My So-Called Life

I love....no, no, fucking LOVE My So-Called Life. I used to watch it religiously Thursday nights when it originally aired on ABC in 1994. At the time I was living in Banff, Alberta in my little suite in staff accommodation at the resort where I was working. I'd take my dinner out of the dining room, which we weren't actually allowed to do, so I could watch the show. So imagine my utter delight when I saw the DVD set of the first and only season.

Written and created by the uber talented Winnie Holzman, it was executive produced by Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick, the powerhouse team behind thirtysomething. The series was a coming of age story of a teenage girl named Angela Chase (Claire Danes), but more than that, it was also a family drama for everybody. Angela lives at home with her mother Patty (Bess Armstrong), who runs the family printing press her father started, and her father Graham (Tom Irwin), who works for his wife, but is experiencing a mid-life crisis about what he wants to do. Angela is like most teenage girls living in middle class suburbian America, she does so so at school, prefers to spend time with her friends, is rebelling against her parents and her life revolves around her obsession with the boy she has a huge crush on.


Her best friends are Rayanne Graff (A.J. Langer), a funky, free-spirited girl with an addiction problem, and Ricky Vasquez (Wilson Cruz), a sensitive and stylish gay man with family problems. Also in and out of Angela's circle of friends are Sharon Cherski (Devon Odessa), her perky, school spirited friend since childhood, and Brian Krakow (Devon Gummersall), her honour student neighbour who has a huge crush on her. Both Sharon and Brian feel left behind by Angela's sudden change in attitude and friends at the beginning of the season. Angela's big crush is Jordan Catalano (Jared Leto), the gorgeous, but scholastically-impaired slacker.


The show was so perfectly cast and the characters were all so real, human and complex each with their own obstacles and story lines. I loved how the issues each character faced were something they struggled with throughout the series and everything wasn't solved by the end of the show, like Patty and Graham's marriage troubles, Rayanne's struggle with drinking and trying to stay sober and Ricky's living situation. The series is really only comprised of one 19 episode season. They left a cliffhanger, but unfortunately, the series was inexplicably cancelled. I loved this show and was heartbroken when it didn't come back and apparently there was even a movement of fans who tried to get it back on the air to no avail. However, with this box set it can be rediscovered by audiences again and the DVD box set has a ton of special features with writer and cast commentary on some episodes and interviews with most of the cast (pretty much everybody except Jared Leto). I've been asking around since I got the set and I'm surprised by how many of my friends have not seen it. I can't recommend it highly enough. One of the best written and acted shows ever on T.V., in my opinion. See it if you haven't!

Angela: "Sometimes it seems like we're all living in some kind of prison. And the crime is how much we hate ourselves. It's good to get really dressed up once in a while. And admit the truth: that when you really look closely? People are so strange and so complicated that they're actually... beautiful. Possibly even me."

More ramblings to come......

Atonement

So again I gave myself the choice between Atonement and Juno for a Sunday afternoon matinee. I had heard about what a great, moving love story Atonement was and the good reviews, so once again I decided against Juno. I should also point out that Atonement won Best Picture at the Golden Globes tonight. Really?? Best Picture of the year?

Based on a novel by Ian McEwan, the film was directed by Joe Wright. Starring James McAvoy as Robbie Turner and Kiera Knightley as Cecilia Tallis. two young lovers who soon have their lives turn upside down as a result of Cecilia's young sister. Brioney (Saoirse Ronan), falsely accusing Robbie of something he didn't do.


I thought it was a good movie, but the raves and the Best Picture win baffle me. I didn't find myself sucked into Robbie and Cecilia's love story. I thought the jumping around in the timeline was a good device as it made the story more interesting. Honestly, I don't really have much more to say about it other than that. It was beautifully shot, I love the setting, but I didn't get sucked into the story. However, many seem to disagree with me.

More ramblings to come.....

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

So, I had an afternoon to catch a matinee and I gave myself the choice between seeing Juno and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. I began kicking myself for choosing Walk Hard about ten minutes into it.

Directed and co-written by Jake Kasdan, the film was also co-written and produced by Judd Apatow. Judd Apatow is the reason why I had so much hope for this movie to be really funny given that he produced two of my favourite comedy movies in the last two years, The 40 Year Old Virgin and Superbad. The ever awesome John C. Reilly stars in the film which was another hope that it would be really good.


Basically, the film is a spoof of other music biopics like Walk the Line. Reilly stars as Dewey Cox, a musically gifted boy with a tragic childhood who becomes a music superstar like a Johnny Cash or Elvis Presley. The film follows his journey from childhood to old age and through his stages through the decades. Jenna Fischer stars as Darlene Madison, the June Carter to Dewey's Johnny Cash.


The rest of the cast was awesome as well, especially Tim Meadows, Chris Parnell and Matt Bresser as Dewey's band. The actors were all great, something just didn't click. There were a lot of funny moments, but there were many more moments were you could see the humour that just didn't quite come together. You could see how it could be funny, but you could also see how it was trying to be funny in a way that takes you out of it and makes you aware of the process in the same way that it takes you out of the story when you see the boom in the shot. Does that makes any sense at all?

However, John C. Reilly was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy, so I may be in the minority on my opinion. It wasn't a subtle spoof like This is Spinal Tap or a very silly, obvious one like Naked Gun, it was a weird combination of being between. His performance was awesome, for me it was something in the direction. You may enjoy it, but I would describe it as ultra silly. That isn't to say there wasn't some parts that made me laugh. Here's one of them between Dewey and Tim Meadow's character, Sam. You have to picture Sam talking to Dewey in a tone that makes it seem as though he's trying to convince him NOT to do it.

Sam: [after Dewey accidentally barges in a room filled with smoke and groupies]
[coughs]
Sam: Get outta here, Dewey!
Dewey Cox: What are y'all doin' in here?
Sam: We're smoking reefer and you don't want no part of this shit.
Dewey Cox: You're smoking *reefers*?
Sam: Yeah, 'course we are; can't you smell it?
Dewey Cox: No, Sam. I can't.
Girl Groupie: Come on, Dewey! Join the party!
[takes a hit off a joint]
Sam: No, Dewey, you don't want this. Get outta here!
Dewey Cox: You know what, I don't want no hangover. I can't get no hangover.
Sam: It doesn't give you a hangover!
Dewey Cox: Wha-I get addicted to it or something?
Sam: It's not habit-forming!
Dewey Cox: Oh, okay... well, I don't know... I don't want to overdose on it.
Sam: You can't OD on it!
Dewey Cox: It's not gonna make me wanna have sex, is it?
Sam: It makes sex even better!
Dewey Cox: Sounds kind of expensive.
Sam: It's the cheapest drug there is.
Dewey Cox: [at a loss and out of excuses] Hmm.
Sam: You don't want it!
Dewey Cox: I think I kinda want it.
Sam: Okay, but just this once. Come on in.

More ramblings to come.....

Little Mosque on the Prairie

Being that this show is filmed in my city and because I'm in film, I hear about what's going on in the biz around here, and I've heard the buzz about Little Mosque on the Prairie before it even aired. I've been meaning to check it out, but I'm really not much of a T.V. watcher. I buy T.V. shows on DVD to watch, but I don't watch cable very often. I was in Walmart trolling for new DVDs and thought I'd finally check it out.

Season 1 begins when Amaar (Zaib Shaikh), the new Imam from Toronto arrives in small town Mercy, Saskatchewan. The local Muslims have set up a Mosque in the Parish hall of the Anglican church. The show's main characters include the Hamoudi family, father Yasir (Carlo Rota), a building contractor who runs his office out of the Mosque, his western wife Sarah (Sheila McCarthy), and their beautiful daughter, Rayyan (Sitara Hewitt), the town doctor. Other members of the Mosque include Baber (Manoj Sood), a widowed, traditional Muslim man exasperated by his teenage daughter, Layla (Aliza Vellani), who is going through typical teenage rebellion doubled with her embarrassment of her religion being different than all her friends and her father (Baber: "Layla, turn off that hippity hop!"). Fatima (Arlene Duncan), a widowed African Muslim woman, runs the cafe in town, a popular meeting place for all the characters. The Anglican priest, Reverend Duncan McGee (Derek McGrath), has opened up the Parish Hall for the Muslim community to use as a Mosque, much to the dismay of several townspeople. He also begins a friendship with Amaar and becomes a mentor, giving him advice on leading a congregation of followers and the headaches that sometimes go along with it.


Unfortunately, the first season only contains eight episodes. I have to admit, my knowledge of Islam is limited to the two weeks that we studied it in my Religious Studies 100 class. I enjoy the show for that reason. It's interesting to see the Saskatchewan experience through the eyes of a Muslim. Our small towns are not exactly known for their tolerance and understanding of different religions, sexual orientations, races, etc. Don't get me wrong, I love Saskatchewan, but I have had my fair share of racism growing up Native Canadian in this province. One character that addresses this is Fred Tupper (Neil Crone), the town's radio talk show host who spews ignorant rants about women, Muslims, homosexuals and anything different on his show. However, off air, he is slightly more tolerant spending a lot of time at Fatima's cafe (some on the IMDB boards speculate that he actually has a crush on her). Speaking of crushes, it is clear there is also some tension between the beautiful Rayyan and the hunky Amaar.


I consider the show fresh, enjoy the humour and look forward to season 2 when it comes out on DVD. I get a big kick out of Baber and his interactions with his daughter, especially. I also like the interactions between Amaar and Duncan. We briefly discussed the show in my producing class last year. The instructor, who is a writer and producer, has a barometer of whether a show is a success or not. "Is it embarrassing?" If the answer is no, then it's a success. So, his assessment of the show was "it wasn't embarrassing". In any case, it's worth checking out and airs on CBC. I chose to end with a quote from the episode where the Mosque gets a convert who is a little too uh, exuberant about his new faith for everybody's taste.

Marlon (the convert): You'd make an obedient wife. Perhaps we could meet for coffee?
Rayyan: I don't meet men for coffee.
Marlon: Forgive me, I meant with a chaperone.
Rayyan: My chaperone....has to wash her hair.

More ramblings to come.....

Quickie Reviews

For whatever reason, I sometimes don't always get a chance to write about what I get to see at the movies. This is a short summary of those that I have seen, but have yet to write a full post about.

I am Legend
Starring Will Smith as Robert Neville, a scientist who is the only survivor left in Manhattan after a virus wiped out much of humanity. He works on finding a cure for the remaining virus infected "humans" who have turned into some kind of aggressive, animalistic vampire-like creatures. My sister insisted I see this because it had such a great message and made it sound uplifting. It was action packed, and suspenseful, but I missed the uplifting part. It was okay overall, but I'd wait until it came out on DVD.


The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep
My son really wanted to see this movie over Christmas break, so we took it in a few nights ago. Directed by Jay Russell, the film is about the origin of the Loch Ness Monster and the infamous photo taken. It is set in Scotland during WWII and stars Ben Chaplin and Emily Watson. When I see films with the kids, it's for them and often when I see films with them, I'm distracted with making sure my daughter is cool. She has autism and loves going to the movies, but she is over sensitive to sound. We bring headphones for her to use when it gets too much, but this film was especially loud. It's being marketed as a family film and for the kids, but I would say it'd be better for the older kids. I thought it was okay, but being distracted, couldn't get lost in the story. However, my ten year old son loved it and thought it was good.


August Rush
I had seen trailers of this film and it looked good. So when my friend Rox said "let's go see it", I said okay. A young orphan is convinced his parents want him and that he'll find them if he follows the music. Starring Freddie Highmore as the young orphan and Keri Russell and Jonathan Rhys Meyers as his parents. I found it very moving. You knew how it was going to end and that it was too perfect to be true, but still went along for the ride. Also, the passion all the main characters had for music was inspiring. When you have a passion for something so strongly that you need it like you need to eat and breathe, that's a blessing. Also starring Terrence Howard and Robin Williams.

More ramblings to come.....