210. Web-Series Reviews – 58

More web-series reviews…

Crime Stories – India Detectives – With unprecedented access to the Bengaluru City Police, this gripping series follows major criminal investigations from the moment the crime is reported through to the capture of the suspects. From murder to kidnap to extortion, each film tracks a shocking and compelling case in the heart of India's Silicon Valley. Filmed with senior officers at home and at work, this is a unique window into the lives of Bengaluru's police officers as they attempt to detect the most complex and serious crimes in the city. Released in 2021 on Netflix.

One of the reviews from IMDB...

-1 stars on Netflix for not promoting this amazing piece of work. The cinematography, editing, background score and direction is as good as documentaries made in Hollywood. The stories are of course hand-picked and there are obvious biases visible throughout. However, whatever was covered, was done brilliantly.

This is not any game changing, eye opening documentary. At best this might be an attempt to humanize men and women of police force who we (Indians) are mostly scared of and keep a distance. That being said, it achieves that objective nicely.

There are some disturbing scenes, narration, police brutality (sugar coated) and a heart-breaking case on last episode and so it might not be for everyone. It hit me hard because it was so close to home.

The two negatives I can say are, the police are self-aware of the camera and crew present in all scenes. Their behaviour is toned down except for couple of officers who probably didn't care. At first, I thought they were bad actors hired to recreate crime scenes like in crime patrol episode. And another negative is lack of any kind of promotion from Netflix.

I am glad I saw this and I appreciate all the men and women of our police force who honestly want to do good for the citizens and care about justice. You should watch it too.

My Take – An excellent series😊! Don't miss it!

 

Goliath – Billy Mcbride is going through a rough patch. He has been fired from the law firm he helped build, his wife has left him, and he's now a down on his luck ambulance chaser. A lady (Patty) approaches him to represent her in a wrongful death case. After reluctantly accepting to take on the case, a series of strange events befall Billy. Through death threats, harassment, and trumped up arrests, Billy embarks on obtaining justice, and it is one hell of a ride. A total of 4 seasons. I just watched the 1st season and skipped the others.  The reviews from season 2 onwards were average:-)

One of the reviews from IMDB...

I had seen Billy Bob Thornton in some roles before Goliath, but I had never realized his caliber. The first season is absolutely amazing and the writing is very clever. William Hurt was amazing in the first season and the whole ensemble was. From Nina Arianda to Maria Bello, it was funny, smart, and witty as hell.

Billy Bob's character is a tortured, drunk named Billy McBride who is a lawyer trying to do right by a family. There is a great emotional reason for his vendetta and his hate directed towards his previous law firm give him some amazing scenes to act out. Thornton is also very witty and his dry humor is very funny in what would be otherwise very serious moments.

The writing causes the show to twist and turn in amazing ways that the audience does not see coming. Certain character developments and plot devices are so out of the blue and spiral out of control, it is amazing to watch. The writing in Season 1 is absolutely impeccable.

Season 1 comes to an appropriate conclusion and I was very happy with it. I was curious to see how much of the original cast would return for Season 2, but that is what went wrong. Almost no one from Season 1 returned except for McBride's legal team. Maria Bello, William Hurt, Molly Parker, and Olivia Thirlby all do not return because the story is no longer centered on the law firm.

Instead, the second season focuses on the cartel, which you think would be fascinating and interesting, but it does not deliver. The story moves at a snail's pace and even with the actors the show has at its disposal, it does not enhance the story. Mark Duplass as Tom Wyatt is truly creepy, but the show does not do enough with him and he is criminally underused.

Watching the second season also felt like the writers had no idea what the direction should be for the second season unlike the first. The first season had an essence of purpose and a sense of direction that used their actors in the right way. Actors that were cast in Season 2 were not as amazing as the actors that were cast in Season 1 as well.

I do suggest to watch the show, but I just want to expose the faults of the show. I do not tend to like legal shows, but this is truly one of a kind and amazing. Please watch Goliath, the first season is an absolute masterpiece and incredible!!!

My Take – See Season 1 and skip the rest😊!

 

Vigil – The mysterious disappearance of a Scottish fishing trawler and a death onboard a Trident nuclear submarine bring the police into conflict with the Navy and British security services. Released in 2021.  This series is from the makers of Line of Duty!

One of the reviews from IMDB...

Vigil has been the biggest show in the UK the last few weeks and today I decided to watch all 6 episodes of it and here is my review for the sure. The premise of the show sees a detective sent to a submarine when a death of a crewman takes place.

Main character Suranne Jones plays the lead character here and she is really good in her role. She is clearly really good at her job and you see how the effect of being on this submarine really affects her compared to the crewman. You learn more about her character as the show progresses and it makes her an interesting role and very challenging role for Jones.

The entire cast are fantastic, Rose Leslie plays her partner who is investigating a slightly different angle on land. She is really good in her role and I thought she managed to elevate certain material and make it better than it had any right to be. Though they don't share too much screen time together Jones and Leslie are really good together and have really good chemistry. There are so many crewmen, played by really talented actors that I won't go into depth about them but Martin Compston, Shaun Evans, Paterson Joseph, Adam James & Connor Swindells are all great. They have meaty roles and they do plenty to drive the narrative in the sub. Stephane Dillane also does a good job as the guy in charge of the navy and you see how he has to deal with the circumstances that are at play.

The story is good, it does a really effective job of dragging you into its narrative and making you care. There are cliff-hangers a plenty and plenty of suspects that could be guilty of foul play, it achieves this well by creating interesting personalities and people. But the show does end up feeling a little flat with its ending and sometimes it becomes a bit confusing and illogical with its overall story.

The script is effective, it is obviously really serious but it works for the situation that these characters are in at pretty much all times in this submarine. It feels really intense and there are so many characters that have something to hide that the intrigue is done really well.

The show is shot really well, the submarine looks really great and I thought the claustrophobic feeling of the sub delivered and made the whole atmosphere be on a knife edge no matter what was going on. But I think the show has a bit too slow a pacing at times and I think maybe there could have been an episode left which would have made it a more condensed but effective watch.

Overall, Vigil is a great show that will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout and keep you guessing as to what is going to happen next.

My Take – An engrossing fare😊!

Cheers till next time😊

Daffy Definition

Older Sister – Someone who can’t help you with your homework because she is helping her boyfriend with his😊!