Reviews

"Friends" before there were "Friends", Living Single was a far more relatable slice of New York City life and a far funnier one! Set in 1990's Brooklyn, this story of three female roommates living in the same apartment building as two male roommates, with a single-dweller thrown in was good fun to watch. The ensemble cast was great with Erika Alexander one of the stand-outs at the always mooching Max and Kim Fields as the mercenary Regine. And the rest of the cast blended nicely to make for a very funny sitcom. Each character had its own special sparkle, the dialogue was realistic, and the situations fun. If I had to choose between reruns of "Friends" or reruns of "Living Single", I'd take "Living Single" 7 days a week and twice on Sundays! An all around fun show!

I fell in love with this movie the very first time I watched it on cable. Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith were perfect in this tale of grief in the aftermath of the loss of a child. Elijah Wood, Thora Birch, and Sheila McCarthy round out the cast and make this a poignant tale.

Melanie Griffith was never as vulnerable and powerful as she was in this movie - and I liked her in Working Girl and A Stranger Among Us. This was by far her most affecting role. And the almost always underrated Don Johnson turns in another versatile and incredibly touching performance. And the emotion between their two characters is clearly palpable throughout their estrangement in this film.

'Paradise' truly is a gem! If you haven't seen it, do so. You won't be sorry.

First of all, the Paul Newman version has been one of my absolute favorites for most of my life. That said...

For my money, only Don Johnson and Cybill Shepherd were right for their roles. As Ben Quick, Johnson had many of the qualities that Paul Newman exhibited in the same role more than 20 years before. And Cybill Shepherd was a worthy successor to Lee Remick. However Jason Robards was horribly mis-cast as the overbearing and intimidating patriarch of this clan and Judith Ivey was simply too light for her role as the woman to whom Ben Quick was drawn. And I felt no sympathy for William Russ in the part of the son. This is where everything collapses for me.

This Don Johnson performance should show everyone who has been guilty of characterizing this man as more style than substance how wrong they have been!

The underrated Johnson gives a moving performance as Tyson, a man tortured by this horrendous incident from his past who tries to come to grips with it without hurting anyone around him. Breathtaking!

This has always been one of my absolute favorite movies! Steve McQueen and Natalie Wood were perfectly suited for each other. She played brave Angie Rossini wonderfully - trying so hard to break away from her protective Italian-American family, trying to be strong and capable in the face of such a difficult situation, trying not to show how scared she really is.

But Steve McQueen is the real sweet part of this couple. He is corrupt and funny and unsuspectedly tender and responsible and caring. It should be noted for the fact that it marked his departure from the anti-hero roles that he specialized in (and excelled in). This wasn't an action movie but it was one of Steve's absolute best performances. She was nominated for an Academy Award and deservedly so but he was overlooked and that is criminal!

Can you tell that I love this movie?? Well, I do!

Folks forget that, although this film was released here in the US after Enter the Dragon, it was actually done before. As such, it resembles Bruce's previous 2 martial arts movies in that the dubbing into English is uneven - blah blah blah. But this film is still a gem because it is one of those that showcases the immortal Bruce Lee. He's enraged and not able to control himself as all true martial artists are expected to - which makes him human which is cool for a change. He even has a love scene with Nora Miao! Need we even discuss the fight sequences? I think not.

Savor this one because, unfortunately for us all, Bruce wasn't around long enough to leave us a whole lot of 'em!

I LOVED this sitcom. Bob Newhart the perfect straight-man for Bill Daily, Marcia Wallace, and the rest. With the always fantastic Suzanne Pleshette, his strange friends, and those oh-so-odd patients (of which Mr. Carlin had to be the best), this one qualifies as a classic 70's sitcom!

Shows like Homicide owe a debt of gratitude to NYPD. This show was gritty and felt real as the detectives worked NYC fighting crime. The always reliable Jack Warden was the boss, Frank Converse was young Johnny Corso, and the under-rated Robert Hooks was Jeff Ward (whose wife Ethel was played by Denise Nicholas). And many, many later famous faces showed up on this show each week. It was a great show and it deserves a more than honorable mention!

One of my all-time favorite Christopher Walken films, this is the story of painfully shy hardware store clerk, Harry Nash. Harry lives his life as a tongue-tied outcast but, once in character on stage, he comes to life. Anyone out there who thinks that the only characters that Walken can play are villians should definitely see this one! Walken is one of the great ones, with a sensitivity and range to prove it! A real gem!

Based on Otis Williams' book, this movie had all of the elements of young guys making it into music stardom -- youthful exuberance, success and excess, and the inevitable decline. Charles Malik Whitfield, DB Woodside, Terron Brooks, and Leon all gave strong performances as the Tempting Temptations. Christian Payton gave an especially effective performance as the tortured, self-destructive Paul Williams, in spite of the fact that it didn't seem that he had anything to really draw on to fully explain Williams' decline and subsequent suicide (incidentally, neither did Otis Williams in his book). All in all, the cast was wonderful and the true story of The Temptations was a story not to be missed by anyone who ever snapped their fingers in time to a song from this Supergroup!!