The shocks started right away with this made-for-TV musical, Jane Seymour with completely unrecognizable in the beginning, with short, blonde hair. I thought that Ellen Barkin would play the older version of Chelsea Kane's character but I was wrong.
Jane Seymour can still move as Harper a big time producer on Broadway but while rehearsing she hurts her knee. While the dancers scurry around the studio trying to find her an aspirin (what kinds of dancers are you? one character asks, appropriately), she has to convince her daughter Mirabella (Sara Paxton) not to marry this Italian who was a former playboy. Mirabella doesn't even care about the role in her mother's new show and promises to quit it, which is a breach of contract, so Harper will sue her own daughter. Determined to stop the wedding, Harper nevertheless flies to Italy, but the pain in her knee increases so she has some of the tonic discovered by one of the dancers in the studio. The tonic has some surprising effects, turning Harper into a younger version of herself now played by Chelsea Kane who after being quite shocked bursts into song and dance and decides that she will seduce her daughter's fiance.
The song that is shared between Mirabella and Marco (Alexander DiPersia), who has no Italian accent, as they struggle to right their wedding vows is particularly painful, but luckily Adrienne Bailon breaks it up. Harper introduces herself to Mirabella as a distant cousin Debbie, who immediately pushes her way right away and even ears herself an invitation to the bachelorette party.
Harper immediately gets to work on her seducing, but Marco begins awkwardly with reading Debbie her vows, and she presses him about his former playboy past, after his disastrous vows, but whenever young Harper gets closer, he backs up. Fortunately, she leaves before either of them do something stupid, thank God.
At the awkward bachelorette party, Harper learns how her daughter lost her virginity. Mirabella was sixteen when she went to Paris, given permission by her father, saying that it was a school trip, and after a night on the beach, she did the deed. Her mother didn't even notice that she was gone, Harper tries to defend herself as she rubs herself with sun screen. But it's not the same with Marco, which prompts her to Madonna's Like A Virgin, enough to almost make me the change the channel.
Meanwhile, back at home, Amanda, Harper's assistant is having issues of her own as the investors have discovered that Mirabella has pulled out of the show and want to replace and Harper as well. But enough of that, Harper sings Like A Virgin as she approaches Marco and kisses him, causing him to overreact. He says that he is not good enough for her as he swore that his womanizing past was behind him. He doesn't think he can go through with the wedding now. Hopefully Harper realizes what she did was wrong.
The next morning, Debbie tears up as Mirabella tries on her wedding dance and reveals that she never really wanted to be a dancer; that was Harper's dream, not Mirabella's.
Then things get weirder. Harper ages again, so she tries to suck back more of the tonic. While running, Marco confesses to his friend of his moment of weakness, which Mirabella overhears, causing her to rethink the whole thing. Harper now wants to fix things, but the tonic takes more time to work. Also, her ex-husband, Ryan (Tom Wopat) arrives, and does not look forward to seeing his ex-wife ever. As if that wasn't enough, Mirabella doesn't want to admit that her mother is right and she believes that the woman he kissed was her best friend, Noelle (Adrienne Bailon).
Amanda continues sorting through the suitcase where the tonic was located and finds an old diary and clutches it to her chest and proclaims, "This can't end well." Back in Italy, Harper finds Mirabella packing and tries to convince her not to leave him. Harper says that she should give him the chance to come clean, and Mirabella decides to give him until midnight, when they have this dance because it's a tradition in his family (yeah, right). However, Ryan gives just the opposite advice to Marco; he can't tell the truth because it will ruin everything.
Then Ryan sees Harper, and is shocked by her young appearance. He recognized her because of her backside. As Harper fixes him a drink, she also pours in some of the tonic, turning Ryan young. He is now played by Drew Seeley, aka Zac Efron's voice from the first High School Musical movie. She tells him the whole truth and he is furious. But they must fix their daughter's relationship. But they still have embedded issues from their own failed relationship.
In order to fix things, Ryan tells Harper to tell Marco the truth, that it was all her fault. Mirabella also confronts Noelle and demands the truth, though Noelle points out that she isn't the only one around here with brown eyes. Then Ryan and Harper put on a show, with chemistry to spare.
In a heart-to-heart conversation with her father, Ryan (still young) tells Mirabella that he regrets cheating on Harper and he did so because he was selfish, but Harper overhears everything. Then the tonic runs out, so old Harper is the one to confess the truth to Marco, while young Ryan overhears the whole thing and Harper convinces him to tell Mirabella the whole truth, that she was wrong about him. Soon, Ryan is old again and apologizes to Harper about everything and says that he still loves her and Harper still loves him as well.
Mirabella is about to leave and Marco arrives but he has difficultly confessing his feelings. He tries and is doing a pretty good job, but just then her parents toss all of handwritten vows out of the window. And cue the crappy song. But they're back together.
Just when you think things will work out perfectly, another sudden twist appears. Amanda arrives and warns Harper that the third dose will be permanent; she will be young again and have another chance to live out her dreams. Even Ryan wants her to do that, though it will mean sacrificing her daughter forever, but she takes the bottle and wanders away despite these warnings. At least I'll stick around for the ending now.
The next morning, the older Harper shows up and says that she was wrong and love lasts and other syrupy sweet goo. All is forgiven. Marco and Mirabella sing a sweet song at their wedding. Even the parents are back together and one of the aunts has the tonic back, though it won't do her much good permanently.
This leaves some plot lines unanswered, I mean, what will really happen to the Broadway show? Who really cares? And what happened when Mirabella asked about Debbie? Now, I sort of care about that one.
The talent in this film is great, with Seymour, Paxton, Kane and Seeley turning in better performances than the film allows. Ironically enough, the only part that was at all real was when Harper called Mirabella pumpkin, something my mother often called me. Other than that, the film was horrible, with cliched dialogue and overused plot lines and even the musical numbers are bad, and if you cast a good singer like Adrienne Bailon, please give her a song or two instead of just a stanza and background noise. I expected bad and I got just that. I almost want the two hours of my life back. Grade: C-
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Tangled (2010)
This is a pretty good film, though the actual story of Rapunzel is completely changed to make it family friendly.
The film's narrator is actually Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi), whose real name is Eugene Fitzherbert, but we don't find that out until later in the film. He is not a good guy, considering he is part of a band of thieves who steal the princess's crown of jewels right from the palace.
But the story isn't really about him; it's about Rapunzel (Mandy Moore). She is born a princess with a special power. Her hair has healing powers all because of a special flower which was cooked into a broth to cure her ailing mother while the mother was still pregnant with Rapunzel. But Gothel (Donna Murphy) has been hoarding the flower so she can stay forever young. So what choose does she have but to kidnap the baby Rapunzel? She does just that and locks her away in a tower so she can have her healing powers all to herself.
Rapunzel is bored with her life away from everyone else and longs to see the stars (actually lanterns) released every year on her birthday by the king and queen to remember her, but she has no idea that she is the lost princess.
Meanwhile, Flynn Rider is on the run and seeing the tower, he immediately climbs it only to reach the top and be knocked out by Rapunzel's frying pan. Determined to show Gothel that she can hold her own outside, Rapunzel shoves him away in her closet but Gothel doesn't want to hear anything so Rapunzel asks instead for a present that requires Gothel to travel far away and then blackmails Flynn Rider, saying he can only have his satchel back if he takes her to see the stars. After failing to win her over, he agrees and their journey begins.
Rapunzel delights in being outside, experiencing things that she never has before, but guilt often fills her though she refuses to give into this and continues. However, upon seeing a sign that has a picture of Flynn Rider who is wanted, she immediately fears for Rapunzel for whatever reason and rushes back to the tower, only to find her missing. Rapunzel's adventure just got a whole lot harder.
There first major challenge is running into a band of thugs, but Rapunzel brings out the fact that all of them have a dream and even uses her hair's powers for good, helping her and Flynn Rider get out of a nasty situation. Meanwhile, Gothel strikes up a deal with the two other thieves out for Flynn Rider.
After healing Flynn Rider's cut, she reveals her magical powers to him and tells him that's why she was in the tower all those years, to protect her powers. Too bad their moment of closeness is cut short as Gothel finds her daughter and warns her that Flynn Rider is a thief and convinces her that the romance Rapunzel believes she has found is all in her head, but Rapunzel doesn't want to go back and Gothel tosses her the crown, as that is the only reason why he is still with her.
Providing excellent comic relief is the horse out after Flynn Rider, but Rapunzel convinces the horse to wait until the following day because this is the most important day of her life, being her birthday and finally getting to see the lanterns. But fate has other plans. The moment starts out wonderful, with them in a boat, seeing the lanterns coming up from the palace in a lake, with Rapunzel worried that the moment won't live up to her expectations. Here they even share the best song of the film: At Last I See the Light. She even returns the crown to him because all of her fears are gone. But everything is not fine. Flynn Rider sees the men after him. He gives them back the crown, but that's not good enough for them. They intend to steal Rapunzel back for Gothel. And that's just what they do, letting her believe that Flynn Rider chose to leave her all on his own, but that is not the case. Upon realizing what has happened, Flynn immediately leaps off the boat to try and get her back, but by this time, Rapunzel has already gone back to Gothel's arms, feeling utterly betrayed by Flynn and devastated that all along, Gothel was right.
However, Rapunzel, in a moment that could have never happened, Rapunzel realizes that she is the lost princess and that her entire life has been a lie. Meanwhile, Flynn is rescued from prison by the kind hearted thugs they meant along the way, though he is about to be hanged, as it turns out the horse was behind the whole thing. Then everything turns sour, as Flynn arrives at the tower and climbs her hair, only to see Rapunzel tied up. Gothel stabs Flynn, and Rapunzel decides to make a bargain, if she can save Flynn, then she will remain with Gothel for the rest of her life. But Flynn decides against this, and instead chops off her hair, turning it brown without its special powers. Gothel ages rapidly and falls out of tower, dead, leaving Rapunzel to hold Flynn for his last moments as he tells her that she was his dream, cue the tears, on screen and off. But luckily, Rapunzel's tears have healing powers and they bring Flynn back to life. The happy ending is now in place. Rapunzel ends up with her true love, though he does not deserve it and she is also reunited with her parents whom she barely remembers and is once again the princess she was born to be. The reunion is especially moving, especially for an animated film, though they probably shouldn't have welcomed Flynn that easily into their lives. As Flynn puts it, Rapunzel is a princess worth waiting for and he goes by Eugene again and they all live happily ever after.
This film is far from perfect, considering how the love interest is not someone you can admire, being a felon and all, though he does mean well and truly is great for Rapunzel. But this is not what you should want for your daughter to see and shame on you, Disney for creating a love interest like that in a movie geared to young girls. I also refused to see this film for some time because they ruined the classic story of Rapunzel, where she secretly marries the prince, not a bandit and thief, and her stepmother discoveries this after Rapunzel can't tie up her dress (in other words, she is pregnant). She is banished and the prince, climbing up her cut hair is thrown off by the evil stepmother and is blinded. But this story does have a happy ending, with the prince being reunited with Rapunzel and her tears healing his blindness. She does end up a princess.
Having said that, this film is still quite watchable and has some very funny parts, mainly involving a frying pan and the animation is great, but the ending is still a little far-fetched with Rapunzel remembering events that she could never have remembered. Grade: B+
The film's narrator is actually Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi), whose real name is Eugene Fitzherbert, but we don't find that out until later in the film. He is not a good guy, considering he is part of a band of thieves who steal the princess's crown of jewels right from the palace.
But the story isn't really about him; it's about Rapunzel (Mandy Moore). She is born a princess with a special power. Her hair has healing powers all because of a special flower which was cooked into a broth to cure her ailing mother while the mother was still pregnant with Rapunzel. But Gothel (Donna Murphy) has been hoarding the flower so she can stay forever young. So what choose does she have but to kidnap the baby Rapunzel? She does just that and locks her away in a tower so she can have her healing powers all to herself.
Rapunzel is bored with her life away from everyone else and longs to see the stars (actually lanterns) released every year on her birthday by the king and queen to remember her, but she has no idea that she is the lost princess.
Meanwhile, Flynn Rider is on the run and seeing the tower, he immediately climbs it only to reach the top and be knocked out by Rapunzel's frying pan. Determined to show Gothel that she can hold her own outside, Rapunzel shoves him away in her closet but Gothel doesn't want to hear anything so Rapunzel asks instead for a present that requires Gothel to travel far away and then blackmails Flynn Rider, saying he can only have his satchel back if he takes her to see the stars. After failing to win her over, he agrees and their journey begins.
Rapunzel delights in being outside, experiencing things that she never has before, but guilt often fills her though she refuses to give into this and continues. However, upon seeing a sign that has a picture of Flynn Rider who is wanted, she immediately fears for Rapunzel for whatever reason and rushes back to the tower, only to find her missing. Rapunzel's adventure just got a whole lot harder.
There first major challenge is running into a band of thugs, but Rapunzel brings out the fact that all of them have a dream and even uses her hair's powers for good, helping her and Flynn Rider get out of a nasty situation. Meanwhile, Gothel strikes up a deal with the two other thieves out for Flynn Rider.
After healing Flynn Rider's cut, she reveals her magical powers to him and tells him that's why she was in the tower all those years, to protect her powers. Too bad their moment of closeness is cut short as Gothel finds her daughter and warns her that Flynn Rider is a thief and convinces her that the romance Rapunzel believes she has found is all in her head, but Rapunzel doesn't want to go back and Gothel tosses her the crown, as that is the only reason why he is still with her.
Providing excellent comic relief is the horse out after Flynn Rider, but Rapunzel convinces the horse to wait until the following day because this is the most important day of her life, being her birthday and finally getting to see the lanterns. But fate has other plans. The moment starts out wonderful, with them in a boat, seeing the lanterns coming up from the palace in a lake, with Rapunzel worried that the moment won't live up to her expectations. Here they even share the best song of the film: At Last I See the Light. She even returns the crown to him because all of her fears are gone. But everything is not fine. Flynn Rider sees the men after him. He gives them back the crown, but that's not good enough for them. They intend to steal Rapunzel back for Gothel. And that's just what they do, letting her believe that Flynn Rider chose to leave her all on his own, but that is not the case. Upon realizing what has happened, Flynn immediately leaps off the boat to try and get her back, but by this time, Rapunzel has already gone back to Gothel's arms, feeling utterly betrayed by Flynn and devastated that all along, Gothel was right.
However, Rapunzel, in a moment that could have never happened, Rapunzel realizes that she is the lost princess and that her entire life has been a lie. Meanwhile, Flynn is rescued from prison by the kind hearted thugs they meant along the way, though he is about to be hanged, as it turns out the horse was behind the whole thing. Then everything turns sour, as Flynn arrives at the tower and climbs her hair, only to see Rapunzel tied up. Gothel stabs Flynn, and Rapunzel decides to make a bargain, if she can save Flynn, then she will remain with Gothel for the rest of her life. But Flynn decides against this, and instead chops off her hair, turning it brown without its special powers. Gothel ages rapidly and falls out of tower, dead, leaving Rapunzel to hold Flynn for his last moments as he tells her that she was his dream, cue the tears, on screen and off. But luckily, Rapunzel's tears have healing powers and they bring Flynn back to life. The happy ending is now in place. Rapunzel ends up with her true love, though he does not deserve it and she is also reunited with her parents whom she barely remembers and is once again the princess she was born to be. The reunion is especially moving, especially for an animated film, though they probably shouldn't have welcomed Flynn that easily into their lives. As Flynn puts it, Rapunzel is a princess worth waiting for and he goes by Eugene again and they all live happily ever after.
This film is far from perfect, considering how the love interest is not someone you can admire, being a felon and all, though he does mean well and truly is great for Rapunzel. But this is not what you should want for your daughter to see and shame on you, Disney for creating a love interest like that in a movie geared to young girls. I also refused to see this film for some time because they ruined the classic story of Rapunzel, where she secretly marries the prince, not a bandit and thief, and her stepmother discoveries this after Rapunzel can't tie up her dress (in other words, she is pregnant). She is banished and the prince, climbing up her cut hair is thrown off by the evil stepmother and is blinded. But this story does have a happy ending, with the prince being reunited with Rapunzel and her tears healing his blindness. She does end up a princess.
Having said that, this film is still quite watchable and has some very funny parts, mainly involving a frying pan and the animation is great, but the ending is still a little far-fetched with Rapunzel remembering events that she could never have remembered. Grade: B+
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Bulworth (1998)
This film was incredibly interesting, funny in an odd way.
Jay Billington Bulworth (Warren Beatty) is a California senator who is just days away from re-election, but he has lost favor with the voters. He is also going through some sort of personal crisis, having not eaten anything or slept in days. Because of this, he goes through some major changes, calling out the American public, criticizing the insurance companies that have supported him in the past. Also, feeling depressed, he put a hit out on his own life, though he later decides to change his mind about that.
He also makes friends with some young African Americans, including Nina (Halle Berry) who is actually one of the people hired to set him up to be killed so she can earn some money so her brother can get out from owing L.D. (Don Cheadle) and can live freely again. What she doesn't expect is having the senator fall for her, which happens.
His change in attitude is at first very concerning for his staff (they even sabotaging his debate), which includes Dennis Murphy (Oliver Platt) and Bill Feldman (Joshua Malina), but after snorting some cocaine, and having the public embrace his new image of outing the government and how corrupt they really are as well as ignoring his written speech, which couldn't be anymore boring, and rapping his opinions, they are also on board and get him a prime interview, all the while, Bulworth must evade a mysterious man he believes is the one to kill him. He hides out in the family home of Nina, which is rather functioning despite it being extremely blended, her grandmother is an especially interesting character.
He attends an interview and says that race is an issue, and that people should just mingle until everyone is the same race, dropping tons of choose words throughout. This causes him to get on L.D.'s good side, by saying that education needed to be improved.
Also, Bulworth tries to call off the hit, but the guy behind it suffers a heart attack before action can be taken, but luckily, Bulworth tells all to Nina who says that she was the fall guy, but everything is okay. They kiss, and Bulworth promptly falls asleep, finally having not slept for five days. He sleeps right through his election, which he wins handily. Upon waking up, he is somewhat back to his old self, though the events have not totally changed him. He and Nina kiss on the camera, despite the huge age difference and the fact that he is still married. Then he is shot and killed by an insurance salesman because Bulworth bashed him.
There are also subplots including one where CSPAN follows him around. Sean Astin in the camera man and Laurie Metcalf (great) is one of the people monitoring what will be shown on screen. Christine Baranski (Leonard's mother in The Big Bang Theory) is Bulworth's wife who is cheating on him as well.
The funniest scene is probably when Bulworth goes back to eating after days without and stuffs his face while attempting to answer questioning, offending everyone in the room.
The film does have great performances, mostly from Beatty and is enjoyable and hilarious at all turns, and it shows that the public likes honesty and will reward someone for doing just that. However, the moneymakers don't like that, only wanting their message to come across and have the means to get what they want. I will probably watch this film again. Grade: B+
Jay Billington Bulworth (Warren Beatty) is a California senator who is just days away from re-election, but he has lost favor with the voters. He is also going through some sort of personal crisis, having not eaten anything or slept in days. Because of this, he goes through some major changes, calling out the American public, criticizing the insurance companies that have supported him in the past. Also, feeling depressed, he put a hit out on his own life, though he later decides to change his mind about that.
He also makes friends with some young African Americans, including Nina (Halle Berry) who is actually one of the people hired to set him up to be killed so she can earn some money so her brother can get out from owing L.D. (Don Cheadle) and can live freely again. What she doesn't expect is having the senator fall for her, which happens.
His change in attitude is at first very concerning for his staff (they even sabotaging his debate), which includes Dennis Murphy (Oliver Platt) and Bill Feldman (Joshua Malina), but after snorting some cocaine, and having the public embrace his new image of outing the government and how corrupt they really are as well as ignoring his written speech, which couldn't be anymore boring, and rapping his opinions, they are also on board and get him a prime interview, all the while, Bulworth must evade a mysterious man he believes is the one to kill him. He hides out in the family home of Nina, which is rather functioning despite it being extremely blended, her grandmother is an especially interesting character.
He attends an interview and says that race is an issue, and that people should just mingle until everyone is the same race, dropping tons of choose words throughout. This causes him to get on L.D.'s good side, by saying that education needed to be improved.
Also, Bulworth tries to call off the hit, but the guy behind it suffers a heart attack before action can be taken, but luckily, Bulworth tells all to Nina who says that she was the fall guy, but everything is okay. They kiss, and Bulworth promptly falls asleep, finally having not slept for five days. He sleeps right through his election, which he wins handily. Upon waking up, he is somewhat back to his old self, though the events have not totally changed him. He and Nina kiss on the camera, despite the huge age difference and the fact that he is still married. Then he is shot and killed by an insurance salesman because Bulworth bashed him.
There are also subplots including one where CSPAN follows him around. Sean Astin in the camera man and Laurie Metcalf (great) is one of the people monitoring what will be shown on screen. Christine Baranski (Leonard's mother in The Big Bang Theory) is Bulworth's wife who is cheating on him as well.
The funniest scene is probably when Bulworth goes back to eating after days without and stuffs his face while attempting to answer questioning, offending everyone in the room.
The film does have great performances, mostly from Beatty and is enjoyable and hilarious at all turns, and it shows that the public likes honesty and will reward someone for doing just that. However, the moneymakers don't like that, only wanting their message to come across and have the means to get what they want. I will probably watch this film again. Grade: B+
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Suburgatory: Season Finale
There is so much to say.
First of all, Tessa (Jane Levy) is hell bent on getting back at Dahlia (Carly Chalkin) for being behind her break-up with Ryan (Parker Young). It takes Tessa some time to realize what her problem is, she needs to start wearing her lesbian boots again and she does. And she and Dahlia get into a nasty fight, punches are thrown and eyelashes are ripped off, yet neither are punished, not really, not even a scolding from their respective parents.
In the meantime, George (Jeremy Sisto) must tell Tessa that he sold his house and plans on moving in with Dallas (Cheryl Hines), also known as Dahlia's mother. His relator and neighbor Sheila Shay (Ana Gasteyer) constantly shows up and is nagging him to move out of the house.
Finally, George summons up the courage to tell Tessa what is going on. Dallas had tried to earlier but Tessa told her that though she was a nice, her daughter is the devil incarnate. George simply blurts out the news and Tessa is at first happy, but upon learning that she would have to share a house with Dahlia, she promptly leaves.
Noah (Alan Tudyk) is also out for revenge, against his former therapist Bob, and exacts his revenge by filing down his teeth to look like a vampire, at least he got his revenge.
Also in the first episode is Lisa Shay (Allie Grant) who is one of my favorite characters on the show, providing the comic relief by putting in a tape that has her meowing to popular songs from the eighties and nineties.
This leads immediately into the last new episode of the season, with Tessa trying to find a new place to live, calling her grandmother (Miriam Flynn) but she can't because Alex (Malin Ackerman) is back in town so Tessa starts to live in the handicap stall in the bathroom in her school.
In the meantime, Shelia is thrilled about the chastity ball where Lisa can finally, get some recognition, but this proves not to be the case, as Lisa has sex (though she calls it made love) with her boyfriend, Malik (Maestro Harrell), nice to see you again, haven't seen you since Thanksgiving. Shelia is devastated, but this drives Ryan to confront Tessa and he says that he is leaving and doesn't regret breaking up with her, and neither does Tessa and she shows the stall door, but instead he backs her up against the wall and they make out and then they lie down on her makeshift bed, and cut to commercial break. They had sex, I'm calling it.
In the meantime, George shows Dallas the house he bought, the one that she really liked. This is only after Dallas's ex-husband (Jay Mohr) shows up to take Dahlia to the ball and punches George out. But Dallas breaks up with George as she is not convinced that he loves her so now George is stuck with a house that he doesn't really want and his daughter is nowhere to be found. Instead, he finds a dog and Dahlia shows up, saying that he is a good father.
Tessa runs into her mother and moves in with her, in Chatswin. Yes, all of this happened in just a short hour.
I can't wait for the new season, just to see what happens. Will George and Alex get back together? He sort of has always held a torch for her. There are also funny lines, with unique characters delivering them. Though the show was not perfect, with the Ryan and Tessa incident deserving at least one or two more lines, instead of her just leaving him, as they have already said good-bye, but still, the show is great and I don't know what I'm going to without it for five months. It is one of my favorite shows on television, though not as good as The Middle as the tone of this show is odd, and it messes with your mind on a daily basis. That doesn't mean it isn't great. Season: B+, Finale: A-
First of all, Tessa (Jane Levy) is hell bent on getting back at Dahlia (Carly Chalkin) for being behind her break-up with Ryan (Parker Young). It takes Tessa some time to realize what her problem is, she needs to start wearing her lesbian boots again and she does. And she and Dahlia get into a nasty fight, punches are thrown and eyelashes are ripped off, yet neither are punished, not really, not even a scolding from their respective parents.
In the meantime, George (Jeremy Sisto) must tell Tessa that he sold his house and plans on moving in with Dallas (Cheryl Hines), also known as Dahlia's mother. His relator and neighbor Sheila Shay (Ana Gasteyer) constantly shows up and is nagging him to move out of the house.
Finally, George summons up the courage to tell Tessa what is going on. Dallas had tried to earlier but Tessa told her that though she was a nice, her daughter is the devil incarnate. George simply blurts out the news and Tessa is at first happy, but upon learning that she would have to share a house with Dahlia, she promptly leaves.
Noah (Alan Tudyk) is also out for revenge, against his former therapist Bob, and exacts his revenge by filing down his teeth to look like a vampire, at least he got his revenge.
Also in the first episode is Lisa Shay (Allie Grant) who is one of my favorite characters on the show, providing the comic relief by putting in a tape that has her meowing to popular songs from the eighties and nineties.
This leads immediately into the last new episode of the season, with Tessa trying to find a new place to live, calling her grandmother (Miriam Flynn) but she can't because Alex (Malin Ackerman) is back in town so Tessa starts to live in the handicap stall in the bathroom in her school.
In the meantime, Shelia is thrilled about the chastity ball where Lisa can finally, get some recognition, but this proves not to be the case, as Lisa has sex (though she calls it made love) with her boyfriend, Malik (Maestro Harrell), nice to see you again, haven't seen you since Thanksgiving. Shelia is devastated, but this drives Ryan to confront Tessa and he says that he is leaving and doesn't regret breaking up with her, and neither does Tessa and she shows the stall door, but instead he backs her up against the wall and they make out and then they lie down on her makeshift bed, and cut to commercial break. They had sex, I'm calling it.
In the meantime, George shows Dallas the house he bought, the one that she really liked. This is only after Dallas's ex-husband (Jay Mohr) shows up to take Dahlia to the ball and punches George out. But Dallas breaks up with George as she is not convinced that he loves her so now George is stuck with a house that he doesn't really want and his daughter is nowhere to be found. Instead, he finds a dog and Dahlia shows up, saying that he is a good father.
Tessa runs into her mother and moves in with her, in Chatswin. Yes, all of this happened in just a short hour.
I can't wait for the new season, just to see what happens. Will George and Alex get back together? He sort of has always held a torch for her. There are also funny lines, with unique characters delivering them. Though the show was not perfect, with the Ryan and Tessa incident deserving at least one or two more lines, instead of her just leaving him, as they have already said good-bye, but still, the show is great and I don't know what I'm going to without it for five months. It is one of my favorite shows on television, though not as good as The Middle as the tone of this show is odd, and it messes with your mind on a daily basis. That doesn't mean it isn't great. Season: B+, Finale: A-
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Legally Blonde (2001)
I have seen this film countless times, but it contains a good message and is largely enjoyable.
Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) is a fashion design major and is hugely involved in her sorority. She also has a devoted boyfriend, Warner (Matthew Davis). However, on the night when Elle believes that Warner will propose to her, everything goes wrong. He dumps her because he feels that she is not serious enough for his lifestyle, which includes going to Harvard Law School. Elle takes the break up hard, but decides that she must win him back so she actually studies and gets accepted into Harvard Law School, though it probably has little to do with her brains.
At Harvard, she doesn't fit in, with her designer clothes and extreme attention to personal hygiene and Warner has a fiance, Vivian (Selma Blair) who hates Elle. The professors don't even like her as she doesn't take the classes seriously. One of her only allies is Emmett (Luke Wilson), Dr. Callahan's (Victor Garber) assistant and Paulette (Jennifer Coolidge) who owns a local beauty salon where Elle goes to relax. Using her law skills, she even helps Paulette get her dog back from her nasty ex-common-law husband.
Eventually, Elle decides to take her classes seriously still trying in vain to prove Warner wrong, that she is just as smart as he is. And it pays off, her nasty professor (Holland Taylor) no longer thinks she's insane and Elle even earns Dr. Callahan's internship which will include helping to defend Brooke Taylor Windham (Ali Larter), accused of murdering her much older husband. Elle is thrilled considering they were both in the same sorority, though Brooke was several years older. However, though Brooke has a great alibi (she was getting liposuction), because of her career as a fitness guru, it could ruin her. Elle keeps this to herself despite the pleas of the other interns, which include Warner and Vivian.
After discovering that one of the main witnesses against Brooke, the cabana boy, who claimed that he was having an affair with her, was actually gay. Callahan asks for some time alone and compliments Elle on her gut, but then hits on her. Elle leaves in a huff, convinced that she only got what she wanted because she was good looking. Vivian misinterprets the event as well. Luckily, before leaving, Elle told Emmett what actually happened who in turn tells Brooke. She fires Callahan and insists that Elle become her lawyer, with Emmett to supervise.
Here, Elle begins questioning the stepdaughter of Brooke, Chutney (Linda Cardellini) who hates her same age stepmother. Though the questioning starts off rough, upon hearing the news that Chutney had permed her hair earlier in the day before taking a shower when the shooting occurred, but that could not have been possible, given that the perm was still intact. Chutney was the one who killed her father, by accident, she really wanted to kill Brooke. Brooke is free.
Everything works out, Elle finishes law school and she and Emmett become a couple. Warner graduates also, but without honors or job prospects.
Though the film is nice, with Elle as a heroine to root for, the romantic comedy aspect, with her Emmett falls flat. Despite having chemistry, the two have few conversations together and they aren't really funny. However, the subplot of Paulette having a huge crush on the UPS delivery guy (Bruce Thomas) is much funnier with her learning the bend and snap move to impress him so he'll notice her, but this goes all wrong and she ends up breaking his nose, but they still manage to get together. That one is much funnier.
The plot also comes together rather quickly, tying up all the loose ends perfectly. Though the dialogue isn't all the most interesting, along with the plot, the acting is great with Reese Witherspoon deservingly breaking out with this performance though everyone is great, down to the smallest roles. There is also Elle's cute dog Bruiser so that is another thing the film has going for it. Despite being far from life altering, it is nevertheless an enjoyable experience and one that I will watch again and again. Grade: B
Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) is a fashion design major and is hugely involved in her sorority. She also has a devoted boyfriend, Warner (Matthew Davis). However, on the night when Elle believes that Warner will propose to her, everything goes wrong. He dumps her because he feels that she is not serious enough for his lifestyle, which includes going to Harvard Law School. Elle takes the break up hard, but decides that she must win him back so she actually studies and gets accepted into Harvard Law School, though it probably has little to do with her brains.
At Harvard, she doesn't fit in, with her designer clothes and extreme attention to personal hygiene and Warner has a fiance, Vivian (Selma Blair) who hates Elle. The professors don't even like her as she doesn't take the classes seriously. One of her only allies is Emmett (Luke Wilson), Dr. Callahan's (Victor Garber) assistant and Paulette (Jennifer Coolidge) who owns a local beauty salon where Elle goes to relax. Using her law skills, she even helps Paulette get her dog back from her nasty ex-common-law husband.
Eventually, Elle decides to take her classes seriously still trying in vain to prove Warner wrong, that she is just as smart as he is. And it pays off, her nasty professor (Holland Taylor) no longer thinks she's insane and Elle even earns Dr. Callahan's internship which will include helping to defend Brooke Taylor Windham (Ali Larter), accused of murdering her much older husband. Elle is thrilled considering they were both in the same sorority, though Brooke was several years older. However, though Brooke has a great alibi (she was getting liposuction), because of her career as a fitness guru, it could ruin her. Elle keeps this to herself despite the pleas of the other interns, which include Warner and Vivian.
After discovering that one of the main witnesses against Brooke, the cabana boy, who claimed that he was having an affair with her, was actually gay. Callahan asks for some time alone and compliments Elle on her gut, but then hits on her. Elle leaves in a huff, convinced that she only got what she wanted because she was good looking. Vivian misinterprets the event as well. Luckily, before leaving, Elle told Emmett what actually happened who in turn tells Brooke. She fires Callahan and insists that Elle become her lawyer, with Emmett to supervise.
Here, Elle begins questioning the stepdaughter of Brooke, Chutney (Linda Cardellini) who hates her same age stepmother. Though the questioning starts off rough, upon hearing the news that Chutney had permed her hair earlier in the day before taking a shower when the shooting occurred, but that could not have been possible, given that the perm was still intact. Chutney was the one who killed her father, by accident, she really wanted to kill Brooke. Brooke is free.
Everything works out, Elle finishes law school and she and Emmett become a couple. Warner graduates also, but without honors or job prospects.
Though the film is nice, with Elle as a heroine to root for, the romantic comedy aspect, with her Emmett falls flat. Despite having chemistry, the two have few conversations together and they aren't really funny. However, the subplot of Paulette having a huge crush on the UPS delivery guy (Bruce Thomas) is much funnier with her learning the bend and snap move to impress him so he'll notice her, but this goes all wrong and she ends up breaking his nose, but they still manage to get together. That one is much funnier.
The plot also comes together rather quickly, tying up all the loose ends perfectly. Though the dialogue isn't all the most interesting, along with the plot, the acting is great with Reese Witherspoon deservingly breaking out with this performance though everyone is great, down to the smallest roles. There is also Elle's cute dog Bruiser so that is another thing the film has going for it. Despite being far from life altering, it is nevertheless an enjoyable experience and one that I will watch again and again. Grade: B
Monday, April 15, 2013
In Darkness (2011)
This film is incredibly powerful and I'm glad I was forced to watch it for a class that I am currently taking.
Though most hail Schindler's List as the best film about the Holocaust, this one deserves just as much attention.
Here, a sewer worker, while making his rounds, stumbles onto some Jews trying to hide out down there. Leopold Socha (Robert Wieckiewicz) and his assistant decide, for a handsome fee, to hide Jews down there, but only ten or eleven can hide. The wealthy Chiger (Herbert Knaup) is among the select few, naturally because he is paying for it. His wife (Maria Schrader) and two young children are also there. Klara Keller (Angieszka Grochowska) is also chosen, along with the man who came up with the idea, Mundek (Benno Furmann). A man, cheating on his wife goes down with his lover while his daughter and wife refuse to join him. Others are there as well.
The film is not simple, with Socha putting his own life and the life of his wife and daughter in danger and for what? As he says, the Jews aren't even grateful, they just demand more. Only after the Chiger children get lost in the sewers and he returns them to their frantic parents do they say Thank You. Eventually, he even does this for free, continuing to provide them with food and fresh clothing. Complications arise, men leave, but they don't get that far, as they are shot. Chaja, the mistress (Julia Kijowska) becomes pregnant, though she tries to keep it from the others. Klara is happy about this, saying that it will be everyone's baby, causing Mundek to say, the only funny line in the whole film really, that two parents aren't bad enough. Then Mundek escapes and a Nazi dies because he tries to go to the work camp to find Klara's sister, who decided to go there instead of living in the sewers, Socha nearly kills him because of this. While away, Chaja has the baby in a grossly realistic scene, with blood and everything. The baby is a boy, but the crying puts the whole group in danger.
Socha discusses the situation with his wife (Kinga Preis). She is happy to hear that it is a boy and comes up with a plan. They will tell people that the baby is her brother's. But when Socha goes down to tell the group the good news, he learns that she smothered the baby, causing me to gasp. I couldn't believe it. The look on Socha's face says it all, he is likewise devastated.
Life continues, slowly and more challenges arise. During his daughter's communion, Socha leaves to rescue the Jews because of the huge downpour but runs into trouble. One of his Nazi friends insists that he show him the gas lines underneath because they are trying to plant bombs to throw off the Germans. Fortunately for Socha and the Jews, the Nazi drowns. Socha nearly dies and returns home only to find that his wife left him, though she does return. The Jews survived, but barely.
The Jews survive and Socha takes great pride in the fact that it was all his doing. Unfortunately, his life ends in May of 1945. He is run over by a Russian tank saving his daughter from being run over. Someone says at his funeral that he was punished for helping the Jews, as if we need God to hate each other, as the film says at the end.
The film is not perfect, with a crazy shower (rain pouring into the sewer) sex scene after Mundek returns home from his quick stint in the concentration camp and his cliche line to Klara, "Without you, I have no life and I plan on living a long life", but the good and realistic far outweigh the bad.
The scene that sticks with me is in the beginning when the Nazis pull off part of a beard of a Jewish man, causing me to cringe and nearly spas. There is another scene when Mundek goes off to the concentration camp where the Nazis make the Jews literally crawl on the ground, like dogs.
The characters are incredibly realistic and the director got her wish, portraying Jews are real people with flaws. She doesn't like how they are normally portrayed as being perfect with everyone around them as bad, though that was basically the cause. The film is hard to watch, with naked women running through the woods before they are shot. No one is perfect, just like us. Teh film is nearly two and a half hours long, but it went rather quickly. Watch it, I highly recommend it. Grade: A
Though most hail Schindler's List as the best film about the Holocaust, this one deserves just as much attention.
Here, a sewer worker, while making his rounds, stumbles onto some Jews trying to hide out down there. Leopold Socha (Robert Wieckiewicz) and his assistant decide, for a handsome fee, to hide Jews down there, but only ten or eleven can hide. The wealthy Chiger (Herbert Knaup) is among the select few, naturally because he is paying for it. His wife (Maria Schrader) and two young children are also there. Klara Keller (Angieszka Grochowska) is also chosen, along with the man who came up with the idea, Mundek (Benno Furmann). A man, cheating on his wife goes down with his lover while his daughter and wife refuse to join him. Others are there as well.
The film is not simple, with Socha putting his own life and the life of his wife and daughter in danger and for what? As he says, the Jews aren't even grateful, they just demand more. Only after the Chiger children get lost in the sewers and he returns them to their frantic parents do they say Thank You. Eventually, he even does this for free, continuing to provide them with food and fresh clothing. Complications arise, men leave, but they don't get that far, as they are shot. Chaja, the mistress (Julia Kijowska) becomes pregnant, though she tries to keep it from the others. Klara is happy about this, saying that it will be everyone's baby, causing Mundek to say, the only funny line in the whole film really, that two parents aren't bad enough. Then Mundek escapes and a Nazi dies because he tries to go to the work camp to find Klara's sister, who decided to go there instead of living in the sewers, Socha nearly kills him because of this. While away, Chaja has the baby in a grossly realistic scene, with blood and everything. The baby is a boy, but the crying puts the whole group in danger.
Socha discusses the situation with his wife (Kinga Preis). She is happy to hear that it is a boy and comes up with a plan. They will tell people that the baby is her brother's. But when Socha goes down to tell the group the good news, he learns that she smothered the baby, causing me to gasp. I couldn't believe it. The look on Socha's face says it all, he is likewise devastated.
Life continues, slowly and more challenges arise. During his daughter's communion, Socha leaves to rescue the Jews because of the huge downpour but runs into trouble. One of his Nazi friends insists that he show him the gas lines underneath because they are trying to plant bombs to throw off the Germans. Fortunately for Socha and the Jews, the Nazi drowns. Socha nearly dies and returns home only to find that his wife left him, though she does return. The Jews survived, but barely.
The Jews survive and Socha takes great pride in the fact that it was all his doing. Unfortunately, his life ends in May of 1945. He is run over by a Russian tank saving his daughter from being run over. Someone says at his funeral that he was punished for helping the Jews, as if we need God to hate each other, as the film says at the end.
The film is not perfect, with a crazy shower (rain pouring into the sewer) sex scene after Mundek returns home from his quick stint in the concentration camp and his cliche line to Klara, "Without you, I have no life and I plan on living a long life", but the good and realistic far outweigh the bad.
The scene that sticks with me is in the beginning when the Nazis pull off part of a beard of a Jewish man, causing me to cringe and nearly spas. There is another scene when Mundek goes off to the concentration camp where the Nazis make the Jews literally crawl on the ground, like dogs.
The characters are incredibly realistic and the director got her wish, portraying Jews are real people with flaws. She doesn't like how they are normally portrayed as being perfect with everyone around them as bad, though that was basically the cause. The film is hard to watch, with naked women running through the woods before they are shot. No one is perfect, just like us. Teh film is nearly two and a half hours long, but it went rather quickly. Watch it, I highly recommend it. Grade: A
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
The Middle: Dollar Days
This was an interesting episode.
First of all, Frankie graduated from Technical College and is now on the hunt for a job. However, her first interview goes horribly wrong. She can't describe herself and the kids are no help, describing her as lazy, angry and tired. Unfortunately, all of these are true. She even asks her mother (helping out at Aunt Edie's) for advice. Pat (Marsha Mason) says that she didn't give birth to average people. And Frankie eats this up but at least she has confidence for her next interview (plus a sip of wine). Ted (Jack MacBrayer) is an absent-minded dentist who hates interviews but after Frankie's disastrous interview, in which she describes herself as a mom, he eats it up and hires her. He loves his mother, plus he doesn't want to talk to anyone else. Frankie even lies and says that her children are best friends. But she has the job, he doesn't even blink when she mentions the sip of wine.
Brick has joined prairie scouts and promises that he won't quit this time. But the first leader is crazy, wanting to take the kids out to the middle of the woods and get lost. Mike is scared so he ends up taking over the troop and takes them camping. The kids are all the other kids from Brick's special class so throughout the night, Mike takes each one of them home, one because his white socks touched the ground, another talks super loud and yet another believes himself to be a cat. But Brick stays there throughout the night. He proved his father wrong; he is not a quitter.
Axl and his band get a paying gig. A super lame gig, but a gig nevertheless. However, Sue gets in the way, wanting to change the name of the band to DaSeanAx, combining all of their names instead of the former, Axl and the Axmen. Axl decides to quit the band because he just can't take the name change and Sue is Yokoing up the band, even though Sean is fine with it. Darrin (John Gammon) and Axl have a talk and Darrin is on Sue's side, saying that Axl is super mean to her and she has a lot to offer. Then they get into a fight. When Sue tries to stop it, Darrin, about ready to punch Axl, accidentally punches Sue. It was horrifying but sadly hilarious. Sue does forgive him but says that Darrin and Axl have been friends forever and she doesn't want to come between them so she breaks up with him. She feels horrible because she's never done that before. Darrin informs her that she's done it right as he starts to cry. He, then, says that when he and Axl were six, they made a promise that a girl would never come between them, but that promise was a lot easier to make when they were six. Sue says that this is for the best because they are busy with stuff involved in their own grades, plus Darrin's bound to meet tons of girls at Air Conditioning College. But then they kiss, odd, I know and it hurt Sue's lip. Axl is somewhat upset to hear that Darrin and Sue will just be friends now but promises Sue that he will continue to be, well, not that nice to her, but only after her lip heals. Wow, I was quite upset that they broke up. Axl doesn't realize how lucky he is to have a sister like Sue who will sacrifice love for her brother's happiness. RIP Sarrin, RIP. It was nice while it lasted. I knew that they would probably break up but I never thought it would be because of Axl. How is his relationship still lasting? Axl, you owe Sue, big time.
Overall, this was good episode, with Brick finally getting a good plot line and Frankie finally entering the work force again, which should be interesting. I hope we see more of her crazy dentist boss. I have only one question: Cassidy, what in the world do you see in Axl? Grade: A-
First of all, Frankie graduated from Technical College and is now on the hunt for a job. However, her first interview goes horribly wrong. She can't describe herself and the kids are no help, describing her as lazy, angry and tired. Unfortunately, all of these are true. She even asks her mother (helping out at Aunt Edie's) for advice. Pat (Marsha Mason) says that she didn't give birth to average people. And Frankie eats this up but at least she has confidence for her next interview (plus a sip of wine). Ted (Jack MacBrayer) is an absent-minded dentist who hates interviews but after Frankie's disastrous interview, in which she describes herself as a mom, he eats it up and hires her. He loves his mother, plus he doesn't want to talk to anyone else. Frankie even lies and says that her children are best friends. But she has the job, he doesn't even blink when she mentions the sip of wine.
Brick has joined prairie scouts and promises that he won't quit this time. But the first leader is crazy, wanting to take the kids out to the middle of the woods and get lost. Mike is scared so he ends up taking over the troop and takes them camping. The kids are all the other kids from Brick's special class so throughout the night, Mike takes each one of them home, one because his white socks touched the ground, another talks super loud and yet another believes himself to be a cat. But Brick stays there throughout the night. He proved his father wrong; he is not a quitter.
Axl and his band get a paying gig. A super lame gig, but a gig nevertheless. However, Sue gets in the way, wanting to change the name of the band to DaSeanAx, combining all of their names instead of the former, Axl and the Axmen. Axl decides to quit the band because he just can't take the name change and Sue is Yokoing up the band, even though Sean is fine with it. Darrin (John Gammon) and Axl have a talk and Darrin is on Sue's side, saying that Axl is super mean to her and she has a lot to offer. Then they get into a fight. When Sue tries to stop it, Darrin, about ready to punch Axl, accidentally punches Sue. It was horrifying but sadly hilarious. Sue does forgive him but says that Darrin and Axl have been friends forever and she doesn't want to come between them so she breaks up with him. She feels horrible because she's never done that before. Darrin informs her that she's done it right as he starts to cry. He, then, says that when he and Axl were six, they made a promise that a girl would never come between them, but that promise was a lot easier to make when they were six. Sue says that this is for the best because they are busy with stuff involved in their own grades, plus Darrin's bound to meet tons of girls at Air Conditioning College. But then they kiss, odd, I know and it hurt Sue's lip. Axl is somewhat upset to hear that Darrin and Sue will just be friends now but promises Sue that he will continue to be, well, not that nice to her, but only after her lip heals. Wow, I was quite upset that they broke up. Axl doesn't realize how lucky he is to have a sister like Sue who will sacrifice love for her brother's happiness. RIP Sarrin, RIP. It was nice while it lasted. I knew that they would probably break up but I never thought it would be because of Axl. How is his relationship still lasting? Axl, you owe Sue, big time.
Overall, this was good episode, with Brick finally getting a good plot line and Frankie finally entering the work force again, which should be interesting. I hope we see more of her crazy dentist boss. I have only one question: Cassidy, what in the world do you see in Axl? Grade: A-
Thursday, April 4, 2013
JFK (1991)
First of all, RIP Roger Ebert, you will be sorely missed. But today I watched one of your favorite films in my film class. Now to be fair, I missed the first twenty minutes or so of this film, but because the film is over three hours long, that is not too much in the long run.
This film deals with reopening the Kennedy assassination to prove that it was, in fact, a conspiracy. Jim Garrison (Kevin Costner, in one of his best performances) is a district attorney in Lousiana and he decides to re-open the case, and sends the vast majority of the film gathering information and interviewing witnesses. He and his team are trying to prove that there is no way that Lee Harvey Oswald (Gary Oldman, perfect) could have acted alone. The conspiracy is so much more than Garrison ever thought. It is about the Vietnam War and how Kennedy wanted to remove troops from the country, but others didn't want that. When Garrison even goes to Washington, his version of Deep Throat, X (Donald Sutherland) arrives and tells him how deep the cover-up really is. And there is tons of cover-up, like how Kennedy's body was taken back to Washington for the autopsy but even there how the doctor was told to stop figuring out all the paths the bullets took in his body. Even witnesses testimony is tainted, with them being told that they never saw smoke coming from the other side of Dealey Plaza. The facts also just don't add up, with it being impossible for Oswald to have made the three shots, aimed perfectly in just under six seconds. And the three bullets could have never made all the wounds on the bodies of Kennedy and Texas Governor Connally. This is a great scene because Garrison references the former (and late) Pennsylvania senator, Arlen Spector, who created the magic bullet theory which Garrison dismisses as being crap.When Garrison goes onto an evening talk show, and tries to show the public some photographs, he is censored. The Zapruder film is shown at the trial for the first time. I have seen this footage serious times before. Even Robert Kennedy's assassination is part of the cover-up and an event that Garrison predicts. His own life is even in danger at times.
Garrison uncovers some crazy stories, including the homosexually of Clay Shaw (Tommy Lee Jones) who is supposedly behind everything. (It is later revealed that he was part of the CIA.) Willie . O'Keefe (Kevin Bacon) was paid to have sex with Shaw. Joe Pesci portrays another piece of the puzzle into the idea of assassinating the president, but he is later found dead in an apparent suicide. Pesci should have received the Oscar nomination, not Jones. Sissy Spacek is great as the suffering wife of Garrison, Liz. She is struggling to care for their five children as the case consumes up more and more of her husband's time. Laurie Metcalf (Jackie from Roseanne and Mary Cooper from The Big Bang Theory) is the assistant district attorney. It is great seeing her in a different role. She is almost unrecognizable which is cool. Wayne Knight also appears as one of Garrison's minions. Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau also appear in small roles.
Tons of research was done and everything appears to be historically accurate. The cinematography is great and Robert Richardson fully deserved the Oscar he received.
Though the film may not be true, if it is, then that is horribly scary. How dare the public be kept in the dark about something of this magnitude? And why was Vietnam so important that they had to kill just to stay involved over there? Though this film is incredibly lengthy, it does suck you in, despite me being horribly confused at first. There also are some funny moments, like when Pesci, Bacon and Jones dress in drag for some weird reason. The accents in this film are great and Costner is loads better here than in Dances with Wolves which actually gave him an Oscar nomination for some odd reason. I have my issues with that film, but whatever. Though this film is long, I am quite interested in the Kennedy assassination so I will probably watch it again. Grade: A
This film deals with reopening the Kennedy assassination to prove that it was, in fact, a conspiracy. Jim Garrison (Kevin Costner, in one of his best performances) is a district attorney in Lousiana and he decides to re-open the case, and sends the vast majority of the film gathering information and interviewing witnesses. He and his team are trying to prove that there is no way that Lee Harvey Oswald (Gary Oldman, perfect) could have acted alone. The conspiracy is so much more than Garrison ever thought. It is about the Vietnam War and how Kennedy wanted to remove troops from the country, but others didn't want that. When Garrison even goes to Washington, his version of Deep Throat, X (Donald Sutherland) arrives and tells him how deep the cover-up really is. And there is tons of cover-up, like how Kennedy's body was taken back to Washington for the autopsy but even there how the doctor was told to stop figuring out all the paths the bullets took in his body. Even witnesses testimony is tainted, with them being told that they never saw smoke coming from the other side of Dealey Plaza. The facts also just don't add up, with it being impossible for Oswald to have made the three shots, aimed perfectly in just under six seconds. And the three bullets could have never made all the wounds on the bodies of Kennedy and Texas Governor Connally. This is a great scene because Garrison references the former (and late) Pennsylvania senator, Arlen Spector, who created the magic bullet theory which Garrison dismisses as being crap.When Garrison goes onto an evening talk show, and tries to show the public some photographs, he is censored. The Zapruder film is shown at the trial for the first time. I have seen this footage serious times before. Even Robert Kennedy's assassination is part of the cover-up and an event that Garrison predicts. His own life is even in danger at times.
Garrison uncovers some crazy stories, including the homosexually of Clay Shaw (Tommy Lee Jones) who is supposedly behind everything. (It is later revealed that he was part of the CIA.) Willie . O'Keefe (Kevin Bacon) was paid to have sex with Shaw. Joe Pesci portrays another piece of the puzzle into the idea of assassinating the president, but he is later found dead in an apparent suicide. Pesci should have received the Oscar nomination, not Jones. Sissy Spacek is great as the suffering wife of Garrison, Liz. She is struggling to care for their five children as the case consumes up more and more of her husband's time. Laurie Metcalf (Jackie from Roseanne and Mary Cooper from The Big Bang Theory) is the assistant district attorney. It is great seeing her in a different role. She is almost unrecognizable which is cool. Wayne Knight also appears as one of Garrison's minions. Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau also appear in small roles.
Tons of research was done and everything appears to be historically accurate. The cinematography is great and Robert Richardson fully deserved the Oscar he received.
Though the film may not be true, if it is, then that is horribly scary. How dare the public be kept in the dark about something of this magnitude? And why was Vietnam so important that they had to kill just to stay involved over there? Though this film is incredibly lengthy, it does suck you in, despite me being horribly confused at first. There also are some funny moments, like when Pesci, Bacon and Jones dress in drag for some weird reason. The accents in this film are great and Costner is loads better here than in Dances with Wolves which actually gave him an Oscar nomination for some odd reason. I have my issues with that film, but whatever. Though this film is long, I am quite interested in the Kennedy assassination so I will probably watch it again. Grade: A
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
The Middle: The Bachelor
Frankie, I can totally relate to you. See last week's post, I was upset for days. But now, I can look at Cassidy without wanting to smash her face in. But Axl, you need to grow up, right now. One step forward and two steps back, Axl. After last week's episode, I expected better.
Things seem to be going well for Sue. In addition to having an awesome boyfriend who really does care about her (he later tells Frankie that he only has eyes for Sue, which completely grosses Axl out because Darrin is not supposed to say Sue's name in front of Axl), she accidentally makes the tennis team. She doesn't do well, though Mike tries his darnedest to make her better but she can't help from complementing her opponents. She is just so sweet and doesn't care that she is losing all her matches. It embarrasses Mike, so he tries to toughen her up. But this fails because, in her own words, "I don't have anger inside me". But it finally works to her advantage (as I predicted); her opponent can't take the constant love and loses the match. Finally, the words that have never been spoken before via Frankie's narration, "Sue Heck wins." She is happy and so is Mike.
In the meantime, Frankie is obsessed with the TV show, The Bachelor and is sort of like me when I'm watching The Middle, though I'm not that bad. Frankie signs Axl's test that he received a D on (come on, Axl, you're with Cassidy now, you should try and do better), let Sue stay out past her curfew to make out with Darrin in his car (I could totally see Axl doing something like that, but Sue? Never.) and Brick had to pay full price for a lost library book, which is totally believable. But Blake picks Kendall over Alyssa and Frankie is devastated and mops around the house for days. Finally, Brick talks to her about the show and he tells her that it was probably for the best because Alyssa wanted children while Blake didn't so it was better that he broke her heart now rather than later. This is able to relieve Frankie and she can finally get some sleep.
Now to Cassil (Cassidy and Axl) or as Sean calls them: Caxl, but whatever. They have a fight, though Cliff and Cassidy holding hands meant nothing to her and she scolded him for it later. Then Axl, trying to follow Darrin's advice of singing his feelings, but it completely backfires when the sparklers nearly set her house on fire, just as my friend predicted. Then, in chemistry class, they try talking, which doesn't go well because they don't really talk well together. Cassidy thinks Axl needs to think things through (which he doesn't do) and his excuse is that when he likes someone, he just acts. Later, in a horribly awkward scene, Axl thumb wrestles with one of his ex-girlfriends while Cassidy rolls her eyes in the background. Luckily, in the end, Cassidy stands outside Axl's window with two much smaller sparklers. He comes out and she starts to sing Bruno Mars's Just the Way You Are (which has already been done in Glee) and then they kiss, because Cassidy realizes that when you love someone, you don't always think.
I did think that they were going to break up as did my friends but they didn't and I'm happy for the moment because it was such a sweet moment and I'm a sucker for the happy romantic ending. So I'm back on the Cassil bandwagon for a little while, but I won't try and predict things anymore because I'm always wrong. Which might be a good thing.
This was a good episode though Frankie is crazy and takes shows way too seriously. I'm also pretty bad, but I have to get out of bed each morning. I liked how Brick also watched the show with her. His best line? Axl has a gift. For making salad because that is something he and Cassidy did together. Still, everything worked out which is wonderful. The only problem with this episode? It could have used more Sarrin because they are equally as cute as Cassil. I wonder what will happen to both in the future. Grade: A-
Things seem to be going well for Sue. In addition to having an awesome boyfriend who really does care about her (he later tells Frankie that he only has eyes for Sue, which completely grosses Axl out because Darrin is not supposed to say Sue's name in front of Axl), she accidentally makes the tennis team. She doesn't do well, though Mike tries his darnedest to make her better but she can't help from complementing her opponents. She is just so sweet and doesn't care that she is losing all her matches. It embarrasses Mike, so he tries to toughen her up. But this fails because, in her own words, "I don't have anger inside me". But it finally works to her advantage (as I predicted); her opponent can't take the constant love and loses the match. Finally, the words that have never been spoken before via Frankie's narration, "Sue Heck wins." She is happy and so is Mike.
In the meantime, Frankie is obsessed with the TV show, The Bachelor and is sort of like me when I'm watching The Middle, though I'm not that bad. Frankie signs Axl's test that he received a D on (come on, Axl, you're with Cassidy now, you should try and do better), let Sue stay out past her curfew to make out with Darrin in his car (I could totally see Axl doing something like that, but Sue? Never.) and Brick had to pay full price for a lost library book, which is totally believable. But Blake picks Kendall over Alyssa and Frankie is devastated and mops around the house for days. Finally, Brick talks to her about the show and he tells her that it was probably for the best because Alyssa wanted children while Blake didn't so it was better that he broke her heart now rather than later. This is able to relieve Frankie and she can finally get some sleep.
Now to Cassil (Cassidy and Axl) or as Sean calls them: Caxl, but whatever. They have a fight, though Cliff and Cassidy holding hands meant nothing to her and she scolded him for it later. Then Axl, trying to follow Darrin's advice of singing his feelings, but it completely backfires when the sparklers nearly set her house on fire, just as my friend predicted. Then, in chemistry class, they try talking, which doesn't go well because they don't really talk well together. Cassidy thinks Axl needs to think things through (which he doesn't do) and his excuse is that when he likes someone, he just acts. Later, in a horribly awkward scene, Axl thumb wrestles with one of his ex-girlfriends while Cassidy rolls her eyes in the background. Luckily, in the end, Cassidy stands outside Axl's window with two much smaller sparklers. He comes out and she starts to sing Bruno Mars's Just the Way You Are (which has already been done in Glee) and then they kiss, because Cassidy realizes that when you love someone, you don't always think.
I did think that they were going to break up as did my friends but they didn't and I'm happy for the moment because it was such a sweet moment and I'm a sucker for the happy romantic ending. So I'm back on the Cassil bandwagon for a little while, but I won't try and predict things anymore because I'm always wrong. Which might be a good thing.
This was a good episode though Frankie is crazy and takes shows way too seriously. I'm also pretty bad, but I have to get out of bed each morning. I liked how Brick also watched the show with her. His best line? Axl has a gift. For making salad because that is something he and Cassidy did together. Still, everything worked out which is wonderful. The only problem with this episode? It could have used more Sarrin because they are equally as cute as Cassil. I wonder what will happen to both in the future. Grade: A-
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