I have no idea why I can't access
my old site, so I thought I'd update the look a bit - as usual, the comments
board is open to anonymous postings, and I look forward to the new site. Please
let me know if the new look is better or worse then the old
layout.
MOTHER'S DAY (DVD)
Wow - watched the first half with my girl. When this film came out - I lived in Brooklyn and found it terrifying and funny - my girl found it mostly funny - but this was a special movie in the sense that it was an unofficial "trauma" film from that team - yet it aspired to be a cut above the average slasher film - and I'm a huge fan. The DVD has tons of extras - although it's a full screen version - that sucked - but it still looked great. GREAT commentary but would've loved to see a docu with all the stars from this early 80s masterpiece of brutality and torture. A word of warning - it is quite graphic and foul, so be prepared for a very un-PC experience. Also - a very unique and one of a kind horror classic.
A +
KYLE XY (ABC FAM)
Just finished the season finale - what a great show. Matt Dallas is perfection as the boy with no belly button and this show takes the familial relationships seriously - and gets them pinpoint right. A bit of sci-fi genre doesn't slow down anything, only picks up the pace of one of the most potent new shows on the roster. I love it.
A +
BIG BROTHER ALL STARS (CBS)
What Dr. Will and Mike Boogie are doing is nothing short of revolutionary - and the amount of manipulation on this show has reached epic proportions. The best season since season 2.
A +
EXTRAS (HBO)
What can I say - I'm loving a lot of shows this week. While there will NEVER be another OFFICE BBC, this show is terrific and Ricky Gervais is great as an extra looking for a better part. The eps were a bit uneven, but this is first rate show destined for greatness.
A -
2 FOR THE MONEY (HBO)
Figured I would watch the first 10 minutes and got completely sucked into the entire film about Al Pacino taking Mathew Mcconehy (WITH SHIRT!) into the sports betting/advising biz. Solid performances and a weird ending - the first half is much better - but it's a fun ride and you don't have to think too much. Jeremy Piven is fine in another "Ari" type roll with less hubris.
B -
MICHAEL JACKSON: NUMBER ONES (DVD)
Amazing - it's so easy to forget just how huge and genuinely talented this suspected pedophile can be. While I personally don't believe he fondled, I do think he's a major head case and his nuttiness overcame his music, which also got kind of generic the more he went on - but these great early videos and a few laters ones - rock the house. And before he mangled his entire face - Jackson was kind of the bomb in his day.
B +
BILLY JOEL: A MATTER OF TRUST (DOCU ON TRIP TO RUSSIA - DVD)
I don't know why this isn't out as a DVD - but you can still order it on AMAZON as a VHS tape. It's well worth it - a skinny and healthy Billy Joel documents his trip to Russia with the wife (the always sunny Christie Brinkley) and his too cute daughter, Alexis. Great music, great scenes of Billy interacting with the Russians - this is better then Rocky 4!
A +
MADONNA: I"M GOING TO TELL YOU A SECRET (cd/DVD)
With her latest CD, CONFESSIONS ON A DANCE FLOOR, Madonna stuck in a DVD docu of her latest tour - though only half has music - the other half concerns Madonna and her dancers. This was really fun - though not on the same great line as TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCE - but for fans, like my girlfriend who was riveted - this is a pretty great package. To a fair weather fan like myself:
Grade: B - (Not enough real moments - only stuff to appeal to Madonna's ego.)
WEEDS (SHOWTIME)
Still on Season 1 - and the show continues to get better and better.
Grade: B +
PAUL MCCARTNEY: BACK IN THE USA (DVD)
Great show, great sound, great set list - tons of extras - best moment - when Paul sings LONG AND WINDING ROAD and his crew holds up hearts of how much they love Paul - which makes Mr. Mccartney weep during his song. It's a great moment in a GREAT show.
Grade: A
THE JANICE DICKINSON AGENCY (SEASON 1 FINALE)
Ho hum. I think I might be over this one - more of the same.
Grade: C
THE EMMYS
Conan made me laugh for the first time in 15 years (his "Trouble" was the highlight of the show) and the offbeat emmy choices made for fun guessing games. I think Jimmy Kimmel should be tapped next year - best moment: Dick Clark. God bless him.
B -
Wow - watched the first half with my girl. When this film came out - I lived in Brooklyn and found it terrifying and funny - my girl found it mostly funny - but this was a special movie in the sense that it was an unofficial "trauma" film from that team - yet it aspired to be a cut above the average slasher film - and I'm a huge fan. The DVD has tons of extras - although it's a full screen version - that sucked - but it still looked great. GREAT commentary but would've loved to see a docu with all the stars from this early 80s masterpiece of brutality and torture. A word of warning - it is quite graphic and foul, so be prepared for a very un-PC experience. Also - a very unique and one of a kind horror classic.
A +
KYLE XY (ABC FAM)
Just finished the season finale - what a great show. Matt Dallas is perfection as the boy with no belly button and this show takes the familial relationships seriously - and gets them pinpoint right. A bit of sci-fi genre doesn't slow down anything, only picks up the pace of one of the most potent new shows on the roster. I love it.
A +
BIG BROTHER ALL STARS (CBS)
What Dr. Will and Mike Boogie are doing is nothing short of revolutionary - and the amount of manipulation on this show has reached epic proportions. The best season since season 2.
A +
EXTRAS (HBO)
What can I say - I'm loving a lot of shows this week. While there will NEVER be another OFFICE BBC, this show is terrific and Ricky Gervais is great as an extra looking for a better part. The eps were a bit uneven, but this is first rate show destined for greatness.
A -
2 FOR THE MONEY (HBO)
Figured I would watch the first 10 minutes and got completely sucked into the entire film about Al Pacino taking Mathew Mcconehy (WITH SHIRT!) into the sports betting/advising biz. Solid performances and a weird ending - the first half is much better - but it's a fun ride and you don't have to think too much. Jeremy Piven is fine in another "Ari" type roll with less hubris.
B -
MICHAEL JACKSON: NUMBER ONES (DVD)
Amazing - it's so easy to forget just how huge and genuinely talented this suspected pedophile can be. While I personally don't believe he fondled, I do think he's a major head case and his nuttiness overcame his music, which also got kind of generic the more he went on - but these great early videos and a few laters ones - rock the house. And before he mangled his entire face - Jackson was kind of the bomb in his day.
B +
BILLY JOEL: A MATTER OF TRUST (DOCU ON TRIP TO RUSSIA - DVD)
I don't know why this isn't out as a DVD - but you can still order it on AMAZON as a VHS tape. It's well worth it - a skinny and healthy Billy Joel documents his trip to Russia with the wife (the always sunny Christie Brinkley) and his too cute daughter, Alexis. Great music, great scenes of Billy interacting with the Russians - this is better then Rocky 4!
A +
MADONNA: I"M GOING TO TELL YOU A SECRET (cd/DVD)
With her latest CD, CONFESSIONS ON A DANCE FLOOR, Madonna stuck in a DVD docu of her latest tour - though only half has music - the other half concerns Madonna and her dancers. This was really fun - though not on the same great line as TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCE - but for fans, like my girlfriend who was riveted - this is a pretty great package. To a fair weather fan like myself:
Grade: B - (Not enough real moments - only stuff to appeal to Madonna's ego.)
WEEDS (SHOWTIME)
Still on Season 1 - and the show continues to get better and better.
Grade: B +
PAUL MCCARTNEY: BACK IN THE USA (DVD)
Great show, great sound, great set list - tons of extras - best moment - when Paul sings LONG AND WINDING ROAD and his crew holds up hearts of how much they love Paul - which makes Mr. Mccartney weep during his song. It's a great moment in a GREAT show.
Grade: A
THE JANICE DICKINSON AGENCY (SEASON 1 FINALE)
Ho hum. I think I might be over this one - more of the same.
Grade: C
THE EMMYS
Conan made me laugh for the first time in 15 years (his "Trouble" was the highlight of the show) and the offbeat emmy choices made for fun guessing games. I think Jimmy Kimmel should be tapped next year - best moment: Dick Clark. God bless him.
B -
THE OFFICE (BBC - DVDE OFFICE THE OFFTHETHE OFFICE (BBC) (DVD)
Okay - last plug but when I see something I love this much I have to make sure anyone reading this makes sure they see it. Forget about the NBC version - which is great and funny - but the original 14 episode cycle (two 6 episode seasons and a concluding 2 parter) initially goes for the funny bone and then goes for the heart. One of the very best things I've seen on television in the last few years - this show goes up with HILL ST BLUES, WISEGUY, SEINFELD, SOPRANOS and even THE HONEYMOONERS - it offers a different experience then you've had with a show before - I just really can't say enough about it - Ricky Gervais plays a boss in this mockumentary of a small office populated by very real characters and hits such a home run that tv is forever changed and has a new benchmark. I hate overhyping stuff but if I tell you to see one thing all year - it's this 5 year old series that blew me away. I had the girl watch all the episodes and getting to relive all of them and the momentum that builds in this very small, subtle world was nothing less then spine tingling. One of the very, very best - but you must watch it in order and you must finish with the 2 part special - and the extras are unusually good. And the unknown actors are just brilliant and everything about this show is just so different from the typical sitcom that if you don't rent or buy all of these dvds, I'm not allowing you to read my blog anymore.
Ok - I will shut up about THE OFFICE BBC now.
A +
INSIDE MAN (DVD - SPIKE LEE HEIST MOVIE)
Crackerjack thriller - who directed this? Impossible!
C +
TRANSAMERICA (DVD)
Very good film with Felicity Huffman in an award worthy performance as a guy who wants to rid himself of his penis, but first must come to grips with the son he never knew he had. Lots of twists and an emotional journey in this road trip movie that dares not to preach.
Grade: B
30 DAYS (FX - THE NEW AGE EPISODE)
Good stuff - great subject - great casting.
Grade: A
FANTASIA:HER LIFE STORY (LIFETIME)
The worst.
Grade: D
The worst.
Grade: D
INSIDE MAN (DVD)
(sometimes I accidentily review a film twice - and like to leave it in to see what I was thinking on that other day - enjoy.
A crackerjack thriller with waves of intrigue and good performances - the biggest surprise: that this DOG DAY AFTERNOON inspired thriller was helmed by none other then SPIKE LEE, who I thought had forgotten how to make good films. It still suffers from some of his film school-isms, but it's well worth the ride.
Grade: C +
MR. & MS. SMITH (HBO)
Well made enough, I suppose - just something about Brad Pitt playing middle aged. He seems to have this freakishly young face, and this...blatant imaturity about him that it's just really hard to buy him as anything - especially him and the ever-beaming Jolie as two would be assassins. This was a waste of time and a lot of money.
Grade: D
WHEN THE LEVEES BROKE: A REQUIEN (KATRINA STORY - HBO)
Just finished the first part - amazing. Spike Lee might be on a roll.
A
THE RON CLARK STORY (TNT)
Sappy, manipulative, - and yes, I wept like a baby. Who knew Chandler could pull tears out of me?
B
ENTRORAUGE (HBO - SEASON FINALE)
Loved the final episode where Ari gets his. Harrowing and nail biting - this is the show at it's best and a nice cap to a fairly middling season.
Grade:B +
(and the end for a few months of my mangling the spelling of Enterouge)
DEADWOOD (SEASON FINALE - HBO)
Dark. Moody. And we get reminded of just who Al Swearingon is. Can't wait for the 4 hour mini that will close this instant classic show. I'd start talking about performances - but everybody is great on this show. Jane - a bit too over the top for me. And the theatre guy is great in his scenes with Hearst and Al, though all things regarding the theatre were a BORE. I think this is a show where the bad guy (Al) really stole the thunder from the good guy (Bullock.) And this season finale provided the most tense showdown - Gerald McRaney was superb as Hearst. I will be anxiously awaiting the wrap up.
A +
LAYER CAKE (HBO)
I watched this heist flick with the new James Bond and couldn't make it through 10 minutes. I was neither shaken nor stirred - but friends tell me it's a good movie. If only I could get through that first 10 minutes...
NO GRADE YET.
CELEBRITY DUETS (FOX)
Ok - no reason for this show to run 2 hours - but it's a fun concept - the only problem - the CELEBS they picked can actually sing. Even coming from musical backgrounds - so - the judges suck - except for Little Richard - who could not be weirder if he tried.
Grade: C
Would love to know if the readers like the new design - Mr. W.
ReplyDeleteI think the body font on your previous blog was just a little larger and
ReplyDeletethus a little easier to read. If you have the ability to control the font
size precisely, I'd suggest bumping it up between one and three points.
Again, only if that level of precision is possible. Otherwise, the new layout is a welcome change.
not sure i can do that, but trying - dw.
ReplyDeleteI partially agree on BB7. I can't believe how STUPID Janelle and Erica are.
ReplyDeleteThey live in the house and cannot see they are being played.
If one of them gets the veto, they should vote out Will when Boogie puts him up.
That's their only chance to win...