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Police

The Fall

July 19, 2021 by Kimberle's Korner Leave a Comment

Recommended TV Series
The Fall by Acorn Media
Who it’s for: Adults

Brief Synopsis: Psychological thriller where a senior police officer from England is brought to Belfast, Ireland to lead the hunt for a serial killer.

Review: I was on hoopladigital.com browsing the tag Crime. I was in the mood for a new police procedural to watch. The cover caught my eye when I recognized Gillian Anderson from The X-Files and Jamie Doran from Fifty Shades. I have not watched many British productions. The ones I have watched have been mostly comedies produced by BBC television. This is a drama produced by Acorn, which, judging by the promotional images, probably lacked humor. I had only watched two BBC dramas but I absolutely loved them (Sherlock and Orphan Black). They were not original story concepts (there are only so many). To me the stories were produced, written, directed, and acted in completely fresh and new ways. The Fall is a TV show about the hunt for a serial killer that focuses on the killer and the police officer hunting him.  I predicted The Fall would tell this unoriginal idea in a way that I had never experienced before that would leave an impression just like Sherlock and Orphan Black.

Thankfully, I guessed correctly. 😁

The Fall seemed like it would be a darker version of Dexter, the Showtime TV series about a serial killer. I really, really, really liked Dexter. I was a little concerned that there might be gore, graphic murders, or rape scenes. I checked the reviews and was assured that was not the case. The Fall was not like Dexter where I got to know almost every aspect of the serial killer and the detectives hunting him. In The Fall, the murder victims and the other people in their lives are not the relationships that captured my attention. I am not sure if it is because it is a British production or an aspect of their culture but even by the end of the series both main characters are still a little like work associates not close friends. The TV show did reveal some things about their personalities and relationships with others that kept me very interested. It was not enough for me to truly root for one or the other. It was a great story but not one that invested too many emotions for me except excitement and anticipation of what comes next. At one point or another, I felt sympathy for Paul, Gibson, the murder victims, the police officers Gibson showed up by being brilliant, and Paul’s family. However, unlike in USA tv shows where I truly felt an emotional connection with the characters, if Paul or Gibson did something out of character, I would be annoyed but not highly upset (like I was with the last season of Dexter. 😤 still mad about that disaster of a season!)

Another reason I decided to watch this show is that it is a British TV drama. The entire TV series ends fairly quickly. It only has 3 seasons (or series as they call it). I consider this a binge worthy series. Every season it felt like Gibson was going to catch Paul or he would turn himself in or something.  I must say that is very good production, writing, and acting when I know a TV show lasts for 3 seasons but almost every episode kept me on the edge of my seat. That is the only reason I binged it. Normally I take my time with TV series; watching 1-2 episodes a day; finishing it in 3 or 4months. With The Fall, I could not wait for my hoopla checkouts to renew. I got the physical DVD copies and watched the entire 3 seasons in about 2 weeks. BINGE. WORTHY. I looked for similar shows. I was told about the Netflix series You which is based on a novel written by Caroline Kepnes. I may check one of them out or both.🤷🏾‍♀️🤔

Find it on hoolpadigital.com or check out the series on DVD!

Filed Under: Recommended for Adults Tagged With: Acorn TV, Action, Adult, Award Winner, Binge worthy, Character-Driven, Contemporary, Drama, DVD, Entertaining, Female Detective, Fiction, Hoopla, Investigation, Police, Policewomen, Psychological Thriller, Serial Killer, Shame, TV Series, UK production

The Hate U Give

November 16, 2020 by Christine Leave a Comment

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Format: Book, eBook, Audiobook, eAudiobook.  Movie version available DVD or Blu-Ray
Who it’s for: Adults, Teens

Sixteen year old Starr is living a double life.  One Starr lives in a black, lower income neighborhood and feels like she doesn’t quite fit in.  The other Starr attends a private, mostly white school and feels like she can never quite be herself.
One night, Starr is riding in a car with her childhood friend Kahlil when they get stopped by police. After a short but tense exchange, Kahlil is fatally shot leaving Starr as the only witness.
A whirlwind of events send Starr’s two worlds crashing into each other so she is left with no choice but to find her voice and decide who her one true self is and what she stands for.

 

The audiobook was amazing and the movie was a very good adaptation of the book although they did have to condense some characters.  I read the book first and it helped to better understand some parts of the story that I might have missed otherwise.

Find it in the catalog

 

Filed Under: Recommended for Adults, Recommended for Teens Tagged With: Award Winner, Police, Racial Injustice

Elementary

June 7, 2019 by Kimberle's Korner Leave a Comment

Recommended Series

Series Title: Elementary by CBS Television Studios
First Book: Elementary Season One
Who it’s for: [Teens, Adults,]

“Sherlock Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) is a recovering addict who meets Joan Watson (Lucy Lui) as his ‘sober companion’. Initially their relationship is strictly professional, and somewhat frosty, but they grow to understand and work with one another, eventually forming a friendship and partnership. Together they assist Captain Gregson and Detective Bell of the NYPD, where Holmes’ observational abilities and deductive talent unravel a series of complicated cases. Alongside his police work, Sherlock struggles with a past he left behind in London involving an ex-girlfriend Irene Adler, a ‘nemesis’ in Moriarty, and an absent father.”– IMDb

While I as waiting for the BBC’s Sherlock to release some more mini movies, I was told about this show. The concept intrigued me- recovering addict, NYC, and Dr. Watson as a woman. In addition, I liked the lead actors from their previous work.

Elementary did not disappoint. The episodes were the typical one-hour mystery murder show. Even though they were not buddy-buddy and there was absolutely no sexual tension between Sherlock and Watson, I really liked their comradery. They also had great comradery with the police Captain Greggson, played by veteran actor Aidan Quinn, and their assigned police liaison, Detective Marcus Bell.

I would recommend this to people who like episodic buddy-cop-mystery shows with real backstories and character arcs that run throughout the seasons.

Click to Request Season 1-6 on DVD!

P.S. Apparently, Season 7 started on May 23, 2019.  I cannot vouch for it. I thought Season 6 ended the series pretty well.

Filed Under: Recommended for Adults, Recommended for Teens Tagged With: Action, Adventure, Being Different, Best Friends, Character-Driven, Detective and Mystery Fiction, Drama, Drug Addiction, Friendship, Murder, Mystery, Police, Recovery, TV Series

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