Ok, I’m still every bit as busy as I suggest in the above entry, however – I saw some stuff I wanted to comment on:
DIARY OF THE DEAD (DVD)
This is the 5th entry in the Romero DEAD series. NIGHT and DAWN are classics. DAY is considered the weakest but still great 3rd part of the trilogy. Regular readers of this blog know that Romero never got to film his original script for DAY – he refused to deliver an R rated film so he was forced to cut his budget (in today’s age of DVD, pay cable – it’s hard to imagine that happening again.) In any case – Last year saw the release of LAND OF THE DEAD – Romero’s first Zombie film in about 18 years. It sucked royally. In every possible way. Some cool zombies in the unedited dvd version, but really – very comparable to the new STAR WARS. So – here we are again – Romero once again tries to make a zombie film – this time with better results – in something called DIARY OF THE DEAD. This is essentially the BLAIR WITCH of the series – modern day kids are recording the dead returning to life with digi-cams and uploading into the internet, where we get to see lots of different scenes of mayhem from around the country. So already, premise wise, we’re well ahead of the really over-baked LAND OF THE DEAD. That said – these are some of the most scary and impressive zombies we’ve seen in quite some time. The look itself is MUCH closer to NIGHT and DAWN since this is super duper low budget production. The action, the zombie bites, all very good – especially since it’s being shot in an ultra-realistic way. The bad news – the voice over and the script and acting in general. These kids who are supposedly shooting a horror movie when the shit breaks out – isn’t that a cliché’ in itself? – are all fairly bad actors. The voice over, written after the film was finished – is truly God-awful, with Romero philosophizing over subjects with words no kid going through this phenom would ever use in a million years. That said – again, there is much to recommend here – the zombies and the action are particularly well done. If only the story and dialog wasn’t so fucking hokey. So – this is somewhere in between DAY and LAND – not a great place to be, but this guy is 66 and still pumping out zombie films.
The DVD has some great extras, including some cool little docus on the making of the film, the effects, we learn that Romero has split from his long-time girlfriend and producing partner and now has a new girlfriend. And Romero’s commentary is arguably more entertaining than the film’s dialog. From what I understand, he's going to do another Zombie movie in this subjective cam way - I just wish he would follow the example of the great OPEN WATER, which used it's DV camera like a fly on the wall (as well as another great low-key gem, THE ANNIVERSARY.)
As far as DIARY goes, all in all, a mixed bag – but for Romero aficionados, a can’t miss. For all others:
Grade: B -
MEATLOLAF: IN SEARCH OF PARADISE (DVD - NETFLIX)
This was supposed to be included in the 3 BATS LIVE dvd and then they released it seperately. It's a 90 minute docu of Meat prepping his 1997 SEIZE THE NIGHT tour (otherwise known as BAT 3 - but Steinman wouldn't give him the rights to the name.) Meat comes off as fairly genial, insanely sensitive and hardworking and very very critical of his own performance night after night. He's never happy with the way he sounds and at 59, feels like he's climbing an uphill battle - and he is. He's losing his voice in a huge way. But he's still the Meat - and the show still works - and when Meat finds his voice on the road near the last half hour of this docu, it's the Meatloaf from 1979 that comes across and it's great. For serious fans only.
UPDATE: I hadn’t finished watching this when I wrote that – but it was more of the same. Mostly you get a bunch of Meatloaf running through songs, losing his voice, being called out on the section of PARADISE where he and the new backup singer, who looks about 12, make out for a while and Meat’s funny solution to the problem (to have them all dress back like it was the famous 70s video clip.) But mostly, Meat is pretty disheartened over his recent performances and so are we. This is definitely for serious fans of Meat only – but for them – it’s pretty revealing. There are zero extras, and the biggest disappointment is that there is virtually no discussion of the Jim Steinman relationship nor the fallout over the recent BAT 3 CD. Maybe that was a legal thing, but it’s sorely missing from this docu. They should’ve just included this in the 3 BATS LIVE dvd like they did overseas, but maybe they thought they could make an extra buck this way.
Grade: B -
JUNO (DVD)
I realize I’m really late on the bandwagon here – so in short, this film was way better than I thought it would be (I thought maybe it suffered from overhype.) It’s smart, it’s funny, it’s relevant, it’s sweet – very sweet – and it’s exceedingly well written. If you haven’t seen this yet, do so. It’s the best film I’ve seen in a while. And the soundtrack is killer, as are turns by both Jason Bateman and Michael Cerra.
Grade: A
FLAVA OF LOVE 3 (VH1)
So…he went with Thing 2 – then he decided on the reunion show that he loved the mother of his recent child. I don’t know what to make of it, but these shows are always fun and this was no exception.
Grade: C +
PROSTI (DVD)
A foreign film about a whore house. The film tries to be cute with its subject – not recommended.
A REAL YOUNG GIRL
Another foreign film - this one about a 15 year old girl coming to terms with her sexuality – unwatchable.
I'm LOVING the new COLDPLAY CD. Loving it.
The new Al Green CD rocks. Buy it. Download it. Get it.
QUEEN ROCKS MONTREAL (PBS)
Is a must-see. It's a 1979 (I think?) concert - shot on film - lots of old school Queen hits - Freddy is in PEAK form as is the band. It's striking to watch the show and realize just how much of a solo show Freddy Mercury turned those concerts into. He was one of the very best stage performers with such a solid catalogue - the few songs I've watched so far were PLAY THE GAME and SOMEBODY TO LOVE. He's in great voice and the sound is awesome - watch this and just get happy.
Grade: A +
ALANIS MORISETTE (Rules Of Engagement 2008)
I like Alanis a LOT – but this disc is like….how do I say this - it's kind of like really bad disco. Like the kind Elton John made when he and Bernie Taupin split up for a few years. There are one or two songs that seem cool that have her signature sound - but it sounds like a bad dance record to me - I will give it another listen or two to make sure my assessment is correct, but she's just talented and arrogant enough to have made a truly awful record.
Grade: F
UPDATE: I have given another listen or two – it's even worse than I thought.
AIMEE MANN - SMILERS (CD 2008)
Very new disc finds Aimee Mann moving ahead with tense ballads and quietly lush production values. The songs are really quiet, building into personal convictions and impressive songwriting all around.. Very compelling, if not as immediate as her hits ONE and WISE UP. This is a mature cd, for mature people - which means I can't listen to it. On the other hand – this is all a bit on the boring side.
Grade: B -
Just how unfunny is Vanessa Williams in her on-air promos for her TVLAND appearance where she WARNS the GOLDEN GIRLS not to upstage her: "Betty, this could get ugly." I guess she's supposedly "funny" on UGLY BETTY, but those ads are the exact opposite of comedy. Nothin' funny about those promos. Reminds me of the zany comedy of Ryan Seacrest on those ON DEMAND promos where he reprises his lame tirade from KNOCKED UP (the one really lame moment in the whole film belongs solely to Seacrest.) Vannessa Williams - maybe relax with the being "in" on the joke thing. Seriously.
TEETH (DVD)
About a girl with teeth in her Vagina. It's played as a sort of CARRIE horror film with the lead coming to terms with her sexuality and her powers then using them for revenge against the people that have wronged her. As bad as some of the acting is - the movie is sort of a kick and at 90 minutes - somewhat watchable. The inclusion of Jon Hensley (the horrible actor who plays the son in NIP/TUCK) is one reason the film never rises above mild tedium. But the first half hour or so is really good. And there are some funny/gruesome moments. The gynecologist with the "special " technique is especially eye opening.
Grade: C +
The new REM - ACCELERATE - is really good. It kind of sounds like REM from around 12 years ago - after the novelty hits but before the really boring period.
How great is the Dylan song, VISIONS OF JOAHANNA?
How bad does the new INDY JONES movie look? I'm not sure, but I hear that ALIENS play a role in this thing. Seriously. Fucking aliens.
AL GREEN - new cd "LAY IT DOWN" 2008
I know I said i was ending the blog, but this cd is freakishly good. This CD made me write another blog because I had to talk about how good this is. It's like a pristine Al Green CD that was recorded in the 70s but somehow didn't get released and now it's been mixed and revived to sound pristine. In it's own quiet, devastating way, it's the pipe bomb of 2008.
2008/06/22
2008/04/27
The Final Blog (for now)
It's that time again.
Life has once again taken me away from what I love to do best, eat pizza and watch tv on the couch with my cat.
Seriously.
But now that things have picked up a bit, I just find myself gotting too bogged down to really make the blog worthwhile. I had all these reviews that needed a bit of editing and correcting - and I just can't justify the time.
For whatever it's worth, I caught FIND ME GUILTY on HBO the other nite and kind of liked it. I LOVED re-watching the last batch of SOPRANOS eps - and liked them even better than I did the first time around. I still think you should get Sirius Sattelite and listen to the Stern show - Artie's walkout and subsequent apology was worth his weight in gold.
BIG BROTHER had a fairly good season - though I really can't believe James didn't go all the way. And the two that are left were largely floaters who went mostly unnoticed. It's hard to root for Ryan after he took Shiela's money away. And Adam Baller must have the most insane facial features of any contestant on any show ever - but he's immensely watchable and very likable.
Anyway - I'll be back at some point when I have a bit more leisure in my life - but for now, Digital Couch out.
Life has once again taken me away from what I love to do best, eat pizza and watch tv on the couch with my cat.
Seriously.
But now that things have picked up a bit, I just find myself gotting too bogged down to really make the blog worthwhile. I had all these reviews that needed a bit of editing and correcting - and I just can't justify the time.
For whatever it's worth, I caught FIND ME GUILTY on HBO the other nite and kind of liked it. I LOVED re-watching the last batch of SOPRANOS eps - and liked them even better than I did the first time around. I still think you should get Sirius Sattelite and listen to the Stern show - Artie's walkout and subsequent apology was worth his weight in gold.
BIG BROTHER had a fairly good season - though I really can't believe James didn't go all the way. And the two that are left were largely floaters who went mostly unnoticed. It's hard to root for Ryan after he took Shiela's money away. And Adam Baller must have the most insane facial features of any contestant on any show ever - but he's immensely watchable and very likable.
Anyway - I'll be back at some point when I have a bit more leisure in my life - but for now, Digital Couch out.
2008/04/18
BAD GIRLS BAD GIRLS! (special fri edition)
STORYTELLERS: SNOOP DOGG (VH1)
I love the Dogg. I loved this hour special from VH1. He does a lot of hits, talks about a lot of things from his life that informs his music, and sounded pretty great live. I remember when Snoop first came on the scene – there was a new CD and some kind of gun charge against him. He seemed dangerous at the time. Now he seems like a warrior who has survived to sing about it. What can I do – I love the D-O-Double G.
Grade: A
SHE AND HIM (MUSIC CD)
This musical debut from M Ward and Zooey Deschanel was put together by director Martin Hayens for his film "The Go-Getter," and when they heard the results of the one song "When I get to to the border," which was recorded for the film, they decided to do a full CD. This is a very vintage feeling album full of warm country-esque tunes that will just make you feel good.
Grade: C +
COUNTING CROWS - Saturday Mornings & Sunday Evenings (MUSIC CD)
The new Counting Crows sounds really good, has lots of upbeat songs but not many "Long December" type ballads. Not too different from their usual, but a bit more upbeat and sprightly than the last few efforts. Unfortunately, none of the songs are really sticking to me.
Grade: B –
R.E.M. “Accelerate” (MUSIC CD)
Another comeback disc from some old rockers. This new, 35 minute CD has a lot of cool tunes that remind one of older R.E.M. – not a bad thing. I personally liked the mellow new vibe of R.E.M., but have to admit with their NEW YORK CD they had hit a really boring state of affairs. This disc sets things right again and makes them sound vital again. Lots of cool songs and Stipe sounds better than ever. Not any singles that pop out at me yet, but I’ve just started listening.
Grade: B
THE LION AND HIS FRIEND
This is one of the best videos I’ve ever seen. This is a woman who cared for this lion when he was found sick and eventually found a zoo to take him in and take care of him. Six weeks later, she goes to visit him. The following short video is best played without sound, as the newscasters obnoxiousness and meaningless talk almost ruin the moment – watch this with the sound down – but definitely watch. I’ve seen this video no less than 10000 times. And been moved by it no less than 1000 times.
http://www.telestereo.com/Archivos/video.html
AMERICAN PIE: THE NAKED MILE (HBO)
I don’t know how many of you are aware of this, but after AMERICAN WEDDING (I think the 3rd or 4th entry in the PIE series – and the final theatrical one – and from my memory – it was just kind of okay) – but now there is a straight to DVD market that makes a new AMERICAN PIE film about every 18 months. They did BAND CAMP, now comes THE NAKED MILE. I went into this with a lot of good will. After 14 minutes, all good will was lost as this aggressively stupid piece of shit did everything wrong that a comedy could possibly do wrong. Let it go, Universal Pictures, let it go.
Grade: F
PORN EDITOR (HBO)
Has anyone seen this curio 9 minute animated piece on HBO? It caught my interest both with the title and with the inclusion of MR. MARCUS’ name on the credits, who is a well known porn star. Anyway – it was ok at 9 minutes – I don’t really know what it was about – and it wasn’t really funny or insightful…it was this animated thing about an editor who becomes an editor of porn, but didn’t seem to have any real thoughts on the subject. Kind of empty.
Grade: D
THE BAD GIRLS CLUB (Oxy)
Last year this insanely addictive show had a bunch of compelling misfits who you actually started to care about. This season, the girls are truly out of their minds. As in, the majority of them need very serious, very costly mental help. Still, the show continues to truly awe in the behavior of these girls. There is so much to say here, that – it would take three pages to describe what’s goin on in that house. But allow me to say this – I think the really large girl, Tanisha, is hilarious and has calmed down considerably from the first few weeks. I think Naveen is a wannabe follower loser who does nothing but talk behind everybody’s back and is afraid of her own shadow. And for somebody who’s always attacking everybody’s looks, she actually does sort of resemble a poodle. There’s a white blonde girl who sounds black who’s never really contributed any moments to the show – I’m not even sure what her name is. Lyric came and went – and was a complete moron. Genevecia was a compelling idiot, but a truly hateful idiot full of vitriol which probably goes a long way to explain how this 24 year old mother (???) actually does look about 44. Darleen is a trip – she has sort of an 80s look to her – when she’s sober she’s a pretty sweet, very judgmental, almost virginal girl – get a few drinks in her and she will strip, molest and physically fight everybody with her fists and anger – it’s a shocking turn that she does about every 3 weeks. Andrea is the newest member of the cast and for a minute, I thought the most normal – until she had a 3 way with Cordelia and her boss, then made herself throw up on camera (she has bulimia – and Naveen’s flip statement “Make yourself feel better – have a twinkie” made me want to puke. But the girl who is most in need of serious mental help is Cordelia. Words cannot begin to describe the deep sea levels of fucked-upness of this absolutely out of her mind chick. She’s done porno, brags that she loves anal, has fucked over guy after guy, has gained 30 pounds in the house, called one of the black girls the N word, cheated on her fiancé, humiliated the guy she was cheating with, and the list goes on and on. Oh yeah, my favorite was when she declared “I’m elitist, I’m pretentious, I’m amazing.” Cordelia might be the most seriously fucked up person in the short history of this fucked up show.
Grade: A
UPDATE: THE BAD GIRLS / CORDELIA DOES PORN
I’ve seen a few more. So, the girl I just said is so fucked – turns out, she’s a porn actress! (I’d hardly call her a “porn star” since she was only in about 8 movies and never really established herself as anything other than a TRULY dirty 18 year old who was willing to do just about anything. After viewing (for blog purposes only) a film of hers entitles “WORLD SEX TOUR” (actually – it was just Florida.) Anyway – the girl has serious problems. Watching the videos only confirmed that she has life-threatening self-esteem issues.
THE BAD GIRLS on TYRA (Oxy)
Were great, though it sucked that Andrea didn’t show up. They fought and screamed and did their thing, leaving Tyra so weirded out she actually left the stage and let them fight amongst themselves. I have to say – I’ve grown to really like Tenisha. I think she’s funny. And while I normally can’t stand Tyra, she had a throat infection so she wasn’t able to be her usual deuce self.
Grade: B
Jeff Conway on HOWARD STERN (Sirius)
Jeff and his girlfriend from the CELEB REHAB show were guests on the show last week. It was an A+ segment. Jeff is hilarious in his self-deprecating way, and they came off as very likable train wrecks.
next week:
Arties walk out.
Night of 2 many stars.
find me guilty
even more shite.
I love the Dogg. I loved this hour special from VH1. He does a lot of hits, talks about a lot of things from his life that informs his music, and sounded pretty great live. I remember when Snoop first came on the scene – there was a new CD and some kind of gun charge against him. He seemed dangerous at the time. Now he seems like a warrior who has survived to sing about it. What can I do – I love the D-O-Double G.
Grade: A
SHE AND HIM (MUSIC CD)
This musical debut from M Ward and Zooey Deschanel was put together by director Martin Hayens for his film "The Go-Getter," and when they heard the results of the one song "When I get to to the border," which was recorded for the film, they decided to do a full CD. This is a very vintage feeling album full of warm country-esque tunes that will just make you feel good.
Grade: C +
COUNTING CROWS - Saturday Mornings & Sunday Evenings (MUSIC CD)
The new Counting Crows sounds really good, has lots of upbeat songs but not many "Long December" type ballads. Not too different from their usual, but a bit more upbeat and sprightly than the last few efforts. Unfortunately, none of the songs are really sticking to me.
Grade: B –
R.E.M. “Accelerate” (MUSIC CD)
Another comeback disc from some old rockers. This new, 35 minute CD has a lot of cool tunes that remind one of older R.E.M. – not a bad thing. I personally liked the mellow new vibe of R.E.M., but have to admit with their NEW YORK CD they had hit a really boring state of affairs. This disc sets things right again and makes them sound vital again. Lots of cool songs and Stipe sounds better than ever. Not any singles that pop out at me yet, but I’ve just started listening.
Grade: B
THE LION AND HIS FRIEND
This is one of the best videos I’ve ever seen. This is a woman who cared for this lion when he was found sick and eventually found a zoo to take him in and take care of him. Six weeks later, she goes to visit him. The following short video is best played without sound, as the newscasters obnoxiousness and meaningless talk almost ruin the moment – watch this with the sound down – but definitely watch. I’ve seen this video no less than 10000 times. And been moved by it no less than 1000 times.
http://www.telestereo.com/Archivos/video.html
AMERICAN PIE: THE NAKED MILE (HBO)
I don’t know how many of you are aware of this, but after AMERICAN WEDDING (I think the 3rd or 4th entry in the PIE series – and the final theatrical one – and from my memory – it was just kind of okay) – but now there is a straight to DVD market that makes a new AMERICAN PIE film about every 18 months. They did BAND CAMP, now comes THE NAKED MILE. I went into this with a lot of good will. After 14 minutes, all good will was lost as this aggressively stupid piece of shit did everything wrong that a comedy could possibly do wrong. Let it go, Universal Pictures, let it go.
Grade: F
PORN EDITOR (HBO)
Has anyone seen this curio 9 minute animated piece on HBO? It caught my interest both with the title and with the inclusion of MR. MARCUS’ name on the credits, who is a well known porn star. Anyway – it was ok at 9 minutes – I don’t really know what it was about – and it wasn’t really funny or insightful…it was this animated thing about an editor who becomes an editor of porn, but didn’t seem to have any real thoughts on the subject. Kind of empty.
Grade: D
THE BAD GIRLS CLUB (Oxy)
Last year this insanely addictive show had a bunch of compelling misfits who you actually started to care about. This season, the girls are truly out of their minds. As in, the majority of them need very serious, very costly mental help. Still, the show continues to truly awe in the behavior of these girls. There is so much to say here, that – it would take three pages to describe what’s goin on in that house. But allow me to say this – I think the really large girl, Tanisha, is hilarious and has calmed down considerably from the first few weeks. I think Naveen is a wannabe follower loser who does nothing but talk behind everybody’s back and is afraid of her own shadow. And for somebody who’s always attacking everybody’s looks, she actually does sort of resemble a poodle. There’s a white blonde girl who sounds black who’s never really contributed any moments to the show – I’m not even sure what her name is. Lyric came and went – and was a complete moron. Genevecia was a compelling idiot, but a truly hateful idiot full of vitriol which probably goes a long way to explain how this 24 year old mother (???) actually does look about 44. Darleen is a trip – she has sort of an 80s look to her – when she’s sober she’s a pretty sweet, very judgmental, almost virginal girl – get a few drinks in her and she will strip, molest and physically fight everybody with her fists and anger – it’s a shocking turn that she does about every 3 weeks. Andrea is the newest member of the cast and for a minute, I thought the most normal – until she had a 3 way with Cordelia and her boss, then made herself throw up on camera (she has bulimia – and Naveen’s flip statement “Make yourself feel better – have a twinkie” made me want to puke. But the girl who is most in need of serious mental help is Cordelia. Words cannot begin to describe the deep sea levels of fucked-upness of this absolutely out of her mind chick. She’s done porno, brags that she loves anal, has fucked over guy after guy, has gained 30 pounds in the house, called one of the black girls the N word, cheated on her fiancé, humiliated the guy she was cheating with, and the list goes on and on. Oh yeah, my favorite was when she declared “I’m elitist, I’m pretentious, I’m amazing.” Cordelia might be the most seriously fucked up person in the short history of this fucked up show.
Grade: A
UPDATE: THE BAD GIRLS / CORDELIA DOES PORN
I’ve seen a few more. So, the girl I just said is so fucked – turns out, she’s a porn actress! (I’d hardly call her a “porn star” since she was only in about 8 movies and never really established herself as anything other than a TRULY dirty 18 year old who was willing to do just about anything. After viewing (for blog purposes only) a film of hers entitles “WORLD SEX TOUR” (actually – it was just Florida.) Anyway – the girl has serious problems. Watching the videos only confirmed that she has life-threatening self-esteem issues.
THE BAD GIRLS on TYRA (Oxy)
Were great, though it sucked that Andrea didn’t show up. They fought and screamed and did their thing, leaving Tyra so weirded out she actually left the stage and let them fight amongst themselves. I have to say – I’ve grown to really like Tenisha. I think she’s funny. And while I normally can’t stand Tyra, she had a throat infection so she wasn’t able to be her usual deuce self.
Grade: B
Jeff Conway on HOWARD STERN (Sirius)
Jeff and his girlfriend from the CELEB REHAB show were guests on the show last week. It was an A+ segment. Jeff is hilarious in his self-deprecating way, and they came off as very likable train wrecks.
next week:
Arties walk out.
Night of 2 many stars.
find me guilty
even more shite.
2008/03/17
LOST! The new episodes are great! THE WIRE comes to an end.
LOST (ABC)
I finally got to watching the return episodes. The show is in fantastic shape, and many things work well, but I'd rather focus on what's not working for me. First of all, everytime they do these huge wide shots and have a lot of people on the island interacting, it's never a good thing. The banter between the large groups on the island go over like a lead balloon. And I continue to hate the fact that Hurley is more often than not used as "comic relief." And it's only because he's overweight that they think somehow everything he does needs to be comicecly inclined -
otherwise, the first episode back was pretty great.
UPDATE: I've seen the following 5 eps (i think there's one or 2 fresh ones left.) They are simply spectacular. The Flash-Forwards they've been using have been brilliant. The story they did with the guy who needed to get back to the past and deal with Jeremy Davies was mind-bending, and the episode that concerened the birth of the Asian baby was genius in its structure. Wow, I can't believe how much this show has rebounded. It seems as if that end date has really given them the full freedom to tell this story right. And with great imagination and characters. These episodes have been the event of the new season.
Grade: A +
PIONEERS OF TELEVISION (PBS)
Catch this if you can - it's a great history of television. Last night I watched the story of THE HONEYMOONERS and how it wasn't popular at all in the single season it aired - didn't even win its time slot. Jackie Gleason did 2 shows a week to make the "classic 39" - which still play on tv to this day. I LOVE LUCY innovated using a studio audience, and the ANDY GRIFFETH decided he wanted his show shot like a film so that they didn't have to go as hard for the jokes and could have nice quiet 2 shot scenes. They have an hour on the late nite game as well. Highly reccomended.
Grade: A
SNL: JONAH HILL & MIMI (NBC)
Johah Hill is really funny and single handedly saved this episode from the fast forward button all night. Mariah Carrey, on the other hand, came off as utterly retarded. Look, she's quite pretty on some level, but her insanity is vibisble on her face - she just comes off as aggressively stupid, which is the vibe I get from her. She sings like an angel, but her music Saturday nite was unusually generic. It reminded me of IDOL in some sad way. Last night had some great bits, none as funny as Jonah Hill telling Andy Samberg that he had been seeing his father on a romantic level. If I had any set of blog skill, I'd add a link, but my blog site for some reason lately is very hard to navigate previously easy endeavors - like addding a link and/or pictures - although I'm sure it will just take some time for me to improve the site. In any event, this was a funny bit and you can search it out on YOUTUBE using SNL JONAH HILL DATING FATHER or some variation of that. I thought Tracey Morgan was REALLY funny in his tirada about Hilary Clinton - and his use of the cue cards somehow made it funnier. And as much as I really don't care for Seth Myers on the show, I did think the "Oh, Really" segment was also pretty funny as it pertained to the Spitzer stuff. As was the mock commercial with Spitzer taking on awful media cases. So...this was pretty good - but Jonah Hill was unexpectedly funny in this kind of live outing - very cool under pressure and very confident about his delivery - he is the real thing and elevated this week's SNL. Let's hope they continue to impress because when this show is on and they're really satirizing things that we actually relate to on some level, it's great. And it's really depressing when this show is lame, which has been going on most of this season. But they do seem to have a renewed confidence - maybe in part from a cover story in ENT. WEEKLY that declared on the cover that they were "Hilarious & Relevant re: all the election stuff." So I hope they stay funny. It wold be a miracle if they had another solid outing - but I will be watching - though I think they're off for a few weeks. Until then:
Grade: B
CELEB REHAB REUNION (VH1)
It was cool to see how everybody's doing - besides Brigitte Nielson, who was the major success story, it seems like everybody is just a tad better than they were. Jeff Conway still breaks my heart, but this was a great series and I look forward to the next cycle.
Grade: B +
HOWARD STERN RADIO SHOW (SIRIUS)
Has been funnier than ever. They had a discussion about bodily fluids the other day that almost had me crying. And Howard inquired as to whether Artie's dad, who was paralyzed from the neck down from a roofing accident, was engaging in oral sex with Artie's mother. Artie's response was one for the books (but unprintable here.)
MOMENT OF TRUTH (FOX)
This show is really sick, and really great. The questions they ask literally destroy the families that go on. Why they go on and risk everything for a few bucks I'm not sure. But at the very least, the show lives up to its name by asking some life changing questions.
Grade: B +
Have you seen that late nite infomercial with Pam Dawber hawking something called IQ QUICK READING PROGRAM? It's one of those programs where you become a speed reader overnite? The program looks interesting, but Pam Dawber must be the strangest looking woman on tv with the oddest facial expressions on the tube. And her speaking style is....really odd. But she still sort of looks like she did on MORK AND MINDY.
CROWNED: THE MOTHER OF ALL PAGEANTS (THE CW)
The first episode of this was insane and glorious in its stupidity, then it just got stupid.
Grade: D
GONE COUNTRY (CMT)
Great show - but the wrong guy won. In my opinion, it should've been Bobby Brown or Marcia Brady. You haven't lived until you've heard Dee Snider complaining about how Marcia Brady is a much better country artist than himself.
Grade: B -
THE WIRE (HBO)
It's hard to go on about this show, as much has already been stated about the brilliance and unbelievable bleakness and reality of this show. (SPOILER ALERT - SPOILER ALERT - if you have NOT WATCHED THE FINALE YET, STOP READING!!!!) This was another superb season - pretty much perfect in every way. If I'm quibbling, maybe in the last episode they could've used a bit more heart - But I thought that based on what McNulty and Freamon did, and their previous involvement with Daniels, that the three of them would've had some great scenes together. Instead, Daniels took this very hard line which I understood, I just didn't understand why he never had a real sit down with the detectives and talked about what happened, so the finale was missing just a little bit of heart for me. otherwise, I loved everything else that happened, and the loving, last 20 minutes of pure montage where we got to see the fates of many of the characters. This was a great, novel-like show and it will be sorely missed. And for the very most part, the finale, unlike others, really rocked.
Grade: A +
WALMART: THE HI COST OF LO LIVING (IFC)
If we're to believe this docu, WALMART is evil. The thing is, I think I believe it.
Grade: A
ROBOT CHICKEN (TOON or COM - not sure)
I just started watching a bunch of these. It's a claymation sketch show that has no right to be funny. It's produced by Seth Green and others.
Hilarious.
Grade: B +
AMERICAN IDOL (FOX)
Is great again, thanks to some truly talented singers. My money is on the kid with the dreadlocks - so far...I think.
BREAKING BAD (AMC)
Four episodes in, and I've given up. I thought the lead was great, but I didn't get his wife, didn't really like his teenage partner, didn't really love the storytelling...enough said.
Grade: C -
JANICE & ABBY (OXYGEN)
Totally and utterly useless.
Grade: D -
THE BIGGEST LOSER (NBC)
I love this show.
Grade: A
THE WHITEST KIDS YOU KNOW (IFC)
This is a really funny unscensored sketch show, sort of in the spirit of THE KIDS IN THE HALL except that it's really dirty sometimes - and almost always really funny.
The sketches are hit and miss, but mostly hit. I'll be watching these.
Grade: B
I finally got to watching the return episodes. The show is in fantastic shape, and many things work well, but I'd rather focus on what's not working for me. First of all, everytime they do these huge wide shots and have a lot of people on the island interacting, it's never a good thing. The banter between the large groups on the island go over like a lead balloon. And I continue to hate the fact that Hurley is more often than not used as "comic relief." And it's only because he's overweight that they think somehow everything he does needs to be comicecly inclined -
otherwise, the first episode back was pretty great.
UPDATE: I've seen the following 5 eps (i think there's one or 2 fresh ones left.) They are simply spectacular. The Flash-Forwards they've been using have been brilliant. The story they did with the guy who needed to get back to the past and deal with Jeremy Davies was mind-bending, and the episode that concerened the birth of the Asian baby was genius in its structure. Wow, I can't believe how much this show has rebounded. It seems as if that end date has really given them the full freedom to tell this story right. And with great imagination and characters. These episodes have been the event of the new season.
Grade: A +
PIONEERS OF TELEVISION (PBS)
Catch this if you can - it's a great history of television. Last night I watched the story of THE HONEYMOONERS and how it wasn't popular at all in the single season it aired - didn't even win its time slot. Jackie Gleason did 2 shows a week to make the "classic 39" - which still play on tv to this day. I LOVE LUCY innovated using a studio audience, and the ANDY GRIFFETH decided he wanted his show shot like a film so that they didn't have to go as hard for the jokes and could have nice quiet 2 shot scenes. They have an hour on the late nite game as well. Highly reccomended.
Grade: A
SNL: JONAH HILL & MIMI (NBC)
Johah Hill is really funny and single handedly saved this episode from the fast forward button all night. Mariah Carrey, on the other hand, came off as utterly retarded. Look, she's quite pretty on some level, but her insanity is vibisble on her face - she just comes off as aggressively stupid, which is the vibe I get from her. She sings like an angel, but her music Saturday nite was unusually generic. It reminded me of IDOL in some sad way. Last night had some great bits, none as funny as Jonah Hill telling Andy Samberg that he had been seeing his father on a romantic level. If I had any set of blog skill, I'd add a link, but my blog site for some reason lately is very hard to navigate previously easy endeavors - like addding a link and/or pictures - although I'm sure it will just take some time for me to improve the site. In any event, this was a funny bit and you can search it out on YOUTUBE using SNL JONAH HILL DATING FATHER or some variation of that. I thought Tracey Morgan was REALLY funny in his tirada about Hilary Clinton - and his use of the cue cards somehow made it funnier. And as much as I really don't care for Seth Myers on the show, I did think the "Oh, Really" segment was also pretty funny as it pertained to the Spitzer stuff. As was the mock commercial with Spitzer taking on awful media cases. So...this was pretty good - but Jonah Hill was unexpectedly funny in this kind of live outing - very cool under pressure and very confident about his delivery - he is the real thing and elevated this week's SNL. Let's hope they continue to impress because when this show is on and they're really satirizing things that we actually relate to on some level, it's great. And it's really depressing when this show is lame, which has been going on most of this season. But they do seem to have a renewed confidence - maybe in part from a cover story in ENT. WEEKLY that declared on the cover that they were "Hilarious & Relevant re: all the election stuff." So I hope they stay funny. It wold be a miracle if they had another solid outing - but I will be watching - though I think they're off for a few weeks. Until then:
Grade: B
CELEB REHAB REUNION (VH1)
It was cool to see how everybody's doing - besides Brigitte Nielson, who was the major success story, it seems like everybody is just a tad better than they were. Jeff Conway still breaks my heart, but this was a great series and I look forward to the next cycle.
Grade: B +
HOWARD STERN RADIO SHOW (SIRIUS)
Has been funnier than ever. They had a discussion about bodily fluids the other day that almost had me crying. And Howard inquired as to whether Artie's dad, who was paralyzed from the neck down from a roofing accident, was engaging in oral sex with Artie's mother. Artie's response was one for the books (but unprintable here.)
MOMENT OF TRUTH (FOX)
This show is really sick, and really great. The questions they ask literally destroy the families that go on. Why they go on and risk everything for a few bucks I'm not sure. But at the very least, the show lives up to its name by asking some life changing questions.
Grade: B +
Have you seen that late nite infomercial with Pam Dawber hawking something called IQ QUICK READING PROGRAM? It's one of those programs where you become a speed reader overnite? The program looks interesting, but Pam Dawber must be the strangest looking woman on tv with the oddest facial expressions on the tube. And her speaking style is....really odd. But she still sort of looks like she did on MORK AND MINDY.
CROWNED: THE MOTHER OF ALL PAGEANTS (THE CW)
The first episode of this was insane and glorious in its stupidity, then it just got stupid.
Grade: D
GONE COUNTRY (CMT)
Great show - but the wrong guy won. In my opinion, it should've been Bobby Brown or Marcia Brady. You haven't lived until you've heard Dee Snider complaining about how Marcia Brady is a much better country artist than himself.
Grade: B -
THE WIRE (HBO)
It's hard to go on about this show, as much has already been stated about the brilliance and unbelievable bleakness and reality of this show. (SPOILER ALERT - SPOILER ALERT - if you have NOT WATCHED THE FINALE YET, STOP READING!!!!) This was another superb season - pretty much perfect in every way. If I'm quibbling, maybe in the last episode they could've used a bit more heart - But I thought that based on what McNulty and Freamon did, and their previous involvement with Daniels, that the three of them would've had some great scenes together. Instead, Daniels took this very hard line which I understood, I just didn't understand why he never had a real sit down with the detectives and talked about what happened, so the finale was missing just a little bit of heart for me. otherwise, I loved everything else that happened, and the loving, last 20 minutes of pure montage where we got to see the fates of many of the characters. This was a great, novel-like show and it will be sorely missed. And for the very most part, the finale, unlike others, really rocked.
Grade: A +
WALMART: THE HI COST OF LO LIVING (IFC)
If we're to believe this docu, WALMART is evil. The thing is, I think I believe it.
Grade: A
ROBOT CHICKEN (TOON or COM - not sure)
I just started watching a bunch of these. It's a claymation sketch show that has no right to be funny. It's produced by Seth Green and others.
Hilarious.
Grade: B +
AMERICAN IDOL (FOX)
Is great again, thanks to some truly talented singers. My money is on the kid with the dreadlocks - so far...I think.
BREAKING BAD (AMC)
Four episodes in, and I've given up. I thought the lead was great, but I didn't get his wife, didn't really like his teenage partner, didn't really love the storytelling...enough said.
Grade: C -
JANICE & ABBY (OXYGEN)
Totally and utterly useless.
Grade: D -
THE BIGGEST LOSER (NBC)
I love this show.
Grade: A
THE WHITEST KIDS YOU KNOW (IFC)
This is a really funny unscensored sketch show, sort of in the spirit of THE KIDS IN THE HALL except that it's really dirty sometimes - and almost always really funny.
The sketches are hit and miss, but mostly hit. I'll be watching these.
Grade: B
2008/03/04
He's F#%&#ing Ben Affleck! (He's fucking Ben Affleck!)
THE OSCAR AWARDS (ABC)
Jon Stewart - much better then last time - still not the great host he wants to be. Much more relaxed, and yeah - he was definitely funny and amiable. Kind of like the classic phrase about being backstage at a Stones' show - you wait around all nite for a few good lines. Overall, the show was a real bore. Reviewing it now, 2 weeks later - I can't really remember much about the whole thing except that it was really long, had a LOT of clips that didn't really have much cohesion to them. I know some people are making a big deal out of the fact that a lot of foreigners won, but you won't get that kind of good ole' casual racism on this blog. I can't believe people even paid attention to that. God, I just can't remember anything that happened except the Diablo Cody win and Hal Holbrook losing. Happy for Diablo, sad for Hal. Anyway - this was not a great awards ceremony, but Stewart at least made it go down a little easier. But let's get serious. There are only 2 guys who should be hosting this thing. Letterman or Jimmy Kimmel. Period. How could they give Jon Steward another chance, let the tragically unfunny Whoopi Goldberg take a crack at it - and not let the great David Letterman, who hasn't done it for 13 years, have one more chance to shine. I believe Letterman would be a class act and it's ludicrous to think he couldn't learn from the first time around on what not to do. And I think Kimmel would also be a great choice and that these two should be the only ones in contention for the job. Kimmel's easy manner and comfort level both in front of the camera and with celebrities mixed with his brilliance as an ad libber - he'd be fucking great. And I swear to God, if they ever give Conan O'Brien the Oscars, I will throw up on my TV.
Grade: D +
JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE! AT THE OSCARS (ABC)
Somehow, this felt like the real Oscar show. There was an electricity to this - and if Jimmy doesn't host the Oscars in the next few ceremonies - he should keep this post show as a perennial. Not only was I'M FUCKING BEN AFFLECK one of the best fucking things EVER (seriously - if you haven't seen it - go to YOUTUBE and find it - it's the BEST - on par with Sarah's song to Jimmy about Fucking Matt Damon)- And Jimmy's subsequent interview with Ben Affleck was the best Ben ever was on a talk show. But also very funny and wildly overlooked in retrospect was the bit in which people who are EXPECTED to die got an early "In Memoriam." God, that was so sick and SO funny. But how did Artie Lange not make it on that list?
However, back to FUCKING BEN AFFLECK - this was a serious TV triumph. You had Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford, Robin Williams - and best of all, Josh Groban (somehow his bit made me laugh the most.) They even had the man, they myth, the legend - MEATLOAF in a great WE ARE THE WORLD spoof which even figured out a way to reprise Huey Lewis' memorable moment in that video. I watched this again last night - it's one of those things that'll be on my DVR for a long time as I show it to everybody who hasn't seen it. And serious kudos to the hilarious acting of Jimmy Kimmel in some of the funniest man-on-man poses this side of SHORTBUS.
Give this man an Oscar...Ceremony!
Grade: A +
Speaking of Artie Lange, let's all have a silent moment for Grandma Caprio, Artie Lange's beloved grandma whom Howard used to do an impression of on the show. Artie told a typically funny and sad story about saying some words at the podium and related how his grandmother used to pray to St. Jude for him, something he was very happy about, until he learned St. Jude was the Saint of the hopeless!
There was a great segment involving Kimmel calling in to the show along with Eric the Shitty Actor Midget - guess you kind of had to be there.
And this morning as I finish the blog, I was listening to THE STERN SHOW in their discussion of the AMY FISHER sex video (which I've seen - it's horrifying.) They were playing clips and just talking about the fact that, as Howard said "Who would have ever thought that this would be the ending of the Buttafuco thing - Amy and Joey in seperate sex tapes?" Of course, I can't do justice nor repeat the entire - very explicit clips and converstaion, but today they were so funny I was laughing/crying in the car and actually had to pull over.
A word about the Stuttering John interview on the ADAM CAROLLA SHOW - John was incredibly pithy, ungrateful and shockingly bitter about working for Howard, the man who gave him his start in radio. Adam was pretty funny - getting all the dirt, and
Howard was fucking pissed the next morning. All in all, it made for great radio drama, but I still can't believe that John was fucking stupid enough to bash Howard all to promote some horrid film that nobody will ever see that will be in theaters for 5 days before it becomes a blockbuster dvd. Good God. I used to love Stuttering John. I can't believe - even if he DID feel that way - to publicly bash the guy that gave him a live and a career - and believe me - without Howard - Stuttering John was on a one way ticket to hell - why he would possibly say that out loud on Adam's radio show....Wha' happened?
GONE COUNTRY (CMT)
This is the greatest reality show you are probably not watching. CMT isn't exactly on my CHANNEL FAVORITES LIST - but it might get there. I watched a marathon of it the other day, and it's the greatest. Dee Snider, Bobby Brown, Carnie Wilson, Marcia Brady and some other not as famous people are trained by country star great, WHATS HIS NAME into becoming county singers. The situations are hilarious. Bobby Brown got real drunk and weepy for no good reason, so Carni started to undress him and put him in bed and Bobby passed gas in Carni's face. It's Emmy time! But here's how it breaks down - Most of them suck at it - Bobby Brown's country song was surprisingly good, Dee Snider was surprisingly trite, Carni wasn't too good, Diane DeGarmo basically did a shitty pop song, and lastly - surprise surprise - Marcia Brady might actually win this thing! She had a good little song about "the real me" that she even sang with a country twang (fake country twangs are pretty hilarious)still, - I mean, not really - but relative to the rest of the show...
Grade: B
Does anybody remember how FUCKING GREAT E.L.O. was? I just got the ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA greatest hits. I swear it's da bomb - and they had a lot more memorable hits than you probably remember. (Telephone Line, It's Over, Evil Woman, It's A Living Thing, etc.) Download if you want to hear a band that was in many ways ahead of its time. If you're a fan of BOOGIE NIGHTS - It's A Living Thing by ELO was the credit closing song.
CONGRATS to THE MIGHTY MIGHTY BOSSTONES for their hugely successful and musically awesome reunion tour - let's hope it never ends.
Check out ADELE and her new song CHASING PAVEMENTS. She's a 19 year old Brit who sounds a bit like the Wino, but this is truly a killer track.
Will PRINCE ever make a real CD again? I don't think he will - but as long as he plays his greatest hits I'd see him live anytime. But, for the record, his last 4 "CD"s - for all his musicianship - were fucking horrible.
And this will probably negate everything I just said, but I listened to some awesome live Air Supply over the weekend. Enough said.
FREE RADIO (VH1)
I don't really get this show. I know the people in it are funny and talented, and there are some funny ideas in it - but it's really kind of....just doing the mocumentary really, really, really, really, really, badly. And the acting by the celebrities on this thing - it's all really embarrassing for everybody involved.
Grade: D
CELEB REHAB (VH1) / JESSICA SIERRA SUPERSTAR (VIVID VIDEO)
Is kind of great, kind of exploitive and really kind of heart breaking. For the record, I think Bridgite Nielson and the guy from CRAZY TOWN probably has the best chance at change. Mary Carry is a lost cause. Jeff Conway truly breaks my heart and I hope he's able to get his act together. Daniel Baldwin was a pathetic asshole, and Jessica Sierra...where do I begin? She's been through hell - her mom was a drug addicted prostitute, reportedly since finishing this show she's become pregnant - which can't be a good thing for her at this time in her life. And somebody just sent me a link to a truly seedy hour of Jessica having sex on the clock to support her drug habbit. She even asks in the middle of the act, "has that been 20 minutes yet?" The tape is devastatingly sad, and what doesn't help is that the vocally gifted girl appears, above everything else, to be a complete moron with no tools on how to deal with her life. As far as that tape goes, it's much more a sad portrait of a girl on the edge and it's just really...gritty. And sad. Like Jessica Sierra herself. The sex is the sex, but there is nothing sexy about a young girl on speed throwing her life away. At one point while she's having sex, she tells the guy on top of her "Has it been 20 minutes yet?" I hope she's able to turn it around. Reportedly, Jeff Conway has gotten involved with Scientology through John Travolta. I don't know - somehow, if I needed to get myself off drugs and my head in the right space - Travolta, that fucking freak, fixing ANYBODY'S LIFE sounds about as promising as Clooney fixing the WGA disputem, Brad Pitt fixing New Orleans and Steve-O's upcoming rap CD.
CELEB REHAB: A
JESSICA SIERRA'S SEX TAPE: C + (it works very well as a tragedy)
BREAKING BAD (AMC)
I finally cracked the first 3 episodes off my DVR and must say, after a slow start, this thing is definitely picking up steam. While many of the early scenes seemed to just be a sort of.. "Because we can" kind of drama - the show is now settling into a nice rhtyhm and while it's certainly not as fully realized nor truly trenchant like AMC's MAD MEN or even as well put together as WEEDS, there is room for improvement and much here to be admired. The problem right now is that Brian Cranston's character is really disant, and we need to get close to see what drives him. What isn't helping matters is that right now the show seems more a series of incidents than actual storytelling. But I'll keep watching.
Grade: C +
THE JANICE DICKINSON AGENCY (OXY)
This must be a triumph of editing since she is so unpleasant, so nasty, so mean, and yet - wildly compelling and watchable. She's also sort of beautiful, which doesn't hurt (thought the plastic surgery seems to be coming on hand over fist lately - just look at Janice in the first season and Janice now - she's lost 12 years.) I like the drama with Chris Jones, agency stud, who is now dating the absolutely adorable Alexis, who looks like she's staying in Miami. But more to the point, the focal point of the whole season seemed to be the total breakdown of the working relationship between Janice and Peter Ham, her business partner. Though it's hard to tell who's story is right, it's Janice's show, so Peter is being portrayed as a bad guy, but something tells me he's not as bad as we're lead to believe. What was truly sickening is the way Janice handled it. In season 1, she had Peter come on and begged him to partner up. In season 3, she now meets Peter for lunch with her lawyer, who explains why he doesn't think the relationship is going well, while Janice coldly sits and says "go, now." That was pretty fucking cold and unforgivable. There are ways to end things and the drama queen just treated a guy who gave her a life and a chance - like shit. Can't wait until next season.I hope he fights back.
Grade: B -
THE BIGGEST LOSER (NBC)
Recaps seem dumb with this show, in which the biggest thrill is seeing how much weight some of these people lose compared to what they looked like when they walked. There are people there who have lost over 100 pounds. Insane. And inspiring. And somehow, even at two hours, never boring.
Grade: B +
SNL WITH TINA FEY / ELLEN PAIGE
I don't know - something is missing. I did think Tina was really funny in both her monologue and in her WEEKEND UPDATE stuff, and I certainly love Ellen Paige. (was it just me - or does Paige look about 12 in person?) But the spark is really missing from SNL. I mean - wow, a guest shot from Hilary Clinton - wow, Hilary is SO FUNNY. Jesus Christ, what happened to this show? It's as if Seth Myer's unfunniness has now rubbed off on the entire sagging enterprise.
Grade: D
THE WIRE (HBO)
RIP Omar. This show is one of the greats. It will be missed. I just watched the next-to-last episode. This show is and was – fucking great.
Grade: A +
THE WHITEST KIDS YOU KNOW (IFC)
I only watched a few sketches, but I think this show is pretty funny. I have to watch some more.
Grade: C
AMERICAN CANNIBAL: THE ROAD TO REALITY (CABLE)
This is a great mocumentary or documentary - I honestly can't really tell -if anybody knows for sure - let me know - but my gut reaction is that it's PROBABLY partially scripted - but maybe not - I really don't fucking know - which in itself gets this little unseen gem an:
Grade: B +
I tried to see George A. Romero's DIARY OF THE DEAD but it seems like it's just playing here and there as a contractual deal for the dvd release - but I do need to see it.
THE APPRENTICE: CELEB EDITION: (NBC)
So long, Marilu. I love this edition.
AMERICAN DAD tries way too hard. It had a couple of really good seasons, but most of this season's episodes seem like a really pale shadow of FAMILY GUY.
BOSTON LEGAL (ABC)
They were good for a minute.
A whole minute.
Grade: D
THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (HBO)
I watched about 30 minutes of this – Bowie looks great. The film looks great. I couldn’t get into it at all. It was well done – I just had no idea what the fuck they were talking about.
Grade: ???
DON RICKLES DOCUMENTARY (HBO)
Warm and fuzzy tribute to the great insult comic. Rickles doesn’t come off as edgy anymore, but they do have some very choice material here if you ever wanted to see why people loved him. The director of this docu was John Landis, who is making a nice career for himself doing these small docus. Two years ago he did SLASHER about a famous car price slasher in Texas.
Grade: C +
MAYBE BABY BRADY? (VH1)
This is not scripted -just a train wreck. Still, there seems to be some truth to the relationship and some honest heartache, and for that
THE MOMENT OF TRUTH, SALT & PEPPER SHOW & SCOTT BAIO IS 45 AND PREGNANT
MOMENT OF TRUTH started provocatively and then started to suck. The questions have quickly become completely softball. As for Scott Baio and Salt & Pepper - their shows are so highly scripted (I loved the bit on BAIO when Baio was on the phone and Johnny B. pretended to be mad about something and took the pickle out of Jason Hervey's mouth - those WONDER YEARS acting lessons paid off!) - anyway - all these shows kind of suck. A few months ago on the SARAH SILVERMAN show, Jay, the cop - did a bit doing "gentle comedy" - which was hilarious in that it was comedy that was basically not funny. These scripted reality shows are basically "gentle comedy." Reality is intimated, but nothing is real. Comedy is intimated, but nothing is funny.
Grades:
MOMENT OF TRUTH: C -
SALT & PEPPER: D
SCOTT B AIO: D
How exciting is it that George A. Romero's DIARY OF THE DEAD is coming out? And how fucked up is it that I haven’t seen it yet?
What's with Aretha Franklin getting crazy about Beyonce's introduction about who in fact is "the queen?" Is she serious? God, the Grammys are a joke.
NIP/TUCK (SEASON FINALE) F/X
Wow. I didn’t think it could get worse. I didn’t think the storytelling could get more unrealistic. I didn’t think Ryan Murphy simply doesn’t care about his show anymore. I was wrong on every single count. This was a joke. An insult to a once fine show now devolved into…something. At least with the Carver and even some of last year’s antics, there was a kicky sense of outrageousness in the air – now – Christian finds out he has a daughter OFF CAMERA – a daughter that’s sleeping with Matt – his son. But they don’t care. They keep fucking. The killer/psycho of the season – this year it’s Sharon Gless, stabs Shawn (of course not to death – he has to be here for the craptacular next season) – while he operates on his daughter. Julia wakes up out of a coma with amnesia: “Who are you? Who am I?” Oh, my God. This is the most laughable drama on TV. And while it kills more brain cells than weed, it’s not nearly as fun.
Grade: F -
Jon Stewart - much better then last time - still not the great host he wants to be. Much more relaxed, and yeah - he was definitely funny and amiable. Kind of like the classic phrase about being backstage at a Stones' show - you wait around all nite for a few good lines. Overall, the show was a real bore. Reviewing it now, 2 weeks later - I can't really remember much about the whole thing except that it was really long, had a LOT of clips that didn't really have much cohesion to them. I know some people are making a big deal out of the fact that a lot of foreigners won, but you won't get that kind of good ole' casual racism on this blog. I can't believe people even paid attention to that. God, I just can't remember anything that happened except the Diablo Cody win and Hal Holbrook losing. Happy for Diablo, sad for Hal. Anyway - this was not a great awards ceremony, but Stewart at least made it go down a little easier. But let's get serious. There are only 2 guys who should be hosting this thing. Letterman or Jimmy Kimmel. Period. How could they give Jon Steward another chance, let the tragically unfunny Whoopi Goldberg take a crack at it - and not let the great David Letterman, who hasn't done it for 13 years, have one more chance to shine. I believe Letterman would be a class act and it's ludicrous to think he couldn't learn from the first time around on what not to do. And I think Kimmel would also be a great choice and that these two should be the only ones in contention for the job. Kimmel's easy manner and comfort level both in front of the camera and with celebrities mixed with his brilliance as an ad libber - he'd be fucking great. And I swear to God, if they ever give Conan O'Brien the Oscars, I will throw up on my TV.
Grade: D +
JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE! AT THE OSCARS (ABC)
Somehow, this felt like the real Oscar show. There was an electricity to this - and if Jimmy doesn't host the Oscars in the next few ceremonies - he should keep this post show as a perennial. Not only was I'M FUCKING BEN AFFLECK one of the best fucking things EVER (seriously - if you haven't seen it - go to YOUTUBE and find it - it's the BEST - on par with Sarah's song to Jimmy about Fucking Matt Damon)- And Jimmy's subsequent interview with Ben Affleck was the best Ben ever was on a talk show. But also very funny and wildly overlooked in retrospect was the bit in which people who are EXPECTED to die got an early "In Memoriam." God, that was so sick and SO funny. But how did Artie Lange not make it on that list?
However, back to FUCKING BEN AFFLECK - this was a serious TV triumph. You had Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford, Robin Williams - and best of all, Josh Groban (somehow his bit made me laugh the most.) They even had the man, they myth, the legend - MEATLOAF in a great WE ARE THE WORLD spoof which even figured out a way to reprise Huey Lewis' memorable moment in that video. I watched this again last night - it's one of those things that'll be on my DVR for a long time as I show it to everybody who hasn't seen it. And serious kudos to the hilarious acting of Jimmy Kimmel in some of the funniest man-on-man poses this side of SHORTBUS.
Give this man an Oscar...Ceremony!
Grade: A +
Speaking of Artie Lange, let's all have a silent moment for Grandma Caprio, Artie Lange's beloved grandma whom Howard used to do an impression of on the show. Artie told a typically funny and sad story about saying some words at the podium and related how his grandmother used to pray to St. Jude for him, something he was very happy about, until he learned St. Jude was the Saint of the hopeless!
There was a great segment involving Kimmel calling in to the show along with Eric the Shitty Actor Midget - guess you kind of had to be there.
And this morning as I finish the blog, I was listening to THE STERN SHOW in their discussion of the AMY FISHER sex video (which I've seen - it's horrifying.) They were playing clips and just talking about the fact that, as Howard said "Who would have ever thought that this would be the ending of the Buttafuco thing - Amy and Joey in seperate sex tapes?" Of course, I can't do justice nor repeat the entire - very explicit clips and converstaion, but today they were so funny I was laughing/crying in the car and actually had to pull over.
A word about the Stuttering John interview on the ADAM CAROLLA SHOW - John was incredibly pithy, ungrateful and shockingly bitter about working for Howard, the man who gave him his start in radio. Adam was pretty funny - getting all the dirt, and
Howard was fucking pissed the next morning. All in all, it made for great radio drama, but I still can't believe that John was fucking stupid enough to bash Howard all to promote some horrid film that nobody will ever see that will be in theaters for 5 days before it becomes a blockbuster dvd. Good God. I used to love Stuttering John. I can't believe - even if he DID feel that way - to publicly bash the guy that gave him a live and a career - and believe me - without Howard - Stuttering John was on a one way ticket to hell - why he would possibly say that out loud on Adam's radio show....Wha' happened?
GONE COUNTRY (CMT)
This is the greatest reality show you are probably not watching. CMT isn't exactly on my CHANNEL FAVORITES LIST - but it might get there. I watched a marathon of it the other day, and it's the greatest. Dee Snider, Bobby Brown, Carnie Wilson, Marcia Brady and some other not as famous people are trained by country star great, WHATS HIS NAME into becoming county singers. The situations are hilarious. Bobby Brown got real drunk and weepy for no good reason, so Carni started to undress him and put him in bed and Bobby passed gas in Carni's face. It's Emmy time! But here's how it breaks down - Most of them suck at it - Bobby Brown's country song was surprisingly good, Dee Snider was surprisingly trite, Carni wasn't too good, Diane DeGarmo basically did a shitty pop song, and lastly - surprise surprise - Marcia Brady might actually win this thing! She had a good little song about "the real me" that she even sang with a country twang (fake country twangs are pretty hilarious)still, - I mean, not really - but relative to the rest of the show...
Grade: B
Does anybody remember how FUCKING GREAT E.L.O. was? I just got the ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA greatest hits. I swear it's da bomb - and they had a lot more memorable hits than you probably remember. (Telephone Line, It's Over, Evil Woman, It's A Living Thing, etc.) Download if you want to hear a band that was in many ways ahead of its time. If you're a fan of BOOGIE NIGHTS - It's A Living Thing by ELO was the credit closing song.
CONGRATS to THE MIGHTY MIGHTY BOSSTONES for their hugely successful and musically awesome reunion tour - let's hope it never ends.
Check out ADELE and her new song CHASING PAVEMENTS. She's a 19 year old Brit who sounds a bit like the Wino, but this is truly a killer track.
Will PRINCE ever make a real CD again? I don't think he will - but as long as he plays his greatest hits I'd see him live anytime. But, for the record, his last 4 "CD"s - for all his musicianship - were fucking horrible.
And this will probably negate everything I just said, but I listened to some awesome live Air Supply over the weekend. Enough said.
FREE RADIO (VH1)
I don't really get this show. I know the people in it are funny and talented, and there are some funny ideas in it - but it's really kind of....just doing the mocumentary really, really, really, really, really, badly. And the acting by the celebrities on this thing - it's all really embarrassing for everybody involved.
Grade: D
CELEB REHAB (VH1) / JESSICA SIERRA SUPERSTAR (VIVID VIDEO)
Is kind of great, kind of exploitive and really kind of heart breaking. For the record, I think Bridgite Nielson and the guy from CRAZY TOWN probably has the best chance at change. Mary Carry is a lost cause. Jeff Conway truly breaks my heart and I hope he's able to get his act together. Daniel Baldwin was a pathetic asshole, and Jessica Sierra...where do I begin? She's been through hell - her mom was a drug addicted prostitute, reportedly since finishing this show she's become pregnant - which can't be a good thing for her at this time in her life. And somebody just sent me a link to a truly seedy hour of Jessica having sex on the clock to support her drug habbit. She even asks in the middle of the act, "has that been 20 minutes yet?" The tape is devastatingly sad, and what doesn't help is that the vocally gifted girl appears, above everything else, to be a complete moron with no tools on how to deal with her life. As far as that tape goes, it's much more a sad portrait of a girl on the edge and it's just really...gritty. And sad. Like Jessica Sierra herself. The sex is the sex, but there is nothing sexy about a young girl on speed throwing her life away. At one point while she's having sex, she tells the guy on top of her "Has it been 20 minutes yet?" I hope she's able to turn it around. Reportedly, Jeff Conway has gotten involved with Scientology through John Travolta. I don't know - somehow, if I needed to get myself off drugs and my head in the right space - Travolta, that fucking freak, fixing ANYBODY'S LIFE sounds about as promising as Clooney fixing the WGA disputem, Brad Pitt fixing New Orleans and Steve-O's upcoming rap CD.
CELEB REHAB: A
JESSICA SIERRA'S SEX TAPE: C + (it works very well as a tragedy)
BREAKING BAD (AMC)
I finally cracked the first 3 episodes off my DVR and must say, after a slow start, this thing is definitely picking up steam. While many of the early scenes seemed to just be a sort of.. "Because we can" kind of drama - the show is now settling into a nice rhtyhm and while it's certainly not as fully realized nor truly trenchant like AMC's MAD MEN or even as well put together as WEEDS, there is room for improvement and much here to be admired. The problem right now is that Brian Cranston's character is really disant, and we need to get close to see what drives him. What isn't helping matters is that right now the show seems more a series of incidents than actual storytelling. But I'll keep watching.
Grade: C +
THE JANICE DICKINSON AGENCY (OXY)
This must be a triumph of editing since she is so unpleasant, so nasty, so mean, and yet - wildly compelling and watchable. She's also sort of beautiful, which doesn't hurt (thought the plastic surgery seems to be coming on hand over fist lately - just look at Janice in the first season and Janice now - she's lost 12 years.) I like the drama with Chris Jones, agency stud, who is now dating the absolutely adorable Alexis, who looks like she's staying in Miami. But more to the point, the focal point of the whole season seemed to be the total breakdown of the working relationship between Janice and Peter Ham, her business partner. Though it's hard to tell who's story is right, it's Janice's show, so Peter is being portrayed as a bad guy, but something tells me he's not as bad as we're lead to believe. What was truly sickening is the way Janice handled it. In season 1, she had Peter come on and begged him to partner up. In season 3, she now meets Peter for lunch with her lawyer, who explains why he doesn't think the relationship is going well, while Janice coldly sits and says "go, now." That was pretty fucking cold and unforgivable. There are ways to end things and the drama queen just treated a guy who gave her a life and a chance - like shit. Can't wait until next season.I hope he fights back.
Grade: B -
THE BIGGEST LOSER (NBC)
Recaps seem dumb with this show, in which the biggest thrill is seeing how much weight some of these people lose compared to what they looked like when they walked. There are people there who have lost over 100 pounds. Insane. And inspiring. And somehow, even at two hours, never boring.
Grade: B +
SNL WITH TINA FEY / ELLEN PAIGE
I don't know - something is missing. I did think Tina was really funny in both her monologue and in her WEEKEND UPDATE stuff, and I certainly love Ellen Paige. (was it just me - or does Paige look about 12 in person?) But the spark is really missing from SNL. I mean - wow, a guest shot from Hilary Clinton - wow, Hilary is SO FUNNY. Jesus Christ, what happened to this show? It's as if Seth Myer's unfunniness has now rubbed off on the entire sagging enterprise.
Grade: D
THE WIRE (HBO)
RIP Omar. This show is one of the greats. It will be missed. I just watched the next-to-last episode. This show is and was – fucking great.
Grade: A +
THE WHITEST KIDS YOU KNOW (IFC)
I only watched a few sketches, but I think this show is pretty funny. I have to watch some more.
Grade: C
AMERICAN CANNIBAL: THE ROAD TO REALITY (CABLE)
This is a great mocumentary or documentary - I honestly can't really tell -if anybody knows for sure - let me know - but my gut reaction is that it's PROBABLY partially scripted - but maybe not - I really don't fucking know - which in itself gets this little unseen gem an:
Grade: B +
I tried to see George A. Romero's DIARY OF THE DEAD but it seems like it's just playing here and there as a contractual deal for the dvd release - but I do need to see it.
THE APPRENTICE: CELEB EDITION: (NBC)
So long, Marilu. I love this edition.
AMERICAN DAD tries way too hard. It had a couple of really good seasons, but most of this season's episodes seem like a really pale shadow of FAMILY GUY.
BOSTON LEGAL (ABC)
They were good for a minute.
A whole minute.
Grade: D
THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (HBO)
I watched about 30 minutes of this – Bowie looks great. The film looks great. I couldn’t get into it at all. It was well done – I just had no idea what the fuck they were talking about.
Grade: ???
DON RICKLES DOCUMENTARY (HBO)
Warm and fuzzy tribute to the great insult comic. Rickles doesn’t come off as edgy anymore, but they do have some very choice material here if you ever wanted to see why people loved him. The director of this docu was John Landis, who is making a nice career for himself doing these small docus. Two years ago he did SLASHER about a famous car price slasher in Texas.
Grade: C +
MAYBE BABY BRADY? (VH1)
This is not scripted -just a train wreck. Still, there seems to be some truth to the relationship and some honest heartache, and for that
THE MOMENT OF TRUTH, SALT & PEPPER SHOW & SCOTT BAIO IS 45 AND PREGNANT
MOMENT OF TRUTH started provocatively and then started to suck. The questions have quickly become completely softball. As for Scott Baio and Salt & Pepper - their shows are so highly scripted (I loved the bit on BAIO when Baio was on the phone and Johnny B. pretended to be mad about something and took the pickle out of Jason Hervey's mouth - those WONDER YEARS acting lessons paid off!) - anyway - all these shows kind of suck. A few months ago on the SARAH SILVERMAN show, Jay, the cop - did a bit doing "gentle comedy" - which was hilarious in that it was comedy that was basically not funny. These scripted reality shows are basically "gentle comedy." Reality is intimated, but nothing is real. Comedy is intimated, but nothing is funny.
Grades:
MOMENT OF TRUTH: C -
SALT & PEPPER: D
SCOTT B AIO: D
How exciting is it that George A. Romero's DIARY OF THE DEAD is coming out? And how fucked up is it that I haven’t seen it yet?
What's with Aretha Franklin getting crazy about Beyonce's introduction about who in fact is "the queen?" Is she serious? God, the Grammys are a joke.
NIP/TUCK (SEASON FINALE) F/X
Wow. I didn’t think it could get worse. I didn’t think the storytelling could get more unrealistic. I didn’t think Ryan Murphy simply doesn’t care about his show anymore. I was wrong on every single count. This was a joke. An insult to a once fine show now devolved into…something. At least with the Carver and even some of last year’s antics, there was a kicky sense of outrageousness in the air – now – Christian finds out he has a daughter OFF CAMERA – a daughter that’s sleeping with Matt – his son. But they don’t care. They keep fucking. The killer/psycho of the season – this year it’s Sharon Gless, stabs Shawn (of course not to death – he has to be here for the craptacular next season) – while he operates on his daughter. Julia wakes up out of a coma with amnesia: “Who are you? Who am I?” Oh, my God. This is the most laughable drama on TV. And while it kills more brain cells than weed, it’s not nearly as fun.
Grade: F -
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