“Meet the Joneses”
July 30th, 2008
That’s the title of the third episode of the The Cleaner.
Annabeth Gish, costar of two of my favorite movies of all time, “Mystic Pizza” and “Shag”, was the guest star of note. In those movies, she played the character I most identified with, so I’m delighted to see she’s getting meaty roles as a full-fledged adult.
In this episode of The Cleaner, she plays the perfect housewife, a hot-shot lawyer who gave it all up to become a full-time wife and mom. The problem is she’s taking pain medication long after she healed from a skiing injury. Fortunately, she has a husband who actually pays attention to her and actually cares. He contacts William Banks with his concern. One of Banks’ rules is that he have full access to the house, and when he goes through it, he finds the drug abuse is much worse than pain meds.
Turns out Suzy Homemaker (I forget the character’s name, so I’ll be going with “Suzy” here on) is part of an elaborate drug ring of suburban housewives (and, not to show gender bias, one house-husband) who share user and dealer duties on a monthly basis. Banks’ team is unable to infiltrate the drug club, so they purge Suzy’s drugs and prescription refills and cut off her off her ATM and credit cards. (Who knew goofball Arnie Swenton is a computer whiz?) Suzy becomes more and more frantic when she can’t get her fix. She tears the house apart, lies, and terrifies her children with her erratic behavior.
The husband thinks Suzy is “cured” once she says she’ll get treatment “tomorrow” and despite Banks’ objections, he terminates his services. But when Suzy purposely break her hand in order to get more pain meds (and forgets to pick up her daughter after soccer in the process) he realizes how serious her problem really is.
I have to give the guy credit. Instead of refusing to admit his mistake, he takes the next step, even though he feels horrible, and horribly guilty by doing so.
Nor are things all that good on the home front for William. His wife gives him more responsibilities at home, which he tries to fulfill. But when duty calls, he’s out the door. There’s something seriously brewing between William and his son, which I’m sure we’ll see play out in the next weeks. (And, the way this series is going, may still not be resolved by the end of the first season.)
Being the big Benjamin Bratt fan that I am, I’m thrilled this show is getting viewers. And the majority of the viewers are enjoying the show. It’s time Benjamin Bratt had a “hit” on his hands.
Tags: benjamn bratt, episode review
Posted in The Cleaner | Comments (1)
The Cleaner, episode 2, “Rag Dolls”
July 29th, 2008
Rag Dolls
I really liked this episode. I hesitate to say I love the show with only 2 episodes aired, but I’m quite taken with it. I’d hoped they’d cut back on the eccentricities of the supporting cast, and they did. Akani (Grace Park) was still flirty, but it wasn’t brazen. Swenton was genuinely funny, without being obnoxious.
The episode was titled “Rag Dolls,” which is apparently slang for female surfer. I was especially interested to watch the show as the title character was played by Alona Tal, who had played the ill-fated Jo in the second season of Supernatural. She played Jackie, an 18-year-old surfing enthusiast whose mother was concerned about her sudden erratic behavior. Mom was afraid Jackie was using, yet she consistently came up clean on drug tests.
I thought this episode was stronger than the first. The beginning was very emotional on two separate fronts, and it gave the recurring cast the opportunity to show their range of talent. The show continues to showcase the dichotomy between William Banks’ two worlds by interweaving the story of his mission with that of his family. Banks’ team in action is savvy, for the most part, but they do make mistakes. Some are serious, but others are absolutely hilarious.
And while the ending was somewhat pat, it was satisfying nonetheless. Perhaps the highest praise I can give is that I found myself not wanting last night’s show to end. Here’s hoping the third installment is as good… or better.
Tags: Benjamin Bratt, review
Posted in General, The Cleaner | Comments (0)
The Cleaner premiere
July 19th, 2008
Benjamin Bratt was back on tv last night with the premiere of The Cleaner. I wish they would have titled the show “Cleaner,” but nobody contacted me for my opinion. And while the premise sounded hokey—an ex-addict who talks to God tries to save people from their addictions—I was still going to watch.
I didn’t really get excited about the series, though, until I finally watched “The Woodsman” with Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgewick. I watched it about the same time that “The Andromeda Strain” first appeared on A&E. What I’d seen of Bratt’s performance in “The Andromeda Strain” hadn’t really impressed me. The character was an intelligent, highly-educated scientist who, despite his penchant for womaning, wasn’t really all that interesting.
His role in “The Woodsman” was much more of an every-man, scruffy and blue-collar. And it seemed to suit him much better. I felt it was possibly the same type of character William Banks, “The Cleaner” of title, was meant to be. And that’s what got me really interested in watching the show.
The reviews of The Cleaner have been highly mixed, from “the best new show of the season, if not the year,” to “not addictive.” Now that I’ve seen the premiere, you can put me on the scale as being closer to “best” than to “not.”
A show’s premiere is usually not the best indicator of what it’s capable of being. There’s too much exposition, the characters’ personalities are exaggerated in order for them to stand out, and usually the episode’s plot takes a back seat to the overall premise of the show. I recognized all these things, and thus was willing to forgive its sins.
I liked The Cleaner. I think it’s a great vehicle for Benjamin Bratt. The character is dynamic, but very flawed. He means well, but doesn’t always do the right thing. The supporting characters are also quite interesting, although they were a bit over the top. The flirty femme fatale (played by Grace Park, from Battlestar Gallactica), was a bit too sexual; the chatterbox Swenton (who kept putting his foot in his mouth every time he opened it), a bit too comical. But they’re interesting enough to want to know more; and hopefully their back-stories will be explored as the season progresses.
I think the show hit its mark in a number of places, most notably with Banks and his family. He’s not the perfect dad, he makes (BIG) mistakes, and he doesn’t always learn from his mistakes. His family’s reactions to what he does (and doesn’t do) are very real. And, it moved me to the point of tears.
Tags: Benjamin Bratt, episode review
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Hallelujah! Part 1
July 13th, 2008
Have I talked about the saga of the computer? How my Dell computer crashed? Hard? If not, you can read about it here. And here, and here, and here… oh heck, there’s a whole bunch of posts about it. I did get the old computer fixed, but as some of the comments mentioned, it’s not the same. By a long shot. I’m glad I bit the bullet and bought a new one. I’ve been slowly transfering some of the files to the new computer, but it’s near impossible to transferthe programs.
I was all set to load my most valued programs onto the new computer. But I hit a stumbling block with each one.
First, apparently my Office 2003 is an upgrade. Huh? I don’t remember having had an Office version to update to. So apparently those disks are useless. The new computer has a trial version of Office 2007 (home edition, besides which I don’t like), which will cost a little less than $100 (doable). But my 2003 was the professional version, complete with Access and Publisher. So I’ve downloaded Open Office, because free is so much better than $500.
Next up is Paint Shop Pro XII. Not an expensive program, but why buy it when I already have it? Problem is, I purchased it online, so I have no disks. I tried transferring it from the old computer, but it’s one of the programs that didn’t completely restore. I searched my e-mail for the registration key I’d had, but I sadly, I cannot find it. I suppose I could live without PSP because I also have Photoshop, except…
I can’t find my Photoshop disks to reload. And yes, it’s also in an unsalvageable state. I know the disks are around here somewhere, but so far my searching has yielded nada. And since I’m currently addicted to making tiny little pictures for my LiveJournal account, I’m keeping the PSP. Which means I’ll be shelling out full price for a program I’ve been using since version 3. The good thing is, it’s not terribly expensive, as graphics software goes.
The last piece of important software is my Macromedia (RIP *sniff*) Studio MX 2004 software. This fabulous software had Dreamweaver (my main use), Fireworks (which comes in handy), Flash, and Freehand. (Fireworks and Freehand are now defunct, since evil Adobe swallowed up Macromedia, but I figured they could come in handy in lieu of Photoshop. ) Guess what. That disk was nowhere to be found either. So, because I wanted to update my website (which I haven’t done yet), I downloaded an open source HTML editor. It’s ok, but I really miss my Dreamweaver. (Notice this paragraph is mostly in past tense?)
Spurred by the fact that I’m missing about $1400 worth of software (that’s not what I paid, but that’s the retail value of Photoshop and Dreamweaver), I’ve begun to (slowly) clear out my computer space. And today, I found my beloved Dreamweaver! I’m so excited! I’ve decided to take the rest of the day off and just PLAY.
Today, Studio MX 2004; tomorrow, Photoshope CS3 EV!
Tags: the new computer
Posted in Life in general, Pack brat | Comments (1)
The Andromeda Strain, compared
July 11th, 2008
In case you didn’t know, there was a 4-hour remake of “The Andromeda Strain” on A&E Memorial Day weekend. This was of interest to me because it starred Benjamin Bratt. (I was such a fan at one time, I created a web site for him. I maintained it for nearly 10 years, but found my interest waning, so just this summer relinquished it to someone else, who is taking good care of it.)
When I first heard the news of the remake, I checked the book from the library and read it. While I enjoyed the book, I thought the ending was a major cop-out. In retrospect (and after watching the original movie), I think the way Michael Crichton wrote the book, looking at it from the mistakes that were made, made it sound more interesting and suspenseful than it really was.
Speaking of the original movie, the one with Arther Hill, it showed up on Encore last month. So of course watched it. It followed the book very closely. But, oh my God! The “music” in the opening credits was the most painful thing I’ve ever heard. And it went on & on (this being made during the time when all credits were shown in the beginning of the movie, rather than the end). And the movie itself? It was like watching paint dry. No, wait. Watching paint dry would have been more enjoyable. The female character (who had been male in the book) was given the most grating personality. I don’t recall the book character having been annoying. I suppose they felt they had to make her so gruff in order to explain how she got to such a high level.
Surprisingly, there was brief nudity in the original movie, including a gratuitous and totally unnecessary shot of a woman’s breasts. *roll my eyes moment*
I finally finished watching “The Andromeda Strain” remake in its entirety last night. I was surprised that A&E allowed the characters to say “shit” and its derivatives. Perhaps the rules for A&E as a cable station are more lenient than broadcast networks. (But when they aired the show in the 7-9 pm time-slot, the “bad words” were blanked out.)
So, what did I think? Of the three versions, this latest was by far the most interesting. Of course, the story was beefed up to fill 4 hours, but even the portion that dealt with the Wildfire team was changed enough to make it interesting, and yet it was fun to see what portions of the original story were kept. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but I don’t think it was a bad as many of the critics thought.
The critics really disliked the addition of the story of the reporter played by Eric McCormack. The character didn’t bother me, and his insertion with the National Guard troops could have made for an interesting story. But instead, he got mixed up in a conspiracy perpetrated by the sinister NSA director that was a little way over the top.
The ending of the mini-series veered from that of the book and movie. And while I thought those endings were a cop-out, the final scenes in the mini-series really pissed me off. No one in the book or movie died. Not so with the mini-series. The conspiracy story got way out of hand. The President, who up until then had been admirable, gave the impression he didn’t care about Wildfire’s findings. And Benjamin Bratt, er, Dr. Jeremy Stone, gave an interview to Eric McCormack’s reported that made absolutely no sense at all. And worst of all, it gave the impression that all the work done was for naught. Highly dissatisfying.
Tags: andromeda strain, Benjamin Bratt
Posted in Couch Critic | Comments (0)
Who’da thought?
July 6th, 2008
I ran out of one of my prescriptions earlier this week. I use a mail order pharmacy where brand prescriptions are only $35 for a 3 month supply. But you have to be timely in order to get the meds before your current supply runs out. (I used to run out a lot because I’d either forget or wait until the last minute. I think it was a sign of my mental health, which the medication was supposed to be helping.) I sent my prescription in, in plenty of time. I got an e-mail from the pharmacy saying they got the order and would be filling it shortly. When I got to the point of having only 2 days left and no Rx in sight, I went online. For some reason, they couldn’t fill it. And hadn’t told me! So I called my doctor (I have an appointment with her on Friday, but I didn’t want to wait—and she chews me out if I do wait), and while she didn’t get back to me until yesterday, she was able to call it in to the local pharmacy.
All of the above is background for the real story I wanted to tell. I went to pick up the Rx at the grocery store. The pharmacist told me I have 3 refills, but said I should call about 5 days before it runs out. Apparently a lot of people use it and he has trouble keeping it in stock. So, I guess the new drug du jour is a mood enhancer and not an anti-depressant. He told me it slows down my brain. Huh. I never would have thought my brain runs too fast. 
In other exciting news, I finally have a logo! This may not seem like a big deal, but it’s something I’ve been trying to create for years. I’m really pleased with it. It’s extremely simple, but it identifies me in several ways.
Posted in Head Games | Comments (0)
I need a new job
June 30th, 2008
Remember way back when I wrote about 13 meetings in one week? Since then, we’ve had a few of those high-level video teleconferences (VTCs). We had one this morning at 0830 (that’s 8:30 a.m. for you civilians). It takes about 1/2 hour to set up the VTC. At 8:25, there still wasn’t anyone at work who could set up the VTC. I really tried to let it go, but God, I was pissed. So much so, I’m thinking of taking the rest of the week off. (I have a couple of doctors’ appointments, so perhaps that’s not such a bad idea.)
Then, just a bit ago, four people were standing in my space having a conversation (that didn’t include me). And three of these people have individual offices! Why couldn’t they meet in one of those offices? They’ve departed now, but it just reinforces my discontent.
I’m trying to figure out how I can last another 3 years in this job. I’m feeling like I’m too old (and too good) to be in the environment I’m in, stuck in a freakin’ cubicle. I suppose I could look for a new job, even a promotion, but I’m not sure I want all that responsibility. Too bad I’m such a big under-achiever.
Posted in General, Griping, Work | Comments (0)
Microsoft, you suck!
June 29th, 2008
I downloaded Microsoft Service Pack 1 for Vista this morning. And now I can’t install any new fonts. I really wanted to install “Jane Austin” (my favorite font—it’s the one I used for my favicon), but the install font program kept freezing. So I tried to do a system restore to a previous time. And guess what? I can’t even do that! Not only that, System Restore even freezes up! I checked to see if I could uninstall SP1, but haven’t found anything so far. I guess I’ll ask the sys admin guys at work tomorrow. I could go online with a Microsoft tech, but that’ll cost me $59. It even costs just to e-mail them!
I’m sure they’ll come out with a patch for it, since it’s so hosed up. Or at least I hope they do. I hope it’s a system-wide problem and not just something I’m encountering. On the positive side, I did backup my files Friday evening. (But I probably wouldn’t be able to restore them because, you know… System Restore freezes up!)
Tags: Microsoft, the new computer, Vista
Posted in Griping, What were they thinking? | Comments (0)
Thanks for the memories, Ben
June 27th, 2008
I decided to let go of my Benjamin Bratt website. This is a big decision. I’ve maintained the website in one form or another since 1996. In the early years, it was hard to create pages for the site because there was so little published about him. I created a page of “Bratt Stats” that gave all sorts of silly, useless statistics about his movies and shows. I paid some crazy price for an old Playboy just to get a photo of him (the magazine had done a fashion shoot featuring stars of tv shows, including Law & Order). Eventually I created a bulletin board (very simple, not like today’s multiple topic forums) that became quite lively. I was the authority on Benjamin Bratt. I received e-mails from his high school classmates, from reporters who wanted my help, and from people who’d encountered him in real life—the most interesting of which was one of the very first public encounters of Ben with Julia Roberts.
But in the past several years my interest has waned. I no longer rush out to see a Benjamin Bratt movie. In fact, I haven’t even yet seen “Love in the Time of Cholera.” I don’t track his television appearances. And I’ve been very, very bad about updating the blog site with info or pictures. So I decided it was time to turn in the towel.
There were times in the past when I thought about giving the site up, but the thought of someone taking over “my baby” was unbearable. Even though I wasn’t keeping up the site, I didn’t want anyone else messing with it. But now I’m ok. I’m in the process of transferring the domain name benbratt.com, and I’m sure it’s in good hands.
I’ll be sticking around the fandom and visiting the new website. I’m really excited about Ben’s new tv series on A&E, The Cleaner. Although the title of the show is less than stellar, and the premise didn’t thrill me, the show and Benjamin Bratt have gotten some excellent reviews and from the little ads I’ve seen for it, it looks interesting.
Posted in Blogging, Couch Critic | Comments (2)
This can’t be good
June 24th, 2008
On the way into work this morning, I heard an ad for Applebee’s. Apparently they want you to send in videos of you and your friends having fun at Applebee’s, “like shown in our ads.” The kicker? “The funnier, the better.”
OMG! Do they have any idea of what they may be in for? It’s like they’re giving carte blanche for people to be as obnoxious and annoying as possible. Yeah, that’ll go over well with the other patrons.
Look’s like I won’t be visiting Applebee’s any time soon.
Posted in Musings, What were they thinking? | Comments (0)