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mmarcuswarren
Reviews
Playboy: Playmate Pajama Party (1999)
Playmates party down and take it off
This Playboy video seems much different from most as it features many Playmates on film together as well as vintage clips of Hef and the Playmates ranging back into the 70s. There is also a tour of the mansion performed by Lisa Dergan and other Playmates sans their clothes. There are scenes of several Playmates lounging in the famous grotto and by the pool and in some cases Playmates like Jaime Bergman, Lisa, Deanna Brooks, Laura Cover, and Vanessa Gleason, among others, leave absolutely nothing to the imagination as they reveal ALL their beauty to the viewer. For a scene by scene breakdown and review of this and many other Playboy videos check out midnightowlvideo.com, the best source on the web for reviews as well as listings of the published appearances of many Playmates and even Penthouse Pets. If you're a fan of any of the ladies on this video/dvd it's at least worth checking out as a rental. It's enough to warm you up on a cold rainy day.
Ride Beyond Vengeance (1966)
A great western, that shouldn't be missed "Whiskey Man"
This may well be the best role Chuck Connors ever had outside of his regular TV series work. A griping tale of a man who leaves his wife to go off and make a fortune for her only to return 10 years later. A return that is met with rejection by the woman he left behind and a brutal beating and robbing that leaves the man branded as a thief. An action that sets him down a road of vengeance against the three men who robbed him and sets the entire town on edge. With excellent performances by Bill Bixby, Michael Rennie, Kathryn Hayes and Claude Adkins as a borderline psychotic who talks to his invisible friend "Whiskey Man." This one is definitely worth catching and of late has appeared many times on the Westerns Channel where it is shown uncut and without commercial interruption which helps to add even more to the movement of the story. A film filled with many great actors who are all sadly either gone or no longer practicing their craft today. All of whom give the viewer some of their best performances ever. As for during the 60s when this was made, it would have definitely had an audience in those drive-in theaters of yesterday. An excellent one all around.
Unsub (1989)
Stephen J. Cannell's 1989 version of "CSI"
UNSUB (Unknown Subject). This was one of the best of the Stephen J.Cannell Productions that ran in the 80's on NBC. David Soul's John Grayson was a far cry from his "Hutch" of years before and as the leader of the Justice Department Behavioral Science Lab, he and his crew used all the latest methods of scientific and intuitive discovery in order to hunt down the "unknown subjects" that performed the current week's gruesome crime. Just like other Cannell shows of the time (like "Stingray" and the first season of "Hunter" among others) it sported a stylish soundtrack of songs written and performed by composer Mike Post. The short lived series also featured fine performances by Kent McCord (formerly of "Adam-12"), M. Emmett Walsh, Richard Kind (later to co-star on "Mad About You" and "Spin City") as well as Jennifer Hetrick (who would later co-star as Captain Picard's love interest "Vash" on Star Trek: the Next Generation"). The similarities between this show and today's major hit "CSI" are astounding and really make me wonder if the creators of "CSI" may have been inspired by this short lived series which ran only 8 episodes. Another astounding fact is that the villain of the very first episode was played by none other than Paul Guilfoyle (a frequent Cannell villain back then) who would later co-star on "CSI" as Captain Jim Brass. IF you ever get the chance, this show is one that's worth catching, especially the 2 part episode (#6 & #7) which features Jason Bernard as a charismatic Bishop who proves to be just as evil as the Devil himself. Another quality show that was never allowed time to build an audience and just may have been 10 years or more ahead of its time. Just thankful, that like "Stingray" and "J.J. Starbuck", I was smart enough to get this one on tape during its original airing. Shows like this are few and far between and getting more scarce all the time, I just really wish it had ran a lot longer.
DarkWolf (2003)
trigger_gospel's review nails this HORROR flick
Just check the review by "trigger_gospel" for if this were a vampire instead of a werewolf flick "trigger" would have driven the nails to the coffin. This movie is definitely a "B" movie, if even that. The only one even attempting to act here is indeed Jaime Bergman and she definitely deserves much better than this. After her great comedy deliveries on "Son of the Beach" she gives her all to a film that is really undeserving of a lady of her class and ability only to have her character killed off 35 minutes or so into the film. They should have whacked her partner and let her carry the film but then I guess they couldn't have played the werewolf as a woman without even more lesbian overtures and as stated in another review the lesbian tinted photo shoot segment is laughable and perhaps disturbing. As another stated, I have no idea what Tippi Hedren is doing here. After performing opposite stars like Rod Taylor and Sean Connery in the 60s this must seem like a real let down. Then there is Steven Williams [spelled Stephen here] from "21 Jump Street" fame that is on screen less than Tippi, seems maybe the first five minutes total. Maybe he had them misspell his name in the credits on purpose. Going into this film I had only heard of him, Tippi and Jaime and all three are history before you get halfway through. Of course being a Jaime fan is why I rented it, but myself and my teenage daughter found ourselves laughing more than gasping in shock or fear. Rent it, don't buy it if you must see it and for us Jaime fans let's hope she can find a role deserving of her talents that will get her name out there. Though she shines above the others here, this film is not going to be the one to do it. The lady, as well as Tippi and Steven, are deserving of a whole lot better.
Son of the Beach (2000)
A truly classic crude comedy, a "Notch" above the rest
Now that the show has been gone from the air for a year or so I find I truly miss it. Not just for the fact of missing Jaime Bergman, Leila Arcieri and the other girls in their tiny bikinis but the rude and crude humor that even as you might occasionally grimace, you still found yourself laughing. From the perfect comedy deliver of Timothy Stack, Jaime and the others, you just couldn't help but get sucked into the world of Malibu Adjacent. Even the over top performances of the guest stars [who can ever forget Notch pursuing Lee Majors to the theme of "the Six Million Dollar Man" in slow motion] were more than enough to bring a smile to any viewer's face. Though I have to admit that season 3 didn't quite equal up to the first two [I have to believe dumping the Mayor and her son might have had something to do with that. Why do producers feel the need to tinker with a formula that is working, when experience shows that 9 out of 10 times that spells doom for the show?]. Just glad I got them all on tape as I have already watched them all a time or two since and still find myself laughing at the crude jokes and the wild misadventures of Notch and his unit. FX hasn't shown anything good since they pulled the plug. Seems in today's television of witless reality shows and unending clones of fairly successful shows [Just how many Law and Orders and CSIs do we need? Can't they come up with something original or even try a new spin on a classic instead of taking the same show and just moving it to a new locale? And they wonder why ratings are eroding.] anything as crude and different as "Son of the Beach" just never really stood a chance. Guess we are lucky it made even three seasons.
Playboy: Club Lingerie (2000)
worth a look [especially for Jaime Bergman fans]
If you are a fan of beautiful women and like to see them nude or scantily clothed than this one won't disappoint. Besides featuring rare video footage of such popular Playboy models like Christi Taylor and Kelly Monaco it also features a five minute segment called "The Bride" featuring Jaime Bergman. This segment is a must see for all fans of Jaime's beauty as within the five minutes you'll see MORE of her here than even in her Playmate Centerfold video as she leaves nothing to the imagination. Also features several nice close up shots of every part of her gorgeous body. Most definitely worth checking out as a rental or if ran across in the bargain bin, while any die hard Jaime collector will find it worth paying the full price once seeing this five minutes of footage of her. Just be sure if you are a die hard collector to go for the DVD as not to wear out the tape as you view it time after time. Overall this one is about an 8, but for Jaime fans its a most definite 10, just wish that 5 minutes could have been 10 or more. As stated elsewhere...beauty is spelled Bergman...Jaime Bergman.
Playboy Video Centerfold: 45th Anniversary Playmate Jaime Bergman (1998)
Beauty is spelled Bergman...Jaime Bergman
One of the best of the Playboy Video Centerfolds that not only reveals all of Jaime's beauty but at the same time in the small scenes illustrate that, to this viewer at least, that Jaime is more than capable of being an accomplished actress if given the chance at the right part. While most of the "chapters" are merely to reveal her beauty, the sequences "Need Your Love" and "On the Run" alone more than show that she is an actress capable of showing varied depths of emotion on screen. A "must have" for any true fan of Jaime's that also illustrates, if only briefly, the potential she has that has yet to be able to be displayed on the screen.