TCM Weekly Highlights (November 30-

Those with asterisks are ones I have seen. It will be updated as the week progresses.

Saturday November 30

2pm: The Time Machine(1960). The 1960 technicolor production of H.G. Wells' Sci-fi classic.

4pm: Golden Voyage of Sinbad(1973): "Sinbad battles a fiendish magician and monsters" -TCM. Looks silly but it features a pre-Doctor Who Tom Baker as the villain so, who knows?

8pm: The Searchers(1956)*. Considered by many to not only be the best movie John Wayne did but the best western ever made. After his brother's family is massacred John Wayne begins a search for the only survivor, his niece.

10:15pm: The Wrong Man(1956). Henry Fonda plays a priest wrongfully confused of a crime in this Hitchcock thriller. The good news is he knows who did it, the bad news is

Sunday December 1

5:45pm: Imitation of Life(1959). I think the plot here is about a black mother and a white mother becoming friends. Leonard Maltin gave it a good review so I might take a look.

8pm: Point Blank(1967): A famous Lee Marvin action revenge flick.

Weekend at Bernie's Review

Director: Ted Kotcheff
Starring: Andrew McCarthy, Jonathan Silverman, Terry Kiser, Catherine Mary Stewart
Writer: Robert Klane

Weekend at Bernies is a movie with an interesting premise: Two guys have to pretend that a man who died is still alive by parading the man's corpse around his summer beachfront home over the course of a weekend. Obviously, in order for this to work, the movie has to take a large degree of license when it comes to the decaying nature of dead bodies. Fortunately, the movie is funny enough that you are probably going to forget about that plot hole.

The plot involves two losers, Larry Wilson (Andrew McCarthy) and Richard Parker (Jonathan Wilson) who work at an insurance firm and, after discovering possible embezzlement, are invited by their boss Bernie Lomax (Terry Kiser) for a weekend getaway at his beach home. The two are excited. Unfortunately, the boss was the one who did the embezzling and asks his mob buddies to take them out and they agree. The mob boss then decides to kill Bernie because Bernie has been screwing around with the mob bosses girlfriend. And at the beach, the mob hitman (Don Caulfa) kills Bernie and when the two guys find his body they fail to suspect anything because of the drugs in his shirt pocket. They soon realize their best chance of living out the weekend (while enjoying the sight of beautiful women in bikinis) is to pretend that Bernie is alive.
As you might suspect, there are some plot holes but that is not a problem. The movie has no grand designs and the plot is simply there to give the movie an excuse to force Larry and Richard to lug around a dead body. You'll probably be too busy laughing at the sight gags and the joke that nobody  on the island seems to realize the guy is dead. And I mean nobody. People constantly walk up to him, talk to him, berate him for not talking, and never realize he is dead.

If you turn it on expecting high quality art then you will be disappointed. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the dead body jokes.

The movie is Rated R for some adult situations and language. I recommend it. Its a fun weekend movie.   If give it a B.

Twilight Zone pilot mini-review

I might do some mini-reviews from time to time. Not full length reviews of a movie but short and sweet reviews, instead it will usually be of some TV episode I watched where there is not enough to fill a full-length review.

Twilight Zone - "Where is Everybody?"
Written by Rod Serling
Directed by Robert Stevens
Starring Earl Holliman as The Pilot
Air Date: 2 October 1959

This first episode of the classic anthology series The Twilight Zone involves a US Air Force pilot who walks into a small town with no memory of who he is. And to make matters worse, there is no one in the town, yet lights strangely flicker on or off and ovens start for no reason. What follows is a look into the effect of loneliness and isolation on the human mind.

The episode is incredibly well-written and well-shot, especially the night-time climax which brings to mind the noir-ish climax of It's a Wonderful Life. Its the kind of scene that would've been nowhere near as good if it was in color. Black and white is perfect for the scene.

The acting by Earl Holliman as the Pilot is quite good. He does a good job not only winning us over with a certain amount of Air Force pilot cocky charm but also, and this is important, subtly portraying the slow creeping madness caused by his isolation in the deserted town. So much so that by the time he finally does crack at the end, its perfectly believable.

So, what's the grade? A.
Especially good first episode. It and the rest of the classic Twilight Zone are available on Netflix Instant right now and I highly recommend viewing this episode.

I might review some more Twilight Zone episodes later, but I can't say when.

Movie Review: 42

42 Review

Director: Brian Helgeland

Writer: Brian Helgeland

Starring: Chadwick Boseman (Jackie Robinson), Harrison Ford (Branch Rickey), Nicole Beharie (Rachel Robinson), Christopher Meloni (Leo Durocher), Ryan Merriman (Dixie Walker), Lucas Black (Pee Wee Reese), Andre Holland (Wendell Smith), Alan Tudyk (Ben Chapman).

Rated: PG-13

Runtime: 128min

Making a movie about racism or any other form of bigotry, even a historical drama about someone overcoming such bigotry, can be difficult. A filmmaker these days has to portray the evils of racism without coming across as preachy and turning off his audience. Stop the movie so you can give the audience a sermon they already know and have not needed in decades (Trying to tell most Americans that its wrong to segregate people by race, for example), and they tune out. That is not to say you can't have a character explain the evils of something, but it must move the story forward. Often such a balancing act is difficult, it seems. 

42 is a movie that accomplishes this balancing act. The movie is about Jackie Robinson's first season in the white-dominated professional baseball league. The movie opens with the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Branch Rickey (Harrison Ford), telling his two assistants that he is going to integrate professional baseball. When asked why he points out that there are lots of blacks in Brooklyn who will pay to see a Dodgers game "Dollars aren't black and white. They're green." (Hint: This ain't the real reason). So he chooses the talented young baseball player in the Negro Leagues, Jackie Robinson. When they first meet, Rickey tells him that if he wants to play he's going to have to be able to take the incredible amount of abuse he will receive stoically, saying "I want a player who's got the goes not to fight back."

And so he joins the Montreal Monarchs, which is where many Dodgers players are recruited from. And the abuse starts quickly on account of them training in segregationist Florida. When he is signed with the Dodgers, even more comes his way. A group of players even sign a petition against letting him join. Most of them are talked down by the manager Durocher, played here by Christopher Meloni in a great scene where he points out that Robinson is not the last and there are whole bunch of black players who not only have the talent to play but also, as he puts it "the drive" and if the white players want to keep their jobs they are going to have to be good enough not to lose their jobs. This is another sign of the movie's good writing, a lesser writer would have had Meloni give a long speech about the evils of racism. Here, he plays to their self-interest.

So, he's in the Dodgers and the rest of the movie is about how the other players, often reluctantly, not only become more comfortable with having a black player on their team but, inspired by his spirit even at times standing up for him in front of racist managers such as the Phillies' Ben Chapmen (Alan Tudyk of Firefly and the British Death at a Funeral) or angry whites in the stands. Not all the players do so, but when it happens, it nearly always made me want to cheer. 

As you can tell, there is some heavy-handedness, certainly, but given that it is dealing with the racism in early 20th Century America, some heavy-handedness is probably necessary. But that heavy-handedness never devolves into a sermon at the audience. The farthest it goes is when they are playing in Cincinnati and it features a boy watching his father shout racial epithets before slowly joining in. In fact, much of the heavy-handedness that occurs serves to tell us the  that Robinson faced and how he not only overcame those obstacles but, and I know you've heard this 1,000 times but it bears repeating, changed the game of baseball. Even the scene with the boy serves this purpose, but you'll have to see the movie to know how.

There is also the revelation from Branch Rickey about his true motivations for letting him play, which could have become a heavy-handed speech about the evils of racism instead serve to remind the racism that existed back then as well as, and this is why it works, reveal something about who Branch Rickey is and why he is doing this. 

So, all in all, a good movie. Now that is not to say it is without its flaws. The ending is a bit anti-climactic, perhaps a price of staying to close to history. There are also times the scenes between Robinson and his wife, though they serve to make him more likable, do come seem to stop the story.

So I give it between 3 1/2 stars and 4 stars. Not sure if it ranks as a great movie but its certainly a good one and worth the price of admission.

Note: There is a small treat for fans of the long-running TV show Scrubs where John C. McGinley, the abrasive Dr. Cox on the show, plays the ever calm sportscaster Red Barber. 

My Rating System

NOTE: Check my Political/Current Events blog for something on the bombing in Boston.

This is how my rating system of a movie's play's or book's quality works, as of now. This is not precise. I may change it and there may be some fluctuation but this is how I generally see it. Some movies I may be forced to put within a general area, especially those between 3 and 4 stars. For example, one movie I may be forced to say "somewhere between a 3 1/2 and a 4".

5 Star: Best of the Best. Above great. Examples include Casablanca, Dark Knight, The Exorcist, Toy Story Trilogy. Note: This does not mean "perfect". All movies have flaws and the best of the best are no exception.
4 Stars: Great. Highly worth watching. Examples include Iron Man, Avengers, Batman Begins,
3 Stars: Ok. Average. Good enough. Worth watching. For movies its probably a rental unless otherwise stated. Examples include Thors, Iron Man 2.
2 Stars: Not good, but usually still be enjoyable as long as you shut off your brain. Dumb fun. Example would be Transformers.
1 Star: Terrible. Near total crap w/ maybe one or two bright spots.
0-1/2 Star: Makes you ashamed to be a member of the human race.

Some half-stars.
3 1/2: Above average. Recommended for theaters. Examples include Dark Knight Rises, Lincoln,
2 1/2 Stars: Below Average. Not as bad as a two-star.

Happy Easter

Hope you all had a Happy Easter!

Now, here are Judy Garland and Fred Astaire!

DOCTOR WHO PREMIER LIVE BLOG!

DOCTOR WHO LIVE BLOG!!

I'm a bit late!

SORRY!

Anyway, early notes:

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Monk: “Is it an evil spirit?”

Doctor: “No, it’s a woman..”

[Monk crosses himself.]

AMELIA WILLIAMS!!!!!!!

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"Under my protection" -The Doctor!

He ain't just talkin' about the girl!

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"I invented the quadricycle!" -The Doctor

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"I was scared. Really scared." -Clara

Some more great Who music from Murray Gold here too.

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"We can't pass them all off as a riot."

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So, they are on the plane.

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"I'm the Doctor. I'm an alien from outer space, I've got two hearts, and I CAN'T FLY A PLANE!!!"

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"FIND! THAT! BOX!"

Trust me, ma'am. You don't want to!

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"I have two heats and -27 brains!"

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HOLY CRAP! HOLY CRAP! HOLY CRAP!

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Oh, and "This planet is not to be harmed." Your "client" might want to pay heed to those words.

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"Rode one of these in the anti-grav Olympics. I came in last."
"The Building is in lockdown. You're not coming in."
"Did you even hear the word 'anti-grav'?"

HELL YEAH!!!!!!

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"Here's your motivation."

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The Doctor is angry. Don't make the Doctor angry. :)

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"Doctor? Doctor!"

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"All right, Clara Oswald. Time to find out who you are."

The Bible

The History Channel is producing a 5-part 10-hour mini-series about the Bible. So far, so good.

Here is a music video they put out to the song "Mary Did You Know"

Downton Abbey Live Blog

Sorry for not keeping up my Downton Abbey recaps so to make up I will do a LIVE BLOG!!!

Its my first on the blog, so I apologize if I'm not perfect.

The plot: Well, the Crawleys are headed for Scotland for a holiday with the household staff (and Branson and Lady Isobel) staying behind to hold the fort.

9:12 "I notice you are not one of our regulars." Thomas proving he can be both a complete asshole and awesome at the same time.

9:13 Also, Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Carson are the mom and dad of the staff. Hell, looking at the way those two interact

9:15. O'Brien, Mosely who can't play cricket worth a damn, and the Bateses (free!) are w/ the family in Scotland eating w/ the staff. NEWSFLASH! O'Brien is a snotty bitch.

9:16 Matthew hates bagpipes.

9:17 Thomas being nice? Weird.

9:18
Lady Isobel telling Branson he should eat w/ the staff.
"I don't think Lady Grantham would approve of that."
"Well, I don't think Lady Grantham would approve the working class learning to read."

9:21 Matthew really hates bagpipes. Especially when they wake him up.

9:22 "That sounds like a week w/ my mother-in-law." Love. Lady. Violet.

9:23 What is Mrs. O'Brien up to this time?
Mr. Carson won't give anyone a moment's rest.
I like Lady Edith in a pink sweater. ;-)

9:24 Looks like the new maid has the hots for Mr. Branson. Not necessarily good so soon after the death of Lady Sybil. I predict fan hate for her.

9:25 Mrs. Patmore wants to take a trip into town.

9:27 If you want to understand the Carson-Hughes relationship remember the statement from My Big Fat Greek Wedding: "A man may be the head but the woman is the neck and she can turn it anyway she wants to." :-)

9:28 Violet still grieves over Lady Sybil.

9:29 Still not sure what to make of the new maid. Movin' in on Lady Sybil's man!

9:30 John and Anna Bates meeting Rose(?) while she is smoking. Boy she is not happy in Scotland w/ her mother.

9:31 Do I smell romance in the air between Isobel and Dr. Clarkson?

9:33 Lady Edith in a red 1920s dress. Me likey. ;-)
And that guy w/ the wife in the looney bin kinda likes her too. Drama.

9:34 "Cause I've seen you naked." Cue fangirls fainting.

9:35 Hughes and Carson. I actually see Carson's point. He is the classical Team Dad who metes out punishment, she is the classical Team Mom who advocates for them to get lighter punishments from Mr. Carson.

9:36
"She's a woman, ain't she?"
"Only Technically."
Thomas you awesome snarky jerk.

9:37
Hunting in the Highlands.

9:38
"He finds himself in need of a wife."

9:39
John: "You sound racy."
Anna: "I am racy!"
A long overdue John/Anna romantic picnic that fans have been waiting for!

9:41 Branson will be eating w/ the staff. Cue smile from

9:41 Lady Edith in a grey outdoors outfit. Me likey. ;-)

9:43 Did Mrs. O'Brien just subtly insult the Lady of the House?

9:44 Lady Edith in a green dress. Me likey. ;-)

9:45 "He's what!" "It's only meant to be friendly." Carson and Hughes always entertain.

9:46 Clarkson asking Lady Isobel out on a date. Clarkson and Isobel kissin' in a tree. . .

9:47 Carson is still not coming to the carnival.

9:48 Is Anna learning how to dance?

9:49 The footmen sitting in the chairs of the Lord and Ladies. Ooooooh, not goo-ood! :)
Note: Do I see a gay romance next season between Jimmy-who-might-be-closeted and Thomas-who-everyone-has-known-was-gay.

9:51 The Carnival! Daisy and Ivy are getting along!
And I don't trust that guy sweetin' on Mrs. Patmore.

9:53 Tug-o-war match.

9:54 "We're not in a novel by Walter Scott."
I think that means "No", bub.

9:55 Downton Team wins Tug-O-War Match!

9:56 I love Daisy.

9:57 For the Record:
Upstairs crush: Lady Edith,
Downstairs Crush: Daisy

9:58 Yo, big guy! Don't break Mrs. Patmore's heart, you are making Mrs. Hughes angry.

9:59 Damn! Thomas. Is. A. Badass!

10:01 Folks, this is why everyone loves Violet.

10:02 I think we should note that Thomas got into a fight saving Jimmy. You know, the guy who nearly sent him to prison.

10:03 Carson picking up Lady Sybil. I sense a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming coming on!

10:04 Mosely may be s--t at Crochet but he can dance a decent jig.

10:04 The Local's maid has a problem w/ Mrs. O'Brien and spiking her drink! A warning, Mrs. O'Brien is not a woman to cross.

10:05 Well, we have our Crowning Moment of Heartwarming. And why Hughes and Carson are not just the Mum and Dad of the staff but of the whole house.

10:07 Mrs. O'Brien knows a spiked drink when she tastes it. Morsely, apparently, does not.

10:07 Lord Grantham helping the local Lord (still have no idea what his name is)

10:08 The passing of an age. "If only I had modernized as you did."
A modernization that Lord Grantham had to be dragged into kicking and screaming.

10:09 Anna dancing.
Mary: "Isn't she marvelous?"
Bates: "Yes, she is marvelous."

10:10 Mrs. Hughes telling Mrs. Patmore what a dick that bloke is.

10:11 "Either way, its the cooking he was after, not me."

10:12 "What if he comes back?" "He'll get a thick ear."
Hughes and Patmore laughing at the dick's bad pick-up lines.

10:12 Mosely is drunk.

10:13 Morsely dancing whatever the hell he is dancing is probably the funniest thing in the history of Downton Abbey. Crowning Moment of Funny, that's for sure.

10:14 The maid has kissed Branson.
Just wondered, do we call him "Lord Branson" yet? :-)

10:15 Lady Edith in a green dress. Me Likey. ;-)
And Mr. Mosely laughing.

10:16 Edna is in TWUBLE!

10:19 If you want to know why we love Mrs. Hughes, her comforting Tom Branson is why.

10:21 We got a baby coming!

10:21 It's understandable that Daisy would be worried upon hearing that Lady Mary is in the hospital considering how the last childbirth in the family went.

10:23 Rose is coming to Downton next year. I wonder what that will bring! Maybe some romance for Mr. Branson...

10:24 Clarkson is handling this childbirth, so Mary should be fine!

10:25 "I feel like I'm only half myself without him." -Mary, on Matthew.

10:28 Jimmy and Thomas are getting along better.

10:30 Well, we have a male heir now. "Downton is safe."

10:32 A Kissing Part! Yuck!

10:33 Uh-oh, bad feeling.

10:34 Well, that's two Crawleys down. Talk about a body count for this show.

Well, the episode is over. Now PBS will try to sell their DVDs.

Anyway, shocking ending. Though I knew about it ahead of time as I read a spoiler.

I'll post a later post on where I think show might go from here in terms of character arcs and development.


One last note: PBS, I can get Downton Abbey season 3 much cheaper than $120.

Classic Movies I Have Seen Recently

Suspicion (1940)

Decent suspense thriller from directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant and Joan Fontaine (in a role that won her the Oscar for Best Actress). Lots of scenes show Hitchcock as the spell-binding genius he is with Cary Grant giving an amazing portrayal of a man who is seemingly a narcissistic sociopath and Joan Fontaine as his frightened and increasingly paranoid wife.
Anyway, decent movie but I felt the ending was a bit of a cop-out. Even if it did get Fontaine the Oscar.

The Gay Divorcee (1934)

This is the first movie with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers sharing top billing and its a pretty good outing. It starts a bit slow-ish (to me) but it gets very good. The plot is simple, Ginger Rogers wants a divorce from her husband she has not seen in a few years and who won't grant a divorce (different time) so her lawyer hires a man for her to be caught with. However, Fred Astaire has fallen for her. The best moment is the "Night and Day" scene. Here is where you see why Ginger was such a good dance partner for Fred. You can sincerely believe that a woman would fall in love with a man after dancing with him. 

Scene:

Only Ginger Rogers could make that stunned look as believable as she does. Some people's favorite scene is the big dance scene "The Continental" but I prefer the quieter one above.


Kelly's Heroes (1970)

Classic, tongue-in-cheek World War 2 action-comedy about a group of US soldiers going behind German lines to find some Nazi gold. It stars Clint Eastwood as the lead character Kelly who comes up with the plan, Donald Sutherland as a hippie tank leader (yes, a hippie), Don Rickles as the intel/accountant, and Telly Savalas as the Sergeant. The movie is a fun flick. Though it does contain some crude humour. Its a fun guy movie.

My favorite part has to be the song "Burning Bridges" by the Mike Curb Congregation!

Downton Abbey Ep. 3 Recap

Well, its three episodes into this season (or series in Brit speak) of ITV's Downton Abbey airing on PBS here in the states and I have decided to begin a recap.

First, a word on terminology. To identify between the story lines of the Crawleys and the staff I might be using the terms "upstairs" and Downstairs" for the two with "Upstairs" referring to the Crawleys and their story lines such as Mary/Matthew or the Isobel-Violet War and Downstairs for the staff such as John/Anna's relationship. I am including Tom Branson in the Upstairs for the most part because he has married into the Crawley's and most of his story lines involve the Crawleys.
Also, I've only seen about half of Season 2 so if I missed a great moment in the second half, I apologize. I hope to rectify this problem as soon as possible.

Now, onto the recap!

This week in Downton Abbey...

• Thomas (a homosexual) may have found a possible new avenue for romance in the new Footman, James. Unfortunately for him Mrs. O'Brien knows about Thomas's attraction to James and since Thomas has been treating her nephew, another footman, like crap for the past few episodes, she is likely to figure out a way to use it against him. 
• Tom Branson let his revolutionary "tear-down-the-establishment-despite-marrying-into-the-establishment" ideals got him into some trouble with the Irish authorities. Due largely to him attending a bunch of revolutionary "Free Ireland" meetings and possibly burning down a Lord's manor. Fortunately, his father-in-law was able to bail him out. 
• Middle-child Lady Edith, tired of being the family martyr in the areas of romance after getting dumped at the alter, decided to finally do something and, after hearing that the U.S. will soon be ratifying the 19th Amendment, sent in a letter to a newspaper (The Times, I think) taking up the cause of women's suffrage in the United Kingdom and Lord Grantham didn't like it too much. 
• Speaking of Lord Grantham. We learned that he apparently has no financial management skills whatsoever. Matthew, who has taken an interest in the place's finances since he pretty much bailed them out at the beginning of this season, has realized this and plans some changes. Just as Lord Grantham is hiring more help. So expect financial fireworks this season!
• Also, being a prostitute sucks. In more ways than one.
• I also believe that this episode provided further evidence for my case that the John/Anne story is the best romance on the show in an episode where the closest they came to actually sharing a scene together was a dissolve. In fact, the tender moment at the end when they finally read the letters the prison has been blocking is probably a more interesting and engaging moment than anything I've seen happen between Mary and Matthew. 
• We also learned that Lord Grantham isn't a big fan of Catholics, seeing them as a bit "Johnny Foreigner". 

Well, that's about it. Can't wait for next week!