Underappreciated - Until Now!

There are a hell of a lot of shows on the old tele these days that cater to everybody's needs, after all we are in a new 'Golden Age of Television', so it can be forgiven that some actors and actresses can get looked over once in a while. Well I am here to shine light on five TV stars that I feel don't get the recognition they deserve. I am always a supporter of the underdog or the underappreciated and I think it is time these people were celebrated for their craft.

 Aimee Carrero

She is one fifth of the main cast of the hugely underappreciated TV show 'Young and Hungry'. A comedy shown on Freeform in America, it stars the brilliant Emily Osment as a personal chef to a millionaire playboy in San Francisco. Aimee plays Sofia, who is Emily Osment's character's roommate. She makes me laugh in every scene she does, she is a master of comic timing and over the top reactions. My favourite thing she does is when she gets frustrated or angry and speaks in the third person using her extremely long name and beautiful spanish accent. She is also a great dramatic actress, there are times on the show where we see her vulnerable side that questions her life choices, I do get choked up sometimes. I think there will be big things for Aimee in the future - fyi she was already cast as the voice for the first hispanic Disney princess. 

Bellamy Young

I have said it before and will keep saying it until she gets all the awards she has well and truly earned. Bellamy is a gifted actress, I mean for one she has made me love and want to see more of a character that is actually repulsive at times. She stars as ex-first lady Melody "Mellie" Grant in 'Scandal' - a political drama set in Washington, shown on ABC. She executes this character to perfection, showing a strong woman who takes no bullshit, stands her ground and will not go down without the most brutal of fights. She is powerful when she is on the screen. I only hope I see more and more of Bellamy because she truly is a blessing to watch, she is so believable both in her funny scenes and serious, dark scenes. I love the character, dare I say it, more than I love the main character of the show - Olivia Pope. 

Chelsea Kane

It would be easy to typecast Chelsea as the traditional beautiful blonde woman in any show, but my days does she bring more to the table than that. She is a tremendous comedy actress, and I never use the word tremendous so you know she is something.  She is laugh out loud funny, great comedy timing and reactions. For me she is the star of the show, and this quite a feat because the entire cast is brilliant. I really hope she gets a lot of attention when this amazing comedy gets its untimely end. What I love about Chelsea's style of acting is that she can make me laugh one minute and then completely draw me in to whatever emotional turmoil she is experiencing, I am not so insecure to admit that I have cried with Chelsea's character a few times.

Max Greenfield

'New Girl' for me is one of the most underappreciated shows on TV today. It brings it every single episode, it makes me giggle like the little girl I am and cry like the woman I am becoming. I could have mentioned any actor/actress from this show for this shortlist but I had to give it to Max Greenfield. He is phenomenal as Schmidt, incase you are not aware Schmidt is the roommate to Jess, Nick and Winston and fiancé of Cece. It is hard to even describe the character Max portrays - you just have to watch it. The reason I believe Max should be celebrated is because of expertly he executes this role, it is hard to believe this character exists and then on the other hand it's hard to believe that it is acting. He commits so much to the role that it is incredibly hard to see Max and Schmidt as two different entities. He brings the most laughs to the show and it is high time that he gets the awards.

Troian Bellisario

'Pretty Little Liars' have done an expert job of casting for this suspenseful teen drama, all the main females are believable as their characters and bring so much to the roles that it is hard to separate character from actress. However, I have to tip my hat to one particular actress on this show - and this is of course Troian Bellisario (points to anyone who can tell me how to pronounce her name without being offensive). She plays Spencer, an intelligent, beautiful little liar, on the show. I get so drawn in to Troian's scenes because she is so talented, she can do dramatic, funny, sarcastic - well everything you need from an actress, but she does it with a style all of her own. Apparently the show only has one more season left, but I have heard Troian will be starring in the American version of the fantastic french horror film 'Martyrs' - which I am just chomping at the bit to see, she was perfectly casted and she will get a lot of long deserved attention for her craft. 

Craig's Movie Club - The Sequel

So, no surprise here but I have been watching a few more films. Once again some were a bit lame but some were a bit fantastic. I saw some amazing acting, awesome locations and some inspirational moments - so lets go.

Carrie (2013)
We all know the old adage "Don't fuck with the original". Most of the time I agree. You can't recreate something that was perfect, for example when you make the most amazing meal and you want it again and again - it never tastes the same. Some films should remain untouched. 'Psycho' was one of these - why Vince Vaughn decided to sign on for the remake I will never know. However, 'Carrie' needed retelling. I don't want to insult anybody and diminish anyone's work but the original sucked. It was boring and was too reliant on people becoming invested in the title character. Lets all thank Jesus that someone decided to give it another shot. This movie was great. If you don't know the story I will try and quickly sum it up. Basically Carrie is a 17 year old girl, she is cruelly bullied for no reason, her mother believes Carrie is some sort of descendant of the devil and must be punished and to top it all off she develops telekinesis (the power to move things with her mind).
The ending of the film is beyond perfect, I was in awe throughout it. Carrie goes bat shit crazy when her tormentor drops a bucket of pig blood on her as she is crowned Prom Queen. The effects are top notch. Chloe Grace Moretz plays the title character and she was perfectly cast for the role. Julianne Moore plays her mother and for someone that is so naturally beautiful she plays this haggard role extremely well. This was a great retelling of a Stephen King classic, even though I have a slight moral problem with siding with someone who is basically a mass-murderer.

The Spectacular Now (2013)
When the words 'From the creators of (500) Days Of Summer' is written across a movie poster you know I will be seeing it. Unfortunately for Britain this film came and went without so much as a whisper. I could ask everyone I know about this film and I know only 1 other person would know what I was talking about. The story of the film is mainly based around an 18 year old called Sutter (nope, never heard that name before either), to cut it short he is basically an alcoholic with a lot of issues - he has no father in his life, he is failing some of his classes and his girlfriend just dumped him after a misunderstanding. Then Aimee, the beautiful Shailene Woodley, finds him passed out whilst on her paper route. It sparks up a beautiful little romance.
I have some pro's and con's for this film. It is a beautiful film and the acting is top notch. The relationship between the two main characters in incredibly believable. Some of the shots are stunning and I love all the location choices. The story is a great one and you really pull for Sutter and Aimee. Well now you have had your sugar it is time to take your medication - the ending! What was that? I get so frustrated when there is no closure as I get extremely attached to characters. She is just about to say something and BAM the credits, I even had to message a friend about my frustration. Another thing that kind of irked me was Aimee's character, don't get me wrong she is a great character with some amazing qualities, but she seems to lose some of herself when she gets in to the relationship and she becomes so all about Sutter - she breaks her arm for god sakes and apologises. Anyway regardless of this I thought it was great little film and I will definitely be watching it again.

Elf (2003)
This was my choice for the film to watch on Christmas morning with the fam. It is a great film, but let me get real on your ass for a couple of minutes - I used to hate it. I couldn't watch it, I thought it was stupid, I didn't like Will Ferrell and the story didn't interest me. I don't know what happened, maybe my heart grew 3 sizes Grinch style, but now I love it. It is such a funny film, literally laughing out loud through out, Will is amazing as Buddy and my beautiful Zooey is there. This movie is about a man called Buddy who is raised by elves and Santa Claus. As he is now in adulthood they tell him the truth and Buddy sets out to New York to find his father.
Hilarity ensues as he gets accustomed to life outside of the North Pole. His excitement of seeing Santa in a department store, his introduction to escalators and his many naive moments are what make this film so great. There is one moment that always makes me laugh and I don't think many others notice; he is walking his half-brother home and simply says 'So good news, I saw a dog today'. I think this one line just sums up everything I love about Buddy. So, I want to apologise to everyone connected to this film, I slagged it off to high heaven - but we all make mistakes.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)
I had my reservations about this film, and I don't want to sound mean but I just haven't enjoyed much Ben Stiller has done since his one episode stint on 'Friends'. I think he is great at what he does, he makes millions of people laugh but I just don't. However I still went to see it, and thank the lord I did. It was so beautiful. If you are a fan of amazing landscapes and images of places you haven't seen before then this is the film for you.
The story centres around Walter Mitty (surprise), he works for a magazine, the magazine is publishing its last issue but the image for the cover is missing - so Walter goes on this great adventure to track down the photographer and get the photo. That is basically the skeleton of the story, there is so much to it. Walter is an avid day dreamer and imagines himself in amazing situations, but then it often comes crashing down on him as the realisation of his real life dawns on him. So this adventure is exactly what he needs and with it comes a lot of ups and downs. I won't ruin too much for you because you should discover this film for yourself. It was shot with such care for the locations it shows, you see some amazing sights. It is great film and I will definitely watch it again because I am sure I will discover more that I love about it. I am also a sucker for a great quote and this film is literally filled with them.

One Direction: This Is Us (2013)
I will put my hand up with no shame at all - I am a fan of One Direction. I don't understand why I should be ashamed at all. They are harmless, sing great pop songs and lets face it there is nothing wrong with 5 good looking boys looking back at you. When my friend told me she had a copy of the film I had no hesitation with setting a date for when we would watch it together. So, there I was, vodka-lemonade-lime in hand and I was ready to embrace One Direction. What I didn't expect was the film to be so good. I knew I was going to enjoy it but not to the extent that I did.
The cinematography was so good, the shots they chose were great and I really felt that I knew One Direction on such a deeper level then I did before I watched the film. We got to meet the real them, nothing felt staged and I believed everything they said. The film was obviously littered with performances, but I wasn't mad because they sang some of my favourite songs. Will I watch it again? I am not sure as I felt I got everything I could from the film, but I am so glad I watched it.