Posted on June 13, 2016 at 8:00 am
Cameron Crowe, whose teenage adventures covering groups like The Allman Brothers and The Eagles for Rolling Stone inspired Almost Famous, has a new behind-the-scenes rock music drama, this time a Showtime series called “Roadies,” starring Luke Wilson, Carla Gugino, Imogen Poots, and Rafe Spall. It looks great!
Posted on November 1, 2013 at 3:31 pm
We pride ourselves — for better and worse — about being very open and modern in contemporary society. Topics that were previously not spoken of in polite society are discussed openly — sex, money, race, politics, religion. But the one thing we still do not talk about is death.
Showtime’s new series, “Time of Death,” premieres tonight, with stories of people in the last months, weeks, and moments of their lives. It is sad and it is painful. Sometimes it is raw and ugly and scary. But it is also moving. There are stories of the dying and their families finding forgiveness, meaning, and peace. There are moments of fear and also moments of courage and resilience. There is laughter and there are many tears. Above all, there are moments of absolute honesty. Watching this series will make you want to have some important conversations with your family and will give you a place to start.
Posted on October 13, 2012 at 3:59 pm
I have a special affection for character actors. They have to create a character and move the story forward without having the luxury of time and the audience’s primary attention, and they have to do it without overshadowing the star. So I was delighted to see Showtime’s tribute to character actors, a documentary called, “That Guy….Who Was in That Thing.” Candid interviews with actors who all look familiar but not instantly recognizable, who might be mistaken for someone you went to school with or once saw at a family reunion cover touchy subjects like auditions, being a guest star on a show where the stars do not think it is worthwhile even to introduce themselves, going for months without a job, family and financial stress, being stuck with a lot of technical talk or exposition, and the pure joy of having the opportunity to perform. It’s On Demand through November 13 and well worth a look.
Posted on August 15, 2010 at 8:00 am
Cable series about desperate circumstances do well because they put our daily lives into the sharpest possible focus. Somehow, they make characters who deal in drugs (“Weed,” “Breaking Bad”) or mental illness (“United States of Tara”) or even the compulsion to murder (“Dexter”) seem if not normal at least accessible. The latest addition premieres this week and the first episode (slightly edited) is available on YouTube.
Laura Linney stars in “The Big C” as a wife, mother, and teacher who has always taken care of others and colored in the lines who discovers she has terminal cancer. This causes her to think carefully about who she is and what she wants and needs. She had organized her choices based on having a lot of time. When she discovers that her time is limited, she tells a waiter, “I’m just having desserts and liquor.” She does not tell the people around her about her illness, but she begins to tell them the truth about other things. The cast includes Gabourey Sidibe of “Precious” as an outspoken student and Oliver Platt as an affectionate but needy husband. I especially like her interaction with her young doctor. Even he is relying on her for support because it was the first time he ever had to tell a patient she was terminal.
This may be a comedy, but it is no sit-com. It is an adventure with a woman trying to maintain some sense of control and achieve some sense of meaning. It is the way her diagnosis liberates her that makes the show bracing, provocative and yes, even funny.
Linney is one of the finest actresses in Hollywood and it is a treat to see her show us how a woman finds that the prospect of death makes her begin to understand for the first time what life really means.
