Category Archives: Comic Moments

2015, Amazon Prime, Bromance, Comic Moments, French, Gay theme, German, Homophobia, Parents accepting gay child

Where are you going, Habibi ? (2015)

From Amazon Prime:

Ibrahim falls in love with Alexander, a handsome German show-wrestler that turns out to be a criminal. An impossible friendship develops that surpasses both of them. Passion and crime in a charming buddy-movie and bromance from Berlin.

From Amazon Prime you can stream this 1 hour 15 minute film made in Germany.  Watching is free provided you can stand the intermittent commercials ( so-called “freevee”). In German and French with subtitles.

Ibrahim is gay and Alexander is a straight homophobe. Despite Alexander’s best efforts at avoiding Ibrahim, over and over Ibrahim saves Alexander from one tight spot after another.  As far as I can tell, their final relationship is a non-sexual close friendship which turns Alexander into an honest businessman.

Enough comedy and warmth to make the film worth watching.

2011, Adopted child, Alzheimer's disease, Amusing banter, Baby Selling, Baby snatching, Blackmail, British Drama, British Mystery Series, Cocaine, Comic Moments, Conspiracy, Corrupt Care Givers, Corrupt policemen, Corrupt Politicians, Dark family secrets, DO NOT MISS, Ethical struggles, Extramarital Affair, Failed Father, Failing Marriage, Family Conflict, Family Secrets, Father-daughter relations, Father-son relations, Flashbacks, Friendship, Illegitimate Child, Journalist, Marital Infidelity, Mental Institution, Nudity, PBS Masterpiece Streaming, Physical child abuse, Plot Twist, Rape, Sad small town, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Vulgar

Exile (2011)

From PBS Passport:

Tom Ronstadt’s world has fallen apart. Tom returns to his hometown and begins to unravel the mystery that drove him away years ago, unaware that he is unearthing a devastating crime that will reveal secrets he could never have imagined.

From PBS Passport you can stream the 3 episodes of this mystery drama series. Each episode lasts about an hour.

With a cast of British actors “to die for”, you cannot go wrong:

  • Tom Ronstadt (played by John Simm) is a washed-up reporter who returns to his hometown where he finds that
  • his sister Nancy (played by Olivia Colman) has devoted her life to caring for
  • her father (played by Jim Broadbent) who is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.
  • Tom, ever on the prowl, hooks up with the barmaid Mandy Eldridge  (played by Claire Goose) who turns out to be the wife of
  • Mike Eldridge (played by Shaun Dooley) who was Tom’s best buddy while they were growing up.
  • Mike works for Metzler (played by Timothy West) who, we learn bit by bit, is a horrible but well disguised monster.

Only warning in sight: Expect a constant stream of vulgar banter.

Sound intriguing?  Expect shocking plot revelations.

DO NOT MISS!

2012, Amateur lawbreakers, Amazon Prime, Art forgery, Art Gallery, Art theft, British, Career Criminal, Clever Plot, Comic Moments, Disguises, Eccentric cast of characters, Happy ending, Hopeless Love, Romance, Scottish, Suspense

Doors Open (2012)

From Amazon Prime:

Mike McKenzie is a self made millionaire with time on his hands and a love of art. He has built an admirable collection for himself at auction, advised by his friend, Professor Gissing. Made bitter by his
impending layoff, Gissing persuades Mike to help him commit the perfect crime – to steal valuable paintings from the collection of one of the country’s leading banks right from under its nose.

From Amazon Prime you can stream this 1 hour 40 minute complete film.

Douglas Henshall, who plays Mike McKenzie, is perhaps better known to us as DI Jimmy Perez from the Shetland series (which you should not miss).  In this film made in 2012 Henshall was a young looking 47 years old. In the 2022 Shetland episodes, 10 years later, Henshall looks much older.

Taking place in Edinburg, Scotland,  this film treats us to pleasant sounding Scottish accents. Stephen Fry, who plays Professor Gissing, is one of those Brits whose face is immediately familiar even if we cannot somehow place him in any particular film.  His resumé is enormous (Doctor Who anyone?)

Kenneth Collard, who plays Allan Cruickshank, is the perfect bumbling pessimist.

Combine a large variety of criminals of one sort or another with lots of clever and funny plot twists to produce a very enjoyable and often tense hour and 40 minutes.

Who says crime doesn’t pay?

2021, Abduction, Acceptable for teenagers, Action Film, Ambitious Dirty Tricks, Amusing banter, Art theft, B-movie, Bromance, Buried Treasure, Career Criminal, Chase film, Comic Moments, Complicated Scams, Confusing Plot, Conspiracy, Martial Arts, Mayhem, Must suspend disbelief, Netflix Streaming, Plot twists, Suspense, Torture, Witty dialog

Red Notice (2021)

From Netflix:

An FBI profiler pursuing the world’s most wanted art thief
becomes his reluctant partner in crime to catch an elusive
crook who’s always one step ahead.

From Netflix you can stream this 2 hour complete film.

Brainless but fun, what else would you expect from a combination like Dwayne Johnson and Ryan Reynolds?   Both of them have found their cinematic niche – stupid action films.

Funny bromance banter,  great action (the body doubles are capable athletes),  some surprising plot twists, explosive digital effects, and the usual requirement to suspend disbelief all provide the entertainment.

Popcorn and a cessation of cerebral activity make for a fun watch.

2006, Amazon Prime, Chance Encounter, Comic Moments, Flirting, Gay theme, Romance, Talking Heads

Scenes of a Sexual Nature (2006)

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From IMDB:

Sex and love. Some seek it, some need it, some spurn it, and some pay for it, but we’re all involved in it. Set on one afternoon on Hampstead Heath, London, this movie investigates the minutiae of seven couples. What makes us tick?

From Amazon Prime:

This British comedy stars an incredible home-grown cast including Tom Hardy (Mad Max: Fury Road), Ewan McGregor, (Trainspotting), Catherine Tate (Doctor Who), Mark Strong (1917), Hugh Bonneville (Notting Hill), Andrew Lincoln (Love Actually) and Adrian Lester (The Day After Tomorrow). On the lush green lawns of London’s Hampstead Heath, a variety of couples sort through their romantic dilemmas.

From Amazon Prime you can stream this 1 hour 32 minute British film.

There are comedic moments to be sure, but not all the discussions are funny.  Note the emphasis on “discussion” because this is a talking-heads film.  At first I thought “this is going to be boring.” But something about the script and the acting and the well-known actors kept my attention throughout.   Ewan McGregor and his film partner play a gay couple discussing whether to have a baby. Eileen Atkins and Benjamin Whitrow play a pair of elderly strangers who meet accidentally and make an amazing discovery. And so it goes.

Somehow this slow day in Hampstead Heath was a pleasant, easy watch.

2016, Abduction, Action sequences, Amusing banter, Art appreciation, Art forgery, Art theft, Attempted Murder, Based on a Book, Character Driven, Comic Moments, Contract Killing, Crime, Eccentric cast of characters, Flirting, German, Love Story, Luxury Appreciation, MHz Choice, Murder, Suspense, Theft

Allmen (2016)

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From MHz Choice:

Humorous, fast-paced detective stories about the exploits of Johann Friedrich von Allmen, gentleman art thief turned amateur sleuth. Based on the novels by Martin Suter.

From MHz Choice you can stream 3 episodes of this German series. Each episode lasts about 1 hour and 27 minutes. English subtitles.

Allmen is a gentlemen with champagne tastes but unfortunately often in great debt to such an extreme that he is about to be evicted from his palatial family estate.  At every turn he is accompanied by his faithful but usually worried valet Carlos.  In fact Carlos has every right to fear of the safety of his boss who constantly puts the both of them in mortal danger. Allmen could be described both as an expert in the finer things of life and also as a clever deadbeat.  Watch him bluff his way into getting a suite in a luxurious hotel without paying a dime.  Along the way and throughout the series he is involved with the beautiful millionairess Joelle ‘Jojo’ Hirt.   Carlos also finds the love of his life, Maria Moreno.

Think of the series as a mannered theatrical tour through beautiful places accompanied by detailed discussions of luxury possessions and consistently droll conversations.

 

2020, Acceptable for teenagers, Acceptable Trash, Amazon Prime, Amnesia, Chick Flick, Comic Moments, Ends in Cliff Hanger, Father-daughter relations, Flashbacks, Incomplete ending, Love Story, Murder, Nudity, Sex Scenes, Somewhat trashy, Vulgar

Upload (2020)

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From Amazon Prime:

From the Emmy-winning Greg Daniels (The Office, Parks & Rec) comes a hilarious new sci-fi comedy. In the future people can upload their consciousness to a luxurious digital afterlife. When party boy Nathan gets uploaded to a virtual resort he meets the down-to-earth Nora who starts as his customer service “angel”, but becomes so much more as she helps him find friendship, love and purpose.

From Amazon Prime you can stream the 10 episodes of season 1. Each episode is roughly 30 minutes.

Digital effects are a large part of the attraction in this series although basically the story is a romance between Nathan and Nora.

However, in the very last episode ten Nathan is interrupted mid-sentence and that is the end of the season. Moreover, there remains the unsolved question of whether Nathan was murdered. For these reasons there MUST be another season in the future.

You can label it trash or just sit back and enjoy the nonsense.

2015, Acceptable for teenagers, Amazon Prime, B-movie, Chick Flick, Comic Moments, Crude Talk, Feel Good Not For Children, Love Story, Nothing special, Romance, Romantic comedy, Sex Scenes, Somewhat trashy, Talking Heads, Witty dialog, Young Adults

Playing It Cool (2015)

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From Amazon Prime:

The story of a young man (Chris Evans) who meets and instantly falls in love with a young woman. But there’s a problem…she’s engaged. Will staying in the friend-zone pay off, or is he stuck there forever? Either way, he’ll have to play it cool.

From Amazon Prime you can stream this 1 hour 34 minute film starring Chris Evans, Michelle Monaghan, Topher Grace.

In the mood for a bit of a fun, fluffy, romcom (for the older reader, “romcom” means romantic comedy)?   Some large portion of the film is devoted to talking heads. But the clever give and take of the conversations brought a smile to my face.  And yes, there are many not so subtle sexual references, which seems to be the norm these days.

Nothing special, but easy, relaxed viewing.

2017, Action Film, Action Hero, Amusing banter, Car Chase, Chase film, Comic Moments, Conspiracy, Contract Killing, Corruption, Courtroom scenes, Mayhem, Suspense, Violent, Witty dialog

The Hitman’s Bodyguard (2017)

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From IMDB:

The world’s top bodyguard gets a new client, a hit man who must testify at the International Criminal Court. They must put their differences aside and work together to make it to the trial on time.

British Airways offered this film with subtitles.

Car chases galore, gun battles everywhere, conspiracy, genocidal dictators, romance, and a stream of side cracks all amount to a fun suspense fest. Perhaps that list sounds hackneyed, but somehow this film makes it all work.

All those side cracks are Ryan Reynolds’ trade in stock, which he delivers successfully. His banter with Samuel L. Jackson is also amusing.

And of course, the bad guy is really bad and you have to see him get his just dues.  Just as the film was reaching its conclusion the plane landed, but fortunately the plane was delayed for quite a while before we could disembark which let me see the stunning conclusion.

Just let your inner male teenager relax and enjoy the mayhem.

2009, Acceptable for teenagers, Addiction, Amateur lawbreakers, Based on a Book, Blackmail, Comic Moments, Crime, Detective, Drug Dealers, Drugs, Extramarital Affair, Failing Marriage, Forensics, Jealousy, Marital Infidelity, MHz Choice, Murder, Murder Investigation, Norwegian, Norwegian Crime Story, Nudity, Quirky, Sex Scenes

Good Night Darling (2009)

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From  MHz Choice:

A struggling musician tries his hand at blackmail after inadvertently filming a murder in this dark and quirky three-part miniseries based on the novel by Norwegian author Fredrik Skagen.

MHz Choice streams the three episodes of this Norwegian  TV miniseries. Each episode is one hour. English subtitles.

“Quirky” is the right description for this oddball cat-and-mouse story of murder and blackmail. Terje Lyngmo, the blackmailer, is an amateur at his new craft of blackmail and as such makes mistakes which his more clever target, the murderer, takes advantage of. Until the end it is not at all clear what to expect the conclusion to bring.

If it is possible to have a relaxing and fun story of murder and blackmail, then this easy story fits the bill.