Disc Reviews

Erle Stanley Gardner wrote crime fiction, and while many of his 100 or so works are unknown to most of us, he created a character who has become as identified with criminal lawyers as any other in fiction. It was in these crime novels that Perry Mason first faced a courtroom. He developed a style where he would investigate these terrible crimes his clients were on trial for. He would find the real killer, and in what has become a Hollywood cliché, reveal his findings in a crucial moment during the trial. While we may not remember the novels, we all remember the man in the persona of Raymond Burr.  Burr had a commanding presence on our screens and enjoyed a well-deserved 11-year run as the clever lawyer. What makes this run so amazing is that the show followed pretty much the same pattern the entire time. We always know what’s going to happen, but we wait eagerly for that gotcha moment when Perry faces the witness on the stand. We know when he’s got the guy squarely in his sights, and we can’t sit still waiting for him to pull the trigger. OK, so maybe that’s a little over the top, but so was Perry Mason. From the moment you heard that distinctive theme, the stage was set. To say that Perry Mason defined the lawyer show for decades would be an understatement. Folks like Matlock and shows like The Practice are strikingly similar to Perry Mason. If you haven’t checked this show out, this is your chance. See where it all began.

Raymond Burr did not carry the show on his own. There was a very fine cast of supporting characters. The most famous has to be his faithful secretary Della Street, played by Barbara Hale. The two were inseparable. Perry had the help of a good private investigator in the Raymond Chandler style. William Hopper played the tough-as-nails Paul Drake. One of Orson Welles’ famous Mercury Theater Players took on the part of Police Lt. Tragg. Ray Collins starred in Citizen Kane as the political party boss Gettys. He was a fine example of top talent working in television.  Mason was often pitted against prosecutor Hamilton Burger, whose name too often reminded me of hamburgers. There wasn’t anything funny about Burger, however. He was a worthy opponent who drew the short straw most of the time because he was up against Perry Mason. The task was accomplished with a lot of style by William Talman, a one-time evangelistic preacher.

Like many others I love a good gangster film.  Not every film has to be epic like Once Upon a Time in America or The Godfather; the simple ones are just as good like Snatch and Sexy Beast.  In fact there are so many good gangster films out there I could almost argue is there really a need for any more entries into an already bloated genre?  Okay, silly question, because we’ll always want more of a good thing, but unfortunately with the good we have to take the bad.

When we first meet Jack (Julien Courbey) he’s running a little scam in a basement where he has high rollers playing a form of kneecap Russian roulette.  The concept I like, but there’s simply no suspense. We don’t know who these people are who are putting guns to their legs.  For those who have seen The Deer Hunter you know how intense these kinds of scenes can get, but instead all we have is a guy trying to look cool while two high-rolling thugs play this insane game of chance.

"Contestants are experienced marksmen operating on a closed course. Do not attempt this at home."

So just in case you have access to all kinds of firearms and a few spare acres to set up a range, you might want to think twice before trying to reproduce the challenges you'll find in History's latest reality show Top Shot. It's part Survivor and part Big Brother with the added dimension of marksmanship. And, honestly, it's quite a bit more compelling than either of those shows.

Whether it comes in the form of a mid-life crisis or simply a crisis comes along and changes your life, at some point we all reach a moment in our lives where we reflect on the choices we’ve made for better or worse.  Not every decision we make is one we’ll be proud of, whether it concerns those we have relationships with or choices we make in our careers.  With age people have been known to act out to try and recapture their youth, whether it is in the form of a sports car or perhaps dating someone much younger than our friends and family would find suitable.  Sugar Mommas tackles the mid-life crisis with a balance of humor and compassion that I have to admit surprised me with the execution of its message.

This isn’t a big-budget Hollywood movie, and to be honest had I seen this on the shelf at the store, there would be no chance of me ever giving this title more than a cursory glance.  But I would have passed up something that actually I had to pinch myself for believing I enjoyed this movie.  A little movie about three women who own a bakery. During the week leading up to a tasting for a potential big money client, all three of the women have to come to terms with personal crises that have come to a head at the same time.  There’s Sheila (Terri J. Vaughn) who has become obsessed with the urge to have a baby, Lynn (Vanessa Williams) who is a middle aged woman currently dating a 22-year-old up-and-coming rapper, and Tommi (Rachel True), who is in a crumbling marriage.  Each of these women is likeable and relatable, but none of them can seem to see the damage they are bringing into their lives.