LindaY Reviews

The Little Match Girl (1987 TV Movie)

Has Nothing to Do With the Hans Christian Andersen Story, But...

[8/10 · 23 December 2022]

...this is an enjoyable Christmas film all the same.

Keshia Knight Pulliam is at her most adorable and roguish as an angel sent to earth (this isn't a spoiler as it's signaled in the opening scenes) to help the wealthy but fractured Dutton family: businessman Heywood, his wife Frances, their estranged older son Joe (who married a poor Irish girl and is considered persona non grata by dad), their wastrel younger son Neville, and daughter Lindsay. The corrupt chief of police is stoking a feud between Joe, who runs a crusading newspaper, and his father to get himself a promotion--while poor people are going to be evicted from their apartment buildings before Christmas.

I know history, so at first I didn't like this movie because no rich white family in the 1920s would have let a poor Black orphan run around their house--if you can look past that fact this is a nifty little period piece that features a stellar cast (William Daniels as Dutton senior, Rue McClanahan as his wife, and John Rhys-Davies as corrupt Murphy along with Pulliam). The poor people actually look poor and the contrast between the poor and wealthy is striking, plus Irish servants that don't talk all "sure and begorrah."

The Small One (1978)

A Newer Version of an Old Story

[10/10 · 29 November 2021]

Charles Tazewell, who also wrote THE LITTLEST ANGEL, originally penned this Christmas story; for years it was a staple on radio, narrated by Bing Crosby. The original framing story, which featured a Mexican boy, his donkey, and a priest telling the story of "the Small One," is abandoned here for the meat of the tale, which is the close friendship between a small Judean boy and an elderly donkey, the latter who can no longer carry enough wood (the father is a woodcutter) to justify feeding him. The boy is allowed to take Small One into town to sell him instead of his father doing it, and they run into some colorful figures before realizing there's only one fate for an old animal. Or is there?

I've enjoyed this story since it was a radio play, and the gorgeous portrayal of the child's friendship with what has become his pet, the vivid animation, and the songs, especially the titular "Small One" song, which reduces me to a sniffling puddle of goo by the end, makes this a real winner.

The New Adventures of Lassie (2014– )

Would Be Perfect Except for "the Barn Gang."

[7/10 · 5 May 2020]

If you can imagine that Lassie at some point has been crossed with a cat, a mountain goat, and a monkey to explain her wonderful athletic ability in this series (she can leap from the top of a ferris wheel compartment, to the side of the superstructure, to another ferris wheel compartment, while the ferris wheel is moving or hang upside down on a horizontal bar or rapell off the sides of cliffs without ropes) this is a not-bad piece of entertainment where Lassie and her human, 10-year-old Zoe, run free on adventures with Zoe's best friend Harvey, bookworm and climbing/photography buff. (Zoe's dad is the head ranger at the Grand Mountain National Park and her mom is the park vet; Harvey's mom works in the visitor's center. They get in all sorts of predicaments in which Lassie always manages some amazing move to get them out of trouble.

Lassie interacts with humans as a dog, but "talks" to the four animals that hang out in an old barn, and thereby hangs the problem: the Barn Gang is just annoying. There's Looper, a perpetually hungry raccoon; Pika, a magpie that Lassie rescued; Houdini, a hamster that somehow is allowed to run loose and never gets eaten; and Biff, the pug who belongs to Mrs. Lee, the owner of the Happy Camper store (you'd never know it, he's never with her), who has this tremendous crush on Lassie, which is eye-rollingly bad. I guess the Barn Gang is there as humor for the youngest kids, but really, the series would be best if it was just an adventure with Lassie, Zoe and Harvey and got rid of the silly animals.

For a story originally made in 2014, it's not very multicultural. The only African-Americans you ever see regularly are Harvey and his mom, and Mrs. Lee is apparently the only Asian person ever at the park. Some good (a girl named Olive) and bad (a ringmaster's assistant) persons of color appear occasionally, but the park guests seem to be universally white. No Latinos are represented, and, for a show that looks like it takes place out in the western US or Canada, there are no Native characters. Very surprising in this day and age.

All Creatures Great and Small: Merry Gentlemen (1978) Season 2, Episode 14

Christmas Classic

[10/10 · 24 November 2017]

This is one of the Christmas stores we use to "see in" the season, and it's just cozy with the old-fashioned atmosphere of Christmas: fresh mistletoe and holly and a tree, "big bulb" light strings, not putting up the tree until Christmas Eve, mince pies, Christmas cake. Several concurrent plot lines running: the vets try to save a young donkey with tetanus, Tricki-Woo the overfed Pekinese must be nursed back to health at Skeldale House after getting liver disease, and Tristan tries to figure out why the front room of Skeldale House is always locked. Little details make this a joy: kids singing carols at the door, James and Helen writing out Christmas cards, the guys cutting Christmas greens in the woods. Simply perfect!

Anne with an E (2017–2019)

So Close And Yet So Far

[5/10 · 20 May 2017]

Amybeth McNulty, Geraldine James, and R.H. Thomson look as if they could have come out of the book, and even the actors who play Rachel Lynde, Gilbert, Diana, and even Mr. Phillips have a certain authenticity. This looks VERY good; Green Gables is a little less idealized, and while the vistas are splendid it isn't an advertisement for PEI tourism as the Sullivan version is. And the idea of making it a little grittier? Well, Montgomery wrote the book back when plucky orphan tales were popular and she would not have dwelt upon the more sordid portions of Anne's life because it just wasn't done then. But it makes sense that the physical and emotional abuse Anne underwent would affect her much more deeply than is ever touched on by the book or the 1985 story. So when the story line from the book is made a bit grittier, that Anne might have nightmares about her past, that her first days in the community might not have been very sunny, I would be in favor of that.

But adding events to the story to make it more traumatic? To embroider new situations just to add to the drama and to make a statement about today's society? Could that not be done within the confines of the story? But we get Anne sent back to the orphanage and Matthew racing headlong after her, an absurd bit of Victorian drama that appeared nowhere in the novel? To have Anne talk about sex (inadvertently) at school? To have Prissy Andrews' brother try to beat Anne up and her schoolmates bark like a dog at her? To have the Barrys (and the rest of the church picnic) either act snobby to her or call her names? To have Anne get her period? To have her ignore Gilbert just to fit in with the girls, or have her treat Jerry in a shabby way? To have robbers invade Green Gables? To have Anne take the Cuthberts' name? To have Gilbert's father die? Wasn't it bad enough when Kevin Sullivan had to make up horrible stories after his initial excellent effort and well-made sequel that nevertheless contained imaginary Anne events? The writer claims that this adaptation will make Anne's resilience shine all the more; it seems more like she is some gross bullying tormentor who wishes to make Anne's already miserable life continue on and on without the loving support that the Anne gained in the novel of good friends (except for Josie Pye) and good acquaintances like the minister's wife and Diana. If you told me Moira Walley-Beckett secretly liked to pull the wings off butterflies and trip small children in parks to make them cry I would not be a bit surprised based on the torture she heaps upon Anne in what should be her new life and more happy future. If she wanted to show the horror of child institutional and orphan abuse in the late 19th century why not write her own Dickensian original and leave poor Anne alone? What's next, 13 REASONS WHY: THE ANNE SHIRLEY CUTHBERT EDITION? A waste of a brilliant cast and the parts that WERE true to the novel and were very effective.

Katy (1976– )

What I Remember Is Okay

[7/10 · 24 April 2017]

This is the only adaptation I have ever seen of Susan Coolidge's WHAT KATY DID and WHAT KATY DID AT SCHOOL. Katy is the eldest of the six Carr children, who have been cared for by their strict Aunt Izzie since their mother died. Their father is a doctor. Like most girls her age, Katy has grand plans for the future which are seemingly thwarted when she falls out of a swing and injures her spine. In the second half of the series, Katy and her sister Clover go to a girls' boarding school along with their insufferable cousin Lily. It's there Katy and Clover befriend the mischievous Rose Red.

Like many of these BBC productions, it is workmanlike and quite suitable for all ages. There was a movie made later with Megan Follows in the Cousin Helen role, but I hear it veered wildly from the book. I prefer a more faithful adaptation even if it is stodgy.

Piper (2016)

Perfect

[10/10 · 3 March 2017]

A diamond of the first water. Pluck and determination win the day in this short animated story about a baby sanderling trying to find food for the first time.

I would willingly watch a whole movie about this character if they didn't gimmick up the story ("Piper falls in love," for example).

American Playhouse: Verse Person Singular (1983) Season 2, Episode 9

I Wish I'd Kept It

[9/10 · 27 June 2014]

This aired back in the age of blank videotapes being $25 each--after taxes being taken out, over a day's pay for me. So my one $25 videotape was used for time-shifting only. I recorded this to watch later, but couldn't keep it. I regret it to this day. One solid hour of Richard Kiley reciting poetry. Just thinking about it gives me goosebumps. One of the poems, I recall, was a poem I'd never heard of, Theodore Spencer's "The Circus; or One View of It." I transcribed it before erasing the tape. Kiley so perfectly captured the carousel rhythm of the verses.

I can't imagine something like this being on now. It doesn't have enough "action."

Voyagers!: The Trial of Phineas Bogg (1983) Season 1, Episode 13

Best "Clip Show" Ever

[10/10 · 13 April 2012]

Many series have a point where they want to take a break or they are over budget. To take care of this they produce what is called a "clip show" or a "bread and butter episode," where most of the action happens in flashbacks. Leave it to VOYAGERS! to turn this concept on its head and offer us, along with the clips, an episode that introduces us to the Voyager Tribunal (revealing something about the society Phineas Bogg is part of), a character Bogg mentioned in the first episode, and a "Moriarty" for future episodes, the sinister Drake, played to slimy perfection by Stephen Liska. Never has a clip show done so much by trying to save money. A super episode!

America (1972–1973)

Superb Series on American History

[10/10 · 1 June 2009]

I was in my junior year of high school when this was first broadcast by NBC (1972-1973). I was enthralled by Cooke's skill in imparting history without being dull or pedantic. Especially noted: the episode "Gone West," which brought home the sufferings of the pioneers who crossed the country via "shanks mare," horseback, and wagon, and "The First Impact" (which was the original first episode in the UK, but was broadcast twelfth in the US, with different opening narration), Cooke's portrait of the things that drew him to the US, including New Orleans jazz, the city of San Francisco, and fall color in Vermont. The only episode that fell a little flat even back then, and is very dated now, was the final part, in which Cooke examined "modern" society. It would have been better had he followed up on some critical issues of the 1950s and 1960s--the Cold War, the Civil Rights movement, the growing feminist movement--to bring it up to the present day. Otherwise the series still holds up, and should be released on DVD here in the States. I made do of copies of library VHS tapes for years and then bought the Region 2 version when it came out.

Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)

A Favorite Since I Was a Teenager

[9/10 · 15 May 2009]

In junior high school they would show us a movie on the last day of school before Christmas and summer vacation. This was the film they showed in December 1969, and I fell in love with it at first sight. It is still one of my favorites, a fun combination of adventure, fantasy, and humor. Even as a teenager, I enjoyed the buildup to the adventure in Scotland and Iceland which established the main characters, and yes, some of the SFX looks a bit phony now (especially the lizards dressed up in fins), but the film is more about the personalities on the adventure rather than the backgrounds. On the other hand, Carlsbad Caverns are shown off to great effect, and some of the scenes, like the jeweled cave and the salt regions, are still quite effective. Pat Boone sings, yes, but that is a very small part in the movie and we have to remember that he was a well-known singer in those days and would have been expected by swooning teen girls to sing. Even the magnificent 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA has that silly "Whale of a Tale" tune. (Count yourselves lucky--Boone was supposed to sing another song; check the credits! It was called "Twice as Tall" and you can hear the melody as they start on the expedition.) I was actually a bit disappointed by reading the book afterwards, as the strong female lead played by Arlene Dahl is not in the story, and "Jenny" (I think she's "Gretl" or something like that in the book) is pretty much of a cipher. My favorite character in the movie is James Mason's crusty, rude Oliver Lindenbrook, who never really loses his rough exterior but softens a bit internally due to his adventures with his companions. I also love the Victorian touches, like Lindenbrook taking Carla aside to ask her about the stays...a scandalous request in an era when "legs" were supposed to be called "limbs" and nice women were supposed to be attractive but not enjoy sex. The new restored DVD is a treat, but I would love a special edition with commentary by Boone and Dahl and perhaps some film historian or someone knowledgeable of the SFX.

Incidentally, at school they started the movie so late that they ran too close to the last bell, so they fast-forwarded the movie from when they are thrown on the beach to the volcano eruption! I didn't find out what happened to Gertrude and didn't see the Atlantis set until many years later when it showed up on TV.

Cooperstown (1993 TV Movie)

Offbeat Baseball Film

[8/10 · 11 May 2009]

(I checked "spoiler" just in case, but I don't think I give away anything major.) I am not a baseball fan, but I loved this movie when it was first telecast, although I never got to see the film in its entirety due to the vagaries of TBS's broadcasting schedule; one night I caught the first 75 minutes of it, but no ending; another night I caught the final hour so I at least knew how it came out! Alan Arkin is crusty, cantankerous Harry Willette, a former baseball player who has not spoken to his former teammate and best buddy Raymond Maricle since Ray was traded to another team and Harry suspected him of cluing in the new team about his special pitch, therefore a crucial game was lost that would have sent Harry's team to the World Series. When Harry finds out Raymond is being inducted into the Cooperstown Hall of Fame, he is enraged and sets on an odyssey across country—but not before he finds out Raymond has died. For the remainder of the film, as Harry makes a picaresque journey to places in his past to pick up memorabilia, with his wife's nephew and a baseball-fanatic young woman in tow, Raymond's ghost accompanies Harry and flashbacks to their friendship are shown. This is a slow-moving, sweet and funny film about grudges, friendship, and forgiveness. Arkin, Graham Green as Raymond, Charles Haid as a vituperative ballplayer, Anne Wedgeworth as a former girlfriend, and Hope Lange as Harry's long-suffering wife are all superb. I searched for a copy of this wonderful film for years so I could finally see it complete, and finally found it in a Region 4 (Australian) DVD. Thank God for region-free players! This should be available in the US for all baseball fans.

Green Grass of Wyoming (1948)

Disappointing Finale to the Trilogy

[2/10 · 4 October 2007]

After reading Mary O'Hara's Wyoming trilogy as a schoolgirl, I was surprised to find out a third movie had been made encompassing the final book. What a disappointment! Even the fine actor Lloyd Nolan is lukewarm as Rob McLaughlin. The plot has been changed so that the story is almost unrecognizable; all that remains is that Thunderhead does steal Crown Jewel for his band and that they are rounded up eventually and Thunderhead is not shot. The book was a coming-of-age story for both Ken and for Carey, who in the book is under the domination of her overbearing grandmother. One of the crucial parts of the book is Carey's final victory over the older woman. Instead her relationship with her grandfather (in the book Beaver is her wealthy uncle) is a plot out of every other horse-racing movie of that era: washed-up trainer getting another chance. Also, in the book Crown Jewel belongs to Carey, not to Ken.

Little Women (1978)

Really Awful Series from a Good Film

[17 April 2006]

The LITTLE WOMEN miniseries of 1978 was so well-received that NBC tried to make a series of it. A few of the original cast members from the miniseries (Dorothy McGuire, William Schallert, Robert Young, Ann Dusenberry) returned, but the key role of Jo was recast. Unfortunately they tried to modernize the series by adding "socially relevant," preachy scenes. The characters were made to act like no one would think of acting in the late 1800s. In one episode Laurie got sick and Jo crawled into bed with him to keep him warm or some such nonsense! Plus everyone had loved Eve Plumb as Beth, so they returned Plumb to the series as the Marches' Southern cousin Lissa who was Beth's lookalike. Urgh! Viewable only as a curiosity.

CBS: On the Air (1978– )

Superb Anniversary Special

[10/10 · 14 March 2006]

Talk about something I wish were on DVD! I treasure my audio copies. This was a February 1978 special celebrating the CBS network's 50th anniversary. Instead of cramming it all into four hours as NBC had done in 1976, CBS spread it out over a week: two hours on Sunday, two and a half hours on Saturday, and an hour on each of the weeknights. Each night celebrated series that were famous on that night (LASSIE and ED SULLIVAN, etc. on Sunday, I LOVE LUCY and MAUDE, etc. on Monday, etc.) and then they would have other features about news, sports, special events, etc. They even talked about the radio era, especially on Sunday's outing. The parade of stars at the beginning is very nostalgic, because many of those people are gone now. How about it, CBS? I'd settle for a plain vanilla version just to see it all again; this one doesn't need extras--it IS an extra!

Faraday and Company (1973–1974)

A Fun But Too Short Series

[20 June 2005]

This was my favorite of the NBC Wednesday MYSTERY MOVIE segments, along with "The Snoop Sisters." Dailey played Frank Faraday, a hard-boiled gumshoe of the postwar era, who is falsely incarcerated in a South American jail by criminals he was trying to track down. After 28 years, a revolution frees him and he returns to the puzzling world of the 1970s. A son he didn't know he had (the son's mother was Frank's secretary, who had always loved her boss) is now running his detective agency with electronic gadgets instead of old-fashioned intuition. The series has a long list of classic 1970s guest stars including Joe Flynn, Craig Stevens, Howard Duff, David Wayne, Charles Cioffi, and Jack Kelly, and the wonderful character actress Geraldine Brooks played Frank's old love, Lou Carson.

Herbie Goes Bananas (1980)

One Good Joke

[14 June 2004]

The only good joke in this movie is the inside one: when Cloris Leachman's character sends Herbie for help, Harvey Korman turns to her and says, "It's a car, lady, not Lassie!" Leachman was part of the cast of LASSIE in 1957-1958, playing the original Ruth Martin. One wonders if the joke was specifically inserted with her in mind.

Poor Herbie went through as many owners as Lassie, too. This one is particularly lackluster, although the child lead is cute. The two young men who now apparently own Herbie don't even have enough screen presence to overshadow a small boy. On the other hand, Leachman and Korman must have needed the bucks.

The Big Time (2002 TV Movie)

Excellent TV Film About the Early Days of Television

[21 October 2002]

TNT needs their collective heads examined for not picking up this story as a continuing series. Here's a cast of characters I would have loved to get to know more about.

In a similar vein to AMC's late lamented REMEMBER WENN, THE BIG TIME is the story of Empire Television, a new, small network just trying to stay afloat. It's 1948, television is new--and live. Into the mix of sales reps, aspiring directors, scientists, musicians and managers comes Audrey Drummond, fresh from Wisconsin; as she learns the ropes, we see the perils of live drama as well as the behind-the-scenes lives of the characters.

The movie was meant to be a pilot, so we don't learn all about these characters in the course of the film, but they are intriguing enough to keep us interested. Although Molly Ringwald, as Marion Powers, and Christopher Lloyd, as Doc, have star billing, the supporting characters are equally, if not more, interesting: Christina Hendriks as Audrey, Michael Silver as Walt Kaplan, Dylan Baker as the Colonel, Sharif Atkins as Joe Royal, and Shane Mikael Johnson as Tim Wilkison, with John DeLancie in an amusing guest star role as an egotistical radio actor a bit felled by the new medium. And, hallelujah, stereotypes were kept to a minimum!

Mercy Mission: The Rescue of Flight 771 (1993 TV Movie)

Great Movie

[10/10 · 23 December 2001]

My husband doesn't usually like the normal type of Christmas movie, but this is one film we watch every year. We are usually both sniffling by the end. Robert Loggia is simply great as Gordon, and Scott Bakula his usual likeable self. Also love the passengers on the plane, the mistletoe good luck charm, etc.

BTW, the two guys grinning and celebrating up in the tower when Jay finally lands are the real Jay and Gordon!