Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 13th, 2006
Teddy Roosevelt once delivered a speech with a bullet lodged in his chest from an assassination attempt. It was that kind of bravado that made him one of America’s most colorful Presidents. I’m into Presidential history, having taught it for many years. I also live in Tampa, so have an increasingly avid interest in this particular American figure. Tampa was the staging and training grounds for the Rough Riders before they embarked for Cuba. It was also from a cigar warehouse in Tampa that Roosevelt’s orders were sent hidden in a cigar.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 11th, 2006
When Star Trek: The Next Generation began, we were introduced to a new crew and a new Enterprise. What I remember most about that first episode, however, was the new villain of sorts: Q. John De Lancie has created one of Star Trek’s most memorable and endearing characters. Some claim the Q character was really introduced in the Original Series episode Squire of Gothos. William Campbell plays the all powerful gamester Trelane who turns out to be a child of omnipotent parents who was merely playing with Kirk and his crew.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 7th, 2006
Bravo had an idea. On the surface it was actually a pretty good idea. They realized that of all the well known and critically acclaimed show runners out there with their hugely successful shows, there must have been some flops along the way. After all, no one hits a home run all the time. They also correctly assumed that some of these shows might have been pretty fair efforts that for some reason or another just didn’t last long enough to catch on. Furthermore, it was a rather clever marketing decision that there were folks out there who would like to see some of this stuff again.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 6th, 2006
There is no shortage of vampire stories out there. There’s certainly no shortage of kick butt chicks dressed as sparsely as possible running around in depressed future populated worlds. Underworld, without a doubt, does the combination better than anyone. Ultraviolet makes a grand attempt that really ends up being more of a ride than anything else. Now, I can usually follow the most convoluted storylines, but this one gave me some trouble. It seems that while trying to create a super soldier (where is Mulder and Scully when you need them) the government made a big oops and created something akin to a vampire.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on July 5th, 2006
This is a rather hard review to write. How do you separate the subject matter from the film? What reviewer wants to find himself in the unenviable task of critiquing the likes of a future saint? Certainly the filmmakers must have felt the same burden to do the story justice. But did they succeed? The answer is a not so simple.
The choice of Olivia Hussey was a remarkably inspired one. She portrayed the unselfish passion and self sacrifice as if they were emanating from her very soul. From her first moments on screen it is not hard to believe, while perhaps imagined, that we are seeing just a hint of something divine.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 29th, 2006
It’s awfully hard for me to imagine why this abysmally failed sitcom is getting a DVD release when there are so many more deserving shows still waiting. The Ellen Show was populated with some of the most cardboard cutout characters I’ve ever seen. What you talkin’ about Willis? Here’s what I’m talking about. The dialogue is simply rattled off one-liners. Jokes so forced they could get past the famous 1985 Bears defensive line like it was merely a speed bump. Not even the usually ingenious work of Martin Mull could save this show.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 28th, 2006
I’m a lucky guy. I was able to witness the game of baseball before we all became so jaded. While I wasn’t born early enough to have enjoyed Mantle, The Babe, or Joltin’ Joe, I was fortunate enough to watch the likes of Mike Schmidt. Mike stayed 18 years with one team. He never held out and was always responsible in his public persona. Oh, and he ended up being considered the best 3rd baseman of all time in nearly every millennium poll conducted. It is this experience growing up with Schmitty and his like that make these stories feel much closer to home than younger kids are likely to feel.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 28th, 2006
Hosted by Boston comic Fran Solomita, When Stand Up Stood Out is a detailed retrospective of the historic comedy boom that took the city by storm from the late 70’s to the early 80’s. You get the impression it was a fun crowd to be with most of the time. From the famous Ding Ho to the Comedy Connection, some of the nation’s biggest names worked out their routines to the local audiences.
The documentary tells its story very simply. With the use of extensive narrative, vintage clips, and countless interviews, you get a rather complete history of the phenomenon.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 27th, 2006
Coach is one of those shows that never seemed to make a lot of noise. I can’t remember any year it was on that it burned up the ratings or scored many awards. Still, it was the little show that could. It ran for nine seasons, always holding on to a loyal core audience. I’m sure most of the success belongs to the underrated talents of Craig T. Nelson. I’ll admit that this guy just never showed up on my talent radar until his unexpected turn at drama during The District. It was then I learned to appreciate his self-effacing subtle abilities.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 27th, 2006
So now we come to the fourth year of NYPD Blue. In the show’s ever-changing look this year was no exception. Most notable is the fact that a new camera operation crew toned down the jumpy camera moves a bit. Style was not sacrificed, but the series is now easier to watch. Smits and Franz are really starting to click now, and we begin to see the special relationship we know will evolve between their characters. This buildup is absolutely necessary for the coming payoff with Simone’s death in later years. Again, several characters came and went, most notably a couple of female detectives.
