MovieChat Forums > Only Murders in the Building (2021) Discussion > Another chance just to see if I was hast...

Another chance just to see if I was hasty....

posted 3 years ago by Destinata (3326)
25 replies | jump to latest

I wasn't. I'm used to watching British murder mysteries. Granted, not even all of those are good, but they do tend to have better writing and pacing than this one. Steve Martin used to be able to write well for Steve Martin, once. Not this time.

It IS on Hulu, though, which should have been my first clue. I'm sure he took it to Netflix first. Then HBO. Then Prime. And when he'd exhausted all other possibilities, he said, "Does Hulu just do old Mary Tyler Moore reruns, or...?" and he found the people willing to take it. I'm sure even they said, "Do you think people in other parts of the country will believe that anyone can live in NYC without a job, let alone THREE people? All in the same building?" 🤦🏼‍♀️

[–] exatera (3955) 3 years ago

Feel better now? 🙄

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

Yes. Yes, I do. I like to give things another chance just in case I'm too hasty.

[–] exatera (3955) 3 years ago

Seems to me your only "talent", using the term loosely, is just shitting all over everything and everyone.

You don't amount to anything, so you go around spewing bile.

Like I said, hope it at least makes you feel better about yourself.

[–] Destinata (3326) 2 years ago

I'm so glad you restrained yourself and didn't just go with bile and criticism. If you had, the irony would have been off the charts, and your post would have needed a laugh track.

I've also noticed that folks on this site seem to be unable to divorce their emotions from their assessment of a performance...or anything for that matter. I like -- and really WANT to like -- James Spader, for example. Here, not surprisingly, his fans think he's the most gorgeous man walking. They can't see the words "used to be" belonging in that sentence.

Folks who adore this show are willing to viciously attack anyone who sees it as a huge waste of talent. That's arguing from emotion.

[–] exatera (3955) 2 years ago

No, what's ironic is the higher moral ground you feel you are on considering what you posted in the first place.

And what's with coming back a year later to continue the conversation??

Whatever, carry on.

[–] Destinata (3326) 2 years ago

"And what's with coming back a year later to continue the conversation??"

I'm not very invested in this. It's something I do when I'm utterly bored. Glad you like the show. If it's still on, I hope you're an avid watcher!

[–] JohnnyDoe (1884) 3 years ago

retirees, trust-funders?

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

I'm a retiree, and my husband has a pretty good pension, but we'd be pinched living in NYC. It's not like everywhere else in the country.
Now, trust-funders -- I hadn't thought of that! A trust-funder with a wealthy aunt who lets her live in her place for free is a pretty good bet.

[–] TheArgentinian (7072) 3 years ago

Netflix and HBO have passed on great shows. And they have crap too. Where a series is streaming on means nothing other than business relationships.

[–] exatera (3955) 3 years ago

Also Hulu just might have offered him the better deal.

The OP is extremely myopic.

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

Sure. Because Hulu is known to pay out deals that leave Netflix and HBO in the dirt.

I DO imagine that Hulu gave him the best offer. I mean, that's obvious.

[–] exatera (3955) 3 years ago

Your point being... what?

The OP used the fact that the show is on Hulu as disparaging evidence, and I am saying that's nonsensical.

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

1) I'm the OP.
2) As the old joke goes, being on Hulu is not exactly an accomplishment. It's where you go to find Mary Tyler Moore.
3) Do you have any idea who Steve Martin used to be??? He was the top comic of his generation. He was a brilliant man who, when he decided to do his take on Cyrano de Bergerac, went back to read it in the original French. To say that this current tripe is a colossal step down is an understatement. The old Steve Martin would have been at least on Prime. But hey, Hulu's for free if you put up with the commercials, so tell me he did it for the wider audience.

Yes, it IS disparaging evidence, and you can think it's nonsensical all you like.

[–] liscarkat (18410) 2 years ago

The old Steve Martin, the intellectual giant you refer to, made "The Jerk" and "The Man with Two Brains" back at the peak of his artistic genius. He was pretty much the Adam Sandler of the '70s and early '80s.

[–] RoloTony (1286) 3 years ago

I think it's getting much funnier by episode 3. It was a little wonky the first 2 eps. Now if only we could oust Selena Gomez.

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

I quit too early? Maybe so. Sometimes giving something just one more try isn't enough.

My eyes were rolling back in my head during the first episode of "A Touch of Frost." My husband asked me if I'd started watching it because it was great. Some shows are great from the first scene and others take a little while to catch fire.

[–] acidraindrop (3055) 3 years ago

I'm sure even they said, "Do you think people in other parts of the country will believe that anyone can live in NYC without a job, let alone THREE people? All in the same building?"

It's a TV show.

Jesus, how many horror movies do we see where a family moves into a massive house that those most certainly cannot afford.

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

A horror show isn't supposed to be remotely plausible. Mysteries are, because part of the fun is to try figuring out "Who done it?" People had a fit at the end of Twin Peaks because the "who" of the "Who done it?" seemed to be picked at random. Folks had been having watch parties where they'd discuss the clues of that week, and when they found out they could have skipped that and just gotten blindfolded and thrown a dart at a dartboard with character names on it, they got furious. Why, I don't know, because I thought that much was obvious from the first half hour. Twin Peaks wasn't a "Who done it?" It was more about the trip than the destination. A show like that doesn't have to make sense.

This show seemed to be trying to be a "Who done it?" I know they think they have style and humor while they're doing it, but it still smacks of "Who done it?" Maybe it's all about style and humor and it's missing the point there. Also, maybe I should have pointed out I'm old enough to remember when Steve Martin was funny and a great writer. I even read "Cruel Shoes." 😉

[–] acidraindrop (3055) 3 years ago

A horror show isn't supposed to be remotely plausible. Mysteries are, because part of the fun is to try figuring out "Who done it?"

How I met your mother is a comedy sitcom (not a horror) where a single man can afford paying for a two bedroom apartment in New York City, above a bar, while also buying cars and putting down payments on houses.

So yes, I think the question is absurd:

"Do you think people in other parts of the country will believe that anyone can live in NYC without a job, let alone THREE people? All in the same building?"

I have no idea what you're going on about in the rest of your post.

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

Sitcoms don't have to make sense, either. So are you saying this is more sitcom than "Who done it?" I suppose that's possible. At which time I can only say that I remember when Steve Martin was funny.

You may think it's a scream. You wouldn't have any trouble convincing me about that.

[–] acidraindrop (3055) 3 years ago

I have no idea why you keep talking to me about the quality of this show, and Steve Martin's talents.

You continue to mindlessly relate narrative plausibility to the financial plausibility of how much someone makes in a work of fiction. I've tried using two obvious examples and you've rejected them simply because "They don't have to make sense" according to you.

I give up. Keep thinking that commenting on the characters socio-economic status and standard of living is reasonable critique.

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

Sitcoms don't have to make sense. Stories that get their "humor" from absurdities like a woman who carries a log everywhere don't have to make sense. Real murder mysteries usually DO have to make sense so people can put the sensible clues together. Martin knows how to structure a story, so he knows these rules.

But I think you inadvertently stumbled onto something when you mentioned sitcoms. Sitcoms don't have to make sense. You may not have recognized it, but I agreed with you, there. You may think I'm hopeless mentally, but always remember I agreed with you. Oh, and that you hit on the correct answer without even realizing it.

After this, you're right -- there IS no point in continuing to talk if you're going to give me an argument about agreeing with you.

[–] sjankis630 (6) 3 years ago

Do you think people in other parts of the country will believe that anyone can live in NYC without a job, let alone THREE people? All in the same building?

I can believe it in this case.
1) Selena Gomez lives in her aunts apartment and seems to basically not have to buy anything but food and fashionable clothes. There is nothing in the place except her and her laptop. I am assuming her aunt owns it or pays the rent.
2) Steve Martin was a TV star from the 1990s who presumably was famous enough that people still recognize him on the street over 20 years later. His residuals would hold him over nicely as his character apparently is the biggest cheapskate in Manhattan.
3) Martin Short is clearly suffering from lack of funds and is living off of handouts and Gut Milk. Lol. Also he has been borrowing from his son to get by.

I think Steve Martin's character mentioned in an earlier episode that both he and Martin Short's character had bought into the building before prices were sky high.

[–] Destinata (3326) 3 years ago

When was "Lois and Clark" popular the first time around? The guy who played Clark is now a cop. If you'd seen him, you'd recognize him, but living in cities like LA or NYC is really expensive. He was a star, and now he makes a living as a cop...and occasionally does indie movies that don't pay a lot.

Gomez's situation makes more sense, especially if her aunt pays her to "house-sit." I know a guy who does that for a living; that, and taking care of rich people's animals.

[–] Satan2016 (25525) 3 years ago

They must be condos because Short was behind in his electric bill, not rent. Once you own your biggest bill will be property tax. He should be homeless soon.