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Pledge This! (2006)
I Pledge To You: Avoid This
"Pledge this!" is undoubtedly one of the worst movies I have seen to date. It takes a tired concept and manages to make it worse in every possible way. The acting is horrid, the plot makes absolutely no sense, and the execution is dead on arrival. All this and more spells doom in a project that should have been left on the cutting room floor.
It doesn't help that I find Paris Hilton to be extremely annoying and totally unworthy of the screen time she has been given, but to make matters worse, she narrates a movie in which she constantly tries to reaffirm her "character" as better than everyone else, but what was vividly clear (at least, in my eyes) is that she is talking about herself as a person, not the character she so poorly portrays.
You would figure that someone like Paris would be able to handle playing the spoiled rich girl since the role hits so close to home, but unfortunately, even she seems like she doesn't know what is going on. She appears disoriented and dumbfounded as to what exactly she is doing, as do those surrounding her.
This film doesn't have a saving grace. It has nothing to redeem it except for the fact it ends. And the ending is as predictable as anything you will ever find. In a movie where a snobby, rich girl gets all the admiration and respect, one easily expects the ending to knock her down a peg.... and that is exactly what happens. No curveballs here. The screenplay is bland and extremely unoriginal.
Every single aspect from beginning to end was both predictable and poorly executed. It is bad enough to make a movie in which nothing new is attempted, but to do what has already been done and do it in a lackluster manner? That is inexcusable.
If I am to pledge thee one sage drop of advice: Avoid this and you'll be forever better for it.
Heroes (2006)
Fantasy Thrown Into Reality: "Heroes" is Perfectly Executed
"Heroes" is everything I had hoped for when I first heard the premise. After watching it, each week makes me realize that it is even more than I could have ever expected.
The allure of this show is that it is not a sci-fi show... it is not about aliens, secret identities, or tight uniforms. It is real people living their lives, and the way it is shown is spectacular. You just won't feel like letting go once you let this wonderful show into your life, because it shows what so many of us desire: fantastical abilities in an ordinary world. While Superman is considered godlike with his plethora of abilities, the idea of so many people each having a little piece of the puzzle -- the concept is great, and the way it is implemented is far greater.
Creator Tim Kring is a genius, as is his writing team. The story lines are solid and intertwine together so well that, as an audience member, you can't help but be gripped by it all -- waiting one week for the next episode is an exercise in torture. The plots span several continents as well as several points in time, yet everything comes off beautifully. It has elements of every genre, but in the end, plays out into a beautiful drama.
The characters, for one thing, are outstanding. What makes it amazing is not that they each possess a different ability, but that they each have a different take on what it is. To some, it is a curse. To others, it helps mark their destiny. And to a few, it is an enigma, and they would do anything just to figure out what exactly it means. "Heroes" has a bit of everything, and the wide spectrum of attitudes is so perfectly balanced that it is neither a superhero show or a show where others riddle them with skepticism.
It seems each week that new characters are being introduced, many with some extraordinary ability. One could worry that this would plague the show as having too much on its plate and no time to show it all. However, "Heroes" pulls it off by having a good mixture of separate story lines over and above the little teases of heroes intertwining with one another.
Each week that I watch this show just makes me go crazy. At least when I have an entire season of a show on DVD, I can watch it at whatever pace I feel like. But, when watching the first-run airings of "Heroes", it could drive you mad to have to wait for the next episode. The week drags on. I never for a second would have thought I would be waiting for a Monday to come!
So gripping. So well done. So addictive.
If you ever needed a single answer for why it is great, it would be this:
"Heroes" takes the most surreal events and makes them real. It makes them believable. It is not sci-fi. It is just... spectacular.
Let's hope "Heroes" is here to stay.
Love Connection (1983)
A treat to watch, and one of the best dating game shows ever
With all the reality television that was brought to us at the turn of the century, it really makes us appreciate simple shows like "Love Connection" that much more. The concept was simple, and it was a gem to watch. TV has evolved into a never-ending grasp for ratings, but when this show was on, people loved it because it was fun to watch and it had an interesting setup, without the need for gimmicks to keep viewers glued to the screen. It was light-hearted, friendly, and possibly one of the most wholesome dating shows to date. If you ever watched this show when it was on the air, you'd realize how rare a breed it is compared to what modern game shows (or reality television) are willing to do for ratings. Simply put, "Love Connection" was such a basic dating game show, but it was a pleasure to watch. I was too young to watch it when it first came out, but I watched it (both in syndication and original airings) often throughout the early to mid 90s. It was great to watch with others and discuss who would pick whom, and it really is a shame that television has evolved so poorly.