I suppose if you enjoy nonstop death, guns and mayhem this film might be for you. But I felt that it was sorely lacking in many things, most in the areas of believability and plot line. Much of the dialogue was trite and insipid. The plot was quite disjointed and nonsensical in places linked together by spates of killing. I was embarrassed for such talents as Andre Braugher for having to appear in such a film but I suppose actors have bills to pay like the rest of us.
Reviews
7 Reviews
Family Affair
(2002–2003)
Like viewing a Train Wreck
13 September 2002
Last night I felt as if I were viewing a train wreck happening in slow motion when I chanced upon the premiere of this remake. "Family Affair" in it's original form was not so endlessly wonderful that it deserved an update but it still deserved a far better fate that this dreary attempt. It was doomed from the onset with the creepy bantering over Bill Davis's (Gary Cole) love life with today's Mr. French (Tim Curry). Both men are talented actors woefully miscast in this show which makes me wonder who greenlit this awful idea. The children are insipidly cloying and uninteresting, the sexual innuendo jokes vile and the entire premise utterly absurd. In fact, the only character with any dignity or class or even believability was the long-suffering Mrs. Beasley. Nothing on earth could compel me to tune in to watch this dreck a second time. Should be put out of it's misery so the actors might move on to better (hopefully, but you never know in Hollywood) projects.
Surprising look at Bouncers
3 July 2001
Bouncers, most people take them for granted as they slip in and out of nightclubs but they are omnipresent, like the fixtures in the bar. This delightfully interesting film takes a close look at the day to day lifes of the men that enjoy inflicting physical pain upon others. You would expect men with such a strong predilection for violence would live lifes of constant brutality but the film manages to show the many facets that make up these men that do not fit in. It would be too easy to ridicule and dismiss but Steven Cantor manages to rise above that to show the spiritual, tender and even banal bits of these men. You find yourself beginning to identify with them, rooting for Black Prince to get a better job, giggling at the DeMaio twins worship of Sly Stallone and liking the garrulous Guv'nor. In turns touching, amusing and frightening but never boring. Some violence is shown in the context of the job but it doesn't feel gratuitous, merely the thing that these men do best.
City of Angels
(2000)
Show axed just as it had improved significantly
21 April 2001
Unfortunately I didn't see more than an episode or two of the first season but this past fall I became a regular viewer after my favorite actor Kyle Secor was added to the cast as a regular. City of Angels became my new favorite quickly and it improved more with each successive episode. CBS made a grave mistake when they did not allow the series to find it's audience and they burdened the series with the tag "African American Show" Seems to me that there were nearly as many hispanics and a fair representation of asians and whites as well. Why not play up the fact that it was realistic, you never see Homicide Life on the Street or Gideons Crossing claiming to be a "Black Show" Anyway it was shameful that we didn't even get a chance to see the remaining episodes that were taped but never shown, this show never had a fair chance. The actors were wonderful, the plotlines and writing excellent, an all-around great show.
Confusing film full of inconsistencies
20 April 2001
Granted, as this was a "Wonderful World of Disney" film, my expectations were not high before even viewing this. But in the past at least most films by Disney at least made some logical sense. No such luck with this turkey and it left me with many unanswered questions, flying children, electrified wooden picket fences and underwear chomping goats aside. Clueless woman discovers after the death of hubby that he blew their lifesavings on an island?!? And she didn't know? First of all, that alone is a stretch but to find out that he had lied to her about his entire background and upbringing as well was unbelievable. Linda Hamilton plays the wife, Mrs. Donavan like she is sleep-walking instead of the boiling anger most women would feel to discover their entire marriage was a lie. She goes to Bailey's Mistake, Maine to see what she has inherited and exactly how fast she can dump it. She meets her late husbands family, featuring more quirks and oddballs than the daily dose on the Springer show. Predictably they want her to hang onto the property so they can continue to live there but Liz wants to sell it to the local devil/rich guy/landowner (Kyle Secor playing Lowell Lennox, he seems to be phoning in his performance from a great distance) so he can put in a golf course. The rest of the film follows a oh so preposterous, predictable course, the locals persuade her to sell to them and they tell Mr. Lennox (the Devil) to take a hike and go eat more Oreos. And we STILL don't know what the deal is with the goat. Since this production was filled with excellent actors such as Joan Plowright, Kyle Secor and Linda Hamilton I expected better but never underestimate the power of mediocrity.
Beauty's Revenge
(1995 TV Movie)
Silly Movie, Bad Acting & Dumb Dialogue
12 April 2001
This film is representative of the whole cheesy TV-Movie Genre. Mad beauty queen chases the most clueless farmer in 3 counties. Only reason to see this movie is to see the stellar acting of Kyle Secor as Kevin Reece (clue-less farmer). The chemistry between the two lovebirds, Kevin and fiance, Beth (played by Tracy Gold) was just not there at all but off the charts between the Dairy Queen (Courtney Thorne-Smith) and Kevin. This movie boils down to one thing and one thing only - Bad girl tries to steal good girls boyfriend by hook, crook, tractor-death and strangulation. The entire thing was predictable and trite, give me "Homicide:Life on the Street" any day over dreck like this.
Endsville
(2000)
Endearing And Quirky Film
30 September 2000
This film is a mockumentary of a cult counting down their final days towards the end of this world as they are being filmed by a local videographer. Jim Gaffigan plays Ivy Vaughn, a local man that videos weddings and bar mizvahs for a living when he meets a young man named Isaac Melnick (played by David Moscow) while he was filming a bar mizvah in the town of Endsville, NY. Isaac starts ranting on camera about the end of the world, Quellish and the Reverend Caleb Solar and Ivy is intrigued enough to pay a visit to the Compound for the Divine Order of Faithful Servants (The DOoFS). What he finds when he arrives is the perfect subject for a documentary that will launch him on his way as a real film maker and allow his escape from his dull existance in Endsville, NY, a town that has definately seen better days.
As Ivy settles in to the Compound and the DOoFS he begans to interview each member seperately and figure out why anyone would join a doomsday cult. Through his camera we meet the various oddballs that make up the DOoFS from the Reverend's right hand man, Kenneth Thith (Alan Ruck), a man that has spent his entire life in cults, Doug Doug (David Warshofsky), an abandoned house-frau, Elizabeth Wilberforce (Laraine Newman), the Reverend's beautiful, teenaged, half-sister, Nicola McCoy (Tracy Hutson), a failed accountant, Terry Festinger (Ethan Phillips), a drunken Englishman by the name of Neville Asquith (Graeme Malcolm) and the angry young man, Isaac Melnick. The Most Honorable Reverend Caleb Solar (Kyle Secor) remains tantilizingly aloof to Ivy, never submitting to his camera except for the most brief moments. So Ivy mostly learns about Caleb through the other DOoFS. Later the DOoFS are joined by an architect named Shawn Walker (Dwight Ewell), who answers an ad in the local paper to help them build an Ark.
The Honorable Reverend Caleb Solar was a used-car salesman that heard the voice of God via the local weather girl, Lisa Swayzak (played by Debbie Matenopoulos), one day after experiencing a very bad day (referred to in the film as "The Confluence of Horror" WHUP!). He becomes convinced that this world is about to end in a Biblical flood called, "Quellish" and begans to call others to join him. The role of Caleb Solar was a major departure for Kyle Secor, best known as Tim Bayliss on Homicide. I expected him to stand out in this role as he does in everything else he did, but there were so many great performers that he was merely one of many great actors. His performance as Caleb is restrained, he plays Caleb with many different facets, in turn engmatic and charmistic as he lures in followers, cranky and dour when bugged with details and squabbling among members, mysterious and aloof much of the time and completely wild as he loses it totally and starts yelling pick-up lines at women out of the window of the DOoFS bus. Secor also has one of the funniest scenes in the film when his followers force him to explain what exactly happened during the "Confluence of Horrors"
Alan Ruck as Kenneth Thith gives obsessive-compulsive new meaning as the tightly-wound up man that really makes everything happen at the Compound. He has several outstandingly funny bits, one where he is ironing Caleb's shirts and telling Ivy he shouldn't even be looking at Caleb's shirts much less touching them and another time when he is explaining why Caleb had no luck with the opposite sex in high school. He also gives the impression of being madly in love with Caleb.
As Neville Asquith, Graeme Malcolm plays a befuddled, over educated, upper class Brit most convincingly. His easy-going and drunken state make him an odd choice as a cult member.
If his performance in this film is any indication, Jim Gaffigan will be a huge star on his new television show, "Welcome To New York" He plays Ivy with a endearing goofiness and sweetness that counterbalances Ivy's cynisism over "Quellish". He develops a bit of a crush on Nicola along with most of the men and he has many funny scenes in the movie, a natural comedian.
David Moscow as Isaac was a ball of anger that exploded occasionally in the funniest ways. Intense and incredibly loyal to the group. I was laughing so hard I was crying when he started ranting on camera about Quellish and El Agua. Wouldn't want to get on Isaac's bad side at all.
Ethan Phillips performance as Terry Festinger is very different than the usual way we are used to viewing him on Star Trek Voyager as Neelix. He was outstanding as the strange little accountant that ends up pilfering the groups funds and spending them on only God knows what. His comedic timing is great in this role.
Loraine Newman shows in "Endsville" that she still has the same wonderful acting abilities and timing that made her famous on Saturday Night Live. She plays Elizabeth with the lots of suppressed emotions bubbling just right below the surface and you can tell she's gonna blow like a volcano one day. Her melt-down at the kitchen table and shared kiss with Caleb make for two of her most hysterical moments.
Doug Doug is portrayed by David Warshofsky with masterful vacantness. But as the film goes on you get the impression that Doug is not a stupid as he first appears. When Elizabeth and Neville ask for help with the dinner dishes one night, he trots out a scripture to support why his helping out would be actually sinful and lead to death. He constantly carries about a childrens illustrated Bible.
Tracy Hutson plays Nicola as highly aware of her own beauty and manipulating the men in her life with it. In one sequence she talks Terry into allowing her to buy tons of junk food even though the group is on a tight budget and everyone else has been told no, by merely pouting seductively and saying "Please" as Terry Festinger melts beneath her gaze.
But the show stealer is Judd Nelson as Rufus The Buck Toothed Sluggard, the farmer next door to the group. He is amazing and very surprising in this role.
William Fitchner plays rival cult leader, Prince Victor Diamond and is convincing in the few moments he has onscreen.
As Ivy settles in to the Compound and the DOoFS he begans to interview each member seperately and figure out why anyone would join a doomsday cult. Through his camera we meet the various oddballs that make up the DOoFS from the Reverend's right hand man, Kenneth Thith (Alan Ruck), a man that has spent his entire life in cults, Doug Doug (David Warshofsky), an abandoned house-frau, Elizabeth Wilberforce (Laraine Newman), the Reverend's beautiful, teenaged, half-sister, Nicola McCoy (Tracy Hutson), a failed accountant, Terry Festinger (Ethan Phillips), a drunken Englishman by the name of Neville Asquith (Graeme Malcolm) and the angry young man, Isaac Melnick. The Most Honorable Reverend Caleb Solar (Kyle Secor) remains tantilizingly aloof to Ivy, never submitting to his camera except for the most brief moments. So Ivy mostly learns about Caleb through the other DOoFS. Later the DOoFS are joined by an architect named Shawn Walker (Dwight Ewell), who answers an ad in the local paper to help them build an Ark.
The Honorable Reverend Caleb Solar was a used-car salesman that heard the voice of God via the local weather girl, Lisa Swayzak (played by Debbie Matenopoulos), one day after experiencing a very bad day (referred to in the film as "The Confluence of Horror" WHUP!). He becomes convinced that this world is about to end in a Biblical flood called, "Quellish" and begans to call others to join him. The role of Caleb Solar was a major departure for Kyle Secor, best known as Tim Bayliss on Homicide. I expected him to stand out in this role as he does in everything else he did, but there were so many great performers that he was merely one of many great actors. His performance as Caleb is restrained, he plays Caleb with many different facets, in turn engmatic and charmistic as he lures in followers, cranky and dour when bugged with details and squabbling among members, mysterious and aloof much of the time and completely wild as he loses it totally and starts yelling pick-up lines at women out of the window of the DOoFS bus. Secor also has one of the funniest scenes in the film when his followers force him to explain what exactly happened during the "Confluence of Horrors"
Alan Ruck as Kenneth Thith gives obsessive-compulsive new meaning as the tightly-wound up man that really makes everything happen at the Compound. He has several outstandingly funny bits, one where he is ironing Caleb's shirts and telling Ivy he shouldn't even be looking at Caleb's shirts much less touching them and another time when he is explaining why Caleb had no luck with the opposite sex in high school. He also gives the impression of being madly in love with Caleb.
As Neville Asquith, Graeme Malcolm plays a befuddled, over educated, upper class Brit most convincingly. His easy-going and drunken state make him an odd choice as a cult member.
If his performance in this film is any indication, Jim Gaffigan will be a huge star on his new television show, "Welcome To New York" He plays Ivy with a endearing goofiness and sweetness that counterbalances Ivy's cynisism over "Quellish". He develops a bit of a crush on Nicola along with most of the men and he has many funny scenes in the movie, a natural comedian.
David Moscow as Isaac was a ball of anger that exploded occasionally in the funniest ways. Intense and incredibly loyal to the group. I was laughing so hard I was crying when he started ranting on camera about Quellish and El Agua. Wouldn't want to get on Isaac's bad side at all.
Ethan Phillips performance as Terry Festinger is very different than the usual way we are used to viewing him on Star Trek Voyager as Neelix. He was outstanding as the strange little accountant that ends up pilfering the groups funds and spending them on only God knows what. His comedic timing is great in this role.
Loraine Newman shows in "Endsville" that she still has the same wonderful acting abilities and timing that made her famous on Saturday Night Live. She plays Elizabeth with the lots of suppressed emotions bubbling just right below the surface and you can tell she's gonna blow like a volcano one day. Her melt-down at the kitchen table and shared kiss with Caleb make for two of her most hysterical moments.
Doug Doug is portrayed by David Warshofsky with masterful vacantness. But as the film goes on you get the impression that Doug is not a stupid as he first appears. When Elizabeth and Neville ask for help with the dinner dishes one night, he trots out a scripture to support why his helping out would be actually sinful and lead to death. He constantly carries about a childrens illustrated Bible.
Tracy Hutson plays Nicola as highly aware of her own beauty and manipulating the men in her life with it. In one sequence she talks Terry into allowing her to buy tons of junk food even though the group is on a tight budget and everyone else has been told no, by merely pouting seductively and saying "Please" as Terry Festinger melts beneath her gaze.
But the show stealer is Judd Nelson as Rufus The Buck Toothed Sluggard, the farmer next door to the group. He is amazing and very surprising in this role.
William Fitchner plays rival cult leader, Prince Victor Diamond and is convincing in the few moments he has onscreen.
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