Month in Media: May 2016

Could it be a third in a row? Although my "mini-reviews" weren't quite so mini in April, I actually enjoyed writing them and the whole process felt a lot easier, so it does appear that this format is working. Still, they may be a little text-heavy, even for my own future use, so I'm expanding the format with "tl;dr" sections that will be capped at 100 words. Anyway, on with May, which should herald a little more variety (even if it is Mentalist heavy)! As ever, all reviews may contain spoilers, so: Spoiler Warning!

Update 13/06/2020: With the launch of the reviews section all content has been migrated to new pages (see links below). Please refer to that section for updates, records, and more Month in Media content. This article can be considered "archived" and only kept to preserve URLs and non-review content.

Movies

The Good Dinosaur

tl;dr: A stunningly beautiful but fragmented film with surprisingly conservative leanings. No boundaries pushed here apart from the technological ones.

Captain America: Civil War

tl;dr: Avengers Part 3, but closer to the original than its actual sequel. Great fun and a great ending to a brilliant trilogy.

Florence Foster Jenkins

tl;dr: Absurdist fun that somehow actually happened, resulting in a nuanced, heart warming tale with exemplary performances throughout.

Green Lantern: First Flight

tl;dr: Give it a miss unless you're a total Green Lantern fanboy, and even then don't expect anything great.

Moomins on the Riviera

tl;dr: An amusing and acceptably surreal entry into the much loved series. If you (or your kids) are a fan then definitely worth a watch, but this isn't quite an instant classic.

Television

The Mentalist: Season 6

tl;dr: A riveting conclusion to one of the series greatest plot lines, executed with surprising swiftness to allow for a wonderful level of closure for fans of the series. Season 6 was as strong as ever!

The Mentalist: Season 7

tl;dr: A brilliant closing chapter to a fantastic detective show. I will miss Patrick Jayne and co. a great deal indeed and would urge any fan of Holmesian drama to give The Mentalist a watch: you won't be disappointed!

Lucifer: Season 1

tl;dr: Devilishly good fun with a great lead, some surprisingly deep analysis of the Biblical character of Satan and a format that triumphs despite its absurdity. Well worth a watch.

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  • <p>Month in media is an archived project, now with a permanent home in the Reviews section. Films, TV shows, books, video games, and other media watched, read, or played in May 2016.</p>
  • Murray Champernowne.
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