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Reviews
Newstopia (2007)
The best Australian product since high-grade bauxite
I used to watch the Daily Show until it got unfunny. This show is somewhat like that except that it's funny, has a talented host, does more news, and doesn't have idiot celebrities being smug in "interviews". It's not really much like The Daily Show actually.
This is also of a much higher quality than that purported "satire" program on the ABC at a similar time on a similar day in a similar country (Chaser's War) which seems only to consist of idiots being annoying and thinking they're hilarious.
But digressions aside, this is the greatest Australian show I've ever seen. The jokes are delivered with a rarely-seen rapidity (concentration is required for the duration) but to view it as only a comedy would be folly: there is an incisiveness into the news that we barely see on television any more (with the exception of Tony Jones on ABC's "Lateline") that underlies the comedy, making it all the more satisfying. Also in the credit of the show is its balanced view with regard to political issues: presenting fact without polish. This is aided immensely by the lack of interviews with political persons.
A knowledge of current events in the world will enhance enjoyment of this show, but it is not a prerequisite.
This is quality political satire that doesn't stoop to mocking the hygiene/appearance of political figures (as seen in Chaser's War), but, instead, focuses on the politics.
Micallef is not only the funniest Australian comic mind operating today, he's probably the smartest. The fact that he's supported by a talented team of writers and performers only adds to his prowess.
Arrested Development (2003)
Tips for enjoying this show
This is not a good show for anyone with any sort of memory of other comedic art forms or a sense of what should happen next comedically. Nevertheless, there are some ways to enjoy it. Here they are:
1. Watch it after a long day at work (preferably mental). This way you won't be able to think as fast and you'll find it much more hilarious, like its few fans.
2. Repeatedly impact your face into your television set. With a bit of luck this will kill enough brain cells to let you appreciate the comedy in all its "glory".
3. Try to stop thinking for the duration of the episode you happen to be watching. Let the jokes wash over you and laugh whenever you see something which made you laugh when you saw it in that other sitcom/movie/website/newspaper/magazine you saw it in.
4. Watch it with a small child. Try to become the small child so that you'll like this show. If that fails, just laugh when they laugh. Your friends will think you're "cool".
5. Watch it while affected by some nice opiates. These should have a double-barreled effect: slowed thinking and euphoria. You can't lose.
Of course, if you think slowly as a matter of routine you won't have to follow these tips. You're one of the lucky ones. For the rest of you, the above should help somewhat, but if you still don't find it funny, there's nothing wrong with you; you're just too clever.
This how-to was written while listening to "Lohengrin", composed by Richard Wagner.
Being John Malkovich (1999)
Tries too hard.
This is a film which tries too hard to be a lot of things. It succeeds at being none of them. It tries to be clever. It tries to be original. It tries to be witty.
Anyway, people will tell you that this film is original. They are wrong. Things which appear to be original are, in fact, stolen from science fiction stories which have a much higher level of quality. This seems to be a recurring theme in a lot of writer Charlie Kaufman's work, yet he continues to be praised for it. The only good thing that can be said for him is that he chooses excellent things to steal from.
Yes, the main character is a puppeteer. We get it. The metaphor is really unnecessary. We also get the Andy Warhol reference. Ha-ha-ha. Too clever.
Naming a poultric bird after a senator also? That's brilliant. Add to that the fact that the senator in question is slightly bird-like and you have something which is unparalleled in modern cinema, and something which is completely unnecessary. An effort to be political? Let's hope not.
I've heard people say that the film is good because of Spike Jonze's direction of "the mirror scene" (for lack of a better term). One scene of questionable quality does not make a good film. I don't care how hard it was to do, I just want it to be good.
Oh, and Cameron Diaz trying to show how good of an actress she is by wearing a wig and possibly a false nose? That seems to be one of the hallmarks of good acting these days: body accoutrements. Though they add nothing to the portrayal, they are lauded, even to the point of Oscar nomination and victory.
Overall, a very overrated film you'd do well to steer clear of. Even if it wasn't overrated it'd still be a bad film.
1 out of 10.