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March 24, 2006

We need your help

Ok, I know I usually reserve this space for my thoughts and feelings on different TV shows, but this week I wanted to ask those who read this blog if they could help me with a story I'd like to do.
I'd like to write about people who have viewing parties -- events where you and your friends get together to watch your favorite shows. I thought now would be a good time, with the return of "The Sopranos." Also, if you throw parties for other shows: "Desperate Housewives," "Lost," or ANYTHING else, I'd like to hear about it.
I can be reached at acuda@ctpost.com or 203-330-6290.
I look forward to hearing from you.

Posted by amanda on 12:22 PM | Comments (0)

March 17, 2006

Breaking out is hard to do

One of the giddiest delights of the fall TV season was Fox’s freshman drama “Prison Break,� arguably the most outrageous, over-the-top show to surface since the network’s “24.�

“Break� focused on young structural engineer Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller), who robs a bank with the sole purpose of being imprison at Fox River, the same correctional facility where his brother Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) is currently on death row for assassinating the brother of the vice president.
Michael, you see, helped design Fox River. He believes Lincoln is innocent. His plan is to break out of the prison with his brother, sparing his sib’s life.
Each episode was more outlandish than the last. Michael has a full upper-body tattoo, which is actually a blueprint of the prison. The sympathetic warden (Stacy Keach), lets Michael into his office to help him build a model of the Taj Mahal (huh?).
The prison doctor, Sarah Tancredi (Sarah Wayne Callies), is portrayed as brainy and sensitive, yet she gives weekly insulin shots to Michael, not suspecting that he isn’t really diabetic.
The conspiracy against Lincoln is absurdly complicated, involving nearly everyone in the federal government, the court system and all of law enforcement (I think – I’m still not sure).
The prison itself is populated with stock prison types, including the incredibly creepy T-Bag (Robert Knepper), who torments young, fragile inmates with psychotic glee.
More and more inmates end up getting involved in the breakout scheme, including Michael’s cellmate, the sympathetic Sucre (Amaury Nolasco), and the horrible T-Bag.
The show was outlandish right up to its fall finale, which included the revelation that the vice president’s brother was actually still alive. Plus, the guys started their break out of prison, only to find a pipe in their way, which foiled the whole thing.
The goofy fun begins anew this Monday at 9 p.m., as the second half of the season starts. I can’t wait. Despite the implausible plots and absurd twists and turns, “Prison Break� is compulsively watchable.
That’s mostly thanks to Miller, who is a real find, capable of conveying pain, frustration and meticulously detailed thought processes with a single intense glare. The acting in general is quite good, especially Knepper, whose T-Bag is a TV villain right up there with Nina Meyers on “24� and Antwon Mitchell on “The Shield.�
He’s revolting, yet impossible to ignore.
I don’t know what will happen in the rest of the season. Will the guys break out? Will Lincoln survive? Will Michael consummate his blazing sexual tension with the lovely Dr. Tancredi?
Will Robin Tunney, as Lincoln’s lawyer/love interest deliver a single line without compulsively wiggling her eyebrows?
Who knows. But I’m dying to find out.

Posted by amanda on 11:25 AM | Comments (0)

March 15, 2006

The beginning of the end: “The Sopranos� begins its (allegedly) final season

Warning: If you didn’t see last week’s season premiere of “The Sopranos,� read no further, as this blog contains plot details from that episode. IF you wish to know nothing about upcoming episodes -- well, then you're made of stone. But you also shouldn't read any further.

There was a time when identified the Tom Petty ballad “American Girl� with that scene in “Silence of the Lambs� where Buffalo Bill kidnaps Catherine Martin.
But, from now on, I’ll associate it with the image of Edie Falco’s Carmela Soprano professing her weepy, tortured love for her husband as he lies in his hospital bed.
Those of you who saw the season opener of the mob drama “The Sopranos� this week know it ended with Tony Soprano getting shot by his Alzheimer-addled Uncle Junior.
I’ve seen the next three episodes and, though I won’t give away too much, suffice it to say that the shooting has serious repercussions for all the show’s characters.
No, Tony doesn’t die (that’s not exactly a spoiler – it is his show, after all), but he doesn’t exactly bounce right back.
The episodes following the premiere deal a lot with the topic of identity, a recurring theme throughout the show. Tony is, of course, firmly entrenched in middle age and, like most men at that time of life, he wonders where he’s going.
Surrounding him like bookends are his growing son, A.J., and the increasingly ill Junior. Tony knows he can’t go back, but he fears what the future will bring.
That’s why spirituality also pops up a lot in the early episodes. White lights, crucifixes, monks, evangelicals, proverbs – they all make appearances, particularly in yet another of the show’s jarring dream sequences.
Yes, once again we’re treated to several minutes of symbolism-laden dreams, meant to highlight Tony’s emotional confusion. Unlike last season’s bizarre extended dream sequences, there’s a logical explanation for the fantasies this time around.
But still, enough already. The show’s always better when it veers away from fantasy and focuses on the here and now of these fascinating characters. Witness Carmela’s Tom Petty-inspired breakdown, one of the series’ most devastating moments.
Tony’s not the only one struggling with identity. Nearly everyone faces confusion about who he or she is. That includes Silvio, thrust temporarily into a position of authority following Tony’s injury, and Paulie, who makes a shocking discovery about his own background.
In way, these characters are growing up: deciding what kind of people they want to be, and whether these goals are attainable.
Of course, the show’s nothing without its trademark wit, and this season has it in spades (witness Bobby’s hilarious attempt to help a rapper win street cred). So far, the sixth season is shaping up well.
I look forward to seeing where it’s all headed. And, even after six seasons, I look forward to discovering more about who these characters are.

Posted by amanda on 3:14 PM | Comments (0)

March 3, 2006

President Palmer lives!…Sort of

Like many fans of “24,� I was saddened by the on-screen death of President David Palmer this season. Though he didn’t always play a big role in the show’s plots, Dennis Haysbert, who planned Palmer, brought such presence to the role that he stole the show whenever he was on screen.
With his big frame, piercing eyes and sonorous voice, Haysbert oozes gravitas. “24� is a show dripping with intensity, so he was right at home there.
Thankfully, he’s found a new, equally appropriate home on the new CBS drama “The Unit.� The show follows a top-secret military Special Forces group, led by Haysbert’s Jonas Blane.

It was executive produced playwright/filmmaker David Mamet and “The Shield� creator Shawn Ryan. We’re talking about two of the entertainment industry’s great macho men.
Mamet’s dialogue style – clipped, smart and muscular – is legendary, as is the tough sensibility permeating his body of work. Ryan, while not an icon yet, has created one of the toughest shows of the new century -- a bruising examination of a corruption-filled police department in Los Angeles.
“The Unit� pulses with the styles of both men. Talky, yet action-packed with a cast populated by tough guys. That includes Haysbert, who once again dares you to take your eyes off him.
Simply, Jonas is David Palmer with a license to kill. He’s tough, smart and focused as he shows new Unit member Bob Brown (Scott Foley) the ropes. Yet, in the pilot’s final scenes, there are signs that Jonas is cracking under the pressure of his job. Haysbert gets at both the toughness and the vulnerability of this complicated man with grace.
The show’s pilot splits its focus between the members of the Unit and their wives, who cope with an unusual wife.
That group now includes Bob’s wife, Kim (Audry Marie Anderson), who is completely blindsided by the restrictions of her new life.
I like the way the show balances the action stuff with the more personal drama, but, right now, it’s the action that takes center stage. There’s a particularly amazing rescue scene at the pilot’s end that’s as powerful as anything on “24.�
Though it’s too soon to know if “The Unit� will be successful, it has a lot of promise. And it has Haysbert, who is always worth a look.
"The Unit" debuts Tuesday at 9 p.m. on CBS.

Posted by amanda on 11:11 AM | Comments (0)