spartanbuff
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We just finished this 8-part miniseries, now on NBC and their streaming channel, Peacock.
It's about a five year-old boy who goes missing.
What follows is a wild ride through a labyrinth of twists, turns, convoluted motives, and a series of delightfully bizarre climaxes, each one nuttier than the last.
It hooks and compels you to binge-watch: it's unlike anything we've ever seen before. It's the grandest of grand Whodunits.
Based on the book, the writers had a field day concocting all the intricate plot expositions.
The cast could not be bettered.
Sarah Snook gives a bravura turn as the boy's mother: it's a tour-de-force portrayal that demands every kind of emotional reaction, and she meets them with unerring, faultless skill.
Right beside her is Dakota Fanning, well into adulthood, who plays Snook's best friend and staunchest ally. Fanning's characterization is strong, steadfast, and the female solidarity between the two friends provides a positive spin amongst all the accusations and backstabbing.
Jake Lacy as Snook's husband is terrifically effective, because your reactions to him change and veer from one extreme to another. Lacy somewhat recalls a young Richard Chamberlain. Lacy has a complicated relationship with his two siblings, both played exceptionally well by Abby Elliott and Daniel Monks - their backstory is truly messed-up. Jay Ellis, sympathetic as Snooks' business partner is a bit weak, because his role is under-written and the part he plays in the story is not sufficiently built-up.
Sophia Lillis as the young nanny to Fanning's child balances her troubled role in the proceedings - you feel revulsion and pity for her plight.
Michael Peña's detective in the case is a welcome departure from the hard-bitten, cynical type that's become a well-trod cliché. His goodness of heart and calm, persistent dedication to solving the case is a positive force. The side plot involving his mentally disabled son is very touching: and provides an unexpected clue to an aspect of the case.
Splendid entertainment, gloriously addled and splintered though it is. Talk about the fun in dys-fun-ctional!
It's about a five year-old boy who goes missing.
What follows is a wild ride through a labyrinth of twists, turns, convoluted motives, and a series of delightfully bizarre climaxes, each one nuttier than the last.
It hooks and compels you to binge-watch: it's unlike anything we've ever seen before. It's the grandest of grand Whodunits.
Based on the book, the writers had a field day concocting all the intricate plot expositions.
The cast could not be bettered.
Sarah Snook gives a bravura turn as the boy's mother: it's a tour-de-force portrayal that demands every kind of emotional reaction, and she meets them with unerring, faultless skill.
Right beside her is Dakota Fanning, well into adulthood, who plays Snook's best friend and staunchest ally. Fanning's characterization is strong, steadfast, and the female solidarity between the two friends provides a positive spin amongst all the accusations and backstabbing.
Jake Lacy as Snook's husband is terrifically effective, because your reactions to him change and veer from one extreme to another. Lacy somewhat recalls a young Richard Chamberlain. Lacy has a complicated relationship with his two siblings, both played exceptionally well by Abby Elliott and Daniel Monks - their backstory is truly messed-up. Jay Ellis, sympathetic as Snooks' business partner is a bit weak, because his role is under-written and the part he plays in the story is not sufficiently built-up.
Sophia Lillis as the young nanny to Fanning's child balances her troubled role in the proceedings - you feel revulsion and pity for her plight.
Michael Peña's detective in the case is a welcome departure from the hard-bitten, cynical type that's become a well-trod cliché. His goodness of heart and calm, persistent dedication to solving the case is a positive force. The side plot involving his mentally disabled son is very touching: and provides an unexpected clue to an aspect of the case.
Splendid entertainment, gloriously addled and splintered though it is. Talk about the fun in dys-fun-ctional!
This was the surprise hit show of this season. We did not expect it to be so captivating, original, and engaging. And genuinely funny, as well as touching. Glen Powell further confirms his universal appeal; he's not only an excellent, wide-ranging actor, but he has charisma and charm. The supporting cast is outstanding too, every last one of them providing indelible characterizations. Only problem is, the season was too short: we wanted more.
Was there ever a movie you watched as a kid because you thought was cool at the time because it was on, then as an adult forgot you'd ever seen it? (well, I didn't forget Plan 9 From Outer Space or Robot Monster) On one of those local UHF stations that showed nothing but syndicated TV shows, B movies, serials like Tarzan, The Bowery Boys, The Little Rascals, 3 Stooges, Abbott and Costello, Shirley Temple movies, Godzilla, etc.
My brother and I were 3 Stooges fans, and this movie was likely the reason we watched it.
I saw it in a close-out bin at Christmas time, and bought it, as I thought one of our family kids might enjoy it.
Curious, I watched it, wondering how my memories played out.
Surprise: this 1961 movie is an entertaining, occasionally edgy and witty, colorful, imaginative, sincere, and even touching, take on the classic fairy tale. The special effects are astonishingly good, some gripping, suspenseful sequences, lots of magic, spells, and a few scenes of fairly decent action. The songs are not first-rate, but neither are they Leslie Bricusse-forgettable and banal. The skating sequences are quite beautiful, and one of them, a kind of dream ballet on ice that is similar thematically to Oklahoma!, where the fantasy romance turns into a nightmare, is unusually vivid and compelling.
It's actually a nearly perfect family film.
Reading up on the particulars, I learned that this 20th Century Fox movie had a huge budget, three and a half million ( which equals nearly 30 million today), and was planned to capitalize on the renewed, phenomenal popularity of the 3 Stooges, owing to their shorts being played on TV. It had no less than Walter Lang directing, his big credit being The King and I, and one of the screenwriters was Noel Langley, one of his credits being The Wizard of Oz.
The money spent on it shows in every frame. In Cinemascope, the cinematography, the Technicolor print job, the sets, costumes and matte backgrounds are all top-notch.
Besides the 3 Stooges, the main attraction is the first and only appearance of 1950s Olympic skating champion Carol Heiss in the title role. Heiss looks the part, and while not what you call a commanding actress, she is sincere and appealing, and most importantly, is never saccharine or cringe-inducing. Her two skating sequences are dazzling: beautifully choreographed, filmed and played out deftly in the context of the story, they are unique, singular, and quite innovative. In evidence is the double axel jump which originated with her, among other features that made her a skating star.
As for the 3 Stooges themselves, they are - surprise - very effectively used here. Word has it that they wanted to tone down their trademark violent physical for the sake of the children seeing the movie, and that instinct proved felicitous. They still do some of their classic buffoonery, but in a much more subdued manner. More importantly though, for this story, they are *lovable* buffoons. They serve to protect and join Snow White and Prince Charming together, and they are convincingly benevolent and sincere. Their antics add just the right amount of a fairy-tale clownish element, but they are never annoying or tiresome. They look old, but veteran performers that they were, are faultless in energy and spirit.
There are two genuine surprises in the casting.
The first is Edson Stroll as Quatro/Prince Charming. In movie/television pop culture history, he is a mere blip. Stroll appeared in two famous Twilight Zone episodes (where his outstanding physique is in full display), as well as Virgil in McHale's Navy. A few small roles in some movies, lots of bit parts in several TV series up until the 1980s, plus much voiceover work. Starting out as a bodybuilder in the early 1950s, he studied acting and singing, and appeared on stage in several musicals and plays, including Shakespeare. He later became a U. S. Coast Guard captain and a marine surveyor.
Based on his appearance and performance in this movie, Stroll could have been a full-fledged matinee idol-type star. He looks uncannily like a cartoon Prince Charming come to life: a perfect, swoony-dashing-romantic figure physique and face, photogenic, and looking almost like a younger brother of James Garner, with a touch of Errol Flynn thrown in. What's more, his acting is much better than one might think. It is a difficult task to deliver some of the fairy-tale, borderline-schlocky dialogue without it sounding smarmy and derisive; but in fact Stroll delivers it absolutely straight, with the utmost sincerity and believability in this context, and he never seems foolish or glib (he's very touching when he revives Snow White with a kiss). The swordfight with the queen's magician Count Oga, played by the wiry, spiky Guy Rolfe, is in very much the Errol Flynn-Basil Rathbone mode, and it provides some rousing adventure. Stroll does an uncommonly fine job in this role.
The movie is stolen, though, by Patricia Medina, as the evil queen, and later, when she's transformed into the wicked witch. Medina, who in real life was married to Joseph Cotten or something...er...somebody, had a minor league career, but this is her most famous role.
As the queen, the beautiful, voluptuous Medina is wily, droll, and spitefully witty in all her dialogue, savoring her turn with gleeful relish. Her queen is a medieval Alexis Carrington of Dynasty, and she plays it to the hilt. It gets even better. When the queen is transformed into a wicked witch, Medina's makeup, physical posture, and vocal characterization is a startling jolt. Medina goes into full camp mode here, cooing and cackling with wonderfully batty mirth. She's funny and fixating all at once. Too, she rides a broom with every bit of the evil joy as Margaret Hamilton did. You'll laugh when she sends a bolt of lightning at the hapless Stooges.
There are scenes and scenarios which plainly recall The Wizard of Oz, Robin Hood, and the Disney Snow White, but never in a blatant, plagiaristic way. An affectionate, respectful homage, you might say. Its big assets is that it is guileless in it aims, it doesn't insult your intelligence, and the whole approach is laudably absent of campiness. Never dull, it has energy and charm.
The movie bombed upon its release, and it is referred to scornfully by Stooges aficionados.
It is not, however, a typical Stooges vehicle. I think audiences of the time just didn't know what to make of it. Definitely offbeat, more than a bit idiosyncratic, and indubitably one-of-a-kind, this strangely beguiling movie has its quirky, demented charms.
My brother and I were 3 Stooges fans, and this movie was likely the reason we watched it.
I saw it in a close-out bin at Christmas time, and bought it, as I thought one of our family kids might enjoy it.
Curious, I watched it, wondering how my memories played out.
Surprise: this 1961 movie is an entertaining, occasionally edgy and witty, colorful, imaginative, sincere, and even touching, take on the classic fairy tale. The special effects are astonishingly good, some gripping, suspenseful sequences, lots of magic, spells, and a few scenes of fairly decent action. The songs are not first-rate, but neither are they Leslie Bricusse-forgettable and banal. The skating sequences are quite beautiful, and one of them, a kind of dream ballet on ice that is similar thematically to Oklahoma!, where the fantasy romance turns into a nightmare, is unusually vivid and compelling.
It's actually a nearly perfect family film.
Reading up on the particulars, I learned that this 20th Century Fox movie had a huge budget, three and a half million ( which equals nearly 30 million today), and was planned to capitalize on the renewed, phenomenal popularity of the 3 Stooges, owing to their shorts being played on TV. It had no less than Walter Lang directing, his big credit being The King and I, and one of the screenwriters was Noel Langley, one of his credits being The Wizard of Oz.
The money spent on it shows in every frame. In Cinemascope, the cinematography, the Technicolor print job, the sets, costumes and matte backgrounds are all top-notch.
Besides the 3 Stooges, the main attraction is the first and only appearance of 1950s Olympic skating champion Carol Heiss in the title role. Heiss looks the part, and while not what you call a commanding actress, she is sincere and appealing, and most importantly, is never saccharine or cringe-inducing. Her two skating sequences are dazzling: beautifully choreographed, filmed and played out deftly in the context of the story, they are unique, singular, and quite innovative. In evidence is the double axel jump which originated with her, among other features that made her a skating star.
As for the 3 Stooges themselves, they are - surprise - very effectively used here. Word has it that they wanted to tone down their trademark violent physical for the sake of the children seeing the movie, and that instinct proved felicitous. They still do some of their classic buffoonery, but in a much more subdued manner. More importantly though, for this story, they are *lovable* buffoons. They serve to protect and join Snow White and Prince Charming together, and they are convincingly benevolent and sincere. Their antics add just the right amount of a fairy-tale clownish element, but they are never annoying or tiresome. They look old, but veteran performers that they were, are faultless in energy and spirit.
There are two genuine surprises in the casting.
The first is Edson Stroll as Quatro/Prince Charming. In movie/television pop culture history, he is a mere blip. Stroll appeared in two famous Twilight Zone episodes (where his outstanding physique is in full display), as well as Virgil in McHale's Navy. A few small roles in some movies, lots of bit parts in several TV series up until the 1980s, plus much voiceover work. Starting out as a bodybuilder in the early 1950s, he studied acting and singing, and appeared on stage in several musicals and plays, including Shakespeare. He later became a U. S. Coast Guard captain and a marine surveyor.
Based on his appearance and performance in this movie, Stroll could have been a full-fledged matinee idol-type star. He looks uncannily like a cartoon Prince Charming come to life: a perfect, swoony-dashing-romantic figure physique and face, photogenic, and looking almost like a younger brother of James Garner, with a touch of Errol Flynn thrown in. What's more, his acting is much better than one might think. It is a difficult task to deliver some of the fairy-tale, borderline-schlocky dialogue without it sounding smarmy and derisive; but in fact Stroll delivers it absolutely straight, with the utmost sincerity and believability in this context, and he never seems foolish or glib (he's very touching when he revives Snow White with a kiss). The swordfight with the queen's magician Count Oga, played by the wiry, spiky Guy Rolfe, is in very much the Errol Flynn-Basil Rathbone mode, and it provides some rousing adventure. Stroll does an uncommonly fine job in this role.
The movie is stolen, though, by Patricia Medina, as the evil queen, and later, when she's transformed into the wicked witch. Medina, who in real life was married to Joseph Cotten or something...er...somebody, had a minor league career, but this is her most famous role.
As the queen, the beautiful, voluptuous Medina is wily, droll, and spitefully witty in all her dialogue, savoring her turn with gleeful relish. Her queen is a medieval Alexis Carrington of Dynasty, and she plays it to the hilt. It gets even better. When the queen is transformed into a wicked witch, Medina's makeup, physical posture, and vocal characterization is a startling jolt. Medina goes into full camp mode here, cooing and cackling with wonderfully batty mirth. She's funny and fixating all at once. Too, she rides a broom with every bit of the evil joy as Margaret Hamilton did. You'll laugh when she sends a bolt of lightning at the hapless Stooges.
There are scenes and scenarios which plainly recall The Wizard of Oz, Robin Hood, and the Disney Snow White, but never in a blatant, plagiaristic way. An affectionate, respectful homage, you might say. Its big assets is that it is guileless in it aims, it doesn't insult your intelligence, and the whole approach is laudably absent of campiness. Never dull, it has energy and charm.
The movie bombed upon its release, and it is referred to scornfully by Stooges aficionados.
It is not, however, a typical Stooges vehicle. I think audiences of the time just didn't know what to make of it. Definitely offbeat, more than a bit idiosyncratic, and indubitably one-of-a-kind, this strangely beguiling movie has its quirky, demented charms.