Reviews

This may be one of the best HBO series yet, SOPRANOS included. I do know this -- I have never seen a more accurate (or accurate APPEARING) western -- and I've seen a lot of them. Everything about this series, from the writing to the acting to the cinematography is first rate. The lead character of Seth Bullock is portrayed by an actor of great charisma and magnetism, Timothy Olyphant. Bad guy portrayals don't get much better than that of Ian McShane as the corrupt town lord, Al Swearengen. David Milch did some compelling work on NYPD BLUE. But DEADWOOD is his magnum opus. Mark my words -- this series is a classic in the making.

Actress Ellen Gerstein ("JAMES DEAN") makes an impressive debut as a writer and director with her short film about a young developmentally disabled man taking his first tentative steps toward independence.

Ronald (Jody Clark) is leaving the center where he has lived all his life to meet Edgar, who has already established himself with a job and his own apartment. After a series of touching good-byes, Ronald heads for the bus stop.

As Edgar waits at the other end of the line, circumstances conspire to make them miss their connection.

The film is filled with sweet and touching images that allow us to experience the world of the developmentally disabled from their own unique point of view.

I had the pleasure of seeing this little independent comedy at a recent film festival in Southern California and found it captivating.

The two leads are charming, talented and worthy of further exposure in films. In fact, while Burt Young (ROCKY 1-4) was the only familiar face in the cast, I thought the other performers were uniformly good in their roles, which is rare in a low-budget independent film, where often friends and family are pressed into service. Clearly, this was a cast of professionals and they served the film well.

The premise was something unique and I always respond to originality when I see it in films. A likeable man-child, still pining for his lost love and looking for his place in the world, starts a dating service in the family-owned supermarket where he works. There are numerous funny sequences involving how people are put together in this highly unusual context. A subplot involving a threat to bulldoze the market for a parking lot, while not as engaging, still works well as a counterpoint to the dating service aspect of the story.

Director/cinematographer Mark Foggetti gives a thoroughly pro look to his film. Low budget movies usually look like it, owing to poor production values, underlit scenes and amateur level acting. CHECKOUT has none of these faults and indeed, looks like a studio-produced feature.

If you're looking for an evening of light entertainment, you could do much worse than CHECKOUT.

Just one week before seeing "Galaxy Quest," I had the great fortune to have borrowed a friend's DVD of the documentary, "Trekkies," which gives an in-depth look at the weird world of fandom as it relates to the Star Trek phenomenon. I'm so glad I saw that first, as it made even richer the experience of watching the bored and jaded cast of washed-up actors who had populated the Trek-like series, "Galaxy Quest." Taking the basic idea from the film "The Three Amigos" in which actors are mistaken for real-life heros and recruited to fight the bad guys, then applying it to the world of science fiction produced a riotously funny, yet credible action film that was entertaining from the first frame to the last.

Tim Allen is the perfect Shatner surrogate, while Sigourney Weaver demonstrates a flare for light comedy that should be exploited more often. Alan Rickman as the Spock-like Dr. Lazarus is wonderful. Tony Shaloub made the conscious decision to play his character perpetually stoned. While this is barely commented upon, it makes for delicious humor throughout. And Sam Rockwell, so loathsome as "Wild Bill" in The Green Mile, racks up an impressive number of laughs with his portrayal of "Guy," the actor who did one episode of Galaxy Quest and was killed five minutes into the story. (Star Trek was replete with such actors, played by an entire parade of nameless actors).

See Galaxy Quest and enjoy this rara avis -- a comedy that really does make you laugh.

The West Wing has become must see TV at our house. The intelligent stories are riveting, without so much as a shot being fired or a blood-soaked gurney being wheeled frantically down a corridor. These are the corridors of power and the people who walk them are recognizable human beings. Sheen's President is a wish-fulfillment Chief Executive, but I love every moment that he's on screen. The staffers are wonderful, particularly Allison Janney's "C.J." This show should run for a very long time.

This little gem is a wonderful film for the entire family. It deals with a little boy's self-esteem and how it is effected by his being accepted to play on a winning little league baseball team. Having just lost his father to cancer, the boy seems lost in the world of his own imagination. While this all seems pretty dark, it is in fact a funny, warm and charming film that has a little something for every member of the family. Four stars and two thumbs up!

John Sayles continues to solidify his position as the premier American indepedent filmmaker. "Limbo" is a masterpiece. It is a wonderfully drawn and richly textured tale. Do not be frightened away by these comments about the ending. Once I got over the shock of it, I smiled and said to myself, "What a ballsy way to end a movie." Those who felt cheated are merely used to having their art served to them in neatly-explained little packages. Be prepared for something different and then go with it...do as Sayles expects of you and participate. John Sayles is a true original. He has never made two films even remotely similar. And, in my opinion, he has never even come close to making a bad film. I can't think of another filmmaker about whom that might be said. Do not miss this, the latest in his ever growing stunning body of work.