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Reviews
The Big Bang Theory (2007)
Please CBS (and Writers Strike) don't cancel this show
This show is smart, funny and most of all intelligent (without being intellectual or highbrow). Like the show that precedes it, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, it reflects the type of friendships and bonding that happens only when one is in their twenties, before kids and PTA's and politics and family. So much television is centered on the adolescent market, seeing young adults on these shows is as refreshing and they are hysterically funny. I truly hope that neither of these shows are hurt by the writers strike. Just watching them takes this middle aged man back to a different time in one life. And it is nice to see that things are pretty much the same for young people as they were thirty years ago. CBS PLEASE LET IT LIVE!!!
How I Met Your Mother (2005)
Please CBS (and Writers Strike) don't cancel this show
This show is smart, funny and most of all intelligent (without being intellectual or highbrow). Like the show that precedes it, THE BIG BANG THEORY, it reflects the type of friendships and bonding that happens only when one is in their twenties, before kids and PTA's and politics and family. So much television is centered on the adolescent market, seeing young adults on these shows is as refreshing and they are hysterically funny. I truly hope that neither of these shows are hurt by the writers strike. Just watching them takes this middle aged man back to a different time in one life. And it is nice to see that things are pretty much the same for young people as they were thirty years ago. Rumor has it that they are thinking about canceling it. CBS PLEASE LET IT LIVE!!!
Carousel (1967)
A solid Television production....
I recently obtained a DVD of this long forgotten television production. It was a part of Armstrongs Circle Theater series of four Broadway Musicals to television adaptations, the others being Brigadoon, Kismet,and Kiss Me Kate.
At 105 minutes it did need some major abridgments. The Carousel waltz prologue is shortened to about 4 minutes, Louise"s ballet is shorted somewhat, and the songs Germaniums In The Window, and Stonecutters Cut It On Stone are cut. Musically all the rest is intact, with the lengthy Bench Scene (If I Loved You) performed mostly as written.
Robert Goulet performs well, though he does indulge in some brassy Broadway singing. Mary Grover sings beautifully as Julie Jorden, but her performance lacks an emotional center. The rest of the cast all sing well and the performances in general are good.
Hapilly, there is no flashback as in the film, so the impact of the original play's tragic turn are not diminished.
They have recently done remakes of Oklahoma. and South Pacific (as well as the horrible animated The King and I for theatrical release) for television with varied results. Certainly this Rogers and Hammmerstsein masterpiece could use a definitive filmed production, that honors both the beauty and darkness of the work. After all, the hero is a wife beater and thief, and the brilliance of the work is watching him grow into a caring soul.
This was Richard Rodger's favorite of all his shows, as well as his favorite score. It veers very close to opera at time, which makes it all the more unique among musical shows of the time.
This television production is a nicely done companion piece to the 1956 film, and should be made available, as well as the other productions in the Armstrong Circle series, on DVD. But the definitive Carousel has yet to be committed to film or tape. It would sad if Carousel was only to be seen by a few on stage, such as the Cameron Mackintosh's Royal National Theatre brilliant stage revival a decade or more ago. It is a timeless classic that needs it's dark brilliance committed to film without over-sentimentality for the ages.
Top Hat (1935)
"I just got an invitation through the mail..."
What a wonderful, fantastic Venice Italy as envisioned by R.K.O.set designers. Irving Berlin's songs, it's souffle light plot and Fred and Ginger, what a wonderful mix. Even the opening credits with Fred and Ginger's feet taking a swirl (and a nod to composer Berlin by including Alexander's Ragtime Band in the titles music sountrack) bring pleasure. It was a silly, magnificent, entertainment in 1935 (when the ACADEMY AWARDS nominated it for Best Picture) and time has not dimmed it luster. Like the peerless comedies of the Brothers Marx, or Oscar Wilde it takes us to a wonderful place that never really was but should have been.
Porgy and Bess (1959)
Superior film deserves a new life
I had the great pleasure of recently viewing this beautifully filmed wide-screen adaption of the the 1943 stage revival (which unlike the original 1935 production) which included extensive spoken recitatives. This had been the fashion at the time, so to blame the film for an 16 year tradition. The film should be seen if only for Sammy Davis Jrs brilliant catlike performance as Sportin' Life, creeping in and out of shadows. His seduction of Dorothy Dadridge's BESS "There's a Boat dat's leavin' soon for New York," is one of many highlights. Nearly all of the principal music is intact and beautifully sung. It certainly never bores which the recent PBS and MET versions did. It was a pleasure to see that time had not diminished the movie, and hopefully it will be made available in the near future for the generations that haven't had a chance to experience it.
Annie Get Your Gun (1950)
Falling in Love with "ANNIE" is wonderful!!!
When ANNIE GET YOUR GUN opened on Broadway in 1946, some critics carped that Irving Berlin's show was old-fashioned, to which he responded, yes it's a good old fashioned HIT! It still is in a current Broadway revival and now in this loving video/DVD release of the 1950 motion picture blockbuster.
I saw Merman in the 1966 90 minute television broadcast of her Lincoln Center revival (sadly apparently lost for posterity)as well as Mary Martin's 1957 television "spectacular". On stage I've seen Debbie Reynolds, Cathy Rigby, Lucie Arnaz,and Bernadette Peters as ANNIE. We can only guess what the legendary Judy Garland could have done with the part, but from the outtakes that survive she was far too frail and ill to have performed at the peak of her formidable powers. To give Judy her credit, she was not helped by Busbey Berkley's heavy handy direction.
But the film is wonderful. Hutton is by far the best Annie I ever saw. Her high spirited performance is just one of the highlights of a delightful film. Howard Keel's musical film debut is sensational. The production is colorful and lively. My only regret is the omission of two songs MOONSHINE LULLABY, and (especially) I GOT LOST IN HIS ARMS. These are minor quibbles when one sees Hutton show off a chest of medals, or facing off to Keel in ANYTHING YOU CAN DO. She gives a truly great musical-comedy performance.
Sure the attitudes seems sexist and possibly even racist now. This was a different era. (You could complain about the same thing with the Doris Day companion piece, Calamity Jane) Give us and it a break and go back to a different era. Enjoy the music, photography, performances and relish a time when there really was no business like show business. MY DEFENSES ARE DOWN!!!