Dazed And Confused [HD-DVD / DVD Combo Format]

Richard Linklater penned and directed the comedy "Dazed and Confused," a film about the last day of school in 1976 through the eyes of upcoming freshmen, graduating seniors and soon to be seniors, among other classmen. The comedy looks at the rituals of welcoming Junior High School students into High School and a huge party to say goodbye to the school year. With an absolutely amazing Rock and Roll soundtrack, "Dazed and Confused" nicely captures the mid-Seventies era through music, clothing, hairstyles and the lingo of the times. "Dazed and Confused" was filmed in 1993, but it is one of the quintessential films to time capsule the Seventies and a classic teen comedy that rivals any of the John Hughes 80´s pictures with believable characters and a lot of charm.

There are a lot of characters and a lot of minor plot lines in "Dazed and Confused" that mix together to form a detailed and entertaining story. One of the plot lines involves Randall "Pink" Floyd (Jason London) and his torment over having to sign an agreement that states he will not partake in any drugs, alcohol or other unacceptable activities in the eyes of his high school football coach. He is the teams upcoming star quarterback and it will be his senior year, but signing the paper is enough to have him not want to return to the team. Ron Slater (Rory Cochrane) goes through the film looking for a great buzz and reasons to party. He has taken a little too many hits of pot, but Cochrane has nailed the "Stoner" character in the film.

Mitch Kramer (Wiley Wiggins) is an upcoming senior that is attacked by the departing seniors and beaten with paddles in a ceremony that strikes fears into all Junior High School students, but Mitch´s sister Jodi (Michelle Burke) asked the seniors to take it easy on him, which means a harder beating. Fred O´Bannion (Ben Affleck) is the leader of the seniors looking to spank him with their various beat sticks. David Wooderson (Matthew McConaughey) is the graduated young man who remains in his home town and continues to hang out with High School students and offers friendship and advice to anybody willing to listen and is always looking to score with any of the pretty young girls, especially red-haired Cynthia Dunn (Marissa Ribisi). There are at least a dozen other supporting characters and almost as many sub-plots; all of which make "Dazed and Confused" a solid film.

Another important character in the film is the smashing rock score. I have two Compact Discs that were culled from the musical selections contained in the film. They are two of the best compilations of Seventies rock and roll that I own. "Dazed and Confused" has certainly succeeded in part to the strength of its soundtrack offerings and all for good reason. Aerosmith´s "Sweet Emotion," Alice Cooper´s "School´s Out," War´s "Low Rider," Bob Dylan´s "Hurricane," KISS´s "Rock & Roll All Nite" and ZZ Top´s "Tush" are just a few of the two dozen or so songs that are used by the film and help drive its story along. This is a rare film where you want to sit down and watch it just to hear the songs and I can´t think of another film that can step toe-to-toe with "Dazed and Confused" when it comes to soundtrack strength. It bests anything Quentin Tarantino has done.

"Dazed and Confused" is wonderful entertainment. The film combines a great number of believable characters who portray the various stereotypes associated with teenage high school years and the various classes of characters one meets on their way through their last four years of education. There are hip students and there are geeky nerds. McConaughey drives around in an old Camaro and has his cigarettes rolled up in his sleeve. If that isn´t a perfect embodiment of the gear-head high school cruiser, I don´t know what is. "Dazed and Confused" also succeeds because of the age of the actors. The film uses actors and actresses who do not look far off of their ages. There was a trend in the late Nineties where it seemed every ´Teen Film´ featured thirty-something actors and the student body looked too old to even be in college. "Dazed and Confused" tries and succeeds at realistically recreating the period its story takes place in.

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It's a Big Big World: Safe and Sound

If you squint a little, the sloth who's the star of "It's a Big Big World" resembles a certain "Bear in the Big Blue House." He has that same gentle, slow-moving shuffle, too, and a limited world which he shares with friends. Bear had Luna the moon, Shadow, Tutter the mouse, playful otters Pip and Pop, and Ojo the bear cub; Snook the Sloth has a pair of playful marmosets named Smooch and Winslow, a howler monkey named Oko, Wartz the tree frog, Ick the Amazon catfish, Madge the wise old map turtle, and Bob, a South American anteater. There are more similarities, but you'd expect that when the creator of "Bear in the Big Blue House" is also behind this newest PBS show for very young children.

"Bear in the Big Blue House" focused mostly on early childhood development cognitive and motor skills, walking toddlers through episodes that helped them learn colors, shapes, counting, and basic social skills like controlling emotions, sharing, turn-taking, and even potty training. This new series seems intent on developing the little ones' awareness of themselves as being connected to nature and to others in the world. Call it "It Takes a Village" meets "The Lion King," but instead of the veldt and tree of life there's the Amazon rainforest and the World Tree where Snook lives with all his friends. The emphasis is on tolerance, understanding, and getting along--lessons that a few of our politicians could have used during their early childhood development.

Cartoon Network and even Disney shows tend to speed the world up for youngsters; in the classic tradition of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood," these shows from Mitchell Kriegman slow the world down. In "It's a Big Big World," which just finished its first season, everyone speaks with a calm voice. And except for the monkey and marmosets, everyone moves and speaks at a Mister Rogers-style pace. The show has a sweet and gentle tone, with a song at the beginning and end and two stories in the middle. The DVDs group five of the stories together thematically, though I have to admit that I expected something different from a disc that's titled "Safe and Sound" and marketed with the tagline, "Learn the importance of safety."

As a parent, I'm thinking, Great! My little one could use a primer on traffic safety and crossing streets, or what to do around strangers, or how to deal with bullies--or even the kind of specious homilies we heard from our parents about running with scissors, surviving lightning, or swimming on a full stomach. Two of these episodes are situational, like that. In "Out on a Limb," one of the marmosets wants to go where no marmoset has ever gone before--to the very tippy-top of the World Tree--and there are some safety tips here about using common sense and not exceeding your limits. "The Sting" gives us an episode about Wart's frog friend Greenie, who's frightened of bees, but learns some basic safety rules about being around insects with the capability of inflicting painful stings. But the other three episodes have more to do with health issues than safety ones--understanding about allergies in "The Big Sneeze," how long it takes injuries to heal in "Bones," or which plants can cause itching. Then again, I suppose that avoiding poison ivy, oak, and sumac is as much a function of safety as rattlesnake awareness for families living in the West.

but these are strictly for toddlers and the pre-school set. Parents will appreciate them for their gentleness and positive message, with the World Tree a whack-you-over-the-head metaphor for our own Planet Earth. And what's wrong with learning to tolerate each other? If the animation is a little hard to put your finger on, it's something called "Shadowmation," which is a combination of puppetry, animatronics, and CGI effects. You notice it especially in close-ups of the sloth's feet as he lowers himself from a branch and adopts a "Bear in the Big Blue House" stance.

Released at the same time as this disc is a second volume, "The Earth Needs You," which has an ecology theme. "World Tree Day" has Snook making badges to reward residents who do something nice for the tree. "What a Wonderful Leaf" finds Madge throwing a leaf picnic party and everyone is bringing something special to the picnic. "Growing Pains" has Smooch planting a garden and learning that there are actually animals and insects that can help her garden grow. "Down in the Dumps" is a recycling lesson that extends to litter and cleaning up after yourself, while "Guardians of the Sappenwood Tree" deals with the idea of recognizing and preserving endangered species, whether flora or fauna.

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American Experience: New York Underground [null]

The American Experience is the longest running and most watched history series on television. Ever a thorough series, they now bring us "New York Underground." This hour long documentary is a fairly detailed history lesson of New York City´s subway transit system. Writer and producer, Elena Mannes, covers all the bases, social, scientific, and some historical significance of this engineering feat.

The documentary starts out with a discussion of the traffic and street congestion of New York in the early 1800s. The increasing number of immigrants and the ever growing economy, which brought in droves of people, created a dramatic need for breathing space. The pioneer, and failed entrepreneur Alfred Ely Beach, the man who built the first subway in New York, is discussed first. His triumphs and downfall set the tone for the New York industrial spirit.

But it is no surprise that Beach´s subway was a failure due to the political corruption of Boss Tweed. It was not until a blizzard in 1888 that political corruption could be overcome. Mayor Abram S. Hewit, the mayor with the idea, August Belmont, the president of the Interborough Rapid Transit System, and William Barkley Parsons, the man who was in charge of building the subway, finally broke through the corruption and skepticism in the 1890s to build New York´s great savior of transit.

With the contract to build the subway finally signed in 1900, construction began and was initially finished on October 27, 1904. The expansion of the subway continued though, and after years of difficulty and danger, the construction has never really stopped.

There are no surprises here. This documentary is patterned fairly closely with the usual PBS documentary—illustrations, historical photographs/footage, and interviews all mixed together. This is not the best of the American Experience series. This topic seems to have a fairly niche audience. The appeal is really limited to those who live in New York, ride the subway, love engineering history, or love PBS documentaries.

The main problem of the documentary is the myopic nature of the historical narrative. I have to admit, I don´t really care all that much about New York. I´m not from the east coast; I have few east coast sympathies and often tire of the New York bias of news and entertainment. Why do a documentary about New York´s subway? Boston had a major subway years before they built one in New York. But this fact is merely glossed over in this piece. There is a sense that one gets from these documentaries that New York´s history is so much more important than the history of the rest of the United States.

There are a number of moments in this piece that the engineering, the working conditions, and even the art of subway design are touched on, but all too much this is a celebration of New York City, and specifically the New York visionaries attached to this project. I wished that this documentary would have given the viewer more of why New York City´s subway should be the subject of a documentary. Why is it more special than other American subways? There is no real concrete reasoning for highlighting this achievement over other similar engineering achievements. Was the New York City subway faster than all the others—is it the electricity? How did it compare? This is the myopia that I speak of. When we talk about New York City in general what are we really talking about? I´ve never been there, so I don´t know. It would have been nice if this documentary would have told me.

But with all this said, "New York Underground," is still head and shoulders above more commercial fair. The History Channel´s "Modern Marvels," barely compares. Cable documentaries have less depth and often lack the polished nature of public television´s documentaries. As much as I might have concerns with some elements of this documentary, if I were going to teach a lesson on New York City´s subway, I´d use this film. It touches all aspects of the construction, the regular people, the major figures, the economic, the political, and some of the technical.

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Happy Days: Season 2

Most actors would kill (or at least maim) for the chance to star in a long-running, popular sitcom. But two? It boggles the mind.

First Opie, then Richie? Ron Howard was twice-blessed. Just when you thought it would be hard for him to top the eight-year run he had with "The Andy Griffith Show," which finished as the top-rated show its last year, along comes "Happy Days," which lasted eleven seasons and also finished one year as the most-watched show in America. And while "The Andy Griffith Show" was a spin-off of the old "Danny Thomas Show," "Happy Days" spawned "Laverne & Shirley," "Mork & Mindy," and "Joanie Loves Chachi." That might not be the greatest measure of success, but how about the fact that the leather jacket worn by "Happy Days" greaser "Fonzie" is now on display at the Smithsonian, alongside Dorothy's ruby slippers and Archie Bunker's chair?

AAAAYYYYH!

Like "The Andy Griffith Show," "Happy Days" underwent quite a few changes over the years, with characters moving in and out of the picture. The second season is the last you'll see of Richie's older brother, Chuck (this year played by Randolph Roberts with no more panache than his predecessor, Gavan O'Herlihy). But as Richie's good friend Ralph Malph (Donny Most) always says, "When you got it, you got it!" The heart of the show quickly became the relationship between geeky good-guy Richie and his pals and older leather-jacketed drop-out Arthur Fonzarelli (Henry Winkler).

This season, we see signs saying Arnold's Drive-In is under new management, but Arnold (Pat Morita) himself doesn't appear until Season Three. This is the first year we see Fonzie's mini-me nephew, Spike, and the last year we see Bag Zombroski, the leader of a gang called The Demons. It's the year that Potsie Weber (Anson Williams) really starts throwing around his catch phrase, "Got it made in the shade," and the season that spawned several episodes with serious moments involving Fonzie--one, which saw him rescued from a lonely Christmas by the Cunninghams. The show really hit its stride in Season 2, and much of that has to do with the wacky but warm energy of creator Garry Marshall.

Of course, Howard owes a bit to George Lucas too. It was his success in Lucas's "American Graffiti" the year before that led to his "Happy Days" debut. As Richie Cunningham, Howard is a likable Everyboy trying to become an Everyman, with friends who are just as clueless as he. The setting is Milwaukee in the '50s, and at that time there were just three types of high school students: greasers, jocks, and dupers (everybody else, nerds and otherwise). Richie is the latter, and the contrast between his wholesomeness and Fonzie's savvy is but one point of interest. Richie also has a younger sister, Joanie (Erin Moran), to spar with, and parents who are a lot hipper (Tom Bosley, Marion Ross) than most would have been.

What sets this sitcom apart is that it doesn't have an easily recognizable three-act structure. Instead, it feels like a slice of life, with the focus on Richie. We see moments with Richie and his friends, Richie and his parents, Richie and his awkward dating attempts, Richie confronting his fears and insecurities, Richie and his siblings, and Richie and his Obi-wan figure, The Fonz. Mom and Dad may be good with advice related to morals and ideals, but when it came right down to the nitty-gritty, Fonzie was the go-to guy, especially where females were concerned. This season, Fonzie was still a character who hadn't grown into too much of a caricature, and that's frankly one of the best things that can be said about the show that "jumped the shark" when Fonzie water-skied over a shark pen. Fonzie became a phenomenon, but when the "Happy Days" gang started to make him a character t rival Richie, the show lost its charm and central focus.

Like "WKRP in Cincinnati," though, "Happy Days" has had its problems obtaining affordable rights to some of the '50s music that was incorporated into the episodes. Alas, as "WKRP" was forced to do, "Happy Days" is presented with music replacement. But as with "WKRP," the replacement is so skillfully done that you hardly even notice, unless you have a photographic memory. The acting and the characters are still as fun as they were when the show first aired. So enjoy Season 2, when it's still almost as strong a slice-of-life coming-of-age story from week to week as "American Graffiti." The writing is is certainly better-than-average, especially delivered with the wide-eyed innocence of these wannabe grownups.

Potsie: "This girl's got potential. I took her to the drive-in last night and she's still talking to me."

Here's a quick rundown on the 23 episodes, housed on four single-sided discs in a clear plastic keep-case that's the size of a standard DVD case, but which has a center "page" that holds two of the discs. It's a nifty design, actually.

1) "Richie Moves Out"--Chuck gets more air time than usual as Richie moves in with his basketball-dribbling older brother, because Mom and Dad are cramping his style.

2) "Richie's Car"--Richie gets a bright red convertible and a few headaches when the "Love Bandit" Fonzie gets for him turns out to have quite a past.

3) "Who's Sorry Now?"--Richie has an uncomfortable sense of déjà vu when a girl who rejected him comes back to Jefferson High, and he ends up going steady with her.

4) "You Go to My Head"--As Richie reads a book about abnormal psychology, he starts to think he needs a shrink.

5) "R.O.T.C."--Richie gets a taste of leadership, and alienates his friends when he puts them on report.

6) "Haunted"--Ralph decides to host his annual Halloween party at the legendary haunted house in town, and Richie gets spooked.

7) "Wish upon a Star"--When Richie gets to escort Hollywood starlet Cindy Shea to the school's victory dance, he's the envy of Jefferson High.

8) "Not with My Sister, You Don't"--Dad pays Richie 50 cents an hour to double-date with Joanie and pint-sized Spike, to make sure the Fonzie-clone doesn't try any of the big guy's patented moves.

9) "Big Money"--Richie is selected to go on a game show for a chance to win $3200.

10) "A Star is Bored"--One of the serious-moment shows has Fonzie educating the crowd with his take on "Hamlet."

11) "Guess Who's Coming to Christmas"--Another serious/poignant show, which finds Fonzie all alone for the holidays with only his motorcycle . . . until the Cunninghams insist he join them.

12) "Open House"--Potsie invites three stranded beauty pageant contestants to spend the night while Richie's parents are out of town, much to Richie's horror.

13) "Fonzie's Getting Married"--It's Mr. C. to the embarrassing rescue when Fonzie introduces the family to his fiancée, and Howard suddenly remembers where (and how much) he's seen of her.

14) "The Cunningham Caper"--Home alone for the teen set. Richie is sick and home alone, and he and his buddies have a burglar to contend with.

15) "The Not Making of the President"--Dad likes Ike, but Richie's hot for a girl who's campaigning for Adlai Stevenson.

16) "Cruisin'"--When Richie, Potsie, and Ralph leave Milwaukee to meet some girls and get in trouble when their boyfriends show up, it's the Fonz to the rescue.

17) "The Howdy Doody Show"--Richie gets the scoop of his juvenile life when he interviews Buffalo Bob Smith and Howdy Doody for the school paper and gets a photo of Clarabell without make-up.

18) "Get a Job"--Richie becomes involved with an older woman, who requires a bit more cash and attention than the average gum-popping high school girl.

19) "Fonzie Joins the Band"--When Fonzie takes up the bongos and decides he's going to play with Richie's band at a country club gig, it's Splitsville for the guys.

20) "Fish and the Fins"--Flash Cadillac and The Continental Kids make their TV acting debut in this episode.

21) "Richie's Flip Side"--Richie annoys his friend after his head swells when he gets his own radio show as a teen deejay.

22) "Kiss Me Sickly"--When Fonzie leaves town, Richie is saddled with the responsibility of keeping an eye on his girl. Oops.

23) "Goin' to Chicago"--Richie, Potsie and Ralph make the big trip to the Windy City, with predictable but funny results as they try to go "clubbin'."

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