Tag Archive: film

July 10, 2019

TV Review: The Protector (Netflix, 2018)

Magic, science, immortals, love…

 

I began binge-watching the Turkish fantasy series “The Protector” on Netflix back in March, and was devastated when the first series ended: only to discover that the second series was available a month later. Yippee!

The story? A handsome young shopkeeper by the name of Hakan Demir (played by Çagatay Ulusoy) discovers that he is the last of a lineage of heroes dedicated to protecting Istanbul from a race of immortals hell-bent on wiping out the human race. Torn between his newly-bestowed duties as The Protector and his feelings for the beautiful Leyla (Ayça Aysin Turan), Hakan struggles to come to terms with his destiny.

The acting is very good, and the story works like a mystical soap opera – dragging you in so you just have to watch the next episode! My favourite character is Zeynep, portrayed by the wonderful Hazar Ergüçlü, whose voice became the main reason I couldn’t pull myself away from the TV. The show is full of plot twists and you never quite know what is going to happen next. The beautiful settings don’t hurt either.

My rating 8/10.

Darren Cameron

February 6, 2019

Film review: Dangal (2016)

Last weekend I decided to treat myself to an evening of Netflix, to practise my quickly-rusting language skills. My film of choice? The award-winning Hindi-language biographical wrestling movie, Dangal (2016). The film is loosely based on the lives of Geeta Phogat and Babita Kumari, daughters of Mahavir Singh Phogat, a national level wrestling champion in India who had a dream of raising a son to become an international wrestling champion.
He was, instead, blessed with four daughters. Thinking his dream would never become true, he sank into depression – until a fight between his two oldest daughters and a couple of local lads gave him an idea… Starring and produced by Aamir Khan, I thoroughly enjoyed every moment. The story is believable and very well-acted, with a great soundtrack (featuring one of my favourite artists, Daler Mehndi). This tale of struggle, loss, hard work and persistence in the face of ridicule, makes for a great evening’s viewing, running at 161 minutes.
I watched it with Polish subtitles (trying to practise two languages at once) but English subtitles are available.
Darren Cameron