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Reviews
Turn-On (1969)
has to be seen to be believed
The Museum of Television and Radio actually have two episodes of Turn On (though one is slightly misfiled). This show is one of the most surreal pieces of television I have ever witnessed. Shot entirely on a white sound stage with no sets and no laugh track, the gags are faster than rapid fire and rather cutting edge for the time. The credits (which feature many names not listed here, including Albert Brooks) run for the entire duration of both programs! Other episodes shot for this program (but never aired) included guest shots from Sebastian Cabot and the Monkees. Robert Culp is the special guest on episode two. All I can tell you is that most descriptions of this program in books or on the internet are from people who have never actually seen this thing - it isn't so much a Laugh In rip off, as it is what might happen if the Fox network tried to spice up the Laugh In concept. With skits about foot fetishes and birth control it may still be a little much for the meek. I recommend it to any '60s pop culture fanatic (though the first episode will give you a headache from the incessant Moog synthesizer music, which is played non-stop).
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
For completest only
As a major fan of Wes Anderson I too was looking forward to seeing this movie and managed to get into an early preview. Wes' fans will want to see this film just to soak up his usual, beautifully detailed touches. However, this movie is just not that great. Anderson fails to connect or relate the characters to the viewer in the way he has so uniquely done in his first three movies. I could say many more negative things about this feature, but the worst thing I will say is that it is just another Wes Anderson movie. Whereas Anderson's three previous films have been individual gems, this one is for the completest. Believe me I got all the humor - I was sitting in a screening room filled with wannabe film school nerds who laughed at practically everything (even when it wasn't funny - hey buddy, a Panavision cap does not make you an auteur). The one truly touching moment comes with the burial at sea sequence in which the Zombies "The Way I Feel Inside" is played. For a moment you are almost transported somewhere special. Sadly it's just one of this film's many side trips to nowhere.