TV | Wild At Heart | Pass

We were hoping for a Monarch of the Glen set in Africa and that's pretty much what we got, minus some of the charm. It's still pretty good for a nighttime soap drama and well worth watching. Too bad we never got it here in the States, because it's hugely popular in other places and lasted seven seasons. There was supposedly a US version, but it failed miserably. Probably because it was on The CW...who watches that channel?

TV | Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy | PASS

I enjoyed this greatly, but it's for The Mighty Boosh (and possibly the Krofft Brothers' stuff) fanatics only. Nobody else is going to get it whatsoever.

Movie | Nothing But Trouble | Pass

Is it so wrong that I actually enjoyed this? I can understand why people hated it, though. It wasn't what everybody expected - Ghostbusters 8. Instead, you get a crazy ride with a mean streak.This would make a great double with Alex Winter's Freaked.

Movie | Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid | Pass

Cool Western featuring a killer cast who flesh out slightly more likeable characters. Even more amazing camera work. Peckinpah's finest? Make sure you see the new, 2005 release with all the extras.

Movie | Sweet Smell of Success | Pass

Cool noir featuring a killer cast who flesh out some unlikeable characters. Amazing camera work. Thanks for the recommendation, movieguy!

Movie | Lockout | Pass

Though he only wrote and produced (but didn't direct), Luc Besson remakes Carpenter's Escape From New York. Guy Peirce does a Kurt Russell impression. Vincent Regan is in everything I've seen lately (Hit & Miss, Wild At Heart). Those are pretty much the reasons why I had to see this movie.

The editing is atrocious, abrupt and this is a very light movie. It's interesting and refreshing to see how hard they worked at making the violence less, well, violent. This is a good popcorn action movie. Though it certainly isn't a masterpiece by any stretch, I enjoyed it. But, I'll most likely then forget it.

Movie | Went to Coney | Pass

Went to Coney Island on a Mission from God, Be Back by Five

Well done (80s style) but rather depressing movie about two friends who try to go to the aid of a buddy that's gone off his nut. Jon Cryer co-wrote as well as co-stars. Soundtrack by Midge Ure from Ultravox. Worth a gander especially if you're a fan of Cryer. He's in a bit more serious role here.

TV | American Horror Story | Fail

Clearly well done, very scary but just not my cup of tea. I can see why lots of folks like it, though. Just too gruesome for me.

Movie | Keoma | PASS

Awesome spaghetti Western starring Franco Nero. Owes a lot to Peckinpah. The soundtrack's instrumentals are fantastic, but the rest of the movie's music, which gets repeated play, is distractingly awful (or awesome if that's how your tastes run). A classic.

Movie | Stake Land | Pass

This was good enough that it was almost a PASS. Very similar to The Road, the difference here is that in addition to cannibals and murderers, you've also got fast moving critters that are a cross of vampire and zombie. Also, the kid character is a teenager, not such a crybaby and the overall feeling is one of hope (there are still plants and food). Several recognizable faces - some surprising. While certainly nothing new, the movie was well done and a must see if you liked the movie mentioned above and similar others, like The Book of Eli.

TV | Pramface | Pass

Very cute and a guilty pleasure. Why can't American sitcoms be this funny and charming? Features Bronagh Gallagher from The Commitments and Ben Crompton from Ideal and Hit & Miss. We hope there's a second series!

Movie | Z Channel | PASS

Documentary about Jerry Harvey, the visionary behind the Z Channel. One of the first pay per view cable channels that ran non-stop movies, Harvey was a genius that literally saved works of art from obscurity. Sadly, he was afflicted with severe mental illness and was a wrecking ball in every other part of his life other than programming Z.

I lived in that area of the country at that time period, but never had the pleasure of seeing Z. You had to have two things to be a viewer - money and a house, neither of which I had. I was either sleeping in my car, on the floor of a construction site or on somebody's couch. And constantly flat broke. It's too bad, because I would have loved Z. Still, there were movie theaters that ran themed marathons, so I got a very similar (albeit a bit more limited) experience.

The movies discussed are for an auteur level of movie buff (Bertolucci, Fellini, Bergman, etc.), which I don't really consider myself (though I loved a lot of those movies, too). I like shlock too much and sometimes find those films too self aware and grandiose. I don't always want the Louvre. Hey, that's just me!

But looking at the Z Channel Magazines, they obviously also showed films that fall outside the art house scene. They just aren't featured in this documentary. Understandably. Those other films are not as "important".

Harvey's death is and was devastating to his friends and to us, the viewers of this well made film. I could have sworn I'd seen this already and even had a copy sitting on my shelf. Apparently, I didn't see a stitch of it because I don't remember it at all. When the subject of Harvey was brought up recently, I dug it out and (finally) saw it (thanks movieguy!).

A must see and a PASS. Make it a double with Cinemania.

Movie | Brothers of the Head | Pass

Based on a book. Ken Russell does Spinal Tap. Instead of comedy, you get downbeat drama. Instead of a rock band, you get punk rock conjoined twin brothers. If you know what you're going to get going in, this is an interesting (and gorgeously shot) mockumentary. If you don't, and you're expecting something else, you'll be deeply disappointed.

TV | Perception | Pass

The pilot was fun, a mix of Monk, Lie To Me and Awake. Though the production was bland and had no style, the acting and the storyline were fun enough to try again.

TV | Hit & Miss | PASSPASSPASS

From the guy that created Shameless (UK and US) comes the story of an Irish transsexual assassin, played by Chloe Sevigny. Yep, that's the premise. But what do you end up with? A show that transcends the medium that is most definitely adult and most definitely superb. Sevigny is jaw-dropping spectacular as Mia/Ryan. She was so good in Big Love, but who knew she was this good? An amazing show and a must see for viewers that love shows like Breaking Bad and Shameless.

I love the tagline: "She's not your typical dad."

Excellent soundtrack featuring 'Dirty Horse' by Gram Rabbit and others. Keep an eye out for the intriguing Ben Crompton from Ideal. 

Can't wait for series two! Fantastic!

TV | Treme | Fail

Ultimately not engaging and rather boring, despite the excellent cast, fantastic music and the heavy focus on one of the most unique places on earth. The storylines were just not interesting, though the production was excellent. I gave up after the first two episodes. Reminded me of the disappointment of Atlantic City. What a bummer.

Movie | Brain Dead | Pass-ish

Not to be confused with the waste of time 2007 film by the same time, a great cast can't save what amounts to a really poor episode of Twilight Zone. In fact, it was written by one of the writers of that very movie. Despite the possibility of some good stuff, this one is just flat out boring and poorly made. Still, it's great fun to watch a very young Bill Pullman, Bill Paxton, Bud Cort and others.

Movie | Taken | Pass-ish

I've tried watching this 4 or 5 times before, but couldn't get very far. I finally forced myself to sit through the excruciatingly boring first 40 minutes and other than some good action scenes, there is absolutely nothing original or even all that interesting going on here. I can think of several far superior movies with similar themes and much better acting (it's terribly wooden and bland here). I don't understand why people thought this was so good and thank goodness they're making a sequel. This was another ho-hum Hollywood waste of money.

One of my favorite director/writers, Luc Besson, co-wrote and produced this movie. Viewers would be much better served skipping Taken and checking out some of his previous works, which he directed. And check out director Pierre Morel's District B13, which is full of flavor and pizazz.

Movie | We Bought A Zoo | Pass

Very cute Hollywood movie, peppered with some tearjerker moments and only slightly marred by some less than fluid dialogue. Excellent cast really works well. Not a particularly interesting movie for kids and I'm not even sure if it works well as a "date movie". But still good and well worth watching.

Movie | Super 8 | Pass

JJ Abrams channels Spielberg (with Spielberg looking over his shoulder). He did a great job and the result is highly enjoyable. Not only is it an homage to Mr. ET, but it also celebrates home movie makers of the best kind. Fun!

Music | Summer 2012 | PASS

The sounds of summer 2012!

Legend
Band Album (Standout Track)

The Cult Weapon of Choice (Lucifer)
Peter Murphy Ninth (The Princess & Old Lady Shade)
Daft Punk Tron Soundtrack
Horrorpops Bring It On!
Horrorpops Kiss Kiss Kill Kill
Ticklah Ticklah Vs. Axelrod
Red Dead Redemption Soundtrack
Breaking Bad Soundtrack
Basement Jaxx Attack The Block Soundtrack
The Damned So, Who's Paranoid?
Allen Stone
Imogen Heap iMegaphone
Imogen Heap Speak For Yourself
Frou Frou Details
Guitar Wolf Jet Generation
Metric Synthetica
Nekromantix
Rad & Kel Cruise Control
The Creepshow Run For Your Life
The Creepshow Sell Your Soul
Tito & Tarantula Hungry Sally And Other Killer Lullabies
Washed Out Life Of Leisure (Feel It All Around)
Washed Out Within And Without
Imelda May

Movie | Dead Snow | Pass

This is a Norwegian homage to Evil Dead, featuring Nazi zombies...or is it zombie Nazis? I'm not sure, but the cast and production were quite good in this low-budgie bird. If you're a zombie genre fan (this features "running" undead), then you must see this movie. The premise starts off painfully unoriginal and then rights itself with verve. Plenty of gore and I don't mean Al and Tipper.

Movie | The Day Mars Invaded Earth | Pass-ish

Kinda boring, but slightly spooky too.

Movie | Gate 2 | Pass

Okay, so it wasn't as good as the first movie and that movie wasn't the greatest. The blame mostly lies with the director and the lack of funds. Still, I like cheesy 80s movies about the loss of innocence that feature stop animation demons and minimal gore. And it was fun to see Louis Tripp in action again, who was all of 15 this go around. After this movie, he was an uncredited extra in Detroit Rock City and that was it for his film career. Possibly because Gate 2: The Trespassers was shelved for several years before its release. It was also fun to watch a 22 year old Pamela Segall-Adlon, who is one of those working actors that you see or hear in just about everything. If you liked the first Gate movie, you should see this one - make it a double feature!