X Files

I watched the Talented Mr Ripley last night. Another bit of American junk. If we hadn't taught them English we would not have our environment polluted in this way. Its our fault.

kev, the X-Files had its good episodes and bad episodes. The best were tongue-in-cheek, with a high irony content -- the worst took themselves waaaay too seriously.

I liked it before it got too caught up in the conspiracy stuff, when they did real X-Files work, wandering around trying to figure out what was up with miscellaneous weirdness. Like the circus freak episode, where Scully eats a cockroach. LOVE that one.

Kev
What American shows do you appreciate?

Years ago I thought the X-files were sporadically cool...at the moment there be least two of us who think that way, kev.

Make that three...

And mac used to BE Scully!!

What's with the "at the moment" stuff, though... is it still first-run overseas? Been over for a while, here. (I stopped watching after the 4th or 5th season.)

Yeah it's still first run here. Don't care enough about it to know what season we're up to now, though.

snooze se zzz xxxxx f***

Hi Husker,

There are a lot of U.S shows I think are superb, Law and Order best cop show ever, L and O Spec vics Unit, is another, why? because they have a feel of realism.

The reason the X files irritates me is that it never has a conclusion, it just doesn't go anywhere. Chris Carter came up with a real winner of an idea, but in my view then squandered it by having the series just meander about with no goal to reach for.

Same with Millenium, another cracking idea whose story just kinda wanders around but doesn't go anywhere in particular, it starts off with the skills of Frank Black being able to "see" the answers to horrific crimes that have everyone else baffled (so far so good) but ends up being a search for the holy grail, or the second coming of christ, or whatever it was that Mr. Carter was trying to convey, by this time I had completely lost all sight of the plot if indeed there ever was one.

Just watched Cheers now thats a class act.

"X Files" is one of those series one will be totally lost unless they've seen it from the beginning. They were scrimping for ideas towards the end and then it just fell over the edge.

"Cheers" is worth watching again and again because of the characters. It was very definitely a character driven show and had some of the best comic writing in television.

Steve, you're funny -- "The Talented Mr. Ripley" was direted by Anthony Minghella, an English director (born and educated in England).

Well it was still a crap film in my humble opinion

Apart from the pretty shots of Rome and Venice.

ps I do admit to knowing next to nothing about movies, and being able to expound on a topic from a position of complete ignorance is one of the great joys in life. After all its only my opinion, and like the films ...it doesn't matter!

Interesting short critique there, Steve -- I did like the film mainly for the performances and Jude Law (another English import) did run away with the movie. It's from a novel that was based on real characters. I'm curious whether you thought the story was not to your liking? Minghella also wrote "The English Patient." What films do you think are superior efforts, either English or American?

Was that post directed to me?

Sorry, I meant Steve -- always have mixed you two up.

No problem LW I answer to most things...eventually.

I started writing a reply (and confessing my anti Hollywood bias) but am too tired. More tomorrow. g'night

Hollywood is Hollywood is Hollywood. They've made some great films and some stinkers -- the box office is fattened by teenagers and it's not every year they can come up with something like "The Lord of the Rings" that appeals to all ages and all intellects (well, to a degree, as it does have it's share of dissenters but they are in the very small minority). My point with "Ripley" was that you criticized it for being American and that they needed more instruction from the Brits. My answer was that it is a distinctly British film without having to note that the British cinema has come up with their share of terrible films. Try to sit through "Jefferson in Paris" if you don't believe me. Or "Zardoz."

..or how about "Remains of the Fey?" ...I mean "Day."