Reviews
My Opinions on Movies, TV, Books, Music, Sports, Food or anything else I find interesting

No Ordinary Family, Television Show ABC - October 6, 2010

 

 

  

No Ordinary Family is an American television series on ABC. The one-hour sci-fi drama is being produced by ABC Studios for inclusion in the 2010-11 television season. The series premiere aired on September 28, 2010, with continuing episodes scheduled for Tuesdays at 8 pm ET/PT The show centers on the Powells, a typical American family whose members gain special abilities after their plane crash lands in the Amazon River.
The second episode of this series aired on Tuesday October 5, 2010. Around the halfway point of this episode I realized that I was already hooked on the show. It has a very basic formula of family first, powers second. I immediately compared that sentiment to another simple rule that the creators of Smallville had for the Clark Kent character No Flight No Tights (and this show is now in its 10th and final year.) The simplistic formula is what makes this show work. I think if they focused on the powers more it would be very campy.

The personal side - Like any new series or reboot superhero movie there has to be an origin story. My advice is acknowledge it, accept and move on. We need to know these characters at their core before they can go on superhero type adventures. Personally I think it will take a few episodes for the characters to find their roots and develop. This is also geared to the family audience so if you're expecting something dark and edgy like "Heroes" this isn't it. Its about four individuals struggling through their daily lives and suddenly be given strange abilities and how the cope with them. The abilities bring the family together and that is what this is a family show.

The superhero side - I first want to give Michael Chiklis a lot of credit. I'm sure I'm not alone in thinking his powers are a lot like the character "The Thing" he portrayed in the "Fantastic Four" films. You can't help but think that when you see him lift a car but he brings a very human side to the role which makes it unique. Julie Benz character's abilities in this episode gave me flashbacks to my youth seeing John Wesley Shipp portray The Flash. I guess there is only so many ways to portray speed but I loved it. The other similarity is they both portray the high metabolism as a result of speed and the need to eat a lot in order to fuel the body. I am very happy that the writers created abilities for the children that are non conventional superhero. Kay Panabaker has telepathy and Jimmy Bennett has vast intelligence. These are interesting abilities for high school / teenagers. This just sets up potential stories for personal gain (like Bennett's character in episode 2) and how they will deal with it.

My Outlook - The end of episode 2 set up Stephen Collins as the villain. So the dynamic is in place to start more of the superhero vs major villain story arch. This is something that will keep my interest. It appears early on that there will be a season long story but each week presents its own challenge that will be wrapped up in 60 minutes. I find the show refreshing and very entertaining. It has a lot of potential and since it's a show about abilities they have numerous types of stories to tell. I hope ABC gives the series a chance at least the entire season. I know going up against Glee is tough competition but the cast and crew have done their part through social media networks to spread the word. This like other shows will develop a core group of fans, then potentially gain new followers in reruns when it wont compete against new Glee episodes. I recommend everyone to give it a chance. You'll be surprised at the result and you'll tune in each work to see how the Powell family is dealing with not only the dysfunctional dynamic of family but the new abilities that force them to become a closer family.

 

 

The Social Network, Featured Film - October 1, 2010

 

IMDB Plot synopsis: On a fall night in 2003, Harvard undergrad and computer programming genius Mark Zuckerberg sits down at his computer and heatedly begins working on a new idea. In a fury of blogging and programming, what begins in his dorm room soon becomes a global social network and a revolution in communication. A mere six years and 500 million friends later, Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest billionaire in history... but for this entrepreneur, success leads to both personal and legal complications.

My Opinion: This film is about Facebook, or so I thought. It is really about deceit, revenge, coruption, friendship, betrayal and scorned love. The interesting thing is that it began as a drunken revenge plot created by the Zuckerberg character in attempt to embarrass a now ex-girlfriend. What happened from there was hacking Harvards independent schools "facebook" programs to steal pictures and launch a web site where users rank the hotness of female students. The site was an overnight success that crashed Harvards servers. From that point on, Zuckerberg became a noticed man on campus. This led to a series of events that led to the creation of facebook as we know it today. Along the way there are many times where his character is questioned. One of the last lines in the film is when a lawyer tells Zuckerberg "You're not an asshole, you're trying hard to act like one." This to defines the movie. At no time is he a likely character and as the lead not to like the main character that is a major gamble. It works however because the character has a focus for his idea and realizes he may not make or want to make people happy en rute to his goal. In fact he uses people to achieve then discards them after they serve there purpose.

The 2 hour run time moves quickly. I liked the movie becasue i like story driven films. Don't expect action, violence or sex cause its just not here. It carries a PG-13 rating. Its not the best film I've seen but it does hold your interest. Go in there with just the thought that you want to be entertained for 2 hours. Then, like me go home and talk about the Facebook movie on your Facebook page.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, Featured Film - September 24, 2010

 

IMDB Plot synopsis: As the global economy teeters on the brink of disaster, a young Wall Street trader partners with disgraced former Wall Street corporate raider Gordon Gekko on a two-tiered mission: To alert the financial community to the coming doom, and to find out who was responsible for the death of the young trader's mentor.

My Opinion: The first film was amazing. This however is a review of the sequel. Let me say this, the story not great. I remember Gordon Gekko as being ruthless and coat throat as a money mogul and mentor to Bud Fox. The Bud Fox storyline is what made the film. In this film, the protege is played by Shia LeBouf. I felt it was a little stale. My biggest problem was that he he plays every character the same. My big problem with teh movie is that it should have ended 20 minutes earlier. I think that would have been more true to the Gekko character. It was long and slow moving. It didn't have anything to do with the first film. Save your money, wait for it on cable.