DVD Collectors Online

Gridlock'd, a review by Rich

Title: Gridlock'd

Runtime:91
Certificate:R
Year:1997
Genres:Drama, Comedy

Plot:When their friend Cookie o.d.'s, best buddies and musicians Spoon (Tupac Shakur) and Stretch (Tim Roth) decide it's time to kick their drug habit by putting themselves into detox. But they soon discover that the road to rehab is paved with reams of social service red tape. Spoon and Stretch are just trying to stay alive until they can get treatment. But, between the angry drug dealers, the cops who have mistaken them for murderers, and the people with forms and clipboards, this turns into a task of epic proportions. Thus enfolds their comic adventure to sobriety.

My Review:
At times fairly amusing, but with a cast I was unlikely ever to warm to, this drug/rehab tale is pretty run of the mill and wholly unremarkable. To be fair both leads seemed to gel quite well together, but the subject matter and supposed reasoning for rehabbing was unremarkable.
Paints an horrendous picture of US healthcare, which apparently is quite accurate in that if you do not have health insurance you are basically screwed.
Mildly entertaining, if you happen to be a Roth or Tupac fan you'd proably give this a higher mark.


(From Riches Random Reviews on January 17th, 2010)

Only the Lonely, a review by Rich

14/11

Only the lonely



Danny Muldoon is a sweet-tempered Chicago cop who has lived with his overbearing Irish mother Rose his entire adult life. Rose's relationship with her son is challenged for the first time when he meets Theresa, the shy, romantically inexperienced daughter of a mortician. Mama's boy Danny must overcome both his passivity and his overwhelming sense of Catholic guilt as he struggles to untangle himself from his mother's apron strings and take control of his own life.

First off I have to say I am a big Candy fan, I have always enjoyed his acting and am blind to the obvious stereo-typing and one-dimensional criticism his career assessment usually evokes. I had seen this film on tv before, and this was a first watch on dvd.
It's a gentle easy watch, completely unchallenging comedy, perfect for a rainy afternoon to relax to, Candy plays the perfect bumbling son who falls in love, and Maureen O'Hara steals the film with a wonderful performance as the overbearing Irish mother.
Best line in the film is when the mother is first introduced to the new beau (Ally Sheedy) at a posh restaurant and says "Where are her breasts?"
Good film which you can pick up fairly cheaply now   



(From November Alphabet Marathon - Discussion/Review Thread on November 17th, 2008)

Tom's TV Pilots marathon, a review by Tom

Roswell: Season One (1999/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (United States) Length: 968 min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

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Plot:
"I'm Liz Parker and five days ago I died. After that, things got really weird." So begins a new life for Liz and her friend Maria after they discover that three of their classmates at Roswell High aren't exactly from "around here." To be more exact, Max, Isabel and Michael are from "up there." Having grown up quietly within the community, their alien identities are suddenly jeopardized after Max uses his powers to save Liz's life. Now the alien trio must learn to trust their human friends even as they struggle to discover their own true identities.


Roswell
1.01 Pilot
Writer: Jason Katims (Writer)
Director: David Nutter
Cast: Shiri Appleby (Liz Parker), Jason Behr (Max Evans), Katherine Heigl (Isabel Evans), Majandra Delfino (Maria DeLuca), Brendan Fehr (Michael Guerin), Colin Hanks (Alex Whitman), Nick Wechsler (Kyle Valenti), William Sadler (Sheriff Jim Valenti), John Doe (Jeff Parker), Michael Horse (Deputy Blackwood), Wendle Josepher (Jennifer), Kevin Weisman (Larry), Vance Valencia (Mayor Sandler), Joe Camareno (Paramedic), Yolanda Lloyd Delgado (Ms. Hardy), Channing Carson (Liz at 7 years), Daniel Hansen (Max at 7 years), Zoe Nutter (Isabel at 7 years), Jonathan Frakes (Emcee (uncredited)), Richard Schiff (Agent Stevens (uncredited))

I enjoyed watching this series when it originally aired, but lost interest in the second season. I only finished watching it later on DVD.
As far as I am aware it was one of the first series which tried to build upon the success of Buffy and Dawson's Creek, by having a Dawson's Creek type of teen soap with a science fiction or fantasy twist. Many followed for good or worse.

Rating:

(From Tom's TV Pilots marathon on June 26th, 2012)