The Simpsons was laugh-out-loud funny from its first episode, but season four is when it completed its journey from mere brilliance towards genuine transcendence. This show did for the 30 minute sitcom what The Beatles did for the 3 minute [ . . . ] Read the rest
Monthly Archives: June 2004
The Chronicles of Riddick
June 24, 2004
This is an overblown sequel to a slick little horror/sci-fi film Pitch Black. Pitch Black was low budget and very effective; it established a simple and elegant premise, played faithfully by its own rules, and treated the audience to a [ . . . ] Read the rest
The Sopranos, season 1
June 24, 2004
HBO On Demand has the first five episodes of The Sopranos available, so naturally I’ve been watching them.
It’s amazing how good this show is, and I’d forgotten how great Tony’s domineering mother Livia Soprano was. She’s so effortlessly and [ . . . ] Read the rest
The Terminal
June 23, 2004
Steven Spielberg continues to dazzle and amaze. Setting a whole movie in a single airport terminal is the kind of stunt Hitchcock liked to pull in films like Rear Window or Lifeboat, but Spielberg’s tour de force never feels forced. [ . . . ] Read the rest
Salem’s Lot
June 23, 2004
This “TNT Original” production is the second TV miniseries made from Stephen King’s second novel. Like most adaptations of King’s work, it’s a pale, mediore reflection of a powerful and original story.
It’s handicapped from the getgo because Rob Lowe [ . . . ] Read the rest
Scotland, PA
June 23, 2004
This film is a modernization of Macbeth. Instead of the kingdom of Scotland, the stakes here are a fastfood joint, it starts as “Duncan’s” and becomes (wait for it) “MacBeth’s.” It recasts Shakespearean tragedy as knowing black comedy.
Most of [ . . . ] Read the rest
