“What is reality?”

Television has been around for about 75 years now. In that time we’ve seen just about every kind of show you might like. Fads and trends come and go along with stars and characters. Crime dramas have been among the most popular throughout those 75 years, and there have been so many “cop/detective” shows that we’ve also seen just about every kind of crime and investigation possible. With few exceptions there isn’t much that can surprise us in the cop procedural drama.
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Ever notice when an actor is having a good year, suddenly a film that they made years before their success makes an appearance? I refer to this movie as “the bandwagon film.” It is film that is shelved and does not have a prayer of being released. It happens too often for it to be coincidence and usually features said actor center stage on the cover art with the mention of the popular film that the actor took part in. Take Christian Bale for example: not long after the release of Batman Begins, a low-level film by the name of Harsh Times came to theaters. In the case of Dead Mine, that actor would be Joe Taslim
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I wasn’t all too familiar with Al Madrigal’s work before receiving his album to review.  After looking up his web site I had realized it was The Daily Show with Jon Stewart that I had recognized him from, but I wouldn’t go so far as to say I was a fan.  With comedians, though, going into their act knowing very little about them, most often the experience seems to be more enjoyable; after all, with no expectations it’s hard to come away disappointed.
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Official Upcomingdiscs Autopsy Report:

There’s a case to be made that it isn’t exactly fair to review a television series that was axed after only 8 episodes. Fans of that kind of a show are already up and arms and just waiting to thrash you for, as they see it, putting another nail in the coffin while they’re still looking for extraordinary measures to revive the corpse. It doesn’t matter how long it’s been dead or how slim the chances are for revival. If it’s your show you just aren’t ready to give up, and you certainly don’t need a word jockey like me throwing dirt on the grave.
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I was starting to think the only comedians that get hour long specials any more were the ones with obscenity-soaked acts that were sprinkled with sexual humor (or riddled with just as much).  But then Pete Holmes came along.  Throughout his hour long special that was recorded in Austin, Texas sure, there are a few obscenities and a little sexual humor, but he never uses it as a crutch to carry his performance along.  From the moment he stepped out onto the stage he reminded me of that friend from high school who was that all around good guy that always knew how to make you laugh. 
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Has there ever been anyone like Frank Zappa? He had a rare combination of incredible professionalism and steadfast sobriety mixed with zany insanity and freakish detours on offbeat paths. He is the freak of all freaks of the sixties yet had an unwavering distaste for the rampant drug use of the time. His music couldn’t be more jarring or unconventional, yet he liked stately classical compositions to relax. A Token of His Extreme was a passion project for Zappa that he paid for with his own money back in 1974. It was produced with the intention of being an American Network Television special, but it never saw the light of day in the US.
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“‘I’ve been given me the toughest job I’ve ever had in my life, but also the most rewarding. What can be more important to the war effort than preserving the fighting strength of our troops? We must maximize the odds of every soldier that passes through our portal… His country is counting on him. His country is counting on us.”

The first thing you have to understand about Vietnam was that it was unlike any war the country had ever participated in. Up until this time, the United States had not failed in conflict. The Vietnam War was also the very first war to show up in living color each night on our television screens. War correspondents had a new weapon in their arsenal, and it was called the television camera.
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“You’re so unprepared for this…”

If you’re a fan of the 1985 comedy staring Michael J. Fox, that statement is particularly appropriate. We all remember the cute high school romp where Michael J. Fox discovers that his family has been hiding a long dark secret. They are werewolves. Now, the young teen finds himself having to deal with the usual growing pains of adolescence on top of dealing with the family curse.
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Oscilloscope Laboratories distributes unusual films. Unusual and special. They have packaged two documentaries together: Only the Young/Tchoupitoulas. The first is about kids wandering around a suburban wasteland in desert California. The second is about kids wandering the streets of New Orleans. They are very different experiences, but they are both about the flow of real life. They both have voices that are real and at times inspired. They are about avoiding dramatic structure and explaining and just revealing.
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