Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on December 2nd, 2008
What kind of woman could possibly make the oh-so-tough Arthur Fonzarelli fall hopelessly in love? We find out in the three-part opener of Happy Days – The Complete Fourth Season in one of the great names of the small screen, Pinky Tuscadero. Pinky (a stunning Roz Kelly) shows spunk as a female version of Fonzy (Henry Winkler in his career-making role), and it’s surprising she wasn’t used more in the series run. Perhaps CBS felt fettering Fonzy with a regular gal-pal took away from his enigmatic qualities, which he would eventually lose anyway in the show’s eleven seasons.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 26th, 2008
It’s the final roll call for everyone’s favorite Marine. Gomer Pyle began life as a one of the down home residents of Mayberry, where Andy Griffith held court as the sheriff and Don Knotts blundered his way to fame and fortune. It’s no small task indeed to find a way to shine as a minor character who wasn’t even there from the beginning; he replaced Floyd after the second year. But shine he did. Much of the character’s charm and success has to be given to Jim Nabors. The shy naive Gomer worked as an auto mechanic in Mayberry, but for his own series he appeared in one of the most unlikely of places, the U.S. Marine Corps. There Nabors found the perfect comedic partner in Frank Sutton, who played his superior Sgt. Vince Carter. The chemistry and remarkable timing these two brought to the Andy Griffith spin-off made it an instant hit. Critics at the time were very skeptical of the move, and most of the predictions called for a swift end to Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C. But before you can say “surprise, surprise, surprise”, the series became as popular, if not more so, than the parent series, at least for a time. In syndication the show was always a hit.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 21st, 2008
There have been many films about the Vietnam War. Some have been epic. Some have been emotional. Some have even been very bad, but now comes one that is absolutely funny. Are we ready for this kind of a send up? That might be the overriding question, but I think that we are. Tropic Thunder took the chance that the public was ready to accept such a film and be able to enjoy it. To soften the blow, it was likely a good idea that the film doesn’t address the war in itself. The film takes aim at movies about the war, and in an extension of that theme it pokes a lot of fun at
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 13th, 2008
After just 5 years on the air, the unlikely duo of Oscar and Felix take their final victory lap in this the 5th and final season of The Odd Couple. Even though the show lasted a mere half decade, it remained in our collective consciousness for over 40 years and shows no sign of slowing now. Both of the stars, particularly Klugman, went on to do many huge things later, but they never did escape these small sit-com roles. You might as well come along for the ride and enjoy that last victory lap with them.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 13th, 2008
Casino Royale was the only one of Ian Fleming’s James Bond novels that was not a part of the deal with Ion Productions. It was the only Fleming story that was off limits even though it was the first Bond story written. Until recently it was never filmed as part of the official Bond franchise. However, there was a version made back in 1967 that has been deservedly long forgotten. After 40 years it remains unclear who originally came up with the idea for this farce, and after watching the results, I’m not expecting anybody to stand up and take credit any time soon. This is a James Bond film, but in name only.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 13th, 2008
Standup comedians live interesting lives. The typical stand-up comic performs for fifteen to thirty minutes, two or three times a week. For many their sole purpose in life is to make people laugh. Many often suffer from depression when their acts bomb or they go through dry spells where they can’t get gigs or write new material. However, the best ones make their own breaks and find their way into their audience’s heart. Sometimes that can be accomplished through a MC. This MC or master of ceremonies can often take a grand event such as a tour that lasts 30 days & 30 nights and turn four men into superstars.
Vince Vaughn had a great idea. He would take four comics and tour thirty cities in thirty days from the Music Box Theater in Hollywood to the heartland of the United States. The four comedians would each be allowed their set. Among the four comics chosen was Ahmed Ahmed, a Middle Eastern comic who often uses his heritage to draw material for this act. He acted as the cornerstone for the other three comics.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 13th, 2008
The day that Bruce Lee left us was truly a tragedy. The Game of Death was Lee’s pet project, the one where he could truly show off his skills for the world to see. He never finished it. Even though there was ninety minutes of footage, it was never completely restored to make a complete film. Instead, a mere eleven minutes and seven seconds was used in a 1978 movie called Game of Death. The plot was revised and every camera & stand-in trick was used in the book to finish the movie. The rest of the footage was either lost or found its way into the documentary, Bruce Lee: A Warrior’s Journey. One has to often wonder what the casting process behind casting a body double & stand-ins were like for somebody as unique as Bruce Lee. One also has to wonder how easy it would be to make fun of it.
On July 20th, 1973, Bruce Lee died suddenly at the age 32, leaving behind 12 minutes of footage intended for his dream project THE GAME OF DEATH. Director Ronney Kurtainbaum (played by Jake Sandvig) and casting director Eloise Gazdag (played by Meredith Scott Lynn) are on a mission to find the next Bruce Lee for the project or at least a reasonable facsimile. There are some strong candidates as well as many questionable ones for the film.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 7th, 2008
“Come and listen to my story about a man named Jed. Poor mountaineer barely kept his family fed. Then one day he was shootin’ at some food and up from the ground comes a bubblin’ crude. Oil that is… Black Gold…
Who doesn’t remember the Clampetts, those lovable Beverly Hillbillies? The show has been revived in a film, rap songs, and a Weird Al parody of Dire Straits’ Money For Nothing. Terms like cement pond have lingered in our pop culture. The song was a genuine Billboard hit at the time and is still instantly recognizable some 40 plus years after the show aired.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 6th, 2008
I like Mike Myers. I think he’s really talented, and I’ve enjoyed him in films like Wayne’s World, So I Married an Axe Murderer and Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery. That’s why I didn’t want to see The Love Guru. Seeing the trailers for this latest Myers project, I had the distinct feeling it was going to be a black mark on his filmography.
What an understatement — 20 minutes into The Love Guru, I wanted to punch Mike Myers in the face.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 3rd, 2008
Just to look at it you would think that My 3 Sons was a Disney production. Its star Fred MacMurray had appeared in many Disney films of the 50’s and 60’s and is most likely recognizable from those appearances. Two of the three boys were also known for work with Disney. The eldest boy, Mike, was played by Tim Considine, who starred with MacMurray in Disney’s The Shaggy Dog. Middle son Robbie was played by a former Mickey Mouse Club Mouseketeer, Don Grady. The youngest son, Chip, was played by Stanley Livingston, the only non Disney alum in that group. Another reason for the confusion is the decidedly Disney-like material the series covered. Steve Douglas (MacMurray) was a widowed single parent who was trying to balance his job with that of raising his three sons. Most of the stories involved the warm and fuzzy heartwarming stuff that Disney had pretty much cornered the market on in the films. Whatever troubles arose, no problem was so bad that a heart to heart talk couldn’t fix it. The style would prosper and continue in the form of 70’s shows like The Brady Bunch. The four guys were also joined by Steve’s father-in-law, Bud, played by I Love Lucy favorite William Frawley. That was no surprise since the show was actually produced, not by Disney, but the Desilu studios.
