Well. The Lynn's Druthers Very Slow Marathon ended up taking about six months, when I'd thought it would be two or three. Note to self: don't count an entire TV series as a single item in future marathons.
I don't really have much to say about this bunch of titles that I haven't already. I tried to get Lynn to write a wrap-up, but she won't. I think she lost interest in her own marathon months ago. I know I did. I'm eager to get on to more manageable, compact and, hopefully, interesting marathons. So I'll just rank these titles and be done with it.
(ordered by “subjective score,” with ties broken by “objective score”):
Tier 1: notable
1. The Shop Around the Corner, 1940 (8/10, 3.0/4)
2. The Producers, 1968 (8/10, 2.7/4)
3. Lars and the Real Girl, 2007 (7/10, 3.0/4)
4. A Town Called Panic, 2009 (7/10, 2.9/4)
Tier 2: solidly entertaining
5. MASH: Season Three, 1974-1975 (7/10, 2.8/4)
6. MASH: Season Four, 1975-1976 (7/10, 2.6/4)
7. Flight of the Conchords: Season One, 2007 (7/10, 2.5/4)
8. MASH: Season Two, 1973-1974 (7/10, 2.5/4)
9. MASH: Season One, 1972-1973 (7/10, 2.5/4)
Tier 3: yeah, I guess these are fine, too
10. Ponyo, 2008 (7/10, 2.5/4)
11. Date Night, 2010 (7/10, 2.3/4)
12. An American in Paris, 1951 (7/10, 2.2/4)
13. Enter the Dragon, 1973 (7/10, 2.2/4)
14. Mad Men: Season One, 2007 (6/10, 3.0/4)
15. Capote, 2005 (6/10, 2.6/4)
Tier 4: kind of a waste of time
16. Big, 1988 (6/10, 2.0/4)
17. Dexter: Season Three, 2008 (6/10, 2.0/4)
18. Semi-Pro, 2008 (5/10, 1.9/4)
20. Sahara with Michael Palin, 2002 (4/10, 1.3/4)
21. Full Circle with Michael Palin, 1997 (4/10, 1.0/4)
19. Dan in Real Life, 2007 (3/10, 1.9/4)
22. The Walking Dead: Season One, 2010 (3/10, 1.5/4)
Tier 5: crappity crappity crap
23. Defiance, 2008 (3/10, 1.4/4)
24. Run, Fat Boy, Run, 2007 (3/10, 1.3/4)
25. Drunken Master, 1978 (3/10, 1.1/4)
26. Talladega Nights, 2006 (3/10, 1.0/4)
Showing posts with label lynn's druthers marathon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lynn's druthers marathon. Show all posts
July 1, 2011
Sahara with Michael Palin
Lynn’s Druthers Marathon, part 26 (final)
Data
Title: Sahara with Michael Palin
Year: 2002
Network: BBC
Episodes: 4, at 50 minutes each
Directors: Roger Mills, John-Paul Davidson
Writer: Michael Palin
Starring: Michael Palin
Music: Elizabeth Parker
I saw it: streaming from Netflix, over the past few days
Synopsis: Palin wanders around northern Africa
My reaction
Concept:
I don't know why he's there. Maybe someone thought it would be funny if he got a really bad sunburn?
Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting: n/a
Music:
Subjective Rating: 4/10 (Eh,). Not as boring as Full Circle. It has some educational value, if not entertainment.
Objective Rating (Average):
Data
Title: Sahara with Michael Palin
Year: 2002
Network: BBC
Episodes: 4, at 50 minutes each
Directors: Roger Mills, John-Paul Davidson
Writer: Michael Palin
Starring: Michael Palin
Music: Elizabeth Parker
I saw it: streaming from Netflix, over the past few days
Synopsis: Palin wanders around northern Africa
My reaction
Concept:
I don't know why he's there. Maybe someone thought it would be funny if he got a really bad sunburn?Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting: n/a
Music:
Subjective Rating: 4/10 (Eh,
). Not as boring as Full Circle. It has some educational value, if not entertainment.Objective Rating (Average):
June 29, 2011
Dan in Real Life
Lynn’s Druthers Marathon, part 25
Data
Title: Dan in Real Life
Year: 2007
Length: 98 minutes
Director: Peter Hedges
Writers: Pierce Gardner & Peter Hedges
Starring: Steve Carell
With: Juliette Binoche, Dane Cook, Alison Pill, Brittany Robertson, Marlene Lawston, Dianne Wiest, John Mahoney, Norbert Leo Butz, Amy Ryan, Jessica Hecht, Frank Wood, Emily Blunt
Cinematography: Lawrence Sher
Music: Sondre Lerche
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), yesterday
Synopsis: a widower obsesses over his brother's girlfriend
My reaction
Concept: I understand we watched this because there are pancakes on the poster. That is a bad way to select a movie.
Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting: Who casts Dane Cook in a movie? Who does that? And as a character that should be sympathetic! It's kind of distracting if you spend half the movie wanting to sucker punch one of the actors.
Music:
Subjective Rating: 3/10 (Bad,). Awkwardness that's just horrible to watch, with no reward for your pain. And so many cliches.
Objective Rating (Average):
Data
Title: Dan in Real Life
Year: 2007
Length: 98 minutes
Director: Peter Hedges
Writers: Pierce Gardner & Peter Hedges
Starring: Steve Carell
With: Juliette Binoche, Dane Cook, Alison Pill, Brittany Robertson, Marlene Lawston, Dianne Wiest, John Mahoney, Norbert Leo Butz, Amy Ryan, Jessica Hecht, Frank Wood, Emily Blunt
Cinematography: Lawrence Sher
Music: Sondre Lerche
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), yesterday
Synopsis: a widower obsesses over his brother's girlfriend
My reaction
Concept:
I understand we watched this because there are pancakes on the poster. That is a bad way to select a movie.Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting:
Who casts Dane Cook in a movie? Who does that? And as a character that should be sympathetic! It's kind of distracting if you spend half the movie wanting to sucker punch one of the actors.Music:
Subjective Rating: 3/10 (Bad,
). Awkwardness that's just horrible to watch, with no reward for your pain. And so many cliches.Objective Rating (Average):
June 23, 2011
Mad Men: Season One
Lynn’s Druthers Marathon, part 24
Data
Title: Mad Men: Season One
Year: 2007
Network: AMC
Episodes: 13, at c. 47 minutes each
Creator: Matthew Weiner
Directors: Tim Hunter (4 episodes), Alan Taylor (3), Ed Bianchi (1), Lesli Linka Glatter (1), Andrew Bernstein (1), Phil Abraham (1), Paul Feig (1), Matthew Weiner (1)
Writers: Matthew Weiner (7 episodes), André Jacquemetton (3), Maria Jacquemetton (3), Tom Palmer (2), Lisa Albert (2), Bridget Bedard (2), Chris Provenzano (2), Robin Veith (1)
Starring: Jon Hamm
With: Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, January Jones, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Bryan Batt, Michael Gladis, Aaron Staton, Rich Sommer, Maggie Siff, Rosemarie DeWitt, Robert Morse, Anne Dudek, Darby Stanchfield, Alison Brie, Jay Paulson
Cinematography: Phil Abraham, Steve Mason, Frank G. DeMarco, Bill Roe
Music: David Carbonara (and non-original music)
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), over the past week
Synopsis: people in a 1960 advertising office drink a lot and try to have sex
My reaction
Concept: It's like The Apartment without Jack Lemmon.
Story: Pure soap opera. I didn't give a crap about most of the story lines - especially the "mystery."
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting:
Music: I was pretty disappointed by the music. It's good, but it could so easily have been great.
Subjective Rating: 6/10 (Okay,). It's pretty easy to get into while you're watching it, since so much is done well. But I'm not itching for more.
Objective Rating (Average):
Data
Title: Mad Men: Season One
Year: 2007
Network: AMC
Episodes: 13, at c. 47 minutes each
Creator: Matthew Weiner
Directors: Tim Hunter (4 episodes), Alan Taylor (3), Ed Bianchi (1), Lesli Linka Glatter (1), Andrew Bernstein (1), Phil Abraham (1), Paul Feig (1), Matthew Weiner (1)
Writers: Matthew Weiner (7 episodes), André Jacquemetton (3), Maria Jacquemetton (3), Tom Palmer (2), Lisa Albert (2), Bridget Bedard (2), Chris Provenzano (2), Robin Veith (1)
Starring: Jon Hamm
With: Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser, January Jones, Christina Hendricks, John Slattery, Bryan Batt, Michael Gladis, Aaron Staton, Rich Sommer, Maggie Siff, Rosemarie DeWitt, Robert Morse, Anne Dudek, Darby Stanchfield, Alison Brie, Jay Paulson
Cinematography: Phil Abraham, Steve Mason, Frank G. DeMarco, Bill Roe
Music: David Carbonara (and non-original music)
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), over the past week
Synopsis: people in a 1960 advertising office drink a lot and try to have sex
My reaction
Concept:
It's like The Apartment without Jack Lemmon.Story:
Pure soap opera. I didn't give a crap about most of the story lines - especially the "mystery."Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting:
Music:
I was pretty disappointed by the music. It's good, but it could so easily have been great.Subjective Rating: 6/10 (Okay,
). It's pretty easy to get into while you're watching it, since so much is done well. But I'm not itching for more.Objective Rating (Average):
June 16, 2011
Semi-Pro
Lynn’s Druthers Marathon, part 23
Data
Title: Semi-Pro
Year: 2008
Length: 91 minutes
Director: Kent Alterman
Writer: Scot Armstrong
Starring: Will Ferrell
With: Woody Harrelson, André Benjamin, Maura Tierney, Andrew Daly, Will Arnett, Andy Richter, David Koechner, Rob Corddry, Matt Walsh, Jackie Earle Haley
Cinematography: Shane Hurlbut
Music: Theodore Shapiro (mostly non-original music)
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), yesterday
Synopsis: a 70s soul singer owns, coaches and plays on a basketball team
My reaction
Concept:
Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting:
Music:
Subjective Rating: 5/10 (Indifferent,). I can think of worse ways to spend 90 minutes. There isn't anything memorably funny (except for one non sequitur line about a possum), but there's a base level of silliness that's enough to keep things going.
Objective Rating (Average):
Data
Title: Semi-Pro
Year: 2008
Length: 91 minutes
Director: Kent Alterman
Writer: Scot Armstrong
Starring: Will Ferrell
With: Woody Harrelson, André Benjamin, Maura Tierney, Andrew Daly, Will Arnett, Andy Richter, David Koechner, Rob Corddry, Matt Walsh, Jackie Earle Haley
Cinematography: Shane Hurlbut
Music: Theodore Shapiro (mostly non-original music)
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), yesterday
Synopsis: a 70s soul singer owns, coaches and plays on a basketball team
My reaction
Concept:
Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting:
Music:
Subjective Rating: 5/10 (Indifferent,
). I can think of worse ways to spend 90 minutes. There isn't anything memorably funny (except for one non sequitur line about a possum), but there's a base level of silliness that's enough to keep things going.Objective Rating (Average):
June 14, 2011
MASH: Season Four
Lynn’s Druthers Marathon, part 22
Data
Title: MASH: Season Four
Year: 1975-1976
Network: CBS
Episodes: 25, at 25 minutes each
Creators: Richard Hooker (novel); Larry Gelbart (developer)
Directors: Gene Reynolds (9 episodes), Alan Alda (4), Larry Gelbart (3), Burt Metcalfe (3), William Jurgensen (2), John Erman (1), George Tyne (1), Harry Morgan (1), Charles Dubin (1)
Writers: Larry Gelbart (10 episodes), Jim Fritzell (9), Everett Greenbaum (9), Simon Muntner (4), Gene Reynolds (4), Burt Prelutsky (2), Glen Charles (1), Les Charles (1), Rick Mittleman (1), John D. Hess (1), Jay Folb (1), Linda Bloodworth (1), Gary Markowitz (1), John W. Regier (1)
Starring: Alan Alda, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, Loretta Swit, Larry Linville, Gary Burghoff, Jamie Farr
Music: Johnny Mandel (theme); Lionel Newman (music supervisor)
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), over the past few weeks
Synopsis: hijinks in an army hospital
My reaction
Concept:
Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting:
Music:
Subjective Rating: 7/10 (Good,). Pretty much the same as season three. Which is odd, since there are some major cast/character changes - B.J. replaces Trapper, and Col. Potter replaces Col. Blake. B.J. is a definite improvement over Trapper, who was kind of an awful sleazeball. Blake is missed, though; Potter would be a nice enough character, but the dynamic between him and Frank Burns doesn't make sense. I keep waiting for the scene from the movie where Burns is hauled away in a straight jacket.
Objective Rating (Average):
Data
Title: MASH: Season Four
Year: 1975-1976
Network: CBS
Episodes: 25, at 25 minutes each
Creators: Richard Hooker (novel); Larry Gelbart (developer)
Directors: Gene Reynolds (9 episodes), Alan Alda (4), Larry Gelbart (3), Burt Metcalfe (3), William Jurgensen (2), John Erman (1), George Tyne (1), Harry Morgan (1), Charles Dubin (1)
Writers: Larry Gelbart (10 episodes), Jim Fritzell (9), Everett Greenbaum (9), Simon Muntner (4), Gene Reynolds (4), Burt Prelutsky (2), Glen Charles (1), Les Charles (1), Rick Mittleman (1), John D. Hess (1), Jay Folb (1), Linda Bloodworth (1), Gary Markowitz (1), John W. Regier (1)
Starring: Alan Alda, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, Loretta Swit, Larry Linville, Gary Burghoff, Jamie Farr
Music: Johnny Mandel (theme); Lionel Newman (music supervisor)
I saw it: on video (rented from Netflix), over the past few weeks
Synopsis: hijinks in an army hospital
My reaction
Concept:
Story:
Characters:
Dialog:
Pacing:
Cinematography:
Special effects/design:
Acting:
Music:
Subjective Rating: 7/10 (Good,
). Pretty much the same as season three. Which is odd, since there are some major cast/character changes - B.J. replaces Trapper, and Col. Potter replaces Col. Blake. B.J. is a definite improvement over Trapper, who was kind of an awful sleazeball. Blake is missed, though; Potter would be a nice enough character, but the dynamic between him and Frank Burns doesn't make sense. I keep waiting for the scene from the movie where Burns is hauled away in a straight jacket.Objective Rating (Average):
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