Short Reviews Round Up

Just playing catch up today with some long awaited (by whom we don't know) reviews:

Easily the best new show of the season, Heroes takes the serialized drama and moves it in the direction of the comic book (one could argue that Smallville had already done that, but that's had more standalone episodes and really isn't as serialized as this show). Interesting characters in interesting situations is what drives this. It's way too early to tell whether all the mysteries and subplots will come together nicely like Babylon 5 or become a tangled muck like Lost. I'm betting on the former.

Veronica Mars makes the jump to The CW from the now defunct UPN and has some small changes in the process. Gone is high school, but like any show that makes the transition to the next level of education all the important characters now seem to be at the same college (since most friends go to the same college anyway, right). The season-long mysteries have been shortened to wrap up in 7 or 8 episodes (in case the show gets cancelled). And the theme song has been slowed down to become more haunting or mature. Thankfully, its till a great show even if its a bit off.

Jericho is also a well written serialized show about the aftermath of a Nuclear attack on U.S. soil. So far it hasn't wandered into Lost territory, but I can easily see it getting there quicker than other shows. Unfortunately, CBS has decided to remove it from the air for a while with a fall finale (just like Lost) so it can return in the spring with a run of no-repeats. I hope this works, but I have my doubts. I will keep watching, however.

30 Rock is the sitcom version of what goes on behind the scenes at a late nite netowrk variety show. This is the one with TIna Fey, Tracey Morgan and Alec Baldwin. It is Baldwin that keeps you coming back for more. I smell Emmy. NBC is moving the show to Thursdays at 9:30 and trying to recreate a 2 hour block of comedy on Thursdays along with My Name Is Earl, The Office and Scrubs. It may just work (with the exception of The Office as I just don't like it).

Twenty Good Years is the perfect example of what happens when two very talented actors get stuck with material that is so far beneath them. John Lithgow and Jeffrey Tambor star in a show that NBC is taking off the air and probably will cancel outright soon enough.

Ugly Betty is an Americanized adaptation of a foreign show, but tends to feel more like the small screen version of The Devil Wears Prada (which is apparently getting its own TV series anyway). Lucky for this show its well written and funny. The subplot about the dead former editor who may have faked her own death and is manipulating things behind the scenes is a bit out there, but it doesn't interfere with anything.

The Illusionist plays to my fascination with magic very nicely. This story of a magician and a childhood love is a bit on the predictable side, but the story is so well told and the acting is so well done that any minor flaws can be overlooked...with one exception. The end of the film features a "revelation catch-up" along the lines of The Usual Suspects. In that film, we get to see all the clues leading to the big reveal as the character in question realizes what's going on and it works because we're barely a step ahead of him in realizing it. Here, if you hadn't figured things out as they were happening 9which wasn't the point of the story in my opinion), you should just stop going to movies, watching TV or reading fiction in general. The "revelation catch-up" here is just there to call the audience out for being stupid. Luckily, it doesn't ruin the whole film

The Departed reminds us of how wonderful a director Martin Scorsese really is. This remake of a Hong Kong film about dualling moles within a police force and the mob they're investigating is an amazing work of art with outstanding acting particularly from Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon. Easily one of the best films of 2006

It took quite some time, but we finally saw Syriana. It's a good film, but a bit reminiscent of Traffic (except substituting oil for drugs). Definitely worth the wait (but not so great that I would add it to the collection).

I usually have no problems with romance films (or chick flicks if you prefer). You can't like movies in general and dismiss an entire genre because you feel it may offend your manliness. But I do have a problem with lazy storytelling. Up until the very end I was enthralled with The Lake House, but then things went a bit wrong. Maybe its because I like explanations, maybe its because I don't like predictability. Maybe its because time travel stories have their own internal logic that can't be messed with. My wife tells me to get over it and leave it at the magic of the Lake House. Maybe someday I will, but for now...the end ruins what could have been a great movie.

At one point I was working on a whole piece examining the movies that we've been getting just in time for the 5th anniversary of 9/11. But I got really cranky and depressing to be around at the time and neede dto put some space between me and viewing the films before reviewing them. Of the things I saw the standout is United 93. This intense film follows two tracks...what was going on behind the scenes with all of the Air Traffic Controllers as the events of that day occurred and what was going on inside United 93 (if you want to "experience" the on the ground stories of the loved ones who were called from the plane before its crash, check out the made-for-TV Flight 93). This film is intense and brilliantly made. The decision to use familiar, but not well known actors to portray the victims of the flight is a stroke of brilliance. It makes these people, whom we already feel a connection to since we all lived through the events not too long ago, even more familiar to us. We get that "I know that person" feeling when we may have no personal connection to anyone who was affected by these events. Its tough to sit through and one of those films that would be even tougher a second time around but it is not to be missed.

Well that's all for today. Next week should bring a review of The Prestige and Casino Royale then before we tackle a couple of hotly anticipated DVD releases before the end of the month...well..they're anticipated by me...all 5 seasons of Get Smart in one box with LOADS of extras and The Ultimate Superman Collection which packages together all 4 Christopher Reeve films, plus two documentaries, the newly "re-edited" Richard Donner cut of Superman II and this year's franchise relaunch Superman Returns. I can't wait.

Be seeing you.