I get the impression that this TV show is pretty big in the US, so this review may be superfluous. I only started watching it because it was listed really high on Netflix, and I’d heard some comments about it in Slate. Nevertheless, I thought I’d review it anyhow, since the premise of Cinematic Attic is to simply comment on the idea of “Have you seen anything good lately?”

Briefly put, the series is about two KGB spies who are undercover in the US in the early 1980s. It’s got a little bit of action but a lot of plot, and the acting is generally very well done. The main couple, played by Kerri Russell and Matthew Rhys, do look and act like a married couple with children in the early 80s, but I’m not sure if they really seem like convincing KGB spies. Then again, that’s the whole point, I suppose, since they were supposed to blend in with the Americans.

We’ve been watching the first season and have made it through about 7 episodes so far, but I have a fairly good idea of the tone. The series has a few episodes that can work by themselves, but one also gets the feeling that it’s working towards a bigger payoff, which keeps your attention–and is probably about 10 times better than anything that was actually on TV in the early 80s! The plot lines and twists can get a bit intricate and confusing at times, but at the same time it’s nice that they don’t assume the viewer is stupid. A few subplots, like the ones that follow their children, aren’t very compelling, but I suppose they could be in future episodes.

Aw yeah…

The Pilot episode held a lot of promise in terms of music, since it had both Fleetwood Mac’s “Tusk” coming and going and growing through the episode, as well as “In The Air Tonight,” “Harden My Heart,” and a few other 80s favorites. However, I was a bit disappointed to see that they didn’t continue with this 80s Night feeling in future episodes, at least in terms of soundtrack. The cars, clothing, and decorations are still pretty cool (and very brown), though. All in all, it’s been entertaining, and I’m excited to see how the season will finish.

RATINGS:

That Good-Ol-80s Feeling: 13/17
Cold War Nostalgia: 13/17
Wigs, Glasses, and Fake Mustaches: 16/17
Overall Rating: 14/17

Thanks for reading!

Hello! I think we’re officially done with our Atomic Film Fest, but I liked the idea of watching and reviewing a series of movies with a similar theme. So if you have ideas of themes for a future series, please feel free to tell me. I actually did see a few more movies, but they were documentaries, and not terribly interesting or post-worthy.

Not like this BBC special, “The Secret Life of Babies.” Angela found it on Netflix and saw the start of it, so we decided to watch the whole thing together. It’s really good. Sorry, it’s British, so I mean “It’s rather quite good.” As can be expected from a BBC documentary, it’s interesting and very well produced, at least in terms of camera work, effects, etc. It basically works like a “Did you know?” type of trivia show at times, but the facts are all interesting, especially for new parents like us. You can also find a more detailed description of the show here (it’s actually got basically all the information in the show, so if you can’t see it for some reason, you can just read that… it’s also where I got the picture above).

I was very surprised that I didn’t know a lot of the information in the movie, and that’s even after I thought I’d done a fair amount of research for our baby. The fact that babies don’t have kneecaps, for example, should have been obvious but it blew my mind. I had to actually feel my baby’s knee, since he was napping on my lap as we watched. Sure enough, no kneecap (They said it forms later as they’re growing).

In any case, if you have Netflix and this special is available where you live, check it out!

RATINGS:

Quality of Baby Factoids: 15/17
Production Values: 16/17
Cuteness: 17/17
Adorableness: 17/17
Preciousness: 17/17
Overall Rating: 16/17 

Ryan here. I’ve not watched many movies lately because Angela and I have gotten into some TV shows on Netflix and other “resources” lately. One that we watched a LOT of in the last few months was The Office.

I know that the show just finished, and that you’ve probably formed an opinion about it one way or the other. But you should check it out again, since it has moments when it’s one of the funniest shows out there.

I really liked the British original series of the same name, so I was initially skeptical 9 or so years ago when they made an American version. Why mess with something that was so great, right? Well, they did mess with it, but they tweaked it in a way that really gave the American version its own flare. It was less mean-hearted, and a bit more on the absurd side, which played well with me. They also fleshed out the supporting characters a lot more, although they had around 15 times more episodes in which to do so.

It’s a shame this painting didn’t show up in the conference room until the final episode.

Anyhow, I keep meaning to write reviews of movies here, but that’s hard when you’re not watching movies. So I thought I’d check in and see what everyone else was up to. Have you seen anything good lately?