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Relax, I'm from the Future (2022)
Cute But Uneven
Rhys Darby can do no wrong. As the silly, well-meaning (or is he?) time-traveler Casper, he keeps things light and funny. The problem is the film tackles issues it doesn't flesh out. The villain is introduced way too late, so the suspense only comes in the last third. Human life is shown to be utterly dispensable, which I didn't find particularly funny (especially at the ending, which I won't give away). Julian Richings is one of my favorite actors and it was a pleasure to watch him. But what his character is doing at the end makes no sense in terms of how he's been set up--is he still capable of evil? Does he have the means?
The plot goes all over the place. Also it includes one of my least favorite cliches: two people go on a boozy, drug-filled evening and yet are still able to converse intelligently. This only happens in movies and TV. In real life they'd be lying in their own sick or declaring "you're my best friend!" before passing out.
The Fountainhead (1949)
Pretentious Twaddle
This bludgeons the viewer even more than Rand's book bludgeons the reader, which I thought couldn't be done. Why is it "noble" for Roark to blow up a housing project for the poor? Because Kent Smith made some changes? It doesn't help that Roark's creations are ass-ugly parodies of modernism.
There's endless twaddle about "conformity" and the importance of self above all others. Roark comes off as a humorless proto-dictator, not helped by Cooper's performance. Not only is Cooper too old, he's out of his depth as an actor. Patricia Neal gives extremely mannered performance as Dominique Francon. Her hormones drive her out of her mind when she sees Cooper working in a quarry. Cooper is constantly warned that people will "destroy him" for being a narcissistic self-righteous jerk.
Like Cooper and Neal, the other luckless actors are trapped in a turgid script with endless dialogue. For some reason Vidor directed them all to deliver it all in stentorian tones. The overacting, it hurts. If only a competent screenwriter had had a crack at this mess.
The Last of Us: Long, Long Time (2023)
Fantastic episode of television
I'm not a gamer and I am completely over zombie shows. But I'd heard how good this episode is and I'm so glad I watched it. Bill and Frank's story was absolutely beautiful. Every moment was perfect, from how they came together, their spats, their love, everything. Both actors were sublime. I had no idea Nick Offerman had a performance like that in him, and Murray Bartlett matched him. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop the way it always does in this genre. Instead we were treated to a portrait of a long life spent together. Thank you so much for not sharing the aftermath of their shared suicide.
The Cobweb (1955)
Drapes, Drapes, And More Drapes!
This turgid, overwrought melodrama stars Richard Widmark, playing psychiatrist as bully. He barks orders, throws people out of the room and is generally so unpleasant it's hard to believe so many people put their faith in him. But then, what did they know back then?
Other reviewers have gone into the plot at length. So I'll just say that having a pivotal conflict over window drapes loses something in translation. Most of the cast are good enough. Lillian Gish is excellent in a thankless role, as the "spinster" who works for the asylum and gets browbeaten by Widmark in several scenes. Gloria Grahame looks gorgeous.
Toast of Tinseltown (2022)
So disappointed!
This was a colossal letdown. I'm a huge Matt Berry fan. His comedy is sometimes hit or miss and this was definitely more misses than hits. There were some solid laughs but only a few solid laughs over 6 episodes isn't enough to justify making it. Aiden Turner was funny, but Fred Armisen was more annoying than anything else.
What was the point? There is so much juicy material in LA show biz but almost none of it was touched on. I was happy to see Clem Fandango and his fellow engineer. The VO scenes were the highlight for me. Most of the guest stars were done in by lazy writing. Yes, Toast is comedy of the absurd but there was too much absurd and not enough comedy. It seemed slapdash and unfinished.
Stephen crying when Billie is nice to him was such a shock--this series, even more than the others, was about him being beaten down and beaten down and beaten down. It became painful to watch. And WTF was with that ending? The whole last episode was so depressing I could hardly stand it. It's rare when the end of a comedy series leaves me wanting to cry.
Wodehouse in Exile (2013)
Plodding
This is an excellent class trying vainly to work with material that's almost a parody. Exposition dumps aplenty. Plus, Wodehouse was definitely cloistered but not as unworldly as this movie portrays him. He was anti-Semitic and aware of the businesses of theater and publishing. However all Wodehouse did for most of his life was sequester himself and write. I enjoyed Wodehouse reading his work to his fellow prisoners.
The Opposite Sex (1956)
Watch This For The Costumes
This misbegotten remake of "The Women" manages to make the biggest possible blunder--showing the men. Having Leslie Neilsen and Jeff Richards in two pivotal parts brings the whole movie down. Plus it was better imagining the goings-on rather seeing them played out in front of us. June Allyson is one of my least favorite actresses and she doesn't do anything interesting as Mary. And of course Joan Collins can't hold a candle to Joan Crawford!
The musical numbers are uninspired and--and HOW do you have a musical with Ann Miller in it and don't give her any numbers? Is she too talented? The title song, sung by Dick Shawn, seems to go for about half an hour.
Today it showed on TCM. While I was doing something else, I left the sound off and watched for the costumes. They are eye-popping! Helen Rose must have worked overtime. By far the best part of the movie!
Prodigal Son: Alma Mater (2021)
Not So Great
This episode was enjoyable, particularly the climax. But the set-up and reveal of the killer didn't work for me. Also, didn't Malcolm's hand tremor start when he was a child? Campbell Scott was excellent.
Prodigal Son: Take Your Father to Work Day (2021)
Phenomenal!
Can I say how much I loved this episode! The more Malcolm and Martin the better! Great twists and turns, and I'm always delighted to see Hector. Lots of great dark humor, plus an interesting case. Edrisa fangirling over Martin was particularly delicious.
Prodigal Son: Bad Manners (2021)
Weakest Episode Of The Season
This episode didn't hold my interest. The murders were so elaborate and I just didn't believe who the killer was.
Prodigal Son: It's All in the Execution (2021)
The Crazy Is Back!
I'm amazed so many snowflakes freaked out about 5 minutes that addressed a real-life problem. What about the rest of it? I loved it! There was so much crazy flying around, especially with Malcolm! I didn't have a problem with all of the exposition. If you're only an occasional viewer, you need it to keep up to speed.
The ledge scene and the sex dungeon scenes were my favorite. Malcolm is completely unhinged and I am so there for it!
Three Daring Daughters (1948)
Silly Movie, Strange Casting
This is a by-the-numbers MGM musical, starring Jeanette MacDonald. She was nearing the end of her tenure as a major star. She plays a divorced mother who, after suffering a nervous breakdown, takes a ship to Cuba. On this ship, she meets and falls in love with...Jose Iturbi, playing himself. Why? Why doesn't his character have a name? Jose Iturbi was most emphatically married, with children to boot! Plus, he can't act, even playing himself. MacDonald soldiers on although she must have known that this was even sillier than the worst of her Eddy/MacDonald outings. The rest of the cast does what they can with the material they're given.
There are four writers credited for the uninspired script. MacDonald sings, which is always a joy. Up and comer Jane Powell plays her oldest daughter who also sings. The main pleasure is Jeanette and her gorgeous Technicolor wardrobe. As I am a major Jeanette MacDonald fan this film was to put it mildly a disappointment.
Stephen Fry: 50 Not Out (2007)
Well Made Entertaining Film
This is a much better than usual compilation of clips and talking heads, made for the occasion of Fry's 50th birthday. Reminiscences form a large part of the movie from Hugh Laurie, Emma Thompson and many others. Many of the participants if not all have worked with Fry.
Fry only appears in clips, and very well chosen clips they are! He is shown as comedian, actor, writer, director, and amazingly intelligent, sensitive, nice person. It's extremely funny, of course. With Stephen Fry, how could it not be?
April Showers (1948)
Trite musical
This is a heavily sanitized version of Buster Keaton's childhood. The truth is so much worse--he started out as a small child, and Joe Keaton threw Buster around the stage, beat him publicly, and in later life, when Joe was in full-blown alcoholism, came at his son with the express purpose of beating him up.
This musical leaves a bad taste in my mouth. That it's trite and boring only compounds the problem.
Zuzana: Music Is Life (2019)
A Fascinating Woman Treated In A Trite Way
Zuzana Ruzikova lived through several Nazi concentration camps, the Communist era in Prague, and being a Jew in one anti-Semitic society after another. "Music Is Life" , filmed before her death in 2017, doesn't show much of her music, let alone much of her life outside the prison camps, until the last 20 minutes. Horrifying as her story is, Nazi concentration camps have become a trope. Unfortunately it takes the majority of the movie. Which gives short shrift to Zuzana's music, her 54 year marriage to composer Viktor Kalabis, and her career.
There is virtually no footage of her playing. When the music is played, it is often undercut by talking heads. Zuzana spends a lot of time staring into space, clearly because she was directed to do so. Her personality shines through, however, when she engages with the people around her. But this is not revealed until the last section. The background music tracks are often mixed so loudly that Zuzana's talking, not helped by her heavy accent, is impossible to understand. A perfect example: we visit (without Zuzana) a harpsichord maker. Her pupil plays the instrument, explaining how it works. That hers is an entirely different, old fashioned model. Then the two men sit in a cafe' and bloviate. Where is Zusana? Finally, the camera returns to her apartment. Bingo! A huge, heavy inlaid harpsichord has pride of place! Oh, wait, no, it's a background shot. Instead, she goes to the piano where her husband composed many of his compositions. What? She has a husband? What was he doing all of this time? He gets sick and dies (we don't find out of what) and she doesn't say much about it, once again leaving it to others to fill in the blanks.
The sound design provides additional cliches' She remembers how Jewish children were not allowed in the Gentile playgrounds. So they played in the cemetery. As she walks through, is it really necessary to have the sound of children playing in the distance? Likewise, it is necessary to have crying babies layered into the sound mix whenever captive women and children are shown? Could we be allowed to see the horrifying footage without being manipulated?
I didn't mean to go off on a rant. This is a pleasant little movie, not terribly original, about a phenomenally talented woman. But if you want to learn about her life, you'd be better off buying some CDs and picking up a biography from your local library.
Speaking of Sex (2001)
The Sex Is Funnier Than The Script
This is a sex farce where the actual sex is by far superior to the rest of the movie. The title tipped me off, it's too on the nose and unsubtle. The script is entirely about sex. That usually would be very much in my "pro" column. The sex scenes and quick cuts are by far the funniest things in the movie. The problem is, the movie is ENTIRELY about sex. Next to nothing about the characters, the setting, nothing. There are no characters to connect to. Nothing to root for or care about. The plot is incoherent. The acting is broad and unfunny. In a later interview, the director said he wished he had told his actors to play it straight. Amen to that! James Spader, as Roger Klink (har har), gives a jittery, gaspy performance. Talk about playing against type. As the film went on, it bugged me that he never seemed to speak in complete sentences. Spader, Bill Murray and Catherine O'Hara, all excellent comic performers, are weighed down by the clumsy script and terrible pacing. In the small part of Dr. Klink's ex-wife, Megan Mullalley gives by far the best performance, in part because she has the most rounded, interesting character. You know there's something wrong with a film when a minor character is better written than the leads. Lara Flynn Boyle as Dr. Paige, an unstable marriage counselor is awful. The rest of the cast is capable, nothing special.
If you have nothing better to do, this movie is an okay diversion, but don't go out of your way.
The Mick (2017)
Cute but tired
Gave this show a try, but it didn't hit my funny bone. I've seen it all before. The comedy with the housekeeper is borderline racist. The smart-aleck middle child is the usual kid who doesn't speak like a kid, the oldest is the usual rebellious teen. Some parts made me laugh, but not enough to stay with it.
I have to write 10 lines, so here goes:
I love It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia. It's a lot smarter.
This doesn't seem very smart most of the time. I don't like traditional sitcoms, no matter how much they try to bring something new. Seen it before.
Seen it before
Se
An Innocent Affair (1948)
Weak Overacted Comedy
This weak B-comedy is burdened with a talky script and overwrought acting. Fred MacMurray and Madeleine Carroll scream and snap at each other. Charles "Buddy" Rogers has a subsidiary role and does what he can with it. During one scene MacMurray pretends to be fast asleep, even when his wife screams "YIPPEEE!" in his ear. She then drops her large hat on his head. He keeps snoring loudly. Hilarious. Fred spends until 6 AM with his ex-fiancée who is now a prospective client for his advertising agency. All innocent fun, of course. These are the kind of contrivances I cannot endure in screwball comedies. 2 AM is believable; but to be out all night and lie to his wife stretches credulity. This is one of those scripts that would all fall apart if one person tells the other person the truth.
Louise Allbritton and Rita Johnson do what they can with thankless parts. This would-be screwball comedy is lacking in laughs.
In addition, the score is hokey, especially when there is no dialogue.
Swiss Army Man (2016)
A Crazy, Sweet, Unexpectedly Emotional Movie. A Wild Ride!
TL:DR (RECAP & REVIEW) This crazy, sweet, deep movie, replete with farts and boners, is the best movie I have seen for years. Not only is it very funny, it's surprisingly deep and emotional. Paul Dano as Hank and Daniel Radcliffe as dead Manny are spectacular. There is tremendous chemistry between the two actors, who are pretty much the whole show until the end. Daniels, the directors, use deliberately low-tech effects (and a real bear) to ground the film in physical reality. Instead of the CGI many other filmmakers use. In an interview, Radcliffe said the film is not fantasy, it's magical realism. Which is a great description.
The soundtrack is a Capella. Andrew Hull of Manchester Orchestra layers the soundtrack with dozens of voices played over each other the only other instruments percussion made with sticks and leaves. Not only that, Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe sing quite a bit of the score. The first thing we say is trash bobbing in the water, with the words HELP ME and MY BOAT WAS CAUGHT IN A STORM. One toy boat is made out of garbage, prefiguring Hank's ability to create environments and creatures out of found materials.
Stranded on a desert island, Hank is about to commit suicide when a corpse washes up on the beach. When he discovers the man is dead, Hank goes to kill himself again. But the corpse starts farting, and the farts propel the corpse through the water. Hank grabs a robe, jumps on the corpse and rides him like a jet-ski. At this point, the credits come up, and goddamn if it that isn't a perfect way to introduce something that asks so much of your imagination.
Hank labors to get home, the dead man strapped to his back. To keep the corpse from farting, Hank finds a cork (We don't see what happens next.) The dead man, named Manny, slowly comes to life. He has magical powers, such as a boner that can be used as a compass. Daniel Radcliffe has to do 75% of his acting using only his face and eyes. Since Manny is dead, he can't move of his own volition from the neck down. (This results in a lot of priceless slapstick.) Manny is slurred and slow, becoming more articulate as the film goes on. Hank is caught up in teaching Manny what the world is, what love is, what feelings are. Paul Dano excels at playing a man who would be seen as a isolated introvert, but Manny, in a sense, brings Hank to life. Manny sees a picture of a beautiful woman on Hank's cell phone, Sarah and declares that's why they have to get 'home'. Hank and Manny's friendship becomes a bond, and possibly a romantic one, as Hank dresses as "Sarah" to try to jog Manny's memory of his life. He reenacts the only flashback we see, Hank sitting on the bus, alone. Only this time, Hank dresses as Sarah, leading Manny through sitting next to "Sarah" and holding her hand.
Sarah/Hank blend more as the story goes along. Manny is in love with Sarah, and with Hank. As he says, "maybe love is bringing me to life". Hank creates a world for them to live in, with a sort of house, a car, even a makeshift bus. One night, they both get drunk and throw a "party". Hank helps Manny to dance by making puppet strings out of vines for him and acting as the puppeteer. Manny demands to talk to Sarah. Hank puts on the wig, and leans to kiss Manny, who falls over. They put it down to intoxication.
Later in the film, Hank crawls across a water pipe, Manny strapped to his back. Manny feels there's a barrier between them, that Hank needs to say something. Hank cuts him off; but the pipe they're on breaks and they are plunged into the river far below. Underwater, Hank sees Manny drifting down into the water. Hank swims down, grabs Manny, and kisses him. This is interspersed with shots of "Sarah" and Manny echoing Hank's gestures. Manny is happy, and air pours out of his mouth. Hank realizes it, and continues to kiss him, the quiet sound of breathing the only thing we hear as they drift downward into the darkness. Then the cork comes bobbing to the surface. As the triumphant "River Rocket" song plays, they fly up into the air, ecstatic.
There's still a lot that happens, but I'm going to skip it. At the end, Hank and Manny reach "home", the backyard of the woman whose picture is on Hank's phone. She's married, with a kid, and is completely freaked to see a disheveled man and a corpse on her lawn. Manny is again dead. Has he been dead this whole time? Has this all taken place in Hank's brain? I choose to believe it's real. The suburban setting and all that follows is a jarring transition from the rest of the movie and doesn't work. The ending is deeply unsatisfying. The protagonists are separated for good, and Hank is again alone. Whether or not you choose to see that as a good or bad thing is up to you. It left a very bad taste in my mouth.
But this is a great movie by any measure, and unlike anything you've seen.
Impastor (2015)
Extremely funny and unusual dark comedy
************** SPOILERS!! **********
The initial premise--a horny heterosexual lowlife impersonating a dead gay pastor--was funny. But I wondered how it could sustain an entire show. Fortunately, the other characters have been rounded out since the cartoony first episode. They have also been given their own subplots, most of which work. And the actors have settled down since the first two episodes, after trying way too hard.
The humor is much darker than I expected, which makes me very happy! Michael Rosenbaum's Buddy is a fantastic scumbag. All of his choices are bad ones. He doesn't care about anyone but himself. Except for Dora, his overly sweet/inwardly raging assistant, none of the characters care much about anything except themselves. It's bracingly unsympathetic and doesn't try to make you care about the characters. Surprisingly, you do.
The best laughs come from the most outrageous gags. Such as Buddy's internal monologue as he slips his hand into a corpse's cleavage when her necklace drops into it. (long story) Narration: "Nip...old nip...old dead nip..." (Although Buddy's narration tends to hammer home the comedy too hard. )
In the same episode, to get his gullible assistant Dora to give up the necklace after Buddy accidentally presented it to her, he has his hooker accomplice impersonate a dying cancer patient in a wheelchair. With an oxygen mask, no less. The woman incoherently pleads with Dora for the necklace, as a dying wish. The brazen inhumanity of the joke is brilliant.
I'm only sorry this comedy is on TVLand. It deserves so much better than that.
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Well worth the wait!
I read about this film in "Reader's Digest" as a small child--it was a polemic about how this film was a menace to society and should be banned. (Little did they know what was coming in the future.) Many of the most gruesome scenes were described in detail, and it scared the CRAP out of me! So I never saw the film, even as I got older and worked my way through many horror classics. However, in the last few years I've become more jaded and inured to gore. A few months ago I was fortunate enough to see Peter Jackson's hilarious "Braindead", and nothing could be gorier than THAT! So I finally saw "Night of the Living Dead." And it scared me half to death. Yes, I know it was made for a $1.95, the editing is choppy, at times they shoot night scenes during the day--but that doesn't MATTER. It is obviously the touchstone for many modern (and far less frightening) films. The scenes where the zombies were eating the burnt bodies of the couple in the truck was truly disgusting and scary. And how great to have an intelligent African-American leading man, even with the downbeat ending. A great, great film, and I'm just sorry I paid attention to "Reader's Digest." But what the hell, it was in my grandmother's bathroom.