Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 5th, 2004
So many people believe the “buddy cop” routine started with Lethal Weapon, or maybe Running Scared. Truth be told, Starsky and Hutch was quite a breakout from the cop shows of the time. The studio was picketed for the amount of violence portrayed, which by today’s standards wouldn’t raise an eyebrow.
This is typical 70’s from the film stock to the wardrobe. The unique Ford Grand Torino was so popular that Ford ended up manufacturing a limited number of the replicas. David Soul and Paul Michael Glaser had s...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on March 1st, 2004
Film
Sin suffers from a severe case of identity crisis. The film opens with a wide western vista and a lone grave in the wilderness. The music is soft and the atmosphere Unforgivenesque. The peace is rudely crashed with a quick cut to an urban techno-dance club. Ving Rhames plays a one-armed vigilante, but if you watch close enough you can see him cheat and use the “useless” arm. Gary Oldman is the only bright performance in the film. Be warned the central theme of the film involves a brutal gang-rap...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 27th, 2004
Star Trek Voyager was the third spin-off from the original Star Trek following the Superior Next Generation and the inferior Deep Space Nine. While the idea was quite an original premise, the cast never seemed to gel. The obvious attempt at political correctness gives us the most diverse cast yet on Star Trek, including the first female captain. Kate Mulgrew is the weakest captain to date on Star Trek. (I know I’ll catch heat for this.) The reason is not her gender but such a lack of strength. She never walks but see...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 25th, 2004
Homicide: Life On The Street began when Baltimore reporter David Simon spent an entire year with the day shift of Baltimore’s Homicide Squad. His subsequent book was a New York Times Best Seller and drew tremendous critical acclaim. Barry Levinson, Paul Attansio and Tom Fontana took the spirit of that book and created the NBC series. The first two seasons were spotty and featured only a handful of episodes each year. Season 3 marks the first full season of this remarkable show. Simon’s book detailed the psychology of...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 22nd, 2004
The third season of South Park was a bittersweet one. It seemed that season 2 had floundered just a little. Most of us wondered if the talents of Stone and Parker had already run out of gas. Season 3 turned out to be one of the funniest yet. This was also the year that Mary Kay Bergman committed suicide. Mary Kay had provided ALL of the female voices for the show. This left the crew in a scramble to deliver episodes before they could find a replacement. This unfortunate turn did produce some memorable episodes, howev...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 22nd, 2004
The 1980’s saw a second British entertainment invasion reach the shores of America. That’s when the BBC began to unleash its peculiar brand of humor mixed with sci-fi on PBS stations in the US. College campuses all over the land were tuned to the likes of Dr. Who and later Red Dwarf.
There’s no question that this stuff is not for everyone. Red Dwarf brought us the cheesy f/x and dry humor of Tom Baker’s Dr. Who and added a generous helping of Monty Python and Benny Hill. With the third season, however, thi...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 8th, 2004
I’m not always sure what to make of Star Trek VI. It is most notable as the final film to feature the entire original cast. Star Trek has always been about message and morality, so it seems natural for the franchise to tackle the end of the cold war and the fall of the Soviet Union. I just wish some of this film didn’t feel so forced. This film is also bittersweet in that it was DeForest Kelley’s final appearance before his death. Kelley’s “country doctor in space” routine never got tired. He was perhaps the most human face in all of Star Trek.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 8th, 2004
Fresh off of her Oscar nominated performance in Unfaithful, Diane Lane now takes on a somewhat lighter role in Under the Tuscan Sun. This film, which contains aspects of romance, comedy, and drama, is perfectly suited for Lane. Her beauty shines, and is framed perfectly with the amazing Tuscan countryside. The film is pretty good for what it is… it has a number of captivating moments, but also has a few lull’s in its pace. Take away a few of the over-the-top cheesy scenes, and you are left with a good dramatic ro...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 8th, 2004
I must admit that going into my screening of this DVD, I was anticipating a horrible film. With Jerry McGuire as the exception, I have hated Cuba Gooding Jr. as an actor; and let’s face it, Beyonce is a much better singer then she is an actress. That all being said, I was surprised that I actually enjoyed The Fighting Temptations. It was not the story or acting that led to my enjoyment… it was the music. This film is a fun film that is full of some great gospel music. Not only does Beyonce lend her voice ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on January 31st, 2004
I have had the pleasure of reviewing better films than Home Room; and I’ve certainly suffered through worse. But I am not sure I’ve reviewed a more important film. I’ve been a public high school teacher for over 8 years. Ask any educator and you’ll find that Columbine changed things for everyone, so I wasn’t sure how I would find this study of that kind of violence. The subject is handled with extreme care in Home Room. In a wise decision, the shooting occurs to a black screen. We don’t really pick up the story until after the event.
