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Reviews
Magnum, P.I.: Skin Deep (1981)
"LAURA" ala' MAGNUM, P.I.
This episode is an almost note-for-note TV episode-length version of the 1944 classic film noir "LAURA".....
The plot is the same. The pay-off is the same, with Magnum-tailored 'Nam allusions peppered in along the winding plot path of a 'suicide' investigation that results in a reveal of obsession, jealousy and murder. Hawaiian locations impart a different viewing 'vibe' than the almost-claustrophobic-by-comparison black & white classic.
But Viet Nam combat trauma and Hawaii locales aside; this IS 'Laura" without a doubt. No less august personages than Donald Bellisario AND Glen Larson are credited with the writing, and I refuse to believe that they never saw the movie 'Laura", given the many similar elements in this tale.
Not that I am complaining, mind you--just sayin'....
Hey, if you're going to.... 'Homage', shall we say....you may as well Homage from the best!
The Lazarus Project (2022)
Time and Time Again....
I've been a fan of Time Travel as an entertainment concept for decades. I am 62.
I really wanted to like this.
However; 'The Lazarus Project' is nothing more than a re-hash mish-mash of half a dozen prior TT tv/move.book efforts.
The whole 'Top Secret Government Time Travel Project-To-Save-The-World' angle is SO "Seven Days'-meets-'Timeless'-via-'Timecop' it makes me just want to Time Travel back to watch those all over again...
Because they were all done so much better.
I will give 'The Lazarus project' credit for some solid action scenes--even cinematic, in fact--But that is hardly the end-all to viewing enjoyment.
The underpinning of the Time Travel itself in 'TLP' is so flimsy, it makes 'Timecop' seem downright well-explained. The 'hero', George being able to recall Pre-Loop events is blithely passed off by him being 'A Mutant'...? Seriously? Could we not find a more trite explanation?
Frank B. Parker in 'Seven Days' knew what HAD transpired...because he had lived it before he Time Traveled. Simple & effective. TLP has the entire world I guess, dial back in Time by way of...'A Singularity'.
Well; Black Holes suck...
And so to, does that explanation.
Add to this, the vague and basically UN-engaging characters, and this Time Travel series is just taking me nowhere...and No When.
True Lies: Public Secrets (2023)
Better......
I previously remarked about the premiere episode being a surprise for not trying to scene-by-scene replicate the titular movie.
I further made the determination of this 'True Lies' series as being essentially; 'Alias' with a sense of humor.
Episode 2; "Public Secrets" , upped the game a bit with a very 'Alias'-style plot going on, with Trainee Agent Helen undergoing OJT with a save-the-world-style mission .. During which, both Harry and Helen encounter past loves, and stress out as they get updates on what trouble their teenagers back home are getting into while mom & dad are away....saving the world....and their past loves!
Sound like fun?
Anyway, I will not belabor the plot, or posture with any pseudo-intellectual dribble ....or turn my review into some sort of bizarre, meaningless rant.
Thus far; "True Lies" the tv series is delivering on what I believe is it's mission; Light, fun entertainment.
True Lies (2023)
Not Quite The Miss-Fire I Had Expected.
When I heard of this series, I felt a sense of pending dread come over me; A Big Screen -to-Small Screen Disaster, surely...
The charm of the film could not possibly be replicated on tv because the central plot point of the film--Wife Helen being unaware of Husband Harry's real occupation--would swiftly wear thin in an on-going episodic series, ergo the plot was unsustainable over time. Case Closed. Game Over.
But...Surprise! The show did not try to replicate that plot element beyond the initial episode!
In fact, they show-runners made a wise decision in not attempting to slavishly duplicate the Big Screen True Lies, actively making alterations to the central characters; the tv Harry and Helen Tasker are different from the original movie characters.
From the start, it appears to be basically; 'Alias' with a sense of humor.
Time will tell if this gambit to carve their own 'True Lies' legend works out, but whether the series thrives on it's own character development, or drowns in mediocrity, at least it is trying.
The Great Locomotive Chase (1956)
CIVIL WAR HISTORY AS IT SHOULD BE DONE
This excellent Walt Disney-driven history vehicle depicts an actual 1862 Union sabotage mission that primarily failed to carry off the goal of wrecking a vital Confederate supply rail line. The Andrews Raid (AKA "The Great Locomotive Chase") is one of those ''side-show-of-the-big-show' events that would have been essentially lost to history had it not been for this film.
We owe it to Walt Disney--personally--that this film exists. Walt Disney was very hands-on with this production, and Disney famously loved history, This film adheres more to facts than dramatic fiction.
By comparison; many point to Buster Keaton's comedy classic "The General"--which used the same event as it's focal point--as a 'superior' film, yet Keaton's film strays SO FAR into fiction that it effectively cannot even be considered as a depiction of The Andrews Raid. "The General" is a fun action COMEDY...but comedy has nothing to do with The Andrews Raid.
Disney's "The Great Locomotive Chase" delivers an even-handed and largely-factual depiction of the goals and point of view of both Union and Confederate sides....something that sadly, just does not happen anymore.
Tie that together with dynamic performances and spot-on location filming with actual period trains, and you get a rarity; a Civil War film that has no agenda other than to tell a (dare-I-say-it?) ..moving ...story of motivation, determination, and courage.
Zorro: A Love Remembered (1991)
Henry Darrow Renews Old Aquaintances !
Henry Darrow shines in this tale of Alejandro encountering an old love from the past...
The neat part is that the episode makes use of clips from a 1969 episode of 'High Chapparral' , featuring Darrow as his HC character Monolito, in falling love ...with the very same actress appearing here in this 1991 'Zorro' episode !
Thus, the flashbacks are particularly effective, as 'young Alejandro' falls in love with 'Mercedes', and the romance is recalled by the same people across 22 years of filming.
Fugitive in the Sky (1936)
Smart & Fun Period Gem !
The setting; A 1930's airliner (a classic Ford Tri-Motor!) on a cross-country flight.
The weather grows worse, with a mid-west dust storm threatening to bring down the aircraft.
Suddenly, the situation becomes much worse with two further complications:
1) A passenger is stabbed to death--while all are sleeping! Whodunit?
2) A notorious gunman, "Killer Madsen" is in disguise on board and fleeing from the law!
The crew and passengers must keep their cool as the weather gets worse and the desperate gunman takes over the aircraft, threatening everyone!
The kicker; The hard-as-nails, gun-pointing 'Killer Madsen' claims that he is NOT the murderer of the passenger !
So the question remains; Who killed the passenger?... ....And Why??
A fast-paced little film with sly, slick and sharp dialogue, great atmosphere, and a LOT of Fun !