Tag Archives: Romance

Five Friends Episodes Worth Watching

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I don’t really understand the “Friends” nostalgia, since its aged very poorly since its days in the nineties. Even the episodes in the early aughts vary from mediocre to awful. But I’d be lying if I said I was never a “Friends” fan. In fact I used to watch the show religiously despite the main characters being woefully unlikable. Let’s face it, they are. Rachel is so despicable, it’s a wonder Ross chased after her for so long.

In either case, “Friends” is making its way to Netflix in January, and its loyal fan base are awash with excitement, so here are five episodes from the series that are still very funny and worth sitting through. They also require little to no knowledge of previous storylines. What are your favorites?

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Northpole (2014) (DVD)

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Part one in an apparent movie series from Hallmark Entertainment, “Northpole” is a cute film about Christmas, and trying to preserve the happiness. Literally. It’s a simple and down to Earth movie that celebrates the more entertaining aspects of the holiday, while also building on a new hero in the form of elf Clementine. Bailee Madison is the definition of adorable as the rambunctious cherubic elf, desperately trying to keep the North Pole from dying what with the happiness of Christmas fading away in a sea of unfortunate cynicism. “North Pole” depends on Madison’s enthusiastic performance, and as always, she steals the movie. “North Pole” has its fair share of silliness, but it’s a fine Christmas movie with amusing quirks that I sat through with ease.

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Princess Mononoke (Mononoke-hime) (1997)

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I’m very glad to say that “Princess Mononoke” was my first real experience with Hayao Miyazaki’s amazing cinematic contributions. After its Oscar buzz in 1997, I sought out the film, and was shocked at what I’d been missing from the master director. “Princess Mononoke” is probably Miyazaki’s broadest film, but one that also conveys a meaningful alllegory about the sanctity of nature, and how the wars of men can taint the sacred lands. It’s an action packed and incredible morality tale that will win over fantasy buffs instantly. “Princess Mononoke” is set in the Muromachi Period of Japan where a local village is attacked by a vicious amorphous demon. The bow and arrow wielding warrior Ashitaka, comes to the rescue of the village, fending off the demon and defeating it after a horrific battle, but the demon manages to corrupt his body with its vile darkness.

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Tammy (2014): Extended Cut (Blu-ray/ DVD/Digital)

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Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy’s “Tammy” is yet another comedy vehicle this year tailored as a vanity film for a specific comic presence that fails on every conceivable level. The movie most of all fails Melissa McCarthy who is much better than this pile of unfunny junk. “Tammy” is specifically tailored for her, and yet she and husband Falcone can never decide what tone they want to run with, they never land even the slightest one-liner, and every effort to make titular Tammy likable is wasted. I’m not even sure what is wrong with Tammy and why she’s comedic. Is she mentally disabled? Is she just naive? Is she the product of coddling and spoiling who just never matured? Is she just a perpetual loser? Are we supposed to laugh at her? Why is watching a human being in constant misery supposed to be funny?

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The Wonder Years: The Complete Series Set (DVD)

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‘In memory, everything seems to happen to music.’ – Tennessee Williams

It’s the mark of a quality television series, when it’s set in a specific period of history and still has massive appeal to just about any audience. “The Wonder Years” wasn’t just a TV drama for adults in the eighties that still hadn’t gotten over the sixties. “The Wonder Years” surpassed simple nostalgia and approached its narrative from two angles. It was a family dramedy set in the sixties that took off from “A Christmas Story” chronicling the pitfalls and highs of growing up through a young boy. It also examined the decade that much of the eighties and early nineties were still trying to come to grips with.

This included the Vietnam War, Watergate, The Draft, The Civil Rights Movement, and just the general changing social climate that jarred many folks coming out of the great depression and World War II. “The Wonder Years” chronicles the youth of Kevin Arnold, a normal suburban boy who is watching the world around him change for the better and for the worse.

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Jersey Boys (2014) [Blu-ray/DVD/Digital]

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Director Clint Eastwood has to work with one of the most popular stage musicals in a long time and really has no vision for bringing it to the big screen. I love Frank Valli and his music, and on film his work is still stunning. But “Jersey Boys” is only a mediocre adaptation of the stage musical. Eastwood doesn’t seem to want to give the movie a wider scale at any point, and then in the closing credits just tacks on a final number that recreates the musical. For all intents and purposes, “Jersey Boys” gives Frankie Valli a much deserved nod to his fans and legendary music, but director Clint Eastwood simply has no idea how to work it in to a dynamic biographical drama with its own unique flavor.

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The Lost Boys (1987)

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It’s pretty rare for a horror comedy to be so very funny while also serving up a genuine sense of terror with every laugh. Though the comedy does intend to spark raucous chuckles, most of it is based around the uneasiness of the situations present. The final showdown in the finale is hilarious, but only because our characters are in such severe danger and are at risk of being torn apart if they don’t step lively. “The Lost Boys” is a flawless vampire film that is so steeped in the eighties, and still manages to retain the timelessness just the same. It’s about two brothers being pulled in opposite sides of the war against good and evil, and their accidental introduction to a city that’s the stomping ground for a clan of century old vampires.

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