Greeks, Empires, and Noises

Get Him to the Greek


Get Him to the Greek was actually really funny and had a few moments of sweetness. Something I would never expect to say about a film that includes a threesome. I suppose it goes with out saying that this is predominantly a guy film. Lots of sex and vomit, etc. I will say this, Russell Brand is very convincing as a drug addicted rock star. They make some interesting observations about some of the shallow attempts bands and singers make to create what they consider to be art. Worth seeing in the theatre. Would probably buy it on DVD from a discount bin.


Empire Falls (2005)


Per usual, I'm playing catch up. I was faintly aware of Empire Falls before because my mom read the book and already seen the miniseries. But thanks once again to the PSH kick, I shelled out the $18 for the two disc set. Money well spent. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect, I knew the basic idea of the movie, but had no idea what I was getting myself into. This is a miniseries, so it is a bit long. I stayed up until about 3 in the morning the night I got it and watched it all the way through.

The main story revolves around Miles Roby (Ed Harris) who is struggling to keep his life together. His ex-wife (Helen Hunt) is about to get married to an older man (Dennis Farina). His father Max (Paul Newman) is an alcoholic who convinces an older, senile priest to steal the church's money and station wagon. Miles has a daughter in high school, Tick, who befriends the weird kid. They live in an old New England town that has lost its factories and fallen into decay. While Miles is struggling with all of these current problems, he is also discovering his late mother's secrets. I'm stopping there to avoid giving away too much.

There are a lot of flashbacks to Miles' childhood, where we find PSH rocking the mysterious man in a clean white linen suit. With a gorgeous either 1950s or 1960s convertible. There are some disturbing elements that can be difficult to watch. But everything is woven together so beautifully. And there are some moments that you just do not see coming. All around great cast, Paul Newman in particular. Fantastic movie, worth seeing and buying.


Noises Off! (1992)


When there is a buy 2 get 1 free DVD sale I can't resist. However, some times I just want to finish and get out of the store. In one of these sales, on a whim I grabbed Noises Off! My 1 free. Since I bought it about two weeks ago, I've already rewatched a couple of times. A movie about a touring play. The movie is broken into three very obvious acts. They've had two weeks to pull the production together. Act I is their final rehearsal of the play's first act. Act II is one of the performances, again the first act of the play, but it's all back stage and becomes a silent movie. Act III is a combination of back stage and on stage, again during the first act. Everything just flows really nicely and the comedy is reminiscent of slapstick and screwball.

The cast. Let me tell you about the cast:
Michael Caine, Carol Burnett, John Ritter, Christopher Reeve, Marilu Henner, Nicollette Sheridan, and Denholm Elliot are the main people. Julie Hagerty and Mark Linn-Baker also play parts. This is an amazing group and a little sad to watch because three of the primaries have passed away. Christopher Reeve really had a flair for comedy, which I never would've really considered because he is always Superman to me. And it's great to see this big, hulking man play such a timid character who gets nose bleeds whenever violence comes up. But my favorite has to be John Ritter. There's just something about him in this movie that is just so engaging. It reminds me why I'm a fan of his.


Coming up next time, a TV post. United States of Tara and Sapphire & Steel. Two very different genres and decades. So stay tuned.

What's Going On

Hi all (three of you)

Not as much posted lately, bygones as usual. I've started to write reviews for a website called TwoCents. If you're so inclined, check it out.

I've been writing reviews for Burn Notice, In Plain Sight, Parks and Recreation, and for the summer DVD club I'm doing recaps and reviews of Life on Mars (US version).

Have no fear though, I'll still be doing movies on here and the shows that I'm not reviewing. Mad Men's new season is quickly approaching which makes me so happy!

Going to see Get Him to the Greek tonight, will have some thoughts on that I'm sure.

I'll have some other updates coming soon. Recently got into Man from UNCLE, have the complete series of Sapphire and Steel to watch (a British Doctor Who type show, slightly darker with David McCallum), new round of reality shows beginning this Sunday, and some random features I've seen lately. Keep an eye out.