Blogcritics Author: Josh Lasser

Former Stars Clutter Up My TiVo

Josh Lasser — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 14:43:25 EST

I'm sorry, you were a star when? Why?
At the behest of Erin Medley, who recommended on our radio show this past week that I watch Confessions of a Teen Idol, I set my TiVo up to air one of VH1's umpteen repeats of the premiere. Last night, I had the "good fortune" to have a hole in my viewing schedule which I managed to squeeze this little reality nugget into.In case you...

Scrub-bing In Again

Josh Lasser — Wed, 7 Jan 2009 19:19:47 EST

Sacred Heart and the team from Leverage make for a pretty good evening.
Boy, was last night a fun night of television. First up was Leverage, which really seems to have hit its stride. I was, as you may recall, initially concerned over the fact that the show's twists weren't very twisty. Happily, they seem to have abandoned the notion of doing a twist the past few episodes. It's a change that works far...

Secret Life and Top Gear Keep Me Intrigued

Josh Lasser — Tue, 6 Jan 2009 21:28:13 EST

I only watched two hours of TV last night, but I was still intrigued.
In describing how flat, non-stylized, utilitarian things can still be beautiful and function perfectly, a wise man said last night, "Look at Keira Knightley, she's just an ironing board with a face, and she works." I'll give you three guesses who said that, and your first two don't count. That's right, my good friend and...

PlayStation 3 Review: Legendary

Josh Lasser — Mon, 5 Jan 2009 21:07:25 EST

There's certainly nothing memorable here, it's not even legendarily bad.
It seems as though all too often a great idea for a video game becomes a less than amusing game. Ideas are, sadly, sometimes hard to translate from paper to bits and bytes. As a case in point, take the recent PlayStation 3 release Legendary.Legendary sounds like it could be a great game – it starts with the player opening Pandora's Box...

Reviewing the Damages

Josh Lasser — Mon, 5 Jan 2009 18:06:02 EST

So much TV is starting so soon, let's take a quick peak at Damages (and perhaps Nip/Tuck).
Well, it took long enough getting here, but the New Year has finally arrived, and that seems to mean, for both the broadcast networks and cable, that it's time to roll out a bunch of new shows. Or, at the very least, new episodes.I could be wrong, but I just don't recall so much TV starting up so quickly after the new year in the past. I...

PBS Primetime Programming for the Week of January 4

Josh Lasser — Fri, 2 Jan 2009 05:02:12 EST

The creation of the Sword in the Stone ride continues.
As you may recall, last week I pointed out to you the issue with my question about how to get you to read these opening and closing paragraphs. I realized after asking the question that I asked the question in the section of the piece you don't read. And, if you don't read about it you can never learn about the greatness that is The Sword...

Blu-ray Review: Days of Thunder

Josh Lasser — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 18:59:37 EST

A classic Tom Cruise movie arrives on Blu-ray in less than spectacular fashion.
Watch a Tom Cruise movie – be it from the present day or two decades ago – and you get the indefinable essence of a movie star. Be the film good, bad, or somewhere in between, there's Tom Cruise, shining and larger than life. There are certain aspects of his performance, of his personality, which bleed across from one film to the...

PBS Primetime Programming for the Week of December 28

Josh Lasser — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 05:29:10 EST

The creation of the Sword in the Stone ride continues.
The ever-popular The Sword in the Stone ride. The end all, be all, big all, one for all. Last week, if you recall, I asked you what I could do to cajole you into read the introductions and closings of this weekly column. I tried, I think, to impress upon you the incredible importance (to me, anyway) of the openings and closings. I have since...

A Tip Top Idea for Top Gear

Josh Lasser — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 11:46:16 EST

Okay, I have an idea. Just hear me out.
I spent many hours last night watching car shows. Okay, maybe one car show and one movie. We'll be talking about the movie, Days of Thunder, in an upcoming review. Let's talk about the car show instead. Now, here's how this conversation usually goes:"Gee Josh, what car show did you watch?""Actually, amazingly,...

Blu-ray Review: The House Bunny

Josh Lasser — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 02:13:21 EST

The House Bunny hops up and down and all around, never quite finding its mark.
The story of the ugly duckling that eventually becomes a beautiful swan is one that Hollywood tells over and over again with varying results. As such stories go, the recent Anna Faris comedy, The House Bunny, falls somewhere short of satisfying, but not in the complete disaster range. As a social commentary the film is far closer to disaster.In...