Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on October 24th, 2012
Not my brand of comedy. When it comes to stand-up comedy I am no expert, but I have seen enough comedy specials to understand the mechanics of how they work. That being said, to be successful in comedy it takes comedic timing, the right level of energy, and relatable material. Louie Anderson latest comedy special, Big Baby Boomer is lacking in each of these departments.
I have a vague memory of Louie Anderson from my early childhood. I remember watching the animated series, Life with Louie, Anderson’s two time Emmy award-winning show on the FOX network that was based on his childhood in Wisconsin. Though I wasn’t exactly a fan of the series growing up, I can now acknowledge its place among similar shows of that generation. However, comedy has changed, and it would appear that Louie Anderson’s acclaim as one of Comedy Central’s “100 greatest comedians of all time” is long gone. The evidence for that statement is all over his newest stand-up special.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 24th, 2012
The setting for Gunsmoke was the by-now-famous Dodge City, circa 1870’s. Phrases like “get out of Dodge” would enter the popular lexicon as a result of this resilient series. Marshall Dillon (Arness) was charged with keeping the peace in Dodge City. The only other character to see the entire 20-year run was kindly Doc Adams (Stone). Star Trek’s own Doc, Leonard McCoy, took many of his traits from Doc Adams. He was the humanitarian of the city, always looking to help someone. Like McCoy, he had a taste for bourbon and a soft heart underneath a rather gruff exterior and was always ready with free advice. Dillon’s love interest throughout most of the series was Miss Kitty Russell (Blake). While there were certainly a few romantic undercurrents, the romance never came to fruition. Miss Kitty was a prostitute on the radio and was likely one here as well, but CBS chose to underplay that aspect of her character as a “saloon girl”. Finally Dillon’s faithful sidekick deputy was Chester (Weaver). Chester often found himself in trouble and was the naïve son figure to Dillon.
Gunsmoke is the longest-running scripted live-action television show in history. The series ran from 1955 to 1975. At first it was a half-hour black-and-white show that evolved into a color hour by 1967. It actually started before the days of television, premiering on radio in 1952. Then it was William Conrad as the tough-as-nails Marshall Matt Dillon. When television came into its own, Gunsmoke made the jump to the bright living room box and made history. Westerns would ride across our small square screens for the next three decades, making it the most successful genre of that time, and it was Gunsmoke that started it all. The television version of Gunsmoke was originally conceived as a vehicle for John Wayne, who opted to remain in movies. Yet it was Wayne himself who suggested James Arness, and it turned out to be a career for the one-time “carrot” monster from The Thing. Gunsmoke started before all of the big westerns and was around when most of them had departed.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 24th, 2012
It's hard to beat the last release for classic episodes of Perry Mason. I can assure you that Mason fans still have a lot of great episodes to look forward to with this release of the second part of the 7th season. You can bet that Perry will be up to his old tricks for a while to come thanks to these DVD releases from Paramount. 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.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 23rd, 2012
The best thing about Gone in 60 Seconds is that the film knows exactly what it is. Just take a look at the breathless blurbs on the Blu-ray case for the latest release. “Over 500 crashes!” “93 cars wrecked in the 40-minute car chase!” No one involved with this movie thought they were making an intimate character piece. I mean the top-billed star is “Eleanor.” Did I mention that Eleanor is a 1973 Ford Mustang?
The plot is little more than a necessary nuisance before the movie’s show-stopping climax, but here we go anyway. Maindrian Pace (what a name!) is an insurance investigator who moonlights as the leader of a car thieving ring. Since Pace is the hero of our story, he only steals cars from people who are insured and subsequently compensated for the trouble he’s caused them.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 23rd, 2012
When you’re the son of an iconic director, it can’t be helped that viewers will tend to expect a little more out of you. Case in point with Sean Stone (son of Oliver Stone); expectations were in place, especially since dad actually plays a role in the film. With Greystone Park , it would be safe to assume Stone was looking to remove himself far from his father’s shadow and show he has a vision all his own. The problem is we get a film that is a bit hit-or-miss throughout.
In 2009 three filmmakers decide to go check out an old abandoned psychiatric hospital and do some filming. The decision to check this place out is during conversation at a dinner party and the topic of ghosts and the paranormal is brought up. Stories are passed around, but the key topic everyone seemed to be interested in revolved around Greystone.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 23rd, 2012
“A dragon. A dragon. You bet we saw a dragon. So big and brave he came to save a village in distress. He kept the ship from crashing when he heard the SOS. He faced a group of villains and he fought them with success…”
When Walt Disney Studios released Mary Poppins, the entertainment world was turned on its ears. The integration of live action footage with animation had never been done with such success before. The studio that nearly singlehandedly perfected modern methods of animation was also the studio that learned how to combine it almost seamlessly with real breathing actors. With the release of Pete’s Dragon many years later, audiences couldn’t wait for a peek at how far Disney had perfected the process in those years. While as children we got a big kick out of Pete’s Dragon, anyone looking for the latest in integration technology was in for a dragon-sized disappointment. The creature effects bore no resemblance whatsoever to that earlier technique. The animation itself was crude, by Disney standards at least, and never, not for a second, appeared as if it existed in the same place as the rest of the film. The beast’s green color would fluctuate in hue as well as brightness. There were many obvious mismatches where the two media connected. Even many of the actors’ sightlines were far off the mark. Walt Disney Studios took several steps backwards with the 1977 release of Pete’s Dragon.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 23rd, 2012
Dr. Temperance Brennan, or Bones (Deschanel) is the world's leading bone specialist. She works in Washington, D.C. for the famous Jeffersonian (I assume it's intended to be the Smithsonian). Her talents have proven themselves very helpful in solving crimes where skeletal remains are all that there is to go on from the victim. Her FBI agent/liaison is Seeley Booth (Boreanaz). Together they have an uneasy relationship that grows into a kind of friendship. The problem is that Bones doesn't have a ton of social skills. She relies on Booth to guide their social interactions. More on that later. The lab is run by Dr. Camille Saroyan (Taylor) who has become a bit of a guiding mother to the team. Dr. Hodges (Thyne) is the trace-elements expert and tries very hard to be cool and hip. He's generally the opposite of Bones. He says pretty much what comes into his head and is a bit of a science-fiction geek. Angela (Conlin) is an artist who uses her skills to reconstruct facial details from the skulls. She also works on enhancing images and restructuring evidence. She's a bit of a romantic and has probably slept with every male in the lab. But Angela and Hodges are now married with a son. Dr. Sweets (Daley) is a young FBI agent and psychologist. He profiles victims and suspects as well as serves as a counselor to the team. He's a bit over-eager at times, looking up to Booth as a mentor of sorts. The lab also has a few interns who show up from week to week, likely depending on actor availability.
The problems I have with the show deal mostly with character development. None of these characters have grown much in six years. I jumped from season 1 to season 5, and with the exception of some changes in cast, it was like I never left. The characters spend way too much time talking about their sexual prowess, with more than one character making multiple references to how exceptional they are in bed. The relationships too often take as much time as the cases themselves. This shorts the plot development and often leads the show toward the obvious. And the worst problem is the Bones character herself. She's not likeable at all. She's arrogant to a fault. She always talks about being the best and how she's the natural hero role model for others. But her scientific brain is to the point of cruelty. She has to have non-emotional explanations for everything. She insults with impunity. They also stretch the idea that this highly educated woman doesn't know any slang or figures of speech. She's always misquoting a popular saying as if she were just learning English. It's too contrived, and the writers reach pretty far for each of those "jokes". Gone now is the sexual tension between Booth and Brennan. Now they are openly together and expecting a little one.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Brent Lorentson on October 23rd, 2012
The collection of episodes found here are supposed to be the rare and unedited recordings from the public access show Dr. Steve Brule once filmed. Of course the show is actually a fake one, but for those who have channel-surfed late at night I’m sure at some point the channel has stopped on a public access program. It was supposed to be a forum where anyone could go in and after some training on equipment be able to film their own program. Some would have the standard one show where the host would take random phone calls while discussing a variety of topics. In the case of Dr. Steve Brule (John C. Reilly) he tried to produce his own ‘on the town’ news program.
This DVD release consists of the first two seasons that were six episodes each. Each episode runs about 11 minutes each, which is just long enough for the show to not wear out its welcome. Just upon first glance this show isn’t for everyone. With the bad video editing, often times the show is cut over separate shows and segments. Then there is the bad public domain music, bad camera work, and Dr. Steve Brule, who just might be the worst host to ever hit the television screen. But it’s all this put together in such a fashion that it starts to grow on you, and it’s just so outrageous and absurd I found myself laughing harder with each following episode.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by J C on October 21st, 2012
“Patterns are hidden in plain sight. You just have to know where to look.”
You don’t have to be into numbers to enjoy Touch, but it certainly helps. Numerology deals with the mystical or divine meaning behind certain numbers. Detractors believe that people who place too much faith in such things will foolishly find significance in just about anything. Similarly, cynical TV viewers will scoff at some of the coincidences and connections in this Fox drama. Either way, it looks like your high school math teacher was right: you WILL be using some of this stuff as an adult.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 20th, 2012
"Long story short, I want to reshape my navel, and allowance won't cover it."
Long story short is precisely the words I would use to describe Excision. You see, it started out as a short subject film and writer/director Richard Bates, Jr. decided to make it his first feature film. That was his first mistake. While I have never seen the short film that inspired this feature, I get the strong feeling that this was better served in that format.
