It (1990)

Genre: Horror / TV

Directed by: Tommy Lee Wallace

Cast: Harry Anderson, Dennis Christopher, Richard Masur, John Ritter, Tim Curry

Number of episodes: 2

A group of seven outcasts school kids from a small Maine town leagued up together to defeat Pennywise, a shapeshifting clown who uses children’s fears to terrorize and kill them. They then made the pact to reunite if the evil spirit even came back. Thirty years ago, upon realizing that Pennywise has resurfaced, Mike, the only one of the group who stayed in town, calls up the six others so they can reunite and finish the job they started.

The story of It, which is adapted from the Stephen King novel of the same name, is being told through the use of constant flashbacks between 1960 and 1990. The two time periods are well defined and the movements are seamless.

Tim Curry is absolutely brilliant as Pennywise, the shapeshifting clown. The voice and the cackling laugh; all the elements are there to make the character truly menacing. Some of the support cast is also good, especially the kids for 1960 section of the miniseries. Unfortunately, some of the adult actors are pretty bad in their performances.

The special effects and some of the plot twists are a bit cheesy, but, overall, this is still an entertaining work of fiction. I cannot wait to see the feature film remake coming later in 2017. It promises to be quite good, if the previews are to be trusted.

Rating: «««

Tom Segura: Mostly Stories (2016)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Jay Karas and Rami Hachache

Cast: Tom Segura

Time: 73 minutes

Recorded live in Seattle, Washington, this comedy special offers a good dose of hilarity in the form of stories about sex, the human body, piercings, strip clubs and many other topics.

Once the little opening short film is done, this comedy special gets down to business and Tom Segura does what he does best: Tell stories. This show is worth seeing if only for the tale about meeting Mike Tyson that concludes it. That being said, beyond that story, many jokes really cracked me up. I must admit I wish I had thought about the Japanese porn joke myself.

Overall, this is a very funny show.

Rating: ««««

Iliza Schlesinger: Confirmed Kills (2016)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Bobcat Goldthwait

Cast: Iliza Schlesinger

Time: 61 minutes

I must admit I had no idea who Iliza Schlesinger was before catching her comedy special titled Confirmed Kills on Netflix. In that live performance, she discusses sex, dating and feminism, amongst other things.

Referring to herself as a Millenial, Schlesinger had many traits that annoy me about that generation. Ideas of self-importance, thinking they have all the answers, preaching and the victim mentality; it was all there. And, those various catchphrases, with hashtags popping up on the screen, were aggravating to no end. Catchphrases can be good, when they are actually catchy.

Schlesinger had some good points and a few funny jokes, but, overall, I prefer to keep the feminist preaching about how hard it is to be a woman out of the comedy I consume.

Rating: ««

Amy Schumer: Mostly Sex Stuff (2012)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Ryan Polito

Cast: Amy Schumer

Time: 61 minutes

After watching an Amy Schumer comedy special dating back to two years ago, I decided to go further back to 2012. In Mostly Sex Stuff, Schumer discusses – you’ve guesses it – everything about sex, with multiple details. As it is often the case with her, the material is hit and miss. Some stuff is really funny, other things just kind of fall flat. This is a decent show overall.

Rating: «««

Joe Cocker: Mad Dog with Soul (2017)

Genre: Documentary

Directed by: John Edginton

Cast: Joe Cocker, Pam Cocker, Vic Cocker

Time: 90 minutes

Over the last decade, I have often said that, if I could be granted anyone else’s singing voice, I would take Joe Cocker’s. So filled with raunchiness, raw passion, pain, desire….and booze, it still touches me to the core a few years after his death, at the age of 70.

Joe Cocker: Mad Dog with Soul is a documentary about the man, from his youth, to his days as a gas fitter in Sheffield, England, to his rise to prominence with his performance at Woodstock, to his great career filled with successes, pitfalls, personal demons and resurgence.

In this 90-minutes-long documentary, we hear from Joe Cocker’s brother Vic, his wife Pam, and many of the people who worked with him through the years. We also hear from Billy Joel, who led some efforts to get Joe Cocker inducted in the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame (something that really needs to happen).

Mad Dog with Soul is an excellent documentary that gives the viewer a wonderful look at an artist who transcended eras and genres, a true performer who gave all he had, often at his own expense.

Rating: «««««

Leonard Cohen: Live in London (2009)

Genre: Musical

Directed by: Edward Sanders

Cast: Leonard Cohen, Roscoe Beck, Rafael Gayol

Time: 157 minutes

When he took the stage at the O2 Arena, in London, England, Leonard Cohen was a 73 old man forced to come out of retirement and go back on tour after being robbed of his savings by his former manager. In those circumstances, you would think the show would come off like a chore. Fortunately it does not.

One of the greatest poets of all-time, Cohen took the stage assisted by a tight band of talented musicians and three amazing backup singers. He gave the British crowd over 2.5 hours of beautiful and deep music, and, by the end of it, this 73 year old still had some spring in his steps. It is sad to think that he would get sick and pass away not that long after.

Cohen’s music, though beautiful, has often been considered dark and a bit depressing. The nice thing is that the Montreal native managed to incorporate some humor in between the songs, giving the viewers a nice mixture of emotions.

Overall, this is an awesome concert filled with poetry and beautiful musicality.  

Rating: «««««

Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo (2015)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Chris Rock

Cast: Amy Schumer

Time: 61minutes

Over the last few years, I had only seen bits and pieces of Amy Schumer’s act on TV, in interviews. My first reaction was as follows: Oh, she looks sweet and cute, and her self-deprecating humor is funny. Then there was some backlash due in part to her political positions, and, honestly, I don’t care about that. There is also a case that was made for joke-stealing, which is more troublesome to me. I lose respect for these comedians when a case is brought up and proven to be solid.

Still, I decided to sit down and watch a full comedy special of hers. In the end, I was disappointed. Taking the stage at The Apollo Theatre, in New York, Schumer went into her usual schtick about her private parts, her body, the difference between the treatments of bigger women and bigger guys, Hollywood, etc, etc. In bits and pieces, Schumer’s act can be funny and charming. Stretched out over an hour, it tends to become repetitive and annoying. That little voice and the face she makes ALL THE TIME becomes a bit much after a while.

This 2015 comedy special had its funny moments, but, overall, it left me a little cold. I’ll check out more of Amy Schumer over the coming weeks to see if the trend will hold.

Rating: ««

Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project (2007)

Genre: Documentary / Comedy

Directed by: John Landis

Cast: Don Rickles, Robert De Niro, Clint Eastwood

Time: 89 minutes

After Don Rickles’ passing, late last week, I decided to check out this documentary that was made by John Landis about the man Johnny Carson nicknamed Mr. Warmth.

In Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project, loads of comics, actors and actresses, and public figures share their thoughts about Rickles. You can clearly see their love and admiration for the man who was considered the king of insult comedy. We also see bits of Rickles’ performance at the Stardust Casino, in Las Vegas, in 2006. There also loads of archive footage of Rickles on The Tonight Show, in movies, in Roasts and in other events.

On the surface, Don Rickles was doing jokes that might have been considered racist, sexist homophobic or just plain inappropriate if they had not been done with such a total absence of malice. His timing was impeccable, he was a comic genius. Mr. Warmth was, deep down, a sweet man who was poking fun at everybody equally in his act. This is a documentary well worth seeing about a man well worth remembering.

Rating: «««««

John Mulaney: The Comeback Kid (2015)

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Rhys Thomas

Cast: John Mulaney

Time: 62 minutes

In his comedy special titled The Comeback Kid, comic John Mulaney discusses marriage, relationships, his youth, kids, and many other subjects. He also closes with a very funny story about Boll Clinton.

Mulaney felt a little uptight at first, coming onto the stage in a three-piece suit. While the language and subject matter is sometimes a little colorful, his comedy stylings are still pretty tame. Still, Mulaney managed to win me over by poking fun at himself, in a very charming way, and with the solidity of his material. Overall, a very pleasing comedy show.

Rating: ««««

Queen Rock Montreal & Live Aid (2007)

Genre: Musical

Directed by: Saul Swimmer

Cast: Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon, Roger Taylor

Time: 138 minutes

In November 1981, British Rock/Pop band Queen took the stage at the Montreal Forum, in Quebec (Canada), for a concert.

From the first notes of their fast version of We Will Rock You to the last notes of the recorded version of God Save the Queen, Freddie Mercury and his cohorts kept the spectators on the edge of their seats with hit after hit. Also included is the band’s performance at Live Aid, in 1985, where they gave an absolute clinic on how to steal the show from a loaded cast of artists.

In my book, Freddie Mercury remains one of the best front men in rock history. It is a true pleasure to see him and his bandmates at work here at two separate moments in their career. They were great artists and this video is a wonderful way to see them do what they do best.

Rating: «««««

American Splendor (2003)

Genre: Biographical / Drama / Comedy

Directed by: Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini

Cast: Paul Giamatti, Hope Davis, Judah Friedlander

Time: 101 minutes

This 2003 biographical film tells the story of Harvey Pekar, author of the American Splendor comic books. Working away as a file clerk in a hospital, Pekar, a lonely man with a complicated love life, started to develop ideas for comic books, that he called American Splendor. The series brought him recognition, but also its fair share of trouble.

Paul Giamatti, a very talented actor in his own right, really shined in American Splendor, bringing Harvey Pekar to life in brilliant fashion. The support cast was also very good. Involving the real Pekar and his entourage in some scenes was a nice touch. So was using the actual footage of Pekar on David Letterman’s set.

American Splendor is a truly authentic film, both stylistically and story-wise. It is a compelling tale of an everyday man finding the limelight but then having a hard time dealing with it, due to being ill-equipped emotionally to cope. For some reason, watching it kind of made me feel depressed for a while, this weekend, but I got over it. Overall, a very good movie.

Rating: ««««

Anthony Jeselnik: Thoughts and Prayers (2015)(

Genre: Comedy

Directed by: Adam Dubin

Cast: Anthony Jeselnik

Time: 59 minutes

I really love the fact that more and more stand-up comedy specials are getting added to Netflix, as it gives me a chance to sample the stylings of many comics I did not know about. Former Late Night with Jimmy Fallon writer, Anthony Jeselnik, is one of those. I knew a bit about Jeselnik’s work, thanks to his participation in those Comedy Central roasts, but a complete hour-long special gave me a better idea of his work.

Anthony Jeselnik’s comedy is not for the sensitive souls. It is dark, real dark. Dead babies, racism, sexism, pedophilia and tragedies; some of the most difficult subjects out there are being dealt with without even a thought for pulling punches. Even I, who has seen and heard a lot, and who can take dark humor with the best of them, was taken aback when the comic started joking about the death of Eric Clapton’s son. As a fan of Clapton, I had to work harder at finding that second degree, but I did. This kind of humor has to be taken all in stride, for what it truly is.

I absolutely loved this comedy show. It ruffles your feathers, it can push you to question your boundaries, but, in the end, it entertains fully the open-minded soul.

Rating: «««««