Reviews

What can I say about the "Muppet Show" that has not already been said? I can remember seeing the first episodes and finding the series funny with all what went on each week. I also saw the feature films in the theater and enjoyed them just as much. But going back and watching the Muppets as an adult has truly made me realize what an amazing show this truly was, and still is. The one-off clips are creative.....check out the "Hugga Wugga" clip for a wild out of this world experience...and funny, a ship full of Viking pigs attacking a village to the Village People song "In the Navy". The regular weekly segments were hilarious...the pun filled Veterinarian Hospital, the Swedish Chef's culinary disasters, Wayne and Wanda failing in new and interesting ways to sing their songs, and the crazy mess ups in Muppet Labs. The regular characters are iconic. Fozzie Bear and his bad stand up comedy, Rowlf the Dog's piano playing, Gonzo and his wacky stunts, the two old hecklers in the balcony box, Miss Piggy and her diva-ness, Animal the wild drummer and the rest of the band consisting of some pretty cool hippie rock players, Dr Bunsen and his long suffering assistant Beaker, and of course Kermit the Frog leading the way. And then there are the live guest stars. Amazing a-listers every week. It was known back in the day that you had truly made it big when you appeared on the "Muppet Show". And while the main focus was comedy, the viewer would also be treated to some classic performances that were truly beautiful. Rowlf the Dog singing "What a Wonderful World" in a simple and heartfelt manner to a real puppy, Victor Borge's performance of "Inchworm", with the funnyman singing wisely and fatherly, and a surreal and hauntingly beautiful version of "Send in the Clowns" by Judy Collins. All great. 100 years from now people will still be familiar with this show.

I may as well just cut to the chase..."The Conjuring" is a great movie. Period. Over the last decade or so, films classified as "horror" or "thrillers", have relied on a tired premise. Teens find themselves in a spooky area, bad things start to happen, a baddie (demon, crazy guy, undead creature) reveals itself. Hero star survives and defeats baddie, sequel shows up a year later. This film actually puts classic haunting lore back into the big screen, something that has truly not been done since "Poltergeist" back in 1982. The film's plot is simple, a family moves to an old farm in the country and finds themselves face to face with paranormal forces. They seek assistance from well known investigators and together they attempt to gain back the family's regular life and control of the home. But along the way, the viewer is treated to strong scares not via crazy special effects, but by simple camera tricks and down right spooky settings and situations. Because of this, one can be made to feel that they are being placed into the scene and encountering the haunting activity themselves, rather than watching gore being splattered via fake acting or computer generation. Fair warning...this is an old fashioned ghost story, meant to deliver scares and thrills by means of accuracy and ghostly reality... if you are a fan of recent "scary" films you may be shocked at how effective at delivering the scares this movie truly is. But throw in accurate 70's attire, language, and period scenery, as well as strong story telling, you will be treated to a very good movie!

I grew up on old "Kimba the White Lion" cartoons and with that said I had to take a peek at the "New Adventures". Now with any remake, things can go either way. In the case of this one...while the artwork is indeed very well done, something is truly missing...mainly the heart, spirit, and like-ability of the original series. That and the voice work seems hopelessly off compared to the original. In the 1966 series Billy Lou Watt worked wonders with her voice as she made Kimba come to life as a friendly, light-hearted, yet responsible and sensible young leader. The new series' Kimba is voiced by an adult who's voice seems too old, and the Lion himself too serious, angry, and yet oddly clumsy...too far a departure from what viewers have known and loved. For newer audiences, this could make such wonderful characters be seen as "run of the mill" or just not someone they could relate to. This could be due to the fact that the new version is more "true" to the original manga series from Japan...but for fans who knew and loved the Americanized version, this approach kind of misses. The "New Adventures" is great for anime fans or Kimba purists, but fans who loved the 1966 U.S. series could be disappointed.

I very fondly remember "Kimba the White Lion" when it was regularly aired on Morning and Afternoon TV during the early to mid 70's. Just about everybody knows about the "Lion King"/Kimba controversy, but what many people may or may not recall is how good this show actually is...at least in this reviewer's opinion. Watching a Kimba episode today, one has to understand that it was a show that was "tamed" a bit for the younger set. But even as a kid show it featured well developed characters, strong (for its time) animation, and well written story lines. While some of the story lines were a bit complex...often with sub-plots, there was usually a moral or lesson to be taught by the end of the episode. And concerning the episodes themselves, they varied between adventurous (Kimba on a quest to find the proper medicinal cure when the animals of his jungle become ill), to harrowing (Kimba battling poachers or challengers to his rule)...to down right flat out comedy (Kimba and Kitty trying to rescue Kitty's cantankerous uncle after he wanders into the city....very hard not to laugh at the crazy truck/train chase scene...up there with any Looney Tunes short in sheer funniness). Well done show...and who knows...if anything "Kimba" may have indeed influenced Disney thus giving us more reasons to like this program!

This later era "Charlie Brown" special, can't be described as one of the classics, and is clearly targeted as entertainment for the much younger set...but the story still has some charm to it for even the most dedicated fan of the series. In this outing, we are shown the beginning of Snoopy's life and early years, starting with his first months at the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm..playing music with his siblings, to he being purchased and subsequently returned by Lila (this corresponding well with the story line of the 1972 film "Snoopy Come Home"), to ultimately being bought for $5.00 by Charlie Brown. We then see a collection of clips consisting of the dog's various escapades while living with Charlie Brown, and up to the present day where Charlie Brown and Sally, seeing Snoopy a bit down, plan a "family reunion" for Snoopy and his brothers and sisters, complete with a visit to Daisy Hill. The reunion takes place, however the puppy farm is no more, having been demolished and the land redeveloped with a large parking garage and urban sprawl. This doesn't deter all from enjoying the reunion. While there are a few inaccuracies from other specials over how Charlie Brown actually obtained his dog, and some of the charm of the "Peanuts" formula is lost by having adults be shown and speak normally, the story is quick, simple, and sweet and actually features all of Snoopy's family in animated form at one time. Of Interest..besides Snoopy and the two adults, only Charlie, Sally, Linus, and a cameo of Lila (from "Snoopy Come Home")are the represented regulars in this show. Lucy, Pig Pen,Woodstock, Peppermint Patty and all the rest are absent.

....because in this Charlie Brown outing several dozen get destroyed! Easter time in Charlie Brown's neck of the woods, and the kids find new and interesting ways to make it amusing. First off is Peppermint Patty's futile attempt to teach Marcie how to make colored eggs. Back to the Discount Mart they go...quite a few times....for another dozen. Then we see Snoopy trying to create a comfortable bird house for Woodstock... this he does but accidentally destroys it, so...back to the Discount Mart he goes...for another birdhouse. Then we see Sally wanting a new pair of shoes and persuades her big brother Charlie Brown to take her shopping for a pair....so off to the Discount Mart they go....where ol' Chuck is disgusted to see a pre-Christmas sale is underway..."Only 246 days until Christmas!!" And while this is going on, Linus is preparing for the Easter Beagle to arrive with eggs for the good boys and girls. The rest of the gang still has yet to let him live down the whole Great Pumpkin thing from a few specials before. While not deep or sentimental like the original Christmas special, this show manages to draw laughs in only the way the Peanuts can do. This is a funny special which like so many in the series manages to entertain through humor, dialogue, satire, and silliness.

Who would have thought that Tom-boy Peppermint Patty, the girl with the 95 mph fastball could be such a lovely figure skater. And who would have known that silly and fun-loving Snoopy, the dog who pretends he's a WWI fighter pilot could be such a demanding coach. Such is the case in "She's a Good Skate Charlie Brown". This is one of the more memorable Peanuts adventures , not so much for the usual sight-gags, and banter, but for the wonderful climactic scene at the skating competition when Woodstock the bird steps up to the microphone and takes over for a broken cassette player allowing Patty to perform a beautiful and graceful program on the ice. Between the spellbinding and haunting melody and the amazing skating motions wonderfully captured in animation form (you would think you were watching the Olympics)...you know you are seeing something truly special...a highlight of the "Peanuts" series.

Here's an oldie but a goodie...a seldom seen Peanuts special dating from the early 70's that is definitely a product of that time period...but still manages to be a funky little piece of animation even in these modern times. In this special we see Lucy, forever in love with piano-virtuoso Schroeder, try to win his love by arranging for him to play before an assembled audience thus giving him his "big break". The one catch: he has to play rock music....a big no-no to the classically trained musician. He decides to go ahead and perform with a backing band provided by Charlie Brown on guitar, Snoopy on bass, and Pigpen on the drums...all quite skilled players themselves, but at the last minute Schroeder decides to remain true to his art and principals and backs out of the show rather than selling out. A entertaining little gem that keeps the viewers laughing with funny back and fourth banter (mostly between Lucy and Schroeder), funny spoofs on products that were available at the time (remember when everything became available in a can?), and some snappy music both in classical piano form, and hip 70's rock and roll. And yes...Snoopy is there to put his two cents in. Great fun to take you back a few years...younger kids may be lost (or they may love it) but adults will get a kick out of it.

"Scary Movie 5" has two good things going for it. First...it's 85 minutes long. Any bit longer and you may find yourself looking for anything sharp to carve out your eyes with. And second, the film "Jeepers Creepers" exists so it will just barely avoid the title of worst movie ever made...at least in this reviewer's humble opinion. The earlier films in this series, while not award winning, could at least generate a few good laughs...but my lord, this is just an awful film no matter how you cut the mustard. Dragged out potty humor jokes that rely on something a first grader MIGHT slightly chuckle at, a parade of has- been B-listers who try to make fun of themselves but clearly appear to the viewer that they are in the movie only to pay off their taxes and lawyer fees, and sight-gags that quite frankly....just fail. A keg party of robot pool cleaners??? A very large woman in a thong bikini??? Food made of human waste?? An ape on the toilet??? These are the "high point" funny moments. If this kind of stuff is what you enjoy, fear not, I'm sure you'll find this one in the $5.00 bin at Wal*Mart in the very near future. But until then, dust off some of the earlier movies from this series, as well as "Airplane", "Naked Gun", "Hot Shots", or others from that earlier genre, and save your admission money for something a little less.......stupid?

With so many specials, films, and even a regular Saturday morning series, one can expect even the "Peanuts" series to mis-step on occasion. "What a Nightmare Charlie Brown" mis-steps...in a really big way. With a storyline based on Jack London's "Call of the Wild" involving Snoopy dreaming that he's been pressed into service as a sled dog by an unseen musher, what may work for a big solid dog named Buck, just does not work with an adored for his antics dog named Snoopy. Too mean spirited, too angry, and too far removed from the premise of the series...this one missed badly. The one saving grace is Snoopy's determination to make the best out of what he's been dealt, but even that is ruined by the dream sequence's brutal ending. 20 minutes of sheer punishment on a character known and loved for being the central comedic figure of the series is just wrong. Pass on this.

When most people think of Charlie Brown specials, they think of the "big three"..."Christmas", "Thanksgiving" and "Great Pumpkin". But what is often miss are the many other specials that are equally as entertaining. One such example is this 1982 offering. "Celebration" consists of a group of segments of unrelated stories, all lifted from the newspaper strips. Stories included the kids in school and their off the wall answers to the teacher's questions, a field trip to a field and Linus in a tough spot, Lucy tormenting Schroeder to get him to notice her, Peppermint Patty's enrollment of herself in a dog agility class and thinking it passing as a school diploma, Marcy and Peppermint Patty trying to obtain caps for their baseball team, and Charlie Brown winding up in the hospital. Each segment is loaded with very funny dialogue...the Peppermint Patty parts being a complete laugh riot! This special is not serious in any way, just 100% comedy that WILL make you laugh.

As much as I love the "Peanuts" series, I stand neutral on this one. First off, I honestly think the series is much better off in 30 minute special form rather than feature length...part of the charm is the "quick simplicity, quick delivery, and to the point storytelling which sadly becomes clumsy, drawn out, and uneven in "Snoopy Come Home". We know very little about Lilia, why she's sick or why she suddenly want Snoopy back. Did her illness make her yearn for some form of comfort? With the sad music that accompanies her scenes in the hospital one could feel for her, but you just don't. (The hospital scenes in "Why Charlie Brown Why? are far superior as the viewer is able to understand the plight of Janice thus gaining sympathy for her.) On the subject of music, the whole soundtrack seems out of place in this film. As for the emotional components, the transition from sad to happy is too abrupt and that takes away from what could be a good story. On the plus side, the animation is charming, and you do feel for Charlie Brown with what he has to go through in the film. A good attempt that just could have turned out better.

One of the lesser known of the "Charlie Brown" shorts, but that doesn't make this story a bad one. In fact, it's downright entertaining and funny. This episode centers around the gang attending a Summer camp. While there a "boys vs. girls" series of competitions take place. The boys find new and interesting ways to loose to the girls and try to find a way they can win....just once...to save face. Enter the "Masked Marvel" (aka Snoopy). Do the boys finally get a win? You decide. Nothing serious in this special at all....it's all fun and (one sided) games. Be sure to catch the over the top and completely hilarious arm wrestling match between Snoopy and Lucy.

By 1990 the "Peanuts" series had grown to well over 30 specials. Most were very well received by fans of the series as well as the general viewing audience. One main factor was light hearted nature the subject matter presented in each outing.But this special is different. Even when the characters faced tough situations, those examples of drama were nothing in comparison to what was faced in this very strong and well presented episode. This time it was serious business. The story centers around a young girl to which Linus has developed a close relationship with. Early on in the story she becomes ill and is admitted to the hospital where she is diagnosed with cancer. Her struggles and will to survive are documented as well as Linus doing his best to provide moral support. The story has a happy ending, but the viewer now understands that the characters we know and love, like us, have to sometimes face the ugly realities of life. And in this story they...especially Linus and Janice...very much do so. Due to the seriousness of the story, Snoopy's normal antics are very limited, appropriate considering the story line, and Linus' blanket is gone, a well thought idea to present him not as a goofy kid, but a pre-teen acting in a mature and responsible manner. All in all this is a must see for fans of the series, you may shed a tear, but in the end you will be even more close to the characters you have known and loved for years.

How many good things can one say about "A Charlie Brown Christmas"? Quite simply, the first is the best. To think that this animated special, one filled with humor, feeling, great music, and strong message, was almost not picked up by CBS. I'm pretty sure everybody knows the plot of this story, if you don't, then I can only assume you are too busy preparing for the holidays to watch TV when this show is broadcast and you have never seen it. What truly makes this special great? The honest simplicity. No flashy action, no high paid voice actors throwing in their years on the screen and stage, just everyday kids acting as kids do, tie that together with a meaningful story, funny dialogue, and some wonderful smooth jazz piano for a soundtrack and you have a winner. Many more Peanuts specials would follow...some great, some fair, some awful, so if you have never seen any of them, watch this one first and take in everything it offers. Then go and pick and choose any of the other 40+ specials that followed.

Another early gem from the "Peanuts" series. This time it's Halloween and the fun and festivities are about to get underway. Charlie Brown actually gets invited to a party, the kids are making their costumes, and Linus, slightly mixed up in the area of "which holiday figure goes where" is eagerly awaiting the "Great Pumpkin" and his sack of toys for the good kids and convinces Sally to bypass Trick-or-Treating and wait with him in a pumpkin patch. The kids go out for Candy, Charlie Brown gets a bag of rocks, the party goes on as planned,and Linus is left sleeping in the pumpkin patch with Sally unleashing her wrath upon him after missing all the fun waiting for something that just wasn't going to happen. In short, good Peanuts fun. But what stands out in this special is Snoopy, now fully developed as stand out element of comedy in this series. He's over the top in this show, from his doghouse dogfight with the "Red Baron" to his antics at the party and later in the pumpkin patch..Snoopy steals it all here. Classic fun to get you laughing every year in October.

Noah Dugan is an unemployed pilot who's in a big jam. Deep in debt and on the run from bookies due to his betting on the horses, he now finds himself having to choose between being physically harmed by mob strong arms or taking a job at a friend's fly by night cargo airline flying a young missionary and a load of farm animals aboard a beat up old B-29 Superfortress to an island in the South Pacific. Against his better judgment, he straps himself into the pilot's seat and takes off. But also aboard are two young stowaways who can't bear to see their animal pets go away, and Noah's not counting on a defective auto-pilot and a compass giving a false direction due to a tape player messing with the magnets. Needless to say, they end up far off course and with the plane's four engines cutting out one by one, they manage to crash land on a small island somewhere in the middle of nowhere. But they are not alone there. Two Japanese soldiers who have been stuck there since WWII initially attack the new visitors thinking the war is still on...but after some introductions, things smooth over and they put their heads together and build a boat out of the downed aircraft. At sea they encounter storms, sharks, and the quest to find land...doing so by sending a duck out to sea with a help note attached. A happy ending is the result with all.

A decent Disney film if one can get past the obvious factual errors. A B-29 could never be flown with just one pilot...the control layout requires several crew members. But the story is fun, and the scenery is great....and aviation buffs can take in a wonderful opening credit sequence of a B-29 soaring majestically over a modern day San Francisco Bay.

One of the more amusing and delightfully cheesy episodes of "CHiPs". While the usual "bad guys vs cops" and "Ponch and Jon get the girls" story lines are played, the main story teaches a moral life lesson, how anger and petty arguments can lead you to trouble.

The story opens with the cops assigned to the beach, an area of territorial dispute between "Surfer Kids" and "Valley Kids". A group of surfer teens in a souped up old ambulance butt heads with a couple of valley boys in a souped up van and their battles spill out onto the canyon roads in the form of aggressive vehicle battles. Ponch and Jon try to stop the nonsense, first with tickets, then with threats, and finally with warnings of jail and possible self injury or worse. Their efforts fail, and indeed the two groups of kids find themselves crawling out of their mangled vehicles after a wild crash down a hillside and licking their wounds as the cops gave them the "I told you so" lecture before hauling them off to the hospital and then the pokey. Lesson learned the hard way.

The bad guy vs. the cops part is a routine police story ending with the robbers who had been stealing car radios attempting to flee in an RV...not successful in doing so.

The final story segment finds the guys meeting a couple of cute girls who teach them how to sail...with Ponch having a hard time climbing aboard the small boat...much to the laugh of everybody involved.

All the typical amusing parts of "CHiPs" are played out in this story...car crashes, girls, bad guys, and Disco music pumping in the background. And within all that silly cheesiness, a moral lesson of how anger can lead to danger is played out.

I remember this cartoon series well when it aired back in the late 70's. Typical Saturday morning show (later aired after school as well while in syndication), with a basic plot that somehow managed to come across in an entertaining manner. The series centers around Dinky...a huge Old English Sheepdog and his misadventures living with his two young women owners and their uncle. Due to Dinky's massive size, he constantly wreaks havoc, mainly at the expense of the long suffering Uncle. But due to his lovable "gentle giant" nature, and his ability to somehow right his wrongs...his family can't help but to love the big guy no matter how much damage he manages to inflict. Anybody who's ever owned a pooch (especially a big one who think's he's a lap dog) can sympathize with both the clumsiness as well as the unconditional love a canine companion can offer. So despite the very basic late 70's animation and formula- based story lines...this charming series will put a smile...and even a chuckle...on any dog owner's face. It may even make you think..."they made a cartoon about my goofy dog!"

By the time the 80's had rolled around, the trends of Saturday Morning animation had shifted from superheros, teen detectives, and slapstick chases, to pop culture fads such as toys, cute mini-critters, and in the case of "Pac-Man"...video games.

If you are not aware, the original Pac-Man video game consisted of a pie shaped being traveling around a maze eating as many dots as possible while avoiding a roaming group of ghost-monsters. It was (and still is) very popular. Hanna-Barbera's adaptation of the concept featured Pac-Man and his family (wife, toddler son, cat, and dog) and their adventures in "Pac-Land"...mainly their adventures against the Ghost-Monsters, hit-men employed by an overlord named Mezmeron who's goal was to obtain the town's source of power-pellets (lifeblood of the Pac-land residents). Sounds ominous, but the general feeling was one of humor and comedy.

The show is a typical HB product, regular catchphrases used by the characters and formula-tic plots. A lot of those story lines are carried over from older HB shows. The Ghost-Monsters being funny-villains along the lines of the Chopper Bunch and Dick Dastardly's gang...forever failing miserably in their chase for their "prey"..often in spectacular ways. And Pac-Man being very similar to Popeye the Sailor Man...though instead of a can of spinach, the yellow guy chows down on a power pellet in order to defeat the bad guys...in this case chomping them...sending them back for new ghost suits.

While some episodes are indeed dated, rehashed stories, and at times relying too much on a then-fad, there are moments of funny Saturday Morning craziness that many folks grew up on and loved. One such episode involving the Pac family going on a picnic is downright hilarious! You actually feel sorry for the Ghost-monsters as they fail from one scene to the next in an attempt to ruin the family's outing (of which they are simply unaware of the ghosts' activity)!!! And stealing the show..Sourpuss and Chomp Chomp...the family pets. Their back and fourth battles could have been made into a series of their own. Why they were not made into free-standing character is a mystery. Brilliant characters!

So is this show good? Depends on who you ask. You may love it...or not. But if anything, "Pac-Man" is a perfect example of what was hot at the time.

Oh my!!! My my my!! I am sorry to say that I have seen this thing in its entirety, and everything negative that has been stated about "The Star Wars Holiday Special" is true. It stinks. This special is so bad that animated cast of "Christmas Comes to Pacland", had they been offered parts in this deal, would have run for the hills in disgust.

So what makes this film so terrible?

*Poor writing: a storyline that is so weird and unbelievable even for the Star Wars universe. Something about Chewbacca having to make it home from a battle with the Empire in time for some Thanksgiving/Christmas- like holiday known as Life Day. Hard to follow even for people in the know of the Star Wars franchise. And the various skits within the special confused the viewer. Are we watching a variety show or a Sci-Fi adventure?

*Bad acting: I don't blame the cast...they were probably contractually obligated to participate and much to their dismay had to deal with the above bad storyline. Not even God himself could have saved this picture...especially with some of the lines poor Harrison Ford had to deliver.

*Boring: Long periods of a child-wookie wandering around the set moaning. Watching dirt move is more exciting.

*Bea Arthur: Good enough actress, but huh????

*Carrie Fischer singing: Actually this part is funny as she appears to be intentionally be singing poorly as a parting shot at the producers who made her sing a song about Wookie Life Day to the tune of the Star Wars theme.

In any rate, this special reeks in every possible way. Not even a "so bad it's good" situation. Simply unwatchable. That's all I can say about this.

"Christmas Comes to Pacland" has often been referred to as one of the worst holiday specials of all time. Indeed, while it will never even come close to other animated specials such as "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", or any of the Charlie Brown shows, there are certainly much more terrible offerings out there. You want to see a bad Christmas special....try to sit through "The Star Wars Holiday Special", "Cosmic Christmas" or that "Night Before Christmas" deal...the one with the mice and the broken clock. Godawful!!!

"Christmas Comes to Pacland" is pretty much standard from that era...the early 80's. The story concerns Santa Claus accidentally becoming stuck in Pacland following a mishap with his reindeer and he not being familiar with the place at all. Likewise, the citizens of Pacland have never heard of Santa Claus themselves, so with that it's a lesson in the spirit of the holiday as everybody works together to get St. Nick back on his way.

The animation is basic Saturday morning quality, though the message is understandable (the animators and producers meant well). There are even some funny scenes and lines...care of the Ghost Monsters. Somehow this TV special still shows up on an annual basis on various networks during the holiday season...almost 30 years after the regular series ended. And while it's no classic by any means and can be considered to be quite a cheesy product of pop culture from it's original time period, the positive message of good will is present. Kids will enjoy it, adults will get a laugh, and the producers will revel in the thought that there are much worse offerings floating around out there.