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The F.B.I.: An Elephant Is Like a Rope (1965)
Bang Bang Bomb
This has the makings of a good episode. The mystery of a young man who is found with a large sum of cash but due to a head injury has amnesia. 'An Elephant is like a rope' is helped by its cast. Lots of good television actors in it- Ted Knight, Paul Mantee, Vic Perrin, and Larry Gates. Beau Bridges has never been a favorite actor of mine but he's ok here.
Unfortunately, An Elephant Is Like a Rope suffers from a imbecilic ending. A bad guy has two men murdered right in front of 2 FBI agents. This just does not compute. The bad guy if he had a brain or a better written script just wouldn't do this. Murdering someone in front of witnesses ensures jail time. A trial without that, who knows for sure.
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012)
This does not compute
Dull, not funny, and illogical. That is a good description for Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World. Plot holes galore, Dodge going back to his apartment and no sign of the riot that was taking place there earlier and his cleaning lady there too. A small propeller plane is supposed to fly Penny back to England. Dodge's father, who is shown to be living in a suburban neighborhood, somehow has a barn behind his home and a runway for that plane. How did Penny know Dodge would go back home and how the heck did she get there? I could go on. To summarize, Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World is a waste of time.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Gee whiz
Great special effects but mindless and illogical action
Who is the Superman in this movie, the Terminators or the Truck? It flies off a bridge, runs over or into all sorts of debris and keeps going.
Bullets won't stop the Terminator so why is Arnold shooting at him rather than the truck tires? He shoots at those eventually but then the film would have been a little shorter.
John Connor is annoying as hell doesn't help either. Kind of reminds me of the War of the Worlds kids.
Acting and dialog isn't much better but these deficiencies aren't unknown in sci-fi movies.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day isn't a good movie.
Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
I've just begun
Watching this show thanks to Paramount Plus and my opinion of it- Nice scenery but terrible writing. For example-
Man hides underneath his house. How did a rug get on top of his trap door?
Cop gets shot in the abdomen. Next day he's chasing a suspect.
A parolee with a huge obvious stash of weapons. Is his parole officer blind?
I watch detective shows for the detective work not the personal melodrama. Law and Order for most of its run stayed focused on the crime. This show it is at the level that it often drowns out the crime part of the show. If I want to watch soaps, I'd turn on General Hospital.
This isn't a police drama. It is a superhero/fantasy/soap opera.
Hawaii Five-O: The Golden Noose (1980)
Thankfully the end is near
The Golden Noose is another horrific Season 12 episode of Hawaii Five-0. A couple of notes.
Duke is relegated by this time in the series run to fetching coffee for other Five-0 team members. From the look on Herman Wedemeyer's face when he hands over the java, he don't look very happy about this.
The death of Nadira's would-be assassin ranks as one of the worst death scenes filmed in the series. Only Sally Kellerman's demise in the Season 1 episode The Big Kahuna is as bad as this one.
Anyone else notice how the heist method in this episode is almost the same as that of Mission Impossible Season 3 episode, The Mercenaries?
Licence to Kill (1989)
If you asked me to
All right James Bond entry. I like Dalton as Bond, Soto and Lowell are easy on the eyes, and Bond going on a vendetta are among the film's positive points. LTK is a violent James Bond movie, but that didn't bother me. James Bond against a drug dealer though isn't the norm and mostly doesn't excite. Mexico/Isthmus is one of the least exotic places for a Bond film, and Robert Davi is far from being the greatest villain of the series.
Partly filmed in Key West, Florida, I've been to some of the film's locations. IMDB and their stupid 600 character requirement. It is a royal pain in the rear end....
Hawaii Five-O: A Hawaiian Nightmare (1974)
Garage door opener
A Hawaiian Nightmare is the first Hawaii Five-0 episode I remember watching in prime time. I was 13 at the time.
The plot isn't realistic much like Season 6's A Bullet for El Diablo. You can't set off a volcanic eruption as it is portrayed in this episode.
Sheree North is also one of the series most annoying female guest stars. McGarrett getting advice from a bad guy has been done before and will be done again before Five 0 finishes. On the plus side- This is one of the few times the Big Island is featured on the series.
600 characters for reviews now? This is simply idiotic, Imdb!!!!!!!!!!!
Hawaii Five-O: Labyrinth (1979)
Yikes!
What's with Lyle Bettger? Was he living in Hawaii at the time? He appeared 12 times on Five-O and most of those were seasons 10 to 12. Bettger was becoming like one of the locals that you see frequently. Josie Over, Tommy Fujiawara, Kwan Li Him, Robert Costa, Jimmy Borges, Elissa Dulce Hoopai (I like Elissa), Lippy Espinda, to name a few.
Labyrinith is another dreadful episode Five 0 episode. It is confusing and the episode's plot has several holes in it. Since I am watching the whole series from start to finish, I'm thanking the heavens that I'm nearly done.
600 characters for reviews now? This is simply idiotic, Imdb!
Adam-12: Lady Beware (1974)
Interesting casting
Only a couple of years after playing a accused rapist, actor Lee Paul is back in the similar role. Hawaii Five-0's Skinhead is better than this particular Adam-12 show but Lady Beware is still a good episode.
Hawaii Five-O: Skinhead (1972)
One issue
I think Skinhead is one of Five-0's best episodes. One question I have- How did Kenner get back in the Army after being so severely injured in a car crash? People have been disqualified for military service for much less severe injuries or conditions than a broken/fractured pelvis.
Bringing Up Baby (1938)
I can't give you anything but love Baby
Bringing up Baby is one of the funniest movies I have had the pleasure of watching. A Leopard or two, a dog, a dinosaur and one of its bones, and that song. Not to mention a perfect cast. The film is almost 85 years old but still hysterically funny today.
Hawaii Five-O: Why Wait Till Uncle Kevin Dies? (1973)
Exceptional
If Why Wait Till Uncle Kevin Dies? Had been an episode in any season 7 to 12, it may have been regarded as the best Five-0 for that season. As for Season 6, it comes in at best 4th rated behind Draw Me a Killer, Hookman, and One Big Happy Family.
This is a very clever and well written installment of Hawaii Five-0.
Hawaii Five-O: Nine, Ten, You're Dead (1971)
But there is cock fighting
Just a little.
If there had only been a horse racing track in Hawaii we would have seen that sport too.
But there isn't. You'll have to watch Mission Impossible or Banacek or numerous other California set series for that particular fix.
Moses Gunn hands in a good performance as a punch ex-fighter. Black actors weren't too often featured in the series 12 season. Some appearances, like. James McEachin in a season one episode, were barely more than a cameo.
Nine, Ten, You're Dead is a good episode mostly helped by the work of Gunn and some of the plot twists.
Hawaii Five-O: For a Million... Why Not? (1971)
Danno deserves a raise
For a Million.... Why Not? Is a pretty good heist episode of Five-0. It is greatly helped by guest star Jack Kruschen in my humble opinion. Greed wasn't his character's main motivation. His wanting to get back at his boss was. How many of us have felt similarly to our superior at work?
Hawaii Five-O: The Ways of Love (1968)
First appearances
Josie Over (Who was married to sometimes Five-0 actor Lance Over), Robert Costa, and Don Knight act for the first time in the series run and they would all be back numerous times in upcoming episodes.
McGarrett goes undercover. It works better here than in later episodes of the series.
Jumping out of a speeding car is a dumb move unless a person is suicidal. Otherwise, The Ways of Love is a pretty good episode.
Hawaii Five-O: Woe to Wo Fat (1980)
Aloha
Woe to Wo Wat is just a horrible ending to a once great television series. McGarrett's disguise as Dr. Raintree is laughable, Wo Fat not ordering his immediate execution is even worse. Oh and the show's ending scene....
Casino Royale (2006)
The name is....
Casino Royale is action packed but way too long as were all- with the exception of Quantum of Solace- Daniel Craig renderings of 007. No teaser or Q are flaws too. After the debacle of Die Another Day, Casino Royale had to be an improvement. It is but it only middle of the road or slightly above that so far as the whole series goes.
Hooper (1978)
Only a movie
Hooper is both mind numbing and dumb. That said, it is my favorite Burt Reynolds movie made before the 1980s. Like the Gumball Rally, it is a guilty pleasure of mine.
Benson: Marcy's Wedding (1981)
I'm fine
A mother over meddling in her daughter's upcoming nuptials is hardly original for a sitcom. Nevertheless I mostly like Marcy's Wedding. Was this episode written to prepare the departure of Marcy from the show?
Benson: Old School Ties (1981)
A dinosaur shaped restaurant
Old School Ties is an above average Benson episode. My wife didn't like the dress Marcy was wearing at one point during the episode. I quipped that it looked like a bath robe not a dress.
Banacek: Now You See Me, Now You Don't (1974)
Abra Cadabra
Now You See Me, Now You Don't is the weakest Banacek episode in my opinion. The episode's ending is far too obvious. Which is a sign to me that the show had run its course. Elaborate theft plots can not be easy to write.
Mission: Impossible: The Fighter (1973)
Running out of gas
The Fighter is a run of the mill Mission Impossible episode and its plot centered around the boxing world was done in the Season 3 episode, The Contender. After being on the air 7 seasons, original plots are hard to come by.
Adam-12: Foothill Division: Mac's Boots (1973)
Officer Wells
Is very gullible in this edition of Adam-12 titled Foothill Division. Nor is it the first time for this character. I thought the Hobbs character was a phony from the start. Wells was obviously being used for comic relief but the end bit with him bringing up a phone number given to him by Hobbs was over the top. Can a policeman be that thick headed?
Godzilla (1998)
Negative impact
This is a bad movie. Not as awful as the 2014 version but other than it sometimes being funny in a campy way, this is almost a complete train wreck of a movie. Most of the characters in the film are made out to be idiots, and those with any brains act stupidly far too often.
Blue Sky (1994)
Poor
Jessica Lange does a good job but Blue Sky is seriously flawed. The plot is contrived. Hand Grenades just laying around for anyone to get to. Then a teen who should no better playing with one. Unless she is suicidal, that makes no sense. The grenade blows something up but there is no consequences for these shenanigans. Sure
Hank Marshall shows more concern for two strangers than he does for his family should he be successfully court-martialed. Long-time soldiers usually have a sense of duty. Both to their job and their family. The screenwriter(s) for this film showed regularly they know little about military life.
Scenes that are supposed to be Hawaii but it don't look anything like Hawaii. Fake palm trees and beach. Badly run-down buildings in officer country. Who ever did the art direction for Blue Sky knows just as much about military bases.
The ending too is just unreal.
I could go on. Lange's performance can't save this stinker.