Tag Archives: Reviews

Product Review: TCL P605 55″ Television

Nearly two weeks ago I replaced my 10 year old 42″ LG LCD TV with a 55″ 4K TCL P605. The LG had served me well and good for most of those 10 years but an annoying backlight issues had degraded the screen image and it was time for something new.

The TCL is a 4K television providing a resolution nearly double of current HD standard and it comes with HDR, High Dynamic Range, for better contracts and black levels.

I paid the extra money to not only have the television, and its news stand, delivered, but also to have everything assembled and put into place. The savings in frustration more than made up for that extra cost.

The TV is working beautifully. The picture is sharp, clear, and with great color and detail reproduction. I have watched everything from native 4K content all the way down to 480i broadcast signals of classic programming. The classic programming is fuzzy and it is amazing that we watched that content at all. My Blu-rays look fantastic, Sunday Night I watched my copy of the 1973 The Wicker Man and it was the best I had seen outside of a cinema. Sitting about 9 feet from the screen the apparent size is great for an immersive experience, making late night movie watching a pleasure. The thin black frame of the Tv vanishes in a dark room, so there is the illusion of an image simple hanging in the void.

The P605 is also a smart TV, meaning it has a number of apps and this model uses the Roku system for streaming content, either through a direct connection or via a wireless network. I use a wireless connection and here again the TV works great.

It has been more than 8 years since my wife and I subscribed to a cable TV service, and now everything we watch is either streamed or on disc. The built-in Roku works well with our streaming services, Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Hulu. (Though I found the Hulu interface not as user friendly as the one on our Apple TV.) Streamed the 4K content plays perfectly and we’ve enjoyed a lot of cool programming on our new television.

I have also connected my new Xbox One to the TV and again it passes all expectations but of course no product is perfect.

The set lacks component inputs making it difficult to connect older devices such as my region-free DVD player. That’s going to have to go through my AV receiver. Also the screen has a bit of gloss to it so you’ll need to be aware of light sources and their positions to avoid glare. However, those are fairly minor issues.

In short I have no regrets buying a ‘budget’ television. This monitor gives me great image, and presentation with a very affordable price.

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First in a Series of Themed Reviews: The Day The Earth Stood Still

I am starting a new series of classic film reviews. There is a pattern to which films are reviewed and their order, but I am not going to reveal that pattern until someone outs it.

The Day The Earth Stood Still is one of my favorite SF films. Directed by the incomparable Robert Wise it is the story of alien Klaatu, his very tall robot Gort, and the mysterious message he brings for the entire world. Of course upon arrival Klaatu is shot by the army, though giving credit where credit is due, they didn’t come out blazing and it was more a product of poor training than murderous intent.

Soon Klaatu takes to his heels, gives the army the slip, and investigates humanity directly.

In the end he presents his message, and this is a message movie thought it is a good one because you can enjoy the film without having accept it’s soapbox.

One of the interesting behind the scenes stories i have heard about this production is that Spencer Tracy got his hands on the script and lobbied very hard to be cast as Klaatu. Robert Wise hated the idea, feeling that the part needed to be played by an actor that the American public was unfamiliar with and he ended up casting Michael Rennie a tall English actor with a regal manner. Wise made the right call. These days it is hard to envision anyone else in that part.

The recent remake was, in my opinion, crap. Substituting an environmental message for an nuclear war one simply failed on multiple levels.

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Theater Review: Macbeth

1-macbeth-webI am not a fan of all of the Bard’s works. There are many that simply do not translate for me and I have a difficult time emotionally investing myself in the story. Macbeth is not one of these. It is my favorite play of his. While I have seen a number of film versions, films inspired by the tale, such as Throne of Blood, and a few taped stage productions, until last night I never experienced the play live and in person.

Every summer The Old Globe theater in San Diego hosts a Shakespeare Festival. Three years ago I attended a production of The Tempest and it thrilled me, last night production of Macbeth took things to a higher level.

Director Brian Kulick staged the setting as sort of a WWI analog, but not as directly one-for-one as the recent PBS Great Performances production with Patrick Stewart as Macbeth. Kulick’s staging is more atmospheric than literal. I am not going to go through the production scene by scene, but I want to touch on a few that I think illustrate the tremendous power in Kulick’s vision and the artistry of the actors.

The opening setting is hospital ward with six patients in varying degrees of bandages. The witches’ opening lines are passed from patient to patient, muttered or shouted from the lips of those traumatized by wars horrors. Three of the six are the witches played superbly by Makha Mthembu, Amy Blackman, and Suzelle Palacios. When they reach Macbeth’s name all six rise and shout the name in unison. A literal chill shot down my spine and theater potential for horror was realized. Many horror films have failed to achieve the effect I felt last night from Act one scene one. Time and again the production return to horrific themes and there failed to be a single appearance of the witches that did not produce dread and unease.

Macbeth and Banquo are played admirably by Jonathan Cake and Timothy Stickney. I was particularly impressed with the performance Sticknety gave as a living Banquo and as his ghost. Without line too often the ghost sits there and any horror must come from empathy with Macbeth. Stickney, moving with a slow and menacing pace while smiling an expression that filled me with dread, truly captured the horror of a walking spirit.

There are portions of the text that I have always found problematic. The Porter is rarely funny, and the murder of MacDuff’s son can in lesser hands be accidently funny. Neither was true last night. Both the staging and performance in these scenes, subtly changed from the concept of the text, enhanced each scene in it humor and its horror.

The entire cast was wonderful and not a single note of their performance struck me as sour. I am so happy I did not see a matinee showing. I doubt the horrific aspect work quite as well under the bright California sunshine as they do during a dark and chilled night.

If you are in the area, go see it. It is well worth an evening of your time.

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