masonx

I am prepared to give Vin Diesel the benefit of the doubt as far as his acting abilities. It is incredible that he once auditioned for the part of the transvestite in Flawless. A part eventually played by Philip Seymour Hoffman. However if he expects to be the new Arnold Schwarzenegger perhaps he should wait for another vehicle than this overblown over hyped artless piece of moviemaking. I walked out before the end -expecting something better. save your dollars folks.

On the odd occasion I visit the cinema to pay their exorbitant prices for several reasons. To be entertained.To escape from a familiar world to an unknown dimension. To be diverted from the usual mundane cares of earning a living, etc etc. LOTR did this for me in no uncertain terms. I say this unequivocably despite the fact of having been filmed in this lovely land of ours-the NZ landscape never looked so beautiful. Enough has been said about the acting the script the costumes & scenery and I will not belabour the point.But it has been gratifying to read all these positive reviews for a nz made film which has obviously left its mark on so many viewers at this the dawn of the 21st century.Only time will tell if it will live up to those remarks in posterity and not just the box office.

I feel deprived somewhat that I only got in to this series midway through the opening season. To all seasoned political watchers I recommend it for its almost authentic portrayal of the highs and lows of running a large country. It is not excellent per se, but it is very good. The characters are not cardboard cutouts but eminently watchable and well researched-no doubt it helps to have a few ex-WH staffers on the writing team. Martin Sheen stated in an interview that his role as President Jed Barlett is a mixture of Clinton Carter and George Bush and I concur. His character is not a saint but one gets the feel that here is a decent man with a passion for a job he loves but dosent necessarily like doing. There is a scene where he receives his twice weekly intelligence briefings, a necessary task no doubt but for the president a soporific trial. The dramas that unfold in the series range from the trivia of organising a state dinner to the moral and ethical dilemmas of staying an execution or authorising a bombing in Iraq. I would doubt that the real scenarios portrayed week by week are so encountered by the real WH staff. They'd be run of their feet for one thing. But one does get the drift of how decisions are reached, the chain of command, the coddling up to congress and the public at large, and of course the power play and influence peddling, the continual spin doctoring of public opinion, and of course the perrenially cynical but necessary WH press corps so ably managed by the press secretary CJ Cregg. What a gal. She is my favorite cast member. Thoroughly professional at her task yet still vulnerable in so many ways, she yearns for a personal life albeit in the arms of Danny Concannon a hard nosed reporter who definitely has a soft spot for her. I reckon Rob Lowe can also be forgiven his past transgressions for a fine portrayal as deputy CD, though whoever wrote in his characters ongoing relationship with a high class call girl must have did so with tongue in cheek. Lowes comments on the subject have yet to be recorded. More praise for him and his acting skills. I could write a few more lines here about all the other actors and characters but enough has been said on that score by others methinks, and with more insight. Suffice it for me to leave it there and wish the makers of the series well. I look forward to more evenings of, at least for an hour giving in to some very watchable television.