Protraph Lack of good storyline.

Teringer An Exercise In Nonsense

Robert Joyner The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Clarissa Mora The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

Ally C I started watching this show pretty much because I had seen good reviews, it looked funny and it was available on netflix. The more I watched it however, the more frustrated I became that people actually liked this character. I enjoyed the side characters with my favourites being John Cage and Elaine but Ally McBeal was pathetic to say the least. She was the most self-obsessed, selfish, egotistical person who constantly whined about not finding the love of her life. She expected everyone to drop what they were doing to hear about her problems and acted so unprofessionally at times that I couldn't believe that she hadn't been fired or at least charged with assault. The whole time I kept thinking she needs to learn to love herself without a man and stop calling herself empty all the time, it just got sad. And then, when she did meet a man, she acted so standoffish and coy- it bugged the hell out of me. I would not be friends with this person- she seems like such a buzzkill. My other little annoyance were some of her 'fantasies'. Honestly at first they were funny and cute but they got more intense and disruptive in her life and I kept thinking that maybe there was a serious medical problem there. This is just my opinion and there are probably others out there who think that it is too harsh or too serious for a TV show; however, it pains me to think that this show influences how women should view the world and themselves and how men view us. Overall, this is a seriously annoying show for any woman who has any iota of self-respect.

irenee_pe I loved this show. i really really did. ally is just... awesome. but why did it end this way ? the biggest dreamer of them all,did not get her dreams come true ? she left her friends,her family,her work,her everything ? why didn't she fall in love with matthew perry,or someone else? why she ended up alone ? this is so sad. i am disappointed.This show had a soul,had a story. billy died and no one grieved for him. they talked about him so rarely. and the fifth season is so not ally. i understand that she loved larry so so so much and he left her with a note. but i can't just take that ally moves to NYC, and how that she didn't get married,or fallen in love. i hate it. i hate the end. i expected so much more. in fact,i have watched all the season but i do not know how,i haven't seen the end. and i had a decision to start it all over again and see how it ends. i wish i've never done it.

Haqqel Paalz When I first saw this show (back in 2002) I was still a young teenager and I LOVED it. I thought a lot of the jokes were funny, the quirky characters were fresh and exciting and the often silly story lines (the cases, mostly) were as entertaining as smart. I also identified a lot with John Cage, being socially awkward yet intelligent and innovative, and Ally herself, being slightly neurotic and a hopeless romantic. I guess I kind of lost interest in the show as it reached its final season and must've forgotten about the bad stuff since I always held it in high regard.Recently I started watching it again, and having seen A LOT of different series over the years as well as other work from Mr. Kelley I have to say, I'm disappointed. The first 2 seasons only barely still worked for me and after that it went downhill real fast. What changed? How come I connected to a show on an emotional level this well 10 years ago and now all I can see is flaws?Well, I think those 10 years really made that much a difference. Take these 'hallucinations' Ally ha(s/d) for example. Where they were a relatively new and refreshing way to show how she viewed other people and how she reacted emotionally to certain situations in a slightly comedic way back in the 90s, now they look cheap and silly, at best (and not because of the often poor animation.) Where I could fist simply 'accept' these hallucinations occurring because of the comedic tone of the show, now I can't help but conclude this is a sign of a severe mental illness and a person like that working in a law firm is simply not a believable scenario. There's even this one episode about Ally really starting to believe in them and locking herself into her room, her friends and colleagues worry about her, and then it's all 'resolved' with no further consequences (not even a psych-evaluation) and she can go back to work no problem, just like that. These hallucinations feel like an enormous plot hole (if not a flaw on a conceptual level) rather than funny gags in between because of the semi-serious approach to them. I don't know whether problems like these are really due to experimenting with the format and the newness of it all, but I'm willing to do the show a favor and see it that way.Of course, not only the show aged, I aged as well. And as I've grown into adulthood I am baffled by the idea this show was meant for adults. I quickly came to the conclusion that most of the characters were written as teenagers, on a mental as well as an emotional level. Ally is of course the best example of this, always doubting everything around her as well as herself, being insecure about herself, either not thinking about consequences of a situation or overthinking them... I could go on but you get the idea. The other characters have some pretty childish traits as well without something else making up for it. I get why I liked this show as much as I did when I was still a teen, but now it's just way too hard to even view these characters as believable, let alone connect with them.Then there are the 'political' issues. If you've ever seen even one episode of a show by David E. Kelley you know what I'm talking about. Both Boston Legal and Ally McBeal are obviously very liberal shows with a high sense morality and this needn't be a problem, but it is, in many ways. I myself am a liberal, yet I take offense to the notion that all non-liberals are dumb for not being liberals or are simply evil. This notion however is a recurring theme in both shows and I think it displays liberals as closed-minded and smug. Another problem is the 'pro-woman' tone, particularly in Ally McBeal. Men are mostly displayed as either wimpy 'good guys' (Billy first 2 seasons) or sex-crazed assholes (Billy 3rd season, Richard Fish) and I take offense to that as a man.I often get the feeling the writers really want to rub my face in what they think is morally right, and it's just annoying. I guess having grown up and having found my own sense of right and wrong really clashes with the show, another reason for me to argue it's more suited for teens rather than adults.For me these are the real big issues with the show as a whole, the characters aren't believable on multiple levels, some aspects of the show are too 'out there' and remain unexplored and the political and moral messages are too one-sided and painfully present. There are some minor issues as well, Elaine never being funny even though she was obviously meant as comic relief, the never ending overuse of Vonda Shepard and her annoying voice, the quality of the animation, etc. etc. These are however a lot more subjective and don't affect the show as much as the rest, the show would be better without them but they don't ruin it either.Lastly, what DOES still hold up? Well, as I've said the first 2 seasons are okay, even for today's standards. They don't hold up all that great because of aforementioned issues but they do have a lot going for them as well. The cast is great, most of the actors deliver a good, if not great, performance, the silly story lines usually don't get too silly and are entertaining enough to follow and even with their problems there are still some genuinely funny characters in the mix (Dr. Tracey being my favorite, but Richard Fish is also pretty funny at times, to name a few).So, is it still watchable? Yes, but I'd prefer watching something else. I'm an adult now.

zheper62-1 I used to be so hooked on ally McBeal when it was on. I remember using cassette tapes to record the episode. Only the conversation alone was really amazing. Ally McBeal is David Kelly's masterpiece. I was hooked even more with John Cage and Nelle Porter. The biscuit and the subzero is such an interesting pairing for me. I must admit I stayed watching Ally McBeal simply because of this two. Season 2 was really good. Ally Mc Beal herself is like a medication in a way as it is good in small doses. Thank God for the internet I was able to download some of the episodes. It was then I realized how annoying Ally's character can be at times. But the writing was superb! I used to be annoyed at Elaine but I like her more now than Ally. Watching Ally all over again gave me a chance to see some of the characters in a different light. Cage and Fish are really hilarious, I love John and Nelle even more, I used to find Ling funny but I have second thoughts now, Elaine is more likable than Ally. After realizing that John and Nelle didn't end up together I am not that keen anymore.