Media Notes: Round up for April 2023

  

 

This is a somewhat random selection of the movies and series on DVD and/or online I watched during April 2023.

Movies and films (links to IMDB.com for basic information unless noted otherwise). Some of these I watched via TubiTv.com or other online source. The DVDs come from the public library (unless noted otherwise). In addition, I will try to add other trivia notes, such as when a film is based on a book adding the information about the book (at least the WorldCat record if available).

Did not get to watch much in terms of movies and films this month. The theme apparently was cocaine given what I did watch, but I can assure my readers it was not intentional. 

•  Queen of Cocaine (2023. Documentary. Made for TV movie). Description: "In a crime world built for men, only one woman was daring enough to pave the way for the most infamous Colombian cartels: Griselda Blanco, the Godmother of Cocaine." This is one of TubiTv's original programs. Recently I finished reading Hotel Scarface , and there was a brief mention of Griselda Blanco. When I saw Tubi brought this in, I got curious and took a chance on viewing it. Before Pablo Escobar and El Chapo Guzman made their fortunes and became infamous, there was a woman, Griselda Blanco rising and succeeding as a feared and ruthless narco trafficker. One of the small interesting details is when they talk to business school professors to explain how Griselda worked and the skills she brought to her business. Often, what separates legitimate business people from the more nefarious one are a small detail or two; the basic skill set is not that different. It is also interesting she rose to power before the mass surveillance and social media we have now, so she could stay ahead of the law a bit easier than now. Overall, interesting as they try to balance her rise and her genius with her ruthless violence and crimes. As her youngest son, who is one of many interviewed for the program says, had she not been a drug lord, she could have been a Fortune 500 CEO. Yet she also leaves behind a legacy of violence and deaths. I am giving it 3 out of 5 stars. Watch 4/1. 
• Cocaine Bear (2023. Comedy. Thriller). Plot description: "An oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists and teens converge on a Georgia forest where a huge black bear goes on a murderous rampage after unintentionally ingesting cocaine." Interesting opening, right after the first deaths, with the old 80s anti-drug ads, which seem so laughable now (they were still ridiculous then). Since this happened in the 80s, the movie's soundtrack is pretty good. The movie has some fun moments, but the character subplots are just not terribly good. Movie has good humor, but it is in small amounts. To be honest, if you saw the trailer, you've seen most of the good stuff in the film. The kills by the bear have a bit of humor and are pretty good, but again, scenes with the bear are few, and we have to drag through the characters that we do not care of as much waiting to see who the bear gets next. Ray Liotta plays the drug dealer trying to get the cocaine back. It is a role he is good at, but even he can't elevate the movie above average. This was his last role, and I hope he had fun doing it. Overall, it is a silly thriller movie that is very lightweight. I am willing to give it about 3 out of 5 stars as I like the idea, and it does have some good moments. If nothing else, it's a light and silly movie with a bit of fun here and there, and once in a while, that is OK. Watched online. 4/22.
  

Television and other series (basic show information links via Wikipedia unless noted otherwise). Some of these come in DVD from the public library. Others may be via YouTube, which, as noted before, I keep finding all sorts of other old shows in it, often full episodes:

• C.O.P.S. (1988-1989. Animated series. Police. Action. Humor. Children and Young Adult).  See my comment on this in the May 2019 roundup. I've been watching this in and out. I start this month on episode 52 (out of 65) as I continue catching up on watching the series this month.
  
• Kitchen Commando (2023. Reality. Cooking. Restaurants). Description: "Former US Army Master Sergeant and White House Chef, Andre Rush, takes on a new mission to save struggling restaurants, and he'll deploy all his talents to whip these eateries back into shape." This is one of Tubi's original series. It comes from Studio Ramsay (Gordon Ramsay's company, and he introduces the show in the first episode). I often like some of the fixer upper reality shows, so I figured I would take a chance on this one. This is the show's first season, with a new episode coming out every Sunday in spring 2023. The formula is that after his initial reckon he has 48 hours to fix the place and the folks in it. First season featured 10 episodes, and I did watch all 10. I enjoyed the series overall, and I hope it gets another season. If you enjoy these kind of fixer upper shows, you will probably like this one.
  
• First episode, "Crab Boss," he fixes the title restaurant. Unlike other shows, like Restaurant Impossible, where they do spectacular makeovers of a restaurant, Rush works more on the people, their attitudes, and their cooking. Something needs cleaning or fixing it gets done, but the emphasis is more on the human element and the food. He does look fierce, yet he also has a soft caring side and a bit of soul. I enjoyed the first episode, and I will keep watching see how it goes. 
• Episode 2, Chloez Cafe, it is a bit more of fixing family drama. It is a family business, and they are dysfunctional, plus their food needs work too. At least the kitchen was clean. A common trope in shows like these are filthy kitchens. Previous episode, the kitchen did need a cleaning, here not so much, so he can focus on other issues.
  
• Midsomer Murders (1997 to present, still going. Mystery. Crime. Detective. British series). I commented on this series in the July 2020 roundup. Via TubiTv, which has up to Season 20. Picking it up this month with season 15. I noticed that TubiTv just added season 21 this month, so it's close to up to date (there are 22 total so far).
• Season 15 features 6 episodes. Episode one, "The Dark Rider." Plot description: "Barnaby and Jones investigate the appearance of a headless horseman." Episode is basically a poor noble family who reenacts a battle from the Civil War every year to raise revenue. A ghostly figure of a headless horseman appears and points to people who die later. The nobles have a feud with their neighbors. There is drama, but this particular episode does run a bit slow. 
• Season 15, Episode 2, "Murder of Innocence." Plot description: "Convicted murderer Grady Felton returns to the village; he is targeted in an arson attack." The story gets more complex going back to an abusive parent, and the question of whether Felton was really the murderer. 
• Season 15, Episode 3: "Death and the Divas." Plot description: "Life and death imitates art as a murder matches that of a 1960s horror film." Soon it seems more than one murder matches those of the films of a local now aging 1960s horror film star. We also get some sibling rivalry, and an author writing a possible expose of said film star and her family. Oh, and we can some old horror film nostalgia. 
• Season 15, Episode 4: "Written in the Stars." Plot description: "An amateur astronomer was killed by a blow to the head with a meteorite." We have an observatory, scientist, funding providers, and an astrologer that works for the local newspaper. We get a blend of astronomy and astrology with murder. 
• Season 15, Episode 5: "The Sicilian Defence." Plot description: "A serial killer strikes members of a chess club." The apparent link may be a girl who wakes up from a coma a year later after she is attacked in some woods, but that is the question the detectives need to answer. Add a dysfunctional marriage, and the plot thickens. This case turns out to be a bit more dense than usual, not as easy to see what is the issue other than some connection to chess that at times seems like a red herring. In the end the chess connection goes to a player that may not seem very obvious initially, siblings separated at birth, and good old revenge. The chess was really a herring. 
• Season 15, Episode 6: "Schooled for Murder." Plot description: "A woman who was crushed to death with a giant round of cheese." After the previous episode, that form of death seems simple enough. The main drama seems to be some snobbish girls' prep school and the dramas of the school board women, including the old matriarch who has worked for the school for four decades. When a parent, the woman, is killed with the cheese, the mystery is on. The woman appeared disgruntled before dying, but then the board all act like everything was OK. Very British. Oh, and there is a local dairy, which apparently sponsors said women's school, where the murder weapon cheese is made. Add in an illicit affair or two as we try to find out why the woman was killed, and who did it.Again, another case of revenge and a school marm more worried about the school reputation than the students. 
• Season 16, Episode 1: "The Christmas Haunting." Plot description: "Charlie Nelson and Barnaby investigate a fatal stabbing during a manor hour ghost-hunting party." A Christmas episode with a touch of haunting and ghosts as we start with a bunch of amateur ghost hunters checking out an old house. In this season, we find John Barnaby's wife is pregnant, and quite a bit along considering last season she was not, so time has passed a bit. Jones got promoted to Detective Inspector (DI), so the character has moved elsewhere. This means Barnaby gets a new detective sergeant (DS), Charlie Nelson. Nelson comes from elsewhere, so he will need to adapt to Midsomer County and its many quirks. As for the story, a village doing what it can to keep tourism going based on being a haunted village. In the end, the case boils down to a dysfunctional daughter in a messed up family. To be honest, the story was not that good, mainly the plot is to introduce the new sergeant. 
• Season 16, Episode 2: "Let Us Prey." Plot description: "Barnaby and Nelson investigate a series of murders that seem to be inspired by images." Images here refers to an ancient fresco under a village church. People start dying in ways depicted in the fresco. Meanwhile, an art scholar and the current church's reverend want to preserve and then promote the fresco while the townspeople worry if there is something to the fresco and the deaths. The motive may be more mundane than anyone thinks. 
• Season 16, Episode 3: "Wild Harvest." Plot description: "Wyvern House and its tyrannical celebrity chef Ruth Cameron." The first victim's death in this episode, death by boar, is quite gruesome (at least how they describe it. This is a relatively cozy mystery series, so no gruesome violence). Meanwhile, turns out the chef is not only a tyrant but also a thief (suspected of stealing truffles from other farms, recipes from another cook, etc.). Episode gives a small glimpse of how ruthless the world of a fancy restaurant can be (does not help having a tyrant prima donna chef). 
• Season 16, Episode 4: "The Flying Club." Plot description: "Barnaby and Nelson find that the world of stunt pilots and aviation heroes hides many dark secrets." The case starts when they find a dead body in a lake near a local airport; the body was apparently dropped off from a plane. Soon things get complicated as one or two motives start emerging including debts and possibly selling the airfield, which some locals want closed anyways. They uncover a smuggling ring even, but in the end, it was another relatively mundane family issue for the motive.
• Season 16, Episode 5: "The Killings of Copenhagen." Plot description: "Barnaby and Nelson join forces with two female Danish detectives." This is the last episode of Season 16. A murder in Sweden leads the two female detectives back to Badger's Drift and Midsomer due to a clue left at the scene of the crime. Meanwhile, the Barnabys' baby is soon to arrive. The case revolves around a biscuit (cookies) factory in Midsomer; the owner was making a deal with a Danish food company. What seems a simple deal soon turns out to be more complex, and perhaps a reason for murder. We also get stolen recipes and an illegitimate daughter in the mix.