Movie review - "Mean Girls" (2024) ***

 Odd to watch. I'm so familiar with the original and this plays such lip service to it - repeats catchphrases and so on. Angourie Rice is a better actress than Lohan but not as charismatic. The love interest is a better actor too but it doesn't work his character not being dumb - it makes him mean. I kept thinking Rene Rapp was Sydney McSweeney.  Auli'i Cravalho and Jaquel Spivey are gerat. The girls who play Amanda Seyfried and Lacy Chabert aren't as good.

I like how Tina Fey's character hooked up with Tim Meadows but feel the film would've been better with new actors playing these roles. The film is stronger going its own way - the musical numbers are done with imagination. I get why they did what they did.

TV series - "Girls5Eva" (all three seasons) (2021-24) ****

 The first season is a knock out. The second stumbles -things are too easy - with good eps, mind. The third recovers, although having Wickie's parents being nice and supportive was not a good idea - I get the joke but again they've made things too easy. That was the only dud.

Very well plotted, lots of great pay off of things set up in earlier episodes, and they find way to rework tropes like being helped by famous singers and so on.

TV review - "Only Murders in the Building Season 2" (2022) ****

  Still great fun. Just the right amount of Martin Short. Selena Gomez doesn't seem that into kissing Cara. Loved Iran Contra riff. Lots of twists at the end. Maybe doesn't have the same heart with the trio becoming friends but still fun.

TV review - "The Only Murders in the Building" (2021) ****

 Splendid murder mystery with engaging stars, plenty of twists, a theme (finding friendship and love later in life). Still can't avoid the villain doing a convenient monologue at the end but how else to do it. The three stars are terrific together. I enjoyed the Broadway gags too.

Book review - " Live From New York: The Complete, Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live as Told by Its Stars, Writers, and Guests" by James Andrew Miller & Tom Shales (revised edition 2015)

A revised edition which goes up to 2015 so includes people like Kirsten Wiig, Andy Saumberg, Bill Hader and Bobby Monyihan... but cuts out before the Trump presidency years when the show was reinvented and became central to the country's identity once more, in part because it was kind of like the voice of the opposition.

It's still a terrific read, full of bubbling personalities and funny stories - Bill Murray and Chevy Chase fighting backstage, clashes between Victoria Jackson and Jan Hooks how Tina Fey and Amy Poehler were the ones to really form a female power block,  Chase's ability to annoy people. Jim Downey sounds like a bit of a misogynistic prick.

The book was perhaps over long - did we really need all the accounts of people deciding to leave (because when a show goes for over thirty years that happens a lot) and there was maybe too much on Lorne Michaels. Also there's lots of references to characters and sketches which will mean nothing to those in countries who don't get the show, like Australia. Still, this book is a classic.

Book review - "Baby Don't Hurt Me" by Chris Kattan

Saturday Night Live wasn't on network TV in Australia when I was growing up so we were mostly aware of it from movies made with SNL stars. I remember seeing the trailer for Corky Romano with Chris Kattan and knowing nothing about it but that wasn't unusual - we'd had Chris Farley and Mark Myer and Adam Sandler movies foisted on us.

Kattan didn't become a movie star though he had a few chances - Corky and A Night at the Roxbury and Undercover Brother. That's more than a lot of them get. From clips I've seen Kattan was an energetic very physical performer who liked to pull faces - the sort of comic that doesn't age well, physically I mean, though he's no orphan on that score. He became hooked on drugs and blames this on a neck injury - that's not surprising, it happened to Jerry Lewis, though it's clear from the book Kattan had other issues. He was needy, didn't always handle fame well, was chronically insecure about his career.

Kattan talks a lot about the origin of characters like the Roxbury guys and Mr Peepers which is only going to mean anything if you know them. He had a mixed relationship with the show - it gave him fame, his only real fame (he's done some stuff since then but none of it has really broken through). He quit the show, seems to regret it, has doubts, wonders about his place on the show, etc. Lorne Michaels has seen them come and go.

Mind you what could he have done once his films didn't do that well? Probably stayed on the show and tried another film, maybe. But his drug habit would have made that too tricky.

He was a pants man. He dated Zooey Deschenal, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Coolidge, the red haired girl from Clueless. He also had a fling with Amy Heckerling. This is the most interesting part of the book no matter how indiscreet. He also talks about his friendship with Will Ferrell, who formally ended their friendship by taking him aside and ending it.

It's a really fascinating read.

Movie review - "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" (2016) **** (warning: spoilers)

This wasn't a box office hit which is a shame because there are so many good things about it: the script is bright, smart and funny; Tina Fey is very good and ideally cast in a role that pushes her; there's impressive production details; it has a fresh take on the war in Afghanistan.

The casting of some of the support roles jarred. Maybe in real life Martin Freeman is suave and charming but to me he came across as Martin Freeman wearing a beard and a fake Scottish accent trying to be suave and charming. Margot Robbie felt too young, too pretty and too fake-English-accent for her part (which really required someone who looked as though they'd Been Around). I really wish the parts played by Alfred Molina and Christopher Abbott had been played by real Afghanis. I know (or at least can guess) why they weren't, but for this film I wish things had seemed more authentic.

I had no problems with Billy Bob Thornton, or Steve Peacocke - my main gripe for the latter was the reveal that he was Canadian... but they don't follow it up (it felt as though it needed a few other lines or something).

Still, it was a first rate movie, another impressive effort from the teams of Fey-Robert Carlock and Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (who directed).

Movie review - "Sisters" (2015) ****

Gen X women do Project X and the result is one of the funniest comedies in a long time, full of laugh out loud moments. We're going through a golden age of raunchy comedy at the moment with this, Bridesmaids, Trainwreck, etc. The plot is very simple but effective, touching on basic emotions like family, fear of aging, second chances, worries about parenting and so on.

Tina Fey is very effective cast against type as a sort of rock chick. Amy Poehler is fantastic and they have terrific chemistry, the match of Hope and Crosby. Like in a lot of the best comedies, the support cast is extremely strong, down to the smallest roles.

TV review - "The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" (2015) ****

I get the feeling at times that the charming, delightful Ellie Kemper is a bit of a one-trick pony - but it's a charming, delightful trick and this sitcom has been cleverly devised to be a showcase for her talents. It's also got the finger prints of 30 Rock and Tina Fey all over it - the young girl making it in the big city, the gay best friend, the rapid fire jokes, the presence of Jane Krakowski.

It's often brilliant, Tituss Burgess is a star, Kemper is fantastic, I got used to Carol Kane after a while, Krakowski is always good value in a variation of her 30 Rock character. They never have much luck with Jimmy's nice boyfriends - Kim Hong Lee played too much of a caricature for us to care and Andy Ridings is too dumb. Dylan Gelula's bitchy teenager was a bit too bitchy to be fun, if that makes sense.

There are some stunningly good guest turns - Jon Hamm as the cult leader, Tina Fey and Jerry Minor as inept prosecutions, Tim Blake Nelson has brilliant moments as a dumb cop (the heroin gag was amazing), all the cult girls. Not a complete success but of very high quality.

Movie review - "Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues" (2013) ***

Pretty good sequel, if not as funnier as the original - it also doesn't have as "fun" a story. The first movie was about a good thing happening in news history, i.e. women being allowed to anchor the news; this is about a bad thing happening in news history i.e. the dumbing down of news. The team of Ferrell and McKay often like to make sharp satirical points in their movies (something for which they never get enough credit for, I feel) - but here it's a bit depressing. (It's kind of like the two magazine war mini series in Australia - the first one was about women's sexual liberation the second one was about trash).

The satire is very strong and there are some excellent gangs. It's also got a nice "comedy of remarriage" plot between Will Ferrell and Christina Applegate, and their son, plus some excellent music (mostly soft rock). And the performances are all strong, not a weak link in the bunch.

On the down side, it's very long (almost two hours) and feels it; there are too many characters, some of whom feel entirely superfluous (why didn't they combine Meagan Good and Dylan Baker's characters) or ill-defined (Megan Good starts off tough, then is sort of evil, then sort of good). Steve Carrell gets a great romance with Kristen Wiig and Josh Lawson is an effective villain as a Junior Rupert Murdoch, but there's no subplot for Paul Rudd and David Koechner, which is a shame (it would have only taken an extra scene or two). And after a while all the cameos stop being fun and start being annoying.

Movie review – “Date Night” (2010) ***

Starts brilliantly - Steve Carrell and Tina Fey are a marvelous duo, and their teaming as a married couple is easily enough to sustain a film. The first half hour is great, but when the North by Northwest stuff happens it's less good and eventually things become tired. For instance, Mark Wahlberg's initial appearance is fantastic - but we go back to him far too often (literally; they keep popping back to his place). James Franco and Mila Kunis are funny in their bit too - I expected to see more of them. A good hearted film.

TV review – “30 Rock – Season 3” *****

My favourite sitcom keeps its standard high with an excellent season. I’ve become used to Scott Adsit character and can see his value on the show now – he’s a normal person on the bench, to bring in when they want to send Tina Fey’s character crazy. (Normally Fey is normal but occasionally she goes off into the stratosphere and they use him as a counterpoint.) The fight club moment is one of comedy’s greatest.

TV review – “30 Rock” – Season 2 *****

Tina Fey’s excellent sitcom ducks the sophomore slump, even if because of the Writers Guild strike they only made 17 episodes. The brilliant bizarre interludes continue – there are several musical numbers. More attention is paid to Kenny the Page (who is given a nemesis); the part of the irritating bald boring producer character is reduced to barely nothing. The wise decision is made not to have Fey romance Alec Baldwin, who remains outstanding.

TV review – “30 Rock” (2007) – Season 1 *****

My new favourite TV show – it started the same season as Studio 60 on Sunset, and while both shows are about behind the scenes machinations of a comedy variety show, they are very different (NB both do have a feisty black comic who clashes with a studio black writer, both have the show producer clash with a network executive, both have an attractive blonde female comic as one of the show’s stars). Sorkin’s show is a lot more serious but Tina Fey’s the more successfully realised – it seems to get its tone right. Fey is in fine form playing a role based on herself and she’s surrounded by a trio of brilliant support performers – Jane K-thingy as her bubbly best friend/star, Traci Morgan (what a discovery) as a crazy black star surely partly based on Martin Lawrence (love his expressions), and best of all Alec Baldwin as the corporate boss.

The secret to success of the show is all these characters are impossible, really but they are never mean and always trying to help at some stage. Also the fact that most of the characters except Fey are “out there” means the comedy is consistently unexpected and surprising. The one character who doesn’t really work is the bald producer character dude – do they need him in the show? He doesn’t seem to earn his keep apart from being a more sensible friend to Fey. But to compensate there are some stunning semi-recurring support characters: Dr Spaceman is my favourite.

Book review - "Live from New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live" by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller

As a movie loving kid in the 80s you were very aware of Saturday Night Live, even if we didn't get it in Australia. The reason was the movies - the show seemed to be a vertiable movie star factory, pumping them out with a frequency unmatched by a studio since the heyday of classical Hollywood (the only recent example I can think of is Roger Corman and directors): Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, James (and Jim) Belushi, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Eddie Murphy. There was even a subsection of people who you assumed were on the show but weren't: Rick Moranis, John Candy, Harold Ramis. When I finally got the chance to see it on Pay Tv in the 90s I was a little disappointed, it was so flabby - for some reason I didn't realise it was live. Reading the book I caught some episodes on the comedy channel and now think its great.

This is a terrific look at the series. The decision to tell the story by oral history was totally the right one: because its such a chaotic show you're going to get different opinions anyway, true objectivity is impossible so subjective accounts cancel each other out with a few facts to state things like ratings and budgets sprinkled throughout. Full of hilarious stories and insghts, some of which I offer below

Chevy Chase - the first big star of the series, and no wonder: handsome, charismatic (and, from interviews, very intelligent), he should still be a movie star now. He seems to have been a major prick though - few people have a good word to say about his personality. Bill Murray says that when you become famous you have to be an ar*ehole for a year you can't help it but if you don't change the year after that it becomes permanent.

John Belushi - the first death, a huge talent - most people on the show loved him but also knew he had demons. Lots of time is spent slagging off Bob Woodward.

Dan Aykroyd - like Chase, highly intelligent - he was a star on this he never quite became on screen. Very Canadian, if that makes sense. Went out with Lorne Michaels' wife in the 70s which was gutsy but Lorne Michaels wasn't Lorne Michaels then.

Gilda Radner - seemingly beloved by everyone her work wasn't as familiar for those outside America - she was best known in the 80s to many for being married to Gene Wilder and starring in his movies. She was bulmic - one of the other women on that show remembers thinking "wow throwing up after eating... what a great idea."

Garrett Morris - the first black performer, one of the few of the initial cast not to become famous, notorious for being a token and he seems to be bitter about it.

Larraine Newman - like Morris didn't become famous (partly due to drug problems). Al Franken (a writer on the show who is now a well known commentator in the US) once nastily cracked some of SNL became $20 million stars, some became Larraine.

Bill Murray - anger management issues - surprise - but obviously less than when he became a star. Chip on his shoulder about Chevy Chase whom he replaced but again his intelligence is striking.

Eddie Murphy - credited with saving the show when Michaels and the original cast left in 1980. Electrifying talent whom everyone who worked with still seems to worship.

Joe Piscopo - they always seem to make fun of him on The Simpsons and they do here - he seems to have attached himself to Eddie Murphy's star, and also Frank Sinatra's (who he impersonated).

Chris Farley - Belushi wannabe who seemed to be a typical funny fatman - lovable with a dark side. Funniest story: a girlfriend dumped him for another and he consoled himself with the thought that although the other guy may be better looking and richer, he would be funnier. The other guy was Steve Martin.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus - joined the cast for a while but obviously never hit her potential. Ditto Larry David... and talent such as Jeanne Garofolo (who seems to have had a chip on her shoulder when she was on it) and Chris Rock. When you see this it becomes apparent SNL were like the Brisbane Broncos - a super club of superstars where, however, some people simply didn't fit in.

Dana Carvey - part of the second great wave of SNL: Mike Myers, Will Ferrell, etc Less concentrated than the first wave but even more popular at the movies.

Tina Fey - part of the recent emergence of women - women have always been there but it wasn't until Molly Shannon, Fey, etc they really seemed to become part of the establishment.

Lorne Michaels - some people whine, some praise (the writers - who get their due in this book, incidentally, can be just as whiny as the performers), but he did a remarkable job. Look at the scoreboard - who else can match his record? Its not easy being keeper at that zoo but he did it.

Great book, makes you want to go

Movie review - "Mean Girls" (2002) ****1/2

Not just a brilliant teen film, but a brilliant film full stop - clever idea (home schooled girl arrives from Africa to an American high school), vivacious characters, top script, bright handling. Lindsay Lohan is perfect in the lead - it's a bit worrying for her career that she wanted to play the Rachel McAdams part (Lohan-star, don't you know what's good for you?). The three bitch girls are all perfectly cast, too - Lucy Chabert is a comic genius, McAdam brilliant and so is the other girl; everyone else is good - McAdams' "cool" mom, the stressed headmaster, the fat girl who wants to be cool, the Indian rapper, Lohan's friend (it took some time but the gay best friend is now established in teen land). The love interest is a bit bland but I guess that comes with the territory. Continually inventive, a genuinely happy ending, and as an extra cherry on top the final credits uses a kick arse version of 'Dancing with Myself''. Listening to the audio commentary, the film hasn't come out yet but the writer and director know they've done a great job - they have.