MAYBE. MAYBE DALE WILL BE MY FRIEND. DON’T KNOW IF HE’S GOING TO WEAR A DRESS WITH ME, BUT MAYBE HE’LL BE MY FRIEND TODAY. JOINING US NOW, FILM CRITIC DALE POLLOCK. GOOD MORNING, DALE. THEY’RE LEAVING ME OUT TODAY. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? OH, DON’T BELIEVE IT, JACKIE. YOU DESERVE MORE. THANK YOU. ALSO, I AGREE. SO I’M GOING TO ASK THE FIRST QUESTION THEN, WHICH IS TELL US ABOUT THE PERSIAN VERSION. THAT’S A FUN NAME TO SAY. IT’S IN THEATERS RIGHT NOW, AND THIS FILM CARRIES A PEDIGREE. IT WON THE AUDIENCE AWARD AT THE SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL, WHICH IS ALWAYS AN INDICATION OF WHAT A POPULAR FILM CAN DO. AND THIS DOESN’T DISAPPOINT POINT. PEOPLE ARE CALLING THIS THE IRANIAN VERSION OF MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING. BUT ACTUALLY IT’S A BETTER FILM THAN THAT, ACTUALLY. AND THE REASON IS THE DEVICE IT EMPLOYS. IT HAS THE SAME FAMILY STORY TOLD FROM DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES. THE DAUGHTER, THE MOTHER, THE FATHER, THE BROTHER. AND THAT MAKES THE FILM REALLY INTERESTING. YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT’S COMING NEXT. IT’S VERY WELL WRITTEN. IT’S VERY WELL DIRECTED BY MARYAM KESHAVARZ, WHO IS AN IRANIAN IRANIAN AMERICAN DIRECTOR. AND FOR FIRST GENERATION AMERICANS, THIS FILM WOULD BE VERY MEANINGFUL. IT REALLY CELEBRATES AMERICA AND IS CELEBRATES THE TIES OF FAMILY THAT BIND PEOPLE TOGETHER. IT WAS JUST A GREAT WATCH. I REALLY ENJOYED IT AND THAT’S WHY I’M GIVING IT FOUR POPCORNS. WOW. FOUR POPCORNS. THAT LOOKS REALLY INTERESTING, TOO. AND OF COURSE, MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING. AND IT BEING BETTER THAN THAT IS QUITE AN ENDORSEMENT, THAT BEING A CLASSIC. YEAH, IT’S FUNNIER. I MEAN, I LAUGHED A LOT AT THIS MOVIE. IT’S IT’S NOT AN OUTAND OUT COMEDY, BUT IT HAS VERY AMUSING SEQUENCES. THAT’S NICE. WHEN A MOVIE IN THE THEATERS IS FUNNY AND EVERYONE, YOU KNOW, HAS THE UNANIMOUS LAUGHTER IN THE THEATER. I LIKE THAT. TELL US ABOUT SOMETHING ON NETFLIX. WE CAN WATCH FROM HOME CALLED ALL THE LIGHT. WE CANNOT SEE. WELL, I’VE GOT TO ADMIT, THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE NOVELS OF ALL TIME. IT WON THE PULITZER PRIZE IN 2014, AND I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS FILM ADAPTATION. IT TURNS OUT TO BE A STREAMING SERIES. AND THE BIG DISAPPOINTMENT IS IT’S ONLY FOUR EPISODES AND THE BOOK WAS LIKE 6 OR 700 PAGES. SO THERE’S SQUEEZE USING A VERY INVOLVING AND INTERESTING STORY INTO TWO FEW HOURS. AND THE RESULT IS IT FEELS LIKE A BOTCHED ADAPTATION. THE ACTORS ARE GOOD. THE DIRECTION IS OKAY, BUT IT DOESN’T IN A WAY NEARLY INVOLVE YOU AS MUCH AS THE NOVEL DID. AND THAT’S A PROBLEM SOMETIMES IN FILM ADAPTATIONS. BUT THERE WAS SO MUCH RICH MATERIAL HERE IN THE STORY OF A BLIND GIRL, THE GERMAN RADIO OPERATOR WHO IS TRACKING WHERE SHE’S BROADCASTING FROM, AND AN EVIL GERMAN OFFICER FROM THE SS WHO IS AFTER A DIAMOND THAT HE BELIEVES THE GIRL POSSESSES. SO THERE’S A LOT OF PLOT. SOME OF IT IS MELODRAMA, BUT IT’S REALLY A CHARACTER DRIVEN STORY AND IT’S JUST TOO FEW HOURS. RARELY DO I COMPLAIN THAT SOMETHING IS TOO SHORT. I USUALLY COMPLAIN IS TOO LONG, BUT IN THIS CASE, FOUR MORE EPISODES WOULD HAVE REALLY ROUNDED OUT THE STORY, MADE IT DEEPER AND MORE INVOLVING AND PAID GREATER TRIBUTE TO THE BOOK. THAT WAS A BESTSELLER FOR. I APPRECIATE THIS REVIEW BECAUSE I HAVE ALSO READ THIS BOOK. I HAVEN’T GOTTEN A CHANCE TO WATCH THIS SHOW YET. I DIDN’T REALIZE IT WAS ONLY FOUR EPISODES, SO I’M INTRIGUED TO WHAT TO KNOW WHAT YOUR POPCORN RATING IS FOR THIS, SINCE YOU LIKE THE STORY, BUT HAVE THOSE MIXED REVIEWS ON THE ON THE APP GIVING IT THREE POPCORNS? I’M GIVING IT THREE POPCORNS. THE ACTING IS UNIFORM LEE GOOD, BUT THE DIRECT THE SCREENPLAY DOESN’T COME CLOSE TO THE BOOK. IT WASN’T WRITTEN BY THE AUTHOR. AND THE DIRECTOR ALSO ISN’T USED TO THIS KIND OF MATERIAL. SHAWN LEVY HE DOES BROAD COMEDIES, SO JUST A BUNCH OF THESE ELEMENTS SQUISHED TOGETHER DON’T WORK AS WELL AS I HOPED. ALL THE LIGHT. WE CANNOT SEE WOULD BE ONE OF THE BEST SERIES OF THE YEAR. IT DOESN’T MAKE THAT GREAT. AND I THINK, TOO, OF COURSE THERE’S ALWAYS THE DEBATE ABOUT BOOK VERSUS MOVIE BOOK VERSUS TV SHOW. AND I THINK THAT MORE OFTEN THAN NOT THAT IS THE PROBLEM, IS THAT YOU LOSE SO MUCH CONTENT WHEN THEY MAKE THINGS TOO SHORT. I MEAN, WE’VE BEEN SEEING THAT SINCE WE WERE KIDS. HARRY POTTER, THE BOOKS, YOU KNOW, AND THEN THE SHOW MOVIES WERE SO MUCH, YOU LOSE SO MUCH OF THAT STORY. SO I THINK THAT’S LIKE A UNIVERSAL PROBLEM SOMETIMES. YEAH. ALL RIGHT. LET’S WRAP IT UP WITH OUR THIRD ONE HERE. INVASION SEASON TWO ON APPLE TV. I REALLY LIKED INVASION SEASON ONE AND WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO WHERE THEY WERE GOING TO GO WITH THE STORY, BUT I DIDN’T SEE WHAT WAS COMING, WHICH IS TOTAL CHAOS. I MEAN, I COULD FOLLOW THE STORYLINE. IT BOUNCES BETWEEN 3 OR 4 DIFFERENT CHARACTERS AS YOU AREN’T CLEAR ABOUT WHAT THE ALIENS ARE DOING OR WHAT THEY’RE NOT DOING. SOMETIMES THEY’RE A FORCE FIELD, SOMETIMES THEY APPEAR IN OTHER WAYS. THE SECOND SEASON OF THIS JUST DISSOLVES INTO A CONFUSED MESS. YOU CAN’T FOLLOW THE STORY. YOU LOSE THE CHARACTERS YOU REALLY IDENTIFIED WITH IN THE FIRST SEASON. THEY’RE BARELY THERE IN THE SECOND SEASON, THERE’S A WHOLE MIND TRANSFERENCE GOING ON WITH THE JAPANESE SCIENTISTS THAT, HONEST TO GOD, I HAD NO UNDERSTAND KING OF WHAT SHE WAS DOING OR WHAT SHE WAS TRYING TO DO. SO SO YOU KNOW, YOU NEED SOME CAPABLE STORYTELLING IN THESE SERIES TO AT LEAST FOLLOW WHAT THE IDEA OF THE PLOT IS. AND THIS IS AN ALIEN INVASION OF EARTH AND HOW ARE WE GOING TO REPEL IT? AND IT GOT BORING IN SEASON TWO. BORING. AND THE SERIES JUST FELT LIKE IT WAS DISCONNECTED FROM ANY REALITY AND WAS REALLY A DISAPPOINTMENT AFTER SEASON ONE WHERE THE ALIENS WERE REALLY SORT OF INTIMIDATING WITH THEIR LITTLE KILLER ROBOTS THAT ALL DISSOLVE IN SEASON TWO AND YOU’RE JUST LEFT WITH A LOT OF TALK, A BUNCH OF SPECIAL EFFECTS AND A STORY THAT DOESN’T MOVE YOU IN ANY WAY. AT LEAST IT DIDN’T MOVE ME. I’M AMAZED THAT AFTER ALL OF THOSE DIFFERENT PLOT POINTS, IT WAS BORING TO YOU. DALE. HOW MANY POPCORNS DID YOU GIVE THIS? TWO POPCORNS. I WAVERED OVER THE ONE BUTTON, BUT I DECIDED TO BE CHARITABLE. I’M WAITING FOR THE DAY THAT THERE IS SOMETHING BAD ENOUGH THAT IT GETS ONE. IT WILL BE COMING. YOU CAN REST ASSURED. WELL, THAT’S WHY DALE IS SO HELPFUL, BECAUSE HE WANTS TO WASTE THEIR TIME TO WATCHING SOMETHING THAT JUST DOESN’T MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS. YEAH. DALE, HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND. GREAT TO SEE YOU, AS ALWAYS. THANK YOU. AND HERE ARE THOSE TITLES ONE MORE TIME. THE PERSIAN VERSION IN THEATERS, ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE ON NETFLIX. AND INVASION. SEASON TWO ON APPLE TV. PLUS, YOU CAN FIND DALE’S PAST REVIEWS IN TWO WAYS. EITHER BY CHECKING OUT OUR MOVIES IN REVIEW PLAYLIST ON THE WXII 12 NEWS YOUTUBE PAGE