Audiovisual Crap

The Last Station review February 21, 2010

Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer in The Last Station

I thought about starting this blog with a review of the first episodes of MasterChef, but it became obvious when I was watching them that they were virtually unreviewable in their early stages: it’d be a waste of energy to keep typing the words “that dish was good”, “that dish was shit”, “John and Greg are ridiculous”. Until the semis it’s always ridiculously repetitive, and to review it constantly would just provide fruitless criticism to write and read. So, the premiere critique is The Last Station. Enjoy!

In an early episode of Modern Family, Cameron Tucker says one of my favourite lines of the show so far. I’m probably paraphrasing, but it goes something like “Meryl Streep is so good, she could play BATMAN and she could make it work!” Whilst this may not be a new opinion/fact, The Last Station simply confirms Britain’s equivalent actress strikes again. While Sofya Tolstoya may not be as much of an acting challenge as Batman may be for Mirren, to turn such a shrill, self-involved shrew of a woman – one who would probably be the evil money-stealing antagonist in any other film – into a relatable character who the audience ultimately ends up rooting for is certainly an achievement on her part.

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