oing where no one has dared go before, UPN combines Star Trek comedy
routines with a compressed history of the series in Ultimate Trek: Star
Trek's Greatest Moments. Jason Alexander, of Seinfeld fame,
takes on the
role of Captain James T. Kirk travelling back in time to 1999 with
Mr. Spock (Johnston) and Dr. McCoy (Gould) at his side. Their
mission? To
prevent the Y2K bug from interrupting the broadcast of Star
Trek.
To help themselves in their millennial mission, this mock Enterprise crew repeatedly accesses the ship's computer to display episode clips from the various Star Trek TV series and films. These clips
cover such diverse topics as Ultimate Villains, Ultimate Beauties, Best
One-Liners, and so on. This is all delivered in a glib, tongue-in-cheek manner
from the fanboy cast to what they assume will be a mostly Trekker
audience.
Along the way, Kirk and da boyz must deal with a bevy of beautiful
lingerie models, an obnoxious NBC executive, and a Paramount
security guard
as they work their way to the bridge of Voyager to correct the Y2K flaw.
But the skits are, of course, merely an excuse to show brief snippets of
Star Trek footage.
At each commercial break, viewers are quizzed on Star
Trek trivia.
Also during the program, viewers are encouraged to log on to startrek.com
and vote for the Ultimate Star Trek Episode of All Time from the four
choices offered at the beginning of the show. This Ultimate Episode, based
on viewers' votes, will be revealed at the end of the program.
Beam me out of here, Scotty!
As soon as the producers of this special decided to name it Ultimate
Trek: Star Trek's Greatest Moments, they should have realized
they were
asking for trouble. With more than 30 years of Star Trek
history, any attempt to cram all the best moments into one hour
seems doomed
to failure. And, for the most part, that's what has happened here.
Star Trek fans--Trekkers, Trekkies or whatever they prefer to be called--hold this subject dear to their hearts, and certainly know more about it than this special's production team. Every clip montage presented in
Ultimate Trek is announced with a superlative--the
Ultimate this, the Best that--and the debate among Trekkers will begin almost immediately. How
can a list of Ultimate Trek Villains, which so obviously includes the Borg
and Kahn, leave out any mention of the Gorn, Harry Mudd, Lord
Garth, the god
Apollo, or any number of others? How can a clip montage of Ultimate Trek
Beauties forget to include Vina from "The Menagerie," and even Seven of Nine? Who put these lists together?
Another problem with Ultimate Trek is the comedy
skits. Although
Alexander, Johnston and Gould do fine impersonations of Kirk, Spock and
Bones, the jokes are only somewhat amusing; the silly plot is not
particularly interesting, and the production looks cheap. The
whole idea of
tying Star Trek's Supposedly Greatest Moments together by
a series of
cheap comedy skits is one of those TV producer decisions that
ranks right up
there with The Star Wars Christmas Special. Just what in
the galaxy were these people thinking?
But perhaps the most disappointing aspect of Ultimate
Trek is its
inability to convey any real sense of Star Trek to non-fans. The
clip montages are so brief and out of context that only fans will have any
idea what's going on. This program teaches nothing and makes no converts.
In fact, the silly comedy skits may have the adverse effect of
turning intelligent non-Trekkers away from the series, believing
Trek to be just a bunch of camp silliness--and with a series as important to science
fiction as Star Trek, that's a real shame.
Even with all these flaws, hard-core Trekkers may enjoy debating the
lists with their friends, and they might find a few chuckles amid the many
groans.
I didn't hate this show, I was just very disappointed. With a title like
Ultimate Trek: Star Trek's Greatest Moments, I had hoped for
something with more substance and impact. After all, I'm proud to be a
Trekker!
-- J.P.
ames Bond (Brosnan) isn't quite the iron man of his younger days. When he rescues
a briefcase full of money on behalf of an old friend of M's, the case
explodes, killing the friend and wounding Bond's shoulder and--more
importantly--his pride. As the rest of M.I. 6 gears up to find the parties
responsible, 007 is sidelined by his injury, but still intent on solving the case himself.
His investigation leads him to Elektra King (Marceau), the slain man's
daughter. Kidnapped several years ago by a deranged terrorist, the young
heiress has now taken over the reins of her father's company. She is
determined to complete work on his oil pipeline, even though the project's
enemies are numerous: locals displaced by the line, competing oil
projects, and even several Middle Eastern governments. Convinced that
Elektra's life is in danger, Bond charms his way back onto the active duty
roster and rushes to the rescue.
His instincts are correct, and soon the pair are running for their lives.
What's more, the killers have been planted inside the King corporate empire.
And the assassins' plans extend far beyond murdering one young and beautiful CEO. Soon the still-injured Bond finds himself fighting not only to save Elektra, but to prevent a nuclear meltdown.
An exhilarating one-man show
The World Is Not Enough is the best Bond film in years. Fast-paced
and exciting, it has a competent script and some very funny moments.
Brosnan carries off Bond with grace and humor, switching easily from
cool sophistication to hard-hitting heroics. Most of the supporting
players give top-notch performances. Robbie Coltrane is especially
delightful as a caviar-loving Russian gangster.
Tragically, the wonderful casting is barely exploited. The focus of a
Bond film is 007 himself, and the characters who get the most play are the
villain he fights and the women he seduces. It is unfortunate, then, that
Marceau as Elektra and Robert Carlyle as the dying terrorist, Renard,
are among the least vibrant characters. Perhaps the two simply
cannot shine in a movie featuring actors as seasoned and appealing as Judi
Dench and John Cleese. Viewers will find, though, that this weakness is
covered by the non-stop plunging thrill ride of the film.
Bond fans who particularly enjoy the clever gadgets created by Q may be slightly disappointed by this movie. Bond's car barely sees action, and
though he uses some smaller gizmos, they never bail him out of trouble at a
critical moment. As compensation, Renard's forces are well equipped with a
plethora of deadly and unusual toys.
The last Bond movie of this century, The World Is Not Enough is
bipolar in its approach to sexual politics. Brosnan indulges in the usual
smarmy leering, double entendre, and seduction. However, the film
tries to placate '90s moviegoers by attempting to empower the movie's
requisite scantily clad women. Elektra is an industrial magnate; Christmas
Jones (Richards), a nuclear physicist. Feminist viewers may wonder why the filmmakers bothered,
noting that Elektra merely inherited Daddy's company and that Christmas
never actually disarms a nuclear bomb, despite multiple
opportunities.
With these caveats in mind, buckle up for lots of excitement and
laughs.
This was tons of fun. The suspense worked beautifully and the title credits were gorgeous. It felt like one of the early Connery films.
-- A.M.
oody the toy cowboy (Hanks) is looking forward to time away with his beloved Andy at cowboy camp. But a mishap leaves Woody with a torn seam, and he's relegated to Andy's bedroom shelf--the last step for toys before the 25-cent yard sale box.
"I'm sorry, honey," Andy's mom says. "But you know toys don't last
forever."
Woody is chilled by the idea that his idyllic life with Andy and the
other toys might someday end. It spurs him to save another toy--Wheezy, the
broken penguin--from yard sale oblivion. But Woody doesn't make it back
into the house.
Instead, he's found by a toy collector--Al (Knight), the money-grubbing
proprietor of Al's Toy Barn. Al recognizes that Woody is a rare
collectible, part of a line of toys created around the 1950s television show
Woody's Roundup. Andy's mom won't sell Woody to Al because she knows how precious he is to her son, so Al steals Woody while the other toys watch.
Buzz Lightyear (Allen), rallies the other toys to mount a
rescue mission. "Woody once risked his life to save me," Buzz tells the
others. "I wouldn't be much of a friend if I didn't do the same." With Slinky Dog, Mr. Potato Head, Rex and Hamm the piggy bank, he sets out into a world that's all too dangerous for little toys. And this time the intrepid playthings have much farther to go than just next door.
"I wouldn't miss it."
Toy Story 2, from Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios, is a worthy sequel
to the 1995 hit Toy Story. It shares with that film dazzling animation, terrific
voice acting and a charming and occasionally hilarious script. But this film is
deeper and more heartfelt than the first, with a poignant theme about the joy and sorrow of being loved.
The film's computer animation is state-of-the-art. The characters, especially Woody and Buzz, are fully realized.
And there are sequences that will knock an audience's socks off,
particularly the opening scene featuring Buzz, and later the toys' attempt to
cross a busy street. There are also
some impressive, more subtle, effects, from rustling leaves to cheese-dust-covered fingers on one character.
The script is clever and knowing--it includes sly allusions to
Jurassic Park: The Lost World and Star Wars. And it works
nostalgia to create Woody's Roundup, a Howdy Doody-like TV show that was the wellspring of Woody's family. It's a nice conceit to play on the
current rage for toy collectibles. "Look at us! We're a complete set!" Woody exclaims at one point.
The film's music is also a pleasure, with a score by Randy Newman and songs performed by Sarah McLachlan and Riders in the Sky. Newman's signature "You've Got a Friend in Me" from the first movie is featured.
Really the only complaint is Toy Story 2's blatant use of product placements, particularly for Mattel toys.
It would be a mistake to think of the Toy Story movies as simply
kid stuff. Though they are ideal for young children, they also hold
pleasures for those of us whose toys now come with vehicle registrations
and remote controls.
-- P.L.
oing where no one has dared go before, UPN combines Star Trek comedy
routines with a compressed history of the series in Ultimate Trek: Star
Trek's Greatest Moments. Jason Alexander, of Seinfeld fame,
takes on the
role of Captain James T. Kirk travelling back in time to 1999 with
Mr. Spock (Johnston) and Dr. McCoy (Gould) at his side. Their
mission? To
prevent the Y2K bug from interrupting the broadcast of Star
Trek.
ames Bond (Brosnan) isn't quite the iron man of his younger days. When he rescues
a briefcase full of money on behalf of an old friend of M's, the case
explodes, killing the friend and wounding Bond's shoulder and--more
importantly--his pride. As the rest of M.I. 6 gears up to find the parties
responsible, 007 is sidelined by his injury, but still intent on solving the case himself.
oody the toy cowboy (Hanks) is looking forward to time away with his beloved Andy at cowboy camp. But a mishap leaves Woody with a torn seam, and he's relegated to Andy's bedroom shelf--the last step for toys before the 25-cent yard sale box.
