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Reviews
Mission: Impossible: The Freeze (1968)
Ludicrous, absolutely ludicrous.
A snarling gangster steals ten million dollars (not shown) double crosses his partners, hides the loot, then commits a second crime to cover his tracks, get arrested, and wait out the statute of limitations on the first robbery while sitting in prison for, oh, about ten years. The IMF team pose as doctors and trick him into believing he is terminally ill and can be frozen until a cure for his fatal disease is found. This necessitates letting him out of prison, naturally, so he can be tricked into leading them to the hidden loot. I could go on, but you get the picture. I suppose cryogenics had been in the news, and so producers decided to build a story around that idea. But the whole set up is preposterous. Every plot point defies logic. You'll be shaking your head in disbelief the entire time. Guest star Donnelly Rhodes doesn't generate one once of charisma, or sympathy, and poor Martin Landau looks embarrassed at the end. I'm sorry to be so mean-spirited, but the ignorance on display here is worthy of a punishingly low rating.
The Rockford Files: Just a Coupla Guys (1979)
Where's Rockford?
I'm in the minority. I like this episode. Yeah, it's a disappointment when you tune in to see Jim Garner, and he gets about ten minutes of screen time. But good writing is good writing, and David Chase is a good writer. I also laughed out loud 4-5 times while watching this episode. I remember seeing it when it originally aired, in prime time on NBC. I've watched it a half dozen times since and remember much of the dialogue word for word. Love Gilbert Green! It's easy to look back now and say the show was running out of steam, but I've been watching season 6 on dvd for the first time in ages, and the quality remained consistently high. There were plans in place to finish the season, which would have meant ten more episodes. Then things bet fuzzy. Garner is exhausted from filming the show and fighting with Universal over money. He checks into a hospital. The shows goes on an unexpected hiatus. Universal sued him for breech of contract. NBC quickly announces Garner will star in a reboot of 'Maverick' and 'Rockford' just falls by the wayside, never going back into production. Summing up: Mickey & Eugene are idiots but the writing is smart and the pacing is swift. Endings are never pretty.
Mannix: A Small Favor for an Old Friend (1974)
Location, location, location.
Mannix returns from a long vacation yada yada yada. You know the set-up. I loved this show as a kid. Several years ago I found seasons 1-4 on dvd. Hadn't seen it in years. Still enjoyable. And I just discover the whole series steaming on Amazon. Now I'm watching some of the higher rated episodes from seasons 4-8. I gave 'Hardball' a 9. Great script, lots of action, kept me guessing. Same here. Fabulous San Francisco locations on this one - I just knew they splurged for November sweeps - earns it an extra star in my book. SF is a beautiful city. Go there. And happily, even in season 8 Connors refused to phone it in. (Hello William Conrad!)
The Rockford Files: Deadlock in Parma (1980)
Alone in the wilderness
According to Ed Robertson's book 'Thirty Years of The Rockford Files' THIS was the final episode of the series to be filmed, not 'The Hawaiian Headache.' 'Deadlock in Parma' was shot the third week of November, 1979. Everyone took the following week off for Thanksgiving, and plans were in place for cast and crew to return in January and resume filming the remaining ten episodes to complete the sixth season. Unfortunately, James Garner was hospitalized in San Diego from injuries and exhaustion shortly after filming wrapped, and it was uncertain when he could return to work. On-going tensions between Garner and Universal subsequently reached critical mass, and production never resumed. I love 'The Rockford Files.' The writing was brilliant, and Garner was tops. This episode actually reminded me of an earlier, and much better, episode from season four entitled 'The Competitive Edge' but lacks that show's snap, crackle, and pop, not to mention Jim having some real skin in the game. 'Parma' is probably my least favorite episode of the entire series, and I still give it a passing grade. But no LA, no familiar supporting players, even the Firebird doesn't show up until the very end. Just Jim as a pawn, a patsy, a pigeon. Whether it was intentional or not, it sure looked and felt like the end.
The Rockford Files: The Hawaiian Headache (1979)
Heavy dose of humor/dialogue sparkles
Admittedly a pretty lame excuse to give the cast and crew of 'The Rockford Files' a free vacation to Hawaii at NBC/Universal's expense, just as the series was winding down. I recall Jack Klugman from 'Quincy' complain about this on one of the talk shows around that time. Where was the free vacation for those who worked on his show? Well, guess what Jack? THE ROCKFORD FILES was a fabulous series, one of the best, and 'Hawaiian Headache' is a very funny episode. After watching it enough times to remember whole chunks of dialogue, I still laughed out loud a half dozen times while watching it again. Sure, it's contrived, feels slightly out of place in the Rockford cannon. And there is a risk in making your hero a hapless putz, as Cannell does here. But Stephen J. Cannell was a clever, brilliant writer. I frequently marvel at his talent. Could you have done any better? Not me. And the cast - especially Ken Swofford - make it very enjoyable. I'm sure I'll watch it again, sometime.
Leave It to Beaver: Tell It to Ella (1962)
Formula. And it works.
Beaver stays out way past curfew on a school night. Because his grades are already low, Ward and June decide to make him stay home EVERY night during the week (presumably until further notice.) An increasingly rebellious Beaver finds this unfair, so he takes the advice of Eddie Haskell(!) and writes a letter to the local 'Dear Abby,' expecting her to agree with HIM and scold his parents in the newspaper. Good screenwriting features a protagonist with a goal. This desire causes them to act, making things happen. (They must also meet with resistance, or the story is quickly over.) Too many recent episodes of LITB feature a premise, but not a story. Writers Conway and MacLane redeem themselves with an excellent script full of nuance and surprise.
The Rockford Files: The Gang at Don's Drive-In (1978)
Just like real life
Jim is hired by an old buddy of his named Jack Skowron to help research an ambitious new novel the man is writing concerning a downtrodden high school class of 1961 "virtually wiped out in the Vietnam conflict." Skowron himself was a once promising novelist turned failed alcoholic and desperately hopes this new book will restore him to the limelight. Turns out that's just the tip of the iceberg.
While never among my favorites, this episode has stayed with me over the years, especially that line, "he bought everyone on-board the boat that night a whole new life." As someone else here mentions there isn't a lot of action in this episode and Zerbe seems to get the lion's share of screen time, not Garner. Zerbe is a highly unusual presence and totally believable as the aimless alcoholic. Life isn't always so cut and dry and I appreciate the ambiguous ending to the story as well.
Repulsion (1965)
Claustrophobic thriller
Left on her own in a London flat by an older sister on holiday, a frigid young woman descends into madness. Polanski and Deneuve create a harrowing journey of sorrow that still packs a riveting punch sixty years later.