The Aftermath

Set in post-WWII Germany where Allied Forces are attempting to restore order, The Aftermath is half a good movie punctuated by the performance of Keira Knightley as a military wife who is uprooted from London to Hamburg where her husband (Jason Clarke) is stationed. While many Germans are homeless and sheltered into camps, the Morgans find themselves housed in the lush estate of a German architect (Alexander Skarsgård) who moves into the attic with his teenage daughter (Flora Thiemann).

As a period drama much of The Aftermath works well. There's an interesting story to tell here about the role of the winners asserting control over the locals, hunting out Nazi sympathizers, and working to try and help rebuild the broken city. Sadly, much of the story instead is focused on the couple's troubled marriage and her growing involvement with their host. The film was adapted from Rhidian Brook's novel of the same name. I wonder if the affair comes off as tawdry on the printed page. That's not to say this storyline doesn't offer moments, such as a terrific scene involving Knightley breaking down while discussing the loss of their child during the war.

Green Lantern #6

Hal Jordan's undercover operation to infiltrate the Darkstars comes to an end, although what happens to the universe's greatest Green Lantern is something that is left unexplained. Opening with an old fashioned duel between Hal and Adam Strange, the Darkstar recruit manages to fake Strange's death (in the kind of old school hero misdirection that is never adequately explained) and earn himself an audience with his new team's Controller Mu.

Amber Blake #1

Amber Blake #1 brings the French comic from writer and Jade Lagardère artist Jackson Butch Guice to American audiences. The stuff of pulp fiction, the comic jumps around quite a bit introducing us to the title character as we go from her being dropped off at an orphanage to her enrollment in a prestigious school through her graduation to the awful night that ends that relationship.

How Bumblebee Should Have Ended

Game of Thrones - Winterfell

Cersei's (Lena Headey) machinations continue, old acquaintances are renewed, Jon Snow (Kit Harington) rides a dragon, and the Mother of Dragons arrives in Winterfell. The final season premiere of Game of Thrones also drops last season's bombshell on Jon as Sam (John Bradley) explains the truth about his best friend's lineage. Eventually accepting the truth, it's still unclear how the news changes Jon's plans or his new love (which is all too easy for his sister to see). What is mentioned, but doesn't make it on-screen, is the army of the Night King continuing to move south. While Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) and Jon manage the entire voyage North, and Circe's army arrives from across the sea, in the time between last season's finale and now, apparently the army of the dead are taking the scenic route south.