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The Girl's Guide to Depravity (2012)
Very Enjoyable
As of this review "The Girl's Guide to Depravity" is two episodes into its premier season. After viewing them both, I can honestly say that the show has a lot of promise. It reminds me of what "Life on Top" was during season one; lighthearted, fun, and sexy. Rebecca Blumhagen and Sally Golan star as Lizzy and Sam, two ladies looking for love (and sex) in Chicago. Ultimately they would like to settle down (Sam more so than Lizzy) but in the interim want to have their fun without involving their feelings. That's where the rules come in.
The ladies are well cast; they are both very pretty, but they are everyday woman beautiful and not Hollywood beautiful. They work and hang out at the bar like everyday people. That adds elements of realism to the show. Couple that with the sex scenes not being overly choreographed. They look like they are just having sex and not trying to put on a production. That can be appreciated in the era of overdone moaning and screaming to simulate sexual satisfaction. Also, the show's setting Chicago is a breath of fresh air in the New York/L.A. dominated TV universe.
Overall, the show is entertaining. I can't wait to see what the rules and their libidos get these ladies into later this season. Kudos to Cinemax for giving its viewers something more than T & A on an After Dark show. I suppose this is their apology for "Chemistry".
Paranormal Activity 3 (2011)
Cinema Done Right
This movie was nothing short of impressive. Paranormal Activity 3 explains the origin of the entity that haunts a pair of sisters from their early childhood. It was alluded in the first two films, but part three was the payoff. Naturally it sticks to the formula from the first two features being of the found footage genre, but it still works. The horror is created more by what isn't and barely seen. Jessica Tyler Brown sold communicating with the ghost perfectly. The scene with Chloe Csengery and Dustin Ingram in the bathroom was well done. The ending was unexpected and frightening. I understand that there were plot holes concerning the burning house and the coven, but this trilogy starts in 1988 and concludes in 2006. Are we supposed to see every detail in an 18 year span? The point of these films is just to scare you, which it does effectively. I don't think that there are many movies where every single detail falls into a neat logical package, hence the term fiction. This movie gives the audience a little of everything: some nostalgia, some urban legend, and a lot of chills. The third time was the charm in this series.
Chemistry (2011)
Fail For Flesh Feature
This is the latest Skinemax addition to its Friday late night adult fest. It deals with a guy and his on going affair and how it develops into another relationship. It's nothing out of the ordinary in terms of this genre. There's a good amount of eye candy, nudity, and sex, but that's where the positives ends. The acting is dreadful (not that you expect Oscar worthy performances). The show looks and feels dated from the cheesy opening credits, to the horrible and obvious green screens during the driving sequences. Chemistry feels like a combination of a bad 80's soap opera and an 80's infomercial combined. The cut scenes are pointless and Liz and her partners' cop scenes are after school special bad. I'm sure you can appreciate it more if you're 12, (for obvious reasons) but if you're an adult and haven't watched Chemistry, you haven't missed anything.
Jumping the Broom (2011)
A Good Movie
I just came from watching and I must admit it was much better than I thought it might be. It was your typical boy meets girl, boy wants to marry girl, and their families clash picture. It was enjoyable but not without it's flaws. Loretta Devine once again plays the same mother character for the umpteenth time, albeit with a somewhat evil twist. Mike Epps and DeRay Davis were there to provide comic relief. Most disappointingly, Julie Bowen was the proverbial fish out of water. I like her on Modern Family but she just wasn't good in this feature. I had expected some more laughs from her. Meagan Good also makes her obligatory appearance as the tramp character.
What was good about the film was the abstinence message. It was present but not forced on the audience. That's not done often in today's cinema. I also enjoyed the fact Tasha Smith for once wasn't loud. That made her stand out more. Angela Bassett was the perfect snobbish mother. It's criminal that she does not have an Academy Award. It was also nice to see Black people that own something. We all don't live like the Huxtables, but we don't all live like the Evans family either.
Overall you won't regret dropping $10 on Jumping the Broom.
Wendy: The Wendy Williams Show (2008)
Not Good
I can't understand how this mindlessness still airs. I will admit, I very much enjoyed her on the radio, but TV just isn't for Wendy. All her antics seem contrived to get attention. The set is tacky and her guest are mostly "B-Listers." She has an occasional "A-Lister" on here but that takes a miracle. Do we really need another wag on TV? I understand she's trying to be fun and light, but can you be entertaining? Wendy has been in entertainment for about 25 years and can't read from a teleprompter? That can be overlooked your first month or so, but it's three years later. Her style worked on radio but does not translate well on TV.
Madea's Big Happy Family (2011)
Trash
Yet another formulaic feature from Tyler Perry. You can read the reviews from practically any of his other films or television shows for a plot summary. It has been said that Perry's success is based on him knowing his audience; so what does that say about them? I sat in the theater and realized why Spike Lee commented the way he did. If I spent 20 plus years making socially relevant material, but this dreck continues to profit, I would be angry as well. This movie was a disaster. It made BAPS look like Malcolm X. As a Black man in America I am thrilled to see another Black man prosper, but come on. We need more For Colored Girls and less of this movie from him.