Change Your Image
Gadare
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
Deadwood (2004)
A Young Burt Reynolds told Spencer Tracy
That he was trying to be an actor. Tracy replied, "Well don't ever let them catch you at it. Don't act, just behave."
Too bad the directors and actors of "Deadwood" did not hear this admonition. I saw very few moments of realness. We stopped watching in the middle of the 9th episode because so much of it sounded like a first reading.
Of the male actors, Keith Carradine carried a quiet magnetic dignity. The rest, McShane. Dourif, and particularly William Sanderson indicate and perform as if they are auditioning. Paula Malcomson and Molly Parker are far more convincing in their quiet, soft moments... even in those scenes where they are being threatened or exerting their own power. However, Robin Weigert's Calamity Jane is so confusedly written it is challenging to discern any character at all. And her line delivery is a litany of muttering and sputtering.
The production values are superb as is the score. But, for me, after Carradine leaves the picture, the series is as it is titled. Dead wood... only suitable for burning.
Cocaine Bear (2023)
Cocaine Unbearable
I might be on the "old fogy" track, but I think "Cocaine Bear" is one of the most stupidly repulsive films I've seen. Yes, there are a few funny scenes with fine dialogue.
However, the most potentially interesting characters are mutilated or killed off in violent, gruesomely realistic fashion for no reason, it seems, other than to show how stupid people with guns can be. This disgusting, gratuitous blood-and-guts presentation of bullets and animal carnage would give Sam Peckinpah pause.
The bear appears to be smarter than the people, but then cokeheads always do seem so at first.
I love comedies with body counts (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Eating Raoul, In Bruges, The Lady Killers, Monty Python and the Holy Grail and of course, Arsenic and Old Lace) but this movie gives us few laughs and enough display of disengaged body parts to satisfy any 201-biology class.
Keri Russel's character seems to have less interest in finding her maybe-mauled daughter than she does in taking care of the daughter's friend.
I gave it an IMDB "3" rating. It would have been "2", but it did mention my hometown of Paris, KY. The main drug perp was from there. Wheee!!
Elvis (2022)
Elvis Will Not Leave My Building
This summer, I shrugged and thought, "Oh, OK. Another movie about Elvis. I'll wait for cable." I'm sorry I did. This is a glorious, gorgeous rollercoaster of a film, The cinematography and editing are "wow" inducing. I can't tell you if this is a great movie but it sure is a feast of a film. Yes, the first half "Elvis" is better than the last but hey, we could say that about Elvis' life. What lifts the latter part is that, especially in the show performances, Austin Butler seems not to be acting Elvis, but that Elvis is inhabiting him.
Tom Hanks is excellent and blandly evil, but the rest of the cast does not come even close to his and Butler's portrayals. I have no idea if this work is based in total fact. The director Baz Luhrmann has never been subtle. But who needs that when you've endured "Nomadland"?
Only Murders in the Building (2021)
Bringing the Room Down
The first episode of this sweet, quirky show was quite tepid. The humor, humanity and storyline pick up in later episodes. We are very much enjoying Martin, Short, the NYC locations, the humorous inside showbiz mentions and the supporting cast. Nathan Lane is a topper and the building residents are fun.
In standup comedy, there is a term called "Bringing the room down." It refers to an act that is so bad, or out of synch or depressing that it threatens to ruin the rest of evening's lineup. Selena Gomez and Aaron Dominguez are the downers of this show. Way down. A. D. Is supposed to be a man just released from a ten-year prison term for a crime he did not commit. I've seen children surviving a ten-minute time-out with more emotional baggage. He is downright spritely in his scenes. It's unbelievable.
The big downer who sucks the energy out of every scene she is in is Gomez. She has little screen presence and the vocal patterns of a narcotized zombie. Boring and irritating at the same time.
We are on Episode Five of the first season and intend to see it through because we love Martin and Short and we want to see how the mystery is solved. As we see Ms. Gomez is in the second season, we will abstain from that. Who thought she would be good for this and who in their right mind continued her for another season?
The White Lotus: Mysterious Monkeys (2021)
We Replayed One Scene Three Times
The scene where Mark, too numb to speak, has to listen to the matter-of--speculation between Olivia and Paula about his dad's secret sex life was a screamer. We laughed to tears. Coming up a close second in the laugh department is the sequence involving Tonya's shipboard dumping of her mother's ashes.
Amazingly enough, funny as it was, this episode showed us more of the humanity of the characters and how they are trying, despite all tech obstacles, to reach out to one another.
Can't wait for Episode Four!
Cold Turkey (1971)
Butt for the Noise
This film could have been so much better. I love so many of the people in it. Yes, it has a cast that is fun to watch in their prime, but Cold Turkey is a loud, frantic mess where actors think that screaming and yelling can pass for intense emotional involvement. This can work for a number of scenes but, Norman Lear, where are some moments of quiet subtlety? You'll see better acting in the sketches on the Carol Burnett show.
The editing, sound design (the dubbed dialogue is clumsy and obvious) and musical score (until Randy Newman sings) are amateurish. I've wanted to see this film for fifty years and after this evening's TCM showing, I have my first headache in decades. If you love Newhart, Stapleton, Van Dyke, Poston, etc. and want to see this film, turn your set on and your sound off or very low.
Impractical Jokers (2011)
The Funniest New Show in Years
This show is a hilarious combination of real life pranks/dares filmed and prompted by 4 friends with a wonderful sense of humor and camaraderie.
If you ever had a friend that you liked to prank (and who would lay in wait to get even) then you can identify and laugh with these 4 who take the greatest delight in making each other do ridiculous gags on the public. However, it's the stars of the show that get the humiliation rather than the unsuspecting victims a la "Candid Camera".
So, if you want to watch a goofy, goodspirited half hour of belly laughs, check out "Impractical Jokers". It's a winner!
Primary Colors (1998)
Let's hear it for Allison Janney...
A Janney pulls off a stunning piece of physical comedy in the first minutes of the film. I've watched it over and over and wonder how she did it without hurting herself.... it must have been rehearsed with ballet intricacy. Plus she is hilarious in subsequent scenes. I laugh every time i see it. A positive aspect of this film is that when it lags, a talented actor shows up in a small role (Rob Reiner, Larry Hagman) to help push it along. Travolta and Thompson, however are true revelations. I just finished Bill Clinton's autobiography and it's interesting to juxtapose it with the fictional view of a high level campaign worker. If I watch "The War Room" now, I'll just get morbidly nostalgic for the good old days.