Mary Pearl

I loved My Big Fat Greek wedding the first time I watched it. Toula’s family were so over the top outgoing, they were friendly and inclusive. And funny. I chuckled all the way through. Even when Toula’s dad bought the house next door, and Toula talked about Greek school for the children, excluding the Ian’s culture. So I watched it a second time and thought, if only they’d left out Ian’s limp, colourless, lifeless white parents. What was the subliminal message? The deliberately unfavourable comparison put me off. I haven’t watched the movie since.

I’ll always give a film with Owen Wilson a go. But found Bliss a disappointment. I kept waiting for something to happen, for something to move the plot forward. I found the lack exhausting.

You can usually count on me to say about a film based on a novel, that I preferred the latter. The novel ‘Who killed Roger Rabbit’ was clever, the film, a delight. And if you can add a bunch of talented actors to the mix, it lifts things to an even higher level.

Reading characters out of a book isn’t a new idea, but this film was fun, particularly as you knew there would be a happy ending.

I’ve been binging on Blue Bloods. Thank goodness there are 11 seasons and a twelfth in production. I’m not generally a fan of police procedurals but I was curious to see how Thomas Magnum (Tom Selleck ) turned out. He’s had a promotion from Private Investigator to Commissioner of New York and is the patriarch presiding over a family of blue bloods. I’ve gotten to know them all as they sit around the dinner table talking shop and showing affection and support of each other. There are two young children who are included in the conversation. I’ve found myself hooked on the Reagan family and Blue Bloods. If I can just add. I like it that Frank Reagen makes a great role model for his children. It’s not fashionable these days for father to know best.

If making jokes and snide remarks at the expense of your friends is funny, then Big Bang is a hoot. They’re all geniuses, except for Penny, but they’re all broken. Penny is a lush who uses her looks to get free drinks from strangers and free food from the geniuses, and, as her doting husband, former long suffering on again off again boyfriend Leonard, says, a bully. Leonard is a victim type and Sheldon’s room mate. Not a good combination. There’s an episode where Leonard is made (by Sheldon) to wear an itchy jumper to punish him for a perceived wrong. And it’s a wonder to me that Leonard does it. Leonard tells Penny, ‘you don't want to get into it with Sheldon. The guy's one lab accident away from being a super villain.’ I think he’s there already. Raj can’t talk to girls except if he drinks alcohol, Howard is a creep, his wife Melissa earns more than Howard does and let’s him know it, The nerds who complain about being bullied at school aren’t a likeable lot.and as capable of being patronising one of Penny’s boyfriends. Jim Parsons - Sheldon Kaley Cuoco - Penny Mayim Bialik - Amy Melissa Rauch - Bernadette Johnny Galecki - Leonard Simon Helberg - Howard Kundalini Nayyar - Raj

“It is like comfort food and comfort food demands bingeing.” Can’t remember the critic who who wrote it. But wish I’d said it. I’ve had to force myself to stop after ‘chapter’ four. There are 8 chapters to each season and only three seasons altogether. And the ‘chapters’ are over too fast. Despite the serious issues, watch Danny deVito give Michael Douglas a prostate exam, I laughed. I couldn’t help cringing but I found myself laughing out loud at the dialogue. That’s without the help of canned laughter. Something I haven’t experienced in years. I’ve watched so many slick sitcoms, but this is neither slick nor a sitcom. You can’t pigeonhole The Kominski Method. They aren’t self contained episodes, just an ongoing story but my guess is that these chapters will move to an inevitable ending. I’d be surprised if there was a fourth season.

I’m giving this movie one star because of the actors (not the acting). The story was dull and the acting was as old as those ladies.

it’s easy to agree that the first Frasier was brilliant. The dialogue sparkled, the characters development, was wonderful. They had 12?seasons to build. The critics are already comparing Frasier with the reboot and stomping all over the latter and that’s a shame. We’d love to have Roz, Daphne and Niles back, but that would end up being more of the same only with a bunch of old farts doing the same old, (excluding sorry to sat, Martin)Did you know there was more than one dog playing Eddy?) I’ve watched two episodes of the reboot. The first episode was trying to set up the characters and trying too hard. The second episode while still weak at the knees, is starting to find its legs and was less frenetic. It’s hard and brave to start afresh, hoping that viewers and critics will be willing to be patient with these characters and storylines. I’ll admit that the dialogue doesn’t sparkle, but I’m guessing the original Frasier probably had the same writers as Cheers. The characters aren’t yet defined enough for me to decide what I think of them, but I’d like to wait and see and hope the clever critics don’t kill it off before it’s time.

Best place to watch is on the big screen and if someone has treated you to a ticket in gold class, so much the better. Lots of action and bad guys. It’s two and an half hours long, so I’m not sure I’d watch it again once it gets to streaming, but I enjoyed it very much. if you enjoy non stop action, a beautiful, clever woman who can hold her own intellectually and physically and recurring gags grab your fedora and go along for the ride.