Tag Archives: Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Shots from 4 Films: Special Ryan Coogler Edition

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Or More Shots From 4 Or More Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to director Ryan Coogler! Ryan Coogler has made a star out of Michael B. Jordan, redeemed the acting career of Sylvester Stallone, introduced the rest of the world to Wakanda, and changed the way that film viewers talk about race in cinema.  This year, his film Sinners has proven to be a phenomenon with audiences worldwide.  With all that in mind, it’s time for….

4 Shots from 4 Ryan Coogler Films

Fruitvale Station (2013, dir by Ryan Coogler, DP: Rachel Morrison)

Creed (2015, dir by Ryan Coogler, DP: Maryse Alberti)

Black Panther (2018, dir by Ryan Coogler, DP: Rachel Morrison)

Sinners (2025, dir by Ryan Coogler, DP: Autumn Durald Arkapaw)

Late Night Retro Television Review: Highway to Heaven 3.24 “Ghost Rider”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Thursdays, I will be reviewing Highway to Heaven, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1989.  The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi and several other services!

This episode …. ugh.

Episode 3.24 “Ghost Rider”

(Dir by Michael Landon, originally aired on April 1st, 1987)

This episode was …. bad.  It was really bad.  I know that Highway to Heaven is a show with its own unique style and that it’s necessary to sometimes set aside cynicism and just accept the show in all of its sincere and earnest glory but I just couldn’t do it with this episode.

Birdy Belker (Didi Conn) is a ghost writer.  She writes the Roger Bolt spy novels, which are then credited to the glamorous Natasha Gudonov (Victoria Carroll).  Roger was a real spy.  He died years ago but Birdy still has a bit of a crush on him.  Birdy is also Jonathan and Mark’s latest assignment.  Jonathan decides to just wait for her outside of her apartment and introduce himself as being an angel.

“RAPE!” Birdy yells before then spraying Mark with a breath freshener that she mistook for mace.

Jonathan brings Birdy’s dead plants to life, proving that he’s an angel.  Birdy goes from being terrified to inviting two strangers into her apartment.  Birdy is single and her parents are giving a hard time about her lack of a boyfriend.  Mark suggests that Birdy buy Roger’s old car, which is set to be auctioned off.  Birdy and her father (Bobby Baum) go to the auction with Jonathan and Mark.  Uh-oh, shady Boris (Adam Gregor) wants the car as well!  However, Boris has to call his boss to see if he should bid more than $20,000.  Jonathan stares at the phone until it explodes.  Birdy wins the auction!  She has the car!

(Destroying someone’s property does not seem like proper angel behavior, to be honest.)

It turns out that the car is haunted by the ghost of Roger Bolt (Warwick Sims).  Jonathan insinuates that Roger is actually in Purgatory and helping out Birdy is his final chance to make it into Heaven.  That’s …. okay, I guess.  The problem is that Roger’s ghost doesn’t show up until 30 minutes into the episode.  A ghost is a pretty big plot point to introduce that late in the game.  Birdy is in love with Roger, up until she realizes that he’s a cad.  Still, Roger redeems himself but helping Birdy outsmart the two spies who want his old car.  Birdy becomes a celebrity, Roger goes to Heaven, and Birdy meets her new neighbor, a nerdy guy who seems perfect for her.  But then, as Mark and Jonathan are heading to their next assignment, Roger’s car starts and we hear Roger’s voice.  “Bolt, Roger Bolt.”  Okay, so did he go to Heaven or not?  Or is he still a ghost?  What’s going on!?

My honest guess is that this was meant to be a backdoor pilot, one that would have featured Birdy and Roger’s ghost getting involved in espionage on a weekly basis.  That’s really the only way that this oddly paced episode makes any sort of sense.  Tonally, it had nothing in common with any other episode of Highway to Heaven that I’ve seen.  It doesn’t work, largely because Birdy is an amazingly annoying character and Roger was a less than interesting take on the Bond stereotype.

This episode was definitely a misfire.  Luckily, the season ends next week with an episode featuring Leslie Nielsen.  That should be great!  It certainly can’t be any worse than this one.

Retro Television Review: Malibu, CA 2.13 “Lisa’s Ex”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Thursdays, I will be reviewing Malibu CA, which aired in Syndication in 1998 and 1999.  Almost the entire show is currently streaming on YouTube!

Yes, this is from the first season. I don’t care. I refuse to waste my time looking for a second season advertisement.

I was a lot happier before I remembered this show existed.

Episode 2.13 “Lisa’s Ex”

(Dir by Gary Shimokawa, originally aired on January 29th, 2000)

No, not my ex!  This episode is about Lisa, the fictional character’s, ex….

You know, it’s really frustrating that this show’s most annoying character happens to have the same name as me.  I want to complain about her but, at the same time, I feel an instant bond to anyone named Lisa, including fictional characters on terrible sitcoms.

That said, Lisa — the show’s Lisa — really is the worst.  In this episode, her ex-boyfriend, a basketball played named Troy Douglas — just happens to stop by the restaurant and see her.  Troy, we’re told, is an amazing NBA player, despite the fact that he appears to be about 5’8 and not particularly athletic.  Then again, the show also told us that Scott could be an Olympic-class swimmer despite having never trained and that Jason could get a record deal despite having no talent so I guess it all makes sense.

Anyway, Lisa hangs out with Troy and ends up kissing him on the beach.  Scott breaks up with her when he finds out and then acts all mopey about it.  “She could have been the one!” Scott says while the audience goes, “Awwww!”  Seriously, Lisa — the show’s Lisa — could have been the one?  This would be the same character who talks down to everyone, complains nonstop, and who has only been dating Scott for like a week.  She’s the one?

Fortunately (?), Lisa tells Troy to get lost.  Troy seems like a perfectly nice guy but we’re only supposed to care about Scott’s heartbreak.  Lisa apologizes to Scott.  Scott kisses Lisa.  “Whoooo!” says the audience.

Every episode of every Peter Engel-produced sitcom had an episode like this.  I have to admit that none of those other episodes annoyed quite as much as this episode of Malibu CA did.  I think it’s because 1) Lisa is a terrible character, 2) Marquita Terry gives a terrible performance in the role, 3) there’s zero chemistry between Marquita Terry and Trevor Merszei (who played Scott), and 4) even Scott deserves better than the treatment he got during this episode.  Lisa apologized for kissing Troy and that’s fine but she didn’t really say anything that would suggests that she’s not going to dump Scott every time one of her ex-boyfriends shows up.  This relationship is doomed.

Speaking of doomed, Peter, Jason, Murray, Traycee, and Alex all went camping.  After hearing that a killer had escaped from a nearby mental asylum, they freaked out when a stranger approached their camp sight.  First, they tied the guy in a net.  Then Peter hit him on the head with a frying pan …. oh wait, he’s not the killer!  He’s just some innocent guy who was trying to be helpful.

“Please don’t sue,” Peter says.

Peter, I hope he sues your ass for everything you’ve got.

Scenes That I Love: Laurence Olivier In Hamlet

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

119 years ago today, Laurence Olivier was born in Surrey.  The son of a clergyman, Olivier would go on to become one of the greatest stage actors of the 20th Century.  He would also have a distinguished film career, one that led to him frequently being described as being the world’s greatest living actor.

He is perhaps best-known for his Shakespearean performances.  He won multiple Oscars for directing and starring in 1948’s Hamlet.  Today’s scene that I love comes from that film and features Olivier at his best, as both an actor and a director.

Late Night Retro Television Review: Monsters 3.19 “A Face For Radio”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Wednesdays, I will be reviewing Monsters, which aired in syndication from 1988 to 1991. The entire series is streaming on YouTube.

This week, it’s terror on the radio!

Episode 3.19 “A Face For Radio”

(Dir by Bruce Feirstein, originally aired on February 3rd, 1991)

Late night radio talk show host Ray Bright (Morton Downey, Jr.) is sleazy guy who describes his own show as being “hate radio.”  Over the course of one program, he tries to humiliate two female guests.  The first is a psychic (Julie Wilson) who says that she’s had visions of Ray trapped in a dark room.  The second is Amada Smith-Jones (Laura Branigan), who claims that she was once abducted by aliens.  She carries with her a cage that she says contains the alien.  Ray takes one look at the ugly and snarling little creature inside the cage and dismisses it as a puppet.  Amanda says that the alien is real and that it eats “bad” people, but only if they give their permission first.  Will Ray be stupid enough to give his permission?

You probably already guessed the answer to that question.  Though predictable in the way that anthology shows often are, this was still an effective episode.  Downey, who I understand was an actual talk show host, was very believable as the incredibly sleazy (and incredibly stupid) Ray and Laura Branigan was just as effective as the enigmatic Amanda.  As for the alien in the cage, it was actually one of the more effective monsters to appear on Monsters.  I had to laugh when Ray dismissed at as being a puppet because, after so many episodes featuring creatures that obviously were puppets, this episode featured a creature that looked very much alive.

The episode ended on a bit of a foul note, largely due to the fact that a new character showed up and started speaking with one of the fakest Texas accents that I’ve ever heard.  Otherwise, though, this was a well-done 21 minutes.

Retro Television Review: The Love Boat 5.29 “Mothers Don’t Do That/Marrying For Money/Substitute Lover”

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past!  On Wednesdays, I will be reviewing the original Love Boat, which aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986!  The series can be streamed on Paramount Plus!

This week, season 5 comes to a close!

Episode 5.29 “Mothers Don’t Do That/Marrying for Money/Substitute Lover”

(Dir by Jerome Courtland, originally aired on May 15th, 1982)

Glamorous Marian Healy (Eva Gabor) boards the boat and is reunited with the son that she barely knows, Danny (Brad Savage).  Danny, however, reads Marian’s diary and declares, “Mother don’t do that!”  Hey, you little brat, how do you think you came into existence?

Meanwhile, yet another old high friend of Julie’s board the boat and proceeds to lie to a passenger.  It seems like this happened every week.  This time, it’s Bert (Eddie Mekka) who pretends to be the pen pal of Marla Bennett (Audrey Landers).  Don’t worry, Marla forgives Bert when she learns the truth.  If there’s anything I’ve learned from watching The Love Boat, it’s that romantic relationships that start off with some horrible lie always work out for the best.

Finally, Gopher and Isaac are worried that Lola Trout (Caren Kaye) is trying to kill her new husband, Orville (Arte Johnson), by forcing him to exercise.  They can’t think of any other reason why Lola would marry Arte, other than to murder him and take his money.  If they spent more time watching Fantasy Island, they would know that there are simpler ways to kill your husband than by making him exercise.  You could challenge him to a pentathlon for instance….

This was the final episode of the fifth season and everyone seemed to be a little bit tired.  None of the three stories is particularly developed and you can really tell that everyone’s eager to get off the boat and spend some time on dry land.  That’s fine.  Season 5 was a pretty good season, even with that terrible musical episode.  Everyone deserves a break and if that means the finale is a bit underwhelming, so be it!

Next week, we start Season 6!  I have a feeling I will never finish reviewing this series and that’s okay.  The Love Boat is a show that I could happily watch forever!