Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 27th, 2009
“The man is Richard Kimble and, not surprisingly, the man is tired. Tired of looking over his shoulder, the ready lie of the buses and freight trains. Richard Kimble is tired of running…”
The elusive “one armed man” is one of the best known television icons of all time. The plight of Dr. Richard Kimball has been the subject of numerous imitations and even a feature film staring Harrison Ford as Kimball and Tommy Lee Jones as his pursuer. Tim Daly left the ranks of comedy to fill the shoes of Kimball in a very short lived revival series. While some of these efforts managed to capture the essence of The Fugitive, none can truly compare to the real thing.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on October 21st, 2009
Most of us watch cop shows. The numbers indicate that the viewing public likes the CSI’s, Law & Orders, NYPD Blues, and even older shows like Hill Street Blues. Apparently about the only cop show we don’t like is Cop Rock (and even that show has been re-broadcast on other networks). So, naturally we get some cookie cutter cop shows that try to break the mold. Flashpoint is one such cop drama that focuses on the art of negotiation. Perhaps this one is interesting already.
Sergeant Gregory Parker (played by Enrico Colantoni) is the head of an elite tactical squad known as the Strategic Response Unit. They work in situations that normal police offers can not normally handle from bomb threats to hostage situations to criminals with an extreme amount of firepower. But the response of lethal force is a last resort as they try to use negotiation and alternative methods to bring the various situations back where they belong.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 19th, 2009
Have you ever walked down the street and heard a chorus of “Five Oh” making the rounds? In street lexicon, that means the police. It’s a warning to the drug dealers and any other illegal activities that the police are on the way. That’s just one of the ways that Hawaii Five-0 has invaded our pop culture. Who hasn’t heard the phrase, “Book him, Danno”? It’s no surprise, because until Law & Order, Hawaii Five-0 was the longest running crime drama on television. It started in 1968 and didn’t end until 1980 when the production staff and facilities were immediately retooled to produce Magnum P.I., which was an unofficial spin-off of Hawaii Five-0. While he never actually appeared on Magnum, Five-0’s McGarrett was often referred to by characters on the series. The series continued for a few years in syndication where the episodes were all mixed up. These DVD’s allow the first chance since their original broadcast for these episodes to air complete and in the correct order. While continuity wasn’t huge, as there were few actual story arcs beyond the episodes, there were minor changes that made the show look strange in syndication. The final season was aired under the title “McGarrett”.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 19th, 2009
Do you believe that a numbers wizard can predict the most random of human actions with mathematical equations so accurately as to know where and when such a person will be? If so, then I suggest you put down that letter you are writing to Santa, finish eating that egg a bunny left for you, go to your pillow and pull together all of the loot you got from the tooth fairy, and plunk it down on season three of Numb3rs. No, that’s not a typo, apparently they believe that letters aren’t good enough to stand on their own, so they inserted a 3 where the e should be. Aren’t they so clever? Not. In the fairy tale world of Numb3rs, all you need is an almost obsessive knowledge of math and the crooks don’t stand a chance. It’s almost unfair, isn’t it? Those poor criminals go about their carefully plotted crimes, unaware that everything they do is controlled by math. They live their lives oblivious to the fact they are at the mercy of a diabolical equation which forces their every move. In fact, I suspect some clever attorney somewhere is already preparing the “math made me do it” defense at this very moment. Soon our justice system will be forced to account for this undeniable force on our very destinies. I would go on, but I can’t… must… fight… numbers…
Don Eppes (Morrow) is a decorated FBI officer in charge of a unit of the local field office of the FBI. His brother, Charlie (Krumholtz) is a math professor at CalSci. His brilliant mathematical mind is called upon to help the Feds track killers and rapists. No matter how complicated the trail gets, when the going gets rough these guys call on Charlie. Agent David Sinclair (Ballard), the smart tough guy, and Agent Colby Granger (Bruno) the young upcoming agent. Charlie has professor Larry Fleinhardt (MacNicol) to guide him through his struggles. Both of the geeks are socially inept, and we are “treated” to their constant struggles to relate to others, particularly women. Why can’t they write an equation to fix that? Navi Rawat is Amita, a student of Charlie’s who remains to take a job at CalSci, possibly to remain near Charlie. Judd Hirsch is the father to the Eppes brothers. A new agent is added to the mix this year in Nikki Betancourt, played by Sophina Brown. The show is produced by brothers Ridley and Tony Scott, who have had far better luck on the big screen.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 19th, 2009
What can I say about Showtime’s huge hit, The L Word? If you don’t already know what this show is about, and I was surprised at the number of people I talked to who didn’t, then I’m pretty sure this isn’t the show for you. Remember the old days when you used to watch Sesame Street, and each day the show would be brought to you by a letter and number of the day? Today this review is brought to you by the letter L and the number 6. L stands for lesbians, and 6 is how many seasons the series would be fated to last. Unlike that adorable count, I won’t be able to take you through the count, as I have never seen the show before last season and so only have seen 2 season releases. If you’re a fan and have collected the previous years, this is the portion of the review where you can go to your DVD shelf and count the sets. When you’re done, you may return to the review.
Finished? Good. Now unlike that wonderful muppet inhabited street we were just talking about, The L Word is strictly for the adults in the group. There is little doubt that the series is not only about gay women but for the most part is targeted to that same demographic. If you take a look at the limited extras, it is quite obvious who the intended audience is. There are obvious winks to the lifestyle that I’m really not able to understand, so I missed many of the in jokes. The storytelling is also very much in the vein of a soap opera, so you need to already know these girls before you can really get into these stories. It also doesn’t help to come to this party so late. If you have not been following the show to this point, this is not the time to join in. I suggest that if you are at all interested you go back and start from the beginning. Time and money make that impossible for me, so I’ll have to tell you what I think based on this limited exposure.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 15th, 2009
Written by Alexis Quinn
If Nip/Tuck were in the dictionary, chances are you’d find the word “controversy” somewhere close by.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on October 13th, 2009
Shrink is an exploration of loss. Henry Carter (Kevin Spacey) is a celebrity psychiatrist with an A-list clientele. Henry attempts to juggle his career with his ongoing personal battles and he begins to breakdown. The loss of his wife to suicide sends him into a downward spiral of alcohol and substance abuse. It is not until he agrees to his first pro bono case with a young girl (Keke Palmer) that Henry attempts to rebuild his life.
Kevin Spacey is a brilliant actor. His performances are usually always strong and he chooses roles that challenge his acting ability. However, with this film, he seems to have chosen poorly. There are good moments in his performance that do showcase his range. For example, his monologue at the intervention is very strong. Unfortunately, even Spacey cannot carry the entire workload for this film. The supporting cast is weak. Dallas Roberts is not believable as the Entourage inspired super agent and Mark Webber is flat as the struggling writer. However, Keke Palmer shines as the conflicted teenager. Her performance is understated and audiences will admire her strength.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 9th, 2009
Medium made a jump in its 5th season. NBC axed the show, but the folks at CBS decided to pick it up and continue the series. It’s not a huge leap, actually. CBS was already showing the similar and better Ghost Whisperer, and the series was produced by the CBS parent company, Paramount. That means that the production team pretty much stays intact and the show doesn’t really suffer any kind of transition. The same can be said for the release. The packaging and production values are pretty much identical to the previous four years.
Medium was based on a real person with alleged psychic powers who apparently has helped out various law enforcement agencies in some actual cases. If you’ve seen the series, you might find that hard to believe, and the episodes are obviously fictional adventures and not based on the real Allison Dubois’s experiences. At first glance it might be easy to lump Medium in with Ghost Whisperer or The Dead Zone. Actually there are almost no similarities to any of those shows. Allison does not gain any understanding through touching, and while she does see ghosts at times, that aspect of the show has been made to play in only a small percentage of the episodes. Allison accesses her powers through dreams. These nightmares are usually vague and often provide additional clues with each recurring dream. The formula for the show is that she must interpret these images and signs in time to do whatever it is she needs to do. Now that her secret is out, she’s not able to continue her work at the DA’s office. Joe’s career is also in jeopardy, so the show is going through some changes here. The strike likely did some damage, so we may never know exactly what was in store.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on October 7th, 2009
This season finds the protagonists well beyond high school, now having adventures in the adult world. So writer Lucas, in the midst of promoting his book, proposes to Peyton. Brooke fights to save her clothing business from the clutches of her mother From Hell. Piece of work Dan is flattened by a car and then finds himself in the hospital, helpless, badly injured, and at the mercy of a sadistic nurse out for revenge. Basketball player Nathan doesn't know that his mother is having an affair with one of his friends. And on we go, and I haven't even mentioned the episode that's a fantasy construction of Lucas', relocating the entire cast and setting to the 1940s.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 5th, 2009
The idea of a British television series being adapted for American screens is really nothing new. Lately a lot has been written about the phenomenon as if it’s some recent trendy invasion of English telly. We’ve been watching British hits since at least the 1970’s. In those days it was the sit-com that got the most attention from across the pond. Till Death Do Us Part and Steptoe And Son became All In The Family and Sanford And Son, respectively. Both shows became even bigger hits here in the states and are remembered by more folks on both continents than the originals today. The latest hit from England was The Office. Unfortunately, Life On Mars was never destined to join those Anglo/American success stories.
Detective Sam Tyler (O’Mara) is hot in pursuit of a serial killer who has abducted his partner and lover. When he steps out of his SUV he is struck by an oncoming car. On his ipod David Bowie is singing his obscure track, Life On Mars. When Tyler wakes up he can still hear the song in the background. But this time it’s coming from an 8-track deck in a mint vintage 1970’s car. Turns out there’s a reason the car is so cherry. It’s actually brand spankin’ new, and Tyler is no longer in 2008. It’s 1973. Strangely, he still has his identity here. A police officer identifies the car as his. At his 125th Precinct, he’s recognized as the transfer from Hyde. His disorientation earns him a few introductory sucker punches to the gut by his new boss Lt. Gene Hunt (Keitel) who doesn’t like people coming into his station house barking out orders. It turns out he’s joined a special forces kind of team that also includes Detective Ray Carling (Imperioli) who feels passed over by Tyler. He was in line to be the new second in command. Detective Chris Skelton (Murphy) is a green detective who warms us fastest to Tyler. Also working more or less for the team is policewoman Annie Norris (Mol) better known in the squad as “No Nuts Norris”, because she acts more like a man, believing that a woman can be a detective. It seems whatever powers that have planted Tyler here have thought of everything. He has an apartment with a free spirit hippie neighbor named Windy (Ferrin), appropriately named as she kind of breezes her way in and out of his life. Eventually Tyler decides to temporarily accept his situation, hoping to figure out why he’s here and how he can get back home.
