I'm not a fan of Star Trek, thus it doesn't matter if this film is not the Star Trek I remember, because I haven't seen any Star Trek before this new series.
The new film begins with a bang, almost literally. James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) is still captain of the starship Enterpise away on his mission of gathering information. However, the planet that they are currently exploring is about to be destroyed, by a volcano about to erupt. In order to stop this, Spock (Zachary Quinto, great) down to stop the explosion. However, his harness breaks and he prepares to die not wanting Kirk to break protocol to save his life. Kirk emerges on the Enterprise out of the water, exposing themselves to the native people who are later described as barely even able to invent the wheel just to save him. Kirk doesn't put this break of procedure down in his report though Spock does. Kirk is punished for this and is demoted to first officer instead.
Then an even bigger crisis arises. A man in London has a dying daughter and makes a deal with the devil to save her. He blows up his work office only after sending a message to alert others. Captains and their first officers gather to discuss what should be done concerning this evil John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch). Only Kirk realizes that this is a problem and he is right. The conference is attacked and his mentor and beloved friend, Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) is killed. Kirk vows revenge so he assemblies his crew to journey to Harrison's hold-out to destroy him.
Despite being angry at Spock, he still reappoints Spock as his first officer. Their ship is disabled on the edge of enemy territory and from there, Spock, Kirk and Uhura (Zoe Saldana) leave the ship to try and negotiate peace with Harrison, though that doesn't work out well. Instead, the natives attack and Harrison ends up saving their lives. Perhaps there is more to him than it seems.
You'd be right. Harrison's true identity is Khan and the starfleet commander, Marcus (RoboCop's Peter Weller) is the actual evil guy. Khan was originally assigned a peace mission but he and his crew have been under a deep freeze for the past three hundred years. Khan will do anything to save his crew, whose bodies remain in the deep freeze loaded into specially designed missiles.
Briefly, Kirk and Khan join forces to attack Marcus, who is truly evil. Even his own daughter, Carol (Alice Eve) who sneaked herself onto the ship is ashamed to call him her father. However, Khan also has his own agenda. He is brilliant but extremely evil. He literally smashes Marcus's head with his hands.
Despite the bargain he made with Spock to whom Kirk appointed the ship, he turns on them and proceeds to destroy the Enterprise. To remedy the problem, Kirk dies after fixing the inner radiation power source. The scene is touching and heart felt. Spock, despite being half vulcan and unable to show emotions, cries at losing his best friend. I was shocked that they actually killed him off.
This leads to an epic fight scene between Spock and Khan and Spock is furious. It is only because Uhura comes down and stops him that he does not actually kill him. Khan's blood has magical healing powers and thus Kirk is able to come back to life. Khan is, like his crew, in the deep freeze and Kirk is back to being captain of the Enterprise, this time maybe they'll actually be able to explore and gather information.
The film is fantastic with several funny lines and great emotional scenes mixed in with tons of action. The characters are once again, excellent, and return in fine form. Bones (Karl Urban) is great as the ship's doctor who saves Kirk's life. The engineer Scott (Simon Pegg) even resigns because he doesn't know what's in the missiles, but he comes through, allowing Khan and Kirk to have access to Marcus's enemy ship which he especially designed to destroy Khan so he can be saved. John Cho and Anton Yelchin also reprise their roles as the pilot Sulu and navigator Chekov respectfully and once again do great work. The film wouldn't be the same without them, so I'm grateful for their presence.
Human relationships are even somewhat explored in this film, with the interesting relationship between Spock and Uhura. She gets mad at him when he is ready to die inside the volcano and is unwilling to let Kirk break protocol. But they manage to work things out, though I do wish at the end, something more would have happened between the two of them. But if that is my main problem with the film, which it is, then there aren't many issues with the film at all. And who will end up with Carol? Bones or Kirk? It doesn't matter; that's for the next film which hopefully will be released sooner than four years from now.
The editing is flawless with great special effects and serious issues are discussed in more honestly than the majority of independent films. This is great film, with excellent acting and devilish facial expressions courtesy of Cumberbatch and the death scene is truly devastating, causing even me to cry. This film is even better than the first. Grade: A
Monday, May 27, 2013
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Star Trek (2009)
Warning: I am not really into Star Trek and everything involved with it, but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy the film, but it was probably more confusing to me than a trekkie.
The film begins with Nero (an unrecognizable Eric Bana) destroying a starship. This kills George Kirk (Chris Hemsworth) but saves the very pregnant Jennifer Morrison who gives birth just minutes before her husband, George, dies, after naming his son and professing his love to his wife.
Fast forward thirteen years later, James T. Kirk is wild and crazy. Meanwhile, on an entirely different planet, Spock suffers from teasing as he is half vulcan, half human, but brilliant.
The film then flashes forward again, as Spock (now Zachary Quinto) is accepted into a prized Vulcan Academy, despite his severe disadvantage, being half human. He takes this as an insult and refuses his acceptance there, instead opting to attend the Starfleet Academy.
James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) has also grown up, and tries to pick up a lady at the bar, though that doesn't exactly work out, but he does meet Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) who encourages him to come and join the academy. He does, cocky as ever. It won't take him four years to get through the program, only three.
On the ship he meets Dr. Leonard McCoy (Karl Urban) who has some great lines. The lady at the bar, Uhura (Zoe Saldana) is also on board.
Kirk excels and even manages to beat an unbeatable program established by Spock, but he cheated. Before Tyler Perry can kick him out of the school, an evacuation must occur, and McCoy sneaks Kirk onto the Enterprise.
Pike goes to compromise with the Romulans, and is tortured in their attempts to gain information, including being forced to swallow a nasty bug, causing the audience to flinch. Spock is now captain of the ship but has to go through some difficult events including watching his home planet be destroyed by the Romulans nasty red matter, which creates a black hole. His mother (Winona Ryder) dies, causing Spock to become emotionally compromised though he doesn't know it yet.
Spock announces his decision but Kirk doesn't agree with it, so Kirk is banished from the ship which is where the film gets weird and starts to become even more ripped off from Star Wars than it already had. Kirk is on an ice and snow covered planet with some nasty animals coming after him but the elderly Spock (the one and only Leonard Nimoy), from the future comes to rescue him.
Kirk learns some information that future Spock should have never revealed but he reaches his destiny. The romulan planet and nasty ship with the horrendous red matter is destroyed and Kirk is captain of the Enterprise.
The characters are the interesting parts of the film. There is the pilot of the Enterprise (John Cho), who fences and saves Kirk's life. Chekov (Anton Yelchin) is the young but brilliant mathematical prodigy who also has the save the life of both Kirk and Sulu (Cho). Simon Pegg is great as Montgomery Scott, who helps send Kirk back to the Enterprise, coming along for the ride. Also of note is the odd love story between Uhura and Spock. At one point Spock has to leave the ship with Kirk to attack the Romulans and wishes her farewell. Her responce? "I'll be monitoring your frequencies." Never before has that line sounded sexier.
In the end, Spock is more human than he wants to admit as he does have emotions. Kirk also needs others more than he wants to admit.
The special effects, sound and score are great, though some parts of the film do lag a bit, but overall, the film is an enjoyable experience, though the plot, with the time travel and everything is rather confusing. Fortunately some great characters come along for the ride. Grade: A-
The film begins with Nero (an unrecognizable Eric Bana) destroying a starship. This kills George Kirk (Chris Hemsworth) but saves the very pregnant Jennifer Morrison who gives birth just minutes before her husband, George, dies, after naming his son and professing his love to his wife.
Fast forward thirteen years later, James T. Kirk is wild and crazy. Meanwhile, on an entirely different planet, Spock suffers from teasing as he is half vulcan, half human, but brilliant.
The film then flashes forward again, as Spock (now Zachary Quinto) is accepted into a prized Vulcan Academy, despite his severe disadvantage, being half human. He takes this as an insult and refuses his acceptance there, instead opting to attend the Starfleet Academy.
James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) has also grown up, and tries to pick up a lady at the bar, though that doesn't exactly work out, but he does meet Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood) who encourages him to come and join the academy. He does, cocky as ever. It won't take him four years to get through the program, only three.
On the ship he meets Dr. Leonard McCoy (Karl Urban) who has some great lines. The lady at the bar, Uhura (Zoe Saldana) is also on board.
Kirk excels and even manages to beat an unbeatable program established by Spock, but he cheated. Before Tyler Perry can kick him out of the school, an evacuation must occur, and McCoy sneaks Kirk onto the Enterprise.
Pike goes to compromise with the Romulans, and is tortured in their attempts to gain information, including being forced to swallow a nasty bug, causing the audience to flinch. Spock is now captain of the ship but has to go through some difficult events including watching his home planet be destroyed by the Romulans nasty red matter, which creates a black hole. His mother (Winona Ryder) dies, causing Spock to become emotionally compromised though he doesn't know it yet.
Spock announces his decision but Kirk doesn't agree with it, so Kirk is banished from the ship which is where the film gets weird and starts to become even more ripped off from Star Wars than it already had. Kirk is on an ice and snow covered planet with some nasty animals coming after him but the elderly Spock (the one and only Leonard Nimoy), from the future comes to rescue him.
Kirk learns some information that future Spock should have never revealed but he reaches his destiny. The romulan planet and nasty ship with the horrendous red matter is destroyed and Kirk is captain of the Enterprise.
The characters are the interesting parts of the film. There is the pilot of the Enterprise (John Cho), who fences and saves Kirk's life. Chekov (Anton Yelchin) is the young but brilliant mathematical prodigy who also has the save the life of both Kirk and Sulu (Cho). Simon Pegg is great as Montgomery Scott, who helps send Kirk back to the Enterprise, coming along for the ride. Also of note is the odd love story between Uhura and Spock. At one point Spock has to leave the ship with Kirk to attack the Romulans and wishes her farewell. Her responce? "I'll be monitoring your frequencies." Never before has that line sounded sexier.
In the end, Spock is more human than he wants to admit as he does have emotions. Kirk also needs others more than he wants to admit.
The special effects, sound and score are great, though some parts of the film do lag a bit, but overall, the film is an enjoyable experience, though the plot, with the time travel and everything is rather confusing. Fortunately some great characters come along for the ride. Grade: A-
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Nashville, Season One Finale
This was a totally crazy season, from Juliet (the great Hayden Panettiere) stealing a bottle of nail polish and a person catching the act on their I-Phone, to marrying the Christian football player and almost immediate annulment of that union to bedding her mother's sober companion, Dante (Jay Hernandez) before his ultimate betrayal.
Rayna (Connie Britton) learned the truth about her husband's past, embezzling money to cover his butt. He then left her for his former flame, the married and vulnerable Peggy Kenter (Kimberly Williams-Paisley). I'll get to more of that later. She enjoyed a fling with her new producer, the kind and understanding Liam (Michael Huisman) before attempting a relationship with her former long-term lover and biological father of her eldest daughter, Deacon (Charles Esten, great).
Scarlett (Clare Bowen), Deacon's niece, went from being an unknown waitress, to being signed to Rayna James's label, with a recording contract and everything. She also dumped Avery (an under and improperly used Jonathan Jackson) and began dating Gunnar (Sam Palladio).
Teddy (Eric Close), Rayna's soon-to-be ex-husband, opted to run for mayor despite his father-in-law pulling all the strings. Nevertheless, he won the election, despite blackmailing the competition, Coleman (Robert Wisdom), a friend of Rayna's and Deacon's sponsor when he got sober thirteen years before the series began.
To Lamar, Rayna's father. Lamar (Powers Boothe) managed to get his son-in-law elected mayor, desperate to get a baseball stadium built in the city. Then he suffered a heart attack, but survived. I haven't decided how I feel about that yet.
Avery also got out of his restrictive contract but now is a struggling roadie whom Juliette tried to bed, depressed and drunk after Dante blackmailed her with a sex tape of them.
Now to the finale: Maddie (Lennon Stella) approaches Deacon and informs him that she believes he is her biological father. The reason she found this out? She went into her parents' closet and sorted through their box of secret papers. Certainly they should have kept them in a locked box somewhere else. Deacon cannot believe that Rayna lied to him everyday for the past thirteen years. This revelation drives him to return to drinking. The scene where Coleman, Scarlett and Gunnar try to get him sober is especially sensational and intense. He recovers only to sneak drinks from a bottle in the bathroom. Surely Coleman would have swept the house clean while Deacon was sleeping. He is about to drive home from Juliette's mother's memorial service, but Rayna won't let him. Instead she drives home during the final montage, yelling at him throughout the drive, only to lose her focus and get into a car crash.
Juliette's mother (Sylvia Jeffries) overdosed after killing the blackmailing Dante so her daughter's image wouldn't be ruined. Though Juliette has been waiting for this for years, she is nevertheless devastated and massive props to Hayden, who can cry at the drop of a hat. Maybe an Emmy nomination is in her future after all.
Scarlett and Gunnar are having a rocky patch in their relationship. They were ultimately brought together by his brother's death, but then Gunnar stole his brother's songs and macho image which increased his popularity. Scarlett didn't like this, so Gunnar moved in to their upstairs' neighbor's place. Will (Chris Carmack) is determined to be the next big thing and certainly has the balls to get himself there. However, he struggles with his sexuality, not sure whether he likes boys or girls. He does like being on stage. His part was the best part of the finale, during the final montage, his arm around a pretty girl, shaking his head at an attractive man walking over to him. Okay, back to Gunnar and Scarlett. He proposes to her. Yes, that's right, he pops the question. We don't know her answer, but she can't say yes; their relationship is too new and they have fights, plus he still needs to recover from his brother's death.
Teddy thought his sordid past was behind him. Wrong, he will have to face the consequences next season and Peggy was offered immunity but she told the investigators nothing. She's pregnant, probably with Teddy's child. I was surprised by this. I think making either Juliette or Scarlett pregnant would be much more realistic. But whatever. Also interesting enough, Peggy was the one who alerted the press to his divorce from Rayna, which is not a nice thing to do.
Lamar promoted a guy over his other daughter, Tandy (Judith Hoag, also quite good) and she promptly quits his business, as he can only get along with one daughter at a time, which is sad but painfully true. She is approached by the bad guys at the end about the incident. She will probably turn in her father to them.
I think I covered everything, hopefully, as this show is horribly complicated. I wanted to like this show, I really did and despite the winning performances, I feel that they should cut some plot lines out and use some characters differently, like Teddy. At times, he's great, other times, he's unbearable. Also, I feel that Connie Britton can and should be better, considering she was fantastic in Friday Night Lights, a show which I just started watching but was instantly hooked to. You'll be able to read my blogs about that later. Thank goodness for Hayden, sure her character is awful, but I don't feel sorry for her. Yes, she grew up with a drug-addicted mother, but you need to be nice to people. You really do. Still, she didn't deserve to be blackmailed by that nasty Dante, in a move that I didn't see coming.
Despite my problems, especially the awful montage at the end, this show has promise and includes some great songs, and I will continue watching it next season. Season: B, Finale: B
Rayna (Connie Britton) learned the truth about her husband's past, embezzling money to cover his butt. He then left her for his former flame, the married and vulnerable Peggy Kenter (Kimberly Williams-Paisley). I'll get to more of that later. She enjoyed a fling with her new producer, the kind and understanding Liam (Michael Huisman) before attempting a relationship with her former long-term lover and biological father of her eldest daughter, Deacon (Charles Esten, great).
Scarlett (Clare Bowen), Deacon's niece, went from being an unknown waitress, to being signed to Rayna James's label, with a recording contract and everything. She also dumped Avery (an under and improperly used Jonathan Jackson) and began dating Gunnar (Sam Palladio).
Teddy (Eric Close), Rayna's soon-to-be ex-husband, opted to run for mayor despite his father-in-law pulling all the strings. Nevertheless, he won the election, despite blackmailing the competition, Coleman (Robert Wisdom), a friend of Rayna's and Deacon's sponsor when he got sober thirteen years before the series began.
To Lamar, Rayna's father. Lamar (Powers Boothe) managed to get his son-in-law elected mayor, desperate to get a baseball stadium built in the city. Then he suffered a heart attack, but survived. I haven't decided how I feel about that yet.
Avery also got out of his restrictive contract but now is a struggling roadie whom Juliette tried to bed, depressed and drunk after Dante blackmailed her with a sex tape of them.
Now to the finale: Maddie (Lennon Stella) approaches Deacon and informs him that she believes he is her biological father. The reason she found this out? She went into her parents' closet and sorted through their box of secret papers. Certainly they should have kept them in a locked box somewhere else. Deacon cannot believe that Rayna lied to him everyday for the past thirteen years. This revelation drives him to return to drinking. The scene where Coleman, Scarlett and Gunnar try to get him sober is especially sensational and intense. He recovers only to sneak drinks from a bottle in the bathroom. Surely Coleman would have swept the house clean while Deacon was sleeping. He is about to drive home from Juliette's mother's memorial service, but Rayna won't let him. Instead she drives home during the final montage, yelling at him throughout the drive, only to lose her focus and get into a car crash.
Juliette's mother (Sylvia Jeffries) overdosed after killing the blackmailing Dante so her daughter's image wouldn't be ruined. Though Juliette has been waiting for this for years, she is nevertheless devastated and massive props to Hayden, who can cry at the drop of a hat. Maybe an Emmy nomination is in her future after all.
Scarlett and Gunnar are having a rocky patch in their relationship. They were ultimately brought together by his brother's death, but then Gunnar stole his brother's songs and macho image which increased his popularity. Scarlett didn't like this, so Gunnar moved in to their upstairs' neighbor's place. Will (Chris Carmack) is determined to be the next big thing and certainly has the balls to get himself there. However, he struggles with his sexuality, not sure whether he likes boys or girls. He does like being on stage. His part was the best part of the finale, during the final montage, his arm around a pretty girl, shaking his head at an attractive man walking over to him. Okay, back to Gunnar and Scarlett. He proposes to her. Yes, that's right, he pops the question. We don't know her answer, but she can't say yes; their relationship is too new and they have fights, plus he still needs to recover from his brother's death.
Teddy thought his sordid past was behind him. Wrong, he will have to face the consequences next season and Peggy was offered immunity but she told the investigators nothing. She's pregnant, probably with Teddy's child. I was surprised by this. I think making either Juliette or Scarlett pregnant would be much more realistic. But whatever. Also interesting enough, Peggy was the one who alerted the press to his divorce from Rayna, which is not a nice thing to do.
Lamar promoted a guy over his other daughter, Tandy (Judith Hoag, also quite good) and she promptly quits his business, as he can only get along with one daughter at a time, which is sad but painfully true. She is approached by the bad guys at the end about the incident. She will probably turn in her father to them.
I think I covered everything, hopefully, as this show is horribly complicated. I wanted to like this show, I really did and despite the winning performances, I feel that they should cut some plot lines out and use some characters differently, like Teddy. At times, he's great, other times, he's unbearable. Also, I feel that Connie Britton can and should be better, considering she was fantastic in Friday Night Lights, a show which I just started watching but was instantly hooked to. You'll be able to read my blogs about that later. Thank goodness for Hayden, sure her character is awful, but I don't feel sorry for her. Yes, she grew up with a drug-addicted mother, but you need to be nice to people. You really do. Still, she didn't deserve to be blackmailed by that nasty Dante, in a move that I didn't see coming.
Despite my problems, especially the awful montage at the end, this show has promise and includes some great songs, and I will continue watching it next season. Season: B, Finale: B
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Modern Family: Season Four Finale
This season was rather uneven, though tons of stuff happened from Gloria (Sofia Vergara) announcing her pregnancy to having Phil (the great Ty Burrell) and Claire (Julie Bowen) as godparents to attending the funeral of Phil's mother.
Here, they attend Phil's mother's funeral and have to deal with her odd request, of setting Phil's father (Fred Willard) up with another woman. That doesn't go well, as a man shows up at her door. It turns out to only be her brother, so the door remains open for them to get together.
Cam (Eric Stonestreet) deals with some crazy women who cheat at board games, steal cookies and put alcohol in their drinks. Gloria is a wanted woman solely because after she moved out of her apartment, her roommate turned it into a place of prostitution so Mitch (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) defends her and decides that he wants to get back into the courtroom, considering the funeral couldn't have come at a better time as he was so sick of work. Though the judge is tough, Mitch annoys her so much, she lets everyone off with a mere warning just so she can't hear any more of his banter.
Jay (Ed O'Neill) meets up with an older woman who was his first, but she doesn't remember him considering she had sex with so many other young boys.
Alex (Ariel Winter) deals with receiving a lighter and wonders why, until she reads the full note. The lighter belonged to yes, Paul Newman. That was the best moment of the episode.
The other kids, including Haley (Sarah Hyland, nominated for some reason for a Critics' Choice Award), Luke (Nolan Gould) and Manny (Rico Rodriguez). Notably absent were Lily (Aubrey Anderson-Emmons) and the baby Joe. That always bothers me, but whatever.
I thought the season started off great, with Gloria's pregnancy, sending Haley off to college and other crazy plot lines, including letting Cam go back to work. Then Haley got kicked out of college for underage drinking among other things, and we learned that Gloria had secretly stolen her younger sister's life, which was quite a shocker.
What I don't understand is why this is the show that gets all the praise when the acting is only decent though the dialogue is great, I find it unrealistic. I will still probably continue watching the show though I quite frankly don't really care about the characters, finding basically all of them annoying. Still it will be nice to see Mitch back in the courtroom and Claire finally out of the house. They need to give Haley something to do other than just a few odd jobs and whatnot. Season: B, Finale: B
Here, they attend Phil's mother's funeral and have to deal with her odd request, of setting Phil's father (Fred Willard) up with another woman. That doesn't go well, as a man shows up at her door. It turns out to only be her brother, so the door remains open for them to get together.
Cam (Eric Stonestreet) deals with some crazy women who cheat at board games, steal cookies and put alcohol in their drinks. Gloria is a wanted woman solely because after she moved out of her apartment, her roommate turned it into a place of prostitution so Mitch (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) defends her and decides that he wants to get back into the courtroom, considering the funeral couldn't have come at a better time as he was so sick of work. Though the judge is tough, Mitch annoys her so much, she lets everyone off with a mere warning just so she can't hear any more of his banter.
Jay (Ed O'Neill) meets up with an older woman who was his first, but she doesn't remember him considering she had sex with so many other young boys.
Alex (Ariel Winter) deals with receiving a lighter and wonders why, until she reads the full note. The lighter belonged to yes, Paul Newman. That was the best moment of the episode.
The other kids, including Haley (Sarah Hyland, nominated for some reason for a Critics' Choice Award), Luke (Nolan Gould) and Manny (Rico Rodriguez). Notably absent were Lily (Aubrey Anderson-Emmons) and the baby Joe. That always bothers me, but whatever.
I thought the season started off great, with Gloria's pregnancy, sending Haley off to college and other crazy plot lines, including letting Cam go back to work. Then Haley got kicked out of college for underage drinking among other things, and we learned that Gloria had secretly stolen her younger sister's life, which was quite a shocker.
What I don't understand is why this is the show that gets all the praise when the acting is only decent though the dialogue is great, I find it unrealistic. I will still probably continue watching the show though I quite frankly don't really care about the characters, finding basically all of them annoying. Still it will be nice to see Mitch back in the courtroom and Claire finally out of the house. They need to give Haley something to do other than just a few odd jobs and whatnot. Season: B, Finale: B
The Middle: The Graduation, Season Four Finale
First off, Congratulations for being nominated for Best Comedy by the Critics, over Modern Family I might add, which is just fantastic. Eden Sher was also nominated for Best Supporting Actress, so congrats for her as well. Snubbed? Charlie McDermott gets my vote, considering his character has truly been interesting this season and has grown up slightly, and it's about time.
Well, as for tonight's episode, they ended the season with a bang, and probably the funniest episode of the season.
Sue prepares to wish her bus buddies good-bye as she prepares to pass her driver's test on her sixth try. They are annoyed with her and instead of signing her yearbook, they paste a peanut butter sandwich in the middle instead. Sue is fully prepared to ace her test, despite having to drive the huge church bus. The instructors rock, paper, scissors to see who gets to test her, but this time, she knows the test by heart and nothing is going to stop her, not smoke, a mattress or a smoothie sprayed across her windshield. The instructor begs her to pull over, as he has children. But she refuses, and passes the test, as it was one of the finest pieces of driving her instructor had ever seen. She is thrilled and launches into her crazy dance. She got her happy ending, I suppose. Sher shows why she was nominated for that award.
As for Brick, he forgot that he was elected class historian (and to collect all his stuff from the lost and found, so of course, he has no pictures from any of the fun trips his class has taken over the past four years (never mind the pictures he took in Chicago). His vice principal (Marion Ross, from Happy Days) wants it to be perfect and Frankie won't help him. He urges his audience to close their eyes and imagine everything. Though the class mostly likes it, the vice principal is furious so Brick won't have a smooth transition to Middle School.
Now to the main plot: Axl's graduation. Yes, he does graduate, despite missing thirty-two days of school. He is giving Frankie hell though for the majority of the episode. He doesn't answer any of her questions about his graduation party. He doesn't come home from Darrin's party when he says he is, so Frankie, in her pajamas, goes to fetch him, embarrassing him, though Sean still waves to her and Darrin joins in with her awkward dancing. The fighting continues, and as the family prepares for his graduation, Axl is wearing white socks, and Frankie literally tackles him down (some great physical acting by both Heaton and McDermott) and pulls off his shoes and socks to replace the white socks with black socks. Axl runs away, getting a ride with the Donahues. Frankie is spitting mad, but still attends, and turns into a sobbing mess, not ready for her baby bird to fly the nest. She cries so much, Mike covers her face with the program. For once, you can understand why she went bat-crap crazy, considering Axl did lie to her and nearly admitted that he wanted to get to the party so he wouldn't miss the jello salad. Frankie warned him she better not find any jello on his breath. At the party, she even sniffed a kid's red solo cup, but immediately returned it to him.
Now back to the graduation, Cassidy delivers a great speech, finishing with a quote by Shel Silverstein, there are no happy endings, only happy middles and great beginnings. She and Axl share a smile, so maybe things are better there? The hopeless romantic in me wanted them to mend things better, so maybe next season? Here's to hoping.
Brick is taking pictures and Axl insists on taking the first picture with just him and Frankie, causing even me to say awww, considering he was a huge jerk for the vast majority of the episode.
Instead of giving him a party, they opt to buy him a "new" car instead. I use that term loosely, considering that car is old and a piece of junk, but as Mike said, it better have a motor for two hundred dollars. Axl drives off to visit his friends instead, while Sue drives over to Carly's house to show off her brand spanking new license.
The best line of the episode, while Frankie is forcing Axl to put on different socks in the front lawn, Mike just looks at them from the car and says that he should have built a fence around here years ago. So true Mike, but now it's too late.
Though there was no cliffhanger, I still can't wait for the next season, though I'm both excited and worried over how they will handle Axl's absence, but I can't worry about that now, considering that won't be for four more months. In the meantime, I'll savor this episode as it was a good one, though I still wish Axl would have grown up a little bit more. This was a great way to end a strong season. Season: A-, Finale: A
Well, as for tonight's episode, they ended the season with a bang, and probably the funniest episode of the season.
Sue prepares to wish her bus buddies good-bye as she prepares to pass her driver's test on her sixth try. They are annoyed with her and instead of signing her yearbook, they paste a peanut butter sandwich in the middle instead. Sue is fully prepared to ace her test, despite having to drive the huge church bus. The instructors rock, paper, scissors to see who gets to test her, but this time, she knows the test by heart and nothing is going to stop her, not smoke, a mattress or a smoothie sprayed across her windshield. The instructor begs her to pull over, as he has children. But she refuses, and passes the test, as it was one of the finest pieces of driving her instructor had ever seen. She is thrilled and launches into her crazy dance. She got her happy ending, I suppose. Sher shows why she was nominated for that award.
As for Brick, he forgot that he was elected class historian (and to collect all his stuff from the lost and found, so of course, he has no pictures from any of the fun trips his class has taken over the past four years (never mind the pictures he took in Chicago). His vice principal (Marion Ross, from Happy Days) wants it to be perfect and Frankie won't help him. He urges his audience to close their eyes and imagine everything. Though the class mostly likes it, the vice principal is furious so Brick won't have a smooth transition to Middle School.
Now to the main plot: Axl's graduation. Yes, he does graduate, despite missing thirty-two days of school. He is giving Frankie hell though for the majority of the episode. He doesn't answer any of her questions about his graduation party. He doesn't come home from Darrin's party when he says he is, so Frankie, in her pajamas, goes to fetch him, embarrassing him, though Sean still waves to her and Darrin joins in with her awkward dancing. The fighting continues, and as the family prepares for his graduation, Axl is wearing white socks, and Frankie literally tackles him down (some great physical acting by both Heaton and McDermott) and pulls off his shoes and socks to replace the white socks with black socks. Axl runs away, getting a ride with the Donahues. Frankie is spitting mad, but still attends, and turns into a sobbing mess, not ready for her baby bird to fly the nest. She cries so much, Mike covers her face with the program. For once, you can understand why she went bat-crap crazy, considering Axl did lie to her and nearly admitted that he wanted to get to the party so he wouldn't miss the jello salad. Frankie warned him she better not find any jello on his breath. At the party, she even sniffed a kid's red solo cup, but immediately returned it to him.
Now back to the graduation, Cassidy delivers a great speech, finishing with a quote by Shel Silverstein, there are no happy endings, only happy middles and great beginnings. She and Axl share a smile, so maybe things are better there? The hopeless romantic in me wanted them to mend things better, so maybe next season? Here's to hoping.
Brick is taking pictures and Axl insists on taking the first picture with just him and Frankie, causing even me to say awww, considering he was a huge jerk for the vast majority of the episode.
Instead of giving him a party, they opt to buy him a "new" car instead. I use that term loosely, considering that car is old and a piece of junk, but as Mike said, it better have a motor for two hundred dollars. Axl drives off to visit his friends instead, while Sue drives over to Carly's house to show off her brand spanking new license.
The best line of the episode, while Frankie is forcing Axl to put on different socks in the front lawn, Mike just looks at them from the car and says that he should have built a fence around here years ago. So true Mike, but now it's too late.
Though there was no cliffhanger, I still can't wait for the next season, though I'm both excited and worried over how they will handle Axl's absence, but I can't worry about that now, considering that won't be for four more months. In the meantime, I'll savor this episode as it was a good one, though I still wish Axl would have grown up a little bit more. This was a great way to end a strong season. Season: A-, Finale: A
Thursday, May 16, 2013
The Big Bang Theory: Season Six Finale
This season has been pretty strong, with only a few episodes falling short, including a recent one with the great Bob Newhart guest starring. Penny came across as way too dumb for her character and it upset me, as that could have been a great episode.
So far this season, Penny (Kaley Cuoco) and Leonard (Johnny Galecki) are still going strong, though Leonard has decided to give up on proposing to her, instead, she needs to propose to him. Bernadette (Melissa Rauch) and Howard (Simon Helberg) are still happily married, and Howard even opted to burn a letter from his father in one of the best episodes of the season. Raj (Kunal Nayyar) begins seeing Lucy (Kate Micucci) who has many social anxiety issues of her own. Raj can only talk to women under the influence of alcohol. Meanwhile, Sheldon (the great Jim Parsons) is still being his normal difficult self who needs closure at any cost. He is also enjoying his odd relationship with Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik), though their relationship is gradually, at a snail's pace, growing slightly closer together. Amy does want more, though this relationship, despite the rarely touching each other is still extremely intimate for him and that's so totally true.
The finale concerns Raj trying to get Lucy to meet his friends and Howard recommending Leonard for a job in the North Sea performing an experiment for Stephen Hawking. But this means that despite his excellent relationship with Penny, he will be leaving for several months. Penny is happy for him, though she will miss him probably more than she'll admit.
For Raj's plot. Lucy decides to meet just one of his friends, and they spend some time argue over who it should be and finally, Raj settles upon Amy, but Raj is too demanding, truly wanting to put a label on the relationship, but that's just too big of a step for Lucy. The dinner doesn't go well and she once again escapes through the bathroom window. Then, he convinces her to come to Leonard's going away party, but she bails and dumps him through text message. I thought only guys did that. Raj's heart is broken.
Meanwhile, Sheldon feigns happiness for Leonard, though he gets horribly anxious at the airport because Penny is in the red zone which is illegal and Leonard is not worth going to jail for. Still, despite his constant interjections, Penny and Leonard nevertheless manage to have a heartfelt farewell and Penny finally says outright that she loves him. It was truly touching.
After dropping Leonard off, she stops by at Raj's apartment to see how he is doing. His heart is broken and Penny comforts him and the whole time I'm thinking, please don't do anything stupid, but she doesn't. Instead, she says that maybe the reason why he is so sad is because of the alcohol, but he mentions that he hasn't had a drink since last night, meaning he's sober and finally talking to women on his own volition. The look on Penny's face was priceless and Raj starts to cry for a whole new reason. The episode ends with Raj drinking water with the girls, all drinking wine and talking a mile a minute, Bernadette, Amy and Penny get more frustrated by the minute. That's how it ends. It was a letdown for me, which would be fine if it was the middle of season, but at the same time, stuff is up in the air, like how will Leonard's mission go and how will Sheldon survive without him? Now, that I would like to see, considering Sheldon can't even drive himself to work.
Still, the episode was funny and great lines were said by all. Each character was great and stayed true to their character. On the other hand, I was totally predicting that one of the female characters would become pregnant, but I certainly hope that that is not the case as each was drinking wine at the end and especially after last week's episode, I was hoping for something to happen with Shamy (Sheldon and Amy). Still, it was a great episode and I love Leonard and Penny together and she even got to tell him that there was a better chance of him ruining the relationship while he was still here, not far away. Season: A-, Finale: A-
So far this season, Penny (Kaley Cuoco) and Leonard (Johnny Galecki) are still going strong, though Leonard has decided to give up on proposing to her, instead, she needs to propose to him. Bernadette (Melissa Rauch) and Howard (Simon Helberg) are still happily married, and Howard even opted to burn a letter from his father in one of the best episodes of the season. Raj (Kunal Nayyar) begins seeing Lucy (Kate Micucci) who has many social anxiety issues of her own. Raj can only talk to women under the influence of alcohol. Meanwhile, Sheldon (the great Jim Parsons) is still being his normal difficult self who needs closure at any cost. He is also enjoying his odd relationship with Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik), though their relationship is gradually, at a snail's pace, growing slightly closer together. Amy does want more, though this relationship, despite the rarely touching each other is still extremely intimate for him and that's so totally true.
The finale concerns Raj trying to get Lucy to meet his friends and Howard recommending Leonard for a job in the North Sea performing an experiment for Stephen Hawking. But this means that despite his excellent relationship with Penny, he will be leaving for several months. Penny is happy for him, though she will miss him probably more than she'll admit.
For Raj's plot. Lucy decides to meet just one of his friends, and they spend some time argue over who it should be and finally, Raj settles upon Amy, but Raj is too demanding, truly wanting to put a label on the relationship, but that's just too big of a step for Lucy. The dinner doesn't go well and she once again escapes through the bathroom window. Then, he convinces her to come to Leonard's going away party, but she bails and dumps him through text message. I thought only guys did that. Raj's heart is broken.
Meanwhile, Sheldon feigns happiness for Leonard, though he gets horribly anxious at the airport because Penny is in the red zone which is illegal and Leonard is not worth going to jail for. Still, despite his constant interjections, Penny and Leonard nevertheless manage to have a heartfelt farewell and Penny finally says outright that she loves him. It was truly touching.
After dropping Leonard off, she stops by at Raj's apartment to see how he is doing. His heart is broken and Penny comforts him and the whole time I'm thinking, please don't do anything stupid, but she doesn't. Instead, she says that maybe the reason why he is so sad is because of the alcohol, but he mentions that he hasn't had a drink since last night, meaning he's sober and finally talking to women on his own volition. The look on Penny's face was priceless and Raj starts to cry for a whole new reason. The episode ends with Raj drinking water with the girls, all drinking wine and talking a mile a minute, Bernadette, Amy and Penny get more frustrated by the minute. That's how it ends. It was a letdown for me, which would be fine if it was the middle of season, but at the same time, stuff is up in the air, like how will Leonard's mission go and how will Sheldon survive without him? Now, that I would like to see, considering Sheldon can't even drive himself to work.
Still, the episode was funny and great lines were said by all. Each character was great and stayed true to their character. On the other hand, I was totally predicting that one of the female characters would become pregnant, but I certainly hope that that is not the case as each was drinking wine at the end and especially after last week's episode, I was hoping for something to happen with Shamy (Sheldon and Amy). Still, it was a great episode and I love Leonard and Penny together and she even got to tell him that there was a better chance of him ruining the relationship while he was still here, not far away. Season: A-, Finale: A-
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
The Middle: The Ditch
Okay, to be fair, I was too harsh on last week's episode, at least I was involved in that one and cared where the plots were going. This episode was interesting.but there were too many plots and I didn't truly care about how they ended.
Frankie goes bat-crap crazy again. While in line, paying her electric bill, she is late for work but because she is in her lab coat, people assume her job as a doctor is more important than hers, so they let her cut in line and she uses that to her advantage, milking up her situation, saying that she had to save the life of this one boy. But this backfires, as one of the guys she cut in front of shows up at the office, so she plays up the situation, and continues to pretend that she's a doctor and of course, Dr. Goodwin (Jack MacBrayer) catches on, and Frankie tells an even bigger lie, that this guy is creepy and has been stocking her. Dr. Goodwin lets the patient go as he doesn't want a crazy person in the office.
Meanwhile, Axl, being the idiot that he is, convinces Sue to ditch school, which she does, but she doesn't go on any adventures. Instead, she stays at home, and ruins the blanket on her parents' bed by spraying soda and then spilling her salsa on it, just like my friends and I totally predicted. Then, as my one friend predicted, the washer had issues, but luckily, just in the nick of time, Sue gets the blanket back on her parents' bed and pretends that nothing happened. But she missed out on so much, as informed by Brad, there was a surprise assembly and free ice cream. She decides never to ditch school again.
Brick refuses to take a test because he doesn't want to go on to Middle School. His teacher (Sam Lloyd) and guidance counselor (Dave Foley) are worried so Brick spends the rest of the day with the guidance counselor, using a variety of sock puppets to try and get the truth out of him. Finally, when he is just asked what was worrying him, Brick informs him that the water fountains have the handles on the opposite side of what he's used to and he doesn't like change, plus he'd miss his best friend, the guidance counselor himself. Luckily, or unluckily, because of budget cuts, the guidance counselor gets to come to the Middle School twice a week so Brick isn't that scared anymore, and goes forth to take that test.
Axl has the day off school for whatever reason so he and Mike are off to go fishing. Mike is worried that Axl won't do well in college and he has reason to be worried, considering there are all these distractions surrounding him. Cue the girls playing volleyball in bikinis. They catch Axl's eye but Mike also gets distracted and thus the boat (where in the world did they get a boat??) to fall into a ditch, so they spend the rest of the day trying to get the boat out of the ditch. Axl's plan works out better than Mike's plan, though it causes Mike to get covered in mud, but he learns that he shouldn't be as concerned as he once was. Axl learns that his dad is also capable of mistakes. He had never seen him make any before, though Mike says that's because he wasn't looking that closely.
The episode ends with a brief description of what happened to the characters in the future: Mike never looked at girls again, while Axl looked at tons of them, Sue got herself sick and missed more special events at school, Brick failed to enter the honors program because he didn't use the ever powerful number two pencil for his test and Frankie, well honestly, I forget what her description said, but it was probably something weird.
This episode was unfortunately one of the weakest of the season and I don't really like what they have done to Frankie's character this season, making seem crazy and meddling in the lives of her family much more than normal. There were only a few good moments tucked in between boring plots which is a shame because this show has some of the best actors on television but they need to be utilized properly. Next week's episode is the season finale and it looks great, I can only hope so after this disappointing episode. Grade: B
Frankie goes bat-crap crazy again. While in line, paying her electric bill, she is late for work but because she is in her lab coat, people assume her job as a doctor is more important than hers, so they let her cut in line and she uses that to her advantage, milking up her situation, saying that she had to save the life of this one boy. But this backfires, as one of the guys she cut in front of shows up at the office, so she plays up the situation, and continues to pretend that she's a doctor and of course, Dr. Goodwin (Jack MacBrayer) catches on, and Frankie tells an even bigger lie, that this guy is creepy and has been stocking her. Dr. Goodwin lets the patient go as he doesn't want a crazy person in the office.
Meanwhile, Axl, being the idiot that he is, convinces Sue to ditch school, which she does, but she doesn't go on any adventures. Instead, she stays at home, and ruins the blanket on her parents' bed by spraying soda and then spilling her salsa on it, just like my friends and I totally predicted. Then, as my one friend predicted, the washer had issues, but luckily, just in the nick of time, Sue gets the blanket back on her parents' bed and pretends that nothing happened. But she missed out on so much, as informed by Brad, there was a surprise assembly and free ice cream. She decides never to ditch school again.
Brick refuses to take a test because he doesn't want to go on to Middle School. His teacher (Sam Lloyd) and guidance counselor (Dave Foley) are worried so Brick spends the rest of the day with the guidance counselor, using a variety of sock puppets to try and get the truth out of him. Finally, when he is just asked what was worrying him, Brick informs him that the water fountains have the handles on the opposite side of what he's used to and he doesn't like change, plus he'd miss his best friend, the guidance counselor himself. Luckily, or unluckily, because of budget cuts, the guidance counselor gets to come to the Middle School twice a week so Brick isn't that scared anymore, and goes forth to take that test.
Axl has the day off school for whatever reason so he and Mike are off to go fishing. Mike is worried that Axl won't do well in college and he has reason to be worried, considering there are all these distractions surrounding him. Cue the girls playing volleyball in bikinis. They catch Axl's eye but Mike also gets distracted and thus the boat (where in the world did they get a boat??) to fall into a ditch, so they spend the rest of the day trying to get the boat out of the ditch. Axl's plan works out better than Mike's plan, though it causes Mike to get covered in mud, but he learns that he shouldn't be as concerned as he once was. Axl learns that his dad is also capable of mistakes. He had never seen him make any before, though Mike says that's because he wasn't looking that closely.
The episode ends with a brief description of what happened to the characters in the future: Mike never looked at girls again, while Axl looked at tons of them, Sue got herself sick and missed more special events at school, Brick failed to enter the honors program because he didn't use the ever powerful number two pencil for his test and Frankie, well honestly, I forget what her description said, but it was probably something weird.
This episode was unfortunately one of the weakest of the season and I don't really like what they have done to Frankie's character this season, making seem crazy and meddling in the lives of her family much more than normal. There were only a few good moments tucked in between boring plots which is a shame because this show has some of the best actors on television but they need to be utilized properly. Next week's episode is the season finale and it looks great, I can only hope so after this disappointing episode. Grade: B
The Mindy Project: Take Me with You, Season One Finale
This show started out with such high hopes, and then it fell flat and has seldom lifted itself up since then.
Mindy Lahiri (Mindy Kaling) is an ob-gyn who is selfish and inconsiderate of others. She is careless in her social life and isn't even that nice to her friends, putting herself before them. And yet, I want her to succeed and find love. Throughout the first season, she dates the successful lawyer, Josh (Tommy Dewey) who turned out to be seeing another woman, Heather (Ellie Kemper) and have a drug problem. Then there is her ill-fated attempt to date the rival midwife whose office is above her. Finally, she settles with the pastor Casey (Anders Holm) who is way too frisky for a pastor.
Despite the show focusing tons on her dating life, her work life is much more interesting, thanks to the interesting former jailed nurse, Morgan (Ike Barinholtz), who gets fired for sending a letter to Danny's (Chris Messina's) ex-wife Christina (Chloe Sevigny, grossly miscast). He even has a dog in the office. Besty (Zoe Jarman) is one of the most underdeveloped character on TV, though her crazy co-worker, Beverly (Beth Grant) has some interesting situations. And then there is Jeremy (Ed Weeks), the hot British doctor with whom Mindy occasionally sleeps with, though he is incapable of having a deep relationship.
The season finale includes Casey going off to Haiti for a year, and Mindy debating over going with him. She decides to go, then changes her mind, and then changes it back, because sometimes you just have to say yes. Mindy wanted a serious relationship for some time; she wants very much to get married and have babies and now that she's finally in one, she wants to get out. But then, she shows up at his apartment, lies about being pregnant just to get his attention, and proclaims that she is definitely coming, having even chopped off her hair to prove to him how much she cares.
Danny is less than thrilled with her new hair style and they almost have a moment, but she ruins it by telling him that she is back with Casey.
The finale was messy, with both major couples, Danny and Christina (yes, they got together, but things aren't going that well between the two of them) and Mindy and Casey, but for whatever reason, Morgan joins them, and even asks to watch Danny and Christina having sex. It's horribly awkward.
The show tries, but fails to be funny most of the time, though Mindy does get some good lines every now and then. Still, I hated introducing the midwives and having Mindy date them, that time could have been better spent developing either Betsy's or Jeremy's characters. And I wish Casey was truly religious, though the episode where he wanted Mindy to convert was pretty good and actually brought religion, a normally taboo topic as a main plot line on network television.
Also a problem are Mindy's friends, Anna Camp is one of Mindy's best friends, Gwen, who is married and has a daughter, but she is boring. Mindy's other friends, Alex (Kelen Coleman) and Maggie (Mary Grill). Alex briefly dates Danny but dumps him upon finding out that he had an ex-wife and Maggie is a teacher who broke her leg so bad she's in a wheelchair. They are interesting but underused.
Danny and Mindy sort of flirt, but it doesn't seem promising between the two of them, but he actually likes her, despite all of her huge flaws, and I hope for the two of them to end up together, at some point. And I doubt Mindy will end up going to Haiti; I know she won't last long there. Season: B-, Finale: B
Mindy Lahiri (Mindy Kaling) is an ob-gyn who is selfish and inconsiderate of others. She is careless in her social life and isn't even that nice to her friends, putting herself before them. And yet, I want her to succeed and find love. Throughout the first season, she dates the successful lawyer, Josh (Tommy Dewey) who turned out to be seeing another woman, Heather (Ellie Kemper) and have a drug problem. Then there is her ill-fated attempt to date the rival midwife whose office is above her. Finally, she settles with the pastor Casey (Anders Holm) who is way too frisky for a pastor.
Despite the show focusing tons on her dating life, her work life is much more interesting, thanks to the interesting former jailed nurse, Morgan (Ike Barinholtz), who gets fired for sending a letter to Danny's (Chris Messina's) ex-wife Christina (Chloe Sevigny, grossly miscast). He even has a dog in the office. Besty (Zoe Jarman) is one of the most underdeveloped character on TV, though her crazy co-worker, Beverly (Beth Grant) has some interesting situations. And then there is Jeremy (Ed Weeks), the hot British doctor with whom Mindy occasionally sleeps with, though he is incapable of having a deep relationship.
The season finale includes Casey going off to Haiti for a year, and Mindy debating over going with him. She decides to go, then changes her mind, and then changes it back, because sometimes you just have to say yes. Mindy wanted a serious relationship for some time; she wants very much to get married and have babies and now that she's finally in one, she wants to get out. But then, she shows up at his apartment, lies about being pregnant just to get his attention, and proclaims that she is definitely coming, having even chopped off her hair to prove to him how much she cares.
Danny is less than thrilled with her new hair style and they almost have a moment, but she ruins it by telling him that she is back with Casey.
The finale was messy, with both major couples, Danny and Christina (yes, they got together, but things aren't going that well between the two of them) and Mindy and Casey, but for whatever reason, Morgan joins them, and even asks to watch Danny and Christina having sex. It's horribly awkward.
The show tries, but fails to be funny most of the time, though Mindy does get some good lines every now and then. Still, I hated introducing the midwives and having Mindy date them, that time could have been better spent developing either Betsy's or Jeremy's characters. And I wish Casey was truly religious, though the episode where he wanted Mindy to convert was pretty good and actually brought religion, a normally taboo topic as a main plot line on network television.
Also a problem are Mindy's friends, Anna Camp is one of Mindy's best friends, Gwen, who is married and has a daughter, but she is boring. Mindy's other friends, Alex (Kelen Coleman) and Maggie (Mary Grill). Alex briefly dates Danny but dumps him upon finding out that he had an ex-wife and Maggie is a teacher who broke her leg so bad she's in a wheelchair. They are interesting but underused.
Danny and Mindy sort of flirt, but it doesn't seem promising between the two of them, but he actually likes her, despite all of her huge flaws, and I hope for the two of them to end up together, at some point. And I doubt Mindy will end up going to Haiti; I know she won't last long there. Season: B-, Finale: B
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
New Girl: Season Two Finale
This was another interesting season. Nick (Jake Johnson) and Jess (Zooey Deshanel) had some of the best kissing scenes on TV this year, and that includes my favorite couples from The Middle. Hot was an understatement. Then they slept together. We also saw how the various characters, including Schmidt (Max Greenfield) and Winston (Lamorne Morris) and CeCe (Hannah Simone) lost their virginities. We also met the great character of Schmidt's first girlfriend, Elizabeth (Merrit Wever) who loved Schmidt back before he lost weight.
On the other hand, CeCe is getting married Shivrang (Satya Bhabha), though she and Schmidt dated in the first season and until Elizabeth was introduced, I was hoping that the two would get back together. That's the problem, Schmidt can't decide between Elizabeth and CeCe and neither can I.
The finale involved CeCe's wedding which Schmidt decided to sabotage which included scaring the horse, playing a loud song and finally letting a badger loose in the air ducks above their heads. Jess is furious when she finds out about the events that have been occurring, and though Nick tried in vain to stop them, she still believes that he's behind them, and gets mad at him, never mind everything her dad (Rob Reiner) said about him.
However, Jess finds out from Schmidt, who finally admits that they went too far, that Nick only recently joined in with the pranks and tries to take back her cruel words. In other words, she winds up in the air ducks as well, falling out of them with Nick and badger in tow. She tries to save the wedding, but CeCe says that she doesn't want the wedding to be saved as there is another person. Her fiance is also fine with that and professes his love for Elaine, aka Taylor Swift, in a fascinating cameo role. She does get one of the best lines of the episode, "Will you take me away from this madness?" And he literally carries her out of the wedding.
Nick decides to pull the plug on his relationship with Jess, and immediately heads out to the bar to drink his troubles away. Winston finally bursts out of the air ducks, bleeding from the badger bite, he says that there are other moves.
Nick runs after Jess and she doesn't want to pull the plug and they drive off into the starry night. Yes, I love these romantic endings. On the other hand, Elizabeth and CeCe literally made Schmidt pick between the two of them, considering she did call off her wedding because of him and even apologized to Elizabeth about the whole thing, but he can't decide and runs away from both of them.
The season ended strongly, considering I didn't really like the first half of the season, not that there was anything wrong with Jess's tall, doctor boyfriend, Sam (David Walton), but once she and Nick kissed, the chemistry was back. The series is far from perfect, with Winston getting some horribly crappy plot lines, but the guest stars truly shine, and I'm looking forward to season three much more than I was for season two. Season: B+, Finale: A-
On the other hand, CeCe is getting married Shivrang (Satya Bhabha), though she and Schmidt dated in the first season and until Elizabeth was introduced, I was hoping that the two would get back together. That's the problem, Schmidt can't decide between Elizabeth and CeCe and neither can I.
The finale involved CeCe's wedding which Schmidt decided to sabotage which included scaring the horse, playing a loud song and finally letting a badger loose in the air ducks above their heads. Jess is furious when she finds out about the events that have been occurring, and though Nick tried in vain to stop them, she still believes that he's behind them, and gets mad at him, never mind everything her dad (Rob Reiner) said about him.
However, Jess finds out from Schmidt, who finally admits that they went too far, that Nick only recently joined in with the pranks and tries to take back her cruel words. In other words, she winds up in the air ducks as well, falling out of them with Nick and badger in tow. She tries to save the wedding, but CeCe says that she doesn't want the wedding to be saved as there is another person. Her fiance is also fine with that and professes his love for Elaine, aka Taylor Swift, in a fascinating cameo role. She does get one of the best lines of the episode, "Will you take me away from this madness?" And he literally carries her out of the wedding.
Nick decides to pull the plug on his relationship with Jess, and immediately heads out to the bar to drink his troubles away. Winston finally bursts out of the air ducks, bleeding from the badger bite, he says that there are other moves.
Nick runs after Jess and she doesn't want to pull the plug and they drive off into the starry night. Yes, I love these romantic endings. On the other hand, Elizabeth and CeCe literally made Schmidt pick between the two of them, considering she did call off her wedding because of him and even apologized to Elizabeth about the whole thing, but he can't decide and runs away from both of them.
The season ended strongly, considering I didn't really like the first half of the season, not that there was anything wrong with Jess's tall, doctor boyfriend, Sam (David Walton), but once she and Nick kissed, the chemistry was back. The series is far from perfect, with Winston getting some horribly crappy plot lines, but the guest stars truly shine, and I'm looking forward to season three much more than I was for season two. Season: B+, Finale: A-
NCIS: Damned If You Do, Season Ten Finale
So far in this season, Ziva's (Cote de Pablo's) father, was shockingly killed along with Vance's (Rocky Carroll's) wife in the biggest twist of the season. Now, though that was in January, fall out from that incident is still occurring, with Gibbs (the great Mark Harmon) being under investigation for his techniques as an agent.
In other news, nothing major has happened yet between one of the TV couples I ship the hardest for, Tony (Michael Weatherly) and Ziva or Tiva as fans have dubbed them. They had a beautiful moment when Tony finally reached for her hand, but then a car came along and hit them, losing the moment and now things aren't looking good for them as Tony has recently discovered that while in Israel for her father's funeral, she slept with one of confidantes, Adam. We also finally met McGee's (Sean Murray's) father, only to learn that he has cancer (which I totally predicted). We also saw Abby (Pauley Perrette) work her first case as a child, though that episode fell flat for me. Ducky (David McCallum) recovered from his heart attack and hostage situation with Palmer (Brian Dietzen), so that's back to normal.
Gibbs is under investigation by the D.O.D. Specifically, Richard Parsons (Colin Hanks) who is described by Abby as a mean McGee, and that's so true. Gibbs is charged with obstructing justice, among other things. Yes, Gibbs is a vigilante, taking justice into his own hands more times than necessary, but that is Gibbs. Certainly his actions would never fly in real life, but this is TV, and I wouldn't have Gibbs any other way.
Just when I thought the episode would focus on Gibbs being investigated, a new case emerges. A Navy Seal's head shows up, having been shipped to his wife. And it tests positive for radiation. Palmer also announces that he and his wife (yes, someone on the team is actually married like a normal person) and they are having a baby, which caused me to clap my hands with joy, but they aren't actually having the baby themselves, but instead are on the wait list for adoption which is just as sweet and wonderful and that's probably a good thing considering all the radiation.
Now, the fact that Gibbs is under investigation and the dead seal are connected, as Mossad needed to be held responsible and other things that will require a second viewing, but it basically comes down to the real threat isn't North Korea or Iran, but right here at home, which is true. Also, McGee is sleeping with someone from D.O.D. and has gained access to some pretty juicy information about Parsons. How he moved up quickly through the ranks through blackmail but Gibbs has refused to stoop to his level. This devastates Ziva who storms out of the cabin. I told Tony to follow her and he did, resulting in another close Tiva moment, but it merely ended with him tenderly kissing her on the forehead, frustration clouded over me. So close, but yet so far. They are only friends, and nothing is weird between friends. Yeah, right, don't think I believe that for a second.
Then, Gibbs decides to accept responsibility, though Vance still shreds the case file that proves he killed the man responsible for the deaths of his wife and daughter. McGee, Tony and Ziva resign and accept responsibility for their actions and Gibbs is hired by someone for a top-secret assignment, meaning he won't face trial, at least not yet. His assignment? He's a sniper and his target? His good, good friend, CIA agent Fornell (Joe Spano). But does he actually pull the trigger? We will have to wait until September to find out, but I certainly hope not. That's his best friend; they've been through so much together.
This season certainly took several interesting twists and turns, with some good episodes including the one with Tony's father (Robert Wagner) and the ex-wife of both Gibbs and Fornell, who had an interesting night with McGee. Still, some episodes were rather predictable but the good acting and humor carries the show through. Season: B+, Finale: A-
In other news, nothing major has happened yet between one of the TV couples I ship the hardest for, Tony (Michael Weatherly) and Ziva or Tiva as fans have dubbed them. They had a beautiful moment when Tony finally reached for her hand, but then a car came along and hit them, losing the moment and now things aren't looking good for them as Tony has recently discovered that while in Israel for her father's funeral, she slept with one of confidantes, Adam. We also finally met McGee's (Sean Murray's) father, only to learn that he has cancer (which I totally predicted). We also saw Abby (Pauley Perrette) work her first case as a child, though that episode fell flat for me. Ducky (David McCallum) recovered from his heart attack and hostage situation with Palmer (Brian Dietzen), so that's back to normal.
Gibbs is under investigation by the D.O.D. Specifically, Richard Parsons (Colin Hanks) who is described by Abby as a mean McGee, and that's so true. Gibbs is charged with obstructing justice, among other things. Yes, Gibbs is a vigilante, taking justice into his own hands more times than necessary, but that is Gibbs. Certainly his actions would never fly in real life, but this is TV, and I wouldn't have Gibbs any other way.
Just when I thought the episode would focus on Gibbs being investigated, a new case emerges. A Navy Seal's head shows up, having been shipped to his wife. And it tests positive for radiation. Palmer also announces that he and his wife (yes, someone on the team is actually married like a normal person) and they are having a baby, which caused me to clap my hands with joy, but they aren't actually having the baby themselves, but instead are on the wait list for adoption which is just as sweet and wonderful and that's probably a good thing considering all the radiation.
Now, the fact that Gibbs is under investigation and the dead seal are connected, as Mossad needed to be held responsible and other things that will require a second viewing, but it basically comes down to the real threat isn't North Korea or Iran, but right here at home, which is true. Also, McGee is sleeping with someone from D.O.D. and has gained access to some pretty juicy information about Parsons. How he moved up quickly through the ranks through blackmail but Gibbs has refused to stoop to his level. This devastates Ziva who storms out of the cabin. I told Tony to follow her and he did, resulting in another close Tiva moment, but it merely ended with him tenderly kissing her on the forehead, frustration clouded over me. So close, but yet so far. They are only friends, and nothing is weird between friends. Yeah, right, don't think I believe that for a second.
Then, Gibbs decides to accept responsibility, though Vance still shreds the case file that proves he killed the man responsible for the deaths of his wife and daughter. McGee, Tony and Ziva resign and accept responsibility for their actions and Gibbs is hired by someone for a top-secret assignment, meaning he won't face trial, at least not yet. His assignment? He's a sniper and his target? His good, good friend, CIA agent Fornell (Joe Spano). But does he actually pull the trigger? We will have to wait until September to find out, but I certainly hope not. That's his best friend; they've been through so much together.
This season certainly took several interesting twists and turns, with some good episodes including the one with Tony's father (Robert Wagner) and the ex-wife of both Gibbs and Fornell, who had an interesting night with McGee. Still, some episodes were rather predictable but the good acting and humor carries the show through. Season: B+, Finale: A-
Sunday, May 12, 2013
The Great Gatsby
"Life lived in fear is a life half-lived" are the words that grace the opening of the film.
The film begins in much of the same style as Oz: the Great and Powerful, with grainy black and white opening credits before the lush color is shown. And the film is so lush.
Nick Carraway (Tobey MaGuire) is in a sanitarium. It is 1929. He believes his fall began the summer he moved to New York. He rents a small home that used to belong to the groundskeeper and begins a job selling bonds. His cousin, Daisy (Carey Mulligan) lives near-by. She married into extreme money in the form of polo player, Tom Buchanan (Joel Edgerton) and wants for nothing. Servants waits on them hand and foot. There is also one of Luhrmann's signature weird scenes when Nick first sees Daisy, with the silk curtains billowing over her in the wind. Daisy even mentions that she is happy her baby (the long unseen Pammy) is a girl and hopes for her to be a fool.
The Buchanan marriage is not a happy one, with Tom cheating on her with the mechanic's (Jason Clarke's) wife, Myrtle (Isla Fisher). Pretty but a floozy. They go off into the city where Tom tries to hook Nick up with Myrtle's sister, Catherine (Adelaide Clemons) and they do hook up that one time as Nick is truly drunk.
And then there is Gatsby, who throws the horribly elaborate parties with tons of glitter, both in the air and on the dresses and confetti, music and booze, despite prohibition being in effect, but that issue is addressed early in the film. Then Gatsby announces himself as the fireworks blast in the distance. His entrance could not have been anymore grand.
But Gatsby (top-billed Leonardo DiCaprio) has a plan and that plan is to get Daisy back. He was with her before heading off to war, but now he wants her back. Everything he has done has been for her. She's the reason he threw all these parties, just so she would show up at one of them.
Gatsby has Nick invite her over for tea, but he is the one who fixes up Nick's tiny house and again puts on a show. I did think it was a bit much that he couldn't face her so he walked outside in the rain and then made his entrance. He and Daisy try and pick up things where they left off, but five years have passed. Daisy can't just pick up things and run off with him though she wants to. What Gatsby wants her to do is tell Tom that she never loved him, which is a lie. She totally did love him at one point.
Then comes the moment of the undoing. Daisy has Nick and her good friend, Jordan (Elizabeth Debicki) for moral support but she can't do it and stumbles to light her cigarette causing Gatsby to do it for her instead. Tom figures it out. They then go into the city and Tom stops to get some gas and hears that Myrtle and her husband are moving west. Nick, as the narrator, says that just an hour ago, Tom was secure with both his wife and mistress, but now both were leaving him.
Tom does not take the news well and Daisy can't lie to him as Gatsby asks too much; he can't relive the past, though he is convinced that he can. The fight scene is especially well-acted with DiCaprio truly shaking in his boots.
On the way home, a horrible accident occurs. Gatsby's car hits Myrtle, fatally killing her. Tom is devastated and comforts her husband, George (Jason Clarke), saying that it was Gatsby's car and Gatsby deserves to be punished for his crimes. But only Nick learns the truth. Gatsby wasn't driving; it was Daisy, in a plot twist that shocked me and I read the book in High School. Granted it was six years ago, but I did read it. Gatsby is punished. George shoots him in the back as Gatsby gets out the pool. He was waiting for Daisy to call him with her final decision.
Despite Gatsby's lavish well-attended parties, no one comes to his funeral and it hurts Nick tons. Daisy and Tom retreat back into their wealth and remain unpunished for their crimes. They head off somewhere else. Nick is left with the truth, that Gatsby conned his life into the wealth he now has and he also has a vast wealth with grand furniture.
Though the film ends on a sad note, do the characters deserve happiness? Nick does, but he doesn't get it, taken in under Gatsby's charm, just as Daisy was, though probably more so. Nick will be punished for liking
Gatsby, yet Daisy is unpunished for the same thing and so much more.
That being said, the film was excellent with great editing in a difficult film to edit, but it is done seamlessly. The cinematography and set decoration and costumes are also excellent. Superb actually. I also liked the typically odd blending of modern pop music into a movie that occurs decades ago, but it worked. Maybe if someone other than Luhrmann was directing it, that wouldn't have been the case, but I liked it nevertheless. In fact, this is easily the best film I've seen so far this year. It felt much shorter than it's nearly two and a half hours, and from what my friend, who read the book much more recently than me, said that the film follows the book pretty well. That is something I always like. All book and film lovers should watch this film. Grade: A
The film begins in much of the same style as Oz: the Great and Powerful, with grainy black and white opening credits before the lush color is shown. And the film is so lush.
Nick Carraway (Tobey MaGuire) is in a sanitarium. It is 1929. He believes his fall began the summer he moved to New York. He rents a small home that used to belong to the groundskeeper and begins a job selling bonds. His cousin, Daisy (Carey Mulligan) lives near-by. She married into extreme money in the form of polo player, Tom Buchanan (Joel Edgerton) and wants for nothing. Servants waits on them hand and foot. There is also one of Luhrmann's signature weird scenes when Nick first sees Daisy, with the silk curtains billowing over her in the wind. Daisy even mentions that she is happy her baby (the long unseen Pammy) is a girl and hopes for her to be a fool.
The Buchanan marriage is not a happy one, with Tom cheating on her with the mechanic's (Jason Clarke's) wife, Myrtle (Isla Fisher). Pretty but a floozy. They go off into the city where Tom tries to hook Nick up with Myrtle's sister, Catherine (Adelaide Clemons) and they do hook up that one time as Nick is truly drunk.
And then there is Gatsby, who throws the horribly elaborate parties with tons of glitter, both in the air and on the dresses and confetti, music and booze, despite prohibition being in effect, but that issue is addressed early in the film. Then Gatsby announces himself as the fireworks blast in the distance. His entrance could not have been anymore grand.
But Gatsby (top-billed Leonardo DiCaprio) has a plan and that plan is to get Daisy back. He was with her before heading off to war, but now he wants her back. Everything he has done has been for her. She's the reason he threw all these parties, just so she would show up at one of them.
Gatsby has Nick invite her over for tea, but he is the one who fixes up Nick's tiny house and again puts on a show. I did think it was a bit much that he couldn't face her so he walked outside in the rain and then made his entrance. He and Daisy try and pick up things where they left off, but five years have passed. Daisy can't just pick up things and run off with him though she wants to. What Gatsby wants her to do is tell Tom that she never loved him, which is a lie. She totally did love him at one point.
Then comes the moment of the undoing. Daisy has Nick and her good friend, Jordan (Elizabeth Debicki) for moral support but she can't do it and stumbles to light her cigarette causing Gatsby to do it for her instead. Tom figures it out. They then go into the city and Tom stops to get some gas and hears that Myrtle and her husband are moving west. Nick, as the narrator, says that just an hour ago, Tom was secure with both his wife and mistress, but now both were leaving him.
Tom does not take the news well and Daisy can't lie to him as Gatsby asks too much; he can't relive the past, though he is convinced that he can. The fight scene is especially well-acted with DiCaprio truly shaking in his boots.
On the way home, a horrible accident occurs. Gatsby's car hits Myrtle, fatally killing her. Tom is devastated and comforts her husband, George (Jason Clarke), saying that it was Gatsby's car and Gatsby deserves to be punished for his crimes. But only Nick learns the truth. Gatsby wasn't driving; it was Daisy, in a plot twist that shocked me and I read the book in High School. Granted it was six years ago, but I did read it. Gatsby is punished. George shoots him in the back as Gatsby gets out the pool. He was waiting for Daisy to call him with her final decision.
Despite Gatsby's lavish well-attended parties, no one comes to his funeral and it hurts Nick tons. Daisy and Tom retreat back into their wealth and remain unpunished for their crimes. They head off somewhere else. Nick is left with the truth, that Gatsby conned his life into the wealth he now has and he also has a vast wealth with grand furniture.
Though the film ends on a sad note, do the characters deserve happiness? Nick does, but he doesn't get it, taken in under Gatsby's charm, just as Daisy was, though probably more so. Nick will be punished for liking
Gatsby, yet Daisy is unpunished for the same thing and so much more.
That being said, the film was excellent with great editing in a difficult film to edit, but it is done seamlessly. The cinematography and set decoration and costumes are also excellent. Superb actually. I also liked the typically odd blending of modern pop music into a movie that occurs decades ago, but it worked. Maybe if someone other than Luhrmann was directing it, that wouldn't have been the case, but I liked it nevertheless. In fact, this is easily the best film I've seen so far this year. It felt much shorter than it's nearly two and a half hours, and from what my friend, who read the book much more recently than me, said that the film follows the book pretty well. That is something I always like. All book and film lovers should watch this film. Grade: A
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)
Maggie (Elizabeth Taylor, great) has an issue. Her husband, Brick (Paul Newman), just broke his ankle trying to jump hurdles while drunk. He won't sleep with her anymore and, in the play at least, he could possibly be homosexual, though that isn't hinted at in the film because this is during the Hays Code and couldn't.
Yes, that is how the film starts out. But there is so much more. Brick's father, Big Daddy (Burl Ives) has cancer and is dying but this is kept hidden from him and his wife, but Brick is told along with his older brother, Goober (Jack Carson). There is the huge issue of who will inheritance Big Daddy's vast estate? He was a self-made man, coming from nothing to having one of the biggest businesses and 28,000 acres of land. Brick could care less about the land and money, though it is of a concern to Maggie who grew up with an alcoholic father and hand-me-down clothes. She wants the security, but what she really wants is a child. It's embarrassing to her that they don't have one. Goober and his annoying Lady Macbeth wife, Mae (Madeleine Sherwood) have five brats and another on the way. The one daughter even screams at her aunt about not having a child. That is the same daughter who played with the ice cream without washing her hands. Gross. Mae also calls Maggie out when giving Big Daddy his present from Brick.
Goober is a lawyer and believes himself to be respectable because he has children and a job while Brick has neither and drinks his life away, but Brick is the favorite of both his parents. Big Daddy also especially hates Mae. Big Mama even asks Maggie if she is making him happy. Maggie says that works both ways. Apparently, the rocks in their marriage start in the bed as Big Mama points out so vividly. The most telling sign is when Maggie kisses Brick and he immediately wipes it off. This works well in the play, not so much in the film.
Finally, all is revealed, with Brick telling Big Daddy the truth while Mae and Goober try and get Big Mama (Judith Anderson) to sign away the land to them, but she refuses to do anything without Big Daddy's approval. Then, Maggie tells all that she is pregnant. This makes Big Daddy terribly happy, but it is a lie and though Brick hates liars, he helps her keep her secret. Maybe that will happen for real now. Brick actually seems willing now.
The performances in this film is what makes it worth watching. Both Taylor and Newman were Oscar-nominated as they deserved to be. However, the film has not aged all that well, and I mean, seriously, who wouldn't want to sleep with Elizabeth Taylor, she is absolutely beautiful. Still, it is interesting as the audience knows more than the characters which always leads to a good time. The kids are also great birth control. Grade: B+
Yes, that is how the film starts out. But there is so much more. Brick's father, Big Daddy (Burl Ives) has cancer and is dying but this is kept hidden from him and his wife, but Brick is told along with his older brother, Goober (Jack Carson). There is the huge issue of who will inheritance Big Daddy's vast estate? He was a self-made man, coming from nothing to having one of the biggest businesses and 28,000 acres of land. Brick could care less about the land and money, though it is of a concern to Maggie who grew up with an alcoholic father and hand-me-down clothes. She wants the security, but what she really wants is a child. It's embarrassing to her that they don't have one. Goober and his annoying Lady Macbeth wife, Mae (Madeleine Sherwood) have five brats and another on the way. The one daughter even screams at her aunt about not having a child. That is the same daughter who played with the ice cream without washing her hands. Gross. Mae also calls Maggie out when giving Big Daddy his present from Brick.
Goober is a lawyer and believes himself to be respectable because he has children and a job while Brick has neither and drinks his life away, but Brick is the favorite of both his parents. Big Daddy also especially hates Mae. Big Mama even asks Maggie if she is making him happy. Maggie says that works both ways. Apparently, the rocks in their marriage start in the bed as Big Mama points out so vividly. The most telling sign is when Maggie kisses Brick and he immediately wipes it off. This works well in the play, not so much in the film.
Finally, all is revealed, with Brick telling Big Daddy the truth while Mae and Goober try and get Big Mama (Judith Anderson) to sign away the land to them, but she refuses to do anything without Big Daddy's approval. Then, Maggie tells all that she is pregnant. This makes Big Daddy terribly happy, but it is a lie and though Brick hates liars, he helps her keep her secret. Maybe that will happen for real now. Brick actually seems willing now.
The performances in this film is what makes it worth watching. Both Taylor and Newman were Oscar-nominated as they deserved to be. However, the film has not aged all that well, and I mean, seriously, who wouldn't want to sleep with Elizabeth Taylor, she is absolutely beautiful. Still, it is interesting as the audience knows more than the characters which always leads to a good time. The kids are also great birth control. Grade: B+
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
The Middle: Hallelujah Hoedown
Someone totally called it. Yes, it wasn't me or any of my friends but this random person on facebook totally predicted what would happen in this episode.
I'll get to the prom later.
First off, Sue hasn't passed her driving test yet. She's failed it five times while all of her friends, including Becky (Jessica Marie Garcia) who has been in juvie, passed it. Sue is jealous and she hates feeling that way. Not even the wise words from Reverend Tim Tom (Paul Hipp) can help her. While at the title dance, though it wasn't really a dance, but whatever, she has an absolute freak-out, for her at least. Luckily, Reverend Tim Tom comes through, and after some more wise words from him and all her friends, even her mom, who came only because Brad said it was an emergency which it clearly wasn't. Though Sue is pumped and determined to pass, she can't take it for another month because she's already taken it five times. Oh well, she's just remained pumped for another whole month. Or four weeks as she puts it.
Then, Mother's Day is coming up. Frankie is determined that this time, Mike will not fail. In the past, Mothers' Days have gone absolutely horrible for Frankie, but she is determined to change that. She tells each one of her kids exactly what she wants. But Sue is too depressed and jealous to remember, Axl was too busy getting ready for prom and Brick remembered and even picked it out while shopping with Mike but Mike refuses to get it for her because it is a back massage machine and he is convinced that she will hate it. Then Mike gives up and lets Brick wander around the store himself. In the end, Brick finds a pair of yellow pants and believes that Frankie will like them. Mike could do no worse when he asks a random woman what size pants she wore because she was around Frankie's size. Great move, Mike, brilliant, one of your finest moments. Frankie was furious upon opening her present and they look absolutely awful on her. She rolls them up and they actually make a decent back support for her at work.
Now to prom. Boss Co. is still at work, asking people out to prom and earning money for their limo. But Axl won't be joining them because Cassidy isn't a prom kind of girl. However, when Axl comes into her class and asks another girl to prom for another guy, she freaks out. Yes, she thinks school spirit is stupid, but this is still prom and she still wants to go, so after throwing money at Axl, he asks her out and she says yes and they share a quick kiss in front of the whole class. She lets him off too easily.
I'll get back to them in a bit. Darrin and Sean are back and are taking Courtney and Debbie to prom, but they pull an Axl and can't figure out which one they brought. Axl hisses at them, "Not so easy is it?" They spend the night dancing in a square which was hilarious.
Back to the serious stuff. While dancing, Cassidy says that she wants all of the next weeks with Axl. He gets confused because he doesn't understand what a summer course at Vassar (which is in New York, for the record) entails. She will be leaving and no amount of tubing will change that. She says that it doesn't even matter because after she goes away, they won't be together anyway. Axl is taken aback. "What did you think would happen?" Axl's response? Typical Axl: "You should know me well enough to know I don't think." And then he says why wait for three more weeks, and they break up just like that. Axl is crowned prom king and Cassidy flees the auditorium leaving Axl alone on the dance floor. And, just like the guy on facebook predicted, Weird Ashley shows up to save the day. Axl was there for her last year and now she was there for him this year. My, my how times have changed. I will never be able to listen to Simple Plan's "Welcome to My Life" enough times to cure this pain, though I knew they wouldn't last, but I never expected Cassidy to be so insensitive about the whole thing, and Axl, for the love of God, would you please grow up? Please. And Cassidy, I thought you loved him. If you truly loved him, then you wouldn't have done this. Then again, Cassidy and long distance relationships don't mix. She dumped Cliff while he was at Northwestern so it certainly wouldn't have worked out anyway, but still, I had hope.
I wonder if Axl and Weird Ashley are actually dating, though she seems to believe that they are leaving Axl to bang his head against the door. Also, another note, why in the world did Sue and prom not come up when that was a major plot point last year? I still have hope that Sarrin will mend the fences and get back together. Another interesting note, this was Cassidy's first prom, though she did protest at a dance freshman year for gender equality.
Ultimately, this episode wasn't that good. None of the plots were spectacular and I hate feeling devastated but it could have been handled so much better. Mother's Day and The Middle just don't mix. There's only two new episodes left this season, and hopefully they're better than this one. Grade: B
I'll get to the prom later.
First off, Sue hasn't passed her driving test yet. She's failed it five times while all of her friends, including Becky (Jessica Marie Garcia) who has been in juvie, passed it. Sue is jealous and she hates feeling that way. Not even the wise words from Reverend Tim Tom (Paul Hipp) can help her. While at the title dance, though it wasn't really a dance, but whatever, she has an absolute freak-out, for her at least. Luckily, Reverend Tim Tom comes through, and after some more wise words from him and all her friends, even her mom, who came only because Brad said it was an emergency which it clearly wasn't. Though Sue is pumped and determined to pass, she can't take it for another month because she's already taken it five times. Oh well, she's just remained pumped for another whole month. Or four weeks as she puts it.
Then, Mother's Day is coming up. Frankie is determined that this time, Mike will not fail. In the past, Mothers' Days have gone absolutely horrible for Frankie, but she is determined to change that. She tells each one of her kids exactly what she wants. But Sue is too depressed and jealous to remember, Axl was too busy getting ready for prom and Brick remembered and even picked it out while shopping with Mike but Mike refuses to get it for her because it is a back massage machine and he is convinced that she will hate it. Then Mike gives up and lets Brick wander around the store himself. In the end, Brick finds a pair of yellow pants and believes that Frankie will like them. Mike could do no worse when he asks a random woman what size pants she wore because she was around Frankie's size. Great move, Mike, brilliant, one of your finest moments. Frankie was furious upon opening her present and they look absolutely awful on her. She rolls them up and they actually make a decent back support for her at work.
Now to prom. Boss Co. is still at work, asking people out to prom and earning money for their limo. But Axl won't be joining them because Cassidy isn't a prom kind of girl. However, when Axl comes into her class and asks another girl to prom for another guy, she freaks out. Yes, she thinks school spirit is stupid, but this is still prom and she still wants to go, so after throwing money at Axl, he asks her out and she says yes and they share a quick kiss in front of the whole class. She lets him off too easily.
I'll get back to them in a bit. Darrin and Sean are back and are taking Courtney and Debbie to prom, but they pull an Axl and can't figure out which one they brought. Axl hisses at them, "Not so easy is it?" They spend the night dancing in a square which was hilarious.
Back to the serious stuff. While dancing, Cassidy says that she wants all of the next weeks with Axl. He gets confused because he doesn't understand what a summer course at Vassar (which is in New York, for the record) entails. She will be leaving and no amount of tubing will change that. She says that it doesn't even matter because after she goes away, they won't be together anyway. Axl is taken aback. "What did you think would happen?" Axl's response? Typical Axl: "You should know me well enough to know I don't think." And then he says why wait for three more weeks, and they break up just like that. Axl is crowned prom king and Cassidy flees the auditorium leaving Axl alone on the dance floor. And, just like the guy on facebook predicted, Weird Ashley shows up to save the day. Axl was there for her last year and now she was there for him this year. My, my how times have changed. I will never be able to listen to Simple Plan's "Welcome to My Life" enough times to cure this pain, though I knew they wouldn't last, but I never expected Cassidy to be so insensitive about the whole thing, and Axl, for the love of God, would you please grow up? Please. And Cassidy, I thought you loved him. If you truly loved him, then you wouldn't have done this. Then again, Cassidy and long distance relationships don't mix. She dumped Cliff while he was at Northwestern so it certainly wouldn't have worked out anyway, but still, I had hope.
I wonder if Axl and Weird Ashley are actually dating, though she seems to believe that they are leaving Axl to bang his head against the door. Also, another note, why in the world did Sue and prom not come up when that was a major plot point last year? I still have hope that Sarrin will mend the fences and get back together. Another interesting note, this was Cassidy's first prom, though she did protest at a dance freshman year for gender equality.
Ultimately, this episode wasn't that good. None of the plots were spectacular and I hate feeling devastated but it could have been handled so much better. Mother's Day and The Middle just don't mix. There's only two new episodes left this season, and hopefully they're better than this one. Grade: B
Friday, May 3, 2013
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
I finally was able to see this film last night.
Charlie Kelmeckis (Logan Lerman) is a lonely ninth grader already counting down the days until he can graduate. His first day of school is a pretty miserable one, but the viewer doesn't know why he has no friends. He doesn't even raise his hand in English class despite knowing the answers to some tough questions. Fortunately, his teacher, Mr. Anderson (Paul Rudd) can tell that Charlie is a lost soul and immediately takes him under his wing, supplying him with a steady stream of books throughout the year.
For some reason, Charlie decides to go to the football game and sees a senior from his shop class, Patrick (a great Ezra Miller) and sits near him. Patrick adopts Charlie instantly into his group. Sam (Emma Watson) joins them and later they go out for food. Charlie asks the two how long have they been together? Patrick and Sam and the audience laughs as they are only step-siblings plus Patrick is gay. Patrick is also secretly dating the star quarterback of the football team, whom Charlie's older brother also knew, Brad (Johnny Simmons). Brad used to only have sex with Patrick after getting drunk and his father disapproves of the whole homosexuality thing so the relationship is kept private. Charlie only finds out about it after walking in on them making out after eating a brownie laced with pot. While Sam makes him a milkshake because he is craving one, he tells her about his friend Michael who was against drugs because his father drank all the time. When Sam asks where is Michael, still high Charlie answers, he killed himself last May. Sam is stunned.
Soon, Charlie has friends, all seniors. In addition to Patrick and Sam, there is also Mary Elizabeth (Mae Whitman) and Alice (Erin Wilhelmi). Though Charlie has a huge crush on Sam, she is dating Craig (Reece Thompson) who is in college, but she does give him his first kiss, he ends up dating Mary Elizabeth because she asked him to the Sadie Hawkins dance at school. She is annoying and too much for Charlie. He couldn't have picked a worse way to break-up with her though. When dared to kiss the prettiest girl in the room, he kisses Sam. Apparently, the two, though friends, have some bad blood between them, so Patrick tells him to stay away until the situation dies down. After hearing that Brad's dad finds out about the relationship, he tries to talk to Patrick but before he is able to, one of Brad's minions trips Patrick and Brad does nothing to defend him and he even calls him a faggot so Patrick punches him. This leads to a huge fight, and Charlie steps in to end it, but he blacked out and doesn't remember exactly what he did. I wondered why teachers weren't notified to break up the fight? Whatever, that wasn't really necessary. After this, Charlie is back in. Mary Elizabeth also begins dating a college guy also. Sam breaks up with Craig after finding out that he cheated on her. Just before she leaves for college (Charlie tutored her so she could get into Penn State, also where his brother goes), they have sex. Just when you think things are going to work out, Charlie has a breakdown. I'll say nothing more about that plot because it wouldn't be right.
There is also Charlie's family. His parents (Dylan McDermott and Kate Walsh) are generous and understanding. His older brother, Chris (Zane Holtz) attends Penn State where he plays football. Notably, Joe Paterno's name is never mentioned. Candace (Nina Dobrev) is sweet though her boyfriend, Ponytail Derek (Nicholas Hoult) has issues as he slaps her once. Charlie overseas this, but Candace tells him not to doing anything about it. Fortunately, she breaks up with him before prom and thus goes with her girlfriends. Charlie is fairly happy about. Candace is also the one to figure out that something is wrong with him, and gets the police to come to their house before he does anything stupid. No, he doesn't kill himself, thank goodness. Then there is the most mysterious character of the film, Charlie's Aunt Helen (Melanie Lynskey). I'll leave her a mystery. Joan Cusack has a quick appearance at the end as a doctor.
The film is great, with funny moments tucked in behind the serious, heartfelt ones. The soundtrack and cinematography are likewise fantastic. This film deserved more award nominations than it received. And the scene at the end when all is revealed is truly heart-wrenching. This is a must-see film for anyone. However, I do have minor problems with the film, like some scenes could have been held longer and the catch-phrase we accept the love with think we deserve isn't necessarily true. That doesn't stop me from giving the film the grade I will give it. I'll gladly watch it again. Grade: A
Charlie Kelmeckis (Logan Lerman) is a lonely ninth grader already counting down the days until he can graduate. His first day of school is a pretty miserable one, but the viewer doesn't know why he has no friends. He doesn't even raise his hand in English class despite knowing the answers to some tough questions. Fortunately, his teacher, Mr. Anderson (Paul Rudd) can tell that Charlie is a lost soul and immediately takes him under his wing, supplying him with a steady stream of books throughout the year.
For some reason, Charlie decides to go to the football game and sees a senior from his shop class, Patrick (a great Ezra Miller) and sits near him. Patrick adopts Charlie instantly into his group. Sam (Emma Watson) joins them and later they go out for food. Charlie asks the two how long have they been together? Patrick and Sam and the audience laughs as they are only step-siblings plus Patrick is gay. Patrick is also secretly dating the star quarterback of the football team, whom Charlie's older brother also knew, Brad (Johnny Simmons). Brad used to only have sex with Patrick after getting drunk and his father disapproves of the whole homosexuality thing so the relationship is kept private. Charlie only finds out about it after walking in on them making out after eating a brownie laced with pot. While Sam makes him a milkshake because he is craving one, he tells her about his friend Michael who was against drugs because his father drank all the time. When Sam asks where is Michael, still high Charlie answers, he killed himself last May. Sam is stunned.
Soon, Charlie has friends, all seniors. In addition to Patrick and Sam, there is also Mary Elizabeth (Mae Whitman) and Alice (Erin Wilhelmi). Though Charlie has a huge crush on Sam, she is dating Craig (Reece Thompson) who is in college, but she does give him his first kiss, he ends up dating Mary Elizabeth because she asked him to the Sadie Hawkins dance at school. She is annoying and too much for Charlie. He couldn't have picked a worse way to break-up with her though. When dared to kiss the prettiest girl in the room, he kisses Sam. Apparently, the two, though friends, have some bad blood between them, so Patrick tells him to stay away until the situation dies down. After hearing that Brad's dad finds out about the relationship, he tries to talk to Patrick but before he is able to, one of Brad's minions trips Patrick and Brad does nothing to defend him and he even calls him a faggot so Patrick punches him. This leads to a huge fight, and Charlie steps in to end it, but he blacked out and doesn't remember exactly what he did. I wondered why teachers weren't notified to break up the fight? Whatever, that wasn't really necessary. After this, Charlie is back in. Mary Elizabeth also begins dating a college guy also. Sam breaks up with Craig after finding out that he cheated on her. Just before she leaves for college (Charlie tutored her so she could get into Penn State, also where his brother goes), they have sex. Just when you think things are going to work out, Charlie has a breakdown. I'll say nothing more about that plot because it wouldn't be right.
There is also Charlie's family. His parents (Dylan McDermott and Kate Walsh) are generous and understanding. His older brother, Chris (Zane Holtz) attends Penn State where he plays football. Notably, Joe Paterno's name is never mentioned. Candace (Nina Dobrev) is sweet though her boyfriend, Ponytail Derek (Nicholas Hoult) has issues as he slaps her once. Charlie overseas this, but Candace tells him not to doing anything about it. Fortunately, she breaks up with him before prom and thus goes with her girlfriends. Charlie is fairly happy about. Candace is also the one to figure out that something is wrong with him, and gets the police to come to their house before he does anything stupid. No, he doesn't kill himself, thank goodness. Then there is the most mysterious character of the film, Charlie's Aunt Helen (Melanie Lynskey). I'll leave her a mystery. Joan Cusack has a quick appearance at the end as a doctor.
The film is great, with funny moments tucked in behind the serious, heartfelt ones. The soundtrack and cinematography are likewise fantastic. This film deserved more award nominations than it received. And the scene at the end when all is revealed is truly heart-wrenching. This is a must-see film for anyone. However, I do have minor problems with the film, like some scenes could have been held longer and the catch-phrase we accept the love with think we deserve isn't necessarily true. That doesn't stop me from giving the film the grade I will give it. I'll gladly watch it again. Grade: A
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
The Middle: From Orson with Love
Finally a new episode. And it focused on social media.
First, to Mike's plot line. He actually answers the phone, an action that he instantly regrets. It was Frankie's dad, Tag (Jerry Van Dyke). Tag wants to meet Mike at Stuckeys and talk to him and that what happens, with Tag telling Mike absolutely everything that has ever occurred in his life. Mike is overwhelmed and not pleased with everything. Why is Tag doing this? Because he read the book Tuesdays with Morrie and is taking it literally, even giving Mike a binder of stories to take home with him. When Mike tells him the truth, using his own words against him, and looks Tag in the eye and says that he wants to stop. Tag is pleased because that is the whole point he was trying to make. In the end, social media comes to Mike's rescue as he creates a facebook and can now watch Tag online along with other people. Problem solved.
Frankie is worried about Sue as she wasn't invited to a sleepover, though Carly (Blaine Saunders) was and pictures of it appeared all over facebook. To increase her popularity and get more to notice her statuses, Frankie creates several false profiles and friends Sue. She then, invites girls over for a sleepover at the Heck house and things just go downhill from here. Frankie is mad at Carly for doing stuff without Sue so she is cold to her the whole night. She also bombards the girls with pictures for the whole night, even dragging Jenna (Bunhead's Bailey Buntain) across the room for a cute pose. She even breaks the TV by taking a picture. Sue finally tells her to back off which she does, thank goodness as it was getting painful. Mike tells Frankie that it doesn't matter if the world doesn't know that Sue had a good time, as long as she and the other girls know it, that's fine. Frankie and her four fake profiles unfriend Sue, though tons of people liked her photo anyway.
Now to the funniest plot. While Axl is tearing through his room to find a clean shirt, he discovers a box with baby bunnies. Apparently, though he wasn't supposed to let Bugs (the bunny given to him by Frankie way earlier in the season) out, but of course he did and Bugs met this friend and they gave each other piggyback rides and (points to the box) that happened. Axl, after Brick gives him a dollar to unseen what he just saw, tells him to take the bunnies to the Frugal Hoosier Parking Lot, but he is unable to give any of them away, and even gains two kittens. They, then, decide to make the bunnies and kittens viral and stage videos of them reenacting James Bond films. The result is awkward and hilarious. I do hope they got PEDA's approval because the animals were real and dressed in costumes. Despite everything, they manage not to get caught, which is a true miracle and eventually the animals find good homes so everything works out. They also have some bonding moments which are truly the best parts of the episode. Axl teaches Brick the look of how to pick up girls and mentions that he has a lot to teach him before leaving for college. Brick later asks him how college will work. Axl explains that he is going away. Brick thought that things would stay like they were and Axl would eventually move into his parents' room. Axl said he would be home at Christmas to pick up his presents and Brick could visit him whenever he wanted.
Though there are problems with this show, including the obvious one of Sue accepting friend requests from fake people that she doesn't know, and everything wraps up a little too quickly and perfectly, but it is still one of the funniest episodes of the season. Next week is the prom episode, and Cassidy better be in it or else ABC will get another nasty email from me. Grade: A
First, to Mike's plot line. He actually answers the phone, an action that he instantly regrets. It was Frankie's dad, Tag (Jerry Van Dyke). Tag wants to meet Mike at Stuckeys and talk to him and that what happens, with Tag telling Mike absolutely everything that has ever occurred in his life. Mike is overwhelmed and not pleased with everything. Why is Tag doing this? Because he read the book Tuesdays with Morrie and is taking it literally, even giving Mike a binder of stories to take home with him. When Mike tells him the truth, using his own words against him, and looks Tag in the eye and says that he wants to stop. Tag is pleased because that is the whole point he was trying to make. In the end, social media comes to Mike's rescue as he creates a facebook and can now watch Tag online along with other people. Problem solved.
Frankie is worried about Sue as she wasn't invited to a sleepover, though Carly (Blaine Saunders) was and pictures of it appeared all over facebook. To increase her popularity and get more to notice her statuses, Frankie creates several false profiles and friends Sue. She then, invites girls over for a sleepover at the Heck house and things just go downhill from here. Frankie is mad at Carly for doing stuff without Sue so she is cold to her the whole night. She also bombards the girls with pictures for the whole night, even dragging Jenna (Bunhead's Bailey Buntain) across the room for a cute pose. She even breaks the TV by taking a picture. Sue finally tells her to back off which she does, thank goodness as it was getting painful. Mike tells Frankie that it doesn't matter if the world doesn't know that Sue had a good time, as long as she and the other girls know it, that's fine. Frankie and her four fake profiles unfriend Sue, though tons of people liked her photo anyway.
Now to the funniest plot. While Axl is tearing through his room to find a clean shirt, he discovers a box with baby bunnies. Apparently, though he wasn't supposed to let Bugs (the bunny given to him by Frankie way earlier in the season) out, but of course he did and Bugs met this friend and they gave each other piggyback rides and (points to the box) that happened. Axl, after Brick gives him a dollar to unseen what he just saw, tells him to take the bunnies to the Frugal Hoosier Parking Lot, but he is unable to give any of them away, and even gains two kittens. They, then, decide to make the bunnies and kittens viral and stage videos of them reenacting James Bond films. The result is awkward and hilarious. I do hope they got PEDA's approval because the animals were real and dressed in costumes. Despite everything, they manage not to get caught, which is a true miracle and eventually the animals find good homes so everything works out. They also have some bonding moments which are truly the best parts of the episode. Axl teaches Brick the look of how to pick up girls and mentions that he has a lot to teach him before leaving for college. Brick later asks him how college will work. Axl explains that he is going away. Brick thought that things would stay like they were and Axl would eventually move into his parents' room. Axl said he would be home at Christmas to pick up his presents and Brick could visit him whenever he wanted.
Though there are problems with this show, including the obvious one of Sue accepting friend requests from fake people that she doesn't know, and everything wraps up a little too quickly and perfectly, but it is still one of the funniest episodes of the season. Next week is the prom episode, and Cassidy better be in it or else ABC will get another nasty email from me. Grade: A
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