THE CROWN (2015 – 2018) – My rating: 8/10

The Crown is a biographical drama streaming on Netflix, created and principally written by Peter Morgan and produced by Left Bank Pictures and Sony Pictures Television for Netflix. The Crown evolved out of Morgan’s 2006 film The Queen and 2013’s stage play, The Audience. The Crown tells the story of Queen Elizabeth II, who reigns in the United Kingdom.

The first season covers the period from Elizabeth’s (Claire Foy) marriage to Philip (Matt Smith) in 1947 to the disintegration of her sister Margaret’s (Vanessa Kirby) engagement in 1955.  Also covered in season 1 is the depiction of Winston Churchill (John Lithgow) resigning as Prime Minister and the monarchy’s denial to Princess Margaret’s request to marry Peter Townsend (Ben Miles), a divorcé.  I tried to watch The Crown but didn’t care for the story or the acting.  After hearing many mentions of The Crown and how good it was, I tried again, almost 2 years later, and binged watched seasons 1 and 2.  I liked it very much, especially when I realized it was about the current reigning Queen of England.  I had just watched the royal wedding between Prince William and Meghan Markle a few weeks earlier and could now relate to all the royal subjects.

The second season covers the period from the Suez Crisis in 1956 through the retirement of the Queen’s third Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan (Anton Lesser) in 1963 to the birth of Prince Edward in 1964. Also covered in season 2, is The Profumo affair, a political scandal,

Beginning with season 3, Olivia Colman will portray the Queen. Season 3 will also cover Harold Wilson’s time as Prime Minister, and will also include Princess Margaret’s five-year affair with baronet and gardening expert Roddy Llewellyn that leads to the Princess’s divorce from Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1978. It will also introduce Camilla Parker Bowles and Lady Diana Spencer, who will be a focus of the fourth season (set during Margaret Thatcher’s premiership). The third season will continue from 1964, covering Harold Wilson’s two terms as the Prime Minister until 1976, while the fourth will see Margaret Thatcher’s premiership and a focus on Diana, Princess of Wales.

The Crown is intended to last 60 episodes over six seasons, with 10 one-hour episodes per season, covering Elizabeth’s life from her younger years to her reign, and with new actors being cast every 2 seasons. For the third and fourth seasons, Olivia Colman will take over as the Queen, Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip, and Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret. Filming for the series takes place at Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, with location shooting throughout the United Kingdom and internationally.

At times, some episodes of the Crown is a little slow but interesting enough to stick with the series.  I’ve changed by opinion about the acting as it got better and better as the series progressed.  I’m looking forward to season 3 through 6.  I feel as though I have had an intermate history course in the Monarchy as well as how England operates politically.  So far, I’m enjoying The Crown and recommend it to those who are into a historic look at the real Monarchy.  The Crown is currently streaming on Netflix — check it out!

 

OCEAN’S 8 (2018) – My rating: 7/10

Ocean’s 8 (stylized onscreen as Ocean’s Eight) is a comedy directed by Gary Ross and written by Ross and Olivia Milch. The film is a spin-off from Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s trilogy and features an ensemble cast.  Ocean’s 8 follows a group of women, led by Debbie Ocean, who plan on robbing a very expensive necklace, after serving time for a crime she actually didn’t commit.

 

**** THIS PLOT HAS SOME SPOILERS **** 

Debbie Ocean (Sandra Bullock), the younger sister of the late Danny Ocean (character from the previous Oceans 11 through 13), spends five years, eight months and twelve days in prison planning a heist. Debbie convinces her partner-in-crime and friend Lou (Cate Blanchett) to join forces with her while she proceeds to recruit a jewelry maker,  Amita (Mindy Kaling), a profiteer, Tammy (Sarah Paulson), a street hustler, Constance (Awkwafina), a computer cracker, Leslie a.k.a. Nine Ball (Rihanna), and a fashion designer, Rose Weil (Helena Bonham Carter). The film reveals in a flashback that Debbie’s ex-lover, Claude Becker (Richard Armitage), had involved her in a fraudulent scheme, then testified against her, which resulted in the 5+ years prison sentence she served. However, unbeknownst to Becker and as payback, Debbie chooses him to be the scapegoat for the plot to steal the Toussaint, a $150 million necklace to be worn by Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway), at New York City’s star-studded annual Met Gala.

Cast who appeared in a reprised, cameo role:
Dakota Fanning cameos as Penelope Stern
Elliott Gould reprises his role as Reuben Tishkoff
Shaobo Qin reprise his roles as  “The Amazing” Yen
Marlo Thomas, Dana Ivey, Mary Louise Wilson and Elizabeth Ashley cameos as actresses who help the crew shift their stolen gems.

These celebrities make cameo appearances as themselves:
Anna Wintour, Zayn Malik, Katie Holmes, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Kim Kardashian, Adriana Lima, Kylie Jenner, Alexander Wang, Nina Cuso, Kendall Jenner, Gigi Hadid, Lily Aldridge, Olivia Munn, Zac Posen, Hailey Baldwin, Derek Blasberg, Heidi Klum and Lauren Santo Domingo.

I didn’t know what to expect from this movie but I have now formed an opinion that Ocean’s 8 was somewhat entertaining and somewhat boring and very unbelievable.  While the premise was okay, the overall execution was ridiculous and sloppy.  I think this film could have been thought out better before presenting it, especially to the Ocean’s trilogy fans.  Speaking of presentation, I thought Cate Blanchett looked fabulously beautiful, I hardly recognized her.  That’s not to say she isn’t beautiful all the time, it’s just to say she was especially beautiful in Ocean’s 8.  My recommendation is to wait for the DVD.  It’ll be an enjoyable night of watching movies at best!