The small Screen Diaries- 04/02/24
I can’t believe we are in April. Time flies. Speaking of time, remember how yesterday I mentioned American Idol finally figured out audio description? They didn’t. It was a glitch in the matrix. To offset this error I made ABC renew Grey’s Anatomy for Season 21. It’s not an even trade, but Grey’s is coming back next year. The Gentleman (Netflix) is a fun idea. I wish this was being done with something that felt a lot more Guy Ritchie than this. I know he’s directed some of this show, and remains a producer, but I miss the energy Ritchie … Continue reading The small Screen Diaries- 04/02/24
The Small Screen Diaries- 04/01/24
I shall mention this, only because of the context. Recently, in an update, the Audio Description Project (AFP.acb.org), added American Idol as having audio description on ABC. So, now the work becomes getting that audio description to travel to Hulu for anyone who doesn’t watch the show live. It has taken them this long, but there is now audio description on Idol, apparently only if you watch live. I watched this on Hulu, without, so there’s your status update. What did have audio description was The Completely Made Up Adventures Of Dick Turpin (Apple Plus), which is one of the … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 04/01/24
The Small Screen Diaries- 03/31/24
I started Renegade Nell (Disney Plus), which is about a woman in medieval times who is given a temporary, and seemingly random ability to beat up bad guys. She learns more about this in the first episode, which expertly has her learning things so the audience can learn along with her. It is one of the strongest pilots I’ve seen recently, which does an excellent job of introducing us to the characters, and giving us an idea of the season long arc, while slowly building the rule book for how Nell’s abilities work. This is certainly a first episode where … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/31/24
The Trolls Trilogy
In preparation for watching the third entry in the series, Trolls Band Together, I decided to just do the whole darn trilogy. Somewhere back on my site is my reaction to the original Trolls, which I was able to see before losing my eyesight and transitioning to blind film critic. So I understand the character designs. The second film, I skipped. i didn’t like the second. Now, I’m trying to talk about audio description, so let’s just cover all three of them, shall we? The first one introduces us to the world of Trolls.I had a few of these as … Continue reading The Trolls Trilogy
Upgraded
There are fleeting moments in the audio description where I feel like the description is strong. There are moments where I feel like it isn’t making the best choices. And, there are long moments where it seems like there is no audio description. Upgraded is in many ways a film you’ve already seen. A young woman looking to move up in her field must deal with her difficult boss while working on a huge life changing opportunity and juggling this cute new guy she just met. That is this film in a nutshell. They just change some things around, throw … Continue reading Upgraded
The Small Screen Diaries- 03/30/24
Alright. Let’s talk about the new show on Amazon, The Baxters! Oh wait, this doesn’t have audio description. Never mind. It sounds awful. Next! OK. Let’s try this again. The new show A Gentleman In Moscow (Paramount Plus with Showtime) starring Ewan McGregor as a former Count who lives in Russia, and has his title, money, and land stripped from him with the rise of communism, and is forced to live in the servants quarters of a hotel. The audio description here is great, and I’ve been hearing this narrator on a lot of Paramount Plus (and Showtime/CBS) content lately. … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/30/24
Lift
Sometimes, i don’t mind seeing a film just a little bit after the flood of critics and online haters. It really gives me perspective. I always approach every movie as neutral as possible, but often, the crowd is right. Maybe not quite to the extremes.While I didn’t really care for either Meg 2 or The Expend4bles, I definitely saw worse last year. Lift was getting that kind of bad press, and I’m going to lightly disagree. It’s not worth fighting over, but in a rotten/fresh, thumbs down/up world, I’d recommend this over not recommending it. Kevin Hart leads an all-star … Continue reading Lift
Irish Wish
I remember watching The Parent Trap remake in the 90’s, and getting that first dose of Lindsay Lohan. She really seemed like a talent that would maintain, and for a long time, it felt that way. She never really could overcome the tabloids, and her attention seeking parents. To this day, I know the names of her mother and father, neither of whom are actors. They didn’t even need a Keeping Up With show. They just wouldn’t go away. Somewhere after a bad movie, and some bad press, Lohan retreated. Now, she’s trying to come back, and it is really … Continue reading Irish Wish
The Best Audio Description Tracks of 2023
It took me far too long to log this list, but here it is finally in text form. I’m striving to do better in terms of figuring out who did audio description for every film. This year, the information is very spotty, so I’m just mentioning the film, and where I watched it. Sometimes there are multiple tracks. However, often the track from the cinema ends up on streaming as well. or perhaps, we get the UK track. 20) Air (Amazon) This audio description really takes off in the multitude of 80’s references, as well as some really well described … Continue reading The Best Audio Description Tracks of 2023
The Small Screen Diaries- 03/29/24
I did start up a new show yesterday, We Were The lucky Ones (Hulu). I knew nothing about it, but I wanted to at least have a pilot review. The show takes place just at the onset of WWII, before the Jewish population of Europe really is subjected to what we know is the historical ramification of this period. Obviously, it isn’t a happy show, but this does start with a little bit of naïveté in terms of believing what is still to come. We focus primarily on one family, and the characters in or adjacent to that family. the … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/29/24
The Tiger’s Apprentice
This movie would have really popped in the late 80’s, early 90’s. That was the sweet spot when cartoons seemed poised to launch toys, and other things for kids to get excited about. Lunchboxes, junk food, comics, whatever. The Tiger’s Apprentice is actually based on a concept that could have launched a kids TV show, and sold some toys. there’s a lot of potential when your heroes are representative of the 12 signs of the Chinese zodiac. So, each kid would want to collect their own favorite hero. Totally possible. I had the four Ninja Turtles, but there were all … Continue reading The Tiger’s Apprentice
The Small Screen Diaries- 03/28/24
In the third episode of Three Body problem (Netflix), we finally hear the phrase “Three Body Problem”, and learn what it is in relation to the show. There’s a very well described sequence at the end, where something is happening, and Darren Polish makes it very clear that this isn’t just something that isn’t being recorded on the cameras, but also a man outside can’t see it happening through the window. This show did not have a great pilot episode, but the next two episodes have been far better and more focused. If the first episode didn’t grab you, try … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/28/24
The Small Screen Diaries- 03/27/24
X-Men 97 (Disney Plus) is still blowing me away. I loved the section with all the nightmare fuel caused by the Goblin Queen, and how well described that all was by the team at Deluxe. This is excellent, top tier audio description. There was a lot of complex imagery thrown as the Jean Greys battled it out through astral projection, and the description was very well written and voiced. I appreciate it. I am enjoying Constellation (Apple Plus), which is doing a good job of balancing what is increasingly a weirder show. Clearly, there are two dimensions to work with … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/27/24
The Small Screen Diaries- 03/26/24
Another pretty slow day, as most weekdays are balancing work with TV watching. but, the Gentleman (Netflix) had our lead explore other venues to try and get the criminal enterprise off his property, by helping an actor with a blackmail problem. I would safely put this in the top tier now of audio description I’m listening to, if there are three tiers, Top, middle, or bottom. It hasn’t committed any sins that I can remember, and leans into the violent and Guy Ritchie tone of the show. The Completely Made Up Adventures Of Dick Turpin (Apple Plus) is the show … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/26/24
The Small Screen Diaries- 03/25/24
I finished Sexy Beast (Paramount Plus), and I’m not sure the world needed that. I really do want to rewatch the film, since it has been so long, it just doesn’t have audio description. I think the audio description for Sexy Beast really did try and get with the general dirtiness of the series, and I appreciated that attention to detail. It’s hard to describe a non-porn show that is so much about the porn industry. I also got through an episode of Avatar: The LAst Airbender (Netflix) that really gave more backstory to Zuko, making him seem more sympathetic … Continue reading The Small Screen Diaries- 03/25/24
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