#cleverman

TV Shows

In Limbo Banished

House of the Dragon (S1):

Show: 4.5 Strong bastards I’m guessing everybody that is here saw it. So you know

Ryan Factor: 1 Perfect Curls It’s only one curl, but when he appears on the screen he is perfect

Wakefield:

Show: 4 Strong bastards It’s a good show about mental health and general struggles, and how people deal with problems, from patients to staff. It's very heavy, and you need to be in the mood to watch it. There are too many characters and the episodes are divided with their story and how they interact between them.

Ryan factor: 2 Perfect Curls He is kind of too good for his own good. There is a sad sex scene that shouldn’t happen, but you can’t blame him for it. Appears heavily in a few episodes, but once his story ends, don’t expect much of him on screen.

The Secrets She Keeps:

Show: 4 Strong Bastards If you like thriller/suspense, watch it. It has some left and turns that are predictable, but still enjoyable, some infuriating characters (I got frustrated multiple times) but good acting all around.

Ryan factor: 3.5 Perfect Curls He doesn’t appear a lot on the first season, but he is there (looking sad and confused), second season he is way more on-screen, and he looks so good (understatement). And we have dork dance, interaction with kids (all your Modern Harwin AU fantasies). Just peek dad vibes.

Hungry Ghosts:

Show: 3 Strong Bastards This show starts so strong and ends kind of meh. The resolution and relationships seem rushed and dragging at the same time. BUT it is fascinating to see aspects of a different culture and as per my (very shallow) research Hungry ghost is a real thing in Buddhism, and they even have a festival.

Ryan factor: 2 Perfect Curls He is the skeptical white guy in the show, even after seeing some crazy shit. He shows up here and there, but not too much. He looks good but he always looks good, is a doctor, some people like that.

The Commons:

Show: 4.5 Strong Bastards I love the concept of this show, in the very near future the world went to shit (even more) because of global warming, it’s not difficult to see the reality they live in. My only main problem is with the main character, she always wants her cake and eat it too.

Ryan factor: 4 Perfect Curls Just my favorite Ryan character. Very smart, but very unserious scientist that looks like (in my humble opinion) the total package. His interactions with his goddaughter are perfect and I’d kill for them.

My Life Is Murder (S1E06):

Show: 3.5 Strong Bastards Murder of the week type of show. I like because even with murders it has a sort of light heart vibe to it, it’s not like Law and Order: SVU (or any of that kind) that everything looks sad and wet all the time. Also, Xena the Warrior Princess is the detective.

Ryan Factor: 3.5 Perfect Curls Family man who just lost his brother, very sad. His wife is super pregs, so yay for family and Dad Ryan.

Bloom (S1):

Show: 4.5 Strong Bastards About youth and regret. Most of the cast is older and when they eat this little fruit, they become young again and kind a new lease in life. I don’t want to say much because of spoilers. It’s a really well made show, you can feel the desperation on their actions.

Ryan Factor: 3.5 Perfect Curls It starts with Ryan taking his clothes off and running on the street, a great beginning. We see a lot of him, he’s one of the people who is older and eats the fruit. Ryan was more of the antagonist. He’s interacting with a kid, but more of the older brother vibes.

Cleverman (S1):

Show: 2 Strong Bastards CW level entertainment. There is a good message behind, if you skint and look from afar they did a good job with the message. The main is also a problem, he’s very passive and doesn’t want to do anything.

Ryan Factor: 2.5 Perfect Curls He’s the protagonist's BFF, when he shows the character is fun. But he doesn’t show much, he is not involved with the main plot in the first 4 episodes.

Wanted (S1E01-02):

Show: IDK how many Strong Bastards Two very different ladies become friends after they are kidnapped, also police corruption. I only watched the first 3 episodes, so I can really say much about the show.

Ryan Factor: 3 Perfect Curls (only 2 first episodes) Maybe the worst kidnapper ever? He looks good in a bulletproof vest, and way over his head.

Blue Water High (S2):

Show: 3.5 Strong Bastards (For a kids show) I’ll never shut up about this show. It was what made me fell in love with AUS teen dramas. It's about a bunch of teens competing to see who wins a sponsor and a place in an international surf comp. (Spoiler: Ryan’s character wins it) They all live together, they are friends and fight, all that. As a kids show I think it is good and it passes a very good message, the kids make mistakes, they are punished by it but never villainized.

Ryan Factor: 4.5 Perfect Curls (The show doesn’t have a lead) He was 16/17 when this was filmed, his hair is a disaster (but very mid 2000s) and I can’t even explain how this is the same person as Harwin Strong. Looks like he’s having a lot of fun.

Movies

High Ground:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards Very good movie about how colonizers think they’re better than anyone else and justice doesn’t apply to them. I think it’s based on a real story about a massacre in northern Australia.

Ryan factor: 0.5 Perfect Curls Glorified extra. I think he has 2 lines in the whole movie, he’s a priest.

Ladies in Black:

Movie: 3.5 Strong Bastards It’s a cute movie, heavy subject but they manage to make it cute and light. It’s about immigration and sexism, but they don’t go too deep into either and everything is solved with the power of love.

Ryan factor: 3 Perfect Curls He’s a Hungarian immigrant in Australia looking for a wife, he has an accent, he falls in love. He is adorable in it.

Outlaws/1%:

Movie: 2 Strong Bastards Outlaw Motorcycle club, they ride bikes and do outlaw stuff. Look, the movie isn’t good and there are a couple of SA scenes. I hate every character (except Ryan’s and his brother). The actors and direction are good, but the lack of depth and character development kills the movie.

Ryan Factor: 5 Perfect Curls He’s the lead (YAY!) and the only reason to watch the movie*. Exasperated, loving and sexy are the words I can use to describe his character.

*or any other actor if you like them.

Below:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards I don’t even know where to start with this one. It’s crazy and violent, also about a very important subject (I sense a theme here) about refugee detention centre and how desperate people do anything.

Ryan factor: 5 Perfect Curls He’s the main, and embodies the unhinged nature of the movie very well. He is a grifter who would do anything for money, but you can see deep down he's a good man and cares about people.

A Few Less Men:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards This movie is all comedy. The 3 main guys have to take their dead friend's body back to England, but they have 2 brain cells between the 3 of them. A lot of shenanigans.

Ryan factor: 2.5 Perfect Curls Ryan’s character is back in England and he screams with the mains via phone a lot. Looks like he’s having a lot of fun with the part. Looks great in pastels.

Ali's Wedding:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards If you like romantic comedies, watch it. It’s a real story about a muslin guy falling in love in a community they can’t really date, plus he feels a lot of pressure to be the perfect son.

Ryan factor: 0.5 Perfect Curls White guy in the movie, he’s in it to throw in a few funny lines, but the story isn’t about him, and he’s just another glorified extra.

Hacksaw Ridge:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards Another true story, Andrew Garfield is a super religious guy who wants to be a medic in war but doesn’t want to hold a gun because god doesn’t like guns. It loses 0.5 point because the beginning drags a bit. But it is a very good movie once we’re in the war zone.

Ryan factor: 1 Perfect Curl He shows up mid movie, dies and that is it. But he looks very good all bloody.

Holding the Man:

Movie: 4.5 Strong Bastards True story (another theme), about a gay couple in the 80s - 90s during the AIDS epidemic. The movie kind of rushes in some parts, but you can feel they really love each other. It’s sad, but not one of those movies where people don’t know how to laugh.

Ryan factor: 5 Perfect Curl Main character, we see him in most scenes and there is a lot of skin. It’s hard to thirst over him when the subject is AIDS, but he’s so good in this movie. it’s just a little weird to see him in HS age with a 30 y/o face and body.

The Water Diviner:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards I think it is a true story, if not, it looks like one. Russel Crowe loses his sons and goes to the place they died to try to find their bodies. It’s a very loving and sad movie. It’s been a while since I watched, I don’t remember a lot about it, I just remember I liked it.

Ryan factor: 1 Perfect Curl He’s one of the Russel’s kids, he only shows up in the beginning and has a lovely moment with Russel Crowe. But hey, Jai Courtney is in the movie and he’s very hot.

Wolf Creek 2:

Movie: 4 Strong Bastards Slasher!!! Brutal slasher, the kind of movie you feel anxious watching. The killer is HORRIBLE, a disgusting human being. It’s also loosely based on true stories from the 90s - early 2000s about the murders of turists in the Australian outback. I hate the couple in the beginning, too many dumb decisions.

Ryan Factor: 4 Perfect Curls He is not in the beginning, but he shows up and the killer hunts him. We see him suffer A LOT. He’s not dumb, which is good.