Mainstream fun: Guy Ritchie's THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. -- projected so poorly at a local Regal theater that the chain should offer refunds

A silly choice for would-be blockbuster status, THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E., the latest smart fluff entertainment from Guy Ritchie, is courting a demographic that has no idea of the original TV source material, let alone the history -- politics, culture and fashion -- of the 1960s time period. So money-wise Warner Bros. can write this one off, at least here in the USA. (Worldwide, the film might do a bit better, as audiences abroad may be a tad more "with it.") Still, older patrons will find a lot to enjoy in this alternately fast-moving and stationary spies-and-nuclear-reactor nonsense.

Mr. Ritchie, noted among other things for his homo-erotic playfulness between male characters in everything from RocknRolla to Sherlock Holmes, has either tamped down that tendency here, or else his two somewhat wooden stars -- Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer (shown above, respectively, right and left)-- don't have the acting chops to bring this off. So they stick to the script and manage to headline a generally breezy and occasionally subtly funny entertainment.

The funniest of the moments comes as a lakeside restaurant empties out, and the reasons why and how will put a smile on the face of anyone brought up on those cold-war spy films of an earlier decade. For female pulchritude and class, the film uses two interesting actresses, the lately all-over-the-place Alicia Vikander (above) and Elizabeth Debicki (below) as, respectively, the good girl and the bad.

You'll see car chases and foot chases and torture and death -- all served up with very little bloodshed and more than a few laughs. The movie's certainly not great entertainment but it is a pleasant enough version of the distinctly old-fashioned kind we rarely see these days. (Although Mr. Ritchie's use of split-screen effects now and again -- maybe a nod to the movie-making style of that era -- seems pretty useless.)

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But now, to get to the reason this movie-going experience was so irredeemably crappy, we must leave the movie itself and address its "print" (or whatever high technology has replaced film as we used to know it). What the audience saw last evening -- Thursday, August 13, at the 7pm showing at Regal Shadowood 16 movie theater in Boca Raton, Florida -- was a complete travesty: a movie shown out of focus for it entire two hour running time.  Not horrendously out of focus, mind you, but just enough so that the quality of the projection resembled that of an over-used VHS video tape from the 1980s. There was not a clear, clean, sharp image in all of its 116 minutes. (The trailers for upcoming movies that preceded the main attraction were, of course, sharp as a tack.) For this, the audience is paying first-run prices?

TrustMovies left the theater after around 30 minutes and asked two nearby ushers what was going on. They came into the theater and agreed that the film was not in proper focus. But because there are no longer "projectionists" in movie theaters, there was no one to fix things. (I couldn't find a theater manager anywhere nearby.) Either Warner Bros. had sent a faulty hard drive to be shown, or something was wrong with the projector in use. Either way, the audience for that performance (and any other that must make do with these particular facilities) is being cheated.

This is particularly galling because the movie was shot on location in some very pretty scenery (not to mention the beauty of the actors on view). Meanwhile, if you're lucky enough to get a decent hard-drive in your local theater, take a chance to The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (To learn where it's playing near you, click here.) But be warned: If the image looks drab, muddy and consistently not sharp, head for the manager and demand your money back. Then wait for the Blu-ray or DVD discs to appear down the road. 

Streaming follow-up: fans of Spain's gorgeous GRAN HOTEL finally get a third-season finale!

If comments on this blog are any indication, that delectable and beautiful soap opera via Span-ish television, GRAND HOTEL, has got to be one of the more popular foreign TV offerings currently avail-able on Netflix streaming. Fans have been begging the famous "content distributor" to give them that final season for nearly a year now. At last, here it is -- in 24 episodes of 44 minutes each.

When Season Two ended with the shock and jolt that left many of us with our mouths hanging open, some of us imagined that this indeed was indeed the end of the series -- in which the characters, many of whom were very bad people, got what they deserved. Still, we wondered, what about all the others? Now we know.

The series, based on an idea by a man and woman whom I would guess are the Spanish equivalent of what we over here in the USA call showrunners -- Ramón Campos (above, right) and Gema R. Neira (above, left), both of whom produced and collaborated on the writing of most, maybe all, of the episodes -- takes place in and around the titular grand hotel (filmed at the famous Palacio de la Magdalena) in the lush and verdant seaside locations of Santander in Cantabria, Spain.

Both outdoors and indoors, the series is a visual knockout, what with the gorgeous exterior shots and the highly detailed interiors -- oh, the flatware and china, the exquisite decor and costumes -- Gran Hotel proves a non-stop feast for the eyes. Comparisons have and will continue to be made to Downton Abbey, and they are certainly apt. But for my money this Spanish series beats out the British one, bigtime. Even if, I must admit, the third season does have its longueurs now and again. In order to reach its finale via those 24 episodes, a certain amount of padding is present.

Still, if you become as heavily involved with all these many, many characters as did I (and clearly many other viewers), it may be difficult not to become absolutely wrapped up in the often silly but always enjoyable plotting. This final season offers up the Alarcon's spoiled-rotten ladies' man son (Eloy Azorín, above, left) suddenly smitten with a nurse named Laura who has come to care for the wounded after season two's sudden "mishap." As played by Marta Hazas (above, right), this character proves a wealth of surprise, fun and, well, you'll find out....

Of course we have more of the Inspector Ayala (Pep Anton Muñoz, above, left) and his not-so-swift assistant (Antonio Reyes, above, right), both of whom manage to become even more fun as the series progresses, along with our ever-kept-apart lovebirds, Alicia and Julio (Amaia Salamanca and Yon González (on poster, top, and in the photo just below it), who remain as engaging as ever, though Ms Salamanca seems to have grown older and less lustrous, given all her poor character has had to put up with over 66 episodes.

Gran Hotel has become one of my favorite shows, due, I think, to the Spanish-ness of it all. I found it even more of a soap-opera than Downton Abbey, yet I liked it much better. These are some of the most memorable characters you'll spend this much time with -- so specific and interesting, despite the fact that they -- some of them, at least, like Doña Teresa, played by the very fine Adriana Ozores, shown center, above, in one of her more provocative moments -- get away with murder and somehow we still care about them. (This is one of the series' more troubling and interesting accomplishments.)

Then there's the whole "randy priest" thing involving our lying, murdering and adulterous Sofia (Luz Valdenebro, at ), along with the surprise of Javier finally learning to commit to his nutty wife (and the fact that he can only get an erection with her, of all things!).

And then, especially, there is Belén (played with enormous steel and force by Marta Larralde, shown center, above) -- who for some reason, despite her truly nasty deeds and utterly heartless demeanor, I'll remember best and with real fondness from the episodes in which she gives birth to and then loses her offspring -- a time in which she was most human, caring, vulnerable and sad.

Is there a villain in TV history you can hate more thoroughly yet find so damned sexy and alluring as that key character, Diego, played with such relish and smarts by Pedro Alonso (above, left)?  I doubt it.

This season, there are several new and very enjoyable characters, led by Alicia's dear friend Maite (played with delicious verve and flair by Megan Montaner, above) and the hotel's new and unusual maître d' (essayed by that fine and duly famous Spanish actor Lluís Homar, below).

With all its silliness and faults -- maybe even because of them -- I believe this to be an extraordinary series, like nothing else I can recall seeing. Its take on power, money and the coming of the Spanish middle class, and its joining, toward the end, of the wealthy to the poor (via "Duke" Alfredo and Doña Angela and her crew) I found most moving and progressive. Podemos would surely approve.

Gran Hotel, can be seen now via Netflix streaming or on DVD and Blu-ray. Do check it out. (That's the lovelorn, lovable and ever-naive Andrès, above, a waiter-turned-heir who is played by the uber-lovable actor, Llorenç González.) 

Streaming tips: black-and-white 1950s British gems: FAST AND LOOSE and ALWAYS A BRIDE

Netflix provides such a treasure trove of movies -- from foreign films to independents to documentaries -- that some of its least-known gems can easily get lost in this abundance. People stupidly complain that the service doesn't have all the big mainstream hits. True. But so what? If you really care about movies of all types, they're here for the asking. Two such, which we recently watched one right after the other (we almost never do this at a single sitting, but these were so charming, we quickly were hooked), I'll tell you about now.

FAST AND LOOSE, a Brit hit in glorious black-and-white from 1954, and ALWAYS A BRIDE, from 1953, also British and in b/w (and filmed at least partially on the French Riviera!) are two small gems of subtle, subdued humor and full of fine character acting from all concerned. Both are also filmed in the aspect ratio of that time (1.37:1) that may seem a little small by our widescreen standards. But that also helps contribute to their charm -- as do the witty, low-key performances from almost everyone in the two casts, along with the unadorned, straight-ahead direction (Gordon Parry for Fast and Loose,  Ralph Smart for Always a Bride).

F&L takes off as a man and his new bride leave for their honeymoon but he runs into an old flame at the station and chats a bit as the train, with his bride aboard, takes off without him. What to do? The result makes up this silly, funny romp that features the wonderfully droll and glamorous actress Kay Kendall (above) as that old flame and the lesser-known-but-serviceable Brian Reece in the role of the husband. The bride's parents provide a bundle of laughs, as does the harridan landlady of the small hotel in which our cast finally gathers.

Always a Bride takes us into the world of father-daughter con artists, Ronald Squire and Peggy Cummins (above), their very funny accomplices and the fellow who falls in love with the daughter (the handsome Terence Morgan, below).

The grifting is handled with fine aplomb and oodles of charm, the romance is light-footed and sweet, and the Riviera looks lovely, even in black-and-white. Both films are quite short (Fast is only 75 minutes, Bride comes in at 82). And both are available now via Netflix and maybe elsewhere. Click on the links above for easy access.