I must make a confession: I’m a sucker for actors playing themselves. It does not happen often (Fantasia did it most recently), but when it’s done, it’s a guaranteed hoot (even stories as sad as Fantasia or Ann Jillian). However, of the handful of stars who have played themselves in these colossal shows of ego, […]
From most of the gang who brought us “Jesus of Nazareth” (discussed here back in December), now we have “A.D.,” the less familiar story of the Apostles as they spread the gospel. This one is even more drenched in guest stars, more drenched in sets and costumes and more drenched in silliness, and I say […]
As we’ve seen, true crime stories tend to get awfully sensationalized by the American Miniseries, but “I Know My First Name is Steven” is an example of when it’s done right. The true true story of Steven Stayner, a California boy kidnapped at age seven and kept for over seven years, the story certainly does […]
If you want to escape from the long tedious histories and romances of the miniseries genre, go for something supernatural. “From the Dead of the Night,” just by the cast alone, should be the remedy, but it’s so inane and so boring, that I would rather sit through “War and Remembrance” again. This time around, […]
As I write this, in April 2011, there is actually a brand new miniseries called “The Kennedys” on some obscure cable channel. From what I’ve seen of it, the ado of finding even an obscure cable channel to air it (supposedly after remaining Kennedys made threats–to whom?) is far juicier than the movie itself. That’s […]
It’s been a long time since I’ve spent time with our Muse of the Miniseries, Jane Seymour! So, let’s return to her, but in one of her, um, less serious roles. “Memories of Midnight” pairs her with the writings of Sidney Sheldon. Really, Jane? Sidney Sheldon? That’s Jaclyn Smith territory. Isn’t Jane too good for […]
Here we have the ripped-from-the-headlines sensationalized miniseries, but not hiding behind fake names like the Dominick Dunne stories. Oh, no. Frances Schreuder’s case was very real, but very bizarre. Made in 1987, “Nutcracker: Money, Madness and Murder” would probably nowadays be just a “Law and Order” plot line, but it was quite sensational at the […]
Twenty-two films have been made from the novels of Danielle Steel. TWENTY-TWO! More than Judith Krantz, more than Jackie Collins, maybe even more than Stephen King. Just off the top of my mind, I think the book-to-movie transfer rate is higher than anyone but God, though to be fair, He’s been filmed since the first […]
The great thing about the story of Marco Polo’s adventures in Asia is that no one knows what really happened, so telling the story can be as fanciful as the imagination allows. Marco Polo himself had a little trouble with the truth, often altering events, or making them up, in order to make his writing more […]
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