Henry Rollins Out of the Van by Ronald Sklar “I could grandstand and tell you I’m The Man, but I basically don’t have a life,” Henry Rollins tells me in a recent phone interview. As usual, The Man is being too hard on himself. The rock legend, now in his early forties and still as tough … Continue reading
Columbo The Complete First Season 1971 (Universal-2004) Columbo had them at hello. The fun in watching TV’s greatest detective is not merely in piecing together murder mysteries along with him – he’s way past the sniffing stage, and besides, we’ve already spent the first twenty-five minutes witnessing the actual killing, the reasons leading up to … Continue reading
Married… With Children The Complete First Season – 1987 (Columbia TriStar-2003) Simply scratch the surface of Married… With Children’s first thirteen episodes (now available on DVD), and you will find the most depressing show ever to appear on television. Beneath its fierce determination to be rude, crude and outrageous is revealed the sad punch line to … Continue reading
BORN RICH (2003) Starring Josiah Hornblower, S.I. Newhouse IV, Ivanka Trump, Georgina Bloomberg, Luke Weil, Cody Franchetti, Stephanie Ercklentz, Carlo von Zeischel, Christina Floyd, Juliet Hartford, Peter Skolnik and Jamie Johnson. Directed by Jamie Johnson. Distributed by Shout! Factory. 81 minutes. Rated PG. You know you hate them. They’re young, attractive and they never have … Continue reading
Raphael Saadiq The Return of Ray Ray by Abraham Kuranga Raphael Saadiq is cool. Student Council president cool. Zach Morris cool. O.K. well, you get the point. Saadiq is also extremely focused. No stranger to success, Saadiq has reached both highs and lows, but mostly highs, with Tony! Toni! Toné! and later Lucy Pearl. Saadiq … Continue reading
INTIMATE STRANGERS (CONFIDENCES TROP INTIMES) (2004) Starring Sandrine Bonnaire, Fabrice Luchini, Michel Duchaussoy, Anne Brochet, Gilbert Melki, Laurent Gamelon, Helene Surgere, Urbain Cancelier, Isabel Petit-Jacques, Veronique Kapoian, Benoit Petre, Albert Simono, Claude Derepp, Aurore Auteuil, Ludovic Berthillot and Sabrina Brezzo. Screenplay by Jerome Tonnerre. Directed by Patrice Leconte. Distributed by Paramount Classics. 104 minutes. Rated … Continue reading
CHRISTOPHER WALKEN THE SANEST MAN IN HOLLYWOOD by Jay S. Jacobs Mention the name Christopher Walken, and anyone you’re talking to will have a very strong, concrete image. There are very few actors in the world who spur such strong name recognition, such certainty on the part of an audience that we get what he’s all about. He’s a hard, … Continue reading
William Shatner – Has Been (Shout! Factory) In any discussion of the worst records of all time, someone will mention William Shatner’s 1968 jaw-dropper The Transformed Man. On that vanity record, Shatner emoted (most would say over-emoted) some of the biggest hits of the era, including gonzo versions of “Mr. Tambourine Man,” “Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds” … Continue reading
Alison Moyet – Voice (Sanctuary U.K.) Back in 1991, I interviewed Alison Moyet as she was releasing her third solo album HooDoo. At the time, we discussed her biggest international hit, an old-fashioned jazzy sounding cover of Billie Holiday’s “That Ole Devil Called Love.” Although the song topped the charts in most countries outside of the United … Continue reading
Chris Cooper – A Real Contender by Brad Balfour Originally posted on September 22, 2004. Actor Chris Cooper didn’t need a crystal ball to figure out how to make his character in Silver City — the bumbling local politician running for governor of Colorado — resonate in this hard-hitting reflection of our times. His campaign … Continue reading
