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Reviewspreviews
Small ville
The adventures of young Clark Kent (Tom Welling) in his pre-Superman days in Smallville move into the third season in this DVD set. Just when it seemed that Clark had enough of dramatics in his adolescent life, he got entangled in his continual growth towards adulthood and his destiny in a new twist to the Superman legacy. Unlike the first two seasons, the complete third season is as much about Clark as it is about the DC Comics characters that make an appearance throughout the 23 episodes. Perry White (Michael McKean, the real-life husband of series star Annette O'Toole who plays Martha Kent) makes an appearance as drunk reporter and future Daily Planet editor in Perry, while Ian Randall (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), Van McNulty (Jesse Metcalfe) and Eric Summers (Shawn Ashmore) make a joint recurring appearance in Asylum where Lex (Michael Rosenbaum) teams up with the three to lure Clark to the hospital to enlist his help in escaping.
The series also sees the departure of Pete Ross (Sam Jones III) who was burdened with Clark’s secret, the deceased Dr Virgil Swann (late Christopher Reeve) and Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) who is blown out of the equation by Lionel’s (John Glover) thugs in the season finale.
Loaded with terrific extras including the director’s commentary and countless deleted scenes, this boxset is a must-buy for all Superman fans. — Omair Alavi
The Devil Wears PradaThe Devil Wears Prada is based on a best seller novel by Lauren Weisberger. Anne Hathaway plays Andy, who has just graduated from Northwestern as a would-be writer with a lot of potential.
For the sake of getting acquainted with the fashion world, she starts off her career with a leading fashion magazine as second assistant to the magazine’s high profile editor, Miranda (Merryl Streep). The film revolves around Andy’s transition from a simple, down to earth journalist to a slick, smart, fashionable employee with a job that a million girls would kill for (at least that’s what Miranda’s staff believes).
She has to bear Miranda’s attitude, expect no appreciation, be highly responsive and survive in an environment where even her peers are non-cooperative. The best parts of the film focus on Miranda and her unreasonable, ridiculously self-indulgent demands. Those who have worked for a tyrant will relish these sequences.
Andy’s character is more like a present day Cinderella whose big break comes when she is to accompany Miranda at a fashion festival in Paris where all the who’s who of fashion world will be present. The poor journo needs to rub shoulders with the inherently heartless people of fashion before she learns the true meaning of heart.
The film is a true reflection of a high profile corporate lifestyle and the liabilities associated with it. A little more screen time could have given more depth and detail to this movie. Otherwise, TDWP is a must watch if you have an appetite for fast paced, close to life comedies. — Arsalan Faruqi
Curb Your EnthusiasmLarry David is a particular man. He likes things done his way, which often isn’t the right way to do things. Political correctness takes a back seat as he sets off in Curb Your Enthusiasm to wreck havoc by asking questions that, quite frankly, should never be asked — neither in public nor in general.
The show is a pseudo-reality show, based upon the life of Larry David (co-creator of the comedy series, Seinfeld). In this show, the stories are based on actual situations that he, along with his wife (played by Cheryl Hines), have been in. These situations range in craziness, from the absolutely absurd to the utterly unbelievable, and they usually take place when Larry is speaking his mind. And he speaks his mind a lot.
The show also stars Jeff Garlin (playing Jeff Greene, Larry’s manager), and fellow comedian, Richard Lewis (playing himself), a real life friend of Larry David. More than often, Richard and Larry are at odds, whether it’s in dressing, lifestyles or simply over nothing.
Jeff thinks that the time is right for Larry to start thinking about coming back to TV, a sentiment shared by everyone except Larry himself. What follows can only be described as a painful comedy, as one watches Larry getting himself into deeper trouble.
Season one is out now on DVD and it comes with commentaries by the director, writer and actors, an interview with Larry David himself and an hour long comedy special. A must have for all Seinfeld fans and particularly those of dark comedy. — Khaver Siddiqi
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