All Entries in the "Review" Category

Gracie’s Choice Sparks the Heart and Head (Kristen Bell Delivered in this True Story)

Admit it - the idea of a Lifetime movie makes you cringe. You want to laugh at anyone who watches them. More than that, you want to laugh, then mock, and feel superior. Well, I’m going to admit that I just finished watching the Lifetime original movie Gracie’s Choice. And you know what? I fear no mockers. (I have it on pretty good authority that you’ve watched TV show episodes of a certain ‘Warrior Princess’ known as Xena.)

I sought this Lifetime DVD out because it stars one of my favorite actresses, Kristen Bell (Veronica Mars, Heroes). Bell acts in this wonderfully, as does Anne Heche (Men in Trees). But that is the last you’ll hear about them in this review. I could gush at how cute Kristen is (believe me, I could!) but I’m going to focus and simply share with you why I loved this story.

It is based on a true story of a teenage girl who lives with several step-siblings and takes care of them in lieu of a mom. They actually do have a mom, however she’s not winning any mom-of-the-year awards (I don’t think Michael Scott of The Office would even give her a Dundie award). She’s selfish, drug-addicted, and needless to say, rather unreliable when it comes to anything, ever. This forces the children (including Gracie) to fend for themselves and endure horrible living conditions that don’t contain any actual home, let alone a daily supply of food (it’s enough to make me grateful for the times I’ve had to eat cardboard masquerading as Ramen). And that’s only the beginning of the list.

Gracie’s Choice allowed me to step into Gracie’s troubled and worn shoes (as though I were reading a small, sacred diary found under a mattress) and see life from her particular vantage point. It’s not hard to connect with Gracie’s character because she experiences trials that many of us have felt an angle of (for instance: loneliness). Once I connected, I was swept into the story as though it were unfolding in real time before my eyes. I was a witness.

Too often we forget how other people live, because we don’t want to deal with it, or we never see it around us. We believe that our problems are the greatest. It’s just…how we are. Maybe instinct? Maybe because we’re caught up (often justifiably) in our own worlds and lives. (Believe me, when you start to worry about everything wrong with the world you end up curled in the fetal position, listening to Sarah McLachalan CDs for days. The best cure for this is to have a best friend who will bring you Arrested Development DVDs, force-feed you Sesame Chicken, and remind you that there are still good things in this world, and also - no one expects you to fix everything that is wrong in it. …Unless you have really judgmental parents. Then maybe you need to date someone with a motorcycle and quit Med school to become a mime.)

While watching (as well as after the fact) I felt a sense of ‘if Gracie can manage so much, surely I must at least be able to (insert a painfully small task that needs doing in my life)’ in the sort of way that sounds magnificently hokey (I know) but really makes me feel empowered (*Wonder Woman stance /Buffy pose*) to do things in my life that I have been too lazy or fearful of attempting.

I’m going to use the ‘I’ word now. Inspiration. We (as a society) pull that word out a lot. But is that a bad thing? Does it possibly mean that there are simply plenty of reasons for us to cite someone as an inspiration? I think that’s actually a good thing.

The downside here is that the word ‘inspriation’ loses meaning with more use. But it never makes one inspiration any less than it is. In my instance, she may not have inspired me (right now) to do something as large as what she did (I’m still working on cooking pancakes that don’t burn). Nonetheless her story affected my life. And I’m just one person. Who knows what her story may inspire you to do

The other biggest pull this story has is the way it talks about family. This is a touchy subject for me. Which, actually made it all the more relevant for me to view and reflect upon. As you might expect, this story does end happily - and I found myself in the sort of teary-eyed, smiley, sort of way that you appreciate more than you may want to admit.

Buy Gracie’s Choice - under $5.00

Popularity: 25% [?]

The Office Comic Con Panel: The Video and My Noteworthy Notes

NBC has graciously posted the San Diego Comic Con panel for The Office. You can view it at NBC.com, or just watch it below! I took notes as I watched it, so my observations and highlights are below. Feel free to discuss the show with me, or you can just read what I thought were the highlights if you don’t have time to watch the entire thing. (It runs approx. 50 minutes.)

For those who are jumping ahead to read my notes: Rainn Wilson was the MC of the event, and other writers were at the panel. This included B.J. Novak and Mindy Kaling, who you know as Ryan and Kelly on the show. It looks like the entire show has an amazing writing family.

Wilson was asked how he felt as the official sex symbol for The Office, and he said: “I feel great about that. Eat my shorts, John Krasinski!” Wilson let the writers do most of the rest of the talking. Which was great, because, as they write for a hilarious show - they’re all hilarious. Who knew? Psh!

Popularity: 23% [?]

A Night of Unshakably Dynamic Women: Saving Grace and The Closer on July 28th

You ask me if I’m saved, but what’s it to ya? - Everlast, Saving Grace Theme Song

Monday, July 28th brings us a new episode of TNT’s Saving Grace and The Closer. Thanks to TNT, I was granted the privilege of seeing both of the episodes in advance. I loved them both, and I’m going to share some spoilers with you.

A Little Hometown Love is the new Saving Grace episode (airs at 10 p.m.). The gist: Grace and Ham are fooling around in a bathroom stall when they discover that a murder has just taken place. The murder of Ed Ligardi, their evidence supervisor. Amy Madigan guest-stars as Gretchen Ligardi, Ed’s wife.

The episode starts off with Grace and Earl perfecting the art of balancing spoons on their noses. Holly Hunter brings such a vibrancy to this character that you can’t help but lover her. The show juxtaposes the odd and hilarious with the deep and intense. Which is just how life seems to be. Look forward to an odd surge of singing from Hunter. I’ll give you one hint to better enjoy the episode: really, really pay attention to the beginning and everything that happens. And for those of you who wonder if Leon Cooley will have a presence - oh yes. He does in a big way.

“You’re every bit the bitch I heard you were.” - The Closer, Cherry Bomb

Cherry Bomb is the new The Closer episode (airs at 9 p.m.). The gist: Twisted sexual games at a private school end up in a series of rapes and a suicide that Brenda believes was actually a murder.

Popularity: 18% [?]

Controlled Burn: The Closer Season Four Premiere

My love for Kyra Sedgwick’s hair continues as I have now gotten to see the season four premiere of The Closer. You can catch it yourself on TNT at 9 p.m. on Monday July 14th. Sedgwick plays Brenda Leigh Johnson, who is the LAPD Deputy Police Chief with great intuition and interrogation techniques. Also, as I have mentioned, a woman with phenomenal hair! The show creator, James Duff has this to say about the new season: “We are going to examine the issue, especially how much power we really have over our own lives. We live with the illusion that we are in control of our lives.” The surprise is, we have so little control it’s almost funny. Except, I’m not laughing! The season premiere is called Controlled Burn, and within it Brenda is agitated by her fiance, a reporter that has been granted the right to follow her around, an old enemy, and a case of arson.

Popularity: 19% [?]

No Pants Allowed : Reviewing the Burn Notice Season Two Premiere

Synopsis: I’ve gotten a chance to view this Thursday’s premiere of Burn Notice, and this is my review of the episode. This is written in a way that both new viewers and loyal fans will be able to (hopefully!) enjoy. Hints at spoilers? Oh yes! Let’s begin! (You know you want to see if I say anything about Tricia Helfer - a possible recurring guest star.)

As I sit down to write this, a Lenny Kravitz song is on and part of the lyrics fit so perfectly for the theme of the show Burn Notice. They are: “It you ain’t part of the game, then how can you find a solution. Nobody said it would be fair.” You see, that’s the position that Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) has found himself in ever since he was burned (read: blacklisted) as a spy. Once burned, you are essentially paralyzed, unable to leave your assigned location. For Michael, that’s Miami. He’s our gorgeous leading man. Has a suit ever looked better? You tell me.

There is substance to discuss, so we must do that! When you get a flat tire, after eliminating all reasons that it could be your fault (needed new tires for a year and were just incredibly lazy?) you then consider outside sources - like nails on the road, or even God (looking upwards to the heavens during a rainstorm, if your luck is as great as mine). When you’re a spy who gets burned, you can’t be happy until you know who did this to you. And it wasn’t God. It was someone else, and they have some sort of reason. You just don’t get the benefit of knowing who or why. Unless, like Michael Westen, you refuse to stop until you figure out that puzzle. Whether to ease his mind, for revenge, or both - who knows.

The people who burned Michael have been in contact with him. Unfortunately, he has to play their cruel, cruel games. They want him for doing some jobs (dirty work they don’t want to do) and he has to comply. In the season premiere, Breaking and Entering, Michael finds himself stuck helping a computer tech named Jimmy.

Jimmy looks the part of exactly the kind of guy you’d think would be named Jimmy. Which is to say, he’s endearing, but not all that impressive, and definitely not someone who should be handling guns. But he knows how to get computer data that Michael’s new handler (named Carla - initially just a voice on the end of a series of cell phones) has commanded they obtain. Since pissing her off would be high on the list of things not to do, they have a job to do.

Something I love about the show is that there is voiceover by Michael where he narrates things for us - not just as a guy, but as a spy. So instead of seeing him pull out a gun, shoot something, pull out another gun, and shoot something else (which does happen and typically might seem boring) he tells us

Popularity: 21% [?]