With the lines between fiction and reality becoming increasingly blurred — what with the preponderance of “reality shows” and newspeak accounts of everything from the war in Iraq to Midwestern flash floods — it’s almost easy to accept the premise of a documentary about a burglar presented in real time. Street Thief (premiering tonight on A&E, 10PM EST) takes brief pains to bill itself as a “filmed record” rather than a documentary, chronicling the crimes of an actual burglar. But the intent remains the same.
Once we accept the premise that Kaspar Carr, perhaps Chicago’s greatest and most elusive burglar, is allowing a couple of documentary filmmakers to accompany and film him as he commits his audacious heists, Street Thief becomes a compelling, if disturbing work of cinema verite told with a noir slant. Whether we believe director Malik Bader’s claims that he’s intimately familiar with the tricks of the trade the film depicts is largely inconsequential. It unfolds in such a matter of fact way that we’re drawn into the world of Kaspar Carr and his meticulous planning of each job he does. He’s utterly amoral, viewing each hit with a businessman’s eye.
We watch, fascinated, as he details the planning that goes into each heist. It’s by no means glamorous work—he digs through dumpsters for receipts; taps phone lines; surveys his target for months; and generally takes whatever measures necessary in the planning stages before he goes through with the burglary. They’re not glamorous heists, either—usually mom and pop grocery counters, strip clubs, and even a Cinemark movieplex. Carr finds his mark anywhere he knows there will be a great deal of cash when he strikes.
Kasper Carr, as portrayed by director Bader, is as complex as any person we know in our everyday lives. When he’s working, he’s completely focused on the job at hand. But during his “off” hours, he’s just a regular guy. He is even seen barbequeing steaks for his documentarian followers, politely asking them if they’re hungry before he pulls through a fast food drive-thru.
Throughout, he exudes a public persona that offers no hints as to how he makes his living. Much like the starry-eyed filmmakers who fall deeper into his world, we find ourselves wanting to hang out with Kaspar Carr, while every fiber of our being tells us he represents all that we loathe.
Street Thief is a confounding film at best, and therein lays its power. How much of it is based on reality is debatable, which was Bader’s intent. When it opened to much acclaim at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2006, reactions ranged from praise for its gritty realism, to outrage for its toying with the viewer. The fact that it can elicit that kind of reaction is in itself a testament to its power.
Ultimately, it makes us look at our voyeuristic fascination with the outlaw in a way that’s rarely explored in film. In so doing, it forces us to take a look at where we’re going as a society. That alone makes it worth a view.
Ray Ellis is a freelance writer who has been dissecting pop culture and its effect on how we view ourselves for over twenty years, ruffling feathers and dragging unsuspecting pedestrians along for the ride whenever possible.
Bringing very successful Broadway musicals to the big screen is notoriously difficult. It is often easy to lose the power and intimacy created on a stage when a story is magnified to fit the bigger than life proportions of a Hollywood film.
Director Bill Condon (Kinsey) also wrote the Dreamgirls screenplay (he won an Oscar back in 2004 for penning Chicago), which was based on the book by Tom Eyen. Dreamgirls, the thinly veiled story of Motown and its most successful girl group, The Supremes, was a smash hit when it debuted on Broadway in 1981. For twenty-five years some of Hollywood’s biggest players, including David Geffen, tried to get a film version made but weren’t able to see it through.
Bill Condon was an excellent choice to helm such a complex story. Dreamgirls is the story of three African-American girls from Detroit with dreams of being singing stars in the early to mid-sixties. As the film opens, the three girls, Deena (Beyoncé Knowles), Lorrell (Anika Noni Rose), and Effie (Jennifer Hudson), known as the Dreamettes, intend to win a talent show using a routine cooked up by Effie’s brother C.C. (Keith Robinson) in hopes of a big break. Unbeknownst to them, the show is rigged against them. After the show a Cadillac salesman named Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx) who yearns to be a music industry insider realizes that the Dreamettes would be a perfect backup group for R&B star James “Thunder” Early (Eddie Murphy). Suddenly everyone’s dreams are falling into place.
Set throughout the turbulent sixties and early seventies, it quickly becomes clear that talent isn’t all it takes to become a star. Payola must be used to get the Dreamettes' records on the radio and most cruelly of all, Effie, the girl with the gigantic voice, is moved to back-up singer in favor of the visually stunning Deena.
The casting of Dreamgirls is simply superb. Beyoncé Knowles plays Deena with the burning ambition that Deena obviously has to succeed but she also gives her a sense of frustration that crackles below the surface through much of the film, blazing forth as she sings the song “Listen.” It is then that we are sure that she has found her own voice and the confidence to break away from Curtis Taylor Jr.
Jennifer Hudson simply became Effie. That’s saying a lot since Effie is the role that made the great Jennifer Holliday a star on Broadway. When I first went to see Dreamgirls in a movie theater I remember thinking, “Well, nobody can sing that part as good as Jennifer Holiday but maybe she wont be terrible.” Suffice to say, when Ms. Hudson sang “And I’m Telling You, I’m Not Going” the audience, myself included, was mesmerized. When the song was over, most of the audience applauded as if we were watching a live performance.
Eddie Murphy gives the finest performance of his career as James “Thunder” Early. Early represents countless black entertainers during the sixties who weren’t able to gain ‘superstar’ status because of the racial divides that existed in America at the time. He represents the musician who came before, making the success of artists like Otis Redding and James Brown possible.
Murphy gives Jimmy a real sense of vulnerability. We understand that he is not the confident man many think he is. He is indeed "fakin' his way to the top." Murphy’s performance was worthy of an Academy Award. Murphy sings and daces his way through the film but as time progresses, his body shows his slow disintegration as he loses his grip on everything he loves.
Watching Dreamgirls on DVD made me appreciate the film even more. While Jennifer Hudson and Eddie Murphy received much acclaim for their performances, Beyoncé Knowles deserves kudos for her portrayal of Deena Jones. While Jennifer Hudson’s Effie chews up scenery with a fiery intensity in the forefront of much of the story, it is Knowles' character Deena who is pulling all the strings and doing whatever she has to do to make the Dreams as successful as possible.
Bill Condon successfully mixed numerous on-stage musical numbers with plenty of offstage material to set up the backstory. Condon makes you care what happens to each of the characters, even in those moments when you might not like them very much.
The DVD is a very clear widescreen transfer. Since Dreamgirls is a musical, it is essential that the sound be a crisp. The English audio is available in both 5.1 and 2.0. There is also a 5.1 mix in French, and English and Spanish subtitles.
The Dreamgirls (Two Disc Showstopper Edition) is bursting with extras and is a must-have for any fan of the film. The extras on disc one are all about the music from the movie. In addition to the promotional music video for the Beyoncé track "Listen" (a combination of a Beyoncé lip-sync and movie footage which I would call a trailer), there are 11 extended versions of performancesfrom the movie and what is billed as an unreleased song by Jennifer Hudson. The unreleased track is "Effie, Sing My Song," and it's actually a short duet between Hudson and Keith Robinson when C.C. reunites with Effie and convinces her to record "One Night Only."
DVD 2 is all supplemental material chronicling the behind-the-scenes development of the Dreamgirls adaptation. Building the Dream is a full-length documentary (it runs nearly two hours). The story begins on Broadway, explaining the start of the stage version and moving into Bill Condon's involvement with the film right up to the premiere. Building the Dream also shows some of the cast auditions. Beyoncé performs "Dreamgirls" solo with piano accompaniment for her audition, Anika Noni Rose sings "Ain't No Party," also accompanied by piano.
Other features include “Dream Logic: Film Editing,” “Dressing the Dreams: Costume,” and “Center Stage: Theatrical Lighting.”All of these special features definitely provide something for everyone, and provide the viewer a backstage look at a special film.
Since I’ve watched Dreamgirls Two-Disc Showstopper Edition, I’ve been listening to The Supremes: The Ultimate Collection and wondering what Diana Ross thinks of the movie. What would Florence Ballard think? While these may be interesting thoughts to ponder, Dreamgirls stands as one of the finest movie musicals I’ve ever seen.
A freelance writer, who loves to write about music and films. She has been collecting music ever since she can remember. Her CD collection is in the thousands. She also also reads a lot of books and magazines when she’s not watching films.
Taken from the front pages of the world's newspapers is the story of the kidnapping and beheading execution of Daniel Pearl, the South Asia Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal. As seen through her own eyes, and as told in her memoir, A Mighty Heart: The Brave Life and Death of My Husband Danny Pearl, this film recounts these events from the perspective of Mariane Pearl.
On January 23, 2002, the six months pregnant journalist Mariane Pearl's (Angelina Jolie) life changed forever. Her husband, journalist Daniel Pearl (Dan Futterman) was researching a story on the shoe bomber Richard Reid when leads drew him to Karachi, Pakistan. Here a go-between had promised access to an elusive source, Kaleem Yusuf (Telal Saeed) to discuss his meeting with Sheikh Gilani (Ikram Bhatti). As Danny left for the meeting, he told Mariane he might be late for dinner. He never returned.
As the story unfolds, the desperate hunt for Danny starts without any information. The story moves at a quick pace, as investigators search for information from cell phone towers, ISPs, color copiers, and informants. Seasoned international journalists with formidable investigative skills are left clueless.
The Inter-Services Intelligence agency (I.S.I.) is fully briefed on Pakistan's proliferating terrorist cells while the byzantine bureaucracy swamps the city in their search. After five harrowing weeks and a media frenzy, they find the kidnappers. This is the meat of the movie as the cloak and dagger scenes examine the shocking world of politics, religion, and war. Finally, Mariane is given the devastating news that Danny has been brutally murdered.
I was leery of the casting of Angelina Jolie as Mariane, but I was wrong to doubt her. She is outstanding as well as dignified without diminishing the character of the Pearl family. The scene where she learns of Daniel's death is one of her best performances — she gives out a heart-wrenching cry that is unspeakably real. This film manages to respect its source material without losing its direction.
In the five years since Daniel Pearl's death, nearly 230 journalists have been killed in the line of duty.
Directed by: Michael Winterbottom Running time: 120 minutes Release date: June 22, 2007 Genre: Drama, Adaptation and Biopic/Docudrama Distributor: Paramount Vantage MPAA Rating: R
Bad kung fu movies are a great way to mindlessly burn away an otherwise gloomy afternoon. Few cinematic experiences can deliver the same kind of unbridled mirth obtained from witnessing a poorly dubbed martial arts movie, especially if the film in question is stuffed like your mother's Thanksgiving turkey with horrible dialogue, ridiculous fights, and a whorehouse teeming with every venereal disease known to mankind. One of the easiest ways to acquire such a picture is to say your prayers every night and to sacrifice the remains of your childhood pets to the all-knowing, God-like, dog-shaped figurine in the sky. Or so I've been told, anyway.
I received the hopelessly obscure kung fu opus Ninja Death when I dropped several crisp American dollars for the Martial Arts 50 Movie Pack, a box set filled with some of the lamest and most hilariously awful kung fu flicks I've ever had the privilege of owning. It's a treasure trove for the bad cinema aficionado, a cheap cardboard container housing all sorts of questionable martial arts booty. You know you're just aching to purchase a copy for yourself, you impossibly randy bastard.
The story concerns itself with a guy named Tiger and his misadventures while managing a small Chinese brothel teeming with exotic female companions. Naturally, life is as dandy as store bought candy for our mildly ridiculous hero, that is, until a group of shady Japanese characters open a bordello on the other end of town. And when I say shady Japanese characters, I mean ninjas. Nimble ninjas, the kind that wear solid black outfits and wield extremely sharp swords. Needless to say, the competition is deadly serious about providing incredible customer satisfaction at cutthroat prices.
The ninjas, it would seem, are led by the mysterious Grand Master, a sinister fellow who is desperately searching for a man with a unique plum flower tattoo plastered prominently across his hairless chest. Tiger's mentor, a gentleman known only as "The Master," believes this new threat is linked to his pupil's storied past, prompting the old man to prepare his student for the battle to come. Once the obligatory training sequence is out of the way, Tiger and The Master are forced to contend with a number of bizarro enemies as their lives quickly spiral out of control. Can these two bumbling heroes stop the Grand Master from accomplishing his sadistic mission before the film ends abruptly?
Since the epic Ninja Death saga has been broken into an easily digestible three-course meal, I've decided to approach each segment as an individual film. I also recommend that you do the same, allowing at least a 24-hour gestation period in between chapters. Why, you ask, should you wait one full day to continue this awe-inspiring narrative? Because, dear readers, consuming this life-altering kung fu extravaganza in one sitting could cause serious damage to basic bodily functions, including loss of eyesight, permanent erectile dysfunction, and a particularly nasty case of pink eye. You've been warned.
With a name like Ninja Death, one should expect to find the following off-brand items peppered throughout the film: lots of ninjas and a considerable amount of death. Thankfully, the filmmakers — who have kindly removed their names from the opening credits — didn't skimp on the essentials, serving a generous portion of violent martial arts wizardry to those hungry for such fattening fare. The numerous fight sequences are suitably outlandish and appropriately cheesy, thanks in part to a cast of unbelievably kooky characters and their impressive arsenal of goofy ninja weaponry. The hulking brute in the devil mask is a personal favorite, a man designed specifically to appeal to the eight year-old boy lurking inside every moronic kung fu fan. It's okay — I'm there for you.
The most appealing aspect of this film, however, would be the English dub soundtrack. Midway through the picture, everyone develops a zany British accent, replacing the dodgy American-tinged voice work heard during the first action-packed thirty minutes. The transition is subtle, mind you, but you'll pick up on it sooner or later, I'm sure. The quality of the dub, of course, allows for a number of infinitely quotable moments, the kind of garbage you'll trade back and forth with your nifty MySpace pals for months to come. It's bad poetry in motion. Simply marvelous.
Ninja Death is the ultimate martial arts party movie, an off-beat kung fu adventure overflowing with gratuitous violence, pointless nudity, uncomfortable sex scenes, bawdy humor, and lots of spiffy expletives. If the sequels are as genuinely absorbing as the first entry, yours truly will be a very, very happy camper lost in a forest filled with enormous psychedelic mushrooms. As it stands, Ninja Death is reason enough to drop a small wad of sweaty cash for Mill Creek Entertainment's satisfying Martial Arts 50 Movie Pack. It's a bad kung fu fan's dream come true. With ninjas.
And death.
T. Rigney was specifically designed for the mass consumption of B-grade cinema from around the world. His roughly translated thoughts and feelings can be found lurking suspiciously at The Film Fiend, Fatally Yours, and Film Threat. According to legend, his chaotic, child-like scribblings have cured cancer on fourteen different life-supporting planets.
Lucky tried to take back his accusations that Jake was kidnapped by some fault of Elizabeth’s but it was just too little too late as far as she was concerned. In a heart to heart with Emily Liz says she can’t hold Lucky together, it’s taking every ounce of energy she has to keep herself focused on Jake.
With all his doubts about Sam swirling in his head, Jason can’t help but wonder if she is the one who kidnapped his son. Not being able to do anything from his jail cell, he asks Spinelli to keep a close eye on her and report back anything unusual. Both men are concerned when Sam encourages Spinelli to not get involved in the search and when she receives a delivery of a blue infant sleeper.
The possible list of suspects include Sam, Amelia, and Jerry, but I’m not too sure it will be any of the above, and least not entirely one person. I also don’t think we’ll see a mob connection on this one, even though Jake’s paternity is the worst kept secret in town.
After a blowout with Amelia, Sam runs off to the Metro Court bar where she drowns her sorrows in alcohol. As usual, when drunk Sam has a way of saying way too much, and this time it was to Carly, nearly telling the other woman of Jason’s connection to Elizabeth before Amelia dragged her away.
Edward was thrilled that Tracy continued talking to her brother the ghost in front of Lainey, playing into his hand and prompting the psychiatrist to return with the men in white coats to drag her off to Shadybrook. How typically Quartermaine to institutionalize your daughter so you can grab shares of the company. Was it just me or did we get just the smallest glimpse that Monica can hear Alan too, as she stopped cold and glanced back at “the chair” after one of his remarks? It would be an unexpected twist for it to be Monica who rescues Tracy from her new padded cell.
Jax is up to something. Unexplained phone calls and visits from Alexis have Carly worried it has something to do with Jerry, but I’m fairly sure this is not the case as the show ended with Jax whisking Carly off to the plane asking him to trust her. Jax would not take Carly on a chase after his brother — but that doesn’t mean that he won’t be off after his sibling soon.
Warning! News and Spoilers Ahead!
We’re about three weeks away from the premiere of the Soapnet spinoff, Nightshift, and the cable channel has begun airing promos; check out one below:
If you’ve been paying close attention lately you’ve seen new sets (the new doctor’s lounge for one) and new characters (student nurses) for the show that will make its debut on July 12 at 10:00 pm.
Congratulations to Genie Francis and Rick Hearst for their Daytime Emmy wins!
Wife, mother, aspiring novelist, and music editor at BC Magazine, Connie Phillips spends most of her time in a fantasy land of her own creating. In reality, she writes about music, television, and the process of writing, when she’s not cheering on her kids at equestrian events. Contact: Phillips.connie@gmail.com
Ten years ago, the American Film Institute released their list of the 100 greatest American films. Now, a decade later they’ve slightly revised the list. The changes are not without merit. Along with additions, some films were bumped up a few notches, some dropped a few. Even the top ten underwent changes.
The reasons for adjusting the list are understandable. The past decade has seen changes in the technology behind movies and has resulted in some spectacular films. Additionally, the world has changed and so a film’s impact on today’s society has been altered. It was with these considerations in mind that AFI broke out their collective red pens and began slashing at the 100. Consider some of the additions.
Toy Story entered the canon at #99. It was included since it was the first computer-animated film. A brief discussion ensued about the heart of the story; while it was a great little movie, its merit here is purely technical. Also included because of groundbreaking filmmaking techniques was The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. It entered at number fifty. It was the only one of the trilogy to make it. These both illustrate very well, however, why a revision of the list was needed due to technical aspects of filmmaking.
Some other noteworthy additions: Spartacus and All the President's Men. The former is a sometimes brutal war movie about the price of freedom; the latter an expose of the Watergate conspiracy. These are interesting choices given the current political climate of the United States. There was also a movie called Nashville included. It involved country music but there's no apparent reason for it to be #60 of the top 100 films. Hicks aren’t that big of a constituency in this country, are they? Or was this just a joke?
A very worthy addition: Blade Runner. There is no science fiction movie that makes a person think more about the meaning of humanity than this movie. Another note here, Harrison Ford seems to be in many of these one hundred movies. Interesting.
The top ten were scrambled a little from ten years ago. They were as follows:
10. The Wizard of Oz (#6 last time)
9. The Graduate (#7 last time)
8. Schindler’s List (#9 last time)
7. Lawrence of Arabia (#5 last time)
6. Gone With the Wind (#4 last time)
5. Singin’ in the Rain (#10 last time)
4. Raging Bull (#24 last time)
3. Casablanca (#2 last time)
2. The Godfather (#3 last time)
1. Citizen Kane – still number one
The biggest change is Raging Bull’s rocket-like rise to the top five. It’s been said that Scorsese’s film are exposes of masculinity and that this is his masterpiece. Are men questioning themselves more this past decade?
It’s no surprise that Citizen Kane is still on top. Everyone unanimously agrees that it is the greatest of movies and it does have spectacular moments and is a tremendous work of art. (Personally, I’d vote for Monty Python and the Holy Grail as the greatest ever; it did not make the list at all and that is greatly offensive).
The presentation of the films was well done. Not a lot of blabbing, just a little bit of analysis and some commentary. The whole program moved briskly. Three hours were over before you knew it. Another ten years will see another edition of the list and it will be fascinating to see what changes are made by then.
Now, go to your local movie rental store, check out pay-per-view, or load up your Netflix queue, and let’s watch some movies.
Gray Hunter enjoys an eremitical life in the desert. Beer and words are two pleasures in his life. He holds down two jobs while he works at his novels and stories.
Imagine Jurassic Park only without the ensuing havoc of a saboteur shutting off the power and raptors hunting everyone down. Also, instead of cloning dinosaurs from DNA, the park’s extinct animals were saved from extinction via a time portal. Oh, and instead of housing dinosaurs in a theme park-like environment, this “park” is more of an animal sanctuary open to accommodating any manner of extinct creature.
Welcome to Prehistoric Park.
Unlike a so-so Spielberg thriller, Prehistoric Park is a wonderfully imaginative and engrossing television mini-series. It stars Nigel Marven, a British naturalist who travels back in time in each episode to rescue animals on the brink of extinction. His Prehistoric Park is an in-progress compound designed to breed and care for these animals that evolution gave up on.
In the first episode, Nigel sets out to retrieve an absolute showstopper–the most famous, or infamous, dinosaur of all–a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Traveling through the mysterious time portal, he arrives shortly before the giant meteor that extinguishes all dinosaur life on earth. There he stalks a wounded T-Rex but ends up bringing back more than just the king of “thunder lizards.”
One of the neatest aspects of Prehistoric Park is that the show doesn’t just focus on dinosaurs alone; there’s an intriguing variety to the types of animals and time periods visited, as the second episode moves past dinosaurs and finds Nigel heading to the end of the Ice Age to rescue a Wooly Mammoth. But dinosaurs aren’t totally forgotten as the show continually flashes back to “present day” at the Park where the staff there must deal with the creatures Nigel’s already brought back, like a herd of Omithomimus that won’t settle in their new habitat or an antsy teenage Triceratops they’ve named Theo.
Keeping things different again in the third episode, Nigel heads to prehistoric China to seek out more dinosaurs, only this time they’re ones few of us have probably heard of before. They’re tiny, feathered, four-winged, flying dinosaurs called microraptors. But the hunt for these tiny dinos also reveals the largest creatures Prehistoric Park will come to host, along with a very unwelcoming volcano that causes trouble for Nigel and his crew.
For episode four, the Sabretooth Tiger is the desired extinct animal Nigel tracks down in South America, along with a giant, meat-eating bird whose predatorial dominance is overturned by the Sabretooths. First, Nigel heads to a time when the Sabretooths ruled the roost and the “terror birds” were on their way out. Then, Nigel’s off to when the Sabretooths were the ones dying out. Note to parents of small children: though the series has been pretty family-friendly so far, this episode features a bunch of baby animals, including some damn cute ones that…don’t make it. Just a warning that smaller children may find this very disturbing and Sombrero Grande is willing to reveal this minor spoiler if it can prevent fits of uncontrollable sobbing…like he had. Wait…ignore that last part.
Exhibiting the show’s most varied departure yet, the fifth episode sees Nigel off to a time before the dinosaurs to rescue giant bugs like a three-foot dragonfly and an enormous scorpion. Meanwhile, back at Prehistoric Park, the animal keepers are having troubles with many of the creatures Nigel’s brought back so far.
The sixth and final episode of the show puts Nigel once again back in the time of the dinosaurs, now trying to trap a fifty-foot “supercroc” called a Deinosuchus to bring back to the increasingly hectic Park.
In a way, it’s disappointing that the “supercroc” is the subject of the final episode since the Deinosuchus is arguably the least impressive CG creation of the series. The computer-generated effects throughout the show are pretty good for TV–even on par with the original Jurassic Park movie at times–though that varies from creature to creature. Some, like the Wooly Mammoth, look great and are easy to buy off on as real creatures, while some others, like the Deinosuchus and Sabretooth Tigers, appear to be only slightly more believable than creatures from TV’s Hercules and Xena: Warrior Princess.
But occasionally tepid special effects can’t spoil the wonderful sense of adventure that the show offers up. Thankfully the human actors are far more believable than the computer-generated ones, and they bring a strong sense of realism to the outlandish situations. The scripts are well done too, making the proceedings feel close to real while still managing to answer all asked questions before the end of each episode.
Prehistoric Park is set up like a documentary, filming the growing pains of the world’s first extinct animal sanctuary. There are a few shots in the series that couldn’t possibly have been shot documentary-style and kind of throw off the vibe (like flying with giant dragonflies through a forest as though speeding through the Moon of Endor on an Imperial Speeder Bike–Nigel can’t seem to catch a dragonfly here, but apparently the cameraman has no problem riding one’s tail), but other than these little nit-picks it’s a pretty believably shot mockumentary.
In addition to being highly entertaining, the show is also educational. In discussing the handling and behaviors of the show’s creatures, the characters and narrator frequently make comparisons to modern animals and zoo methodologies. Prehistoric Park is the best kind of “edutainment”: the kind of show you watch for fun and then realize partway through that you’ve learned something.
One thing that is never explained is how the time portals work. Like the doors in Monsters, Inc., they just do. Executive Producer Jasper James humorously explains in the DVD-set’s “Making of” feature, “Einstein always made a big deal about, you know, space and time and ‘wouldn’t it be difficult to time travel.’ And I think, in reality, he knew, like we do, that it’s actually quite simple: you just need a stick with some lights on it–and you stick it in the ground, time portal comes up, and you go back in time. There’s really nothing to it.” The “how” of the time travel really isn’t important to the story—the show isn’t about that; it’s about learning about the animals.
Prehistoric Park is an absolutely wonderful mini-series, full of adventure, drama, and interesting animal and historical facts. I highly recommend it for older children, families and adults with even the slightest interest in dinosaurs and other extinct creatures.
This writer is a member of The Masked Movie Snobs, a collective that fights a never-ending battle against bad entertainment.
Ah, we start off in a courtroom. A drama usually can't go wrong with a courtroom scene; there’s instant conflict and precise adversarial roles.
Before I get into the episode, let me step aside a moment to acknowledge at the beginning (in case people don’t get to the end here) that the impossible has been happening and people sticking with the show have been rewarded. Painkiller Jane is better than the stilted, ungifted acting and plodding plots it started with. I really wanted this show to work – and it really is. It’s been improving by leaps and bounds – just like a real superhero.
This was a stand-up episode about Strikeforce Vicodin aka Team Neuro member Connor King being accused of serial arson and murder.
Connor King is in the defendant’s seat after being arrested for a series of arsons including one house fire that killed Lucy Samuels. What’s been happening though is the team has been tracking a fire-starter neuro, and naturally Connor been seen at nearly every scene.
Combine that fact with his combustible personal history and we have a conflagration. Connor King's shit is about to hit his least supportive fan. His former police partner is about to testify against him and among his record as a criminal are arson charges.
“Ex-cop, ex-con — kind of cute in a borderline, sociopath kind of way,” series heroine Jane Vasco muses. “Here's the deal, I’m able to heal and Connor isn’t.”
It's a high-profile case and not only is the situation looking dire, Connor's government lawyers are working against him to keep the neuro program quiet. Connor cannot put Maureen, Jane, Andre, Riley, or Dr. Seth on the team (and certainly not former railway man and former team neuro member who’s lost in a subway tunnel somewhere, never to be seen again).
We get to meet some of the leaders behind the team, including Gerald Morgan, delicately referred to only as "supervisor of Andre's team." Morgan is willing to sacrifice King to save the secrecy of the team. “He was always a liability,” Morgan says, which ain’t exactly a vote of confidence.
Connor is feeling frisky in jail when Maureen comes to visit. She breaks the bad news that his background on the legit side of the law on Team Neuro won’t be part of his defense. He’s feeling despondent and hopes that his “going away present” is with a “sympathetic” Mo and “the Supergirl.”
So they bond by hitting on each other, but also Strikeforce Vicodin becomes a legal defense team. Connor refuses to tell McBride more about his background, which strains their working relationship and gets the whole team tense.
Instead, Connor tries to escape twice just because he feels there’s no hope; he has obviously been railroaded before. The first time the jailer gets a little trigger happy and fires into an occupied courtroom. Jane jumps in his way as she sees them ready to shoot — and takes two slugs in the shoulder.
Riley, who now sits at an upgraded bank of screens, is figuring out the connections again. The target houses are two-story blue houses that all face West – or something equally random and absurd. All but one that is, though no one can shed light on the anomaly. Riley suggests maybe the arsonist grew up in a similar house.
McBride, who you would think would favor the law and order approach, has a cunning plan. It’s bold. It’s ambitious. When Bill Cole, the ex-partner, ex-cop, ex-cellmate, shows up at the courthouse, he’s given a message. He is told to go to the back of the courthouse and there’s McBride, gun in hand, pretending to be a hired killer for King to dissuade Cole from testifying.
It seems to be a plan burdened and fraught with risk and doubt. If it doesn’t work, Cole still testifies and Connor gets hiring a contract killer to his list of charges. Luckily, Jane poses as a witness too, and McBride, which, of course, is rather convincing.
In fact it works and Cole refuses to testify in court several times, pleading the fifth even though he’s been granted immunity. His loyalty to fear gets him a quick contempt of court.
Scott Samuels, Lucy Samuels’ husband, testifies and he’s a just-the-facts-ma'am type. He gets about as emotional as a frozen rock.
Doing their investigative due diligence, Riley and Maureen figure out that oil stains in a couple of the garages show that the arsonist arrives at the scene on a motorcycle. McBride points out the drawback to this brilliant sleuthing — Connor rides a semi-custom Saxon chopper.
Back in the courtroom, expert witness Dr. Erich Wilson creates some huge elaborate theory – involving basic magnifying equipment – about how the fires are started, yet don’t leave any evidence. Connor’s defense lawyer thinks he’s got the guy when he gets him to say the glass and the device would not have melted completely in a fire. Except the good doctor, as he talks, crumbles in his hands the device that had just burnt a small towel in a demonstration. It's made of crystallized sugar. Further evidence finds Connor King renting a storage unit, and several of the magnification burning devices are found there.
It is a flimsy frame job – by Connor’s defense team against Connor. Riley later "finds” the original contract document online and finds it’s been modified and created recently rather than when Connor had the storage unit a few years ago. Morgan arranged the frame job.
“I don't like your tone,” Connor’s attorney Richard Stanley tells McBride as the latter is getting pissed at the lack of support. Great response: “You're not supposed to.”
McBride, going way out on a limb, says he’ll stalk Stanley for the rest of his life if he has to, and the country has spent a lot of money to do that well.
Riley tries to find information on Samuels under the theory that they were the intended target with the others burned as cover. Somehow in his digital travels, Riley finds pictures of a beautiful woman – Ellen Drake – and mumbles, "If this isn't a reason for murder…" as he pastes himself into a picture with her.
Turns out yes and there’s Blue Ridge Motel video footage to prove it. Ms. Drake owns up to the affair on the stand and it’s discovered Lucy has $500,000 worth of life insurance, just purchased. And, she’s low-risk as she doesn’t ride a bike like he does.
Richard Stanley finally gets a pair and interrogates him fiercely – and Samuels sets the courtroom ablaze. He’s the neuro. Connor, hand-cuffed, runs across and deep-sixes the guy to the floor with a body slam.
The moral of the story is Strikeforce Vicodin members realize they’re a team and everything is warm and fuzzy. Or at least warm OR fuzzy. "He is cute, isn’t he?" Jane repeats again, about Connor. And I only mention that because it looks like in the next episode Jane becomes pregnant. It's billed as "the episode that changes everything." She discovers a part of her power she never knew about.
Next episode, airing June 22, “Lauren Gray” where Jane poses as a (pregnant?) model who is turning young women into old corpses.
What do you get when a writer known for ghost stories, haunted tales, and specializing in debunking paranormal occurrences gets a taste of his own scary medicine? A night of fright.
Mike Enslin (John Cusack) is a best-selling horror novelist and takes on a new book project called Ten Nights in Haunted Hotel Rooms. This should be an easy task for him after discrediting a long line of paranormal myths. But it seems his perfect score is about to change when he checks into suite 1408 at the infamous Dolphin Hotel in New York City. He first meets the hotel manager Mr. Olin (Samuel L. Jackson), who tries to convince him that spending a night alone in the room would be fatal. Soon after he settles in, odd things begin to happen and he must survive disturbing sequences of violence, frightening images of his dead daughter, and the genuine terror of moving ceilings and windows.
Needless to say this sounds like a very frightening movie, but the plot went in too many directions. Stephen King's short story "Everything's Eventual" from his audio book Blood and Smoke is really very good, but when screenplay writers Matt Greenberg and Scott Alexander adapted this and tried to lengthen it into a feature film, they lost the focus of an intelligent sci-fi supense drama. Even though John Cusack gives a good verbal and deranged performance, it's not enough. Mary McCormack as Lilly, his estranged wife and mother of their dead daughter, enters much too late in the film to make a real difference to explain why he chases ghost. Samuel L. Jackson's character was at best acceptable considering that he only has a diluted part in the film. The movie relies on CGI to entice the audience with disturbing visuals, but it doesn't work.
Directed by: Mikael Hafstrom Running time: 1 hour 34 minutes Release date: June 22, 2007 Genre: Horror/Suspense and Adaptation Distributor: Dimension Films, MGM, and The Weinstein Company MPAA Rating: PG-13
A follow-up to the 1964 four-way monster battle Ghidrah – The Three Headed Monster, the venerable Godzilla crew returns with this outer space epic one year later. Astro Monster follows a solid human story, even with a massive logic hole, that’s entertaining enough that the hold off the monster action until the finale. This is one of the best out of the lighter-toned sequels.
Nick Adams heads up a cast of Toho staples, including his love interest, Kumi Mizuno. The film wastes no time in making it to the first special effects shot as two astronauts fly into space to investigate the newly discovered Planet X. Once they landed, human-like aliens, decked out in iconic space wear, welcome the Earth’s ambassadors.
As with nearly every movie involving aliens, there’s a plot to take over the Earth. Yoshio Tscuchiya plays the alien commander (in one of his many giant monster film roles) with an expressionless, pale face that simply feels cold. Their plan is long-winded, if only for the purpose of creating intrigue amongst the Earth people.
In execution, the aliens go through a staggering amount of work for a superior race. Requesting Godzilla and Rodan from Earth to protect their own home world from an invasion by Ghidrah, they transport the monsters with the approval of Earth’s government. While the battle does take place, albeit briefly, it’s not long before the aliens are back on a defenseless Earth controlling all three monsters in a classic Toho rampage.
With their extensive technology, it’s rather obvious that they never needed to make an interstellar trip with multiple monsters in tow, or even communicate with humans. They could have just as easily taken control in a surprise attack, which would have been far more effective.
Gaping plot holes aside, this is still a fun, energetic monster movie. The final three-way monster fight is a classic, loaded with destruction and miniature smashing. Two of the suits are familiar for those who viewed Ghidrah one year prior, though the Godzilla suit has definitely underwent some extensive design alterations. It’s far too baggy, hanging off suit actor Haruo Nakajima instead of sticking to his frame. The holes in the neck are blatantly obvious at times, and tongue flops around whenever the mouth opens.
As the human drama plays out, there’s always a need to go back to it. In other kaiju epics, the dialogue-driven plot ends as the characters become nothing more than onlookers. While that eventually happens here, through most of the struggle, there’s an urgent last-minute attempt to save the planet from the invaders. It cleans up nicely without leaving questions, while still leaving things open for the next sequel.
Also, even with some ridiculous camp sequences (including the sadly famous “jig” Godzilla performs), the story still delivers a sense of dread. When the monster fight turns goofy, it’s not the drastic turn off it would have been without a strong build-up. This is what elevates Invasion of the Astro Monster above the franchises lower-end pieces.
Both Japanese and English versions are contained on the disc. While minor variances of editing are present, the prints used look exactly the same. Color is bright, sharp, and full. While overly soft, there’s still a sense of clarity to the picture. Print damage is non-existent, even during multi-pass special effects shots. Grain is only evident during moments that use stock footage. Compression is wonderfully controlled.
Audio is unremarkable on both films. This basic mono effort preserves the sound clearly. The remastered 5.1 track from the Japanese DVD release has sadly not been included.
Extras begin with a nice narrated look at Tomoyuki Tanaka, the man credited with creating Godzilla. His career and life are discussed at length, and this stands as a nice tribute piece. A photo gallery and trailers for other Classic Media Godzilla DVDs are featured as well.
A full length commentary from Monsters are Attacking Tokyo author Stuart Galbraith IV is mostly a discussion of the actors. He finds notable people who never speak a single line and lets the viewer in on the highlights of their careers, though after a while, it’s tiring. Some more information on the shoot, special effects, or the series would have been a huge help towards making this a successful commentary.
Godzilla’s next foray would be an oddball effort, Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster. The script was written for Toho’s adaptation of King Kong, but was switched with almost no changes to the. This leads to a number of oddities in terms of the giant monsters behavior, debatably more off the wall than his dance in Astro Monster.
Matt Paprocki is the reviews editor for Digital Press, a classic video game website which he called home after his fanzine (Gaming Source) published its final issue. The deep game collection which spans nearly 30 systems and 2,000 games line his walls for reasearch purposes. Really. He has also begun writing freelance for the Toledo Free Press.
