The Wagner Method (serial)

Season 1-4

French TV police procedural where the key team is protagonist Cesár Wagner (hypochondriac police captain),  Dr. Beaumont (forensic pathologist - unrequited love interest) and Dr. Weiss (personal physician - unrequited love interest). The three develop a fabulous friendship while dealing with Wagner's ailments and solving murders in Strasbourg. I love that the feared ailment of the day always contributes somehow to the case. I love how Wagner's background as Strasbourg elite plays out. I love how the history of France in WWII and the Nazi occupation is still so fresh and prescient in the culture of the show. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Carpe Diem (serial)

Season 1

Set in Nice, protagonist Tom is just released from a 17-year prison stint for killing his wife. While in prison, he got his law degree and is now hanging his shingle while investigating to find his wife's actual killer. He is a charming rogue, getting into the good grace of the local detective, and taking on and winning cases for the underrepresented. He has a fun team of quirky and a family he is trying to figure out. Lincoln Lawyer meets Munch. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Phantom Lawyer (serial)

Season 1

Legal K-drama with new lawyer I-rang hanging out his own shingle. Turns out it is because his father was a famously corrupt prosector and no-one would hire him. In his new practice, he sets up his office in a former shaman's space, and it turns out I-rang can see the ghosts that the shaman had called back. So I-rang's clients become the ghosts that need resolution before passing on. It's a 16 episode season, with about 2 episodes per ghost client. And true to K-drama form, there is a slow burn romance. There are several small inconsistencies throughout the season in terms of how ghosts interact with the world, but overall this is a fun and heartfelt family drama and legal drama. 

4 stars (out of 5)

My Life is Murder (serial)

Season 4-5

In this season (season 1-3 here), Alexa and her friends continue to "assist the police" in Auckland with suspicious or cold cases. It's clever and fun and "low thrill" in that there are no serial killer cases or false cliffhanger stress. A pleasant watch. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Wildcard Kitchen (serial)

Season 3

Best cooking show around. Friendly, fun, creative, quick hitting. Same format as first two seasons. We get a couple of theme nights (all Iron Chef winners) and even get host Eric Adjepong taking a turn in the kitchen. 

4 stars (out of 5)

IF

A 12 year old (going on 20) is our heroine, as she is dealing with her dad (John Krasinski) going for heart surgery. Especially traumatic since she lost her mom to cancer a few years ago. Staying with her grandmother during the surgery, she is taken back to her childhood as she can see IFs (Imaginary Friends) and gets pulled into a operation with the guy upstairs (Ryan Reynolds) to match IFs with their "kids" who have forgotten them and can no longer see them. In the process, she is reintroduced to her own "12-year-old-ness" and how important it is to be imaginative and have fun. A pretty well executed, if on-the-nose, message movie for teens and adults alike. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Crime 101

An L.A. based heist film starring Chris Hemsworth as an expert planner and executor of high end heists. He becomes known as the 101 thief since all of his hits are along the 101 freeway. His MO is that he never hurts anyone, so when his next target is "too dangerous" and he pulls out and his handler gives the job to someone else - who botches it. Enter Mark Ruffalo, grizzled cop and Halle Berry, disillusioned insurance broker. Plan the "walk away" job and find a way to deal with everything that goes wrong. Kinda standard, but it has been awhile since a good heist has come across my eyes, so well worth it. 

4 stars (out of 5)

The Intern (serial)

Seasons 1-5

A French television drama following Constance Meyer, a middle aged, second career trainee judge. In the French system, the judges are the investigators who stand between the police and the prosecutors. So basically this is a detective show. Meyer is insightful, uses her life experience to bring a different lens to her investigations, and pushes the boundaries just a bit. She also fills that mother role with her colleagues, who all seem to need it. It is a fun series, not super dark like the British or Scandinavian murder-mysteries tend to be. More like Munch or New Tricks.

4 stars (out of 5)

The Puzzle Lady (serial)

A one season, amateur detective series from PBS (via BBC). Phyllis Logan (whom you may know as Downton Abbey's Mrs. Hughes) plays Cora Felton. Cora is the British Will Shortz, and has moved to a small village with her niece to get away from the limelight. Turns out she is a decent, if nosy, detective as she helps the marginally competent local police. Similar in tone to New Tricks or Shakespeare & Hathaway. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Burlesque

Christina Aquilera, Cher, Stanley Tucci - are you watching yet? Aquilera is an Iowa girl who moved to LA to sing when she comes across the Burlesque Lounge. Cher is the matriarch and owner, but the club is struggling. Along the way, we find out that Aquilera can sing, and the club begins to turn around. What makes this film good is that... Aquilera can sing. Definitely a vanity project for her, but she is totally worth it. The others round out the cast with solid characters that they can carry without everything seeming 1D. 

4 stars (out of 5)

The Closer (serial)

Seasons 1-7

Kyra Sedgwick stars as LAPD Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson, head of the Priority Homicide division (later Major Crimes). She is hired by J.K. Simmons and their past relationships (in D.C. and Atlanta) are a running plot device, as is her relationship with her FBI beau and eventually husband, and Atlanta native mom and dad. Johnson's unique ability is to get confessions from criminals, which makes prosecuting crimes that much easier. She is also a bit of Dr. House of law enforcement, and a little bit of Law & Order vibe with the LAPD headlines and federal oversight after Rampart playing their own role. What makes this series particularly welcome is that the cast is largely intact throughout 7 seasons, so there is not any necessary false drama to write major characters out of the script. Great series. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Lincoln Lawyer (serial)

Season 4

Picking up where #3 left off, the Lincoln Lawyer (because he used to practice out of his Lincoln) is on trial for murder. Micky Haller and his crew have to prove his innocence, outsmart the criminal underworld, outsmart the DA, outsmart the FBI, outsmart... well, you get it. Somehow, even though this is predictable and largely stereotypical, it is fun to watch. Great ensemble working together to tell stories. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Munch (serial)

Season 1-4

A French law-drama where the central character is a defense attorney (Munch) who skirts rules to defend her (always innocent) clients. She is persistent, annoying, etc., but also heartfelt in her belief in her clients. She is mentoring the up and coming (a trust fund kid turned lawyer, her investigator, her receptionist) and working out her family relationships as well. Turns out to be the Paris equivalent of Lincoln Lawyer. Quite fun. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Blanca (series)

This Italian series (one season - 10 episodes) features Blanca, a 20-something blind woman staring an internship at the Genoa police department. She has to deal with all the dismissiveness and stereotyping you would expect, but she makes herself useful on cases, to the point that her detective supervisor begins to trust her. In parallel, Blanca is drawn into an investigation of her own history and who killed her older sister (an event that caused Blanca's blindness). Is there such a thing as a Rom-Thrill? This is it. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Wake Up Dead Man

 A Knives Out Mystery - starring Benoit Blanc

Third in the series of Daniel Craig detective vehicles. Set in upstate New York, but definitely an English Village vibe, and new priest is assigned to the small parish. He finds a ultra-controlling, cult-like figure running the church. When he is murdered in a closed room (the impossible crime), Blanc comes in to clear everything up. A fun clashing of Blanc's ultra-rationalism with religious fervor and miracles. As is typical, every key character has motive to be a killer, and sorting out what is known in flashback after setting the scene is the storytelling mechanism. A really good entry into the series. Well done. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Glass Onion

A Knives Out Mystery - starring Benoit Blanc

Daniel Craig reprises his role of Blanc, this time invited to a murder-mystery play on a private island by a billionaire tech bro.  Only it turns out there is a real murder and Blanc needs to solve it. Only it turns out ... well, without spoiling, let's say that 80% of the plot plays out, and then is shown again in flashback to reveal backstory, and then the 20% finale wraps up. Effective as a mystery plot device, but I think a bit of editing to speed up the pace would make a stronger film. The plot is remarkably similar to Murder Mystery 2 (which I saw first), but was released later. So in my watching, this felt derivative, but it was definitely better. A nice combo of Holmsian insight, Colombo-like bumbling, and Austin Powers excess. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Knives Out

Daniel Craig is Benoit Blanc, famed detective. Sort of a cross between Holmes and Columbo. He is hired by an anonymous source to solve the suicide (murder?) of super wealthy author Harlan Thrombey. When Thrombey's will is read, and the entire estate left to his nurse/caregiver - the family is agast. And now Blanc needs to solve the case to show she didn't do it to get the money. A fun murder-mystery that is fully aware of how pretentious it is. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Song Sung Blue

Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson play Lightning and Thunder, two members of a Neil Diamond cover band based in Milwaukee. Their meeting is a chance encounter at a cover band fest at the local fairgrounds, and the chemistry is instant. But life is not easy for these two. The film tells the story of their rise to local fame over the course of a couple of years. While showing the difficulties they encounter, the film definitely lives in the clouds just above the grit and grime of tragedy, showing the silver lining result after crushing storm after storm. Which is appropriate -- as these two seem to exude positivity and resilience. If you are a Neil Diamond fan, you will love this movie. If not, it is a pretty good Hallmark Christmas movie. 

4 stars (out of 5)

Jay Kelly

George Clooney plays Jay Kelly, a 60 something movie star who is, perhaps for the first time, forced to confront his true self, and not the self he has been playing as a character for the past 35 years. A meandering drive amongst family drama, relationships born of business necessity, and legacy formation. Kelly confronts the true value of his life, which is particularly sensitive in an industry that is meant to value not what is true, but what is pristine. There are many levels to the explorations here, but none of them are "dramatic reveals". You really have to journey with the actors and dig a bit into yourself to gain from any of the levels. Director Noah Baumbach doesn't do the work of reflection or thinking for you, but instead sets the stage that invites you do to the work yourself. 

4 stars (out of 5) 

Maigret (serial)

Set in Paris, Inspector Maigret is a rising-star detective in charge of the major crimes division. Interestingly, this French setting has everyone speaking english... Maigret is a lone wolf detective who likes to play his cards close. He has people on his team he trusts, but others he doesn't. But he is politically astute and can navigate the halls of power. He also has a personal history which comes into play over the course of the season. In many ways, this is a prototypical dark, English police procedural. And it is good. 

4 stars (out of 5)