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Reviews
I Love Lucy: The Dancing Star (1955)
She Finally Gets Her Break
While she may have attempted to land herself in the spotlight in countless episodes prior and after, you never really got the feeling that she had "arrived" - at least not until now. Sure, she got into Ricky's act multiple times like the "Bullfight Dance", the "TV Commercial", "Show-Biz Swan Song" "The Indian Show", "Ricky's Life Story"... or even when she gets an appearance in a movie "Lucy Gets into Pictures". But none of those truly felt as dignified as this one.
There was nothing that Lucy did or could have done to louse up this appearance, settle for a small part like a Bull, or have Ricky rain on her parade- it was just her and Van in the spotlight as she simply enjoyed the moment. In addition to that, you also see Lucille Ball "flex" with her dancing skills matching Van step for step in this beautiful duet.
It may not be up there in the top 20 iconic episodes, in fact it's listed at 44 on the IMDB top rated episodes in I Love Lucy, but it's one of my personal favorites.
Of course at the end, it leads into the conundrum of Lucy bragging about her and the movie stars to Caroline. BUT as far as the performance, it was an endearing classic as you see two great stars like Lucille Ball and Van Johnson take to the dancing floor. Not to mention it was a great lead off into the next episode of Harpo Marx (#12 on IMDB).
The Godfather (1972)
You'll Probably Only Watch It Once - But you'll never forget it
This is, no doubt, an iconic movie/series and I have seen it reference multiple times in other movies and shows. ( You've Got Mail - Tom Hanks and horse head scene, Serendipity, Everybody Loves Raymond, and even in the animated movie Zootopia and so on and so on) But after watching all 3 Parts over the course of 3 consecutive nights I can assure you, as I have also read from others, I won't be watching this again.
The series follows the lives of Vito Corleone and his son Michael in a blood dripping, gut wrenching drama that spans nearly 9 hours (Credits not included). It unfolds in a series of events centered around the power, manipulation, and revenge of the mafia. And by the end you can't help but feel like this is a modern day Hamlet - "Everyone dies".
I read comments about how the acting was bad, the accents were a joke, and this series, even more specifically, part I is overrated. And while I don't fully share in that "sentiment" and I certainly won't forget this movie, I simply couldn't watch it again. The drama, the drawn out events, the moments of intensity and suspenseful thrill isn't something I'd really care to experience again in this facet.
But the main theme that I took from this is, simply, "revenge reaps more revenge". And to see old Michael Corleone sit in his chair as he dies, naturally, in Part III wasn't all that satisfying after seeing what preceded the course of his life and that of his fathers'. Bearing in mind that anything in relation to the mafia isn't supposed to have a fairytale ending, so it's not as though my expectations were that of the contrary - it's just not my preference.
In my opinion the acting WAS good, I didn't feel like the accents were bad at all, and if I were to imagine, the plot probably followed quite closely to how things would go in real life. Which is simply another reason why I just wouldn't want to watch it again.
As I am very much of an Italian, myself, I can have an appreciation for various parts of the movie(s) - the scenes from Italy, the family life, the head of the household and all that follows. And although I wouldn't necessarily discourage anyone from watching it, I could certainly understand if they were to only watch it once.
In case the R rating didn't give any indication to the type of movie that this is there is definitely a lot of graphic violence, quite a bit of foul language (even more as you continue you into Part II and especially Part III), and even partial nudity in part I - this should clearly go without saying but, Obviously, not a movie I'd watch with any kids around.
I will give you a fair warning that throughout all 3 parts there will be moments of confusion for you filled with questions but all will be set straight when the credits roll.
Kevin James: Never Don't Give Up (2018)
Definitely Not Outstanding - But Enjoyable
In my opinion it felt like he didn't have anything drastically new or original so for the first half it felt like he was just trying to feel out the crowd - more than he was unapologetically slamming them with some humor.
As I saw in some other reviews I have to agree that the second half was better and the improv-crowd comedy brought it home for a good close-out. In fact, the tattoo bits were probably my favorite.
Not completely family friendly so I would screen it before watching it with your kids if that's one of your concerns.
It was very close to a 6 for me but the ending gave it a little boost. As you can see from other reviewers the opinions widely vary so it really just depends on who you are. But the main consent is that it definitely wasn't a 10.
Star Trek: The Next Generation: Darmok (1991)
Don't Skip This Episode.
While I was tempted to skip this episode due to the annoyance of the alien communication - as a commitment to watch every episode, I had to pull through and finish it.
That being said, I'm glad I did. Coming shortly off the tails of the Redemption episodes, which I thought to be a great transition into season 5, this episode proved to be a great inspiration that you can't expect to have a relationship arise out of the blue if you yourself don't take the time and give the effort it takes to understand someone else's world and where they came from and how they think regardless of the difficulties through communication.
Through a challenging situation, Picard and Dathon ( the Tamarian Captian) are forced to a point where they begin to understand each other, as the Tamarian way of commicating is that of a different nature than we as humans are used to. Both become allies against an aggressive entity on the planet El-Adrel. And while there is no confirmation of a new-found friendship between the two races, there is certainly a hope for one as Picard will never forget "Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel"
This episode is certainly worth the watch and I hope you enjoy it as much as many of us other TNG fans did.
Picture Perfect (1995)
Family Favorite
Even though this film has it's corky moments and even though mainstream critics would probably tread this movie down, my family has watched and loved this movie for many years.
Started watching this movie back before my teenage years with my siblings and parents and now having a family of my own it's still one of my favorites and hope that my kids enjoy it as much as I have.
I'm sure that most would agree that the series of events at "Gillian's" is one of the several highlights of the film as one funny thing leads to another. And who could forget the breakout rock performance at the "Beef and Beer".
It's certainly a movie that you'll be able to enjoy for years with your family