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retireerah
Reviews
9-1-1: Pilot (2018)
Insulting to real first responders
Everything about this show is absurd. The producers should make hefty donations to first responder agencies across the country as redemption for their sins. If this is your type of "entertainment," pay a visit to your local firehouse or police station and talk to the real people who put their lives on the line every day on your behalf. I understand the desire to enhance reality for the sake of entertaining the masses, but this goes beyond enhancement to salaciousness. At best, this program might encourage some appropriate applicants to pursue a career as a first responder. One caveat: don't expect to live in digs as glamorous as those shown in this program, particularly if you live in the L. A. area.
Hello, Dolly! (1969)
Over the top
For the sake of transparency, I should note that I was fortunate to play the role of Cornelius in several stage productions of H. D. prior to the film's release.
I've waited more than 50 years to write this review because I felt the need for distance. At the time the film came out I had just hung up my dancing shoes and still felt a deep affection for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. As Cornelius, my favorite line was: ...even if I have to dig ditches for the rest of my life, I shall be a ditch-digger who once had a wonderful day.
Hello Dolly is a confection, a sweet joke told by your favorite, somewhat dotty aunt. It takes the audience on a fun-filled outing to the big city. Despite the rousing title song, it's small, it's intimate, it's a giggle, not a belly laugh.
The much-anticipated film version lost big bucks and wasn't the critical hit Funny Girl had been. A target was immediately placed on Streisand's back, remnants of which can still be seen today. It was her salary. It was her ego. It was her domination of the film. And on and on. Walter Matthau and Gene Kelly were beloved icons which put them beyond reproach.
The simple fact of the matter is this was a time when Hollywood was still scoring big with bigger-than-life musicals. Hello Dolly! Seemed poised to be the next mega blockbuster ala The Sound of Music and Funny Girl. The problem is they took a simple, delicate confection and tried to turn it into the biggest ice cream sundae of all time.
There are still fun times to be had. For example, watching a pre-Phantom Michael Crawford perform as Cornelius is a delight. The sets and costumes are perfect...almost too perfect. And Streisand's voice is top notch...even if the material is wrong.
The stage version of Dolly ends with the title character hugging, and peering into Horace's cash register and assuring him his money will be put to good use. She looks at the audience and winks. Lights out! The film version ends with the camera pulling back to reveal an idyllic church built on an expanse of lawn (it's actually West Point). Depending on your mood, needs and wants, both are perfect.