March Madness Edition I AM LEGEND, ENCHANTED and More Reviewed Plus: THE LOVE BOAT Finally Sets Sail On DVD
My freshman -- and, as it turns out, only -- year at Ithaca College in
central New York was packed with memories. Road trips to Syracuse to
meet “Recordman” (FSM’s resident LP expert Mike
Murray), snow-filled weekends watching laserdiscs in the dorm, and many
weekends hanging out with friends -- including Paul MacLean, who
basically saved me from a life of boredom single-handedly -- were the
good times. Disappointing classes (nearly two-dozen of which
didn’t meet in the second semester alone due to professors,
traveling from Syracuse and points elsewhere, being stranded by
weather), a sparsely populated campus on weekends, and a generally
disinterested student body were the flip side of the coin.
Suffice to say I became so irritated with Ithaca that one of my daily
outlets for an escape was the 4pm weekday airing of “The Love
Boat” on WOR-TV New York. Each afternoon in these pre-internet
boom days (Gopher and Mosaic might’ve been then-indispensable
tools of navigating the web, but I couldn’t figure them out until
a friend introduced me to “Netscape Navigator” a year or so
later), I’d generally rush home from class and turn on the
“‘Boat,” along with several others on my floor.
It didn’t matter that WOR generally showed only the same
two-dozen episodes in their possession, or the quality of these
syndicated re-runs was so poor it looked like second-generation video
tape...the adventures of Captain Stubbing and his Pacific Princess
cruise staff made for an escape that managed to entertain a group of
college students years after its cancellation in the exact same way the
Aaron Spelling-produced series had for nearly a decade on the ABC
airwaves from the late ‘70s through the mid ‘80s.
And it’s no surprise why THE LOVE BOAT
was such a success: mixing sitcom-styled laughs with dramatic
storylines, the series was like watching several different kinds of
shows at once. Add in a weekly dose of Guest Star power -- be it from
John Ritter or Sherman Helmsley or Don Ameche or Charo herself -- and
you had the recipe for irresistibly appealing, glossy all-star network
TV at its finest.
Interestingly, though, the “‘Boat” did not float at
first. It took Spelling and ABC no less than three tries to bring their
fictional adaptation of Jeraldine Saunders’ autobiographical book
“Love Boats” to series fruition.
Two different TV movies aired in the 1976 and ‘77 seasons, trying
-- and failing -- to find the right cast to fill out the principal
roles of the ship’s captain and his crew. The formula for the
show was set (the first two TV films offered stars ranging from Gabe
Kaplan to Karen Valentine and Ken Berry, among many others), but only
with the third pilot movie (“The New Love Boat”) in 1977
did the producers find the magic of Gavin MacLeod as Captain Stubbing,
Lauren Tewes as perky cruise director Julie McCoy, Fred Grandy as
“Gopher”, Ted Lange as “Isaac” (aka the
World’s Sweetest Bartender), and Bernie Koppell as the
ship’s resident playboy doctor.
With the ensemble cast finally settled, “The Love Boat”
debuted in September of ‘77 and became an immediate hit with
audiences. It’s been a while since the series has been widely
available, but viewers can enjoy these early shows again now that the
first batch of the series’ debut season is at last on DVD in a
satisfying enough box-set courtesy of CBS and Paramount Home Video.
These early episodes of “The Love Boat” try a little harder
than the later years to convince you that, yes, these characters are
actually ON a ship, utilizing some location shooting instead of the
standing soundstages that would only be utilized (along with stock
location footage) in subsequent seasons. In general, though, once you
hear the mellow strains of the Paul Williams-Charles Fox theme song
bellowing out of your speakers (Jack Jones has never sounded so good),
you’ll feel immediately at home watching the antics of stars like
John Ritter (in drag!), Meredith Baxter Birney, Jacyln Smith, Sherman
Helmsley, Jimmie ‘J.J.’ Walker, Suzanne Sommers, Robert
Reed, Loretta Swit, Leslie Nielsen, Robert Urich, and countless others
try and navigate the rough waters of romance on the series each week.
The transfers are fine, the sound is acceptable, and optional episode
promos are on-tap before each show. CBS has also included brief
broadcast and cast synopsis for each episode, but no supplements are
on-hand. Hopefully future releases will offer some interviews and
insight into the series’ enduring popularity, but just to be able
to see these early episodes again in seemingly uncut form really
provides a blast of nostalgia that ought to enchant “Love
Boat” fans of all ages.
Post-Script: before I left Ithaca for Boston College, I found out from
one of my professors that Gavin MacLeod had graduated from the
institution many years before. One particularly drab September
afternoon, I ventured into the Alumni Office (it was on the way to my
Spanish class, in a building owned by a corporation that produced cash
registers), and asked if I could send a letter to Mr. MacLeod, thanking
him for saving my afternoons -- and my sanity. A few days later after
filing a request (they thought I was crazy, and I couldn’t blame
them), I got the go-ahead from someone in the office who called me
back, saying they’d be happy to forward a letter to Captain
Stubbing on my behalf.
Months passed. Light at the end of the tunnel emerged -- that being
Christmas vacation. The day my last class ended before vacation, I ran
to grab my mail (I should add the girl who handled the packages for our
building hated me, as Lukas often sent CD’s and I also reviewed
laserdiscs for a Canadian magazine back in the day...necessitating her
to drop her biology homework, get up and grab my stash during the
2-hour window in which they handed out the package mail).
I hopped in the elevator with a couple of idiots I knew, thumbed
through my mail and found a large envelope: “fragile! Do not
bend!” it read. Thinking it might have been just a lousy press
release, I nevertheless opened it up...there to find a three-page
handwritten letter from Gavin MacLeod, along with a signed glossy photo
that read “Andy: God Bless Your Wonderful Life!”. If you
could imagine a pair of grungy stoners (remember this was ‘93)
watching a freshman open up a package from Gavin MacLeod, it might have
seemed like something out of a bad sitcom...but I can assure you it all
happened, and Gavin’s note remains one of the few
“celebrity run-ins” I have in my possession. Obviously
it’s the most treasured one as well.
Watching these DVDs took me back, in a good way, to those freshman days
-- the good, the bad, and the memorable, of which “The Love
Boat” played a rather large, and fondly remembered, role. New on Blu-Ray and DVD
I AM LEGEND: Blu-Ray (***, 100 [theatrical] and 104 [alternate] mins., 2007, PG-13; Warner):
The first-hour of “I Am Legend” is as tense, compelling,
disturbing and thoroughly gut-wrenching a science-fiction film as
you’ll see.
Adapting
Richard Matheson’s “I Am Legend” for a new
generation, director Francis Lawrence and writers Mark Protosevich and
Akiva Goldsman place Will Smith in the role that Vincent Price and
Charlton Heston essayed in decades past -- that of Robert Neville, a
biologist who seemingly becomes the last man on Earth after a virus,
once intended to cure cancer, wipes out nearly the entire populace of
New York City and beyond.
Neville cruises the streets of the now-deserted Big Apple with his
German Shepherd Sam in tow, hunting wild animals who have taken to
running through the buildings and tunnels of the formerly major
metropolis. He even rents videos from a corner video shop, having
placed and dressed mannequins who he talks to every day as if they were
real people.
It’s a lonely existence, but it could be worse: once the sun goes
down, whatever is left of humanity comes out, making loud, snarling
noises and hunting whatever life is still left in the post-apocalyptic
world.
For essentially an hour, “I Am Legend” draws you into this
nightmarish scenario of humanity’s demise and doesn’t let
up. The picture’s visuals of empty New York streets and animals
running amok are breathtakingly -- and all too convincingly --
represented, while Smith gives a sympathetic, wholly believable
performance as a man who’s lost everything, yet still tries to
“fix” the situation by abducting the “infected”
and trying to find a cure for them. All the while, flashbacks
(seemingly modeled after “Lost”) fill in the gaps of
mankind’s final hours, as Smith tries tragically to get his
family out of the city. Individual set-pieces are also potent, such as
when Smith’s dog runs into a darkened warehouse where hordes of
the creatures congregate, and a later sequence where the creatures turn
the tables on Neville.
The picture’s opening is so strong that one would anticipate the
filmmakers having a hard time finding an ending that would live up to
it. Sadly this is completely the case here, as the picture sinks once a
woman (Alice Braga) and a young boy appear, having received
Smith’s daily radio broadcast. There’s no development of
these characters of any kind, and Braga comes off as being particularly
devoid of charisma or any chemistry with her co-star (the sequence
where Smith tries to teach Braga about the beauty of Bob Marley’s
music is downright pathetic). Their role in the story is pre-ordained,
but because of the startling lack of development of these roles,
there’s no emotional connection or pay-off to them -- something
the story needed to have in order to function at the end.
Warner’s DVD and Blu-Ray releases do offer one advantage over the
theatrical version: that being the option to view the film with its
alternate (original) ending, which not only is a tad more upbeat than
the released version, but also ties in with the main story (of the
infected beings chasing Smith) far more effectively. Why this more
emotional finale was jettisoned in favor of a slightly more
“action” filled climax is anyone’s guess, but viewers
new to the film are urged to view it with the “alternate”
ending instead of the theatrical version. Not that this finale is
perfect, either, but it’s certainly the better option given the
choice.
“I Am Legend,” then, is that rare science fiction film that
doesn’t pull any punches (young children should avoid the film at
all costs, as well as dog lovers sensitive to traumatic death scenes of
animals on-screen). It’s a visually compelling and well-performed
piece that likely works better on video than it did in theaters -- due
to the amount of silence in its opening hour -- and comes as strongly
recommended for sci-fi fans in spite of its lackluster final third.
Warner’s Blu-Ray disc is absolutely spectacular (an HD-DVD
version is still due out in a few weeks). The 1080p transfer is as
flawless and impressive as any I’ve watched in high-definition to
date, and ranks as demo material for all high-def enthusiasts. The
Dolby TrueHD audio is likewise exceptional, while extras include a
gallery of short featurettes pertaining to the production; a featurette
examining the possibility of real-life disease infections (in HD); and
four animated comics.
ENCHANTED: Blu-Ray and DVD (***, 107 mins., 2007, PG; Disney): Appropriately
enchanting musical-comedy from Disney, director Kevin Lima and
co-producer Barry Sonnenfeld finds an animated aspiring princess (Amy
Adams) making the leap from her 2-D world into a very real New York
City after having been banished from her beloved suitor (James Marsden)
by his wicked mother (Susan Sarandon).
Adams’ adaptation to her newfound surroundings is slow in coming,
as a divorce lawyer (Patrick Dempsey) tries to get her to stop singing
ballads and attempts to show her how magic just doesn’t exist in
the real world...all the while Marsden comes leaping, hopping and
hoping to find Adams and bring her back.
“Enchanted” is a typical fish-out-of-water tale, with some
predictable gags and a script (by Bill Kelly) that misses some
opportunities to satirize its conventions even more than it does. That
said, the film sings -- literally -- whenever one of Alan Menken and
Stephen Schwartz’s terrific songs appear, particularly the
delightful number “How Will I Know,” which is splendidly
performed and choreographed. Adams is just fine in the perky role of
the wide-eyed innocent princess, while Dempsey -- in his first real
leading cinematic role in years -- does a nice turn as the downtrodden
single father who finds true love again, even though he’s engaged
to another woman (Idina Menzel from “Rent” and
“Wicked”).
“Enchanted” makes for a beautiful DVD and Blu-Ray
presentation, with veteran cinematographer Don Burgess capturing all of
the colorful fun in gorgeous 2.35 widescreen. The Blu-Ray release in
particular is graced with a splendid HD transfer, while Dolby TrueHD
audio seems to be the format of choice now that Disney has followed
Sony’s lead and begun to drop uncompressed PCM audio tracks from
their Blu-Ray releases.
Extras include a few minutes of deleted scenes and bloopers, several
behind-the-scenes featurettes, a music video of Carrie
Underwood’s song “Ever Ever After,” and a pop-up
interactive game. The Blu-Ray release also includes a
“D-Files” game that invites viewers to uncover all the
various references to other Disney films.
APPLESEED: EX MACHINA Blu-Ray (104 mins., 2007, PG-13; Warner):
Spectacularly animated continuation of the well-known Japanese anime
from producer John Woo follows female warrior Deunan and her romantic
rivals -- cyborgs Briareos and Tereus -- while they try to ward off
evil zealots in the city-nation of Olympus. If you’re new to the
material (as I am), “Ex Machina” probably isn’t the
best way to be introduced to the story line, but the action is
impressive and the computer-generated visuals absolutely splendid in
high definition. Warner’s Blu-Ray disc sports an immaculate 1080p
transfer that’s disappointingly complimented only by a straight
5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack. Extras include commentary, a history of
“The Appleseed Chronicles,” a featurette on the
collaboration between Woo and original author Shirow Masamune, and
other goodies. Highly recommended for anime/magna fans. Also on DVD
GREEK: Chapter One (445 mins., 2007; Buena Vista):
Terrific, surprisingly winning ABC Family series about university life
is kind of a cross between “Animal House” and
“Dawson’s Creek,” following a young freshman’s
journey after he pledges to his school’s resident crazy frat
house -- much to the chagrin of his older, more popular sister, who
essentially runs the school’s trendy female fraternity.
Alternately comedic and dramatic situations mark this sharply-written
series, which plays with stereotypes (the shy gay student who’s
afraid to come out of the closet; the rigidly devout Christian student
at odds with his more liberal roommate) and ends up being respectful of
its varied characters instead of painting them with typically broad
strokes. The cast is likewise appealing, including Spencer Grammer
(Kelsey’s daughter) as the female lead and Scott Michael Foster
as the happy go-lucky Tim Matheson-type of the nutty fraternity --
who’s also, not coincidentally, Grammer’s former boyfriend.
“Greek” is back on ABC Family with new episodes next week,
but for viewers unfamiliar with the show, Buena Vista has just issued
“Chapter One” of the series’ first group of episodes
on DVD. The 16:9 (1.78) transfers are terrific, as are the 5.1
soundtracks, while extras include deleted scenes, commentaries,
extended musical numbers, a featurette, and preview of the
series’ forthcoming episodes.
BEE MOVIE (**½, 90 mins., 2007, PG; Dreamworks):
Typical CGI animated film from Dreamworks offers the comic stylings of
Jerry Seinfeld as a sly-talking bee who graduates from college and
decides to sue humanity for eating honey! Along the way he makes
friends with a florist (voiced by Renee Zellweger) who helps Barry B.
Benson’s dreams come true. “Bee Movie” is moderately
funny but it’s primarily for kids, with a story line that’s
pretty basic and laughs that only intermittently connect with adults.
The colorful animation is fine and Dreamworks’ DVD includes a
terrific 16:9 transfer with 5.1 Dolby Digital sound and a number of
extras, including alternate endings, deleted scenes, live-action
trailers, Making Of featurettes, games, and footage of Jerry in costume
at Cannes selling the picture to prospective outlets.
NANCY DREW (**½, 99 mins., 2007, PG; Warner):
The legendary young female sleuth returned to the silver screen in this
box-office disappointment from last summer, somewhat belatedly released
just now from Warner. As Nancy, Emma Roberts (Julia’s niece) is
charming, though Andrew Fleming’s film makes the mistake of
turning the material as much into a fish-out-of-water story (with Nancy
having trouble fitting in with the cliques at her new school) as it is
a mystery-whoduneit. The end result is a mixture of genres that’s
never quite satisfying, but kids still ought to enjoy the film, even if
they may not be aware how much more entertaining the original books
are. Warner’s DVD offers both 16:9 (2.35) and full-screen
transfers with 5.1 Dolby Digital audio. Slim extras include just a gag
reel and a group of very short, promotional featurettes.
AFTER DARK HORROR FEST: 8 FILMS TO DIE FOR (Lionsgate): The second batch of horrific terrors from Lionsgate includes the NYC infection thriller MULBERRY ST. (84 mins., R); the silly LAKE DEAD (91 mins., Unrated); the oddball Stan Winston production THE DEATHS OF IAN STONE (87 mins., R); the gleefully fun NIGHTMARE MAN (90 mins., 2008, R); the “Feast”-ish UNEARTHED (93 mins., R);CRAZY EIGHTS (80 mins., R),
which nearly plays more like a typical direct-to-video psycho thriller
with Traci Lords, Dina Meyer, Gabrielle Anwar, Frank Whaley and George
Newbern among the “B-list” former stars onboard; the
Mexican-set BORDERLAND (105 mins., Unrated); and TOOTH AND NAIL (94 mins., R),
an unintentionally funny tale of post-apocalyptic survivors trying to
stay alive after being hunted by a group of cannibals, including Vinnie
Jones and Michael Madsen, slumming even for them!
DON’T DRINK THE WATER (100 mins., 1969):
Misfired adaptation of Woody Allen’s play stars Jackie Gleason
and Estelle Parsons as the hapless American couple who, along with
their daughter, is arrested for espionage after their plane is hyjacked
for Vulgaria. Allen would have a lengthy relationship here with
producer Charles H. Joffe, but he did Allen no favors with this
strident adaptation of Allen’s play, badly adapted by R.S. Allen
and Harvey Bullock, and directed by comic actor Howard Morris.
Lionsgate’s DVD does sport a good 16:9 (1.85) transfer with 2.0
Dolby mono sound. NEXT
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