Tag Archives: review

Retro Televison Review: Baywatch 2.9 “The Trophy: Part One”

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 Saturdays, I will be reviewing Baywatch, which ran on NBC and then in syndication from 1989 to 2001.  The entire show can be viewed on Tubi.

This week, Eddie in trouble!

Episode 2.9 “The Trophy: Part 1”

(Dir by Douglas Schwartz, originally aired on November 11th, 1991)

Awkward teenager Caroline Larkin (A.J. Langer) doesn’t have any friends because her family’s poor and she’s from Ohio.  The only person on the beach who shows her any kindess is Eddie the lifeguard.  When Caroline tries to impress the rich girls on the beach by claiming to have been seduced by Eddie, the main mean girl makes sure that Caroline’s father finds out.  Eddie is shocked when he’s arrested and charged with statuatory rape …. despite the fact the fact that almost the same thing happened to Craig during the first season of the show.  

What makes thing particularly awkward is that Eddie is arrested just as he and Shauni are getting ready to go to a chairty gala.  Shauni finally got Eddie into a tux and then Eddie gets the handcuffs slapped on.

Meanwhile, parapalegic lifeguard Eric Turner (Daniel Quinn) returns.  He’s still in love with Megan (Vanessa Angel), the Australian lifeguard.  But he’s also bitter about having to use a wheelchair.  This is one of those stories that would be compelling if we had the slightest idea who Turner and Megan were before this episode aired.  This is also one of those episodes where totally new people show up and everyone acts as if they were there from the start of the series.  (In all fairness, Megan has appeared on the show before but her role has never been particularly large.)  Everyone else know who Eric Turner but we, the viewers, have never heard of him before.

Anyway, this is a two-part episode so neither storyline is resolved.  Since I’m taking next week off for America’s 250th birthday celebration, Eddie’s going to have to wait in jail for a while.  However, two weeks from now, we’ll see if Eddie can clear his name!

 

Late Night Retro Television Review: Freddy’s Nightmares 2.18 “Funhouse”

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 Fridays, I will be reviewing Freddy’s Nightmares, a horror anthology show which ran in syndication from 1988 to 1990. The entire series can be found on Tubi!

This week, a mansion is full of …. well, one surprise.

Episode 2.18 “Funhouse”

(Dir by Gilbert Adler, originally aired on February 11th, 1990)

Turk (Todd Allen), the moving man, is busy this week.

In our first story, Turk helps a young married couple, Emma (Robin Greer) and Robert Palmer (Clayton Landey), move into an old mansion.  Turk talks about how the previous owners came to a bad end.  Emma finds herself having dreams in which both Turk and her former lover, Colin (Joseph Brutsman), come aftter her.  She comes to realize that the house is not haunted by a ghost but instead by a man looking for revenge.  As is often the case with these type of stories, it all ends with a booby trap involving a bed of nails.  Yikes!

In our second story, Turk helps another couple move into the house, Evelyn (Valerie Wildman) and her much older husband, Victor Hall (Robert Dowdell).  This time, it’s Turk who ends up getting seduced by both Evelyn and the maid, Jillian (Laura Austin).  However, it all turns out to be an elaborate game tht Evelyn, Victor, and Jillian enjoy playing.  The bed of spikes booby trap makes yet another appearance and it’s so cool that it doesn’t even matter that Freddy’s Nightmares basically just repeated the twist from the first story in the second story.

This episode was fun.  There really wasn’t anything supernatural going on but the cast of both stories seemed to enjoy playing up the noirsh aspects of their characters and Todd Allen was amusing as the cocky but stupid Turk.  The bed of nails was an enjoyable macabre little twist.

Even at its best, Freddy’s Nightmares tended to be incredibly uneven but this was actually an enjoyable little episode.

 

Retro Television Review: St. Elsewhere 4.1 “Remembrance Of Things Past”

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 Fridays, I will be reviewing St. Elsewhere, a medical show which ran on NBC from 1982 to 1988.  The show can be found on Daily Motion.

This week, we begin season 4 of St. Elsewhere!

Episode 4.1 “Remembrance of Things Past”

(Dir by Bruce Paltrow, originally aired on September 18th, 1985)

This week, we start a new season of St. Elsewhere!

Dr. Cavenero is no longer listed in the opening credits.  She’s not even mentioned in this episode, leaving her absence as a mystery.  The last time we saw her during the third season, she was suffering from a cold so maybe she died.  From what I’ve read, the real reason that she’s gone is because Cynthia Sikes, the actress who played her, objected to a season three storyline that would have featured her coming out as a lesbian.

From the start of this epiosde, St. Eligius seems like a happier place.  A lot of that is because Dr. Westphall is gone.  (That said, he’s still listed in the opening credits so we know, from the start, that will return.)  Doctors Craig and Aushlander are a bit overworked having to cover Westphall’s duties but still, the residents seem to be a bit more hopeful than usual in this episode.  Westphall’s perpetual glumness is no longer there to drag everyone down.

Morrison and Chandler have a conflict over a Vietnamese patient.  Morrison wants to give the patient the best care possible.  Chandler is upset because his older brother died in Vietnam and he feels like the patient doesn’t appreciate the sacrifice that Americans made during the Vietnam War.  Morrison, of course, was an anti-war teenager.  (There’s a reason why Helen Hunt calls him “boomer.”)

The whole Morrison/Chandler storyline felt a bit too heavy-handed to be effective.  While I can believe that Chandler would have his own strongly-held opinions about the war, I have a hard time believing he would be as unprofessional as he was in this episode.  Still, all of this does lead to a great scene where Morrison goes to Craig for the type of advice that he would usually get from Westphall and Craig responds by telling Morrison to get over it and concentrate on his job.

Seriously, I’ve been waiting for three seasons for someone to tell Morrison that.

Alfre Woodward joins the cast as Dr. Roxanne Turner, an OB-GYN.  In this episode, she counsels an infertile couple.  Dr. Turner wasn’t in much of the episode (and Alfre Woodard is not included in the opening credits) but I get the feeling that both she and the couple she was counseling are going to be around for a while.

The episode’s main storyline featured an amnesiac known as Joe Doe No. 6 (Oliver Clark).  After John Doe escapes from the psychiatric ward and steals a suit, he’s mistaken for Dr. Jonas Wisner, who has beent sent to St. Eligius to evaluate its teaching program.  John Doe No. 6 has a great time pretending to be Dr. Wisner and the doctors enjoy spending time with him.  Unfortunately, the real Dr. Wisner (Joseph Ruskin) shows up and the fun ends.

Oh, how I loved watching John Doe No. 6 interact with the staff.  Not only did it allow me to see the show’s characters through someone else’s eyes but it was also just an enjoyable storyline.  It was a reminder that the hospital can be an entertaining place when Westpall isn’t wandering around the hallways.

However, towards the end of this episode, Westphall showed up at the hospital.  Craig and Auschlander were happy to see him.  Westphall asked if he could have his old job back.  Of course, he can!  Really?  Didn’t Westphall walk off the job?  But apparently, he can just wander back into the hospital while wearing his hobo cap and all is forgiven.

The episode ends with Chandler taking an impromptu trip to Washington D.C. and visiting the Vietnam War Memorial.  As I watched this, it occuured to me that the memorial was still fairly new when this episoe aired.  Once I realized that, I understood why the show included the Morrison/Chandler storyline.  It pays to know history.

Season 4 is off to a good start!  I just hope Dr. Westphall doesn’t drag everyone back down.

 

Brad reviews THUNDERHEART (1992), starring Val Kilmer!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

THUNDERHEART came out back in 1992, when I was a mere 18-year-old and trying to go to the movies any time I possibly could. I already liked Val Kilmer based on his performances in such diverse films as TOP SECRET (1984), REAL GENIUS (1985), TOP GUN (1986), and WILLOW (1988). I also liked the director Michael Apted, who had directed the underrated Gene Hackman courtroom drama CLASS ACTION the year before. I figured THUNDERHEART would have to at least be pretty good…

Val Kilmer stars as the young FBI agent Ray Levoi, who’s sent to a Sioux reservation in South Dakota to assist veteran agent Frank “Cooch” Coutelle (Sam Shepard) in a murder investigation. You see, Levoi is “part” Indian, so the thought is that his family heritage will at least give him some credibility when dealing with the Indians on the res. At first overly confident and cocky, he begins to change as the investigation uncovers a history of corruption, violence and broken political promises that have had a tragic impact on the people of the reservation. By the film’s thrilling conclusion, Levoi has been forced to question his own identity and decide who his loyalties truly belong to!  

I’m a big fan of THUNDERHEART. I really enjoy the arc that Kilmer’s character undergoes in the film. At first, he’s extremely cynical and doesn’t want to have anything to do with being the special “Washington redskin” in the FBI’s murder investigation. When he gets stuck with the job, though, he just wants to get it over with as soon as possible. But as the story moves along and he meets various characters like Walter Crow Horse (Graham Greene), Maggie Eagle Bear (Sheila Tousey) and Grandpa (Ted Think Elk), he begins to see the truth behind their situation. By the end, he’s willing to give up everything to solve the crime and bring those responsible to justice. Kilmer allows this 180-degree turnaround to happen naturally, and I personally believe that this is one of the more underrated performances of his career.

The primary supporting cast deserves a lot of credit as well. Graham Greene brings wisdom and an engaging sense of humor to his character of Walter Crow Horse, the tribal police officer who starts out as a pain in the butt to Levoi prior to becoming a trusted ally. And I’ve always loved Sam Shepard, who plays the grizzled veteran agent Frank Coutelle. He’s completely believable as a man who’s seen it all, maybe a little too much, over the course of his career. The dusty South Dakota landscapes become a character all its own and provide the perfect backdrop to the story. This is a movie that feels authentic instead of like some staged Hollywood production.

I also like that this movie isn’t afraid to take its time with the story, a story that’s based on real events and that feels very relevant to this day. Stop me if you’ve heard any of these themes lately: governmental distrust, cultural identity, justice… THUNDERHEART’s entire storyline is wrapped up in these ideas. If anything, the film seems even more meaningful today than it did in 1992. There are times that Apted may operate with a bit of a heavy hand, but this movie isn’t interested in serving up cardboard villains or easy answers. Rather, we’re treated to an engaging mystery-thriller that never overshadows its characters and eventually rewards us for our patience.

At the end of the day, THUNDERHEART is a film that I highly recommend. It’s not going to blow you away with its action, although there are several exciting sequences. But I do encourage you to give this film your attention and settle in with the plot and the characters. Inside this crime thriller, there’s a strong human story about a man who comes to terms with his identity while gathering the courage to fight for the truth, no matter where that may lead. Although there were a lot of good options, when I read that Val Kilmer had passed away, THUNDERHEART is the film I watched to come to terms with the moment.  

Late Night Retro Television Review: Hunter 1.10 “The Shooter”

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 Hunter, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1991.  The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi and several other services!

This week, Hunter and a biker compete to see who has the fastest draw.

Episode 1.10 “The Shooter”

(Dir by Michael Lange, originally aired on January 4th, 1985)

Someone is gunning down motorcycle cops.  It’s a crime that both Hunter and McCall take personally.  Unfortunately, Bernie Terwiliger is in charge of the investigation and he insists that he doesn’t need any help from Hunter or “the brass cupcake.”  Considering that McCall’s husband was a police officer who was killed while doing a routine traffic stop, you would think Terwiliger would be a little bit more sensitive but nope.  That’s not the way things are done on Hunter.

Hunter and McCall conduct their own investigation, which leads them a country-western bar and a quick-draw video game.  Deke Broder (Robert Dryer) is a redneck who is very proud of having the fastest draw on the game.  The only problem is that cops keep coming in the bar and beating his time.  So, Deke stalks and kills them.

Deke — it’s just a game!

Soon, Hunter is playing the video game and Deke has a new target.

Now, this is a good episode!  It’s everything that you could want from an episode of Hunter.  It’s violent.  It’s fast-paced.  It’s got enough atmosphere to hold the viewer’s interest and it features a bad guy who is more interesting than the run-of-the-mill cop show villain.  Deke and Hunter have a lot in common.  They’re both cocky.  They’re both convinced their the best.  And they both really like to shoot their guns.  Between the motorcycles and Deke’s leather kill suit, this episode was pure style.

This is exactly what an episode of Hunter should be like.

Retro Television Review: Decoy 1.36 “Blind Date”

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 Decoy, which aired in Syndication in 1957 and 1958.  The show can be viewed on Tubi!

This week, Casey goes undercover …. again!

Episode 1.36 “Blind Date”

(Dir by Stuart Rosenberg, originally aired on June 16th, 1958)

When Gladys (Mary Finney) and her niece Millie (Irene Dailey) are involved in a car accident, the police discover that they are transporting a large amount of stolen money.  Millie, who has been transporting drugs, had a meeting with a money launderer to exchange the money for clean bills.  Casey goes undercover, pretending to be Millie when she and Gladys meet with the launderer.  However, when Millie’s boyfriend (Elliott Sullivan) shows up, the entire operation falls apart.  Can Casey convince Millie’s boyfriend to turn on the criminals?

This is yet another episode where Casey’s carefully constructed cover is destroyed by something that the police should have been prepared for.  Not only is Casey pretending to be a real person (which increases the risk that she’ll run into someone who actually knows the person that Casey is pretending to be) but she’s also accompanied by the increasingly hysterical Gladys.  Usually, Casey is at least convincing when she goes undercover.  This time, she comes across as way to calm and collected to be believable as someone committing her first crime.

To be honest, after 36 of these episodes, I’m amazed that Casey has survived for as long as she has.  The New York police department seems to be truly incompetent.

Despite all of that, this was a good episode.  There was plenty of on-location New York footage and Beverly Garland did a good job of portraying Casey’s growing realization that 1) she was in over her head and 2) it was a mistake to bring Aunt Gladys along.  Lou Polan was also well-cast as the avuncular but still menacing money launderer.  He may have been a criminal but he was also very proud of his boat.  Who can blame him?

This episode ended up on vaguely upbeat note, one that really didn’t feel as it had been earned.  Decoy was always at its best when it was downbeat and realistic.  New York was a tough city, even back in 1958.