Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 2nd, 2005
National Lampoon was still around? I didn’t think so. But sure enough, there is a staff, they still produce movies occasionally (the cinematic tour de force Van Wilder being among their recent contributions to cinema), and in order to satirize some of the absolute sheet on TV nowadays, came up with the Lost Reality series of discs.
With introduction from (who I’m assuming are) members of the Lampoon staff, the clips are a bit hit or miss. Some of the funnier bits are OK, and could have turned ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 2nd, 2005
Synopsis
The only thing I really remembered about Murder, She Wrote was that as a young American child, I used to see it being advertised after 60 Minutes and before a TV movie starring Tori Spelling or something. It would bother me even more because these ads were being announced by a semi-drunk pro football announcer, and put a damper on whatever football game I was watching. Enough with the plugs and get back to the action!
But Murder, She Wrote was a lynchpin of Sunday nig...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on June 2nd, 2005
Synopsis
Steve McQueen is Doc McCoy, master thief. Having just been denied parole, he asks wife Ali McGraw to make a bargain with political fixer Ben Johnson to get him out. This she does, but what McQueen doesn’t realize is that the deal not only involved McQueen’s participation in a bank job, but also McGraw sleeping with Johnson. In short order, the robbery goes wrong, and husband and wife are on the run.
From its punchy, jaggedly edited credit sequence on, this is Peckinpah at his most ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on June 1st, 2005
Season Eight of MASH was most notable as the year one of the most beloved characters left the series. Radar, that down-home country boy, was perhaps the most reality based character in the run of the series. I’ve spoken to many G.I.’s who have informed me that the company clerk really runs any Army outfit. Radar had an element of innocence and sincerity that was skillfully portrayed by Gary Burghoff. Burghoff was the only cast member from the original film to reprise his role for the series. Year Eight would feature the first of a few appearances by Alan Alda’s real life father and 1950’s film star Robert Alda.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 31st, 2005
We now have the full I, Robot experience with this new “All Access Collector’s Edition”. We have more a lot more supplements but, unfortunately, the movie is not improved. It’s still a fun couple of hours though. I, Robot follows the story of Will Smith (and his character name, if that matters, is Detective Spooner) as he tries to solve the murder of a robotics scientist (James Cromwell). Smith must overcome his prejudice against robots, as he tries to solve the case.
There are a lot of “c...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 30th, 2005
Synopsis
Tyrone Power is the amoral Stan, a carny worker who will use anybody, especially women,to facilitate his climb to the top. Joan Blondell is the carnival medium who teaches him the tricksof the trade. He dumps her for Coleen Gray, and is soon a performer in the big nightclubs. Butthat isn’t enough for him, and he overreaches when he allies himself with Helen Walker, anunscrupulous psychologist who is an even smarter operator than he is.
A noir-drenched rise and fall ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on May 29th, 2005
Guilt’s a bitch. It can drive you down the road to insanity, and turn your life upside-down. The Machinist is an interesting story that leaves you guessing right until the end. The story moves a little slow, but the performances are impressive and the cumulative tale is well done. Watching Christian Bale portray lead character Trevor Reznik is both impressive and disturbing. Bale looks like a shell of himself; shedding an astounding 63 pounds to play this role. Bale is so thin that you can see every rib ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on May 29th, 2005
In terms of concept, it seems kinda cool and avant-garde: take the old cartoon Space Ghost, hire some writers and voiceover guys to interview some guests as part of a talk show and see what happens. The result, being Space Ghost Coast to Coast eventually did turn into a cult following and captured an older (read: 18-30) demographic for the Cartoon Network.
Though Space Ghost is a superhero, in this series he has kidnapped a couple of his villains to be a part of his talk show. You have ...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 29th, 2005
Synopsis
Costello is a big-hearted soul who takes in every stray (human or animal) that comes along.He runs afoul of the authorities, who deem him an unsuitable father for the two orphans he hasadopted. Meanwhile, Abbott, the black sheep Costello has taken on, is an inveterate gambler whoowes the mob a huge sum. Cue the running around.
This was the last film the two comedians made together, and the humour is getting ratherhere. There is also something very odd about having C...
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on May 29th, 2005
Synopsis
You should know the drill by now. More lunatic stories, with a cavalcade of gags that haveyou exclaiming at the whole thing is stupid even as you are convulsed with laughter. The KrustyKrab, Mr. Krabs and food in general play a big role in a number of the episodes here, and muchfun is had with Mr. Krabs’ avarice (“Arrgh!”, where he becomes obsessed with finding a piratetreasure, is a standout). All in all, 95 minutes of goofy fun.
Audio
Par for the ...
