schmenga Reviews

Licorice Pizza (2021)

Some missteps

[7/10 · 1 August 2023]

Overall a good movie that really hurt itself with some exhausting unfunny pointless scenes

Am I the only one who found the Waits and Penn scenes to be insufferably bad?

Cooper had his moments but it just went on way too long. The protagonists and their families were so endearing that even in a movie where they were clearly the stars they could have used more screen time. While in some movies inappropriate age relationships are underplayed yet kind of matter (think Sam Elliott in Lifeguard) in this movie it added intrigue and Anderson's use of her real siblings and parents made her angst and attraction to a teenager understandable and even nice, with the acceptance that a 25 year old woman sleeping with a 15 year old boy is wrong.

Quarterback (2023– )

Insufferable Wife

[7/10 · 21 July 2023]

Sorry but how the editors and producers did not pick up on the insufferability of Brittany Mahomes is beyond me. This is not anti wife. Cousins and Marietta's were great.

A bit too much Jesus mentions too but if Christian athletes do not care about their Muslim brethren that is on them.

The rest was really good. Especially the Cincy KC dynamic. They also did a good job of presenting how in spite of Cousins being good and having good statistics there is something missing that separates him from the top QBs

Less Brittany please

More Kelce. Would have liked a little more on Mariotta but recognize they missed the playoffs.

Going Attractions: The Definitive Story of the American Drive-in Movie (2013)

Interesting Enough but the commentaries?

[6/10 · 15 July 2023]

Did Charlie Bruss realize he was speaking for a documentary? All the mumbling.

The background music was hideously distracting.

With that Corman was good as were a handful of others. The history is close enough in terms of what led to the demise of the drive ins. Like malls. Like minor league baseball. And more

Thought it was a swing and a miss not to visit some of the abandoned lots and get some specific histories.

Was interesting when shared anecdotes about how drive ins started seeking younger audiences with more exploitative movies but it was unclear if that affected the entire industry. And if that hurt attendance why wouldn't they adjust. Today drive ins show the same movies. Way too much time spent on that even including more indecipherable mumblings from Bruss.

The Twilight Zone: The Trouble with Templeton (1960) Season 2, Episode 9

Fabulous underrated episode

[10/10 · 4 July 2022]

In television history there are single episodes of many series that stand as the best ever.

Think Opie the Birdman in The Andy Griffith Show, The Subway in Homicide. Of course there are countless forever episodes from The Twilight Zone, including On Thursday we Leave for Home, To Serve Man and The Trade Ins

But perhaps the single greatest scene in the entire Twilight Zone is when in 1927 when Templeton leaves, you see the sadness on the faces of everyone else, especially his dead wife and best friend. That tells us what Templeton doesn't yet know. They want him to love is current life and they treated him poorly so he would be less trailed by his past

That 10 seconds elevates this from what we thought would be seeing that maybe you romanticize and elevate your past into a much stronger message and one of the best of the whole series. It worked that Templeton figured it it and immediately conveyed that to his director.

White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch (2022)

Second half was too slow

[5/10 · 2 May 2022]

The absolute worst part of this was the reporter with the nails on chalkboard vocal fry. An editor should have realized how horrible that was.

While I disagree with all those who dismiss this as woke in some negative way, the second half emphasis on race simply took too long and distracted from the better opening about the marketing and growth setting it up for the later fall.

To those who just cannot stand when a movie or documentary discusses race, Abercrombie REALLY did settle discrimination lawsuits because they really did discriminate based on race and religion. And that deserved attention. It is just that this documentary was faster and better when focusing on the imagery.

To white Christians, strop taking it personally. I am white and can handle a move about the civil rights era without feeling as though it is going after me. That is what education is.

The Andy Griffith Show: Opie the Birdman (1963) Season 4, Episode 1

Great tale

[10/10 · 2 April 2022]

This is clearly one of the best episodes of the entire series. Excellent choice not to use a laugh track and the emphasis of Andy's fatherly discipline mixed with fatherly pride was terrific

I'm not sure that the predictable comments that it was just a better time then and we cannot have shows with that style parable any more, based on a more modern emphasis on non achievement hit the mark. This sounds like people who embrace the overall 1950s forgetting that the country was rigidly segregated, auto deaths were huge etc. Same applies to most of the 1960s. The idea that revolutionary shows like All in the Family were bad because they took a different approach to dealing with major issues is un nuanced and tinged with other issues.

THIS was a tremendous Andy Griffith show based on the singular aspect of a father and son relationship. All in the Family dealt with racism, Vietnam, LGBT rights and more. The Andy Griffith show did none of that. And it would be unfair to bash it because it didn't. Instead, I will simply applaud THIS episode and several more.

CODA (2021)

When the performance is so good, it doesn't matter if it's cliched (Billy Elliott)

[10/10 · 30 March 2022]

While this was a direct remake of the French film a more familiar movie for many would be Billy Elliott.

This was almost the same story, the same cliches (working class family where the younger child has an artistic talent and with the help of the gritty eccentric mentor wants to attend the sophisticated school), the same outcome, the same family being against it before they were for it when they saw the talent, and the same emotional connections (even down to the friend in both movies as well as the over arching enemy, in Billy Elliot it was the coal company here it is the fishing regulators)

But

Sometimes the comfort food works because it is so darn good. No, this wasn't a new spicy dish, that might be phenomenal but might burn. This was your favorite hamburger cooked to perfection and sometimes that is even better.

Wild Wild Country (2018)

The Oregonians were the horrible ones

[9/10 · 29 March 2022]

I'm not a movie critic.

But this documentary screams that the ugly bad guys here were clearly the locals. And it isn't even close. And all the whining that there was bias in what was shown won't change the fact that the root of consternation by the locals was that the Rajneesh, who BOUGHT the ranch and did little at first but have a big presence BEFORE the locals started spewing their bigotry and threatening to kill them

The overt racism screamed

No one is arguing that small town all white thumpers might have their lives affected by the presence of a large red clothes wearing religious entity. But what bothered the ugly Oregonians was the presence of minorities and, gasp, the embracing of love, sex and peace. Decades later they were fine with the almost all white Young Life Christian camp. Hmm, what was the difference? Don't scream that the Rajneesh enjoyed sex. The difference was the fear of different, the fear of non whites, the fear of non Christians (in America) and the fear of pleasure

The ugly Oregonians armed themselves and threatened them. Then, instead of crying, the Rajneesh ALSO armed themselves. They then followed the law and made political gains. The ugly Oregonians could not stand it and for no discernible reason started using the pressure of the government to oust non whites.

The poisoning was a criminal reaction yes. The threats to the DA were criminal yes. But remember they were reactions to threats that went unpunished. To bigotry that was embraced. Ugly Oregonians and so many evangelical Americans run roughshod over other religions, other races, and with more impunity now after four years of racist hell under the magats. Today's platform is hate and ugly. Maybe they learned something from the ugly Oregonians

Good documentary Spare the crying.

The Andy Griffith Show: The Senior Play (1966) Season 7, Episode 9

Actually like this episode, but...

[8/10 · 6 January 2022]

The fact that Mayberry High School in 1966 had about a dozen 25 year old professional dancers at the school is quite impressive.

Muscles, long legs, shaven faces, skilled movements, lady curves, dancing beyond what any HS kid could do. Kind of like the original West Side Story. Of course that was a movie version of a pure musical. This was a sitcom.

Father Knows Best: Class Prophecy (1957) Season 3, Episode 33

Adore these parables

[10/10 · 19 June 2021]

No, Father Knows Best, Leave it to Beaver nor the Andy Griffith Show and the like didn't deal with Civil Rights, nor War, nor famine, nor macro major issues

But they often dealt with meaningful small issues that take on bigger meaning in real lives. This episode is one of them, as Jim's college roommate, who everyone thought would become a doctor, has been struggling and now works as a door to door salesman. When he accidentally shows up at the Anderson's, and through a few mishaps, he is so embarrassed that others will find out he failed he decides to move again, although his wife demands they accept a dinner invitation back to the Anderson's who already discovered the truth

Bigger than the message that not meeting college career dreams is not really a failure is the sentiment about friendship, real friendship transcends that. Even to the point that had Jim's friend asked for help he would have received it, without judgment.

A strong episode that MANY can relate to.

Cold Case: Officer Down (2009) Season 6, Episode 17

Strong episode with a small error

[9/10 · 16 June 2021]

Was shown on Start TV shortly after Clarence Williams' death which was a coincidental nice tribute.

One of the signature features of Cold Case is the final scene set to period music and featuring the ghost of the dead who saw their crime solved.

While the show can't always have ghosts of all the victims, like in Disco Inferno or the Mall Shooting episode where there are theoretically too many, in THIS show the second victim, Francisco, deserved an appearance. His initial character bluster was resolved with maturity and character as he reconciled with Pops and even took a bullet and death to protect his younger brother.

The character deserved a ghost.

Reminded me of Death Penalty, where both the daughter AND the man falsely accused of her murder make appearances.

Greenland (2020)

Movie about a woman resting her head on his shoulders

[4/10 · 13 May 2021]

Good lord how many times could they do that The ridiculous family drama which never developed sullied what could have been an interesting end of world movie, that has been done before, and done better

Deep Impact was better. It was not great but you cared about the characters, except for the horrid acting Lisa Sobieski Armageddon was better, over the top, cornball as hell, but never took itself seriously and had fun

Here, the technical details of the meteor were so much better but the marriage on the rocks sure to be saved by the coming together fighting for lives at the end of the world ruined it. And how many times in movies will they unrealistically portray a diabetic? When blood sugar is high you don't get an immediate aaah when injecting insulin. And the kid would have needed forever supplies, which assuredly would have been available at this style of rebuild the world later shelter

But, mom was hot.

At Close Range (1986)

Good movie, hilarious product placement

[9/10 · 7 May 2021]

Good dark film loosely based on true story

But the size of the Corn Flake Box 2/3 through and the film angle of it is one of the more in your face product placements in the history of the movies.

Over the Top (1987)

Best terrible movie ever

[9/10 · 11 March 2021]

I mean c'mon

In the decade of underdog winners, from The Cutters in Breaking Away, to the Karate Kid and more, the finale here with its animalistic noises and drama cannot be surpassed

No one in their early 50s cannot live this movie

Coming 2 America (2021)

Some goodwill but disappointing

[5/10 · 5 March 2021]

Actually the only real positive part of this sequel was the appeal to the goodwill built up from the original 1988. We liked the characters. We liked John Amos as McDowell. We liked Akeem. We lied Semmi. There was a silly charm that transcended the cornball of the original film.

This time, however, the acting, on occasion in the original played purposefully wooden, was often bad. Snipes simply didn't work. Fowler was cringe inducing, none of the daughters stood out.

Arsenal had a fabulous 2 1/2 hour interview with Howard Stern promoting the movie. The interview was fantastic. It's length seemed like nothing compared to the movie. Hall did a good job promoting and I was looking forward to more of a nostalgic hook. But it just wasn't there. The cameos were the most exciting part, wondering who was next

There is a history of failed sequels when separated by so much time

The Godfather III was 16 years after the Oscar Winning Godfather II, 18 years after The Godfather. Was a huge drop off in spite of its nomination

Texasville was a bad follow up to the pristine The Last Picture Show The Evening Star was a pointless follow up to Terms of Endearment

This has so much more potential but for me didn't make it

All the Way Home (1957)

Echoes today

[10/10 · 8 December 2020]

This short film should be watched together with the 1957 Documentary Crisis In Levittown, which explores how new suburban PA residents of this new suburb reacted to a black family moving in.

Because I am reviewing this today, in late 2020, I would be remiss not to stress how the ugliness from so many in 1957 sounded identical to what we see by so many who support the soon to be done magat president. The subtle ones blamed everyone else except their own bigotry and the overt ones sounded just like modern Q Anon.

We heard these same ugly responses when Little Rock Central was integrated, when MLK rose, when the 1964 and 1968 Civil Rights Acts were passed and more.

Back to the factionalized account, some of the acting was solid, especially by those p,aging concerned citizens. Even in 1957 the actors recognized how disgusting segregation was. Watch them both.

Jasper Mall (2020)

Good, but overly sad presentation

[8/10 · 23 October 2020]

This was similar to so many documentaries made about dying downtown businesses. The Wal Mart effect which also hurts malls. Malls grew huge in the 1970s and 1980s and some still thrive. But towns like Jasper, or Cookeville, TN or Tupelo, MS struggle with their malls

But as was clear there are other non downtown areas of Jasper that do better. Still a closing of an era and melancholy for sure but outdoor galleria style centers are much more popular now including in NW Alabama

Loved the checker players and the morning walkers. And the symbiotic relationships that are so important for malls was evident. Always nice when there is action, but Netflix hurt the theaters, Walmart hurt the smaller stores and Subways on every block hurt the food courts

Want malls? Try bigger cities where more still do well. But even big cities see many malls fail.

Homicide: Life on the Street: The Subway (1997) Season 6, Episode 7

One of the best singular episodes ever

[10/10 · 11 October 2020]

On any television show

Just spectacular for a one hour drama. No spoilers here, but D'Onofrio and all the regulars are superb and the established mood is both tragic and edifying.

MAYBE A SPOILER BUT I DO NOT THINK SO

When D'Onofrio delivers the line about the tree blossoms facing the sun that is arguably the best 5 second line in the history of television

The Twilight Zone: Her Pilgrim Soul/I of Newton (1985) Season 1, Episode 12

Pilgrim Soul, hits the right note

[9/10 · 11 October 2020]

The connection between Her Pilgrim Soul and the original TZ The Trouble with Templeton are striking

Well done and just as moving. When it is exposed that Templeton's lost wife and friends were playing acting roles to help him let go it was extraordinarily moving, especially for a short television show. Here, when it was exposed that Kevin was a reincarnated Robert, and Nola was helping him let go of Robert's holding onto his past tragedy it was just as much.

Great.

The Messenger (I) (2009)

Fascinating topic, excruciating film

[4/10 · 27 August 2020]

Look, the premise here was great, to follow a casualty reporting pair as they informed families of a soldier's death. And those scenes were well done. The background conflict between the two where the Harrelson character never faced death during his tour was also fascinating

But

This is a movie, so the real time agonizingly slow conversation scenes were unbearable. And there were a lot of them. Generally like modest pacing but not to this point. The overused movie cliche of hanging laundry to dry as though the widow would not afford a dryer when living in a very nice home was bad. Too slow, too boring, steals so much away from a strong idea.

The Andy Griffith Show: Man in a Hurry (1963) Season 3, Episode 16

Adventure Sleeping

[10/10 · 25 May 2020]

Another quintessential episode that hits all the buttons that made the Andy Griffith show memorable.

A busy businessman driving on a Sunday to be in Charlotte for Monday morning meetings breaks down in Mayberry. He is desperate to get his car fixed immediately but runs into small town pacing and finds that difficult. Of course spending time waiting at Andy's home exposes him to small acts that stir memories in him from likely simpler times.

Several classic events: Barney analyzing his plans for the rest of the day, the older sisters tying up the party line telephone talking about their sore feet, the thrill of peeling an apple with the skin in one piece, Opie looking forward to adventure sleeping on an ironing board, and Goober being thrilled just to work on a car like the businessman's.

A fitting ending which I won't spoil, but well worth the wait.

A note of complaint about TV Land which is running a marathon on Memorial Day. They have cut the tag scenes off in every episode. In a few the loss of the tag are a big loss. Especially this one (and Mr. McBeevee). We get they need to sell x minutes of commercials and run a tight schedule but they surely have editors that can cut minutes from these episodes in more strategic moments.

The Andy Griffith Show: Mr. McBeevee (1962) Season 3, Episode 1

Family

[10/10 · 21 May 2020]

In a series that delivered a lot of great lines, perhaps none were warmer than Andy answering Barney's question whether he believed in Mr McBeevee by saying:

"No, but I believe in Opie"

The disbelief in Opie's magical friend, particularly on behalf of Barney, seemed a bit overdone, but it did push the plot, a simple story about belief in a child's character. When pressed by his dad, Opie could not get himself to say that he made McBeevee up, even facing a spanking. That was enough for Andy to confirm he had a great son

Cold Case: Ghost of My Child (2008) Season 5, Episode 18

Strong episode

[10/10 · 15 May 2020]

Ghost of my Child provides one of the more satisfying endings in the entirety of Cold Case. It was not an accident that Nickelback's Fly Away was the closing song as this episode borrows heavily from season one's Fly Away. In this case, however, the overwhelmed mother ultimately did not lose her child to a tragic death and the emotional payoff works.

The final quarter of the show highlights the growing empathy developed by both Lilly and jaded narcotics detective Sicardo towards our devoted and still recovering mom. Well done