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Reviews
Gwen Shamblin: Starving for Salvation (2023)
I actually participated in a Weigh Down Workshop
The real story of Gwen Shamblin is far more fascinating and bizarre than this semi-factionalized account.
Some 15 years ago, I paid $110 to participate in a Weigh Down Workshop. Each week we had discussion, created a prayer list of joys and concerns, prayed and then watched a video. Included were a workbook and a dozen or so audiotapes for our homework.
The videos featured Shamblin speaking from various places in the Holy Land about how the program came to be and her philosophy on weight loss. She looked quite normal and wore stunning designer clothes. Her hair was unremarkable.
Her advice was simple: eat when you're hungry and stop when you're full. No foods are off limits. It's brilliant because it works BUT retraining yourself can be a hurdle and, for women with families that expect three squares a day, the program can be difficult when Mom isn't hungry at dinner time and doesn't eat with the others.
Shamblin makes a good argument linking this retraining process (listening to your body, identifying triggers to overeating and revamping your relationship with food) to the Biblical story of the Jews escaping slavery in Egypt and their unnecessarily long journey to the promised land.
Weigh Down was an excellent Bible study that happened to parallel our journey from slavery to unhealthy habits (not just food-related) to our better selves and a better relationship with God. Either prong of the program could easily operate on its own.
We learned through the videos about Shamblin's life with her family and it all seemed perfectly normal; just a regular gal who hit the jackpot with a great and highly marketable idea.
Then, several years after the workshop I attended, we began hearing news of Shamblin's transformation into wacko megalomaniac evangelist with hair to match. She was implicated in a child's death as her nutso beliefs and dangerous preaching were revealed. She married Tarzan, several years her junior and lived the moneyed high life that included a private plane, which proved to be her downfall-literally.
This movie simply doesn't capture the entire story or explain her ever increasing corrupt religious leader transformation. Or the hair.
The story is fascinating, train wreck mesmerizing, especially to those who attended a workshop and knew of her seemingly normal past life.
Someone recommended an HBO documentary, which I will check out. I rated five stars for Jennifer Gray's performance. Finally, that nose job paid off.
The Legend of Awesomest Maximus (2011)
For the Love of God, Just Don't
I appreciate low-grade humor to any of the crap they're pumping out these days (if you see or hear "Oscar worthy, run) but this movie is just a steaming cow pie. No redeeming anything. Will Sasso obviously left his best work in the toilet when he left MadTV. The premise is good (on paper) but it's simply NOT FUNNY. A little effort and input from writers older than 11 could've resulted in another Nation Lampoon classic. It's just NOT FUNNY. Even the almighty Rip Torn couldn't save this. Slam your hand in the car door instead. That will be a cheaper and far less painful experience. I saw this on some streaming channel during a free trial. Now there are three grades for movies: theater release, straight to video and streaming.
Soap (1977)
Hilarious, trendsetting, a perfect storm of comedy.
Soap debuted while I was in high school and, if you can imagine, was deemed risqué. I loved it and am ecstatic Antenna TV brought it back (January, 2022).
The laughs are distributed pretty evenly, so the combination of great writing and delightfully wacko characters COMBUST in rollicking FUN!
There are characters who, incredibly, stand out among the stellar cast: a young Billy Crystal perfecting his chops as gay Jodie, The Major dragging around his taxidermied dog and still commanding troops in World War II, the sarcastic and bickering "couple" Chuck and Bob, and the irreplaceable, irreverent, inimitable Benson.
Then there's Burt, played by the brilliant Richard Mulligan at his stammering, frenetic best. If the show was total garbage (certainly NOT), his performance would still make it worth watching.
If you need a female counterpoint to Burt's lunacy, there's the Queen of the Airheads, Jessica Tate. Ever optimistic, Jessica is constantly off on tangents and delightful streams of goofy
consciousness. She is also responsible for some touching poignant and moving scenes.
Soap is absolutely not played for desperate-in-your-face puerile laughs; there is a feast of great acting and beautifully played serious moments, too.
I believe the best comedy is funny played straight and Soap delivers big time, every time.
Watch this show if you're too young to have seen the first run and definitely watch it if you were just a kid the first time Soap came around and used to a diet of forgettable tv. From my perspective, watching now is like reuniting with a beloved old friend. First timers may need guidance with the cultural references and the pre-internet time.
In the VAST wasteland of television "comedy," which is littered with utter crap, Soap is a rare gem deserving of its groundbreaking place in broadcasting history.
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Quincy M.E.: The Night Killer (1980)
PUT THAT BABY ON HIS BACK!
I disagree with the reviewer who would've preferred a criminal slant to this episode. The number of murders blamed on SIDS is horrifying to guess. Cases like Mary Beth Tinning and Diane Spencer cast a harsh light on this possibility.
BUT, the fact remains that babies do succumb to SIDS and the aftermath is devastating. This episode honestly and starkly shows what happens after the funeral and everyone else returns to their lives all thinking, "There but the grace of God..." no doubt.
I like that we see the effects on the doctors, other family members and other parents AND that there is a solid focus on SIDS the condition and the strides taken by the medical community (and police) to diagnose and prevent deaths and treat parents with more compassion.
For the time, this episode was groundbreaking and enlightening and a very strong cast told the story realistically. Definitely 10 stars.
Emergency!: Most Deadly Passage (1978)
Weird, meandering and just awful
You'd think a two-hour movie to help wind up an otherwise great tv show would be a rousing and exciting send off for Johnny and Roy.
The big emergency didn't happen until an hour and 15 minutes in and, pardon the pun, packed no wallop at all.
With all the references to state and federal laws and funding for emergency services, I have to wonder if this was Jack Webb's way of thumbing his nose at the California legislature.
Turtle-slow and meandering, the story is about as exciting as soggy toast. There's enough foreshadowing that a blind moron who speaks ESL could figure out the plot. The Poseidon Adventure it ain't.
Two hours and it even falls short as an educational film about emergency services in Seattle.
Plus, the weird, giggling newlyweds (was she just high the whole time?), the cows, the baffling subplot about mandatory retirement, Johnny barfing on his date...just skip it.
I miss Chet!
The Wild Wild West (1965)
Fascinating, Sexy, Most of All, FUN!
Thank you, FETV, for delighting us with this fabulous series.
Well-written episodes feature complex and unexpected plots, a bevy of smartly-cast guest stars and all action-no slow spots.
Robert Conrad and Ross Martin are the epitome of macho and cerebral sexiness and are a rare duo: good actors who have delicious chemistry and complement one another, rather than trying too hard to one-up each other.
The sets are varied and richly created, The Wanderer is gorgeous and the wardrobe is elaborate and chic.
Above all, this show is fun and exciting and engages me unlike most of the garbage broadcast today.
I vaguely remember the original run, but not enough to recall many details. So, each episode is a treat and surprise.
I adore this show and exhort you to give it a try. Please do not compare it with the 1999 movie. Just enjoy!
Star Trek Beyond (2016)
Lighten Up and Get Over Yourself
These reboot movies are delightful! Fun and filled with inside jokes, these films are good enough on their own, along with paying homage to the original series.
This group of actors, especially Chris Pine, was born to play these roles.
By this time in Star Trek history, I had hoped fans would simply enjoy and revel in a beloved tradition. Remember, the operative word is, "fun!"
I wish all the fretful, anguished reviewers who are so desperately concerned about how certain characters "should" behave and how the stories "should" develop would just put a sock in it.
If you are compelled to endlessly argue about every plot point or character, please take the discussion to your bedroom in your Mom's basement and allow the rest of us to just enjoy.
Star Trek forever! Let's see what happens! Bring it on and keep the fun rolling!