From NetFlix:
State-of-the-art security system creator Jack Stanfield (Harrison Ford) has cemented his reputation as a man who’s thought of everything. But when a criminal (Paul Bettany) finds a way into Jack’s personal life, everything Jack holds dear is suddenly at stake. Virginia Madsen, Alan Arkin and Robert Patrick co-star in this taut thriller from acclaimed British director Richard Loncraine (Richard III, Wimbledon).
Even if you don’t follow the technical mumbo-jumbo (which may or not be accurate or possible as far as I know), the story maintains its tension up to the very last second. Critics gave it a mixed review according to the Wikipedia article, some saying Ford’s performance was formulaic and uninspired. For an old guy (he was 64 at time of filming) he sure gets into some awful fights.
However difficult it is to portray a sociopath I don’t know, but Paul Bettany was frighteningly convincing. He was the priest in the 2011 film “Priest”.
Nothing special but it held my excitement-starved attention.
This award-winning series dramatizes the professional exploits and personal lives of the “spooks” of MI-5, the British equivalent of the FBI. No-nonsense head officer Harry Pearce (Peter Firth) guides a band of dedicated spies who risk their lives every day. The team includes expert and junior members who must balance real life with the job’s requirement for complete secrecy, no matter the cost. Matthew Macfadyen and Richard Armitage co-star.
Beginning in 2002 and continuing at least to 2010, this British TV-series is “utterly smashing”. Intense, sometimes hard to watch, but incredibly exciting in just about every episode. What makes some episodes difficult to watch is that the members of MI-5 are forced at times to make hard decisions that involve “collateral damage” (meaning some poor soul dies), so much so that those members are often damaged themselves and actually leave MI-5 (i.e. leave the show). In fact, be prepared for many, sometimes disappointing cast changes. For example Rupert William Penry-Jones (the character Adam Carter) started the show and then disappeared for awhile to be replaced by Matthew Macfadyen (the character Tom Quinn) who then leaves the show and is replaced by Rupert William Penry-Jones.
There are too many wonderful characters to even mention them. You can find them all listed in IMDB.
In addition to spook plots, there are also many romances. But any romance for a member of MI-5 is next to impossible because even their significant others cannot know what these spooks do for a living.
Enter the glamorous offices of Reynholm Industries, then take the elevator to the basement, where you’ll find the decidedly unglamorous IT support team: slacker Roy (Chris O’Dowd), social misfit Moss (Richard Ayoade) and technically ignorant supervisor Jen (Katherine Parkinson). Together, they find nerd-tastic adventures in this hilarious British sitcom from the producer of “The Office.” The program won a 2008 International Emmy for Best Comedy.
British slapstick is its own type of humor (or should I say “humour”): lots of yelling, pratfalls (although strictly speaking a “pratfall” is a fall to one’s buttocks), and references to excrement. But it is worth waiting for some really funny moments that make me LOL (for those of you on Medicare, “LOL” means “laugh out loud”).
One serious note: I marvel at the wonderfully clear speech enunciation of Chris O’Dowd and of British actors in general. O’Dowd is Irish.
Director David Fincher’s biographical drama chronicles the meteoric rise of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) from Harvard sophomore to Internet superstar, examining his relationships with co-founder Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield) and Napster founder Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake). Winning Golden Globes for Best Picture and Best Director, the film also racked up Oscar nods in the same categories and for lead actor Eisenberg.
Despite some comments that I have heard about the difficulty of following this fast-paced, fast-talking plot, you don’t really have to understand any of the geek talk to appreciate the film.
You owe it to yourself to read at least the “Reception and Response” section of the Wikipedia article which basically says we should take this film more as an entertainment than as accurate history. In fact, the Wikipedia page praises Zuckerberg through quotes of people who really know him. And forget the “Harvard as one big sex orgy” picture that tries to come through: Hollywood strikes again!
But in the end the film is a fun roller coaster ride with tinges of sadness.
