Mark DeFazio

Besides being incredibly must not see tv, I am so disappointed in both Philippa Soo and Don Johnson. Phillipa, you cannot go from starring in Hamilton to Bachelor in Paradise on a ship. You Just Can't!! Don, the role had potential but the script is garbage. After all the respect you've earned as an actor, to belittle yourself in this way is like an athlete that refuses to retire. What I am afraid of is this will continue on and on for years like much of the ABC sleezy content has.

I was a driver at Warner Bros when the studio decided not to renew Without A Trace which was always ranked in the top 10 in ratings. It was an economic decision pure and simple. Studios no longer care about quality tv. They just look at how much it costs. This Magnum reboot almost in every way is 10 times better than the original and I was working at Universal when that was made and delivered the scripts for the show. Selleck couldn't take a punch and was always getting beat up. Hillerman was just plain annoying. Now this version has bordered on the ridiculous many times probably due to the influence of Fast and Furious director/producer Justin Lin but it also made it entertaining if you could look past some of the flaws. In any case, whether it is CBS, NBC or any other network, it is just getting more difficult to compete with so many entertainment vehicles there are now. Between Netflix, HBO, Amazon and many others, broadcast tv is a tough hill to climb. They surely didn't do it any favors by placing it opposite the 90 minute Survivor. It was like NBC didn't care. With the writers and actors on strike, they could have placed it anywhere but instead they made it sink or swim. Pretty pathetic move by them. In the end, I doubt the actors on this show were looking to be the next ER and last for 15 years. They were just building a resume so they could go onto other projects. Beware Jay and Perdita. Take a look at past tv actor history. So many thought they were the next big film star and left tv for film and were sorry they did. A weekly hour long action tv show is very taxing physically, but this Magnum is THE only scripted show I watch for a reason. It is just THAT GOOD. Aloha.

No movie is perfect but this one comes as close as you can get. The critics were not kind in their critique, however for me this has all the ingredients of what a film should contain. Italy + Romance + Great Acting = YES! This is a movie you want to own and not watch just once or twice. In fact until watching this film, Under the Tuscan Sun was my favorite film set in Italy, but now it is #2 (#2 is not a bad place to be). One interesting story behind the scenes about this movie is that the main or secondary love story depending on your perspective within it is that it almost mirrors the real life story of two of the characters. I will not say who to spoil the ending.

This is a pre-review since I have not yet seen it. I would see Marisa Tomei in any movie she is in. She handpicks what movies she works on carefully so I trust her choices. Viewing the trailer I would not choose to see this film with Huppert as the central figure. She has had an impressive career but she is not the draw for me. I like the mixture of characters they have assembled and interested to see what story is told. ************* Just returned from watching the movie and it was ok. Huppert didn't seem like the perfect actress for the role and there was some unexplained things in the family tree like how Huppert ended up with a dark-skinned daughter when both her husband and ex were not. The ending was kind of blah also but overall I would say go see this movie. It will not be WOW but it will be a nice escape.

Cast was ok but multiple holes in the production. If you have not seen it this won't make sense, but tv directors are so sloppy with production. The husband supposedly is taking his son away on a fishing trip, a son that is not more than 7 years old but they drive away with the son in the front seat. Really? Next flaw, a day after Mrs. Carpenter comes home to find her place broken into, she goes out for a run and when she returns back from her run she goes through the unlocked back door? Who leaves their doors unlocked after their house got broken into? After this another person breaks into her house and tries to kill her but she whacks him on the head with a glass pitcher. That part is ok(I guess) but instead of going somewhere else to spend the night where it might be safe, she stays there alone. Way too many holes in this movie to take it seriously but if you like this kind of movie you will forgive these and so many other flaws in the production.

Although I would always want to see Lisa Hartman Black in any movie she is in because of her incredible skills as an actress, these tv movies hire THE worst screenwriters and directors. Case in point, the opening scene shows her early in the morning in her son's bedroom who is still sleeping. She then goes out for a jog. The clincher is her son at the time is only 6! She is a woman legally separated from her husband and she decides to leave her 6 year old son home alone while she goes out for a jog? A little later she finds her ex steals her son so she goes to his house and conveniently he left a spare key to his home underneath a planter by the front door(how did she know where it was if she did not ever live there?). She enters and finds a note he left for her(again, how did he know she would be able to get in his house but let's forget that for now? saying they are never coming back. She goes to the police and tells them her son has been kidnapped but never shows the letter to the police. I could go on but this is a typical tv movie with too many holes in it.

For action it gets an A+ but for script development a D-. The plot scenario was completely vague in the beginning which probably lost its audience. Difficult to believe that with so many seriously good actors that were cast that they could mess this up but they did seeing it only made $6mil worldwide.

Haven't seen the movie yet and reading so many negative reviews makes me wonder if I will. I should never read reviews probably. There is no such thing as a perfect film. Some critic(s) will find a hole somewhere. At first sight I thought it was a stretch that there would be a romantic link to these two. With such an odd scheme to begin with, throwing in an interracial romance is pushing it. I would want to see anything Lily James in anything, and the music would be great but I am definitely on the fence on this one. I ended up going. I just can't resist Lily. The movie was certainly not as bad as some have written. It was in many places very enjoyable, however it was just way too long. They could have easily cut out 30 minutes of this film. I nearly walked out because it dragged on for so long but I stuck it out because I wanted to see if the guy got the girl (not telling). I would say see it but just be prepared for a long one.