There Is Something Wrong With My Television

The way I see it television needs, among other things, the following:

1. Science Fiction/Thriller/Horror Channel

A short form/short film channel showcasing those genres. Independent producers, writers, creators could submit work to be aired. It wouldn’t have to be, nor should it be at the Sundance level of professionalism delivered on DigiBeta and starring Cameron Diaz doing a favor for the filmmaker because it’s her friend’s cousin, either.

We don’t want that. There’s plenty of that kind of venue and they turn down 99% of the stuff submitted anyway, mainly because it’s not the work of someone’s friend’s cousin. So forget that right away. It has to be underground, guerilla, shoestring and, most important, good. Very good. Damn good. But not expensive. How can you do that, you say? 

With writing.   (more…)

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Tags: 80s, acting, alfred hitchcock presents, animation, channel
Posted Sep 3rd 2009 at 4:21 pm in Culture, Film | 214402132 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/smann/2009/09/03/there-is-something-wrong-with-my-television/There+Is+Something+Wrong+With+My+Television2009-09-03+23%3A21%3A25Schizoid+Mann

Bad

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Tags: "Bad", G8, Michael Jackson, Obama, thriller
Posted Jul 12th 2009 at 11:22 am in Art, Political Humor | 181698109 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/cmuir/2009/07/12/bad/Bad2009-07-12+18%3A22%3A12Chris+Muir

Review: ‘Sin Nombre’ Doesn’t Live Up to Reputation

Sin Nombre is a fictionalized account of the largely unknown (to Americans, at least) struggle that would-be immigrants go through long before they even get to the U.S. border. The story of a young man on the run from a murderous gang is told through those hardships. Assuming this is a realistic portrayal of life for residents of South and Central America, what these people go through is terrifying and dangerous. Anyone who would willingly face this is a person of character, or at least awfully tough.

But just because the characters are sympathetic doesn’t mean they’re in a good movie.

Sin Nombre is at once an illuminating portrayal of anonymous people (hence the title: in English, Nameless) and a thriller marred by long stretches of un-illuminating inactivity, poutiness by the lead character as a substitute for acting, and a spectacularly clichéd climax. The fact that the picture is in a language other than English elicits in some American critics the same reaction that British accents bring out in American audiences: This doesn’t sound like what I hear every day, so it must be important. (more…)

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Tags: Cary Fukunaga, illegal immigration, Immigration, nameless, sin nombre
Posted May 14th 2009 at 10:12 am in Reviews | 131638No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mlong/2009/05/14/review-sin-nombre-isnt-as-good-as-its-reputation/Review%3A+%27Sin+Nombre%27+Doesn%27t+Live+Up+to+Reputation2009-05-14+17%3A12%3A52Mike+Long

Review: Andrew Klavan’s ‘The Last Thing I Remember’

The primary attraction to any Andrew Klavan novel is a well-constructed, breathlessly paced story that grabs hold within a paragraph and never lets you go. In this respect, Klavan’s a narcotics dealer, a deliverer of addictive, satisfying escapism created to transport you from reality — which in a way makes his latest thriller, “The Last Thing I Remember” a gateway drug for young adults.

Opening sentence: “Suddenly I woke up strapped to a chair.”

Strapped to that chair is Charlie West, a typically bright and motivated high school student who has no idea how he got there. The last thing he remembers is a good though unexceptional school day but nothing that connects to the where, how or why of his present and immediate circumstance. Not only has he been tortured, but voices in the hall have just decided to kill him … slowly.

From here Charlie will have to escape, out run and out-wit his deadly, resourceful captors and unravel what happened in-between scoring a first date with his dream girl and waking up in, well,  an Andrew Klavan page turner. The plot never stops moving or thickening and as the pieces come together, Charlie finds himself the only hope between … and that’s all you’re getting from me. (more…)

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Tags: "The Last Thing I Remember", adventure, Andrew Klavan, Charlie West, conformity
Posted Apr 27th 2009 at 6:47 am in Reviews | 117154No Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2009/04/27/review-andrew-klavans-the-last-thing-i-remember/Review%3A+Andrew+Klavan%27s+%27The+Last+Thing+I+Remember%272009-04-27+13%3A47%3A47John+Nolte