Swimming Pool

This is the sort of movie that leaves you sputtering through the credits, “What the ding did I just watch?” I gave this a shot based solely on my high opinion of Charlotte Rampling as an actress and she did not disappoint. So much of the subtext of this film is highly internal and Rampling has a gift for letting subtle thoughts play across her steely features while not moving a single solitary muscle. The plot of Swimming Pool would seem to be quite simple, but you’d be very, very wrong about that.  Sarah Morton (Rampling), a British mystery author, has lost her creative spark and in an effort to help, her publisher (Charles Dance) offers his vacation home in France for her to go relax and rejuvenate.  She takes him up on it and is having a wonderful time until the publisher’s daughter (Ludivine Sagnier) shows up unexpectedly.

This movie is like a swan swimming on a lake: all serene, quiet grace above but beneath the surface is a flurry of activity as legs madly stir the water. It craftily subverts every single assumption you make when slowly getting into the story and then cuts like a blade so sharp you don’t even realize you’ve been injured until you notice the blood. A beautifully twisted subtle and abstract piece of cinema that challenges you on every front and really makes you work for even the slightest bit of resolution. This will leave your brain in a froth, breathlessly cogitating on what you’ve seen, turning it over and over in your head trying to piece together what really happened. I should explain that while I really liked this movie, I only give it four stars because it isn’t one I would ever like to watch again. Trying to see it again would be ruinous as the intricately crooked narrative depends on the viewer’s naïveté and prior knowledge would bring the whole house of cards crashing down. Brilliant, disturbing, very French (in a good way!) and as well crafted as the murder mysteries Sarah purportedly writes so well, I recommend this only if you really enjoy movies that leave you with more questions than answers. A cerebral erotic thriller for aficionados and dilettantes of deliciously twisted psychological mysteries. – BETHANY

For more on Swimming Pool consult: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0324133/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Publisher John Bosload (Charles Dance – Game of Thrones)  – Don’t give up, Sarah.  You’re an award winning author!

Bosload and Sarah Morton (Charlotte Rampling) “Awards are like hemorrhoids. Sooner or later every asshole gets one.”

Tywin Lannister has a nice place in France.

Soak it in, Sarah.

Sarah relaxing and slowly killing herself with cigarettes.

                                An unwelcome visitor – Ludivine Sagnier as Julie.

The annoyed phone call to John Bosload.  Dude, your daughter is spoiling my happy place!

Suddenly Julie’s presence overshadows everything.

                         “You’re just a frustrated Englishwoman who writes about dirty things but never does them. You can shove your uptight morals up your ass!”

                                         It’s a little hard to work when Julie invites a steady stream of guys over to party.

Sarah becomes a voyeur as Julie’s wild and reckless life spills all over the place.

            Motion Picture Rating: ‘Rated R for strong sexual content, nudity, language, some violence and drug use’.  There’s a lot of nudity, including full frontal.

                                          Sarah tries to be nice and get to know Julie a little better.

Julie gets Sarah to loosen up.

                        Charlotte Rampling rocks a bucket hat.

Then things get really interesting …

The official trailer for Swimming Pool:

Photos courtesy of Fidélité Productions, France 2 Cinéma, Gimages, FOZ, Headforce Ltd., Canal+, Celluloid Dreams and Focus Features

Legend of the Seeker

An above average fantasy show that is thought-provoking and entertaining all at the same time. Isn’t Darken Rahl just the best name for a villain? Beautifully complex personalities and relationships, full of moral dilemmas and people fighting the good fight, this isn’t just frivolous fluff. Very good on its own merits but I gave it five stars because it introduced me to the Sword of Truth series of books by Terry Goodkind for which I am profoundly grateful. A master author who writes with great clarity and vision, I inhaled all 12 books and then read them again, savoring them like really good chocolate. As good as the TV show is (based loosely on books 1 & 2 in the series, Wizard’s First Rule and Stone of Tears), it barely scratches the surface of Goodkind’s richly imagined world. As far as I know, he came up with a truly unique kind of magical being when he dreamed up the Confessors. Their touch can overwhelm a person’s mind, making them totally subservient and utterly loyal to the Confessor, willing to do absolutely anything she asks. Often chosen as a last resort for condemned prisoners trying to prove their innocence, Confessors can pull the absolute truth out of anyone but the process is irreversible. The show does a great job portraying Kahlan’s power by having the irises of her eyes swirl to black as she releases her will, whereas in the books the effect is described as “thunder without sound”.

The Mord-Sith are also well done (another unique construct) with Cara as an extremely conflicted character. Mord-Sith are terrifyingly powerful women in leather whose cruelty and viciousness take sadomasochistic fanaticism to a whole new level and like the Confessors, they are always female. Goodkind evidently believes (quite rightly so) the female of the species is much more deadly than the male and many of the power players in his world are women. It should be noted this TV series is not, repeat, not a replica of the books in any way shape or form.  The writers used the first two books in the series as a jumping off point and then did all sorts of things with it.  So consider this an impression of Terry Goodkind’s work, but there’s a vast gulf between what the TV show does and what’s in the books.  Epic, original, often terrifically funny and profoundly philosophical, Legend of the Seeker is a good take on a truly spectacular series of books and I highly recommend both of them. – BETHANY

For more on the specifics of Legend of the Seeker visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0844653/?ref_=nv_sr_1

For information on the Sword of Truth book series, visit: http://www.terrygoodkind.com/books.shtml

There’s a lot of pictures for this show because frankly, I couldn’t choose which ones to leave out.  Enjoy!

              Hey, I’m just a woods guide from Hartland.  I’m nothing special.                     Craig Horner as Richard Cypher.

                             See?  Woods.

Hoo!  *sigh*  Also, more woods.

OK, maybe I’m the Seeker after all.

Kahlan Amnell (Bridget Regan), the Mother Confessor, followed by Richard and Zedd.

Kahlan holds the Sword of Truth.

Wizard Zeddicus Zu’l Zorander (Bruce Spence), more commonly known as Zedd.

               Kahlan, Rihard and Zedd.  You know, the Midlands look an awful lot like New Zealand.

Zedd undercover – he makes a very unattractive woman.

Darken Rahl (Craig Parker), flanked by two Mord-Sith.

    Cara (Tabrett Bethell), a Mord-Sith.

Mord-Sith Denna (Jessica Marais), “training” Richard.

             Sister Nicci (Emily Baldoni), a sorceress also known as Death’s Mistress.

Shota (Danielle Cormack ), a Witch Woman who resides in Agaden Reach and whose motives and loyalties are very unclear.

                                                                  Chase Brandstone(Jay Laga’aia), a Boundary Warden of Hartland and friend of Richard.

A Night Wisp named Shar.

Bummer!  Captured by D’Harans.

         Kahlan on the run with her sister Denee (Tania Nolan).

Aydindril, seat of power for both the Confessors and the Wizards.

Kahlan and Richard with Annabelle (Aimee Teegarden), another Confessor.

Zedd and his brother Thaddicus (Jon Brazier).

                                                                         A very, very unhappy Cara.  Mord-Sith do not wear dresses!

                           Richard and Kahlan go swimming.

The trailer for the premiere of Legend of the Seeker:

 

Photos courtesy of ABC Studios, Buckaroo Entertainment, Ghost House Pictures, Paperboy Productions and Renaissance Pictures

Sexy Evil Genius

I can just imagine the pitch meeting for this movie: “A bunch of people meet up in a bar at the behest of an ex they find they all have in common and talk for an evening.” It doesn’t sound like much, as the vast majority of the movie really is just people sitting around a table in a bar, talking to one another with occasional flashbacks to lend perspective. But the genius of this film is that the dialogue has to carry absolutely everything (because that’s all there is) and does so with nothing more than a slowly unfolding but incredibly complex and multi-layered conversation. It’s absolutely necessary that you go into this movie with as little information as possible, so I’m going to be deliberately vague. Katee Sackhoff is the sexy evil genius, a rather unusual role for her but she plays the femme fatale very, very well. “Nikki doesn’t steal hearts, she eats them.” She’s good at playing twisted, intricate and complicated characters (Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica springs to mind), but this one is off the charts complicated with a twist of pathologically equivocating non compos mentis. Seth Green is amazing as the first comer, Michelle Trachtenberg will break your heart with her broken innocence, Harold Perrineau (a very underrated actor in my opinion) is spot on as a jazz musician with all its attendant qualities and I was shocked at how well William Baldwin did. This movie hinges on the performances of just five actors but never stutters, never falters and keeps you riveted until the credits roll. A dark comedic thriller to be sure, but the “action” is all in the words, the expressions and unexpected twists, beautifully carried by five perfectly rounded characters with rich backstories. It does earn its R rating for some adult content, language and the occasional murder, but it flows seamlessly and everything in it is included for a reason.  Saliently fine tuned, sardonic, spare and diabolically clever, there’s not one single word more than there needs to be. Unbelievably good, I’ve never seen anything like it and I loved every second of it. – BETHANY

For more on this fantastically sophisticated psychological thrill ride, visit:  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1801096/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Michelle Trachtenberg as Miranda Prague.

Miranda with Seth Green as Zachary Newman, a somewhat nerdy salesman.  Both these actors starred in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but not during the same seasons.

Third player in this drama at a seedy dive bar, cool cat jazz musician Marvin Coolidge (Harold Perrineau).

The sexy evil genius herself, Katee Sackhoff as Nikki Franklyn.

Like any good conversation, it has tonal ups and downs.

The trio listen in disbelief as Nikki spins another story.

Katee Sackhoff as Nikki, William Baldwin as attorney Bert Mayfaire and Marvin.

How Bert and Nikki met – with her in jail for killing a previous boyfriend and him as her defense attorney.  Such a meet cute!

Miranda in the surprisingly nice ladies’ room for such a hole-in-the-wall bar.

The trailer for this insanely twisted drama, which won’t tell you any more than I’ve already done so here:

Photos courtesy of Launchpad Productions, Piller / Segan / Shepherd, Sobini Films Distributors and Lionsgate

Gattaca

Good science fiction should make people stop and think about the implications and possible ramifications of advancing technology. Since this is great sci-fi, it shows us a world where eugenics has become the norm, each child engineered to be as perfect as possible. Your entire résumé is your DNA with your whole life and potential mapped out from birth. The writers of Gattaca posit an intriguing question: Is there more to a person than their genetic code? Is the human spirit, the will to succeed, greater than the sum of its parts? Wisely set in “the not too distant future”, this profoundly creative and disturbing movie came out in 1997 when the issue of cloning was a big deal and people were first thinking about the ethics of genetic engineering. It stars three human beings naturally blessed by the genetic lottery; Ethan Hawke, Jude Law and the coolly radiant Uma Thurman. I already loved Hawke from his stellar performance in Before Sunrise but this was the first time I’d seen Jude Law. Both of them play such beautifully conflicted and uniquely damaged characters, showcasing the price of such a theoretical future society. Everything looks good on the surface, a serene existence where everything is ordered and quantified, but there’s a dark side to it with a ruthless caste system based solely on a person’s genetics that determines who succeeds and who is doomed to a life of drudgery with no hope of advancement.

The idea of genetic engineering also looks good at first glance.  What parent wouldn’t want the best for their child? Interestingly enough, as part of the marketing campaign for the movie, fake leaflets advertising genetic engineering for children were distributed and thousands of people responded, wanting the service for their child. But if everything is pre-selected and pre-determined with “defective” embryos screened out as unwanted, where is the spark of creativity and the element of chance that can collide to give us, say, Mozart. He was, by Gattaca’s standards, defective but does that mean the world isn’t richer for his having been here even for a short time?  How about Stephen Hawking, Helen Keller, Leonardo da Vinci (he had epilepsy), Vincent Van Gogh (mental illness), Thomas Edison and Beethoven, who suffered from loss of hearing, or Albert Einstein and Winston Churchill, both of whom had learning disabilities?  Intensely thought-provoking while still being chic and entertaining, this is a spot-on exploration of a timely issue that merits careful consideration. – BETHANY

For more on Gattaca, visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119177/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Ethan Hawke as Vincent Anton Freeman.  “I belonged to a new underclass, no longer determined by social status or the color of your skin. No, we now have discrimination down to a science.” (image courtesy of stephottosstory.weebly.com)

For a price, this man can change your life.  (Tony Shalhoub as German)

                                                               How would you like to see yourself described thus?

Jerome Morrow (the impossibly handsome Jude Law).

Vincent becomes Jerome – a rather painful process.

From one world to another.

Vincent with Uma Thurman’s Irene Cassini (an appropriate name for working at an aerospace corporation).

                            Can you spot the metaphor?

I guess micro-management is a constant. (Suddenly your cubicle at work doesn’t look so bad, does it?)

Gattaca’s creepy gym, where Gabrielle Reece appears as a trainer.

  Xander Berkeley as Dr. Lamar

Try Gattaca, a new perfume designed to make you more attractive at the cellular level!

Detective Hugo (Alan Arkin) and partner (Loren Dean).

The official trailer for Gattaca:

Photos courtesy of Jersey Films and Columbia Pictures

Crossbones

This isn’t a terrible show by any means. It’s shot in gorgeous locations, has astonishingly detailed sets and costumes and features an avalanche of British acting talent as well as David Hoflin, a Swedish actor with an Eric Northman vibe (Yay!). The story is interesting but a great deal of the action is cerebral in nature, battles of wits, etc. The language employed in the dialogue is superb and I’m so pleased they do not underestimate the viewer’s acumen or vocabulary. But for all this show has going for it, its weak point is oddly enough its highest billed star John Malkovich. When he was younger, Malkovich was a master of playing scary smart villains (see Con Air) but as of late his talents have been blossoming in comedy (see the RED movies). He’s just better at being funny now, so his performance as the evil incarnate pirate Blackbeard makes the character seem a bit ridiculous. You shouldn’t ever be able to snicker at Blackbeard but it’s hard not to when Malkovich gives him an effeminate accent and tries to menace people with a head full of acupuncture needles.

Fortunately the real main character is not Blackbeard but Tom Lowe, a British agent of some sort on a mission from the Crown, posing as a surgeon to infiltrate Blackbeard’s island republic, Santa Compaña. The good doctor is played brilliantly by Richard Coyle and oh happy day, we also have Claire Foy playing the wife of an exiled Scottish nobleman. There’s a rich cast of characters like Nenna, a stunning woman who is also a cut-throat pirate and talented thief, and the somewhat inept surgeon’s assistant, Mr. Fletch. I also particularly enjoyed seeing Julian Sands as the vindictive William Jagger. Lots of plots and subplots are nicely juggled by the narrative and there’s enough of interest going on to keep me watching.

Unfortunately, a show about pirates implies plenty of action, but as I must reiterate, much of it in this one plays out in the minds of the two leads.  One character even points this out as Blackbeard and Lowe walk side by side on a beach, saying it may look like they’re not doing anything, but make no mistake, they’re two sharks circling each other.  But despite this attempt to “hang a lantern on it” (“A screenwriting device where special emphasis is put on an obvious narrative flaw, so as to render it invisible.” – http://hangalanternonit.blogspot.com/), doing so certainly doesn’t make the fault more entertaining.  Amongst the other characters there’s also lots of maneuvering and double-crosses, as well as not one but two very predictable love triangles.  The writers try to add interest by having everyone chasing after a mechanical device that would allow ships to “navigate this great emptiness with a precision never before known”, and thus avoid pirates like Blackbeard and other hazards.

I was four episodes in when I first wrote this and I’ll admit that I nearly gave up after the pilot. I only carried on out of morbid fascination and also because I hate it when people write reviews after only watching a single episode. Worthwhile but with quite a few flaws (such as historical inaccuracy and the aforementioned difficulty with the character of Blackbeard), this was cancelled after one season, so we’ll never know how it all turned out. – BETHANY

For more on Crossbones, visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2400631/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Edward Teach, a.k.a. Blackbeard, as “Commodore” of a pirate republic.

*snicker*

Tom Lowe (Richard Coyle) and Mr. Fletch (Chris Perfetti).

Filming on location in Puerto Rico (image courtesy of http://www.thelocationguide.com)

What all the fuss is about.  It looks very steampunk, doesn’t it?

Yasmine Al Masri as Selima El Sharad, an agoraphobic scholar who seems to have a Stockholm syndrome relationship with Blackbeard.

Nenna Ajanlekoko (Tracy Ifeachor), who’s very quick to draw a blade.

Charlie Rider (David Hoflin, center), Blackbeard’s second in command.

                                                  Rose, one of Santa Compaña’s ladies of the night (played by Natalie Hoflin, real life spouse of David Hoflin, above).

Claire Foy as Kate Balfour.

Julian Sands as William Jagger.

I came to the small screen only to get cancelled?

Photos courtesy of P + M Image Nation, Mr. Cross, Universal Television and NBC

In Secret

If you’re looking for a movie that seems designed to wallow in misery and is depressing in every conceivable way, then this is the movie for you. This is a dark gothic period piece that combines eroticism with the macabre. Elizabeth Olsen plays Thérèse Raquin, a child whose father leaves her with an aunt (played as creepy and passive-aggressive by Jessica Lange) who proceeds to press her into service as companion and nurse for her sickly son Camille. Thérèse grows up, abandoned and eventually orphaned by her father, and on the eve of the family’s move to Paris is informed that she is to marry her cousin Camille. Thus her life continues in quiet desperation, trapped in a loveless marriage to a prosaic, infantile and contemptible worm of a man. Camille is well played by Tom Felton, whose natural good looks are twisted into something truly revolting by means of an appalling stringy and lank hairstyle reminiscent of a comb-over. In sharp contrast, Camille’s childhood friend Laurent is an artistic brooding bomb of virility and romance (played by Guatemalan actor Oscar Isaac) and he and Thérèse get swept up in a passionate affair. Their illicit antics are the best part of the movie but the far-reaching consequences of their actions spread like an insidious poison, tainting everything it touches. Tragedy, guilt, grief and eventual hatred run wild, pushing the narrative to its final gasp of breath before the credits roll. If you like stories that circle above the drain to hell, then by all means, watch this. I did not enjoy it but can still appreciate the performances given by the cast. Gloomy, sad and horrifying, this film demonstrates a lamentable fascination with the darker aspects of life. The only antidote may be a Disney movie, so consider carefully before watching this. – BETHANY

If you want more information on this festival of grief, visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0409379/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Elizabeth Olsen as Thérèse Raquin.  The film is dark both thematically and literally, as dim lighting is used to subtly underscore the disturbing nature of the story.

Tom Felton as Camille.  No idea how they gave him that hair, but it’s awful, isn’t it?

What a handsome groom-to-be.  Poor Thérèse!

But I don’t want to marry you!  Too bad, honey.

Camille and Madame Raquin (Jessica Lange) all dressed up for the wedding.  Yeah, curling it is going to make all the difference with that hair.  Yech!

Ooops, wrong Tom Felton movie.  (image found at http://www.dek-d.com)

                Putting off the inevitable.

  In rather sharp contrast to pathetically repugnant Camille, Oscar Isaac as Laurent LeClaire is a dreamy dish of yummyness.

                                                   I mean look at the guy!  All brooding, slightly disheveled and artistic, he’s pretty much female catnip.

                                              And here’s where things get interesting.

Très érotique!

     A very awkward trio.

Thérèse and Laurent take matters into their own hands.

This sequence may be the most well lit in the whole movie, which may or may not be on purpose.

Things get very dark indeed.  You can barely see Jessica Lange!

From bad to worse …

Photos courtesy of LD Entertainment, Work in Progress, Exclusive Media Group, Pioneer Pictures, Wonderful Films and Roadside Attractions

The Water Horse

Enchanting and imaginative, I’ve seen this delightful movie several times. Very much in the spirit of children’s classics like ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ and ‘Alice in Wonderland’, this film breathes new life into Celtic legend. Set at the height of World War II in Scotland, aquaphobic young Angus MacMorrow finds something curious in a tide pool. And thus begins a wild ride of pure magic and heart, intercut with the tension and tragedy of the times. Alex Etel gives a beautiful performance as Angus, a boy who desperately misses his father who has vanished in the war. Emily Watson’s performance will break your heart as his mother, a woman struggling to be strong and raise two children alone while managing a Scottish lord’s estate. The story is complicated by the arrival of a regiment of soldiers assigned to defend the coast against U-boat incursion. Like in any respectable children’s story, most of the adults are unbelievably stupid and cause no end of trouble for Angus, complete with an annoying bulldog named Churchill (named no doubt in dubious honor of the Prime Minister). Very well done visuals and cinematography, and my special compliments on the wonderful swimming sequence under the Loch. This film sparkles and is sure to entertain persons of any age with a tale that speaks to the innocence and boundless imagination of childhood. A beautiful movie all around with a subject that is far from trite and a story that is sure to inspire and enthrall. – BETHANY

For more on this ‘legend of the deep’, visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0760329/?ref_=nv_sr_1

                                          Angus and his tide pool prize.

        Emily Watson as Anne MacMorrow with Angus (Alex Etel).

Meet Crusoe, named after one of Angus’ favorite books.

We’re going to need a bigger bucket.

           Is this little guy cute or what?

Ben Chaplin as Lewis Mowbray, a handyman surprisingly well versed in Celtic legend.

Crusoe does not get on well with Churchill.

Alex and his sister Kirstie (Priyanka Xi) struggle to keep Crusoe a secret –

– which is difficult with an entire regiment of Royal Artillery troops littering the premises.  Captain Thomas Hamiltion (David Morrissey).

Crusoe is getting big.

Very big!

A boy and his Water Horse.

Up for a swim in the Loch?

Water Horse taxis bring you right back to the dock.

At this point, everyone in the theater gave a collective sigh.

The trailer, which shows the great swimming scene:

Photos courtesy of Revolution Studios, Walden Media, Beacon Pictures, Ecosse Films, Strike Entertainment, Weta Workshop and Columbia TriStar

Drop Dead Diva

It’s obvious this unusual legal dramedy spiked with fantasy struck a chord with American audiences, featuring a massive list of celebrity guest appearances plus a cancellation followed by a triumphant resurrection thanks to fan support. Deb Dobkins, a shallow and somewhat vapid model is killed in a car accident but upon arriving “Upstairs” she presses a Return button in the midst of having a hissy fit and wakes up in the plus size body of Jane Bingum, a lawyer who died saving Jay Parker from a bullet. Parker manages the law firm where Jane works but also employs Deb’s lawyer fiancé Grayson Kent. Now living in a body with a brain full of brilliant legal knowledge, Jane tries to carry on with her new life while working side by side with a man she loves, unable to tell him the truth for fear of rejection, confiding only in her oldest friend Stacy. This has all the hallmarks of a Greek tragedy, but handily avoids getting bogged down by misery and instead espouses a love of life and an infectious spirit of perseverance and joy. It’s a real pleasure to watch a show starring a plus size woman who accepts herself, which Brooke Elliot does beautifully.

The storyline follows Jane as she tries to balance the fashion obsessed model with a workaholic lawyer, creating a whole new person as a result. Her priorities shift from being an admittedly shallow empty-headed girl to helping her clients as cases continue to arrive at the law firm, learning responsibility while infusing her life with a new spirit. The stories are often lighthearted and funny while underpinned by serious issues, moral dilemmas and the consequences of choices but miraculously avoids being preachy. I’ve seen every episode of all six seasons and I’ve got to say this is one astoundingly good show. This has some quite profound observations about life, what makes a good person and more about how you treat others reflects back on you. Immensely satisfying and thoughtful, a real gem of a show. – BETHANY

For more on this wonderful TV show, visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1280822/?ref_=nv_sr_1

   I think some introductions are in order.  From left to right:

Stacy Barrett (April Bowlby), Terri Lee (Margaret Cho), Jay Parker (Josh Stamberg), Jane Bingum (Brooke Elliott), Grayson Kent (Jackson Hurst), Kim Kaswell (Kate Levering) and Jane’s Guardian Angel Fred (Ben Feldman).

                  Deb Dobkins (Brooke D’Orsay) trying to convince Fred to send her back to Earth.

Jane’s door is always open, metaphorically of course.

Sometimes it’s really hard to juggle everything in your life.

Dancing with Judge Paula Abdul in a Dream sequence.  Ms. Abdul is one of many celebrity guest stars who dropped everything else and clamored to get on the show.  Here’s just a few of famous faces who guest starred.

• Clay Aiken
• Louis Van Amstel
• Diedrich Bader
• Lance Bass
• Delta Burke
• Sandra Bernhard
• Vivica A. Fox
• Nancy Grace
• Kathy Griffin
• Tim Gunn
• Star Jones
• Ricki Lake
• Liza Minnelli
• Kelly Osbourne
• LeAnn Rimes
• Cybill Shepherd
• Wanda Sykes
• Gina Torres
• Nia Vardalos
• Wendy Williams
• Kim Kardashian
• Brandy
• Leelee Sobieski
• Rosie O’Donnell
• Jaime Ray Newman
• Natasha Henstridge

[This is by far not a complete list, and if anybody out there knows where I can find the full list, I’d very much like to know so I can include it here.]

Drop Dead Diva does a great job addressing women’s complicated relationship with food.  Jane learns that it’s OK to eat the doughnut!

Deb Dobkins and the new Jane/Deb Bingum.  Jane does an excellent job dressing her fuller figure and always looks chic and put together.

Stacy might look like and act like a flibbertyjibbet, but she’s got a good heart and is a genuinely beautiful person, inside and out.

Working alongside Grayson isn’t easy for Jane – I mean look at the guy!  What a dish. *sigh*

                    But since Jane is a professional, she’s able to establish a good working relationship with her ex-fiancé, who is never the wiser.

They also become really good friends, which sometimes leads to Jane being the distressed recipient of Grayson’s confidences when they stray into fraught territory.

Margaret Cho as Terri Lee, Jane’s assistant, an audaciously saucy woman who’s a master of delivering crushing sarcasm from behind an inscrutable poker face.

                  Joan Rivers appears in one of Jane’s dreams, presiding over a funeral.

Jane’s impressive wardrobe of flattering and fashionable clothes. (found on pinterest.com)

Photos courtesy of Storyline Entertainment, Sony Pictures Television, Osprey Productions, Post Road Productions and Lifetime

Warehouse 13

This show is like catnip to aficionados of history and literature with a creative sci-fi spin. A parallel sister show to Syfy’s popular Eureka, it tells of the existence of a mysterious warehouse and to know its secrets is a ticket to a lifetime of “endless wonder”. It has existed for millennia, housing objects with special properties that are usually connected to a historical person or event, such as Lewis Carrol’s Looking Glass (which can pull you into it), Edgar Allen Poe’s pen (which causes whatever you write to actually happen in gruesome detail) and M.C. Escher’s Mirror Ball, which distorts space and relativity around it and can lead to brain trauma. Usually rather esoteric in nature, obscure facts from the history books get their moment in the sun courtesy of a very resourceful writing team as they are showcased in an astounding array of “artifacts”. The lives of two Secret Service agents intersect with the Warehouse (#13, with #1 being founded by Alexander the Great) when an artifact causes mayhem during a Presidential visit to a museum. Myka Bering, a somewhat officious brainiac and Pete Lattimer, a bit of a maverick who can sense “vibes”, get reassigned to the Warehouse which resides in, of all places, the Badlands of South Dakota. Their amusingly antagonistic relationship provides much of the hilarity on the show as they become agents of the Warehouse, traveling all over the globe to retrieve and neutralize rogue artifacts. The stories are fascinating and fun, the writing top notch and the cast of characters that are oddball to say the least. Saul Rubinek is magnificent as Artie, a curmudgeonly agent rather set in his ways who supervises the Warehouse, and Leena, the proprietor of the local bed and breakfast who can see auras. Often hysterically funny and sometimes deadly serious, this wonderful show ran for 5 seasons and went out in a blaze of glory. Highly recommended for lovers of academia as well as science fiction, this show is not to be missed. – BETHANY

For more on the details of Warehouse 13, visit:  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1132290/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Agent Pete Lattimer (Eddie McClintock) and Myka Bering (Joanne Kelly) in the first episode.

Inside the Warehouse.  How big is it?  As big as it is needed to be.  It’s kind of like the TARDIS on Doctor Who.  It’s bigger on the inside.

Artie, Pete and Myka search for clues about missing objects from Warehouse 12.

Pete runs into the Christmas-related section of the Warehouse.

                         Agent Lattimer and Agent Bering involved in the weirdness that surrounds the Warehouse.

One of the crossover episode featuring Fargo from Eureka (Neil Grayston)

Enigmatic Mrs. Frederic (CCH Pounder), prone to appearing and disappearing mysteriously.

                                      Myka goes undercover at a fashion show to track down an artifact that is aging models overnight.

                                                   Agent Myka Bering – it’s probably best not to ask about the costume.

                           Leena, proprietor of the local B&B and friend of the Warehouse.

Leena’s B&B, where Agents Lattimer and Bering live.

Rogue artifact known as the Phoenix Medallion, which protects the wearer from fire, but costs the lives of others nearby.

The artifact that brought Myka and Pete in contact with the Warehouse. (Image courtesy of warehouse-13-artifact-database.wikia.com)

Agatha Christie’s typewriter, which predicts crimes 24 hours in advance but has a limited range and never mentions butlers. (image courtesy of http://warehouse-13-artifact-database.wikia.com)

An interesting piece of trivia from IMDB.com:

Quite a few actors from the Star Trek world have appeared or had parts in the series. To name some of them: Robert Duncan McNeill, (Tom Paris from Star Trek: Voyager (1995)) has directed an episode on season 5, Kate Mulgrew (Captain Janeway from Star Trek: Voyager (1995)) plays Jane Lattimer, Brent Spiner (Lt. Commander Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987), Armin Shimerman (Quark from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993)) and Jeri Ryan (Seven Of Nine from Star Trek: Voyager (1995)) also appeared.

Photos courtesy of Universal Cable Productions and Syfy (unless otherwise noted).

Continuum

Continuum is a smart savvy show not surprisingly about time travel. It’s also an incisive commentary on the slow loss of privacy and civil liberties that could happen if corporations supplant the government in the future. A “Corporate Congress” sounds laughable but the issues and ethics addressed by this show are anything but funny. The movie Avatar showed us what corporations can become without restriction or government oversight and this clever show takes that notion a step further while adding the sci-fi twist of time travel. Keira Cameron, a sort of cop called a Protector in the year 2077, is on duty at the execution of a group of anti-corporate terrorists from an organization called Liber8. But events take a bizarre turn when the prisoners activate a time travel device, sending them and Keira back to present day Vancouver.

The tag line of the show is ‘Change the Past to Control the Future’ and that’s just what Liber8 wants to do. The world Keira comes from looks peaceful and secure but it’s a technology-reliant dystopian police state where every aspect of your life is controlled by the government and free thought is an act of treason. Keira is desperate to get back home to her husband and son but in order for her future to remain extant she must stop Liber8 from changing the past. She teams up with young Alec Sadler, a techno-wiz destined to become a powerful tycoon in the future, who helps her try to thwart Liber8’s plans. A delicious conundrum with ambiguity muddling everything to the point that it’s truly unclear if any faction is actually in the right. The writers ask great questions and draw attention to the long term repercussions and implications of advancing technology. With plots, subplots, paradoxes and mysteries everywhere, this is a complicated show but definitely worth your time. I’ve seen three seasons thus far and it just keeps getting better, with a bombshell at the end of season 3 that has me salivating for season 4. – BETHANY

For more on this conundrum of Continuum, consult: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1954347/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Keira Cameron (Rachel Nicols) and her City Protective Services future tech and cybernetic enhancements.  Her gun has a nifty trick:

When everything went kerflooey at the Liber8 execution.

      Keira and her Vancouver PD partner Detective Carlos Fonnegra (Victor Webster)

Alec Sadler (Erik Knudsen)-  Yeah, looks like a nerd to me.

Liber8 logo that’s popping up all over Vancouver

Peaceful protestors they’re not

Figures Liber8 would be into weed …

Erstwhile Liber8 member Matthew Kellog (Stephen Lobo), intent on manipulating the present with his knowledge of the future to garner money and power.

Tahmoh Penikett playing double-talking politician Jim Martin.  (Image found at popculturenexus.com)  A fan reference to Penikett’s time on Battlestar Galactica.

Photos courtesy of Reunion Pictures, Boy Meets Girl Film Company, Shaw Media, GK-tv and Syfy (unless otherwise noted)