Thursday, September 29, 2022

Thursday Movie Picks:TV Edition- Cold Cases

 


Tv time again and it’s about cold case files which is what I love. I do like watching documentaries etc..about famous cold cases like Jack the Ripper and the famous Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist. Funny, I never did watch one episode of the TV show called, “ Cold Case” but maybe I will watch a rerun of it one day. Wandering through the Shelves ended this month long theme with a good one. Here are my 3...

1. UNSOLVED MYSTERIES-1987-1999 and 2000-2002

This is one of my favourite series that started off with Raymond Burr and Karl Malden doing an episode each before it was given to Robert Stack and his famous trench coat and hair. This show not only talked about a cold case of murders but missing persons, robberies, amnesia, ghostly encounters, near death experiences, beasts etc... It was not sensationalized but tried to give a play by play of what happened often speaking with the actual people who were part of the mystery. It ended in 1999 but was taken up again in 2000 but stopped when Stack took sick. It has been reprised twice more but the best is the original.

2. UNFORGOTTEN-2015- PRESENT

I spoke about this show before and with good reason- it’s brilliant! It’s a British show where each season, is about a body being found that is a few years old and this team, headed by Nicola Walker, must find out who the skeleton is, how the person died and the possible suspects. We learn, early on, about the different suspects, their lives and how all are somehow interconnected with this old body. We see how the team deduce  who is involved and why, while we get a hint about their own private lives especially the head detective with her dad and her son. Can I say that the 3rd season still leaves me in chills. The one actor, a suspect, deserved an Emmy for his performance.

3. MISSION DECLASSIFIED-2019

I hate it when there is an excellent show and only lasts one season. The show follows Christof Putzel, a reknowned investigative reporter, who investigates some of the most famous unsolved crimes of the century from the Black Dahlia to the Museum heist I mentioned earlier. In fact, his grandfather was the reporter who was first on the case with the Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping case. He doesn’t go sensational and he is certainly not boring but methodically pieces each piece of evidence he can get to including evidence that had not seen the time of day until now. I found each case riveting and well thought out especially the Isabella Museum Heist that brought him to Italy and the mob, the first time I heard of that scenario. I was so waiting for season 2 but, alas, it wasn’t meant to be. If you get a chance, you should watch his episodes as it is quite fascinating. 


Which 3 TV shows can you think of?

I am thinking of all if you who have been dealing with the horrible hurricane. Stay safe.

30 comments:

  1. The Forgotten series is absolutely fabulous, two wonderful actors and great scrips, don't know the other films, Kate x

    ReplyDelete
  2. I just love the tv series unforgotten just brilliant …lots of new series this autumn loving the new series of the brokenwood mysteries ….take care xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don’t know Brokenwood...I have to look it up.

      Delete
  3. Hi, Birgit!

    The juice is on the loose, dear friend! Our power was just now restored after a 15 hour outage that started late yesterday afternoon when Hurricane Ian struck. Hundreds are feared dead in the catastrophe, but we are AOK because the storm tracked to our south and east and diminished in strength by the time it reached us.

    This is a good theme for your Thursday post. Did you realize that the first video you posted is actually a parody of the original Unsolved Mysteries, a scene from the 1998 sports comedy movie BASEketball? If you watch and listen carefully, it's a hoot. The girl in the parody is actress - slash - Baywatch babe Yasmine Bleeth, an "it girl" of the 80s and 90s. We already knew that Robert Stack had a great sense of humor from his role as Captain Rex Kramer in Airplane!

    Mrs. Shady and I have twice watched the Cold Case series from start to finish. It's a pretty good show. It's set in Philadelphia which interests me, has a classic pop/rock soundtrack running throughout every episode, and stars Kathryn Morris, who surprisingly turned up years later in the role of loose woman Deana Richards, mother of Nikki Sixx, the bass player for Mötley Crüe, in the band's gritty biopic The Dirt which I also highly recommend.

    Mrs. Shady and I love Nicola Walker and encourage you to watch her in Last Tango in H-fax and in The Split, the latter a fine series we are currently binging on. We were shocked by the S-4 finale of Unforgotten. I won't be a spoiler. I see there is a season 5 in the works. We also highly recommend Sanjeev Bhaskar, who plays Nicola's (Cassie's) partner "Sunny" Khan in Unforgotten, in his earlier series The Indian Doctor set in South Wales. It will remind you a lot of Doc Martin and it's a wonderful show.

    I haven't watched Mission Declassified but it looks good. Did they devote an episode to the recent shenanigans at Mar-a-Lago? :)

    When you have time, I hope you will visit Shady's Place where I have launched an epic 36-part series. Hope to see you soon, dear friend BB!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am so happy you and your wife are aok. I hope you can get back to norm in your area, it is sad how many have passed away not to mention all the devastation.
      I did not know that I put on a parody because of the blogger way of not allowing you to see what is playing but I’m glad I did put it on...it’s funny.
      Yes, I have seen Nicola Walker in Last Tango and she was good in MI5...a great spy show. I have not seen her in the other show nor the one with the Indian man....I love that actor who is so good in Unforgotten and I know what happens so I can’t wait to see season 5.
      I think Christof just shakes his head at the Mira-floppo escapade. So where are the chants of “lock him up.” Isn’t what he has done a hell of a lot worse than what Hillary did and she owned up to it and...big deal to what she did.

      Delete
  4. BIRGIT ~

    I'm not at all familiar with the second two shows you mentioned, but I've ALWAYS liked 'UNSOLVED MYSTERIES'. That kind of stuffs is right up my alley, and every once in awhile I'll still watch an old re-run of that show when it pops up in my searches.

    Excellent cherce, Birgit!

    ~ D-FensDogG

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I watch Unsolved Mysteries which is free on Tubi. I think you might like the other 2.

      Delete
  5. If you like mysteries, you should check out the show Cold Case. It was good. I used to play a game with the show. The culprit was always one of the first three interviewed, at least, that was my theory. So, I watched to see if my theory was correct. Mostly, it was. (I think when it wasn't, the culprit was still interviewed within the first 20 minutes of the episode.)

    I'm not really into crime or true crime, especially lately, so I'd have nothing else to add here. I've heard of the first show, but not the others.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I thought Cold Case would be everywhere this week but it seems no one wanted to choose the obvious. I’m glad you mentioned it and, one day, I should watch it. I think there is a pattern to most tv shows like this.

      Delete
    2. Oh yes, there's a formula. Each bit between commercial breaks is an act. And I think most hour long dramas are on the five-act structure? That's why we kind of know the rhythm of most TV shows.

      Delete
  6. Unforgotten is great. I've seen Unsolved Mysteries and Cold Case. Another show is John Walsh's The Hunt. Lately I've been binge watching old Dateline episodes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven’t seen The Hunt but it’s right up my alley as I have a thing for these shows.

      Delete
  7. Christof Putzel sounds like a serious investigative reporter.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He is an a decorated one who blew the lid of child workers

      Delete
  8. I watched Unsolved Mysteries occasionally but that's about it. I don't know the others.

    I really don't have anything this week, I do remember the weekly series Cold Case but I think I only saw one complete episode at a friend's house.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I watch true crime shows but some are recent deaths so not really cold cases. Ok...that sounded crass but, you know, hopefully, what I mean. To be honest, I think you might like Unforgotten which is intelligently written.

      Delete
  9. I remember Unsolved Mysteries, but not the other two. They sound interesting! One show comes to mind is America's Most Wanted.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's a good show although they sometimes went with current cases. You would really like Unforgotten.

      Delete
  10. If you get a chance to see "Cold Case," do it. It's excellent. Another is the BBC show "New Tricks," which is about a team of retired cops solving cold cases. Mary and I really enjoyed that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OMG! I love New Tricks and should have written about them. It's really good.
      One day I will start watching Cold Case

      Delete
  11. I've watched Unsolved Mysteries in the past but wasn't a huge follower. It did see some of the episodes and these sorts of series are quite interesting. I can't think of any programs for this theme other than Cold Case which as already been mentioned.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I didn't realize Karl Malden and Raymond Burr first hosted Unsolved Mysteries. YOU have a pain free week.
    Sandra sandracox.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Sandra...yes, I didn't know that until I read up on the show. I seem to recall them but that could be my mind playing tricks.

      Delete
  13. Wow!!!! I read what you had written when you managed that costume store and that man killed his wife and her 2 girls. That must have been somewhat heartbreaking for you knowing the 2 daughters so well. I will check out the video on this case but it’s so very sad. Some men can’t handle being told no. It was probably not planned which doesn’t make it any more disgusting especially that he killed her 2 girls. They must have come to her defence.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I think you will really like it.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I've never heard of Mission Declassified but sounds super intriguing

    ReplyDelete