Can I be fierce for a minute?

Thursday, August 22, 2019

So You Think You Can Dance S16E11: Top 10 Perform, Round 2

Two of the dancers get cut
by Stephen Mosher

Starting out the second of the Live Shows this week was a Travis Wall group piece to the song 'Sign of the Times' by Harry Styles. Last week I said that Travis Wall’s choreography has a look, that it’s predictable - and this week everyone in my house said “This is a Travis Wall dance!” because it has his stamp, his look, his emotion. And it was stunning. This is a Travis Wall number that shows why he is an Emmy winner. Just beautiful, from him and from all the dancers. It was gorgeous.

And so was Cat! Oh my gosh, what an outfit, what a hairdo, what a raving beauty!

Alright, let’s get to it. Last week I predicted that Eddie and Anna would go home this week and tonight all the dancers perform, in spite of knowing two will depart at the end of the show. The suspense begins now.

Up first! Stephanie and Gino were given a chance to work with Emma Slater and Sasha Farber on a jive to the Little Richard song 'Long Tall Sally', and this number was nothing but personality! These two kids have each others’ backs, that’s how in tune they are with one another. The number was a joy to watch but the real joy was watching Gino step out of his style and go to live in another style! Kid was AMAZING and all the judges said so. After a standing ovation, they all basically said “yeah, yeah, Stephanie … BUT GINO!” It was overwhelming.

Gino: Safe. Stephanie: In Danger

Moving on we get to Sophie and Eddie, who worked with Travis Wall on a contemporary piece to the Billy Eilish song 'When the Party’s Over'. This number was classic Travis Wall, if a bit simple, one assumes to accommodate Eddie, but it was beautiful in its simplicity and Eddie did a wonderful job, particularly by being a good partner to Sophie. He protected her, he was there for her, he held her up so all could see her brilliance. The judges were complimentary to Eddie, though maybe a bit nonplussed with their comments, seeming to go into detail with their Sophie critiques and favoring vagueness in their Eddie estimations. Mary did call Sophie Liquid Gold and told Eddie she was proud of him.

Eddie: In Danger. Sophie: Safe.

Benanna are up next and Randi & Hef gave the kids a hip hop dance to 'Lottery' by K Camp. Both are actually cute at the acting bits that the choreographers gave them, but it was odd that Benjamin outshone Anna, dancing in her own style. I think it is because he dances with his heart, indeed, he leads with his heart. Everything he does is with his heart, and it affects the vibe between him and the crowd. As dancing goes, they were both good, and the number was cute, but tonight was all about Ben, who Laurieann told “your calling is absolutely to dance” but she was down on Anna. When Cat told the twosome their results, Benjamin almost cried when he was hearing he was safe, and then he did cry when he heard Anna was not. He’s a good boy who cares about his partner.

Benjamin: Safe. Anna: In Danger.

Madison and Ezra scored when they got Ray Leeper to choreograph a jazz routine for them to Joe Cocker’s ''You Can Leave Your Hat On because this was one for the SYTYCD history books. They were both extraordinary but Ezra really stepped into the light with this one, showing nuances and gumption that people possibly did not expect from him. The commitment was incredible and the chemistry was off the charts. Nigel told Madison Bob Fosse would have loved her and Mary told them they lived up to one of the sexiest songs in history. Laurieann said “there’s dancing and then there’s DANCING!” and she was right. This is one of the routines on SYTYCD people will remember for years to come.

Ezra: In Danger. Madison: Safe.

Mariah and Bailey, the couple to beat, pulled a hip hop routine with Luther Brown to the song 'Tempo' by Lizzo ft. Missy Elliot and it turned out to be the best number of the night. These two are simply astonishing, with so much attitude, such skill, and oodles of personality. Everyone had to be wondering who was sexier in this nasty number, and even though Bailey is all the damn things, it’s all Mariah. Who would have EVER thought a classically trained dancer could get this down in the pocket? And down in the pocket is what Mary said they were. The judges gave them a standing ovation and both Mary and Nigel told them they were the couple to beat. That poetess, Laurieann, said “do not make any other choice but believing in the greatness you were born with.”

Both dancers are Safe.

During the eliminations it was made specifically clear that the judges factored in that night’s performances, as well as all that had come before. Then they sent home a tearful Stephanie and a resigned Eddie. He seemed to know it was coming, but she was hurt. And what this writer wants to know is this: if they factored in last week, and this week, and everything else, why did Stephanie go home instead of Anna? Stephanie has been giving solid performances, they praised her work tonight, she is always good. Anna has been hit or miss since Academy and she gets critiques and still they have kept her. Clearly, they just have a thing for Anna, and maybe it’s a thing I don’t see but I am determined to keep an open mind. It’s just difficult to figure them out at times.

In the meantime, though these two young ‘uns are off the show, their careers are started. They will go out on tour with the show and, eventually, land on Broadway or Dancing with the Stars, so it was all worth it. They are on their way.

So You Think You Can Dance airs Mondays at 8 PM on Fox.

What did you think of this episode? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below.

So You Think You Can Dance S16E10: Top 10 Perform

The Top Ten have their first live performancesby Stephen Mosher

August 12, 2019 - It feels like it has taken forever to get here but we finally arrive at the live performances and the Top Ten get to take the stage for the first time. This is what we’ve all been waiting for, though there are some predictions, naturally, that will begin to develop for everyone with an investment in the show. Let’s all see how our individual predictions go down!

During the opening number 'This is Me' by Kesha, the cast wore all white and, during their Mandy Moore choreographed routine, there were FX that caused lasers to shoot from their fingers. It was a good enough number but it didn’t need the extra effects. Watching them perform, it becomes clear that there are no grown-ups on the show. There was a time when Ryan DiLello or Iveta Lukosiute could be seen dancing in the competition, but not today. It has come down to the youngest dancers in America, and I do love these kids but I smell a big pile of ageism on So You Think You Can Dance. That being said, together these youngsters represent something new: we’ve had casts of great dancers, though not necessarily casts with style. In this cast, even the lesser of the dancers has a style all their own. These kids all have a look, a signature, a style. It will make it interesting to watch them.

Tonight we will see duets by each pair, and a boys dance, and a girls dance.

The first duo to learn they were dancing together were Mariah and Bailey, who were thrilled to be matched (everyone should be thrilled they were matched). The twosome were given a jazz routine by Mandy Moore to 'Love Shack' that showed them as what they are: the couple to beat. The smoldering, dirty dance routine was full of tricks, hits, chemistry and fun, and even though there were a couple of times when they went off, it didn’t matter to the judges. Dominic was “extremely jealous,” Nigel said they were “enormous in talent,” Laurieann said “BOOM!” and Mary announced she was “hopping on the Love Shack train.” Mary also said that Bailey was the biggest shock. Cat asked “the cutest couple I have ever seen” who was the leader in the pairing and Bailey said Mariah is his Boss.

Stephanie and Gino were matched for a Luther Brown hip hop routine to the songs 'Ice Me Out' by Kash Doll. During rehearsals the contestants remarked that the style was hard on both of them but by the time they got to the performance they were in a good place, and in good costumes and makeup. Stephanie really brought the facial expression to the dance, and between the two of them, he had the hits and she had the swag. It was a nice dance, if a bit drab: Dominic thought it was okay while Nigel said Gino is struggling with the personality vs technique thing. Laurieann and Mary did not agree with the men - Laurieann told Gino he had her, while Mary thought Stephanie was off the charts.

Anna and Benjamin met up with Emma and Sasha (married couple Slater and Farber) to learn a cha cha to 'We Run the Night' by Havana ft. Pitbull. Team “Benanna” (they named themselves) are lovely kids but they had lead feet in this number. It was all too slow and lukewarm, instead of fiery fast. But chemistry! Anna’s feet were flexed much of the time and, try though he might, beautiful Benjamin couldn’t get the lines and feet. They are sweet kids but this wasn’t the one, even if Laurieann thinks they are humble warriors and Nigel thinks they are sensational. A discreet Mary said it looked like they were having the time of their lives and Dominic asked Anna how many times she had danced in heels. One. The judges love these two and are soft pedaling it to keep them on the show.

Stars in training Madison and Ezra landed a contemporary dance by Talia Favia to the song 'Lost' by Dermot Kennedy, and, dressed like Twyla Tharp dancers, they rolled around on the floor, emoting. It was very moving and powerful, and since Madison was dancing her own style, natch, she excelled - but it was Ezra who was the revelation because a ballroom dancer making this work for him is a beautiful thing … and the judges knew it. Mary called him a great partner and told them every single step was glorious. Laurieann said they had “so much power” and Dominic said it was his favorite routine of the night, noting that a mistake was a moment of imperfection, perfected. It was a win for the winsome twosome.

Sophie and Eddie had Brian Friedman choreograph a jazz funk routine for them to the song 'Sushi' by Merk & Kremont, and while Sophie was in it, Eddie was totally out of his element - and he knew it, which made him aware of the audience, so he pushed really hard and tried to make up for his shortcomings with a lot of facial mugging. He was lost in the routine and lost in his costume - the designers did him no favors with this outfit, and he and the ‘stume and the dance all looked like a big mess, with Sophie as the cleaning lady who was trying, desperately, to tidy it up. Not one of the judges had a good thing to say about Eddie and Nigel summed it up by saying he was uncomfortable with Eddie’s performance. Meanwhile they all loved Sophie. Eddie has to know he will probably go home next week.

The group numbers only ranked as OK for me. The women had a Travis Wall piece to 'Saint Honesty' by Sarah Bareilles, and you could tell it was a Travis Wall piece because his style can be so predictable, with dancers rolling around on the floor, flailing about, and his signature move of dancers picking up one dancer and either holding them mid-air while they walk or throwing them across the stage while still holding them. It happens in almost every one of his dances. I love Travis Wall, but facts are facts. Predictable.

The men had a rather boring Luther Brown hip hop dance to the song 'Drop' by Smokepurrp, where it became obvious that Eddie was cast because of his popularity last season and his Instagram followers. He’s a darling boy and a marvelous tap dancer but the producers and the judges opted to put him on the show for his audience, bumping another boy dancer with more talent and a better shot at the show. Shame on them for doing it, but it’s all a ratings game, isn’t it? This number? Snore.

No one would go home this night. The voting would begin and the following week one boy and one girl would get the boot. If I had to choose I would say Anna and Eddie, but it’s up to America - and that’s always a gamble.

The best thing about getting to the live shows?

More Cat Deeley.

So You Think You Can Dance S16E09: Final Cut - The Top Ten Guys

With this elimination the men are picked
by Stephen Mosher

August 5, 2019: The Top Five women having been chosen for the season, it came time to look at the men one last time before pulling the trigger on the live shows, and for some reason the choice of the men is always more dramatic, with a little more tension and a little more focus. It’s not that the women on the show aren’t wonderful and aren’t valued, it’s just the way it shakes down, like the Best Actress Oscar every year. It’s time for the boys.

Bailey Munoz, 18, hip hop, was assigned a Jaci Royal contemporary piece with Lauren Froderman to the song 'Fire on Fire' and his stunning performance left Laurieanne speechless, Nigel shocked and Domick declaring, “That was the best B-Boy contemporary performance I have ever seen.” The thing about Bailey, the most delightful human being of all time, is that he is open. His heart and his mind are open to every experience, on the dance floor and in life. He is my personal choice to win the season.

Ezra Sosa, 18, ballroom, was paired with Comfort Fedoke for a hip hop routine by Luther Brown to 'We Outta Here'. Surprisingly, the ballroom dancer brought his stankiest A-game, causing Laurieanne to say “it STUNK” and Mary to tell him the musicality was off the charts. It is always thrilling to watch a dancer rise to the occasion and Ezra is bringing it at just the right moment.

Vlad Kvartin, 23, had the honor to dance with Melanie Moore for his Andy Moore contemporary piece to the song 'You Are The Reason'. I believe that there are dancers that the judges put on the show so that they have someone to cut, and Vlad was the unfortunate one to land on this list. His performance just didn’t do it, and he shows little chance of improving fast enough to make it onto the show. Nigel observed that the connection with Melanie was not strong enough and Laurieanne offered “don’t think up - just think out.

Aleksandr Ostanin, 30, tap, had a ballroom routine with Lindsay Arnold, staged by Sharna Burgess to the song 'Sax'. After being urged by Nigel to shave, the dancer complied and while he did look good, the dance did not. He looked so uncomfortable in the genre and the lifts were downright scary, with Lindsay being at risk much of the time. With so many negative critiques from the judges, he couldn’t really wonder what his fate was going to be - it looked bad.

Benjamin Castro, 18, contemporary, had the thrill to dance with Koine in a salsa put together by Oksana Platero to the song 'Papi Chulo'. This star in the making has shown he has the heart and the style and this performance pretty much guaranteed him a spot in the top five, with Mary saying he “put the seasoning on season 16” and Laurieann to remark “I felt you today more than ever.” Yeah, this is one to watch.

Brian Volozanin (“Clocks”), 28, hip hop, was assigned a Spencer Liff jazz routine with Jasmine Harper to the song 'Take It. Now'. I like Clocks but he has limitations and this dance tested every single one of them, and it cost him a spot on the show. Mary said she was blown away, and I have to admit he did get out of his comfort zone and he was sexy, but when Dominic said “the leaps were so bad,” we all knew everyone knew it, especially Clocks. Laurieann told him she needed something to connect her to him, and Nigel flat out told Clocks it was bad, then told the judges it was bad. Not a subtle message.

Brandon Talbott, 19, ballet, was paired with Lindsay Arnold for a salsa number by Emma Slater and Sasha Farber to the song 'Vivir Mi Vida'. It was pretty clear during rehearsals that he wasn’t going to be able to bring it and, indeed, the performance was clunky. Nigel hit him hard, saying he didn’t believe the chemistry, but Laurieann tried to build him up with, “You’re just beginning to see what you’re capable of.”

Nathan Cherry, 18, hip hop, was matched with Melanie Moore in a contemporary Talia Favia dance to the song 'Weightless' and this dancer whom I had, not once, noticed finally came into the light. This was a memorable performance that caught everyone’s attention, though it may not be enough to move him forward. Nigel called the performance incredible, Mary labeled it intriguing, Dominic thanked him for his courage and Laurienn said he was “dancing in the empty.” If he doesn’t make it onto the show, it would be great to see him go away, study for a year, then come back next season.

Gino Cosculluela,18, contemporary, got Lauren Froderman as his all-star and Ray Leeper as his choreographer. The jazz dance to the song 'That’s It (I’m Crazy)' showcased electric chemistry and mad skills. Dominick said he had composure, control and maturity. Nigel told him he is probably the best technical dancer this year but he needs to turn the light on. He has been a contender from day one and it’s not lost on anyone that he will make the show.

Eddie Hoyt, 19, tap, was left for last - but then he has been saved for last the entire show so far. The producers noticed how popular and likable he is and how many Instagram followers he has and they are orchestrating a comeback after last year. I like Eddie, so I’m happy to go along for the ride, but orchestrating a comeback is different than orchestrating a win - and I don’t think Eddie is poised for a win. He will have to work hard when they get to the live shows. And he worked hard on this episode, dancing hip hop by Randi and Hef, and dancing it with Comfort Fedoke to the song 'Treadmill'. Eddie brought an impressive hip hop performance that might have a little too much bright facial expression, but that certainly had swag. Dominic said he had a growth spurt and Nigel told him it was the best performance he had given on the show. Laurieann said he was “in the pocket” and was “the sauce in the pocket,” prompting Mary to suggest he “bottle that sauce and we’ll sell it.” They clearly like him as much as America does.

All done with these final auditions, the judges are ready to send five gents to sit with the five ladies chosen the week before; and while the viewers have their favorites, the judges have certain criteria that they have to consider for the sake of the show. Just before dropping the blade on five men, Laurieann tells them “you must never give up on your dream.”

Cut:

Brian Clocks Volozanin
Aleksandr Ostanin
Brandon Talbott
Vlad Kvartin
Nathan Cherry

Advancing to the live shows:

Ezra Sosa
Gino Cosculluela
Benjamin Castro
Eddie Hoyt
Bailey Munoz

So You Think You Can Dance S16E08: Final Cut - The Top Ten Girls

With this elimination the women are chosen
by Stephen Mosher

July 29, 2019: In the final push toward the live shows, SYTYCD brings it home with the last two episodes that will determine who the 2019 contestants will be. First up: The top ten girls will be reduced to five in duet dances with all-stars. This would be a make or break moment for the women who have worked so hard for this moment.

Mariah Russell, 19, contemporary, was teamed up with Jonathan Platero for a salsa choreographed by Mr. Platero’s wife, Oksana. Clearly the mentors here work well together because the dance, to the song 'La Malanga', drew hoots and hollers from the judges, and well deserved because the routine had mad tricks and lifts, all of which Mariah and Jonathan nailed. Mary called it “death defying” and Laurieann told Mariah that she had brought “the fire and the fight I’ve been looking for.” It was truly a shining moment for Mariah, who should advance to the live shows.

Melany Mercedes, 24, salsa dancer, was paired with Fik-Shun for a hip hop number choreographed by Randi and Heff, to the song 'Get Silly'. Melany is a good dancer who did well here but it was clear she was being outdanced by Fik-Shun (but who wouldn’t be?), and Laurieann told her that there was attitude needed, while Mary told her she took a step up, probably because she really did get silly, and Mary was clearly proud of her fellow Latin ballroom gal. It was a joy to watch but it looked like it might not be enough.

Ashley Sanchez, 24, ballroom, danced with Lex Ishamoto in a contemporary number by Jaci Royal. Ashley said she would “eat, sleep, and breathe this routine and cherish this moment” but when the time came for the number that was choreographed to the song 'Lovely', she was unable to come up to Lex’s level, and though Laurienne said she had had a breakthrough and Mary expressed her pride, it was a general consensus that Ashley had not brought the emotional content required by the dance.

Anna Linstruth, 19, hip hop, was matched with Marko Germar for a Ray Leeper jazz dance to the tune 'Backwardz', and she really brought the sass, causing Mary to remark that she “gave in to the movement” and Nigel to comment that “this was the time to pull it out … and you did.” Dominic told her that “a smart dancer is someone that can take something that they’re not used to and make it theirs” and that she had done that. Anna is a good dancer but not a great one, but what she brought in personality kind of balances things out. She has SYTYCD written all over her.

Madison Jordan, 21, contemporary, got to dance ballroom with Kiki Nyemcheck in a number created by Emma Slater and Sasha Farber. The routine, to 'Bola Rebola', was hot and sexy, if a little deliberate and lacking in some heat. Nigel didn’t like a particular “slow walk” across the floor that the women LOVED (frankly, so did I). Ultimately, the result was what we thought it would be: they love her. From the moment she auditioned for the show, it was clear she would make top ten. That clarity has not dimmed.

Sofia Ghavami, 20, ballroom, teamed up with Marco Germar for a Spencer Liff jazz routine to the song 'Rinse and Repeat'. The number was drab, slow and boring, and Sofia looked like she was marking time uncomfortably, using her facial expressions to make up for the fact that Marco was outdancing her and she knew it. It fell flat for Dominic, too, but Laurieann said she was glad it was tough because she felt Sofia. Honestly, any dancer who has not risen to the occasion felt Sofia while watching. It was clear that it was over for the ballroom dancer.

Sumi Oshima, 26, hip hop, got a chance to dance with Lex Ishamoto in a jazz number choreographed by Talia Favia, who urged the dancer: “don’t be scared.” The song 'Angels' gave Sumi an opportunity to change the game, but her emotions could not come up to the skills her body was showing, prompting Laurieann to observe “you fought to be noticed..you must not dance in your head”, meanwhile Mary insisted that “there's something about you that commands attention.” Mary is right, Sumi is captivating, but dance is about a lot of things, and hopefully one day she will embody all of that.

Nazz Syldryan, 21, salsa dancer, was asked to dance some hip hop with Fik-Shun, courtesy of Luther Brown to the song 'Overseas'. The routine wowed the judges, who were hooting and shouting, they were so into it, she had so much stank on her. The connection between she and Fik-Shun was on fire, and the judges LOVED it. Mary told her she was “starring in that number” and she had “soul in the bowl!” It was a moment in the sun for Nazz, one that, in a perfect world, should send her to the live shows.

Sophie Pittman, 18, contemporary, was lucky enough to ballroom dance with Kiki Nyemchek, doing a cha cha cha by Sharna Burgess. The connection was great and Sophie brought something to the dance, though each of the judges had valid critiques of her work, the kind of critiques that help dancers to grow. Mary: “I never want to see you think.” Laurieann: “Don’t forget you and the magic that you bring.” Sophie does have something, but she is young and needs a little mentorship to bring it out.

Stephanie Sosa, 19, salsa dancer, had the good fortune to dance a Mandy Moore jazz dance with Robert Roldan to the song 'You Say', and it was the right time for Stephanie to deliver. The performance was stunning and emotional, though it wasn’t perfect, and the judges told her, straight up, what was missing from the offering. She took their critiques like a professional and it is clear she would do well on the show. Particularly of note was Laurieann telling her, “I was missing you surrendering to the vulnerability.” Nevertheless, they like her and it shows.

Finished with the performances, the judges played their dramatic elimination game, and they always do it to television suspense standards. In the end, though, five happy girls took seats and five unhappy girls left the stage. This writer doesn’t necessarily agree with the cuts, but I also don’t know who I would have given the boot to make room for Nazz, sadly, eliminated. I hope she will come back because of all the ladies who were cut, she is the one who, most, belongs on the show this season.

Cut:

Melany Mercedes
Ashley Sanchez
Sofia Ghavami
Sumi Oshima
Nazz Syldryan

Advancing to the live shows:

Mariah Russell
Madison Jordan
Sophie Pittman
Stephanie Sosa
Anna Linstruth.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Why Women Kill S01E01: Murder Means Never Having To Say You're Sorry

Marc Cherry returns in great form
by Chuck Duncan

Way back in 2004, Marc Cherry became an overnight sensation when his new TV series Desperate Housewives premiered on ABC. The show was a rating smash and garnered its share of controversy with conservative groups who felt the show was immoral and launched boycotts of Disney and the show's sponsors. Cherry and Company got the last laugh as the series went on to a successful eight season run, ending in 2012. Cherry then created another show for ABC that seemed like another surefire hit, Devious Maids, but the network eventually passed and the series found a savior in the Lifetime cable network where it ran for four seasons beginning in 2013. It's been a couple of years since Cherry has had a new series on the air but he's back and firing on all cylinders.

Why Women Kill premiered on subscription service CBS All Access this week and it was a fabulous debut. The women of the title are played by Ginnifer Goodwin (Beth Ann), Lucy Liu (Simone) and Kirby Howell-Baptiste (Taylor), wives living in the same house in different eras: 1963, 1984, and 2019 respectively. Beth Ann and her husband Robert (Sam Jaeger) have just moved into a mansion in Pasadena, something they can now afford thanks to his job with NASA. Beth Ann feels terribly out of place and isn't impressed with her loud Italian neighbors ... but she puts on a good face.

Simone and her husband Karl (Jack Davenport) live in the same mansion which has just been redecorated in stereotypically (but normal for the era) gaudy 1980s style and Simone is ready to show the place off to her friends. She's taken aback though when she learns one of her 'closest' friends doesn't really like her and has not come to the party. In 2019, Taylor and her husband Eli are in the process of remodeling the mansion again -- and Taylor is not putting up with any of the contractor's shenanigans. This couple has an open marriage and Taylor is bisexual, having a female lover on the side. Their agreement is that neither will bring their hook-ups to the house, but an emergency call from Taylor's newest fling Jade (Alexandra Daddario) makes it necessary for her to have a safe space to get away from a stalker ex.

Of course with a title like Why Women Kill, there must be some reason that each of these women are the focus of the show. Beth Ann accidentally overhears her neighbor Sheila (Alicia Coppola) telling another woman at the grocery store that her husband saw Robert kissing a cute blonde waitress at the local diner. Beth Ann doesn't want to believe it -- he'd never do that because of what happened to their daughter, she tells Sheila (but we don't know what happened at this point) -- but she drives to the diner after Robert calls and says he has a late business meeting, and she sees him kiss the waitress. She confides in Sheila, who tells her to confront the girl, and Beth Ann finds the courage to do so ... and finds that she's really a sweet girl. Does she know Robert is even married? Beth Ann almost runs but April (Sadie Calvano) sees something is bothering Beth Ann and convinces her to sit and talk while it's slow at the diner. Beth Ann decides that April will be her new best friend ... but how will she deal with Robert, questioning aloud when he will die during an evening dinner of meat loaf.

Simone, after learning of her friend's hatred of her, finds an envelope on the dining room table with her name on it. Inside are a strip of photo booth pictures with Karl and ... another man. Not wanting to cause a scene, she drags Karl to the bathroom and shows him the photos, then realizes this is not a one-time thing. She tells him to discreetly go upstairs and begin packing while she makes an excuse that he's taken ill, and then he can leave after the party ends. But she later finds him in a stupor having taking a bottle of pills. She calls for an ambulance and while the neighbors gather she tells them all he fell and hit his head. But she sees the now former friend Wanda and realizes it was she who gave her the photos. A catfight breaks out and the EMTs have to break them up. Later, her friend Naomi's son Tommy (Leo Howard), who was a waiter at the party, came to check on Simone and admitted he saw the photos. She was horrified but broke down and he consoled her, giving her a tender kiss and telling her he'd been wanting to do that since he was 13. She asked how old he was now and he said 18 ... in two days: 'As much as it would cheer me up to commit a felony, I think you should go.' But Tommy assured her that he is ready to show her the love she deserves (in more vulgar and direct words). But she's still got Karl to deal with.

Taylor has a slightly different issue. It's not that her husband is cheating on her, but when she brings Jade home he is firm that she can stay a night, or the weekend, okay until Labor Day which is Monday. But Jade is stunning and it's obvious he's attracted to her ... and Taylor isn't blind. When they wake up the next morning, their disaster area of a house -- clothes are strewn everywhere -- is spic and span and breakfast is waiting. Eli is kind of enjoying having a 'wife' who actually cleans and cooks. Taylor is a lawyer and barely has time for anything while Eli struggles to write a new script. Jade, it turns out, is a huge fan of his movie and that only makes her more attractive to him. His friend says Eli needs to bring up the idea of a three-way with Taylor since they're both into Jade. Eli isn't sure Taylor would go for that but the notion is enticing. So far we don't know yet what exactly pushes Taylor to 'kill mode' but it's coming.

The episode opened with The Husbands giving their recollections of how they met their wives, talking about how happy they were until ... and the episode ended with The Wives questioning why a woman kills, and who does she kill: the other woman or the man who wronged her, perhaps the friend who exposed a dirty secret? And do we condemn her or sympathize with her? And most importantly -- does she get away with it? All good questions that will unfold over the next several episodes.

I wasn't sure how the show would be from watching the trailer which I felt was a bit flat, but the first episode was a hoot, blending that patented mix of drama and comedy Cherry does so well. The show also looks fantastic, presented in an extreme widescreen image, looking like a 1950s Technicolor CinemaScope 'woman's picture' by Douglas Sirk (Imitation of Life, All That Heaven Allows) accompanied by a whimsical musical score by Mateo Messina that feels heavily influenced by the work of Danny Elfman. The writing and the cast are all on point making Why Women Kill one of the most entertaining new shows of the year and I am fully on board for the rest of the ride.

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Friday, August 16, 2019

BH90210 S01E02: The Pitch

Maybe producing isn't genetic in the Spelling family
by Kim Tibbs-Krober

The second episode of BH90210 brought out the egos of everyone in full force. Tori and Jennie went to FOX to pitch their idea for the Beverly Hills, 90210 reboot, where Christine Elise (the original series' favorite recurring psychopath Emily Valentine) was a studio bigwig in a plot twist that didn't make a lot of sense. Jennie and Ian both found themselves in the midst of a divorce, while Jason struggled with the idea of pending fatherhood after learning he had a fertility issue. Gabrielle struggled internally with last week's forbidden kiss, while Brian found himself getting an acting gig because the movie's producers were interested in featuring his wife on the movie's soundtrack.

FOX was only interested in the reboot if Tori could get the entire cast to return, so the rest of the episode centered around her caving in to the demands of the others. Gabrielle wanted her character Andrea to explore her sexuality on the reboot, while Ian wanted product placement for a new line of health and beauty products he wanted to launch. Jason wanted to direct at least the pilot episode, while Jennie wanted them to cast her daughter in the reboot so she could take the aspiring starlet under her protective wings. Brian just wanted the chance to act again without fear of being in his superstar wife's shadow. These motivations seemed plausible, as everyone worked hard to come up with ideas to give 90210 "a facelift."

One of my favorite lines was uttered between Tori and her husband (portrayed by Ivan Sergei). He made a remark something to the effect of "Maybe producing isn't genetic," referring to the fact that Tori's father, 90210 creator Aaron Spelling, had the gift, but maybe the apple really did fall far from the tree this time. Since this episode felt very scattered to me, I'm having trouble finding the fault with that logic. I did enjoy watching Tori place 90210 dolls in a Peach Pit diorama she created, adding a doll every time she got a cast member to sign on for the reboot. It got me thinking about whether they really created a Peach Pit play set in the '90s, so my curiosity took me to eBay. It seemed Mattel did, but it wasn't nearly as impressive as the one Tori created. It seemed to retail for around $300 today (it must be rare to find a set with all the accessories still intact). My husband and I are avid toy collectors, so our thoughts always tend to travel in this direction. I also asked my best friend who was a die-hard fan of 90210 since day one whether or not she had a Peach Pit play set in the '90s. Sadly, she did not.

The next thing that left me feeling curious was the plot twist revealing the 90210 cast has a stalker who may be mentally imbalanced. At the end of the episode, he sent each of them a mutilated version of their character dolls. I think this was supposed to be upsetting, but it felt too cartoonish for me to take it seriously. I again took to the Internet to see if I could find any reports of disturbed 90210 fanatics over the years. As far as I can tell, this was more fictionalized drama created for the reboot. The most upsetting thing about it was how much a person could get selling an entire set of 90210 dolls on eBay today. What a waste of perfectly good figurines. How far will this stalker plot go? The train wreck continues to pique my curiosity with only four remaining episodes. One thing seems certain: Next week, it looks like they finally begin shooting the reboot, and that has me feeling excited!

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Thursday, August 15, 2019

Movie Review: ECCO

ECCO is a confusing Seattle-set spy thriller

ECCO offered a confusing narrative that requires a lot of patience.
by Justin Moore

It’s always cool to see a movie that was filmed close to where you live. The new Seattle-set thriller ECCO was shot on location throughout Washington. It was hard to recognize some of the locations in the movie but I found some spots I recognized like the Fishermen’s Terminal in the Port of Seattle. The film is written and directed by Ben Medina, who was born in Washington and attended University of Washington. Lathrop Walker (who also attended University of Washington) plays Michael, a former assassin living a new life in the shadows who must come out of hiding to discover the origins of his beginnings. People he is close to are being killed and he must ask himself who he really is.

Confusing is one word to describe ECCO. The film opens up with Michael aboard a plane acting as an assassin who shoots everyone on the private jet and then parachuting off the jet. The film then jumps to Michael working on a fishing ship playing cards with the crewmen. The film gives little explanation to the opening sequence and where Michael is at in his life right now. What makes this film so confusing is that there are constant flashbacks that appear abruptly. Two women are introduced in the film. One is Abby (Tabitha Bastien) and the other is Aubrey (Helena Grace Donald). Both women ask Michael the same question: Who are you? I couldn’t even answer that question for most of the film. Scenes for both Abby and Aubrey play a significant role in Michael’s life, but the way the scenes are handled makes it confusing as to what relationship came first. Aubrey is intrigued by Michael and proceeds to take many photos of him on a subway and the two become lovers. Michael’s flashbacks are also shared with Abby, who is his pregnant wife. The main question I had for a good majority of the film was who did Michael love first?

As the film progresses you get a better understanding of who Michael is, why he is being hunted, and the relationships he had with both women. The answers to Michael’s life came way too late in the movie though, which makes for a frustrating watch at times. Towards the end of the film, there are less flashbacks which makes the film easier to watch but the non-linear narrative doesn’t set up future scenes very well.

Walker did a fine job acting as Michael, who is a man of mystery and often keeps things to himself. Other characters in the film from his two lovers, crewmen, other assassins, and targets for Michael all act very stiff. There isn’t much emotion flowing throughout the movie, which could have worked from the women in the film. The severe lack of personality from certain characters makes the relationships in the film not strong enough for one to care about.

I was impressed with how Medina handled his scenes in the movie. In the first half of the film, Michael gets involved in a fight and the limited editing makes it the most intense scene of the film. Medina takes the vibrant setting of Seattle, Port Townsend and Skagit Valley and creates a bleak setting perfect for a spy thriller.

ECCO offered a confusing narrative that requires a lot of patience. The film felt familiar to other stories but the constant shifts from past to present makes it a difficult film to follow at times. Medina is a talented director though with some of his shots and how he handles action scenes, but the non-linear script is what makes the film confusing to watch.

Movie Review: A Faithful Man

A Faithful Man is a delightful rom-com in disguise

'A Faithful Man' is a beautiful look at rekindling relationships but also manages to provide humor in the film.
by Justin Moore

The first time I saw Louis Garrel on screen was when he starred in the 2003 film The Dreamers. He starred alongside Eva Green, who played his twin sister. While living in Paris, they start a relationship with a California student named Matthew. The movie was full of threesomes and incest and all I can say that it was an experience.

While spending many years as a popular French movie star, Garrel took on a director’s position with his 2015 film Two Friends. Garrel stars, directs, and co-writes the story of his newest film, A Faithful Man, with legendary screenwriter Jean-Claude Carriere. Garrel stars as Abel, a journalist living with his girlfriend Marianne in Paris, France. She informs him that she is pregnant, and he isn’t the father of the child. The father is a mutual friend and she wants Abel to move out within ten days so she can get married to the father of her unborn child. The conversation is very mature and happens all so fast that you don’t expect any hard feelings amongst the two.

The film fast forwards nine years later when Marianne’s husband, Paul, dies in his sleep. Abel attends the funeral out of respect and reconnects with his old flame. Her young son (Joseph Engel) is convinced that his mother poisoned his father which resulted in his death. From the beginning of the film to the start of Marianne and Abel’s new relationship, the film sets itself up as a drama focusing on rekindling love but all of that was a front for clever romantic comedy.

The scenes between Abel and Marianne were more on the dramatic side. Marianne, played by Laetitia Casta, who is married to Garrel in real life, has great chemistry with him. It is easy to say that they worked well together since they are married but the two do a fine job at falling back in love with each other, which is easily the most endearing thing about the film.

Most of the comedic moments come from Marianne’s son and Eve (Lily-Rose Depp), who is the late husband’s sister. Eve had a crush on Abel since she was a kid and now that he has returned and she is older, she sees it as a chance to confess her love. What is even funnier is Marianne’s young son is convinced that he his mother killed his dad and how he tries to persuade Abel of all of this. His interactions with Abel is what makes the film turn from a sweet drama to an engaging rom-com.

A Faithful Man is a beautiful look at rekindling relationships but also manages to provide humor in the film. Garrel packs a lot in this short film, which clocks in at 75 minutes long. Garrel is a talented actor, and he is a talented director. There were many moments when Garrel captured an intimate look at Paris by using long takes and wide shots. I was immediately impressed with how Garrel showed the city in his opening sequence and from there on he continued to craft a charming rom-com.

Agents of SHIELD S06E11: From the Ashes

SHIELD tries to rise From the Ashes

Let's get to it already!
by Brandon Coulson

Was anyone else checking their phone through this one? After last week had such a strong bulk of an episode only to trip at the end, I expected things to really fly this week. Instead we got a slow plodding episode that barely moved the needle. All we really did this week was put the pieces into place for next week’s double sized finale.

It was nice that they remember about Benson and gave him something to do this week, though after having sidelined and basically forgotten him for so long, having him confronted with his dead husband just didn’t resonate with me. We never really got to know much about him or their relationship aside from the surface details.

This whole series of manipulation from Izel felt weak and obvious. The early trick where she was in Mack was so easy to see and Yoyo should have been smarter. Then while I did like Yoyo signalling Benson the threat from Izel, to kill his husband over and over in front of him, sounds like a horrible threat but I never felt it in the performances that this was enough to theoretically help her destroy the world.

Everything about Izel’s plan also feels a bit simple. A magic temple, a portal to another realm, needing Mack and Yoyo’s memories of the monoliths to rebuild them, it all seems a bit cheesy. Not to mention Izel has to be by far the worst big bad SHIELD has ever had. For someone who threatens to destroy everything in the universe, I couldn’t care less about her as a character. We’ve had Nazis and alien monsters, rogue agents and virtual gods, and while Izel is said to be the greatest threat of them all I find her utterly boring.

There were a few moments that made me sit up, mind you. Mack, possessed, killing an agent brutally was shocking. The way Benson gets dropped from the plane was a smart and well executed plan, but why didn’t Yoyo just hit the drop button with all three of them and the device in the cargo hold together? Perfect escape plan right?

On the other side of things, the team mulls over Sarge and whether or not he contains some vestige of Coulson. May as the hopeful side and Daisy sure he is only a monster but one they can use. Daisy pushing Sarge to use his power, and eventually killing him again seemed a bit extreme for her but I bought into it. I also really liked the way his power manifests with his skin sort of pulling away to reveal some other self underneath. The limits of his power are yet to be seen but he demolishes a steel door with ease so the inevitable battle for the finale should be fun.

Deke continued to become tolerable and even fun character as he and Fitz/Simmons figured out the whole harmonic resonance things and started designing a device to use against Izel. Tying the harmonics into the sword and knives was a nice touch.

I will say I called the Coulson resurgence as it seems Sarge is fully aware of Coulson’s memories as he calls Daisy Skye. Now while the scene itself was very nicely acted, the whole cheat to get Coulson back was my worst fear realized. He will definitely be sticking around next season.

This whole episode should have taken ten minutes tops but instead we were treading water and killing time until the finale. While I’m sure there will be some fun action, I don’t have the highest hopes for the finale blowing me away. The lack of focus and weakness of the villain are really wearing thin now.

Agents of SHIELD S06E10: Leap

SHIELD takes a Leap towards the end

A lot of good and a little bad...
by Brandon Coulson

So here we sit, two weeks and three episodes from the end of the season and with confirmation of next year being the final one there's much to be set up moving forward.

This week’s outing, 'Leap', asked us to take a leap in logic and give the writers a whole lot of leeway. It was fairly obvious what caused May to kill Sarge last week and I was happy to see that the team quickly and very smartly tracked the path of possession and figured out what had happened. It would have been so easy to drag the distrust and confusion angle of a body-hopping alien out for an entire episode, or even a few. Something I imagine in a twenty-two episode season would easily have become a much longer plot point.

But in a show, and a world, in which LMD’s, virtual worlds and people/aliens can fly, fire energy beams and even travel through time, the idea of body-hopping not only can seem plausible, literally every SHIELD team member buys into the theory as valid immediately.

Everything leading up to their confrontation with Izel was beautifully executed. Showing the path she took body to body, building tension, seeing the team put the pieces together, it all works. I was frankly set to be frustrated by a long May interrogation with no one believing her, which would have been irritating seeing how long this group has fought side-by-side, so color me impressed when every single person basically says 'this makes no sense, something made her do it.'

Deke and Fitz sorta kinda preemptively figured out what Sarge is (more on that later) but what I really enjoyed was their back and forth. Deke’s yearning for approval and flip-flopping on priorities in response to whatever Fitz says. I am actually looking forward to Deke now, I even want Snow to come back in the mix, have the whole weird family together.

Continuing the smartly written trend, Mack really showed good leadership and forward thinking. As soon as he gets what is happening, he locks down the lighthouse. Now of course we don’t see any other agents except our main crew *cough* No budget! *cough* but locking in Izel is the best thing to do. Then they immediately think of testing everyone with secrets that can be verified by other team members, this gives us a few funny beats and some character insight like Davis’s pen theft and Daisy sending money to Lincoln’s sister while serving to move the narrative forward.

Then the smartest thing Mack does is after clearing Daisy and Yoyo, separating them from the group and locking them up, preventing Izel from getting their powers. Just really good writing that shows he’s deserving of leadership.

Following that we got a pretty amazing sequence of Izel hopping from body to body showing how in control she is. The self harm angle played very well and built tension beautifully. Hitting two real heart-stopping moments as Piper shoots a giant hole in her hand, which was a bit more gruesome looking than I expect from this series, and then eventually making Davis dive to his death. I had a few thoughts on this moment. First, that it explains why Davis who has barely had lines in past seasons suddenly got promoted to the forefront, of course they were building him up so this would hurt more, it worked a little but I still wasn't devastated or anything. Also, while I know that falling on his head/neck directly is what killed him, the fact that it was just a one story drop kind of made it look a little silly, like no one could have tried and catch him? Maybe break his fall a bit?

That little bit aside, up until this point I was riveted. Just a fantastic episode …

But then we got more answers.

So as this was happening we got little looks into Sarge’s recovery, from death, as Simmons looks on in wonder and basically sidelined from anything interesting. We see Sarge survived the shooting and losing all of his blood, and as the episode wore on, fully heals without a scratch. Quick question: where is Dr. Benson during all this? You remember, that character they added like he had something important to add who is supposed to help with the weird science stuff. Yeah, dude disappeared quick, didn't he?

But back to Sarge, as he eventually escapes and meets up with Izel, who is going after the remnants of the monolith’s power that got locked up last year. This is where we finally get answers to all of our questions, and frankly it was the most disappointing part of the episode. After a quick Fitz explanation that we didn't see a fear dimension at all because he’s the smarter Fitz, and some loose tying of Izel and Sarge as beings like Ghost Rider, we found out the truth of Sarge … he’s in a duplicate body of Coulson because when Coulson went in that realm it xeroxed him? So he’s just another body-hopper who got in an empty copy but its trace memories confused him, though he didn’t actually have access to those memories for the last hundred years or whatever but now he suddenly does.

Damn it guys, this week was so good for eighty percent of it. Now this bull is what we’re going with heading into the final three? It feels so thrown together and half-baked. So you know what’s going to happen: Sarge will fully remember Coulson’s life, somehow tap into whatever his powers are and take down Izel. In the process burning out all but a few of his abilities and setting him up as an alien who will have parts of Coulson’s personality and memories but will need to learn to live in the human world, at least that’s my bet for the plans heading into next season. For you Whedon fans this is basically the Illyria storyline from Angel.

I hope I get surprised, but this seems to be an obvious path for the last episodes of the season and it's a shame to have such an underwhelming reveal in such an otherwise stellar episode. First 80% A+, last 20% C-.