October 2008 Archives

Released December 21, 1965, Thunderball was the fourth James Bond film based on the Ian Fleming novel of the same name. It was the highest grossing film with Connery in the lead role. Connery would star in just one more film before handing over the reins to George Lazenby and eventually Roger Moore. As a huge Bond fan, it's hard to pick a favorite. However, I can say this, MGM's initial wave of Bond Blu-ray releases includes all three of the movies directed by Terence Young; Dr. No, From Russia with Love, and Thunderball, three of the most iconic films in the Bond catalog. Riding high after the success of Goldfinger, Thunderball is Young's most lavish contribution to the series--lavish production design, exotic locations, gorgeous women, hot cars and lots of action.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull marks the fourth installment into one of Hollywood's most beloved series of films. Even as a big fan of the series, I had my doubts; Indiana Jones first graced the screen back in 1981, some twenty-seven years ago. Could Harrison Ford, now in his sixties, still play a convincing Indy or had the time come for him to hang up his whip and fedora? Ever the optimist, I thought it could be a total waste of time with Spielberg in the director's chair, George Lucas as one of the executive producers, John Williams composing the music and Karen Allen's return as Marion Ravenwood. While the film definitely has its flaws, Indiana Jones is still a delight to watch, even after all these years.

As a long time subscriber to both Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair, I feel like I know Annie Leibovitz well. Granted, I've never met her, but some of her pictures are burned in my memory: John Lennon and Yoko Ono for the January 22, 1981 Rolling Stone cover, shot the day of Lennon's death, the 1990 Vanity Fair cover of a nude, very pregnant Demi Moore. There are a lot of photographers out there, but few have produced as many iconic images as Annie Leibovitz. It's almost as if the camera is her paintbrush and the world is her canvas.

Born Anna-Lou Leibovitz in 1949, the girl who would become known to the world as Annie, began experimenting with photography in the darkroom of an air force base in the Philippines, where her father was posted during the Vietnam War. She went to college in San Francisco to study painting; she thought she'd be an art teacher. It was a photography workshop that introduced her to a love for the camera.

"It is part of the price of leadership of this great and free nation to be the target of clever satirists."
--President Lyndon B. Johnson, in a letter to the Smothers Brothers

When The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour premiered on CBS in February of 1967, the show was just a slightly "hipper" version of other variety shows that peppered the airwaves at the time. However, the series quickly evolved into something that pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable on television at the time. While the Smothers Brothers took the lead in this effort, the series had the help the help of some individuals who would go on to become some of comedy's biggest stars. Steve Martin, Don Novello ("Father Guido Sarducci"), Rob Reiner, Presidential candidate Pat Paulsen, Bob Einstein ("Super Dave Osborne" and "Officer Judy"), Einstein's brother, Albert (who works professionally as Albert Brooks), and resident hippie Leigh French ("Share a Little Tea with Goldie"). The show also introduced audiences to pop singer Jennifer Warnes (originally billed as Jennifer Warren), who was a regular on the series.

The longtime New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther wrote of James Bond in his review of Dr No on May 30, 1963: "Nonsense, you say. Of course, it's nonsense -- pure, escapist bunk, with Bond, an elegant fellow, played by Sean Connery, doing everything (and everybody) that an idle day-dreamer might like to do. Called from a gaming club in London to pick up his orders and his gun and hop on a plane for Jamaica before a tawny temptress leads him astray, old "Double Oh Seven" (that's his code name) is in there being natty from the start. And he keeps on being natty, naughty and nifty to the end." Even the famously prickly Crowther seemed to find something to like about Bond, though I doubt he could have imagined that the success of Dr. No would lead to twenty one more films and counting.

Man, it's hard to believe that South Park is currently in its twelfth season on Comedy Central and in my opinion, as funny as ever. The brainchild of college buddies Trey Parker and Matt Stone, South Park was a hit from the night it first aired in August of 1997 and quickly became one of Comedy Central's most successful franchises. Much like the long running Fox series The Simpsons, South Park has developed a loyal following and many of the sayings and routines of the characters have entered our pop culture lexicon.

Without question, one of the series most popular characters is Eric Cartman. He has many catchphrases; one of his favorites is, "Screw you guys, I'm going home!" Upon winning or beating somebody in a challenge Cartman will give his signature laugh, "nah nah nah nah naah nah, heh heh heh heh hehh heh!" One of Cartman's most famous phrases, when he is attempting to exert his will upon others, is to say, "respect my authority!", pronounced "mah authoritah", in his southern accent. When called fat, he often replies by stating, "I'm not fat, I'm big boned!" Cartman was made to be a pop culture icon.

Over ninety years after Charlie Chaplin introduced moviegoers to The Little Tramp in 1914, the character still remains one of the most recognizable figures in films today. Chaplin himself is sighted by many comedians as an inspiration for their work. Comedian Buster Keaton, who had a healthy professional rivalry with Chaplin, wrote in his autobiography that Chaplin was the greatest comedian that ever lived, and the greatest comedy director.

Capturing the life of someone widely considered to be a genius is a tough task. If someone is/or was a genius, how can an actor hope to portray that even somewhat convincingly? Sir Richard Attenborough was faced with the task of finding a way to show where Chaplin's genius came and how he managed to accomplish what he did, despite a myriad of personal and professional flaws. Originally released in 1992, Chaplin stands as a flawed but interesting look at one of the world's true comic greats.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is based on the Tony Award-winning musical with a book by Hugh Wheeler and words and music by Stephen Sondheim. The Broadway show originally opened on March 1, 1979. Len Cariou won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd. Angela Lansbury took home Best Actress honors for her portrayal of Mrs. Lovett. The show also took the award for Best Musical among others. After its initial run of 557 performances, Sweeney Todd has been done by countless touring companies and even had an award winning Broadway revival in 2005.

M. Night Shyamalan burst on the international film scene with 1999's The Sixth Sense, which was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. He followed that success by writing and directing Unbreakable, released in 2000. The film received mixed reviews and a lukewarm box office reception. Signs, released in 2002, received better reviews and strong box office returns, but his 2004 follow-up, The Village was a critical disaster whose box office dropped dramatically after a strong opening weekend and Lady in the Water (2006) could be considered an outright box office bomb. That being said, Shyamalan was likely looking for a hit, with 2008's The Happening.

I can't believe its October already. With the holiday season fast approaching, it's just about time to start watching all of those Thanksgiving and Christmas themed specials that help mark this time of year. Warner Brothers recently released Jack Frost as a deluxe edition, to help get the ball rolling. The special originally aired on December 13, 1979 and currently runs annually on the ABC Family network.

The special was the brainchild of stop-motion animation wizards Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass. By 1979, Rankin and Bass had produced at least one holiday special nearly every year, starting with 1964's Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Rankin and Bass were well known for their love of holidays and the mythology surrounding them, stop motion animation and musical format. On Jack Frost, Rankin and Bass served as producers and directors from a teleplay by Romeo Muller, with Bass also writing lyrics to songs composed by Maury Laws.

I was very young when Richard Adams' Watership Down hit American movie theaters in 1978, but I do remember it seemed like every adult or teenager I knew had read or was reading the book, in preparation for the film. The plot is rather simple: Watership Down tells the tale of a group of rabbits who leave their warren after one rabbit, Fiver, has a premonition of it being destroyed. They find an unlikely leader in Fiver's older brother, Hazel. The first one-third or so of the movie shows their journey from their old warren, while the remainder details what happens to them after they create a new settlement, the Watership Down of the title.

Created by Eric Kripke, Supernatural centers on Dean and Sam Winchester (Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, respectively); the two brothers travel around the country in a black 1967 Chevy Impala, investigating paranormal events and other unexplained happenings, many of them based on myths, American urban legends, as well as classic supernatural characters such as vampires, werewolves and ghosts. Eric Kripke sites Neil Gaiman's The Sandman and American Gods as influences on Supernatural, along with American Werewolf in London and Joseph Campbell's The Hero's Journey.

Legion of Super Heroes centers on the young Superman's adventures in the 31st century as he fights alongside a group of futuristic superheroes known as the "Legion of Super Heroes." The series, which began airing on Saturday mornings on the Kids WB! Network in the fall of 2006. With a large stable of Legionnaires to choose from, the series' creators stuck mainly with characters created in the early years of the concept including: Lighting Lad who shoots electricity from his hands; telepathic Saturn Girl; Brainiac 5, a genius android; Bouncing Boy whose rotund shape can morph into a giant bouncing ball; and Phantom Girl who can "phase" herself through solid objects. Also on the team, but not in every episode, are Shrinking Violet, Timber Wolf and Triplicate Girl who can turn into three of herself.

I'm fairly new to the world of anime, having read a few books over the past year and watched a couple of select DVD titles. I was interested in taking a look at the Blood+ series because I've always liked a good vampire story, so I figured it would be a great way to take a look at some more anime. Blood+ was shown in the United States on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim; Sony has already released two volumes of the series on DVD. On October 21, 2008 Sony will release a third volume on DVD, featuring five episodes from the series.

Blood+ follows the life of Saya, an anemic and amnesiac, but otherwise ordinary schoolgirl. Saya's happy life is shattered when she is attacked by a chiropteran and learns that she is the only one who can defeat them. Armed with her katana (a Japanese sword) she sets out on a journey with her family, allies, and her chevalier, Hagi, to rid the world of chiropteran and rediscover her identity. The course of the journey reveals the background history of the chiropterans and Saya's very deep past, which extends into the mid-19th century. It's quickly revealed that she is a vampire who has been in a battle with monsters known as chiroptera. A lot of different things happen, but what it comes down to is this: there's more to Saya's past than it first appears, and certain revelations will force her to face her own demons.

Iron Man rocks.

I thought a tin can superhero on the big screen sounded like a surefire dud. I was so sure of myself; I avoided the film in theatrical release and waited until I got a copy of the Blu-ray. Iron Man is a long running Marvel comic that started out with Tony Stark as a weapons manufacturer during the Vietnam War who, after seeing the real effects of his products on military personal and civilians, decided to find a new way to achieve justice in the world.

Described by producers as a "forensic fairy tale," Pushing Daises centers on a pie maker named Ned, who has the mysterious ability to bring dead things back to life by touching them. The problem is, another touch renders that person or thing dead again permanently. Further, if something is revived for more than one minute, something of similar "life value" in the vicinity drops dead, as a form of balance. Ned, expertly played by Lee Pace, lives a fairly lonely life baking pies and working with Emerson Cod (Chi McBride), a private detective, to solve crimes by bringing victims back just long enough to finger the murderer.

Lewis Black has a rather frenetic style when delivering comedy. Much like the late George Carlin, he always seems on the verge of a nervous breakdown. While in a full on rant, Black ridicules history, politics, religion, trends and cultural phenomena. He uses sarcasm and hyperbole laced with profanity to emphasis his disgust disdain or disbelief for a specific topic. Black once described his humor as, "being on the Titanic every single day and being the only person who knows what is going to happen." He says he doesn't write anything down. Instead, he starts talking about something that makes him angry until he has to move on before he has a stroke.

The Godfather Collection - The Coppola Restoration has to be one of the best Blu-ray releases of 2008. Parts I and II are arguably two of the greatest films ever made, and now the entire trilogy is available remastered, with a high-definition Blu-ray picture and TrueHD 5.1 sound. This is just about as good as it gets.

For the Coppola Restoration, the first two films received significant clean-ups, color corrections, and restorations, and the third film a remastering. The work was worth it, because they look better than ever. Even before I watched a single frame of film, I knew I was in for a treat. Containing a fourth disc absolutely load with extras, this release is bound to delight film buffs everywhere.

Back in November of 2007, I reviewed Serena Ryder's EP I Told You in a Whispered Song. That was my introduction to the Canadian born singer. Nearly two years later, Ryder is set to release a new three song EP titled Sweeping the Ashes that highlights her raspy delivery, emotional lyrics and impressive guitar skills.

Ryder is blessed with a three octave range, which allows her to express a range of emotions. She doesn't use her voice like Mariah Carey to blow the roof off a building in the figurative sense, but in the way Carole King or Celine Dion have used their voices to draw audience's right into their songs. Ryder said in a recent press release, "I think maybe the reason people are feeling detached from a lot of the music that gets played on the radio today is because everyone's trying so hard to be their own island, their own original person." While some may be reminded of luminaries like Melissa Etheridge, Joni Mitchell and maybe even Lyle Lovett because of her lyrical style, few will argue that Serena Ryder has a sound all her own.

ABC's Samantha Who? Os a comedy about a young woman who wakes up from an eight day coma only to discover she has no recollection of who she is or the people who have been in an out of her life. Every day is a revelation, and what she discovers about herself isn't pretty. "I did that?" becomes a refrain that ends up driving Samantha to see her amnesia as a positive thing, a chance to do things again, the right way. Her past and the people in it are gradually revealed to her, which gives Samantha a chance to make amends...maybe. The problem is traces of the old cruel Sam pop up without warning. So herein lies the question, can the new Samantha be the good person she wants to be?

Debuting in 2001, Shrek was a CG animated feature loosely based off the children's book of the same name by William Steig. Telling the story of a hermitic swamp-dwelling ogre whose territory is overrun by displaced faerie tale creatures, the film was a wild and biting parody of the many cultural clichés stemming from classic children's literature. The story proved to be a winner with audiences and went on to gross nearly $500 million worldwide. Shrek 2 would follow in 2004, where our hero had to meet his in-laws and deal with a scheming Fairy Godmother. Shrek 2 had a worldwide box office gross of $919.8 million, which made a third Shrek movie inevitable.

Directed by Marc Schoelermann and written by Mark Neveldine & Brian Taylor, creators of Crank (a 2006 film that has developed a bit of a cult following), Pathology received mixed reviews and a tepid box office response upon its release in April of 2008.

Milo Ventmiglia stars as Dr. Ted Grey, a brilliant graduate of Harvard Medical School who, as the story opens, bids goodbye to his fiancée Gwen Williamson (Alyssa Milano) and travels to Los Angeles to join one of the nation's most prestigious pathology programs. There, he gets involved in a deadly (and bloody) game devised by his colleagues. Led by the exuberant and downright pathological Jake Gallo (Michael Weston), the students take turns committing murders, their superiors none the wiser. Each student challenges the others to solve the crimes using their autopsy skills.

Created by Chuck Lorre and Lee Aronsohn, Two and a Half Men centers on Charlie Harper (Charlie Sheen) whose carefree lifestyle is interrupted when his newly separated brother Alan (Jon Cryer) moves in, along with his son Jake (Angus T. Jones) who lives with them part-time. Berta (Conchata Ferrell), is Charlie's sarcastic and sharp-tongued housekeeper. Working in a household consisting of all men doesn't intimidate her, and she gives insults as well as she gets. While Charlie is a constant source of annoyance for her, Berta can pretty much tolerate Alan as long as he keeps his demands for particular foods to a minimum.

Ordinarily, I hate double dipping. In this case, double dipping means releasing the same DVD twice with exactly the same bonus material. Paramount released Grease: Rockin' Rydell Edition back in September of 2006. Now, just two years later, the same edition has been released again, ostensibly to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the films theatrical release which was June 16, 1978. While I wish Paramount had added something new to this 2008 release, it is hard for me to argue that a movie that had such a significant impact on the late seventies shouldn't be seen by as many people as possible. Let's hope that Paramount sees fit to release a version of Grease on Blu-ray in the near future.

Deception has been used as a film title several times, so perhaps the name of this 2008 offering should have tipped me off to its unoriginal story. However with the star power of Hugh Jackman and Ewan McGregor, I figured any film that described itself as an "erotic thriller" couldn't be all bad. I envisioned something like Fatal Attraction light, for the new millennium. Sometimes I have too much faith that good actors will choose material with some redeeming value, because this Deception is neither erotic nor thrilling.

Ewan McGregor plays audit manager Jonathan McQuarry, an extremely shy loner who moves from assignment to assignment. While working late at a New York law firm, he meets lawyer Wyatt Bose (Hugh Jackman) who seems to be everything Jonathan isn't: smooth, privileged and exuding self confidence, the auditor is immediately intrigued. Wyatt offers Jonathan a few tokes of marijuana and just like that, the two become fast friends.

Production began on Sleeping Beauty in 1951, voices were recorded in 1952, animation production took from 1953 until 1958, and the stereophonic musical score, partially based on Tchaikovsky's ballet of the same name, was recorded in 1957. The film holds a notable position in Disney animation as the last Disney feature to use hand-inked cels. According to several sources, because Disney had made two previous fairytales, he wanted to make sure Sleeping Beauty had an original look to it. The use of Super Technirama 70 gave the characters a more stylized look, instead of the soft, rounded appearance of earlier Disney fairytales. The new technique also allowed for backgrounds to have more detailed artwork than ever before.

I don't know what's wrong with me. First it was Bee Movie and now Madagascar--lately; I've had a huge soft spot for computer animated, talking animal pictures. If you are currently suffering from that affliction, Dreamworks' Madagascar is just the film for you. We are introduced to four zoo animals - the giant hippopotamus Gloria (Jada Pinkett Smith), the African lion Alex (Ben Stiller), a reticulated giraffe named Melman (David Schwimmer), and Marty, the eternally optimistic plains zebra (Chris Rock). Living a pampered life at the Central Park Zoo, each animal has their own unique take on life. Alex loves the attention from visitors, and puts on a show for them every day. Melman is a hypochondriac and Gloria is content. Marty, however, has a bad case of wanderlust and spends his free time daydreaming of "the wild".

Created in 1960, by Don Fedderson and Leave it to Beaver alumnus George Tibbles, My Three Sons was one of television's longest running comedies. The series was conceived as a starring vehicle for Fred MacMurray, who had been one of Hollywood's biggest stars. MacMurray starred in a string of classic films including: Alice Adams with Katharine Hepburn in 1935 and Hands Across the Table with Carole Lombard in the same year. By 1943, MacMurray was one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood when his salary reached $420,000, MacMurray would have further film success with his portrayal of Walter Neff in Billy Wilder's Double indemnity and a slew of other films including: The Egg and I (1947), The Caine Mutiny (1954) and The Shaggy Dog (1959).

Ugly Betty is an adaptation of the Colombian telenovela Yo soy Betty, la fea (I am Betty, the ugly), written by Fernando Gaitán. It was adapted into a New York City setting by creator/developer Silvio Horta and co-producers Salma Hayek and Ben Silverman, whose production companies Silent H, Ventanarosa and Reveille respectively, partnered with ABC Studios to create the hour-long program for a U.S. audience. Hayek has appeared on the show as Sofia Reyes, in addition to playing a cameo role as an actress on a fictional telenovela watched by the main character's family in the pilot episode.

Season four of Grey's Anatomy saw a few changes both on and off the screen as season four of the series got underway in the follow of 2007. Due to her producing responsibilities on both Grey's and its spinoff Private Practice, series creator Shonda Rhimes assigned the day-to-day showrunning duties to writer and executive producer Krista Vernoff. Season four would also prove to be a real test for the series popularity, as several cast members were not returning for the fourth season. Kate Walsh and her character doctor Addison Montgomery were leaving for Private Practice and it was announced that Isaiah Washington, who played Dr. Preston Burke would not be returning to the show after his contract wasn't renewed.

Are you meeting friend's/someone's family for the first time this Thanksgiving?

Do you really know what you are in for?

To get a preview of what this whole experience may be like, I invite you to join us and watch an original online series titled: Meet the Beckers, the story of a dysfunctional family and their annual Thanksgiving tradition, which just happens to be a tradition that gets worse every year.

It's shallow I know, but just the title of this series made me believe that this show had the potential to become one of my guilty pleasures. Created by Craig Wright--a writer for such shows as HBO's Six Feet Under, ABC's Lost and Brothers & Sisters--Dirty Sexy Money tells the story of the Darling family of New York. billionaires, considered the closest thing America has to royalty, Nick George (Peter Krause) has spent his whole life living in their shadow. Nick's father was the Darling family lawyer, which caused a lot of resentment for Nick. As an adult, George is leading a quiet life as an idealistic lawyer, until his father unexpectedly dies.

Sports Night aired on ABC for two seasons, from 1998 to 2000. Created by Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip) Sports Night is a series about a fictional sports news program, much like ESPN's Sports Center, the show broadcasts from the fictional Continental Sports Channel (CSC) a subsidiary of Continental Corp, owned and run by Luther Sachs. The series focuses on the friendships, pitfalls, and ethical issues the crew faces as they struggle to put together a quality show each night.

More than 750 people auditioned for the premiere season of the Ragged Road web series, but only five were chosen to take the ride of a lifetime. The group will travel over 5,000 miles around the country meeting music industry innovators as they make their own path towards achieving their goals.

Given the massive success of Grey's Anatomy, it came as no surprise that someone from that series would be chosen to star in their own spinoff. Created by Shonda Rhimes, the series chronicles the life of Dr, Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) after she decides to leave Seattle Grace Hospital and head to Los Angeles to work in a private practice. After Addison was turned down for the Chief of Surgery position at Seattle Grace and her ex-husband continued to chase after Meredith Gray, she decided to make a change in her life; deciding to exchange her high pressure surgical job at the hospital for a more one-on-one with the patients job at the clinic.