Will Rast of Funk Art
@ Fort Reno
Q:What's your song for summer?
A:"'I Ain't Nobody's Baby' by Sharon Jones."
FANS OF FANGED FICTION may have noticed a cable-TV entry in the genre. It's that hourlong show about a mortal female with vision issues, a smoking-hot male vampire with a strict no-kill policy an the supernatural shenanigans that bring them together to save their town.
The town, of course, is Toronto - oh, wait. We're not talking about "True Blood," HBO's complex, fraught and fascinating series that returned for season two in June. The series of interest here is "Blood Ties," a Canadian crime-and-romance romp aired on Lifetime that flies under the radar on its stylish bat wings.
Viewers can be forgiven for missing "Blood Ties" during its season one run. After "True Blood" elbowed aside CBS's execrable "Moonlight" for supremacy, that seemed to be the definitive end to TV's vampire wars. But Eagle Rock Entertainment has released "Blood Ties'" first 13 episodes, so the dog days of reruns and no-brainer viewing are a good time to check out this nifty serial thriller.
Continue Reading "Fanged Fiction: Lifetime's 'Blood Ties'" »
IF GEEKS ARE the new cool crowd, don't tell that to the producers of "The IT Crowd," a ridiculously funny British sitcom whose second season has just been released on DVD.
The show was produced, not surprisingly, with the help of British "The Office" alumnus Ash Atalla, and it shows in the series' tone and tempo, as well as its taste for the occasional mind-boggling quirk, tossed off so casually you'd think — well, many people do anway — the British Isle are populated by only weirdos and perverts. But the basic parameters of a low-key Britcom are all in place: Soul-crushing, pass-the-time work environment; eccentricities bristling from behind every desk; absurd bureaucracy hampering our heroes' every move - check, check, check.
In a forgotten basement of Reynholm Industries, a huge corporation of unspecific purpose, biracial, literal-minded ubergeek Moss (Richard Ayoade) and Roy (Chris O'Dowd), a rumpled slacker cutie with low self-esteem and a bitter sense of humor, toil under the none-too-focused supervision of Jen (Katherine Parkinson) a technical naif who tries to keep the boys in line but is just as happy to play "Guitar Hero" with them in slow times. Soon after her introduction to the basement office — that's how the first episode of the series kicks off; the Season One DVD is an amusing, but not necessary adjunct to the recent release — Jen's own facade begins to crack, and hilariously. She's the "normal one," but only when thrown into contrast with these two losers (and with Richmond, the sweet-souled Goth even the geeks find off-puttingly weird; they keep him locked in a little room behind a red door.)
WOODSTOCK CELEBRATES ITS 40th anniversary this summer with a barrage of commemorative products: soundtrack reissues, a six-CD rarities set, an Ang Lee movie, and several DVD and Blu-Ray iterations of the ground-breaking documentary.
The director's cut of Michael Wadleigh's documentary (edited by Martin Scorsese) remains the most intriguing Woodstock artifact, for cinematic rather than musical reasons.
He splices together performances with split-screen footage of the crowd, effectively making the audience the subject of the film and giving an impressionistic depiction of all the hubbub: the setup and arrivals, the yoga and skinny-dipping, the dancing and coupling. There's no sense of narrative, nor any real attempt to identify the organizers, performers or concertgoers.
BEFORE MICHAEL BAY, Shia LaBeouf or Megan Fox put their grubby paws all over the "Transformers" series, tainting it with bad direction, stagnant dialogue and lackluster Angelina Jolie impressions (yeah, we'll tell you how we really feel), there was the '80s cartoon that started it all, laying the groundwork of the rivalry between the Autobots and the Decepticons and revving up a franchise that would evolve for decades.
First airing in the United States in September 1984, "The Transformers" — starring the upstanding, peace-loving Optimus Prime and the manipulative, ruthless Megatron — introduced viewers to those huge shape-shifting robots from Cybertron, made terms such as "Space Bridge" and "energon cubes" a part of kids' vernacular and got that metallic-sounding theme song (and the noise Transformers make when they switch from car/fighter jet/dinosaur/cassette tape to robot) stuck in parents' heads.
The initial popularity of Generation 1 of "The Transformers" would not only make Hasbro tons of money off of themed toys and games, but inspire four more seasons of Generation 1; a Generation 2 series; comic books; "Beast Wars," in which every Transformer was an animal instead of a car, jet or other machine (for example, Optimus Primal — a gorilla — was the leader of the Autobots, while Megatron was a Tyrannosaurus rex); and the Bay atrocity and its upcoming sequel, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."
And if you're ready to brush up on your vintage "Transformers" before seeing "Revenge of the Fallen" later this month, then "The Transformers: The Complete First Season, 25th Anniversary Edition" (Shout! Factory) should probably be next on your list of investments before you visit Fandango.
Continue Reading "More Than Meets the Eye: 'The Transformers: The Complete First Season'" »
EVEN IN BLACK and white, Jimmy Sparks must have seemed like the coolest kid in the 1960s. He's 12 and doesn't go to school, but he does drive a car, carry a gun and sometimes fly a jet fighter. Oh, and he controls this 50-foot flying robot his dad built.
Yes, it's "Gigantor," the mid-'60s import cartoon (sorry, "anime") from Japan whose 52 episodes sometimes beat Walter Cronkite in the ratings and whose first 26 episodes have been digitally transferred from the original 16mm film for "Gigantor: The Collection Vol. 1" (E1 Entertainment, $39.98). It's a strange mix: There's a lot of humor, but the plots, usually involving some would-be conqueror and a lot of onscreen shooting deaths, are deadly serious. (Speaking of serious, you can't hit pause during an episode.)
Continue Reading "Still Stronger Than Strong: 'Gigantor' on DVD" »
PART OF THE JOY of reading P.G. Wodehouse's stories about the idly rich cad Bertie Wooster and his more knowledgeable valet Jeeves is doing so slowly, savoring the cleverness of the author's wordplay and the drollness of his wit.
On the other hand, part of the joy of watching Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie play these characters in the series "Jeeves & Wooster" is keeping up with their fast-paced delivery and parsing their verbal parries and thrusts,
By the time Laurie donned his checked blazer and Fry his black bowler, the two had spent nearly a decade as comedy partners, sharpening their rapport on shows like "Blackadder" and "A Little Bit of Fry and Laurie." Appropriately, the duo approach these characters with spirited affection.
Continue Reading "A Bit of What You Fancy: A&E's 'Jeeves & Wooster'" »
IN A QUICK SYSNOPSIS, Lifetime's show "Army Wives" sounds like "Desperate Housewives" set on a military post: five couples dealing with their lives, careers, families, and friendships, when one member of each pair is employed by the Army.
While there are a few common themes between the shows, there's none of the husband-swapping, bizarre mysteries, or other such frivolity that makes the implausible "Housewives" such a guilty pleasure.
Instead, "Army Wives" focuses on five middle-class couples who aren't afraid to be vulnerable or make mistakes, learn from them, and move forward. It's not a reality show, but the characters Lifetime has created certainly feel authentic — and viewers have flocked to the show. It's the highest-rated series in the network's 25-year history, and while that may be because there aren't many other scripted series on this network known for its made-for-TV movies, "Army Wives" has already been renewed for a fourth season before its third season has even started to air.
For those who haven't been watching (or who have forgotten, or who didn't watch the reruns of season 2 that recently aired on Sundays at midnight (crank up the DVR), here's a quick overview of the five main families on the show:
HEY, LADIES!
Are you looking to have your intelligence insulted while ostensibly being entertained?
If so, "He's Just Not That Into You," out now on DVD, might become your favorite film ever.
If you would rather spare yourself two-plus hours of cringing, I have helpfully distilled the lessons of the self-help book turned romantic comedy.
Enlighten yourself below.
Continue Reading "Lucky 7: Lessons Learned From 'He's Just Not That Into You'" »
KNOWING WHAT WE know now about the Fillmore franchise, the DVD "Fillmore: The Last Days" (Rhino) might seem a bit dated, as it captures the last blowout at San Francisco's legendary Fillmore West in 1971 from three angles: footage of the performances, behind-the-scenes shots of the concert preparations, and interviews with the Fillmore's promoter/booker, Bill Graham.
What we know now, of course, is everything that has transpired since the documentary's original release in 1972: Graham's death in a helicopter crash in 1991, the re-opening of the original Fillmore in 1994, and the Fillmore's recent alliance with Live Nation, which has re-branded several well-known clubs using the Fillmore name (notably, the Fillmore at the TLA in Philadelphia and the Fillmore at Irving Plaza in NYC) and plans to open a Fillmore in Silver Spring.
Even with the knowledge that the Fillmore would later return, "The Last Days" still captures the impact that its closing had on the San Francisco community: In interviews in the film, Graham talks about running shows dedicated to lesser-known bands, to give them an audience — and, of course, to give him a built-in focus group to gauge their appeal. The documentary nicely captures those two sides of Graham, the music fan and the feisty businessman.
Continue Reading "A Long, Strange Trip: 'Fillmore: The Last Days'" »
ON A MEMORABLY COLD night in early spring 1997, my girlfriend and I drove into downtown Memphis to a small club called Barrister's, where Jeff Buckley had been playing weekly gigs. He was in town writing and recording the follow-up to his 1994 debut, "Grace," and his residency was not necessarily a secret, but it wasn't promoted either.
I was particularly psyched for the show. Ever since I had discovered "Grace," the album had been on regular rotation in my CD player, and I had seen Buckley once before, during a tour he co-headlined with Soul Coughing. Before that show, I had been skeptical that Buckley could re-create the hysterically soulful vocal acrobatics, the tense guitar churn, and the quiet-loud dynamics of "Grace" on stage. In fact, he came across as slightly unhinged and incredibly intense on stage, and his performance made the album seem subdued and withdrawn.
But that had been at a bigger club with a bigger audience and his full backing band. Barrister's is small, a setting that promised a more intimate gig. Plus, that night it looked to be a sparsely attended show. We thought we were first in the door, so we sat at the bar and waited for the crowd. Soon, the club's emptiness became suspicious, and the bartender told us that Buckley had missed his flight from New York and that night's show was canceled. We left, completely bummed but certain we would have another opportunity to catch a show.
Just a few weeks later, Buckley went missing while swimming in the Wolf River, a tributary of the mightier, deadlier Mississippi. His body was found nearly a week later. That night at Barrister's wasn't my last goodbye, but my last chance to see Buckley. Twelve years since, the disappointment of that missed opportunity has not abated.
Continue Reading "Eternal Life: Jeff Buckley, 'Grace Around the World'" »
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