zacdawac Reviews

Just Like Heaven (2005)

Loveable, original film, in spite of Jack of all Nortons-

[8/10 · 30 September 2023]

This was a rather enjoyable feel good film, with a creative premise that was slightly different from other spiritual and supernatural romantic comedies of its kind. The lead characters were compelling and loveable, to the point where you knew the film had to go in the direction that it did. Had it gone any other way, the audience would have been left angry and frustrated. I'm not going to give anything else away. This film is funny, warm, enticing, unique, thought provoking, moving at times, intriguing throughout and it has extremely appealing leading characters.

That said, I remember reading a book about the original 39 Honeymooners that talked about how Norton was always there to be whatever he was needed to be. When he had to roller skate, he was an expert skater. When they needed someone to record audio, at a time when few people, especially sewer workers, had the equipment to do that, Ed Norton was right there. When they needed a golfer or a mambo dancer, Norton had both skills mastered. He could even play any and every popular song on the piano.

The appropriately named Jack character in this film seemed to share Norton's ability to be anything and everything a given situation might call for. He was David's sounding board, bar buddy and even his official therapist. He was the man to call when you needed to steal a body. Like Major Roger Healy in I Dream of Jeannie, Jack was the best friend who would ultimately be let in on the outrageous secret. He was even the elusive matchmaker and the other side of the clandestine kiss. Again, I don't want to give away more than that.

Back in the days when writing had rules, one of them was, people believe the impossible but not the improbable. Elizabeth's situation was quite credible in the world created by the film. Jack too was of many trades.

This film won't change your life but if you have ninety minutes with not much else on the agenda, I highly recommend it.

NYPD Blue: Stratis Fear (2005) Season 12, Episode 14

What did I miss here?

[8/10 · 15 August 2023]

It's acceptable for an ageing, gruff retired cop to shoot an otherwise innocent man because that man was involved with the cop's crippled son's very willing wife? It makes sense if you read it slowly, but it doesn't really. Maybe Sipowicz would sign off on this but others wouldn't, especially the rigid, by the book former internal affairs officer, Lieutenant Bale. Having sex with your son's wife is not a justification for cold blooded murder. That the cops took eight seconds to decide not to investigate and charge the killer is an extreme example of how the police stick together. At least, someone in the squad could have argued the other side, or at least they could have had protestors on the street.

"I shot this guy because he was banging my son's wife, even though my son couldn't do it anymore, his wife was perfectly willing, his wife was still totally devoted to my son in every other way and my son essentially consented to it."

"Okay. Thanks for telling us. Enjoy your golf game. Maybe we'll have a beer sometime."

The eight stars are because it was a well written, interesting script that was pretty much credible. But credible and morally right aren't always the same. Normally, I agree with the cops when they give slack on this show. Not this time. If this was an excuse for murder, then other justification should be "he walked in while I was robbing the register for my daily fix so I had to shoot him!"

Lawyer Man (1932)

Was this before our Mr. Powell learned to be likeable & filmmakers learned about character consistency?

[6/10 · 13 August 2023]

William Powell's character, Anton Adam, is a noble lawyer, working to help the poor and oppressed. Then, he's an opportunist, doing what's necessary to advance himself, regardless of morality. Then, he's a would be gangster's would be puppet. Then, his nobility, coupled with his need for revenge, compel him to turn on the gangsters. Then, he becomes a gangster's lawyer again. Then he heads back to his world of being a noble attorney for the poor. Not once do we see a traumatizing reason or driving motivation for these character alterations.

In between, Anton presumably jumps on every attractive female that breathes, while his loyal and doting secretary, who is admittedly in love with him, looks on and accepts. It's not openly stated that he has intimate relationships with the women he encounters but it was a pre-code film and all the implications were there.

The head presumed gangster hates Anton. Then he loves him. Then he hates him again. Then he embraces him. Then he looks the other way while Anton moves on.

The girlfriend of another would be gangster seduces Anton so he can help her get a breach of promise settlement. Then she returns to her boyfriend and helps him set up Anton for a huge fall.

I give the film six stars because of some quick, witty dialogue, because it is essentially enjoyable to watch if you don't examine it too closely and because Joan Blondell was never so adorable and loveable. Of course, Joan's character was also rather inconsistent. While she was sharp, funny, smart, tough and right on top of things, she also sat there and watched the man she loved pursue every other woman that walked in his site. I was going to say every beautiful woman but there weren't any unattractive women in this film, even in the background. I guess every woman in New York looked like a model, in 1932. Too bad hardly a man is now alive who can relish in these sweet memories.

Overall, I'd say watch this film if it's there and you have eighty minutes to kill but don't expect much beyond the superficial. And some funny lines. And Joan Blondell at her sweetest.

More American Graffiti (1979)

Not as bad as the reviews would have you think, though there's certainly room for improvement!

[6/10 · 26 April 2023]

Sometimes, we get endeared to film characters and we want to see what happens to them. And yes, sometimes their lives, after the stories we love, are far more mundane. Not every moment, or even a compilation of the most intriguing moments, would necessarily translate to a ninety minute feature film.

I've seen fragments of More American Graffiti, and edited television versions through the years but last night was the first time I watched the entire film through. The idea of cutting between four subsequent New Year's Eves was original and intriguing. Yes, since they only needed to focus on each story for less than thirty minutes, they might have found more interesting minutes to dramatize. As a drama, with a touch of comedy, it's plausible and interesting, even if it falls short of being compelling and brilliant. As a period piece and slice of life follow up to the characters, it works.

Everyone wanted to find out what happened to Oliver Barrett, after Love Story. The little known, obscure film Oliver's Story gives you a slice of Oliver's life, two years later. It's not necessarily fascinating but it is a respectable follow up for the curious. Ditto, Class of 44. Tens of millions of people were absorbed in the story of Hermie, Oscy and Benji in the classic film, Summer of 42. Here's where the characters are, two years later. Nothing is happening to them that would be worthy of another box office smash hit but we get to reacquaint and see where they are.

More American Graffiti gives us a fateful, if barely eventful night in the life of John Milner. Essentially, we see the lead up to the epilogue offered at the end of the first rather brilliant and unique feature film. Toad goes where he's said to go, also in the first film's epilogue. Would he have been able to pull off what he did is the only question I ask. These things did happen. Why would they necessarily have to be complicated? Without giving anything away, why couldn't a radical would be wimp like Toad have pulled this off, in the way he did it? It doesn't sound likely but it's plausible.

Dreyfuss chose to skip this sequel, as he chose to skip the follow up to Jaws. Was that because of his ego, his demands for high salaries or because he wanted to maintain the quality and integrity of the original masterpieces? I've never heard an interview about it so I guess I would need to ask him. In any case, Curt's younger brother Andy stood in his place, which made perfect sense. My guess is, if Dreyfuss had done the film, the role would have been larger and more significant but Andy's part worked.

Steven and Laurie as conservative Republicans also makes perfect sense. Regardless of their brief rebellious moments, I'd imagine that, if their characters are still alive in 2023, they are right now mourning Tucker's departure from Fox. I'm writing this review two days after this happened and a few months after the death of Cindy Williams. Seeing her so young and vibrant, if conservative, here makes me think of how fleeting it all is.

Candy Clark's story works as a realistic, credible, even if not so compelling slice of life, as well. I really would have liked to have seen more of Mackenzie Phillips, though. I always thought that Mackenzie's part was probably risqué and cut for television standards but she sadly doesn't do much here.

Again, as an intriguing masterpiece, it can't be compared to the original, in any way. As a uniquely presented slice of life follow up to the characters, it works.

In 2023, fifty odd years after the first film and roughly sixty years after the action of the original takes place, most of the actors are still alive and working. Maybe it's time for yet another follow up. They must have done something interesting since the sixties.

Godfather of Harlem (2019– )

Little logic or reason in the third season

[7/10 · 15 April 2023]

My rating of the show went from 9 to 7 after the third season. The first two years were gripping, compelling and intriguing, even if few of the actual gangsters were portrayed with even remote accuracy. The third season, while watchable and while filled with isolated interesting moments, doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

One minute, Mayme Johnson is Michelle Obama, working with grace, passion and diligence to bring everything positive to her Harlem community. The next minute, she's Carmela Soprano, standing by and enabling her husband's efforts to saturate the streets with heroin. The differences between Mayme and Carmela were, Tony didn't confide in Carmela about most of his ventures and Tony's primary business wasn't bringing lethal drugs to teenagers on the street where he lived. Ditto Bumpy. Is he a savior, working with his friends Malcolm X and Adam Clayton Powell to advance the rights and improve the lives of his people, or is he the direct cause of massive death and violent crime among his own?

Stella is also all over the place. One minute, she hates Joe Colombo enough to essentially put a hit on him. The next minute, she's Colombo's savior and ultimately, in a storyline that takes eight episodes to slowly play out, his lover. One minute, Stella hates her father and the next minute, she loves him. One minute, Chin is Colombo's mentor and benefactor and the next minute, they too are bitter enemies. Colombo is of course, a slick, smart top level gangster who makes Stella his most trusted business confidante, after she almost gets him killed and after she rats on her father. Wasn't he even slightly concerned that he might one day upset her and she might report his activities to the authorities or try to have him killed again?

One creature that we know is a villain, as clearly defined and as ludicrous as the Joker or the Green Goblin, is Wild Bill Harvey. Except he's a head honcho in the CIA. His job is to keep our country safe from menaces who are trying to make positive changes, like John Kennedy and Malcolm X. And if he has to supply gangsters with cocaine, kidnap women and stick needles in the arms of reformed junkies in order to do it, it's all for the greater good. Why would this man, who considered himself brilliant and indestructible, put his weapon down and take the hands of two dangerous gangsters whose daughters he just threatened, while standing at the edge of a building's roof?

Why did Bumpy turn down a rather generous and lucrative offer from the five families and instead set himself up as a relatively lone wolf who had to fight to get his product and who likely had a target on his back? And why didn't the Italians kill Bumpy, after he told all of the family heads to go f-ck themselves? And when did Chin become Bumpy's most loyal and faithful friend? Why would either or both of them turn down the five families and then readily partner with each other?

And then there's Malcolm X. Yes, if we know anything about the history of the civil rights movement, and the assumption is that anyone watching this show probably does, we know Malcom's fate. But did we need to spend ten episodes talking about it, warning him about it and slowly building up to it?

Again, I highly recommend the first two seasons of this show. I think the creative team needs to revamp, if they're going to go forward from this point.

An Imperfect Murder (2017)

An imperfect film but far better than its been painted!

[8/10 · 21 March 2023]

Yes, the word painted was intentional since the paintings and the music at the opening were rather compelling. Sienna Miller's Vera character was beyond provocative, believable and quite compelling. Alec Baldwin and Charles Grodin were interesting, unique and also pretty compelling. No other actors would have interpreted their roles quite the same way. And no film with that many compelling aspects deserves a three out of ten star rating.

The dialogue was also quite good and believable, throughout. The situation was a touch over the top but credible enough for anyone to say that it could realistically happen. It could, and it almost did happen to someone I'm close to, many years ago. She would not be happy if I got into specifics on a public page but the fact is, when she was in a similar situation, she thought hard about doing what Vera did. I'm sure she wasn't the only one.

With all respect to this great writer, who I truly admire and respect, the fault in this film, and the reason for the bad reviews, in my opinion, is James Toback. Not James the author, of course. The writer of brilliant films like The (original) Gambler and Bugsy, at his worst is still far superior to most screenwriters of today, at their best. The problem is James, as an actor. His character was grating and annoying and I couldn't wait for his tedious scenes to end so we could get back to the compelling characters, the excellent dialogue and the rather interesting film.

Honestly, I think Toback's scenes could be cut out completely without losing anything, except length. It almost feels like the film was too short so he shot some last minute scenes with himself playing opposite the leading lady. Yes, the film was one of the shortest dramas of its kind, at least since early talkies. Editing anything out would make it into more of a short film than a feature. However, editing out every hint of Toback's character and leaving the rest exactly as it is would make this into a much closer to perfect film.

When I think about all the good Charles Grodin roles, I'm actually surprised there were so many. The Heartbreak Kid, Seems Like Old Times, Heaven Can Wait, Heart & Souls and Midnight Run were all pretty fantastic. His one scene here, in his final scene, shows his acting chops as well as any of them. If the film had been regarded higher, Grodin's performance might have actually been considered for awards.

So my question for Mister Toback is, would you prefer a three star seventy two minute short feature or an eight star fifty minute extended short? Try it without your scenes, release it to festivals and my bet is, it receives high praise. My own eight star rating is for every scene in which the truly gifted and eminent writer, James Toback, doesn't try to be an actor.

M*A*S*H: Lil (1978) Season 7, Episode 3

So what does BJ stand for?

[7/10 · 24 February 2023]

Thirty odd years later, there might have been some slightly more crass, or might I say more intimate implications for the name BJ. At the time of this airing, I was a teenager in Brooklyn and I wasn't nearly as appreciative of the strength of the show's replacement characters as I am now. In the film, in the book and in earlier seasons, everyone was having sex, whether married or not. Kidneys were removed for sport, blood was syphoned while unknowing participants slept and essentially, everyone was far wilder and more outrageous than they were after original performers departed.

It took me a while to appreciate Charles, who was probably the most multi-faceted and complex character to be part of the unit. He was brought in as the essential opposite of Frank Burns, being refined, competent, single and an exemplary, dedicated surgeon. At the same time, he was just as much the foil for his swamp mates, even though he was able to hold his own and give back. But even Charles, a brilliant, affluent, high class young-ish doctor, surrounded by passionate, available nurses seemed relatively celibate. There were only small implications that Charles ever sewed his oats, on two or three episodes.

So what does BJ stand for? A character who only stepped out on his wife one time, when all of the married characters in the book, film and early seasons seemed to do it, from the first day that they arrived. A noble man who refused to remove someone's kidney without a valid medical reason, regardless of how it might affect the good of the many? When I was sixteen, my assumption was, since Mash once had a Trapper John, a Ho Jon and an Ugly John, BJ must have stood for Boring John. As I'm typing, I'm thinking it also could have been Banal John.

All in the Family: Lionel Steps Out (1972) Season 3, Episode 5

A classic, memorable & poignant episode, if inconsistent with numerous others!

[9/10 · 10 December 2022]

Yes, this is one that stood out and that everyone remembers. The subject matter was relatively unchartered for the times, especially on television. It had been touched on in films from the sixties like Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, One Potato Two Potato and A Patch of Blue. This time, it was handled comedically and, as I've always maintained, the only way to tell people the truth is to make them laugh. It also used characters we were all familiar with. And it drew out sides of each of those characters that we hadn't necessarily seen in action before. Archie, Henry, Mike and Gloria each expressed their true feelings about a situation they were personally involved with, as opposed to commenting in the abstract about political or news issues. Edith was called on to delve into her feelings. And Lionel broke out and expressed himself, like we hadn't seen him do up to that point. This was an exceptional standalone episode, if it in fact stood alone. As part of the series, some of the statements were inconsistent with what was said, before and after.

According to earlier episodes, Lionel and Archie had known each other and had their own interpretation of a friendship for years, before Lionel's family moved to the neighborhood. Though Lionel appeared on the series pilot and was said to have been doing odd jobs for Archie for years, the Jeffersons didn't move in until the eighth episode. On this episode, Lionel implies that he didn't meet Archie until his family moved to the neighborhood. On this show, Edith says that she met Archie a year after her father died. When Archie and Mike are trapped in the basement of Archie's bar, several years later, Archie tells stories about his experiences with Edith's father. On this episode, Archie talks to his brother Fred on the phone as if they are close buddies. Five or six years later, Fred shows up, after not speaking to Archie in twenty years. The first two inconsistencies could have easily been corrected by changing a couple of lines of dialogue. For the third, I never understood why Archie couldn't have two brothers. The death of the brother they were both close with might have reunited the other two.

Anyway, all inconsistencies aside, this is a strong, funny, revealing and powerful episode. Since the last few years have brought home the fact that racism is still rather prevalent in the United States, watching this episode might actually alter a few perspectives. I'm sure that was the original intention, fifty years ago.

Gomer Pyle: USMC: Gomer Goes Home (1968) Season 4, Episode 18

Interesting almost crossover show, but this has bothered me for 50 years:

[7/10 · 30 October 2022]

This was interesting in that it was Gomer Pyle's only onscreen return to Mayberry from the time he enlisted until the reunion movie, twenty odd years later. Still, there were some points I wasn't sure about.

Gomer had supposedly lived his entire life in this little town. He went to school there, he was in the church choir, he dealt with everyone who needed gas put in a car. Didn't he have anyone else that he might have wanted to visit, after being away for four years, besides Andy, Aunt Bee, Opie and Cousin Goober? Where were his family members and his school and church friends and the people he dealt with at work?

And couldn't he yell for the bus driver to stop when he saw Andy, Aunt Bee, Opie and Cousin Goober, from out the window? Gomer was wearing a marine uniform and the bus driver was presumably an honorable, patriotic public servant. He would have stopped for Gomer. Gomer was still close enough to walk, or even to sprint since he was a trained marine, to where Andy, Aunt Bee, Opie and Cousin Goober stood, and to arrive there before they finished unloading their car. If nothing else, Gomer could have gotten off the bus at the next stop and taken another bus back to Mayberry, now that he knew that Andy, Aunt Bee, Opie and Cousin Goober were back in town.

Since, to the best of my knowledge, no one ever mentioned the incidents in this episode again, I'll assume that Gomer did ultimately figure out that he could get off the bus and he did spend a pleasurable few days with Andy, Aunt Bee, Opie and Cousin Goober. I couldn't bring myself to think that the happy ending was so close but that the obvious didn't occur to Gomer.

Blue Bloods: Ghosted (2022) Season 13, Episode 3

Beyond God Awful on so many levels:

[2/10 · 22 October 2022]

None of the plotlines make any sense and the cliche filled dialogue includes infantile butt jokes at Sunday dinner. Sean has got to be eighteen or nineteen, not ten, and Henry, who repeats the joke, has to be over ninety.

Frank has to decide whether or not to honor the memory of his predecessor, who was ousted from office for being a thief and a criminal and who had been responsible for Henry's termination. Does this happen in every job? If someone goes to prison for embezzling from his company, does the new company president make him a huge, elaborate memorial when he dies? The crooked commissioner's ex-wife was the one who ratted on him to internal affairs and now she's the one who's insisting that he be honored. And why, after twelve seasons, is this the first time that we're hearing that there was an interim commissioner between Henry and Frank and that it hadn't been Henry's choice to step down?

Anthony and Jamie follow a woman around, every minute of every day, based on a tip from an unreliable source about a case that no one had been working on. They are very noticeable, they are practically in the woman's face constantly, but rather than inconspicuously doing her business, she runs away. Didn't she know that, by running, she would lead them right to her boyfriend/business associate? It gets worse but anyone who has nothing better to do for an hour can find this out for themselves.

Eddie brags about an antique car that she and Jamie bought, for no apparent reason. She parks it on the streets of the city, the windshield gets smashed by her partner's unstable and borderline dangerous ex-girlfriend, and Eddie quickly forgives the woman, possibly because they look alike, and makes her partner apologize.

Sorry but if this is the best they've got, it might be time to give this show a rest. It's been a nice, impressive run.

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: Smut (2008) Season 10, Episode 10

Sh-t would be a better title for this one!

[4/10 · 10 October 2022]

Okay, so porn is an addiction and watching too much of it is an excuse for violently raping women? I've never heard of a lawyer presenting a defense like "he was hooked on heroin so he couldn't help himself from robbing the convenience store!" How about "he watched too many John Wayne movies so of course, he walked into a gambling casino with a machine gun and shot every native American in sight?!" That this line of defense would even be presented, much less allowed by a judge not only defines ridiculous but it also insults and further dehumanizes rape victims.

The eighty year old judge, and yes the actor was eighty when this episode was filmed, was caught on camera wrestling with a dolphin in what could be taken as a provocative way. For that reason, he had to recuse himself from the case and declare a mistrial, after a guilty verdict against the violent serial rapist was pretty much guaranteed. Yes, this is perfectly logical and typical, too. We see it on the news, every day.

The four stars are for high quality acting by the guests and a story that kept my interest. Road Runner cartoons are interesting too and they're just as credible as this episode.

Law & Order: Battle Lines (2022) Season 22, Episode 2

Powerhouse episode but why legitimize Fox News & demonize New York?

[8/10 · 1 October 2022]

This was a potent and powerful show that touched on essential political and social issues. For the most part, it was on target. I thought the first season of this revival was kind of weak and I was ready to write it off. With the departure of the eternally annoying Detective Bernard, and with this episode, I'm ready to give the series another chance.

Yes, I thought that Detective Bernard was one of the most grating characters in the huge Law and Order universe. Of the many detectives they could have brought back for the resurrection, he would have been my last choice. I'm not sure whose decision it was to write him out but it was a wise one.

Shifting my focus back to this particular episode, yes they essentially painted Fox News and Hannity as the right wing propaganda garbage they are. At the same time, by having the characters talk about watching Fox and Hannity, they were legitimizing them. Most intelligent, educated people I know, especially fellow New Yorkers, would never turn on Fox News for any reason. Maybe they had to, in order to thoroughly investigate their case. I'll give them slack for this one but the next time someone mentions watching Fox, I might once again reevaluate my opinion of this show.

Finally, this is my sacred city, New York. It's not Wisconsin or Kentucky. You wouldn't see that many right wing activists, especially violent ones, protesting outside the court building. I don't want to say what the protests were about because I don't want to give the story away. I'll only point out that, when the ku klux klan was granted permission to hold a rally in New York, essentially on the same spot as the final scene of this episode, six klansmen showed up and something in the neighborhood of a million people came out to protest their presence. I was there. The klansmen were confined to a tiny stage. The anti-klan people stretched at least a couple of square miles.

Yes, there might have been ten people out protesting for the right but there is no possibility that there would have been a 50-50 split, as the scene seemed to indicate. Fox News loves to demonize New York, in spite of the facts that they're based here and that their heroes, Trump and Giuliani, both spent much of their lives trying to be kings of the city. Talking about watching Hannity as if it's the normal thing to do, along with the right wing extremist protesters, almost feeds Fox's rants.

Again though, for the most part, this was right on target. However, there are ways of showing the flip side without legitimizing it.

The Rack (1956)

Sorry but this one should have endeared Paul Newman to Richard Nixon!

[4/10 · 1 August 2022]

The great, generous, charitable, humble and magnanimous liberal Paul Newman once said that his proudest moment was when he was put on Richard Nixon's "enemy list." I would imagine that Rod Serling, one of the writers of this screenplay, wouldn't have been a favorite of Nixon, either. This film seemed to share at least some of the sensibilities of commie baiting Nixon and his sacred House UnAmerican Activities Committee.

Yes, we see both sides, but the characters are so cold and barely sympathetic that it's hard to care or to have an opinion. We don't fully understand exactly what Paul did, what information he revealed or how his actions hurt his fellow soldiers. Were actual veterans tried for the same "high crimes" after the Korean war? Both Paul and Rod were young and relatively new to success in the industry, when this one was made. If it had been done ten years later, when both writer and star were major names and had far more control of their output, I'm guessing the film might have had an entirely different perspective.

And we don't find out the sentence Paul is given, after being found guilty of three treason related crimes. Because of that, we don't know how severe the authorities considered his actions or what might have happened to actual soldiers who were put on trial for similar acts. Was Paul's character given three years in prison with a suspended sentence or was he executed? The film doesn't give a clue. And again, it doesn't tell you exactly what his character said or did or how his words or actions led to other soldiers being hurt. And I don't really understand his defense or have much sympathy for him.

I give it four stars because of Paul Newman, Rod Serling and intelligent, well written dialogue. I didn't think Paul could play a character that I didn't care about or have any feelings about one way or another, though. I didn't care if he went to prison, I didn't care if he went free, I didn't care if he was executed. I didn't care much about his father or sister in law, either. And I didn't know that Rod could write a script that essentially went along with the Commie bashing sentiments of the McCarthy era. Again, Paul's character puts up a defense but not in any way that convinced me.

Sorry Paul and Rod. This was probably the only thing that either of you did that didn't stir any emotions and left me totally indifferent.

Star Trek: The City on the Edge of Forever (1967) Season 1, Episode 28

Probably the best Star Trek episode of the franchise, if you get past the basic premise:

[10/10 · 1 August 2022]

I loved this show and its probably the only Star Trek episode I've watched, numerous times. To say it was the best of the entire franchise is a little presumptuous since I pretty much only watched the original series, a few Next Generations and the films. It's definitely as potent, powerful and thought provoking as anything Star Trek I've seen. The next word is But--

Like many time travel stories, the basic premise requires a suspension of logic and belief. If Marty Mcfly hadn't gone back to 1955, he wouldn't have changed his destiny. But if he had changed his destiny and his parents had been on different paths, he might not have been born and he wouldn't have gone back to 1955 to alter his destiny. If Doctor McCoy's actions when he went back in time would have altered the fate of the world and stopped any of the enterprise crew members from ever being born, then McCoy wouldn't have been born and he couldn't have gone back in time to change anything. Even Spock wouldn't have been born because he was half human and his vulcan father never could have met his mother.

Again, put all of that aside and you have a smart, socially significant and compelling episode. Except, of course, for the fact that Clark Gable wasn't famous yet, in 1930. Couldn't they have said Wallace Beery or John Barrymore? There was no internet when this show was made but someone on the creative team or crew should have been able to easily research this.

And again, there's the basic premise that, if McCoy hadn't gone back in time, Kirk and Spock wouldn't have followed him, Edith wouldn't have been on her way to a Clark Gable (or Wallace Beery) movie with Kirk and she wouldn't have been in the middle of the street. And she wouldn't have almost fallen down the stairs either because that too was a reaction to Kirk's presence.

Get Carter (1971)

Watchable but misses numerous important marks!

[6/10 · 20 July 2022]

We have Carter, a cold heartless leading man whose background we know little about, beyond that he is part of some criminal organization that makes porn films. Is there any reason to like or care about him? None that I could see or feel.

Carter exchanges punches and bodily fluids and occasional knives and bullets, with more people that we know little about and care about even less. Were there strong personalities and backgrounds that differentiated one person Carter was encountering from another? Not that I could see.

Everything Carter did, and everyone he encountered, were part of his pursuit of his brother's killers. Who was his brother? We never met him, we know nothing about him, we know nothing about his relationship to Carter so, like everyone else in this film, we have no reason to care about him.

That said, the film was watchable. It moved along. However, I'm often more emotionally invested in characters who are interviewed for three minutes on Law and Order or Blue Bloods than I was in any of the people here.

Victor/Victoria (1982)

Why did I wait so long to see this truly uplifting near classic?

[8/10 · 20 July 2022]

As I was a huge fan of performers like Dean Martin and Desi Arnaz, I also loved Julie Andrews when I was growing up. I took a break from them all but then had a later in life appreciation for their respective charms and brilliant talents.

I guess this film, and the later Broadway show, didn't come out during my Julie Andrews adoration years. After watching her AFI Lifetime Achievement Awards Ceremony on TCM, this past week, and tracking down the Rogers and Hammerstein Cinderella that Julie performed live on television when she was twenty one years old, I am now on a new Julie Andrews journey.

Since you clicked on this review to read about the film, not my personal experiences, I'd say this was uplifting, entertaining, funny, unique, filled with interesting scenarios, characters and dialogue, and well worth anyone's time.

I give it eight stars, as opposed to ten, because of the ending. I won't give it away, except to say that it's too abrupt and unsatisfying. However, you'll enjoy the two hours it takes to get there. Nice job, filmmakers.

Of note: The enchanting Leslie Ann Warren, who costars here, was the second woman to play Cinderella, after Julie Andrews, in a Rogers and Hammerstein TV production. I just sent both versions, along with a third with Whitney Houston and Brandy, to my honorary granddaughter, for her upcoming birthday. Alright, enough about my personal life.

Hustle (2022)

Mah Nish Tah Nah Halilah Hazeh Meekahl Halaylos!

[6/10 · 27 June 2022]

I think I got those Hebrew words phonetically right. Why is this night, or in this case this film different from all others? The answer, of course is the charisma of Adam Sandler who has more than found his place as an actor to be taken seriously.

That aside, this entertaining, watchable film tells a story that we have seen four hundred times. There's not much that's new, there's not much that's original and unique and there aren't many interesting performers or characters, beyond Adam. It was good to see ninety year old Robert Duvall, looking not much older than he has for the past fifty five years. When you look old, when you're young, you kind of grow into it and start to look young, when you're older. Its hard to explain that one to someone who hasn't experienced it, as I have. Ben Foster's character was mildly interesting to watch, though there wasn't much variation from a character we've seen seven thousand times before. Queen Latifah added nothing and her daughter added less.

I don't want to give the plot away though again, you've seen it many, many times. Again, its a worthwhile time filler, primarily because of Adam Sandler.

Hot Saturday (1932)

And after ninety years, Anytown USA doesn't seem to have changed much!

[8/10 · 8 May 2022]

I watched the gripping, powerful and perspective altering 2004 film, Dogville, sixteen years after it was made, during the height of the pandemic and the wind down of the Trump reign. Maybe that one wouldn't have hit me as hard if the day's reality hadn't brought home the fact that towns like that actually exist. By chance, I watched this film for the first time the week that the Supreme Court opinion to strike down Roe V. Wade was leaked. Ninety years after the film was made, these nasty little towns, filled with sanctimonious sexist hypocrites, clearly continue to prevail.

The only two characters in the film who don't define atrocious and who hint that the creative team had some sense of morality were Cary Grant's Romer Sheffield and William Collier's Harry Brock. But then again, Harry was said to be a poor, struggling senator who was clearly whipped into shape by his domineering wife. Though he didn't seem to know about campaign contributions or lobby money, we have to wonder if Harry was a nice gentleman by choice or because he lacked courage. Cary Grant played a wealthy, flamboyant womanizer, much like I'd expect his later day George Kerby character from Topper to have been, in his pre-marriage and pre-Hays code days. In my opinion, being a liberal New York activist, writer and product of the 1960's and 70's, Cary's Romer is a great guy. By the moral codes of the people in town in 1932, and of people who clearly still inhabit the United States in 2022, he was a notoriously evil, horribly promiscuous womanizer.

Was our story's would be heroine, Nancy Carroll's Ruth Brock moral, even by the standards of someone who is planning to travel to Washington DC to protest for Women's Rights and equality? Ruth came to the party with one man and spent most of the evening with another. That certainly didn't show a lot of class or social grace but then, I guess we can assume that her loud and crass mother had influenced her manners. Ruth was supposedly passionately in love with yet a third man, Randolph Scott's Bill Fadden, who represented wealth and a way out of the working class. Ruth was ready to marry Bill, and the implication was she was in bed with him, in the afternoon. By the evening, when Bill had questioned her small town integrity, Ruth was resilient enough to find her way to Romer's bed and to immediately agree to marry him.

Other male characters in this film would be considered near rapists, if not sexual predators, by twenty first century standards. The women were pretty much all hypocritical, judgmental gossip mongers. Again, the two characters I have compassion for, at the end, are Romer, who is giving up his freewheeling bachelor lifestyle for an insincere, shallow opportunist, and Harry, who now has to live alone with his domineering, controlling, equally opportunistic and nasty wife.

So yes, this was a rather good, if essentially forgotten film that truly made me think and that stirred some emotions.

Happy Days: Passages: Part 2 (1984) Season 11, Episode 17

Not a bad series wrap up but where were Potsie and Ralph?

[7/10 · 8 May 2022]

As a finale to a long running hit series, this worked well, though I'll once again ask the question I asked when it first aired, thirty eight years ago: Why weren't Potsie and Ralph anywhere to be seen, except in flashbacks?

Potsie was Joanie's first crush and lifelong friend. He was also Chachi's longtime friend, bandmate and roommate, until the end. Certainly, he rated a wedding invitation. Anson Williams was the only performer, besides Marion Ross, to be named in the credits of the original Love American Style pilot all through the final episode of the series. Tom Bosley was also listed in the credits of every episode of the series, though his character, Howard Cunningham, was played by a different actor in the original pilot. Anson Williams, the actor, and Potsie, the character both more than earned the right to be part of the grand finale.

Though Donnie Most no longer appeared on the show, his character, Ralph Malph was also a long term close friend of both Joanie and Chachi. Ralph Malph was an iconic part of the series and he too should have been part of the final episode.

Both actors and their characters were missed by the audience and could have easily been worked in, without taking away time from anyone or anything else. Again, that aside, this was a nice way to close what was already a classic show.

Clean and Sober (1988)

Powerful, intense, socially significant, interesting but where's the moment of clarity?

[7/10 · 14 April 2022]

And where's the reference to young, then barely known actress, Julia Roberts? Unless I'm seriously missing something, she absolutely has a one on one scene with Michael Keaton, early in the film. I can't find any mention of Julia, in relation to this movie, anywhere.

Yes, the moment of clarity has become something of a cliché in films about substance abuse. Still, Daryl had to have some kind of revelation that totally altered his perspective. When did he transform from the wiseass who was using the rehab hospital as yet another way to beat the system to the dedicated, committed devotee to drug free sobriety? We saw many reasons why this might have happened but we don't know when, where, why or how it actually did.

Watching this film will definitely give anyone a moment of clarity if they questioned why Michael Keaton quickly shot up to superstardom and ultimately won a Best Actor Oscar. His first serious, dramatic performance here was definitely award, or at least nomination worthy.

Finally, why, in a film about conquering substance abuse, does virtually everyone smoke cigarettes? It was the late eighties, not the fifties, and the effects of smoking were very well known.

Overall, I say the film is far from perfect but it will keep you absorbed for two hours.

Phone Booth (2002)

Powerful, gripping, unique and compelling until the pointless finale!

[7/10 · 8 April 2022]

Until the last two minutes, I was at my seat's edge. Then, it turned ridiculous. The ending is about to be revealed so please stop reading if you don't know it.

How could the police actually believe that it was the pizza delivery man? To slash his throat, and position it to look self inflicted to the best experts on the force would take quite a bit of time and meticulous planning. The caller had to do all of that in a few seconds, while the police were rushing to his door. Could this have all happened because Stu insulted the pizza man? Even more ridiculous. The plan was in motion long before the pizza delivery scene. Kelly had been phoned, earlier in the day. Even if she hadn't been, this would have taken hours, if not days to plan and execute.

The actual ending was credible but the fact that anyone would imagine that it was the pizza man defies all belief. I'll amend my time frame. The entire film was great, until the last two minutes. The next minute and a half were beyond ridiculous. It got good again, in the last thirty seconds.

But then, we never find out anything about the caller's relationship to Stu or about what might have motivated his actions.

Anyone familiar with the classic 39 Honeymooners would know that, what Ed Norton would have done in this situation would have been to watch the entire film and get up and walk out, before the end. That might be a good idea, with this one.

The Sopranos: Luxury Lounge (2006) Season 6, Episode 7

Never Lauren, Christopher! Not Ever!

[5/10 · 5 February 2022]

Christopher forever fantasized about being a screenwriter and he idolized movie gangsters. Humphrey Bogart was the ultimate movie gangster, far more than any other actor. Bogart was married to Lauren Bacall when Lauren was in her twenties and early thirties. Lauren was now close to ninety. She would have been the last person on the planet that Christopher would have assaulted and robbed. It would have made more sense for one of Christopher's friends to attack Lauren and for Christopher to beat that friend bloody. As Bugsy Siegal said to Lawrence Tibbett, "I would protect you from anyone who tried to hurt you. I revere you." That should have been how Christopher felt about Lauren Bacall, only more so because she was an old woman who had been the true love of his idol. If the storyline had to go the way it did, then two hundred other actresses who hadn't been married to Bogart would have been more credible.

The Artie-Benny conflict was interesting, though that too wasn't altogether believable. If they were kept around long enough, many Sopranos characters that had been minor were ultimately given an episode where they were highlighted. Eugene and Finn were pretty much background until they were allowed to shine, one time each. This was Benny Fazio's moment.

Artie pushed Tony almost as far as Christopher had, throughout the series. Both characters had pointed guns at Tony, which would normally have been automatic death penalty offenses. Both had shown disrespect several other times and both had proven rather volatile. Things didn't end in a good place for Christopher, proving that there was a limit to how far Tony could be pushed. Artie didn't think he could ever cross the line and he thought Tony would always protect him. Pussy, Tony Bludetto, Jackie Junior and Christopher had all once held sacred places in Tony's heart. I was truly surprised that Artie had survived the series. He didn't do anything whack-worthy in this episode so I guess I can see why Tony would have stood up for him, yet another time.

What I wasn't sure I accepted was the outcome of the physical confrontation. Artie was a restaurateur who spent his days licking the heels of his customers, arguing with his rather assertive wife and cooking Eggplant Parmesian. Benny's day job often involved beating people up and breaking their limbs. Plus, Benny was at least fifteen years younger than Artie. Yes, the verdict was possible, though not probable. The Lauren Bacall assault and robbery was not plausible.

A Very Brady Sequel (1996)

Creative, funny but not nearly as on target as the first film!

[7/10 · 26 January 2022]

In spite of myself, I laughed hard at this one and I thought it was rather creative. The repressed sexuality between Greg and Marcia, the dangerous possibilities that could stem from middle sister jealousy and what could happen if an ex-spouse arrived, were all topics of discussion for fans of the original series and are all touched on, rather comically, here.

My problems were the cameos from all of the creative and funny performers who were, in no way related to the original Brady Bunch. The first film had a half dozen smart, carefully placed classic bits by actors from the original show, not to mention Davy Jones.

I love Barbara Eden and it was great to see her, looking as exquisite as ever in her harem outfit. However, once it was established that Carol's ex-husband was a professor who had disappeared on the same boat as Gilligan, I think the last line, at Carol and Mike's wedding renewal ceremony, should have come from Russell Johnson: "Honey, I've been rescued!" After the plotline involving the return of Carol's would be but ultimately fake former spouse, this would have been the perfect wholesome sitcom ending.

It should be noted, of course that Sherwood Schwartz, who was alive and quite well at the time of this film, had created both The Brady Bunch and Gilligan's Island.

Rhoda: Rhoda's Wedding (1974) Season 1, Episode 8

But where was Ted?

[8/10 · 17 January 2022]

I wondered that when I was thirteen years old and the episode first aired and, now that there are few survivors left to ask, I still wonder. The writers worked Murray, Lou and Phyllis in, even though they weren't invited guests. Ted could have accompanied his girlfriend Georgette in her drive from Minneapolis to New York. It made perfect sense. Actually, Ted's inherent selfishness aside, it made more sense than allowing a quiet, unassuming and essentially docile woman to drive alone. Alternately, Ted could have tagged along when Lou and Murray drove Mary to the airport and continued on the rest of their journey.

Was Ted Knight not available when the rest of his co-workers were or did he have a less than amiable relationship with Valerie Harper? I've wondered this for what is now forty seven years. It couldn't have been for budgetary reasons, as they really seemed to spare few expenses for this one.

All that aside, this was a great hour long episode that still holds up over time. I wish I remembered what I watched yesterday as well as I remember everything I viewed when I was a teenager.

Dexter: New Blood: Sins of the Father (2022) Season 1, Episode 10

Gripping, compelling, mood altering, well written, meticulously crafted BUT---

[8/10 · 12 January 2022]

I give this episode eight stars because it was chilling, gripping, haunting and final. However, the morning after, when I took a minute to examine the overall believability, I had some questions. Let's take one character at a time.

Angela: By her own account, she dedicated her life to finding out what happened to her friend and the many other women who mysteriously disappeared from her tiny town. It took her twenty five years, and the assistance of Dexter and an insightful podcaster, to figure out that the deranged serial killer was exactly who everyone should have expected it to be. Yet, it took her a mere few minutes to figure out that Dexter was the Bay Harbor Butcher. The top FBI agents in the country, as well as the generally proficient detectives of Miami Metro Homicide used every resource they had to solve this case, with Dexter right in their faces. Dexter had a boat. James Doakes was killed in a cabin that was owned by one of the people who slaughtered Dexter's mother. There was proof that Doakes couldn't have committed at least a couple of the murders. Dexter's blood brother was the Ice Truck Killer. Still, no one else got it until, after years, Maria Laguairta put it all together. And forty minutes later, in TV time of course, Maria was mysteriously murdered alongside one of the other killers of Dexter's mother.

Angel Batista: He knew that his ex-wife, who was also his captain, was murdered maybe two days, in real time, after she tried to arrest Dexter for being the Bay Harbor Butcher. And again, her body was found next to the body of the man who orchestrated Dexter's mother's death. Did it take a two minute phone call from a small town rube cop for Angel to finally put the pieces together? Or had he been considering the possibility, all along, or at least since the last time we saw him? Angel had been blind when it came to his good friend Dexter but his last memory of him was watching him methodically and carefully kill Deb's murderer. Dexter didn't just presumably die in the hurricane. Deb's body disappeared from the hospital, too. And since no one knew that Dexter's son had gone to Argentina with Hannah, Harrison also mysteriously vanished. Was he also presumed dead? Angel was quick to tell Angela that he was no longer sure that Doakes was the butcher and he was quicker to give up his once sacred Dexter's name as a suspect. Maybe Angel had been thinking about it for the past ten years, maybe Quinn also had suspicions that he shared and maybe Angela's phone call convinced him. That makes sense. I won't ask why Angel, who always seemed like the most loyal of husbands, had come on to Angela at the cop-con, if he was happily married. Men will be men.

Logan: He was so incredibly bland, would anyone have even noticed that he was dead?

Harrison: Would this nice, sweet, happy little boy from ten, or was it seven years earlier, who was less than a year old when he watched his mother get murdered, be able to so easily shoot his father? It's possible, if not necessarily likely. We'll disregard the facts that Harrison was born in 2009, that he should have been twelve years old when these incidents happened and that you have to be seventeen in order to drive in New York State. Let's assume that this series takes place a few years in the future. Films that have snow covered regions as sets often do. That would also explain the fact that there were no masks and no mention of Covid, throughout the series. But was Harrison actually old enough to remember being born in blood? And didn't he ever google the woman who was raising him, Hannah McKay, and find out that she too was an escaped prisoner and reputed serial killer?

Finally, Dexter: This super conscientious, always meticulous killer was uncharacteristically and almost unbelievably sloppy in virtually all of his endeavors, this time out. Why would he buy the drugs he needed in the local store when he could have just as easily driven three towns over? Why would he attack one of his victims in the afternoon light, inches from the local crowded bar and from the road that was regularly traveled by everyone in town? But most importantly, would he actually believe that he was looking out for his son's best interests and curtailing his son's arguable dark passenger by letting Harrison go through life knowing that he had killed his own father? This was not George, a gruff manly farm hand who ate his beans without ketchup, shooting his partner Lenny out in the woods. This was a young man of either twelve or seventeen, who was already dealing with serious demons and whose two mothers were already dead. Dexter could have turned himself in. He would have had at least two years of trials and appeals before he inevitably got the death penalty. By then, Harrison would have had time to slowly absorb and accept and he would have been older and more mature. And since Hannah had escaped from jail, and it had only taken Dexter a few minutes to get out of the local cell, Dexter had to imagine the possibility that he could have broken away, at any point during the two year process.

The writers had said that they always knew that Dexter would kill Deb but the viewers still seemed largely ungratified by the final episode of the original series. One more season was needed to wrap things up neatly and in this one, the cute, vivacious, happy little boy from the original series would kill Dexter. Going by the responses here, I would say that one additional season, or at least a feature length film might have been beneficial to the legacy: Dexter gets caught, he's extradited to Florida, he stands trial, he appeals. All the while, he faces people from his past, both living and ghost. He'd have his supporters, who would protest outside the courts and jail and hail him as a hero. He could be confronted by the families of a few of his victims, some of whom might be vengeful, while others would be grateful, appreciative and sympathetic. He'd to explain to the now adult Astor and Cody how he played a part in their mother's death. Harrison would be conflicted as he dealt with his own demons and with people around him who knew he was the Bay Harbor Butcher's son. And at the end of the journey would have stood the electric chair. Now that's a wrap that might have left fans gratified.