vic-lelliott Reviews

Man in a Suitcase (1967–1968)

Cool, cool, cool

[10/10 · 20 December 2007]

McGill has to be the coolest man on the planet. I love the way he takes a beating and looks like it was real and his Hillman is a car of beauty. Fantastic sixties feel to the series and he wears suits as sharp as a knife.

After watching every single episode, the high standard is maintained throughout. I think this is because it was shot over a short period with strong casts and it is really interesting to see British actors at all sorts of stages in their careers.

I think a lot of the tension in the series is to do with McGill being an American in England. He brings a breath of fresh air to the stilted English society.

As You Like It (2006)

Bad film or bad play?

[1/10 · 11 December 2007]

I cannot make up my mind whether the play is bad (it's not Shakespeare's greatest) or the film is bad (it's definitely not Branagh's finest hour). I think it's a bit of both. I went in with high expectations (after Branagh's Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, and Hamlet), but hated the whole enterprise from start to finish.

The music was poor, Rosalind was mis-cast, and the whole Japan setting was a really bad idea that did not work.

I hope this was just an aberration on Branagh's part and he can return to form. He is capable of excellent work with Shakespeare's plays, but this is a bad choice of play, badly done.