold and the journey to justice is completed. The writing, acting and everything else about this 4-part TV docu-drama is spot on. If you're not familiar with the story you're going to enjoy this even more.

In 2007 an 11-year-old Rhys Jones was walking home from footy practice. As he cut through a pub car-park to get home the boy was fatally shot by a teenage gang member. About eight months later the police finally get their man and this is the story of how it happened.

The writer (Oscar nominee Jeff Pope) has chosen to follow the facts of the case and not allow the emotions of the story to get the better of him. If you're binge- watching this it's three hours long and not a minute is wasted.

As we're watching the story unfold through all the characters on both sides of the law, it's easy to forget that we're looking at something that is very close to what actually happened.

These kinds of 'stories' are the staple of 'conveyer-belt' fictional police procedurals, almost all of which fall well short of this mesmerizing drama. It's as good as 2016's "In Plain Sight" which was another, similar TV 'docu-drama' about the detection and pursuit of a killer.

This is top notch television and I hope the victim's family approves of the way their story has been handled. They had a hand in helping to re-tell their side of this horrible and senseless tragedy so I strongly suspect that they do.

Here's some trivia... Apart from the actual shooting, the drama was filmed in and around Liverpool. The funeral was filmed in the Anglican Cathedral and the minute's applause was filmed during half-time of a match played at Goodison Park. The case itself was filmed at Liverpool Crown Court inside the courtroom where the original trial took place. Pretty spooky, eh?

Excellent and captivating television - proving that British TV CAN do it when they want to!

My Take – A pretty engaging series. Worth a watch!

 

Appropriate Adult – In English law, an appropriate adult is a parent, guardian or social worker; or if no person matching this is available, any responsible person over 18. The term was introduced as part of the policing reforms in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and applies in England and Wales.

In England and Wales, an appropriate adult must be called by police whenever they detain or interview a child (under the age of 18) or vulnerable adult. They must be present for a range of police processes, including interviews, intimate searches and identification procedures, as detailed in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) Codes of Practice, primarily Code C.

A review from IMDB...

This is one of the few films that relates the true story of a serial killer without resorting to forcing the audience to watch reenactments of the murders. Instead, the writer, director and actors bring this savage bit of history to the screen solely through a serious of interview conducted with the killer in the presence of the British police and an 'Appropriate Adult' - one who has been trained to help the accused by detecting if the accused has learning difficulties or other encumbrances that might make the interviews invalid.

First a bit of fact: 'Frederick Walter Stephen West (29 September 1941 - 1 January 1995), was a British serial killer. Between 1967 and 1987, he alone, and later, he and his wife Rosemary, tortured, raped and murdered at least 11 young women and girls, many at the couple's homes. The majority of the murders occurred between May 1973 and September 1979 at their home in Gloucester. Rosemary West also murdered Fred's stepdaughter (his first wife's biological daughter) Charmaine, while he was serving a prison sentence for theft. During this time, they resided at 25 Cromwell Street, Gloucester. The house was demolished in 1996 and was converted into a landscaped footpath connecting Cromwell Street to St. Michaels Square.' It is now believed that West was responsible for 20 other similarly executed murders.

The film focuses on the Appropriate Adult Janet Leach (Emily Watson in an Oscar worthy performance), a trainee social worker who is asked by Gloucester police to sit in on the interrogations of Frederick West (played with extraordinary skill by Dominic West). West is a sociopath whose past of preying on women comes from the animal magnetism he owns, a factor which is strong enough to keep Janet on the case a Fred's assigned 'helper'. Janet lives with Mike (Anthony Flanagan) who is a bipolar victim and with whom Janet has three children.

The tightrope of psychological stability for Janet is threatened by her hearing all the grisly details of the murders as well as facing a home where Mike stopped his lithium and must be psychiatrically hospitalized. Janet is repulsed by what Fred unwinds and decides she cannot manage to remain the appropriate adult, but Fred sees her as his only friend and promises here that if she stays on the case, he will tell her the truth about everything. The interviews are held in the presence of Detective Constable Hazel Savage (Sylvestra Le Tousel), Detective Superintendent John Bennett (Robert Glenister), West's assigned solicitor Howard Ogden (Gerald Horan) and Janet.

There are moments when Fred tells Janet details he hasn't shared with the police, but because of her assigned role as appropriate adult she must hold these conversations with the murderer in confidence. There are times when the interrogation group accompanies Fred to his home to find the bodies buried in his garden and cellar, but these breaks are few and outside of the visits to Janet's home and to the hospital while Mike is institutionalized the film is claustrophobically viewed in the dank interrogation room. Once the interrogation is complete and hearings begin, Fred pleads with Janet to visit him in prison to share all the details of his life. The manner in which their relationship comes to an end is shocking but allows Janet to return to her home life with Mike and her three children: the paparazzi finally leave Janet alone.

The film is approximately 2 1/2 hours in length, but the story is so fascinating and the acting is so incredibly fine on the part of everyone in this cast that the film itself feels short. Dominic West and Emily Watson are absolutely extraordinary in this film. With the quality of their performances, it is doubtful the movie would have the enormous impact that it has.

My Take – Worth a watch!

Cheers till next time😊!

Daffy Definition

Stamp Album – The only place where nations stick together😊!