sjculb3

Since the beginning of the Car Shows, studios have always been looking for a sure-fire-formula to make to keep the ratings up and the show going. If you want to have a car show these days you need to do the following: 1. Use the words "baddass, interwebs, and Pop (for paint design)" every 10th sentence. 2. Have impossible deadlines to get a car prepped, painted/built for a car event. 3. Magically have the car go from junk to a jewel in a week. 4. Have amazing "barn find" cars suddenly become discovered. 5. Sell a car that you wouldn't think get over $50K suddenly get $90. 6. Constantly talk about how whatever car you are building is the biggest, baddest, most expensive, risky, innovative, potentially bankrupting car ever. 7. A TON of IMDB reviews with incredibly high scores that just have a couple of sentences like..."its great" or "good show".

So Car Masters has all of these items....so what makes it different?

1. Interesting cast of characters: A: "Surfer dude" deal maker guy. He doesn't really work on cars..he just magically finds people who want to trade something for a Gotham Garage car...plus cash. Oh, and if you haven't figured out why he talks that way, He's an actor (duh..obviously....check his IMDB). B: Outrageous mechanic named "caveman" who hasn't cut his hair and beard since the stone age. C: Lone background Mechanic who looks like he puts in a hard days work named Tony. D: An incredibly hot chick model who works on cars. Is she an engine specialist? I guess so. Seems like she knows a few things about cars. And finally D: the head-bandana wearing boss (thats been done before) who I can never tell if he is happy, sad, angry, or whatever because he never changes expression or tone of voice throughout the entire show.

2. The "trade up" system. In the show, the Gotham Garage gang build a car and then trade it to a customer who has something more valuable that they can use to increase their cash to get something bigger/better. Some how all the customers seem to weirdly accept these vehicles despite the tacky design or paint jobs.

Look, I like car shows, but this one is sooooo heavily scripted and fake that it really makes the show look bad. Check for the supposed "all-nighter" scene where they are fake yawning and drinking coffee. Oh please.... Netflix...you missed the point of the car show. Its the BUILDING process we want to see. Not the drama. The fact that some of the work they do is questionable (big gap in the Futura sliding plexiglass cover that would fly off down the highway) and nobody wears safety gear kinda makes you wonder if this is a legit garage. Netflix...try again...but do it right ok?

I gotta admit, I am a sucker for car shows. Yes, there are lots of them out there and I can sit through most of them admiring how the final product works out. Sadly this show seems to have lost its way. The shows premise is that supposedly a car in desperate need of restoration/repair and beloved by someone, is recommended to the show by another family member or friend. The car is taken away under some false story and then with the help of the other family members and legendary car builder Chip Foose, the car is brought back to its former glory....but a bit different. Here are the good things... 1. The show has Chip Foose. This guy is a genius and I love how he has great ideas and puts them into one of a kind masterpieces. 2. Hey, its a car show. Gotta love'em.

The Bad: 1. Sorry but humor by Chris the host is...well...not funny. More than that its annoying and takes away from the show. Sometimes after about 20 min. of his endless parade of one liners and gags...I change channels...and don't come back. However when he plays it straight..I could listen to him for hours. 2. As some other commenters have said mentioned so many of the people who have their car worked on JUST want it brought back to its ORIGINAL condition. You can see that they are not that thrilled with it being "Foosed". Yeah, of course I get it...that's the premise of the show right? Then why not make it a show where people WANT to get their car done by him! I'd love to watch that! 3. Not a whole lot of facts and figures about the cars. Sometimes I really want to know more info about the car. Yeah, I know..that's not the purpose of the show. Still, a bit more would keep my interest! 4. The car being "borrowed" under false pretenses and then returned is a Cliché. Its been done and the 10 min. of extra silly drama grates on my nerves. Seriously...the first 15 min of the show should hook me to make me want to watch more. More often than not I shake my head at their poorly acted goofy antics ...and change channels.

I'd love to see more folks..but Foose the heck out of this show or overhaul it. This formula ain't working...

Keanu Reeves stars as Richard Ramsey, a small town Louisiana lawyer who takes up the murder case of family friends son who may have murdered his father in cold blood. To make matters worse, his young client refuses to speak to anyone on the matter except to say that he is guilty. The boys mother, played by a barely recognizable Renée Zellweger, begs Keanu to save her son from prison but does she have her own secrets to hide?

While the trailer to this movie looks like an intelligent, and mysterious courtroom drama, its sadly misleading. The movie sets up the murder and the characters right from the beginning however the entire movie is played out in either the courtroom...or a series of short flashbacks. It really could have been shot anywhere and except for a few bridge shots, it has no connection to Louisiana. While I have no qualms with the acting, the story is at best, basic. There is no real payoff at the end and when we do see the guilty party, it certainly isn't much of a surprise.

My biggest complaint is about Gugu Mbatha-Raw, a fine actress whose talents were wasted here on a part that plays no serious role in the movie. Her character almost didn't need to be included in the movie.

Like I said, this movie could have easily been a two-part Law and Order episode. No wonder Daniel Craig bailed on this.