Binge Watching favorites (TV)

[PeaceFrogYum]

4 hours ago, kipper said:

Great series but I kind of hated all of the excessive "T&A" which I suppose was required by some executive types at HBO in their misguided thinking that that would be the thing which would make people tune in and pay for a subscription.

Hollywood does that all the time. If they are worried they won't get a R rating they put in a woman's bare nipple in a scene. Don't want a G rating, they add a few four letter words and viola--- a PG-13.

To tell a good story you don't need gratuitous sex and violence. Having the proper measure of each is in the art of good film making. 

His office was in a strip club so...how exactly does a director / writer not have naked women running around? I am one of the first in line to call out gratuitous sex and nudity however I never felt The Sopranos were guilty of that as it was all within context IMO.

The Sopranos' was based on the real life DeCavalcante mob family out of Elizabeth, NJ which also operated out of a local strip club.

[chillumpuffer]

Breaking Bad for the 3rd time. 3 episodes in the evening after dinner. It's a long time since we watched it last, and it really is great.

[Walter]

1 hour ago, chillumpuffer said:

Breaking Bad for the 3rd time. 3 episodes in the evening after dinner. It's a long time since we watched it last, and it really is great.

Do you watch Netflix, CP?  We just finished watching Sex Education, season 2.  It's a British comedy and hysterically funny. 

[kipper]

On 2/19/2020 at 9:10 PM, PeaceFrogYum said:

His office was in a strip club so...how exactly does a director / writer not have naked women running around? I am one of the first in line to call out gratuitous sex and nudity however I never felt The Sopranos were guilty of that as it was all within context IMO.

The Sopranos' was based on the real life DeCavalcante mob family out of Elizabeth, NJ which also operated out of a local strip club.

All I am saying is that HBO wanted the excessive T&A because it sells subscriptions. It wasn't so much about telling the DeCavalcante story at that point--- it was about the "eye candy".

The STORY is a good one without the gratuitous sex. I'm not being a prude, some of it is fine. But at some point it was too much. 

[kipper]

On 2/19/2020 at 9:10 PM, PeaceFrogYum said:

His office was in a strip club so...how exactly does a director / writer not have naked women running around? I am one of the first in line to call out gratuitous sex and nudity however I never felt The Sopranos were guilty of that as it was all within context IMO.

The Sopranos' was based on the real life DeCavalcante mob family out of Elizabeth, NJ which also operated out of a local strip club.

Only thing that didn't make sense in the story to me was why Gus Fring would risk making himself personally known and connected to the pair of low level street dealers whom Jesse ended up having the  beef with?  Guys like that in Fring's position would NEVER be dealing with low level management issues--- too risky.  You send Tyrus or Victor to handle that stuff.  Now Walt and Jesse is a little different as they were knowledgeable about the lab and essential to the operation. Put street dealers get arrested all the time, so you would always want to be double and triple insulated from a potential case of a guy getting busted and making a deal with the police.

That was the one part where I think the show creator dropped the ball.  Fring was otherwise waaaaaay too cautious for that part to have been in the story.

 

 

[PeaceFrogYum]

1 hour ago, kipper said:

All I am saying is that HBO wanted the excessive T&A because it sells subscriptions. It wasn't so much about telling the DeCavalcante story at that point--- it was about the "eye candy".

The STORY is a good one without the gratuitous sex. I'm not being a prude, some of it is fine. But at some point it was too much. 

I also think one of the reasons for the strip club / naked ladies bit was to show how those women were nothing more than property to be disposed of like used toys when they wanted. Silvio was one of the more sympathetic characters, more temperate and rarely prone to violence but yet he had no problem beating the crap out of a stripper who he believed had slighted him.

I think the bottom line of the show was none of the characters were redeemable and that Tony, for all his supposed excuses, was really just another psychopath killer in the end. They were like animals in a cage and if you dared walk into that cage, don't be surprised if you wind up as lunch.

[kipper]

3 hours ago, PeaceFrogYum said:

I also think one of the reasons for the strip club / naked ladies bit was to show how those women were nothing more than property to be disposed of like used toys when they wanted. Silvio was one of the more sympathetic characters, more temperate and rarely prone to violence but yet he had no problem beating the crap out of a stripper who he believed had slighted him.

I think the bottom line of the show was none of the characters were redeemable and that Tony, for all his supposed excuses, was really just another psychopath killer in the end. They were like animals in a cage and if you dared walk into that cage, don't be surprised if you wind up as lunch.

Tony used everyone--- he had no redeeming human qualities whatsoever and his end (and he was killed) was fitting. Dying either in front of his family or with his family... either way.

Soprano I think was way worse of a character than Tommy in Goodfellas.

 

 

 

[PeaceFrogYum]

11 hours ago, kipper said:

Tony used everyone--- he had no redeeming human qualities whatsoever and his end (and he was killed) was fitting. Dying either in front of his family or with his family... either way.

Soprano I think was way worse of a character than Tommy in Goodfellas.

 

 

 

True dat, at least everyone knew Tommy was crazy as a shithouse rat, but Tony could be charming and affable.

I still think it was the Russian ex-Spetznaz guy from the Pine Barrens episode who killed him in the diner. Italian mobsters would not whack a guy in front of his family for obvious reasons, but a Russian, those bastards are brutal. 

[chillumpuffer]

21 hours ago, Walter said:

Do you watch Netflix, CP?  We just finished watching Sex Education, season 2.  It's a British comedy and hysterically funny. 

Yes we have Netflix Walter and do know about Sex Education though haven't watched it yet. If you want subtle, British comedy try Ricky Gervais's Afterlife. Not seen series 2 yet but the first series is excellent 

[Stryder1978]

..thanks for the recommendations guys, I've been running out of "binge-worthy" series to watch on the weekends that I haven't already watched four times!

[LedZeppfan1977]

I watch a lot of You Tube these days, now that I am streaming and trying to fight the greed of Time Warner/Spectrum and Direct TV who sucked me in for a decade.  You Tube is fabulous.  Has info on anything you can think of.  

[kipper]

On 4/29/2020 at 8:01 AM, PeaceFrogYum said:

 

I still think it was the Russian ex-Spetznaz guy from the Pine Barrens episode who killed him in the diner. Italian mobsters would not whack a guy in front of his family for obvious reasons, but a Russian, those bastards are brutal. 

I don't think it matters who killed Tony P. I think the story was such that he proved that burning too many bridges and eventually anybody or everybody is going to come at you at some point---- so it could have been anyone.

I also don't think Tony followed the old Mafia honor thing when he had Phil Leatoardo wacked out in front of his wife with his grandkids in the car. So just on that basis Tony getting whacked in the restaurant with his family was fair game was it not?

There were lots of clues throughout the Sopranos that sort of came from other Mafia films. Like the conversation about how you don't know when it will happen while he was in a boat fishing with Bobby (a homage to Godfather II where Fredo gets whacked by Al Neri).  And then of course Goodfellas and how Tommy gets it thing he was going to a ceremony to "get made"---- yeah, the got "straightened out" LOL. And how about in Casino who the KC dons "cleaned things up" taking out all the loose ends at the end of the film. And of course what about Donnie Brasco where Donny asks Lefty if a 'hit' is like "the Army" and Lefty says, "Bullshit. The army is some guy you don't know telling you to go whack some other guy you don't know. In 'our thing'  when they send for you, you go in alive, you come out dead, and it's your best friend that does it."

Edited May 6, 2020 by kipper

[PeaceFrogYum]

19 hours ago, kipper said:

I don't think it matters who killed Tony P. I think the story was such that he proved that burning too many bridges and eventually anybody or everybody is going to come at you at some point---- so it could have been anyone.

I also don't think Tony followed the old Mafia honor thing when he had Phil Leatoardo wacked out in front of his wife with his grandkids in the car. So just on that basis Tony getting whacked in the restaurant with his family was fair game was it not?

There were lots of clues throughout the Sopranos that sort of came from other Mafia films. Like the conversation about how you don't know when it will happen while he was in a boat fishing with Bobby (a homage to Godfather II where Fredo gets whacked by Al Neri).  And then of course Goodfellas and how Tommy gets it thing he was going to a ceremony to "get made"---- yeah, the got "straightened out" LOL. And how about in Casino who the KC dons "cleaned things up" taking out all the loose ends at the end of the film. And of course what about Donnie Brasco where Donny asks Lefty if a 'hit' is like "the Army" and Lefty says, "Bullshit. The army is some guy you don't know telling you to go whack some other guy you don't know. In 'our thing'  when they send for you, you go in alive, you come out dead, and it's your best friend that does it."

Good point, I forgot about how they hit Phil. I love that actor, he was in several mob movies including Goodfellas as the made guy Tommy and crew kill. However...if that was the case, why didn't they just kill him either at the sitdown or as he was leaving the sitdown? Meh, who knows. Maybe whoever whacked Tony in the diner took out his whole useless family too. Sopranos was another show that was amazing, had most rooting for Tony, while at the same time every damn character in the show was a complete piece of crap. The only decent things in the Sopranos were the ducks, I know they never whacked anyone.

[Strider]

"The Thick of It". Old BBC show from the people who made "In the Loop". Finished seasons 1 and 2...starting season 3 tonight.

Peter Capaldi is hysterical and a master of the word "fuck". I always thought Al Pacino was the top 'fuck' man but Peter Capaldi gives Al a run for his money.

How has no one thought to put Al Pacino and Peter Capaldi in a movie together? 

[Bong-Man]

Started to binge watch "House", and was enjoying it.  However after about 5 episodes the hospital crap started getting to me.  It's not really a good time to watch people bleeding from unusual orifices, having seizures, and suffering from unknown maladies.

Watched both "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" & "Black Panther".  Glad I didn't pay to see either.  Really liked "Knives Out" though.   

[PeaceFrogYum]

Just finished Hollywood on Netflix, a truly great series about Hollywood in 1946. 

Rock Hudson was such a moron, his depiction in the series is historically spot on as he was a notorious mental midget and could not remember dialogue for shit.

[kipper]

44 minutes ago, PeaceFrogYum said:

Just finished Hollywood on Netflix, a truly great series about Hollywood in 1946. 

Rock Hudson was such a moron, his depiction in the series is historically spot on as he was a notorious mental midget and could not remember dialogue for shit.

LOL BINGO about Hudson.  He was worse even than Jack Lord (Hawaii Five-O)--- and Lord pretty much had to use cue cards for most scenes.

Edited May 9, 2020 by kipper

[Strider]

Anyone else watch this? Are you convinced his father was the Zodiac killer? The son reminds me of Steve Hodel, who has spent years convinced his dad was the Black Dahlia killler and written book after book and completely gone down the rabbit-hole.

So far, I think this guy's case is a little stronger than Hodel's.

I met the actress who plays Jude Chandler, Earl Van Best's jailbait bride in the recreations, months ago and she tipped me off about the show. Otherwise I might have missed it as I'm not a regular FX viewer.

[LedZeppfan1977]

On 5/12/2020 at 2:10 AM, Strider said:

Anyone else watch this? Are you convinced his father was the Zodiac killer? The son reminds me of Steve Hodel, who has spent years convinced his dad was the Black Dahlia killler and written book after book and completely gone down the rabbit-hole.

So far, I think this guy's case is a little stronger than Hodel's.

I met the actress who plays Jude Chandler, Earl Van Best's jailbait bride in the recreations, months ago and she tipped me off about the show. Otherwise I might have missed it as I'm not a regular FX viewer.

I have watched many docs and that movie on the Zodiac.  Very tough to say who the hell he was.  I am pretty sure he is dead.  I am sold on the Swedish journalists take on the Jack the Ripper theory.  It makes perfect sense that Lechmere was the killer.  Charles Allen Cross Lechmere.   I live in a breeding grounds for serial killers as Bianchi and Shawcross are from Rochester and so was another.  But the double initial murders, 3 in all, are the most baffling.  Never solved.  3 young girls with the double initials C, W, M.  (Come With Me some think?)  

Have you noticed many of the shows are not taping due to the long reaching arms of Coronavirus?  Even the soap operas.  The entire world is interrupted.  

[PeaceFrogYum]

On 5/11/2020 at 11:10 PM, Strider said:

Anyone else watch this? Are you convinced his father was the Zodiac killer? The son reminds me of Steve Hodel, who has spent years convinced his dad was the Black Dahlia killler and written book after book and completely gone down the rabbit-hole.

So far, I think this guy's case is a little stronger than Hodel's.

I met the actress who plays Jude Chandler, Earl Van Best's jailbait bride in the recreations, months ago and she tipped me off about the show. Otherwise I might have missed it as I'm not a regular FX viewer.

Nah, not enough evidence, I think the guy is just wrong. Hodel though is interesting as his father is on tape saying, "if I did kill the Black Dahlia they could never prove it." Not an admission but still rather strange. The naysayers in that one point out Hodel's father was a VD doctor thus he had no real secrets so why would the LAPD protect him. The answer to that is he was also conducting illegal abortions for the rich and famous and that was seriously major in the 1940's-50's. If he was the killer (I am not convinced), Dr. Hodel would have taken down dozens of very wealthy and famous people, all going to jail so yes, that IMO is quite viable. Now that photo book Hodel has which was his fathers which supposedly show Elizabeth Short (Black Dahlia) is just silly, those pictures look nothing like Ms. Short.

So for now I thing both, Zodiac & Dahlia, are still unsolved and neither presented enough evidence to prove their respective cases.

[Strider]

6 hours ago, PeaceFrogYum said:

Nah, not enough evidence, I think the guy is just wrong. Hodel though is interesting as his father is on tape saying, "if I did kill the Black Dahlia they could never prove it." Not an admission but still rather strange. The naysayers in that one point out Hodel's father was a VD doctor thus he had no real secrets so why would the LAPD protect him. The answer to that is he was also conducting illegal abortions for the rich and famous and that was seriously major in the 1940's-50's. If he was the killer (I am not convinced), Dr. Hodel would have taken down dozens of very wealthy and famous people, all going to jail so yes, that IMO is quite viable. Now that photo book Hodel has which was his fathers which supposedly show Elizabeth Short (Black Dahlia) is just silly, those pictures look nothing like Ms. Short.

So for now I thing both, Zodiac & Dahlia, are still unsolved and neither presented enough evidence to prove their respective cases.

The TiVo fucked up and the last episode didn't record properly. 

As to Hodel, yeah that photo album was ridiculous. Even in his first Black Dahlia Avenger book that came out before the discovery of his father's photo album, Steve published a photo he claimed was his father's and that was of Elizabeth Short and that clearly looked nothing like her.

A few years back I met James Ellroy and I asked him about Steve Hodel and his hypothesis and Ellroy just cursed and laughed.

[PeaceFrogYum]

2 hours ago, Strider said:

The TiVo fucked up and the last episode didn't record properly. 

As to Hodel, yeah that photo album was ridiculous. Even in his first Black Dahlia Avenger book that came out before the discovery of his father's photo album, Steve published a photo he claimed was his father's and that was of Elizabeth Short and that clearly looked nothing like her.

A few years back I met James Ellroy and I asked him about Steve Hodel and his hypothesis and Ellroy just cursed and laughed.

Anything for a buck, I am surprise he did not have picture of Daisy Bufford and claim that was Elizabeth Short.

Hey, what did you think of James Ellroy? I hear he is a real character, kinda like Stanley Bukowski crossed with Tom Waits.

[Strider]

39 minutes ago, PeaceFrogYum said:

Anything for a buck, I am surprise he did not have picture of Daisy Bufford and claim that was Elizabeth Short.

Hey, what did you think of James Ellroy? I hear he is a real character, kinda like Stanley Bukowski crossed with Tom Waits.

He curses like a drunken sailor or Malcom Tucker. I've actually met him several times at events or screenings. Of course, even when meeting James Ellroy you aren't really meeting the "real James Ellroy". Like SAJ, Ellroy plays the part of his 'persona' in public. The foul-mouthed, irascible bad boy of literature. The line between the performance and the real James Ellroy is blurred.

Like SAJ, though, you are definitely entertained.

[kingzoso]

Ozark. 

Great show, great acting, great plot, etc...

I highly recommend it.

[Strider]

1 hour ago, kingzoso said:

Ozark. 

Great show, great acting, great plot, etc...

I highly recommend it.

He's alive! Welcome back kingzoso. We were beginning to worry about your health. Hope all is well with you.