VH Corner

I’ll continue to recap shows the week they premiere, but I thought I should still focus on the new shows that will be premiering this upcoming fall season so you can figure out if you want to add any new shows to your viewing repertoire.

NBC New Fall Shows

My Own Worst Enemy
Channel: NBC
Time: 10/9c
Premieres: Mon, Oct 13
Starring: Christian Slater, Alfre Woodard, Mike O’Malley
Trailer

Synopsis: Henry is a normal, suburban dad, but he is also Edward, who is a highly specialized spy. His two personalities are starting to become aware of the other one.

My Take: Is it Jekyll/Hyde or Total Recall or something else altogether? I’m intriguied enough to tune in. It would be nice for Christian Slater to be good in something again.

Continue reading “NBC New Fall Shows”

Tags: Alfre Woodard, Anna Walton, bruce davison, christian slater, Craig Baker, crusoe, David Bartis, deanna russo, doug liman, Gary Scott Thompson, Joaquim De Almeida, John Michael Higgins, justin bruening, Kath & Kim, knight rider, Mike O'Malley, Molly Shannon, my own worst enemy, nbc, Paul Campbell, Philip Winchester, Sam Neill, Selma Blair, Sydney Tamila Poitier, Tongayi Chirisa, Yancey Arias

I’ll continue to recap shows the week they premiere, but I thought I should still focus on the new shows that will be premiering this upcoming fall season so you can figure out if you want to add any new shows to your viewing repertoire.

FOX New Fall Shows

Fringe
Channel: FOX
Time: 8/7c
Premieres: Tue, Sep 9
Starring: Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, John Noble, Lance Reddick, Kirk Acevedo, Mark Valley, Blair Brown, Jasika Nicole
Trailer

Synopsis: An FBI agent works with a former institutionalized scientist and his equally brilliant, but con-artist son to solve crimes that are a bit off the beaten path in terms of science, such as telekinesis, reanimation and teleportation. There is also some kind of pattern forming amongst all these strange cases.

My Take: I’ve already seen the pilot and really enjoyed it. I love JJ Abrahms’ shows and I like the supernatural element in this one. Joshua Jackson is actually surprising and my favorite part of the episode. It is a TV Guide Pick and The Futon Critic loves it.

Continue reading “FOX New Fall Shows”

Tags: Anna Torv, Blair Brown, Brando Eaton, Brooke Burns, do not disturb, fox, fringe, Hole in the Wall, Jasika Nicole, jerry o'connell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, John Noble, Jolene Purdy, Joshua Jackson, Kirk Acevedo, Lance Reddick, Mark Thompson, Mark Valley, Molly Staton, Niecy Nash

I’ll continue to recap shows the week they premiere, but I thought I should still focus on the new shows that will be premiering this upcoming fall season so you can figure out if you want to add any new shows to your viewing repertoire.

Keep in mind that CW is doing something weird this season. They outsourced their entire Sunday night line-up, so even though it is still CW, it is almost like it is another company running Sunday night. There are no trailers for these shows and I haven’t seen a promotional push for any of them by the CW. There is only a tiny bit of info on the shows on the CW site, but you have to search for it. None of the shows are listed in their Fall Preview section. It’s all very odd.

CW New Fall Shows

90210
Channel: CW
Time: 8/7c
Premieres: Tue, Sep 2
Starring: Shenae Grimes, Rob Estes, Tristan Wilds, AnnaLynne McCord, Dustin Milligan, Ryan Eggold, Jessica Stroup, Michael Steger, Lora Loughlin, Tabitha Wilson, Jennie Garth
Trailer

Synopsis: It is Beverly Hills 90210: The Next Generation. A family has moved out to Beverly Hills from the midwest to take care of their grandmother and the dad has taken a job as a principal at West Beverly Hills High. Kelly Taylor is working at the high school as a guidance counselor.

My Take: TV Guide has listed it as one of their picks, but the pilot was unavailable for review. I used to watch the original the first couple of seasons before it was too dumb to continue. Well, I guess it was always dumb, but I graduated high school and started watching other stuff. I have no desire to watch this version, especially with the very annoying actress AnnaLynne McCord from Nip/Tuck.

Continue reading “CW New Fall Shows”

Tags: 90210, Allan Louis, AnnaLynne McCord, Anne Archer, Anne Slowey, Ashley Newbrough, Autumn Reeser, Brian Hallisay, cw, Dustin Milligan, Easy Money, Hunter Ellis, In Harm's Way, Jaime Murray, Jay Ferguson, Jeff Hephner, Jennie Garth, Jessica Stroup, joanna garcia, Joe Zee, Katie Lowes, Kristina Apgar, Kristoffer Pohaha, Laurie Metcalf, Lora Loughlin, Lucy Kate Hale, Marsha Thomasan, Michael Cassidy, Michael Steger, Nick Searcy, Privileged, Rob Estes, Robert Baker, Ryan Eggold, Shenae Grimes, stylista, Tabitha Wilson, Tristan Wilds, Valentine

I’ll continue to recap shows the week they premiere, but I thought I should still focus on the new shows that will be premiering this upcoming fall season so you can figure out if you want to add any new shows to your viewing repertoire.

CBS New Fall Shows

The Mentalist
Channel: CBS
Time: 9/8c
Premieres: Tue, Sep 23
Starring: Simon Baker, Robin Tunney
Trailer

Synopsis: A former fake tv psychic decides to become a private investigator because he has awesome observation skills.

My Take: Hmm. Sounds like Psych, but without the fabulous Shawn/Gus combo. Simon Baker has a certain charm to him that makes me want to check it out though, even if it is ripping off a show I love. In the trailer, he said, “He irks me. He’s irksome.” I found that funny.

Continue reading “CBS New Fall Shows”

Tags: Adam Rothenberg, Alexandra Breckenridge, Amir Talai, cbs, eleventh hour, Elizabeth Reaser, Erinn Hayes, Ex List, Gary Unmarried, Jaime King, jay mohr, Kurtwood Smith, Kyle Bornheimer, Marley Shelton, Mentalist, Nancy Lenehan, Paula Marshall, Rachel Boston, Robin Tunney, rufus sewell, Ryan Malgarini, Simon Baker, worst week

Beyond Hamlet 2, the movies look very dismal this week. When we saw the trailer for Babylon A.D. for the first time before Hellboy 2, the girl in the movie asked Vin Diesel why he was risking his life for her and a guy in the theater answered, “Because I haven’t had a good movie in a while.” If that doesn’t sum it up, the director has admitted the movie isn’t good. eek! College and Disaster Movie were not screened for critics, which almost always means they are horrible. All the bad movies this week are really ripping off much better movies. That means I just said Transporter is better that some of these movies. Then there is Traitor, which bores me so much that I turn the tv whenever I come across the trailer.

Nationwide Releases

Hamlet 2
Directed: Andrew Fleming
Starring: Steve Coogan, Catherine Keener, David Arquette, Amy Poehler, Elisabeth Shue
Trailer

Synopsis: A failed actor is now a high-school musical teacher leading his students through a sequel to Hamlet that involves time travel and a sexy Jesus.

My Take: Sounds incredibly stupid, yet I laugh every time I see the trailer.

RT Score: 61%
RT Consensus: The script’s biting premise and Steve Coogan’s endearing, off-the-handle performance make Hamlet 2 an hysterical — if slightly painful — ride.

Continue reading “Movies Opening August 29″

Tags: aaron seltzer, Alyy Khan, Amy Poehler, An Nguyen, Andrew Caldwell, Andrew Fleming, Babylon A.D., Ballet Shoes, Catherine Keener, College, Crista Flanagan, David Arquette, David Kaplan, Deb Hagan, Disaster Movie, Don Cheadle, Drake Bell, Elisabeth Shue, Emilia Fox, emma watson, Gary "G-Thang" Johnson, Guy Pearce, Hamlet 2, Hayley Bennett, Hideaki Ito, jason friedberg, Jeffrey Nachmanoff, Ken Leung, Kevin Covais, Koichi Sato, Lambert Wilson, Lee Wong, Lucy Boynton, Mark Strong, Masanobu Ando, Mathieu Kassovitz, Matt Lanter, Melanie Thierry, Michelle Yeoh, Neal McDonough, Nicole Parker, quentin tarantino, Randall Duk Kim, Ryan Pinkston, Said Taghmaoui, Sandra Goldbacher, Steve Coogan, Sukiyaki Western Django, Takaaki Ishibashi, Takashi Miike, Traitor, Tsai Chin, Vanessa Minnillo, Victoria Wood, Vin Diesel, Yasmin Paige, Year of the Fish, Yusuke Iseya

I’ll continue to recap shows the week they premiere, but I thought I should still focus on the new shows that will be premiering this upcoming fall season so you can figure out if you want to add any new shows to your viewing repertoire.

ABC New Fall Shows

Life on Mars
Channel: ABC
Time: 10/9c
Premieres: Thu, Oct 9
Starring: Jason O’Mara, Harvey Keitel, Michael Imperioli, Gretchen Mol, Jonathan Murphy, Lisa Bonet
Trailer

Synopsis: Remake of a BBC show where after a car accident, a cop wakes up in 1973. Is he in a coma dreaming it all or did he actually go back in time? He’s trying to figure out how to get back while clashing with the politically incorrect cops of the ’70s.

My Take: I’ve watched the BBC show, which was good. I’m not sure what I think about it taking place in New York City now, but the actors look interesting so I’m willing to give it a shot.

Continue reading “ABC New Fall Shows”

Tags: abc, fall shows, Gretchen Mol, Harvey Keitel, J.D. Roth, Jason O'Mara, Jonathan Murphy, life on mars, Lisa Bonet, Michael Imperioli, opportunity knocks

In The Flesh
Author: Clive Barker

I had read a lot of Clive Barker’s short stories when I was younger, but forgot which ones I had read since I hadn’t read them all. I couldn’t remember if I had read In the Flesh or Inhuman Condition since they both started with the same letter. While reading this one, none of it was familiar until I got to the second of four stories, called “The Forbidden”. It is the basis for the Candyman movies. I never saw the movie, but the story stuck with me since it was very creepy and gross. When I read it, the movie had not been made, but one scene in it became ingrained in my brain. A woman who is doing some graduate school research on a very poor neighborhood.  She goes into an abandoned house to find drawn on the wall an extremely disturbing face laughing, but the doorway was being used as the mouth. It was so descriptive that when I had an assignment in my junior English class to describe a room that another person in the class would have to guess who it belonged to, I described that room. No one guessed it was the room of a psychopathic killer, but instead thought it was a messed up teenager.

Continue reading “In the Flesh”

Tags: clive barker, in the flesh

Willing to Try

Gavin & Stacey
Channel: BBCA
Time: 8:40/7:40c
Premieres: Tue, August 26
Starring: Mathew Horne, Joanna Page, James Corden, Ruth Jones, Alison Steadman, Larry Lamb, Rob Brydon, Melanie Walters
Trailer

Synopsis: Two people fall in love over a long distance, but finally decide to meet in person where their friends and families do not make their relationship easy.

My Take: It has the potential to be funny.

Continue reading “TV: Week of August 24″

Tags: Alison Steadman, Amber Stevens, America's Toughest Jobs, Clark Duke, deal or no deal, Dilshad Vadsaria, gavin and stacey, Greek, Howie Mandel, Jack McDorman, Jacob Zachar, James Corden, Joanna Page, Josh Temple, Larry Lamb, Mathew Horne, Melanie Walters, Paul James, Rob Brydon, Ruth Jones, Scott Michael Foster, Spencer Grammer, Tiffany Dupont

Out of the wide releases this week, the critics aren’t loving any of the movies. Death Race doesn’t promise to be more than mindless, violent action, yet the critics did not have any fun watching it. It was too empty for them. Speaking of empty, House Bunny is the first movie for Anna Faris to lead, and even though critics like her, the story is about as blank as her character. The Rocker appears to just be a bad rip-off of School of Rock, Rainn Wilson’s character isn’t much of a stretch from Dwight on The Office, and he’s naked far too much in it. Finally, The Longshots is a stereotypical sports movie where a girl wants to play football, isn’t allowed on the team, but beats all odds by the end. The most shocking part about the movie, though, is it directed by Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst.

Nationwide Releases

Death Race
Directed: Paul W.S. Anderson
Starring: Jason Statham, Joan Allen, Tyrese Gibson, Ian McShane
Trailer

Synopsis: In order to go even more extreme with reality television, there is a racing competition inside a jail with the prisoners.

My Take: Perfect movie for when you need to turn off your brain, but still probably very horrible.

RT Score: 40%
RT Consensus: Mindless, violent, and lightning-paced, Death Race is little more than an empty action romp.

Continue reading “Movies Opening August 22″

Tags: anna faris, Azazel Jacobs, Cara Buono, Carl Deal, christina applegate, colin hanks, Cthulhu, Dan Gildark, Dash Mihok, David Walker, Death Race, Eleanor Hutchins, Emma Stone, Fred Durst, fred wolf, House Bunny, I Served the King of England, I.O.U.S.A., ian mcshane, ice cube, Ivan Barnev, Jason Cottle, jason statham, Jeff Garlin, Jill Marie Jones, Jiri Menzel, joan allen, Julia Jentsch, Katharine McPhee, Keke Palmer, Ken Jacobs, Longshots, Marian Labuda, Matt Boren, Milan Lasica, Momma's Man, Oldoich Kaiser, Patrick Creadon, Paul W.S. Anderson, Peter Cattaneo, Piero Arcilesi, Rainn Wilson, Richard Edson, Robert Padilla, Rocker, Ron Paul, Rumer Willis, Scott Green, Tasha Smith, Teddy Geiger, Tia Lessin, Tori Spelling, Trouble the Water, Tyrese Gibson, Warren Buffett, William Bonner

There has been some protests surrounding Tropic Thunder, but that hasn’t stopped the critics from loving it. It has been Certified Fresh. Woody Allen has had some good films (Match Point) and some horrible ones (Melinda and Melinda and Scoop) lately. Vicky Cristina Barcelona appears to be one of the good ones. Mirrors wasn’t screened for critics in advance like most horror movies. It is another remake of an Asian horror movie, this time a Korean movie. The Clone Wars caused confusion since there was already cartoons made of it for television a few years ago and it seems to covering the same territory. I think George Lucas just needs to let the franchise go.

Nationwide Releases

Tropic Thunder
Directed: Ben Stiller
Starring: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Brandon T. Jackson, Jay Baruchel
Trailer

Synopsis: Big movie stars take themselves so seriously in a Vietnam war drama that the director decides to just drop them into the jungles of Vietnam to fend for themselves, but doesn’t tell them that.

My Take: While I am not a Ben Stiller fan, this looks hilarious. Also, Robert Downey Jr. cracks me up. It looks so wrong, yet so funny.

RT Score: 84%
RT Consensus: With biting satire, plenty of subversive humor, and an unforgettable turn by Robert Downey, Jr., Tropic Thunder is a triumphant late Summer comedy.

Continue reading “Movies Opening August 15″

Tags: Adriana Barraza, Alexandra Aja, Amy Smart, Anthony Daniels, Ben Stassen, ben stiller, Benoit Magimel, Brandon T. Jackson, Cheryl Hines, Chris Messina, Christopher Lee, Christopher Lloyd, Claude Chabrol, Clone Wars, Dave Filoni, Fly Me To The Moon, Flyboys, Francois Berleand, George Lopez, Girl Cut in Two, Henry Poole Is Here, Ian Abercrombie, jack black, Jack Brooks Monster Slayer, Jason Flemyng, javier bardem, Jay Baruchel, Jesse James, Jon Knautz, Kiefer Sutherland, Ludivine Sagnier, luke wilson, Mark Pellington, Mathilda May, Matt Lanter, Mirrors, Nicollette Sheridan, Paula Patton, penelope cruz, Rachel Skarsten, Radha Mitchell, Rebecca Hall, Reiley McClendon, Robert Downey Jr., Robert Englung, robert patrick, Robert Patrick Benedict, Rocco Devilliers, samuel l. jackson, scarlett johansson, Stephen Baldwin, Tim Curry, Tom Sizemore, Trevor Matthews, tropic thunder, Valeria Cavalli, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, woody allen