Category Archives: REVIEWS
Review of Fox’s New Dating Shows: One Hit and One Miss
When we think about summer TV in general we usually think “Hit or Miss”. It’s a crap shoot, but it’s a hell of a lot better now then it was before. Fox rolls the dice with two dating shows, “The Choice” which I warned was coming and “Take Me Out”. Two dating shows with completely different feels to them airing back to back. Let’s start with the bad, or should I say the awful.
THE CHOICE
How this show works is simple. You have four male celebrities who cannot see their potential dates as their backs are facing the stage. The potential dates come on stage and are seen by the audience and then get to describe themselves to the celebrities. Based on the audience’s reaction and their voice and description alone if the celebrity is interested he pulls his “love handle” and turns his chair around.
Once a celebrity or two has turned their chair, then the contestant gets to choose what celebrity she wants to date. Once a celebrity has 3 women in his stable, they then eliminate one, and have a question and answer lightening round to decide between the remaining two, who they will go on their date with.
Sounds like a lot….and it is. The concept is good, but the execution is bad for reasons that would have been hard to predict.
THE GOOD
The interesting part of the show is the fact that you see how men think. Sometime the celebrities just turn around based on the crowd’s reaction. Other times you can see what the guys is thinking by the one thing that the woman says that gets him to pull the handle.
THE BAD: IT’S JUST NOT BELIEVABLE
That’s about where the fun ends. It falls apart with the celebrities. It’s hard to believe that any of these guys can’t find a date for themselves. The first episode featured, Olympic skier Jeremy Bloom, Pauly D, Romeo, and Soap Opera Star Jason Cook. ….Oh yeah, Tyson Beckford will even be on one episode. If these guys can’t find dates then there is no hope for mankind.
THE WORSE: CELEBRITIES SUCK!
The second part of the issue is that celebrities are actually boring and corny. People are pretty boring and corny in general but we expect celebrities to be witty, interesting and dynamic because their TV characters usually are. With no script in front of them, they are just like you or I and that’s a huge disappointment. This show relies way too much on the celebrities personalities to carry it and that’s where it fails, terribly.
In the lightening round where the celebs are supposed to ask the potential dates questions, this is not clear to the potential dates and sometimes they are asking the questions, or both the celeb and potential date are asking the questions to each other at the same time. It goes too fast and you get nothing from it. It is literally a train wreck.
Cat Deeley does her best as host, but the lack of personality is so obvious that it makes her job extremely difficult adding to the shows cluster. I attempted to watch the 2nd show but once the celebrities were announced and appeared even more boring than episodes one’s, I had to cut it off. Those were minutes of my life I was never going to get back.
TAKE ME OUT: A CLEAR WINNER!!
This I have to admit left me pleasantly surprised. I actually watched “the Choice” first so my expectations were just about as low as they could be for this show. Take me out is a show that started overseas that was brought to the states so the concept is proven.
How the show works, there are 30 women who all stand behind podiums that are illuminated. A guy comes down a love lift to a theme song that he has chosen. When he gets to the ground level he walks in front of the women so they can see the goods and then takes the center stage. He introduces himself and then the fun starts. After the introduction, if you are not turned on by this guy, you turn your light out. At this point a number of lights will shut off, making a video game “loser’ noise with each one.
Then the contestant gets to show a home clip of himself, usually explaining what he does for a living and his family and home life. Any time during this video clip you can turn out your light if something is not appealing.
If a man still has women with lights on, he enters round three. This round he can display a talent or show more information about his personal life. If there are any lights on after the third clip then the man has a date. If there are more then 2 lights on, the man narrows it down by shutting off the lights of the person he’s not interested in. This is all by looks at this point because very little if no conversation has been had between the contestant and his potential date. Then he gets to ask 1 question to the 2 remaining women. From their answers he chooses the dates.
This show works for many reasons. The biggest one is George Lopez. Hands down he is great. I’m not sure if he is saying to himself, “Is this what my career has come to?” Or if he is having the time of his life but it appears he enjoys it. His comedic improv is 2nd to none. When women shut their lights off, or keeps them on, he asks them why or why not, he introduces the men an basically carries the entire show on his back. He’s funny, charming and charismatic and makes you just enjoy being there. His timing is just impeccable.
The other thing that works is the show doesn’t take itself too serious. It’s cheesey but in a way that it’s embraced. When a love connection is made, a sing a long type song is played and the women, referred to as the flirty 30 do a Macarena type dance while the couple walks off.
If a male contestant doesn’t make it through round three, it’s known as a blackout. Lopez always says, “it’s not you it’s them”.
Which is just plain hilarious. The couples go to the “Take Me Out” resort and their date is recapped on the next episode.
The show is everything a summer show should be, Silly and fun. At the same time you get to also see how picky women are. You should see how many lights turn off when one guys says he likes to eat at restaurants that offer specials! Wow!
Both shows are on Thursday nights. Take Me Out is wisely first at 8:00 PM followed by The Chose at 9:00.
If you’ve seen either show leave a comment and let me know what you think.
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Hatfield’s and McCoy Review – The History Channel Nails it!
I have to say BRAVO. I’m sure the History channel was a little gun shy after the entire debacle of “The Kennedys” which they relinquished to ReelzChannel just for the show to go on to win critical acclaim. Not to let History dictate the future, the History channel jumped into “Hatfields & McCoys” with both feet and the result is nothing short of fantastic.
The Kevin Reynolds directed miniseries is packed full of star power and everything grandiose that comes with it. The setting is Post Civil War in the Appalachian Mountains. Most of the six-hour film, which airs over three consecutive nights, was shot in the mountains of Transylvania; and in a studio near Bucharest.
I’m not a fan of period dramas and the costume design, art direction and intricate attention to detail never once let you forget you are in the West, however the script and interpersonal relationships are as modern as an i-pad. The storyline is extremely relatable and complex enough to be engaging, but not too complex, thus allowing you to lose yourself in the thoughtlessness of a Wild West Shootout.
You almost forget how good Kevin Costner is but then you are reminded that he actually did a pretty decent job in the film Open Range as Charley Waite, and does an even better job (partly due to the storyline) as Devil Anse Hatfield. The lead McCoy is played by Bill Paxton who coupled with Costner set the bar and expectations very high of this mini-series with in the first half hour.
I’m not sure if this is the real story of the Hatfields & McCoy’s but it’s convincing and you are immersed in it from the beginning.
Devil Anse and Randall McCoy served in the Confederate army together and during battle they both end up owing each other their lives. Tired of the fight Devil Anse leaves the military which pisses off the holier then thou, self righteous Randall. To make matters worse, Randall is captured and becomes a POW.
After finishing his tour and returning home, Randall sees that not only is Devil Anse doing well, but his whole entire family is eating good. Randall’s family in comparison is barely putting food on the table.
Mix the jealousy with the forbidden love of a young Hatfield and McCoy and you have all the drama that you need.
As the story unfolds the feud is like a virus, or a tornado that engulfs everything and everyone around it. Somehow, and this is why the script is so good, it’s remains clear without outright saying it that the two men are still in charge, Devil Anse and Randall.
In my opinion these two carry the show along with the script, the set and the writing. Costner and Paxton are everything that you ever thought a cowboy was supposed to be, and then multiply that times 100. Smoking? Yes they smoke so much you will catch a contact in your living room. Shoot outs? Until you’re ready to pick up a gun and help out whichever family you are rooting for. In the end, and I’m just speculating Costner becomes the hero because at any time he can put an end to it all. He’s just having too much fun. Randall is like that annoying friend that has just found GOD and forsakes commonsense for bible verse. He doesn’t realize how sinful his religious ways really are. 
When the smoke clears the obvious thing is that the History channel has a clear winner on its hands. 13.9 million total viewers tuned in for the first episode. Nancy Dubic, History’s president patted herself and her channel on the back for a job well done. She stated,
“With all the success we have had at History, we felt strongly for some time that we should own historical drama, and in true History fashion, we have done it, with – pardon the pun – guns a-blazin!
We couldn’t be more proud of the entire cast and crew … from Kevin Costner, Bill Paxton, Mare Winningham, Powers Boothe, Tom Berenger, and everyone involved in truly making history!”
It will be sad to see the series end, but sometimes it’s good to stay wanting more. Next on the scripted list for History is Vikings! Vikings chronicles the Norsemen who fought their way through medieval times. It’s set to premiere in 2013. Let’s Go!
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MOVIE REVIEW: Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (4 out of 4 Stars)
I have to admit that I’m going into this review as a “Mission Impossible” franchise fan and an overall Tom Cruise fan. After watching the trailer, I was more hyped than ever. Not only wasn’t I disappointed but the movie exceeded even my already lofty expectations.
Believe it or not, this franchise has been running for 15 years. I was turned off and let down by the John Woo directed MI: II, remember the end action scene with them dueling it out on Motorcycles. (Really?). Then with MI: III, J.J. Abrams takes the helm and never looks back. Abrams with the help of Brad Bird as director out did himself. Yes, that Brad Bird. Animation director Brad Bird!
CRUISE IS BACK
Tom Cruise is in rare form. You would never guess he is nearly 50 years old. He will make you look at your parents and wonder why their 50 looks 60 and his looks 35. He resumes the role as Ethan Hawk without missing a beat. On the surface, the complexity of the role is severely underestimated. Imagine combining Bourne and Bond? Cruise handles the role almost effortlessly and immediately re-establishes credibility to the role. Cruise is in top shape (with one shirtless scene) although there is one series of shots where he appears chunky in these off white/gray color pants. That might be the first that he actually appears his true height in a film.
Jermey Renner plays another agent whose past is connected to Ethan’s and does a nice job of tying the story together. He reminds me of Jason Bateman and definitely does his part in playing a believable agent. There have been rumors that his character will take over the series, but at age 49 and with the evident success of MI:4, there is no reason Cruise doesn’t have at least one more Mission in him.
Paula Patton is just ridiculously good in this movie in so many ways. Again, she is super believable and visually striking. She wasn’t just thrown in for T&A she actually had a huge role in the film. She had critical parts in all the tasks of the Mission including seducing one of the many villains during a really formal ball. With her many outfit changes, raw aggression, made for movie face and pure athleticism she was a major reason why this film was as good as it appeared. I will go as far as to say, I haven’t seen anyone as striking on film since Halle Berry.
Rounding out the IMF team was Simon Pegg who sort of took Ving Rhames previous role. (The Vinger made a cameo at the end). Pegg was basically comedic relief, walking a thin line between humorous and slapstick. In my opinion he starts off being almost too silly but as the mission tasks intensify and the stakes increase there is less need for frivolity and his humor becomes a much needed tension reliever.
Don’t short change yourself by not watching this in IMAX. The action sequences, fight scenes and special effects cannot be appreciated any other way. I guarantee that this movie will have your heart racing at least once if not more throughout. The movie length is 2 hrs and 12 minutes. Perfect. It feels like a little less than 2 hours which is exactly what a great movie should feel like; as if you do not want it to end. . So take your expectations and expect more….bigger, better and faster without being over the top (see…Fast Five for ref. to Over the top action).
This movie is well worth the IMAX Premium – GO SEE IT.
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Cosmo Movie Reviews: Horrible Bosses
This is a shame, but I only go to the movies, after I hear a move is worth seeing. The result of that is, you get a review that’s several weeks late. The great part about the internet is that this review will still be around when Horrible Bosses hits BluRay. (I’ve yet to see a Blu Ray anything..).
Horrible Bosses was just the kind of funny flick that I needed on a Sunday afternoon. No superstars, just a nice deep cast of “Stars”. This type of casting makes for a very well balanced movie.
Having said that, Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, Colin Farrell, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis and Jaime Foxx all pulled their weight evenly.
After leaving watching Horrible Bosses, you have a similar feeling to The Hangover…but not so much. The camaraderie, the writing and the plot is more “Bridesmaids” trying to be The Hangover. Let’s face it, “Hangover” status is hard to accomplish.
The premise of the film is one we’ve seen before, three guys who hate their bosses for 3 very different reasons. In a twisted, dark plot they decide to murder each other’s bosses as a cure to their problems. As the plot develops, and you learn the limitations of the characters, you learn to wonder if anyone will be murdered at all, and if so how? The first 45 minutes you spend in curiosity and the last 45 minutes you spend in predictability.
Kevin Spacey is fantastic as one of the bosses. He’s funny when he needs to be funny, yet serious, dark and evil when the role calls for it. His acting chops are still there and were definitely on display sometime taking the movie outside of the spectrum of comedy into the realm of darkness. Jaime Foxx has a cameo as “Motherf_ka Jones”. He also does a great job of walking the dark comedy line expertly. As far as the other cast members, everyone was basically what they needed to be, when they needed to be.
The character casting was a little off. It’s still hard to believe that Charlie Day’s character would be sexually harassed by Jennifer Aniston on a daily basis and that Jason Sudeikis has enough “sexy” to play the role of a playboy stud type, but then again, maybe that’s why it worked.
So once you put your “Over the Top” glasses on, and settle end for a movie that is met to be taken lightly, you will enjoy yourself. It’s rather raunchy at time, so seeing it with your Mom, Dad or coworkers could cause some awkward moments.
- Worth the movies – Yep
- Worth Video – Definitely
- Overall Rating – B
-Cosmo
Horrible Bosses Move Trailer Below…..
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