Nerdy Squirrel Reviews by Pasckie Pascua

"Blue Lights” (BritBox/Amazon Prime) Season 2. British/Irish police drama series. Set in Belfast , Northern Ireland , following three probationary police officers of the Police Service of Northern Ireland . Both Seasons received critical praise and high viewership. A third and fourth series have been commissioned. I can't wait for Season 3!        Ensemble acting is kickass yet the storylines aren't really so nerve-moving compared with the intellectual gravitas and restrained thrill of my most favorite British police/detective drama, “Line of Duty.”         The enduring, irresistible charm of “Blue Lights” is its unmistakable realism. Not visual, graphic realism (none of those) but the truthfulness of the character sketches feels like you are one of them. They are raw, vulnerable, flawed, unpretentious, and sincere.         Meanwhile, the series doesn't flaunt a lofty ambit...

“A Fistful of Dollars” (1964, Tubi) spaghetti Western film, about an unnamed stranger who arrives at the little town of San Miguel, on the Mexico–United States border . That dude would be Clint Eastwood, wearing a poncho, is the dude with no name. Kickass!        The first in Sergio Leone's “Dollars Trilogy,” this cowboy strutter has been identified as an unofficial remake of the Akira Kurosawa 1961 samurai film “ Yojimbo ,” which resulted in a successful lawsuit by Toho , Yojimbo's production company. For me, it doesn't really matter although I also saw the Kurosawa classic.        As a boy to my teenage years (maybe up to now) I was hooked to spaghetti western and cowboy showtime such as Django, My Name is Nobody, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Magnificent Seven, Navajo Joe, The Wild Bunch, Sabata, and many more, including the comedy westerns by Bud Spencer and Terence Hill. And, of course, the parts 2 and 3 of...

“The Tourist” (Netflix) 2 Seasons, drama thriller . A victim of a car crash wakes up in a hospital in Australia with amnesia . That dude is Jamie Dornan, who wears a “one dimensional” face but, for some surreal reason, that face can actually project a range of confused emotions.         The strange pull of “The Tourist” is its oblique nature. Thriller with elements of black comedy , backstopped by a romantic subplot that is also “unordinary” or beyond the usual cinematic lovey-dovey confection.        Mr Dornan as The Man a.k.a. Elliot Stanley a.k.a. Eugene Cassidy is not the only strange personage here, obviously. Danielle Macdonald as Helen Chambers is a competent match to Elliot/Eugene's “I don't know what I am” persona. Both are confused though Danielle didn't have amnesia.         Then there's Greg Larsen 's simple-minded nerd wannabe (so funny dude!) Ethan Krum, Cono...

“The Lincoln Lawyer” (Netflix) Season 3. Based on the books of Michael Connelly , follows a defense attorney in Los Angeles who often works out of a chauffeur-driven Lincoln Navigator .         Somehow, for some reason, I kind of waited till this series ran out of verve, thrill or wit. Hey, am I not getting bored of courtroom dramas and/or police procedurals? LOL! Season 1? I was satisfied. Season 2, more satisfaction. Season 3, still satisfied. And we know there'll be a Season 4.         For sure, the series’ attraction isn't really about the plotlines, without undermining Mr Connelly's genius. I am more enamored and entertained by the central characters.         Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Halle r is no Matthew McConaughey (film version) but he owns a quiet charm that is intellectually sexy as well as streetwise dirty in a way.       ...

“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” (Netflix) biographical crime drama , chronicles the case of the real-life brothers convicted in 1996 for the murders of their parents, José and Kitty Menéndez. Before you click-watch, be warned that this is a Ryan Murphy project, part of his “Monsters” anthology. Mr Murphy is also the dude behind the popular gore “American Horror Story,” 12 Seasons and counting. (BTW, Ryan also masterminded the highly-popular jukebox musical “Glee,” 2009-2015.)         Albeit masters of different genres, Ryan Murphy aligns somehow with David E. Kelley (courtroom drama) and Taylor Sheridan (action thriller) in behind the scene gravitas.         The difference with Mr Murphy's work, especially those that delve with real-life characters (such as Jeffrey Dahmer), tabloid-styled sensationalism is expected. Shock is an understatement. “Lyle/Erik” did present an argument but mostly for ...

“Triangle of Sadness” (2022, Hulu) satirical black comedy film, follows a celebrity couple on a luxury cruise with wealthy guests that end up stranded on a desert island and fighting for survival.        Before I say (type up) anything, this whacked-out movie was multi-nominated, including Best Picture and Best Director (for Ruben Ostlund) in the Oscars and Best Supporting Actress (for Filipina Dolly De Leon) in the Golden Globes and BAFTA. Okay? BTW, Mr Ostlund is an awarded filmmaker, especially in Europe.         Ensemble acting is kickass. Funny, the surreal kind. Still funny. Woody Harrelson was Woody Harrelson. Harris Dickinson was tongue in cheek comical, as well as the old man Zlatko Buric. And, yes indeed, kababayan Manang Dolly was awesome. I should check her other movies out.        But was this insane shenanigan sic (!) one of the best movies of the year 2022? I do...

“Kleo” (Netflix) Season 2, German action -thriller comedy series, follows the revenge journey of a former East German Stasi assassin after her arrest and subsequent imprisonment until the fall of the Berlin Wall.         Kleo is Jella Haase. Did I already write that she's my new crush? So I am saying it again! Reason why “Kleo” is fun to watch is mainly due to her oblivious charm, deadpan wit, and “I don't care” allure.         Synopsis: In 1987, after successfully assassinating a double agent in a West Berlin club, East German Stasi assassin Kleo Straub is falsely imprisoned by her agency. When she is released after the Berlin Wall is taken down in 1989, she plans her revenge on the conspirators who framed her. Meanwhile, Sven Petzold, an underappreciated fraud policeman who witnessed the 1987 murder, finds connections between it and Kleo, leading him to impede her vengeance quest.    ...

“The Old Man” (Hulu) 2 Seasons. Political drama thriller , based on the 2017 novel “ The Old Man ” by Thomas Perry . The series premise revolves around Dan Chase, a former CIA operative and Vietnam veteran, who 30 years ago was in Afghanistan. But there’s more beyond and around Dan’s story. It’d help a lot to do some reading prior to watching this interesting series due to its affinity with current events, especially in regards to geopolitical maneuverings in/around Afghanistan.         Some pertinent points: <>1979. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, its Central Asian neighbor to the south. <>The U.S. support of the Afghan resistance fighters. The Taliban’s ascent to national authority in the post-Soviet power vacuum. <>Post-Fall of Kabul, 2021. And the approximately $7 billion of Afghan’s funds or assets deposited in U.S. financial institutions at the time of the Afghan government’s collapse in August 2021. And <>Was...

“Blue Bloods” (Paramount+) Season 14, police procedural drama, follows members of the fictional Reagan family, an American- Irish Catholic family in New York City with a history of exemplary work in law enforcement.         The series stars Tom Selleck as the Police Commissioner Frank Reagan. Cop sons are portrayed by Donnie Wahlberg and Will Estes, Assistant DA daughter is Bridget Moynihan. L en Cariou is grandpa and ex-commissioner.        “Blue Bloods” is a wholesome, weekend family viewing. Yes, including the kids. But if you are into “The Shield,” “The Wire,” or “Line of Duty,” you may get bored by Season 3. But I wasn't bored at all. Probably because the stand-alone 1 episode scripts, which dabbled on current issues, are navigated and explored without offending this side or exalting that side of the culture war. 🎥📺📽 “Grace” (BritBox/Amazon Prime) Season 4, British crime drama series, based in the ...