Beautiful Creatures

I could tell from the opening this was going to be a tough sell. I liked the idea of Ethan (Alden Ehrenreich), a young man too smart for his small Southern town, but his exaggerated accent voiceover at the beginning rang false and rough on my ear. The scenery is attractive, including the young people, but the rest of the film — including plot, pacing, and character interactions — is clunky and slow.

Alice Englert plays Lena, the literal girl of Ethan’s dreams. She’s new to town, the popular girls hate her, and she lives in the much-rumored creepy Ravenwood mansion. As IMDb puts it, “they uncover dark secrets about their respective families, their history, and their town”, a description I admire for its economy. It’s a “teen paranormal romance”, as you probably know, a gender-swapped Twilight where the guy is the normal human and the girl supernatural.

Alden Ehrenreich and Alice Englert in Beautiful Creatures

The Ravenwoods turn out to be magic users, and Lena and Ethan have to fight her curse, due to arrive on her 16th birthday, to be together. The film’s two hours are a chore to get through, since so much feels overly familiar, as though I’ve seen the pieces before, done better. And there are a lot of pieces — the romance, two sets of family struggles, the gossip over an outsider, historical ghost flashbacks, wanting to grow out of a small town, feeling cursed by a legacy… with so much going on, you’d think the film would be more involving, but I kept checking the clock.

Jeremy Irons in Beautiful Creatures

Jeremy Irons, Lena’s uncle, has similar accent problems to Ethan (and shows up wearing a weirdly Oriental-influenced pajama set), which kept tossing me out of the mood of the film. It should be creepy and mysterious, not laughable and tiring. At times, I couldn’t even tell what the characters were supposed to be saying. At least with a DVD you can turn on the subtitles, although that seems excessive. This is also one of those films you need to watch with a finger on the volume control, since the level needed to hear some of the dialogue makes the sounds too loud on music or effect sequences.

Emma Thompson is the best thing in Beautiful Creatures

Emma Thompson shows up about 45 minutes in, and that snapped my attention back, as she plays a God-fearing bigot who wants Lena out of school as an evil influence. Then she gets possessed, and she gets even better. It’s also entertaining to watch the spinning dining room scene, the core of which was done as a practical effect on large turntables. Viola Davis sparks the scenes she’s in, as Ethan’s housekeeper/a mystic librarian. Unfortunately, there aren’t enough of these bits, too much of the maudlin romance, which is already a foregone conclusion. The trailer shows much of it to you.

The Blu-ray combo pack comes with an UltraViolet copy and DVD. The behind-the-scenes special features on Blu-ray are:

• Book to Screen (4 minutes), where the cast and authors praise screenwriter and director Richard LaGravenese
• The Casters (3 1/2 minutes), explaining the magical characters
• Between Two Worlds (4 1/2 minutes), highlighting religion and magic in the characters
• Forbidden Romance (3 minutes), about the star-crossed lovers
• Alternate Worlds (5 minutes), discussing the special effects
• Beautiful Creatures: Designing the Costumes (4 minutes)
• 4 Deleted Scenes, a total of about 8 minutes
• Theatrical Trailers (for the film itself and a book)

Most are heavy on film clips and cast members summarizing the movie for us, standard electronic press kit filler. None of the first four provide any new information, except for the idea that these people thought the movie would be a success. The DVD has only the book trailer and deleted scenes. (The studio provided a review copy.)

If you want to see the new Superman movie Man of Steel on Thursday, June 13 (instead of its opening day of June 14), you have to buy tickets in store at a Wal*Mart.

I’m sure someone is making lots of money from this advertising deal, but for me, since I refuse to shop at Wal*Mart, it’s just one more reason on the list of why I don’t care about this movie.

1. It’s directed by the guy who made Sucker Punch (and Watchmen).
2. It’s PG-13, which makes me wonder how violent it will be.
3. They don’t seem to have learned their lesson from the downbeat Superman Returns.

There’s already a lot of concern in Hollywood about there being too many blockbusters planned for this summer, so I’m sure Warner is doing whatever they can to drive ticket sales, and they think teaming up with the nation’s biggest retailer is good for that. I know a lot’s riding on this movie for DC, but it just doesn’t look like a must-see for me. I want my superheroes to have humor and a sense of fun, not be so damned dark and depressing.

The Extraordinary Adventures
of Adèle Blanc-Sec

The French movie adaptation of Jacques Tardi’s graphic novel series The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec has been announced for Blu-ray and DVD from Shout! Factory.

Set in 1912, the film was directed and produced by Luc Besson (The Fifth Element) and starred Louise Bourgoin. It will be available in the US on August 13 with English and French audio tracks and English subtitles. Bonus features announced so far include a making-of featurette, a music featurette, and deleted scenes. The Blu-ray comes with a DVD and digital copy.

Here’s the trailer, which makes her look kind of like a female Indiana Jones. Nifty!

Chris Hemsworth returns as Thor, with Natalie Portman apparently unfortunately used as a bargaining chip to pressure him. Tom Hiddleston as Loki is always fun, plus this sequel adds Christopher Eccleston and Zachary Levi to Kat Dennings and Jaimie Alexander (as the bad-ass Sif). In the film, per the official description, “Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos… but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.”

Of course, Hemsworth looks great in costume, whether fighting or at rest.

Meanwhile, Jane gets to visit his world, while Anthony Hopkins looks suitably Odin-like.

Set in a dystopic present where vigilant gargoyles and ferocious demons rage in a battle for ultimate power, Victor Frankenstein’s creation Adam (Aaron Eckhart) finds himself caught in the middle as both sides race to discover the secret to his immortality. From the creators of the hit supernatural saga, UNDERWORLD, comes the action thriller I, FRANKENSTEIN, written for the screen and directed by Stuart Beattie based on the graphic novel I, Frankenstein by Kevin Grevioux.

(The graphic novel doesn’t appear to have ever been published. There are a first issue’s worth of pages at the link above credited to Darkstorm Studios, which hasn’t ever released a comic through Diamond in the last 15 years. I’m assuming that Grevioux wrote it, but I don’t know who the artist is, since there are no credits on the pages.)

The cast includes Aaron Eckhart (as what we probably aren’t calling the Monster), Bill Nighy (always a pleasure), Yvonne Strahovski (whom I loved on Chuck), Miranda Otto, Jai Courtney (I really should watch A Good Day to Die Hard), and more people I haven’t heard of: Socratis Otto, Mahesh Jadu, Caitlin Stasey, and Aden Young as Victor Frankenstein. The poster is lenticular, as helpfully animated here:

There’s a lot of “I’m doing this because it’s cool!” to the five-minute episodes, which makes for some impressive viewing. Especially at the end, when they use the newly created weapons to mess stuff up.

As shown in the graphic below, to apply, you email a photo, contact information, and a short bio to WoodyKOTNCasting@gmail.com. You’ll also need to fill out some forms and submit a video at NerdKing.net. I’d actually consider applying if 1) I wasn’t too old (they seem to want 20-somethings) and 2) competition didn’t give me hives. It would be very cool to know one of the comic nerds they cast.

Pawn

The premise involves a robbery at an all-night diner that quickly spirals out of control into a hostage situation. The movie flashes back to show how the customers and staff came to be at this location, in order to rachet up tension for what will finally happen, which also involves corruption and mob money. Since there are three workers, seven customers, and three criminals (plus additional extras), there are a lot of threads, plus every time switch involves another double-cross or sometimes a “what if” showing what might happen if someone takes a particular action.

That structure provides a small amount of replay value, as a viewer may want to put the pieces together again once he knows all the twists, particularly the unbelievable ones. I had a certain curiosity to see what would happen next, but otherwise, this is a generic action film that runs purely on adrenaline and various shootings. The film is a puzzle, not something with emotion or heart (although there’s a cliched pregnant wife in danger). It’s not something you seek out for the performances, either; instead, it’s the kind of movie that used to make a good rental when the blockbuster you wanted to see was already taken. One nice touch: the ending credits shows faces with names, a big help in a film with such a large cast.

The Blu-ray comes with a DVD copy as well. Both have the same single special feature, a 23-minute “behind the scenes” featurette in which many of the cast members — including Sean Faris, Nikki Reed, Stephen Lang, Ron Guttman, and Common — review their characters and praise the director, David Armstrong. (The studio provided a review copy.)

There’s a trailer online, but I think it gives too much away, so instead, here’s a scene with a tense phone call:

It’s based on a miniseries from Dark Horse by Peter Lenkov, Lucas Marangon, and Randy Emberlin that’s over a decade old. (Note that the re-released collection has a much less cartoony cover, to better suit the feel of an action film.) Now, I didn’t care much for the last action movie I saw Ryan Reynolds in, but he looks good in this trailer, and I like Mary-Louise Parker’s deadpan functionary (and she was really good in her last action movie). Plus, the special effects are impressive.

But it got me wondering — Dark Horse has put out a tie-in miniseries, City of the Damned (with different creators), to attempt to capitalize on movie interest, as they should, yet I have no interest whatsoever in reading this in comic form. What interests me is the cast and their interactions. Honestly, when it comes to a four-issue miniseries way back when, I’m not sure the comic provides much to the movie beyond the concept, so I’m not sure it would have any appeal for me. Yet I’m old-school enough that that feels wrong, as though liking the movie without reading the comic makes me less than a “real fan” (loaded as that phrase and these discussions are).

Then again, I don’t know anyone who ever read the Men in Black comics, so never mind.

It’s an instant time capsule. I don’t mean the movie’s outdated, but that its strength is the way it captures the look of a particular period. Highland Park is a suburb of Detroit, Michigan, and the burned-out setting, due to economic struggles and abandonment, is shocking.

The film is about a group of friends who all work at the high school. One, the principal (Billy Burke), has to lay off the others — a guidance counselor, the football coach, a theater teacher — due to severe budget cuts. They’ve been playing losing lottery numbers for ten years together, and one day, the numbers come up.

My problem with the movie is that the director/co-writer, Andrew Meieran (experienced in historic rehabilitation, making his first film), does such a great job portraying people and a community who have given up that the “we can work together to make things better” stab at a happy ending feels too little, too late. I’ve seen Depression-era movies similar to this, where folks who have nothing else to hope for wish for a lottery win, but there, the fantasy seems more plausible (probably due to the glossy sets and design). Here, it’s a last-ditch stupid thing to hope for, as Burke’s character tells us early on.

I also had issues with the sexist way the mayor, played by Parker Posey, is described at the end. There are many other “bad guys”, those who enrich themselves unjustly at the expense of the regular people, but none of the men are attacked as meanly.

The movie didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know, but it sure showed me some shocking images. The ruin of the abandoned library, a real location, is heartbreaking, with decay and trash covering shelves of books still in place. Here’s the trailer:

It’s all part of the promotion for the big Blu-Ray box set of Marvel superhero movies so far (delayed due to trademark violations around the case). Six movies on ten discs includes “collectible packaging supplemented by prop reproductions and artifacts from the motion pictures!” and a new bonus disc with more promotional material and additional deleted scenes. (Nowadays, you don’t just make a movie — you make enough stuff for fans to watch the movie you didn’t make.)

The bigger question, for me, is what do you do now that you’ve teamed them all up? Will each new movie sequel have fans asking “why doesn’t Tony Stark/ the Hulk/ Thor just call their Avengers buddies to handle (whatever the threat is)?” Or will answering that question be included as part of the script?

It stars Bradley Steven Perry and Jake Short, both of whom have been in previous Disney Channel properties. The SVP of original programming, Adam Bonnett, called them “two incredibly popular Disney stars” who will play “comic book fanboys whose love and knowledge of sci-fi, fantasy, and superheroes land them the coolest after-school job ever — working at Mighty Med, a hospital for super heroes.”

Does Disney know that “fanboys” isn’t necessarily a compliment? Or has the term been mainstreamed to that degree?

In this new documentary film, the malevolent, sometimes charismatic figures from DC Comics’ hallowed rogues’ gallery will be explored in depth, featuring interviews with the famed creators, storytellers, and those who have crafted the personalities and profiles of many of the most notorious villains in comic book history.

Noted Geoff Johns, best-selling author and DCE’s Chief Creative Officer, “DC Comics is known for many things, but chief among them is the compelling, diverse and legendary society of super-villains who populate its universe. From the monstrous Solomon Grundy to the brutal Black Adam to the charismatic Sinestro, there is no single greater collection of villainy in all of fiction. These villains are hugely popular comic book characters in their own right and, quite honestly, many are often times more popular than some of our iconic super heroes.”

Jeff Baker, WBHE’s Executive Vice President and General Manager, Theatrical Catalog, added “The DC brand is enjoying a huge resurgence thanks to the entire leadership team at DC Entertainment which is driving opportunities not only for new theatrical properties, but for brand extensions as well. This new documentary will reinforce this evolving strategy and leverage DC assets across the entire studio landscape.”

Johns also reiterated that this year’s initiative will be a turning point for DCE. “It’s time we deconstruct these complex and sinister antagonists and celebrate the role they play as the engine and energy of some of the greatest storytelling in comics. 2013 is the Year of the Villain at DC Comics.”

From my perspective, this fits in with what DC’s comics are already doing, but with more emphasis on bad guys, bad acts, and bad behavior. Plus, count the buzzwords in the studio quote! “Brand extensions” “evolving strategy” and “leverage” are the big three, but “leadership team” also indicates a focus on company over creators.

They’re announcing it now because they will be filming fans dressed as DC villains at WonderCon this weekend at the DC booth Saturday from 10:30 to noon. They’ll be doing something similar at the San Diego and New York comic cons. It has not yet been announced where this film will be available or when. This might make a nice bookend with Secret Origin: The Story of DC Comics, which came out in November 2010 both as a stand-alone disc and included as a box set extra.

There was a lot more about the comics than I expected, although it was well mixed with information on feminism and portrayals of women in media. In addition to the expected comic-related commentators — Trina Robbins, of course, Danny Fingeroth, and Gail Simone (the first ongoing woman writer of the comic in over 60 years) — participants also include Lynda Carter, Lindsay Wagner, Gloria Steinem, Andy Mangels (talking about Wonder Woman Day in Portland, Oregon, which benefits domestic violence shelters), and a fourth-grader and a single mother both inspired by Wonder Woman.

Trina points out both that the concept of the hero was perfect to appeal to girls, since she’s an “Amazon princess goddess”, but also that she doesn’t mind all the fetish and bondage imagery, claiming that they show Wonder Woman in chains so that she can break them. The movie mentions creator William Moulton Marston’s oddities as well as covering Fredric Wertham’s accusations of lesbianism and the rise of the Comic Code Authority, which requested that portrayals of women be “downplayed or eliminated”.

Steinem discusses the choice to put Wonder Woman on the first widespread cover of Ms. magazine and their drive to repower the character (complete with a funny story about a phone call from an unnamed DC editor, probably Robert Kanigher). There’s information on how feminism was presented “in a sexy package” during 70s TV and how riot grrrls, Sarah Conner, and Ellen Ripley arose during the 80s era of hypermasculinity. Finally, Xena and Buffy are discussed (reminding me how much I miss watching Buffy).

The movie was a terrific reminder of how few examples of heroic women we have and how hungry girls are for strong women, often settling for any crumb they can find. Wonder Woman these days is known more as an icon, a symbol, or a brand than as someone we still tell stories about (and the current comic is definitely not appropriate for kids or people who aren’t already used to modern superhero comic depravity). I loved Steinem’s summary of Wonder Woman as someone who stood for “justice, compassion, and friendship among women”. This is a movie well worth seeing.

Wonder Women! will be airing on PBS as part of the Independent Lens series starting April 15, 2013. Here’s the trailer:

For more information on women’s roles in media, visit the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media and the Women’s Media Center.

K-9: The Complete Series

All 26 thirty-minute episodes of the show starring Doctor Who’s robot dog will be included. The children’s comedy adventure aired in the UK and Australia (as well as elsewhere, including the US on Syfy) and features live-action and computer animation. Here’s the show description from Shout!:

Blasting back into action via a space-time manipulator, everyone’s favorite robot dog arrives in late 21st-century London, now scarred by alien intrusion and government rule through their cybernetic police force. With the assistance of teenagers Jorjie, Darius, drifter Starkey, and Professor Gryffen, K-9 becomes Earth’s front-line defence against dangers threatening from any place –- and anytime -– in the galaxy! They will have a lot of fun, action, adventure, and some jolts along the way, saving the earth from alien creatures, scary monsters and more than a few nasty humans!

The design of the character had to be changed, since the BBC wasn’t involved in production of this show. The new dog can fly, though. For the same reason, there are no Doctor Who appearances or direct references. The Shout! Factory release will include two bonus features: an interview with K-9 and a “making of” documentary.

While looking at the website of manufacturer PPW Toys (they license Potato Head from Hasbro), I discovered that they’ve already done a DC Potato Head line, with Superman, Wonder Woman, the Joker, and two Batman flavors. (Apparently, Hasbro itself already did a Spider-Man and an Iron Man Potato Head.) Their site is pretty scary, with a whole line of Elvis Potato Heads, for example.

It’s a weird trend to mash-up brands, as seen with these or the Lego Batman video game (soon to be a movie). I guess the approach is meant to add more familiarity and nostalgia to a product by combining it with something else well-known. In this case, it disturbs me a little because it removes creativity from the toy. Instead of using a variety of eyes or mouths to create different looks or expressions, now, there’s one “right” way to put the toy together so the costume resembles the known character. (Those grins are a little off-putting, though.) I suppose it doesn’t matter, since these aren’t aimed at kids but targeted at “fans and collectors”.

I really enjoyed Pushing Daisies when it aired for its quirky charm, talented cast, and dark comedy. Now comes word that Chiller will be airing the full run of the show, two seasons, starting Tuesday, March 5. If you haven’t seen it before, you should try it; if you have, enjoy it once more.

They’re airing two episodes that evening, paired with Dead Like Me, another Bryan Fuller show with death as an undercurrent. Others follow every Tuesday.

Pushing Daisies is the story of a pieman, played by Lee Pace, who has the magical (and forever unexplained) ability to bring people and animals back from the dead with a touch. Yet if he touches the resurrected a second time, they die permanently. This becomes particularly poignant when he reunites with his childhood sweetheart, Chuck (Anna Friel) — whom he saves after her murder. The two are in love, but they can never touch again.

Where the show gets its spark is in the supporting cast. The always-watchable Chi McBride is Pace’s sardonic investigative partner, using his ability to talk to murder victims to solve their cases. Kristin Chenoweth is the waitress at the pie shop, forever yearning after a guy in love with a girl he can never have. Chuck’s guardian aunts are the veterans Ellen Greene and Swoosie Kurtz. Also important is the unique look of the show, all bright colors and heightened super-reality, punctuated by a plummy voiceover by Jim Dale. Lots of fun, I recommend you give it a try — if you get the channel.

Argo

You’ve probably heard the story — when the American embassy fell in Iran and the hostages were taken, six staffers made it out and took shelter in the Canadian embassy. The CIA then had to figure out how to get those six out of the country. Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck, who looks good in 70s hair and beard) came up with the idea of creating a fake production company making a science fiction movie (based on Jack Kirby art, although it’s redrawn for this movie) and saying the six were staffers on a location scouting trip.

I appreciated the details. The opening Warner Bros. logo is the W-in-rounded-square they used in the 70s. I also appreciated the flashback opening, catching us up on Iran’s history. That it combines newsreel footage with storyboards makes it a great choice for this film, which combines a true story with dramatics. Not that it needed them — the early flyby shot of crowds surrounding the US embassy is chilling just in the number of people it shows. This movie grabbed me from the beginning and didn’t let go.

I don’t remember the hostage crisis, although I would have seen it on the news, and I’m glad I don’t. The period news footage, with a young Tom Brokaw and Ted Koppel, brought back memories, though. The suits, the ties, the hair … it all seems so long ago, although the international challenge is very timely. The movie is full of people that made me say, “Oh, I know him!” Victor Garber. Titus Welliver. Kyle Chandler. Richard Kind. Bob Gunton. It’s cut tightly and yet knows when to let silence speak.

Kerry Bishé, Scoot McNairy, Christopher Denham, Tate Donovan, Rory Cochrane, and Clea DuVall in Argo

I loved the Hollywood sniping. “If I’m doing a fake movie, it’s gonna be a fake hit,” says Alan Arkin as a crazy-like-a-fox producer. It’s fascinating to see how quickly a movie can seem like a real project — all you need is a script and a few trade ads. John Goodman is the makeup artist who brings Mendez and Arkin’s character together (and does work every so often for the CIA, which leads to all kinds of speculation in my mind). The dark humor is a welcome change from the life-and-death tension, although Affleck (as director) does an excellent job switching from one to the other at the right time. I both laughed out loud and bit my nails over the suspense.

John Goodman, Alan Arkin, and Ben Affleck in Argo

About the only criticism I had of the movie was the melodramatic car chase at the airport, which deviates from real life. I’m not sure the film needed screeching tires at that point, since it’s already dramatic enough. It’s the fastest two hours I’ve spent watching a movie in a long while. Oddly, it reminds me of the best films of the 70s in the way it’s a movie for adults about a serious issue but still immensely entertaining. Argo is a must-see, and I hope it wins the Academy Award.

Pretending to be a film crew in Argo

Special Features

There are two movie-length extras, a commentary with Ben Affleck and writer Chris Terrio, and a picture-in-picture “Eyewitness Account”. The latter is amazing — it features Mendez himself, President Jimmy Carter, Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor (the guy who hosted the six “house guests”), the actual escapees, a former hostage, and others talking about the real history behind the events shown in the film. It’s the perfect thing to watch after seeing the film.

Ben Affleck as a CIA agent in Argo

There are four additional extras:

• Rescued From Tehran: We Were There (17 minutes) — Many of the participants in the Eyewitness track sum up the historical events in different interview segments, intercut with movie clips.
• Argo: Absolute Authenticity (11 1/2 minutes) — A behind-the-scenes look at the movie’s design, research work, and actor preparation.
• Argo: The CIA & Hollywood Connection (6 minutes) — A little information on John Chambers, the makeup artist, and the Argo film.
• Escape From Iran: The Hollywood Option (46 1/2 minutes) — Canadian documentary made in 2005 for the 25th anniversary of the events.

The only extra on the DVD is “Rescued From Tehran: We Were There”. The Blu-ray comes with a DVD copy. Both the Blu-ray and DVD come with an UltraViolet copy. There are several great clips provided by Warner available on YouTube. (The studio provided a review copy.)

Captain America (1992)

The 1990/1992 Captain America movie that came to home video as a made-on-demand DVD in 2011 is now going to be available on Blu-ray courtesy of Shout! Factory. (As best I can piece it together, the movie was made in 1990 but shelved in the US until a 1992 home video release, although it played in some European countries earlier.)

Unlike the DVD release, there is an extra included here, “Looking Back at Captain America With Director Albert Pyun and Actor Matt Salinger”, which promises brand-new interviews. The Blu-ray also provides the movie in high-definition widescreen. List price is $14.97, which makes it cheaper than the DVD, and the disc will be available on May 21.

Agatha Christie’s Partners in Crime:
The Tommy & Tuppence Mysteries

The character pair first appeared in Christie’s The Secret Adversary. Old friends Tommy and Tuppence met during the War, then went their separate ways. When it’s over and they meet again by chance, they’re both strapped for money and so team up to find work. (The book was published in 1922, and the story is set a little earlier.) They decide to seek adventure and quickly find themselves drawn into a search for the missing Jane Finn, which leads to espionage plots around a missing treaty.

The TV movie based on this story is the first in the set, running twice the length of the others. It guest-stars Honor Blackman, Gavan O’Herlihy, and Reece Dinsdale as young helper Albert, who continues with them into the series.

The characters are a more reserved (of course, they’re British) Nick and Nora without the drinking but with the same devil-may-care adventures. He’s the strapping young Brit, ready to run after the bad guys, while she’s the high-spirited newly modern woman with some truly amazing hats. He’s logical, she’s intuitive. But compared to Christie’s other work overall, they’re both less cerebral, more emotional, light-hearted with a tendency to be suddenly inspired. The 1920s period adds to the fun with great costumes and settings.

After the opening movie, each episode runs a little under an hour and adapts one of the short stories featuring the characters from the collection of the same name. It’s six years later, Tuppence and Tommy are now married, and they’re running a private detective agency. I like that they’re charming and clearly in love and having a good time. Cases range from finding missing jewels to a fake haunting to murder, particularly those in which they need to clear an innocent suspect.

The pacing of the show is true to the period of its creation, with deliberate movement that may seem slow to modern viewers, but those interested in this set are likely to appreciate more time with the characters and time period. The quality can be a little scratchy, but it’s just fine considering that this film is 30 years old. It contributes to the feeling of nostalgia, anyway. I’ve only had a chance to watch the first two episodes so far, but I’m very much looking forward to enjoying the rest. Any fan of classic TV mysteries should check it out. (The studio provided a review copy.)