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July 8, 2010

Burn Notice-Shot in the Dark

Filed under: Movie News — admin @ 1:35 pm

I’ve been enjoying the third season of Burn Notice so far. The writing is still sharp and they’ve really made an effort to make the show feel slightly different now that Michael (Jeffrey Donovan) is "back on the grid." They’ve placed him in new and exciting scenarios and given him a nice new set of supporting players. "Shot in the Dark" is a return to familiar territory however, and while nicely played in its own right, it feels like a big speed bump in the middle of what’s been a fun and evocative season.

I feel like the emotions and problems involved here were already done and done better in Season 1’s "False Flag." On that episode, Lucy Lawless played a client named Evelyn who tried to get Michael to save her and her son from her abusive husband. It played off Michael’s sympathies for abused kids and it gave his backstory a twist when it was revealed that Evelyn was a big fat liar assassin trying to use Michael. Michael’s vulnerabilities got preyed upon and he got to learn a lesson about letting his emotions get the best of him.

This time around we don’t get the false flag, we just get an authentic woman in distress – played by Charles in Charge alum Josie Davis. It doesn’t take much pleading from her before Michael tears himself away from his side story about "thinking about" working for the shady spy-recruiter Tom (Ben Shenkman) and pledges all of his services into helping the woman get rid of her abusive husband who’s vying for custody of their children. It was certainly fun to watch Better Off Ted’s Jay Harrington play the victim of Michael’s psych-warfare, but he also didn’t come off as a guy who could ever be stern enough to strong arm his wife.

- USA
Michael (Jeffrey Donovan) and Erik (Jay Harrington) on Burn Notice.

Harrington plays Erik Luna, the douchebag squeaky clean business face of his brother’s corrupt criminal dealings. Erik is essentially bullied by his much stronger brother, Quinn (X-Files‘ Nicholas Lea) and then bullied by Michael, when Michael enters the picture as a man trying to convince Erik that there’s a death squad after him. He hardly comes off as a formidable opponent. His main weapon against Michael and the gang is his resistance to leave freakin’ town, which is all they want him to do. Yes, the gang turns up their masquerade skills in this episode, trying to make Erik, who also happens to be a former drug addict, feel like he’s being targeted by a clandestine team of killers. The suspense on this episode winds up stemming from Erik simply not falling for it all the way.

And in the end, he never does wind up wanting to leave town, which makes Michael come up with a last minute plan to make Quinn think Erik is out of his mind and back on drugs. It was actually pretty funny to watch Sam dawn a street vendor’s hat an apron in an attempt to make Erik think he’d gone insane. But at this point, the mirth had come a bit too late to help me give this episode a higher score.

I still like to see how they’ll work the name Finley into the episodes. This time around, Sam (Bruce Campbell) tells Erik that the name of the man trying to kill him is Finley – giving the name Chuck Finley a new underworld-boss presence. I’d love to find out someday, on Burn, that the name Finley had achieved some sort of Keyser Soze status. Watching both Sam and Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar) fake-gunned down in the alleyway was fun too – although they shamelessly teased us with the promos that week, making us think that Fi got shot for real.

 
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Burn Notice-Friends Like These

Filed under: Movie News — admin @ 1:34 pm

This was an average episode of Burn Notice that got elevated a very well-handled scene of unexpected intensity and a nice twist. "Friends Like These" features the now infamous slap – a very well-acted, narratively-necessarily scene where Michael (Jeffrey Donovan) slaps Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar) in order to protect her from a killer in sheep’s clothing. Yes, we’ve seen Michael and Fi spar before – during sessions of fighting/foreplay – but this was different. Fiona reacted emotionally and immediately, and it was amazing to see her caught off guard in a very vulnerable way.

Fi, of course, didn’t know what Michael was about to do, or that he felt it was necessarily to brutally change the dynamics of their cover IDs and covert relationship. In the scenario that they were presenting to their captive, a woman going by the name of Natalie (Rescue Me’s Callie Thorne), Michael was the boss of the operation, so Michael had to "play the boss" and slap Fi in the face in order to get her out of the room quickly. What a great moment it was watching Fi ,still reeling from the hit and flushed in her face, reigning herself back in to play her "role" in the charade.

The other nice little moment was the reveal that Natalie, the woman that the gang believed to be innocently caught up in a plot to steal Barry’s (Paul Tei) black book of money laundering clients, was the mastermind behind it all. We never even wind up learning her real name by the time she escapes in the end, but I’m sure she and Fi will have a day of reckoning in the near future.

- USA
Michael (Donovan) and Sam (Campbell) from Burn Notice.

This episode was laced with a good script and a few droplets of dark humor that helped move the generic "interrogation" storyline along. The scene when Sam (Bruce Campbell) casually waves the loaded gun in Natalie’s face (back when we thought she was just a weeping hostage) was great. I also appreciate serious Sam Axe moments whenever I can get them. The fact that Sam is such a lovable, yet capable, lug makes it even sweeter when you see him really get down to business. After almost getting taken down by a hostage/black book-stealing suspect Kristof, Michael asks Sam if he’s able enough to stay with Kristof and keep a more dutiful eye on him. Sam shoots Mike a look that was priceless, as if to say "there’s no way in hell that SOB’s getting the drop on me again."

The side story was decent enough, with Michael deciding to do a little job for Tom (Ben Shenkman), much to the chagrin of Fiona. Michael enlists the help of his mom, Madeline, to help spy on a mysterious crew’s "cleaner" – which isn’t interesting in itself, but it gave Sharon Gless something to do outside of the house. Michael thinks that Tom, no matter how unscrupulous he might be, is his best way of getting the guys in Washington to review his file. By the end, Michael is rewarded with the news that his status is under review, even though he feels a bit dirty from letting an arms theft and sale go down when he could have probably stopped it. It’s a small moment, but it’s a nice set up for the big moment in the future when Michael finally realizes that doing immediate good outweighs getting his old life back.

Fiona, still sensitive from the slap, winds up telling Michael that he’s on his own. She had enough problems with Michael working alongside Tom and the slap probably just helped her discover that she can manifest an emotional distance from Michael. Perhaps the slap, as a jarring sign of aggression, is even a sign that Michael himself doesn’t like what he’s becoming in his new path to recapture his old life of solitude.

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Burn Notice-A Dark Road

Filed under: Movie News — admin @ 1:33 pm

Burn Notice is back with the second half of Season 3 and if you thought that Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) might have lost a step or two in the past five months then you’re sorely mistaken. With Michael’s quest to "unburn" himself officially FUBAR, he must now contend with a rogue MI-6 "cleaner" who seems to delight in toying with Michael the way a cat plays with a ball of yarn – or a dead mouse. This brutal Brit, heard but not seen in "The Dark Road," is the nefariously named Mason Gilroy (Prison Break’s Chris Vance). All signs point to Gilroy serving as the big bad guy for the Season 3 endgame, but we still don’t know what his ultimate connection is to Michael.

I felt a little torn because I enjoyed the little lethal games that Gilroy was playing (firebomb, stadium sniping) and how they all tied into past international black op missions, most likely perpetrated by Gilroy, but I also thought that it was great that they revealed the name and identity of Michael’s new "invisible" enemy by the end of the episode instead of having in linger on for another show or two. I’m looking for the Gilroy story to be the final straw that helps Michael make a decision about staying in Miami permanently since we’ve already seen him try (and fail) to get back in good with his CIA higher-ups this past summer.

The Gilroy stuff was great and I love it when Michael gets to go up against an enemy with comparable skills and brains to his own. Carla (Tricia Helfer) felt a bit slight back in Season 2, but Michael’s built up a formidable "rogue’s gallery" of villains that could all still return. The weaker elements of this episode had to do with Michael’s Robin-Hood gig – busting up an insurance scam ring – which felt like a big retread of a lot of his past Miami missions.

- USA
Tyne Daly and Sharon Gless reunite on Burn Notice.

Tyne Daly guest-starred on this episode, reuniting with her old Cagney & Lacey co-star Sharon Gless – which was a hoot provided that you remembered that particular show from the 80s. But just when I thought that Daly’s character was going to be played as a goof, they turned it pretty dark. Yes, it all seemed like card games and gin and tonics for Madeline and her new best friend from the County Records office, but when Michael desperately needed some files it fell on Madeline to turn ice-queen and blackmail her new BFF.

I’m not so sure that I was sold on Madeline’s ultra-quick shift over from mom to gangland heavy, but I was totally sold on Daly’s sad and pathetic reaction to Madeline’s betrayal. It was unexpectedly distressing and it really added to the moment. I didn’t really love Madeline’s blow-out argument with Michael over "the way he treats people." It was a fine performance from Gless, but I feel like that level of confrontation should have happened already – and over their father. This was the argument that I thought they should have had about Michael’s childhood. It’s interesting to note that Madeline gets in kind of a selfish uproar when Michael’s life directly affects her and her interests. All those other times, she’s more than happy to turn a blind eye.

After getting rescued by Michael and Sam (Bruce Campbell) back in the summer finale, Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar) has to figure out a way to say "thank you" to Michael while still remaining feisty. I don’t know; I think I’m over both their childishness at this point. I’m looking for things to resonate a bit more so that they don’t always have to head back to the start every other episode. I enjoyed the car stunts in this episode, but Michael’s marble-mouthed faux-tobacco spitting (with no tobacco, so it’s just spitting) wheel-man character was a bit too much. Also, the infiltration of the family business was a bit stale. Now that we’re closing out Season 3, I’m looking for the show to really up its game and flip the format a bit. They did a good job of that over the summer and I hope it can continue on.

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July 7, 2010

Season 3 of Burn Notice

Filed under: Movie News — admin @ 3:54 pm

There’s a typical formula to most Burn Notice episodes that we’re all familiar with. The opening few minutes deal with the ongoing arc-storyline, usually involving Michael (Jeffrey Donovan) trying to piece together clues in order to gain enough information to take down a Level 5 Boss. The meat of the episode then deals with a "client" who needs Michael’s help to get rid of a particular Floridian drug lord or con man, and the last segment dives back into the arc for a little bit. If you’re a fan of this framework, then more power to you. But evaluating a series in its third season, one has to look at its evolutionary track. Burn Notice’s Season 3 gets some extra points for actually, occasionally, straying from its tried and true formula, but those great episodes also served to make the "business as usual" episodes all the more un-spectacular. Burn has now amassed an amazing back catalog of villains (that they’ve wisely kept alive) to draw from, but when it doesn’t utilize those series’ favorites, the show stalls a bit.

Episodes like "Shot in the Dark," "A Dark Road," "Noble Causes" and "Partners in Crime" worked against the series by providing us with lesser dangers and banal revelations while episodes like "End Run," "Long Way Back" and "Enemies Closer" strayed from the usual routine and brought back fun, peerless rouges like Jay Karnes’ Brennan and Tim Matheson’s Larry. The show even experimented a little bit by turning anyone in need, whether they are good or evil, into a "client." So we got to see bad guys, like Brennan and Garret Dillahunt’s Simon become clients, in the sense that Michael was "compelled" to do their bidding.

- USA
Michael (Donovan) likes the back seat. It makes him feel special.

Having a split season, with one batch of episodes airing in the summer and one in the winter, will almost certainly give any season of TV a disjointed feel. I think I noticed it the most when I saw John Mahoney’s "Management" character return in the finale when we really had seen him, or heard anything about his company in, well seven months. He worked to book-end the season, but the message of "you need us to protect you" got a bit lost after the premiere and the episode "The Hunter." The rest of the season involved Michael using an unscrupulous spy-networker named Tom Strickler (Ben Shenkman) to try and get back in good with his old CIA handlers, and then trying to thwart the best laid plans of a British black-ops psycho named Gilroy (the very James Mason-esque Chris Vance).

I enjoyed the summer episodes that dealt with Michael having to make a choice about whether or not he even really wanted to return to his old life, or if he’d just rather stay in Miami and do his "Robin Hood" gig. But that hard decision was kind of left floating as we headed into the winter episodes when all of Michael’s focus was placed on stopping Gilroy. I liked that they settled the childish Michael/Fiona romantic tension by just having them become a couple that works really well together and occasionally hits the sheets.

Of course I love Bruce Campbell and always want him to get more screen time on Burn but his spotlight episode, "Friendly Fire," was a bit of a letdown, even compared to Fiona’s spotlight episode "Good Intentions." I’m not even that big a fan of Fiona, but her dealings with the kidnapper Gabriel (24’s Carlos Bernard) were much more intense and satisfying than Sam having to deal with his old Seal buddy who slept with his wife. The person we really wanted to see Sam interact with was, well, his ex-wife. Madeline (Sharon Gless) had some strong moments this season, particularly in the season finale "Devil You Know." But she would still pop up on the show even when there didn’t seem to be any reason for her to be there and it really dragged some episodes down a bit. Her character would come across better is she was used as needed, instead of shoe-horned into each episode.

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True Blood-It Hurts Me Too

Filed under: Movie News — admin @ 2:35 pm

Um. Hi there. How are you? Yeah, we should probably discuss what we all just saw. Everything’s going to be okay.

I mean, who hasn’t had angry rage-filled sex with their own arch enemy? And if you’re pounding away on them and you, you know, don’t exactly want them looking at you then… it’s academic, right? Natural even.

By the way, if you didn’t get the chance to read True Blood Stars Spill Their Guts!, then check it out. I got a chance to speak with Mariana Klaveno, the lovely actress who plays Lorena, at the True Blood red carpet premiere a few weeks ago and I specfically asked her about the… Well, we’ll just call it the scene. Yes, it’s true. We had a chance to see this episode before the rest of y’all and we’ve been simply dying for you guys to catch up! It’s been rough. My own fun story regarding "It Hurts Me Too" involves IGN Features Editor Phil Pirrello, the TV at my desk and me saying "Hey, Phil, come here and watch this." Eye-trauma ensued as poor Phil, who pretty much hates the show to begin with, had to watch the scene cold; with no context. Hell, even with context, watching undead corkscrew sex is enough to make anyone do a "spit take" of the soul. "Damn you, Fowler," he said intermittently throughout the rest of the day.

In "It Hurt Me Too," we finally saw Sookie head out on an actual search for Bill, accompanied by the towering Eric-surrogate, Alcide the werewolf (Joe Manganiello). Alcide is a hulking, seemingly-gentle giant, who sort of fits this show’s bill at what a bad boy is supposed to be. Both he and Eric (and this is nothing against the performances of Alexander Skarsgard and Manganiello really) are mostly soft-spoken and tame in demeanor even though they’re supposed to represent, for all intents and purposes, Bill’s competition. They both dangerously border on *gasp* being bland. While Bill, who one might think, as the "nice vamp," would be the bland one is the one who seems to be showing the most rage and passion these days. I mean, hell, we just saw him turn Lorena into a Pez Dispenser. Considering how bereft I thought Bill was back in Season 1, I never thought he’d wind up being the most brutally animated of the bunch. Alcide was fine, but his misadventures with Sookie in the werewolf bar, Lou Pines (har har), wound up making me want to meet his ex, Debbie, more than follow him on his adventures with Sookie.

- HBO

It’s unclear at this point whether Bill really believes in his actions at the end of the episode, or if he’s taking it upon himself to go undercover (deeep undercover!) to work with Russell to see what The King’s grand scheme is. Bill’s heart-wrenching flashbacks were great – as they usually are – and it just might be true that Bill has now taken Lorena’s message to heart: That "the only way to show your love for a human is to stay away. Forever." We shall see. Even if Bill is "hereby renouncing his fealty for the Kingdom of Louisiana" as a ruse to try and thwart whatever devious plan Russell has up his sleeve, we can be damn sure that Sookie will NOT be happy about it. Or be happy with Bill’s desperate "punish f***" with Lorena. Bill’s now operating under the luxury of not knowing how determined Sookie is to find him. Meanwhile, Dennis O’Hare’s King Russell continues to delight. "In Mississippi, our appetite for unprovoked violence is nil," he practically yawns at Bill.

The werewolf that Eric and Sookie wound up killing at the beginning of the episode seemed like a bit more of a threat than what we’ve encountered so far. Eric seems to be pretty worried about them so that’s a good sign that we might wind up seeing them as a threat as well. "I’ve got your rug all wet," Eric says to Sookie, blood dripping from his chin, as we discover that the "Operation Werewolf" gang are a new group of wolves making trouble in the area. V seems to give these wolves an extra dose of wolf-iness that makes them more of a challenge, but I’m still waiting for them to seem as big of a threat as, hell, even those Fellowship of the Sun idiots back in Season 2. Eric winds up placing Sookie with Alcide and then he, kind of, checks out of the story. Will he wind up circling back into Sookie’s storyline or will he be off on his own adventures for the rest of the season?

Tara received her first taste of heightened vampire eroticism. I’m interested to see where her story with Franklin winds up going. Not interested in her, mind, you. It’s mostly him. After two episodes, he’s already more appealing than Eggs and Maryanne. I particularly liked his scene with Jessica where she, once again, didn’t know a crucial "vampire rule." Franklin seems like he might be a "fixer." "I find things," is all he really offers up. Franklin describes Jessica as annoying, which is what we all thought of her back at the outset. But she’s now become funny and sweet, and the more I watch her fumble, the more I realize how neglectful Bill has been as her maker.

I’m afraid we’re going to have to put up with Jason’s lame meanderings for a little bit longer. I liked his soft scene with Tara at Merlotte’s, but his whole bone-headed notion about becoming a cop was dumb. Most what he’s doing right now just isn’t working. Especially when we, as viewers, could totally get behind a life-decision like that. But then he goes and refuses to study for the cop exam. So it’s not really a newer, focused and re-dedicated Jason, which is what we’d all love to see. He’s also still seeing those bullet holes in people’s foreheads, which continues to be overtly goofy. I did appreciated Sheriff Dearborn’s decision to say "eff this" and quit however. could this pave the way for Sheriff Bellefleur and Deputy Stackhouse?

Sam’s earnest quest to discover his birth-kin seems to have wound up biting him in the ass a bit. I won’t go so far as to say that this should serve as a warning to anyone trying to find their real parents, but maybe stay away from the kind that sit around drinking Old Milwaukee in their tighty-whities when you’ve got a successful business that they might want in on. Eggs’ lonely funeral made for a solid scene, even if I never cared about his character. It was nice that they, once again, showed us how he really had no one in his life.

The highlight of this episode were Bill’s flashbacks and the pox-ridden tragedy that befell his young children. I think we all just assumed — after he watched Carolyn and his kids through the window in the flashback scene back in "Sparks Fly Out" — that Bill never returned home. The story was well-told and it just might have been there to help us viewers believe that Bill bought into Russell and Lorena’s advice about leaving the human world behind. Then again, Bill only boner-pounced on Lorena when she told him that she didn’t buy his act. So it really did seem like he did it as a way to convince her of his, ahem, dedication to the cause.

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