mfvaughn

Beautiful and poignant, this is a short that evokes the power of the great short stories of O Henry. If you get a chance to view it, be prepared for a stab into the heart of the truth of love and the need for all of us to laugh at the essence of our very existence. The lead, Rosy, is performed with incision followed by the evocation of loneliness, and closes with beauty and sweetness. As someone who has practiced the craft of stand up long ago, this reviewer can attest that Debra Jo Rupp's creation of the tough female comic is true but truer is the fact that so many people with quick wit holding a microphone often belies the sadness or anger or grief within. Not a short to be missed!

Having seen only two episodes, I am mildly surprised by the effectiveness of this well presented drama. A relationships-based drama, focused around the family of the Mayor (Gerald McRaney) of a small town, Jericho, thus far the acting and writing is top notch. Tense story lines have been the mark of Jericho thus far. Reminiscent of 24, Jericho is setting up well, and I look forward to the unwinding of the story of a few thousand people struggling to survive and overcome the aftermath of a multiple strike atomic holocaust coast to coast in America's metropolitan centers, leaving Jericho an island of life and hope. Of particular note is the acting of Allison Scott, the acting of Skeet Ulrich, and the understated but grounding performances of both McRaney and as his wife and the matriarch, the always fine Pamela Reed. It will be interesting to see if this strong start can be sustained, or if the storyline will wear thin. The executive production team is youthful but in combination has significant experience in film and in relationship-based TV that bodes well. In order for Jericho to survive, and it should, the tension needs to be maintained for the central family, for Jericho's attempts to survive, for the people of Jericho to maintain their humanity and their optimism, and for the outside world to impinge in a way that makes the struggle for the better parts of our human condition endure. Mighty big tasks, but my hope is that this intelligent, sensitive, and provocative program survives too.

Although the film is not one of the best sports films ever made, and the storyline is droll and trite, to my surprise, some of the action sequences using the actual actors were more realistic than most football films; especially of this era, and especially with this sort of story. No poorly acting pitching as Ronald Reagan showed in "The Grover Cleveland Alexander Story" or odd batting stance of Anthony Perkins as Jimmy Persall in "Fear Strikes Out" or faked boxing as in "Rocky". This is a dated film per the acting, direction, plot, and so forth, but this actually adds to its charm. Was America actually this way: polite, articulate, innocent? My guess is that it actually was in this era. James Gleason as usual is excellent, the settings nostalgic even to someone far too young to have memories of the time, and a young Andy Devine is fun to watch and listen to with his trademark squeaky and broken voice. Of much interest to me is the first-time screenwriter is Irwin Shaw who later would become one of America's most renown novelists with "The Young Lions", "Rich Man, Poor Man", Beggarman, Thief", and "Evening in Byzantium". Additionally, this film cast actual college football stars, including the first Heisman Trophy winner, Jay Berwanger from the University of Chicago and the immortal King Kong Klein. For these reasons, this film is a must for the sports film buff. As a work of art, this film fails; but as a guilty pleasure it scores high.