tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post3214793249525038069..comments2024-03-27T22:27:16.556-04:00Comments on It's About TV: 20 for 20: the best political movies and TV showsMitchell Hadleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08695771505209080030noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-12356091185608439132020-10-03T10:31:03.753-04:002020-10-03T10:31:03.753-04:00Another element adding to the power of both Franke...Another element adding to the power of both Frankenheimer films is the fact that they just END - with a single title card, leaving the audience on its own to stumble up the aisles. Obviously that can't happen today, with six-minute end title crawls, but damn, when that final chime sounds at the end of "Seven Days," it's OVER.Memo2Selfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15697112440087568681noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-17044802603273073312020-10-01T22:56:13.278-04:002020-10-01T22:56:13.278-04:00Great list. A few I'd add:
The 1990 COLUMBO ...Great list. A few I'd add:<br /><br />The 1990 COLUMBO episode "Agenda for Murder" is arguably as good or better than "Candidate for Crime", one of the best episodes of the ABC revival. Helps to have Patrick McGoohan as the murderous politician.<br /><br />Three other TV classics: WKRP IN CINCINNATI: "Carlson for President" (hilarious debate sequence, and poster); F TROOP: "The Ballot of Corporal Agarn" (Tol Avery as a crooked politician is such great casting) and the MAVERICK episode "The People's Friend". Among films, 1999's ELECTION is one of my absolute favorite skewerings of the process.Halhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09291930694234773688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-35845949728735476872020-10-01T20:24:08.856-04:002020-10-01T20:24:08.856-04:00By any chance, are you at all familiar with Whoops...By any chance, are you at all familiar with <i>Whoops Apocalypse</i>?<br />This was a six-episode comedy series, produced by London Weekend Television in 1982.<br />Andrew Marshall and David Renwick wrote a full-out farce, jokes and surrealism and occasional slapstick, about a nuclear confrontation between the West (US/UK) and the USSR (they were still in business in '82) - and everybody in it is bat-guano crazy.<br />The US President is a former movie Tarzan, who's under the thumb of a right-wing preacher.<br />The British Prime Minister believes himself to be Superman (Renwick & Marshall knew their DC Comics).<br />The Soviet Premier is one of a bunch of clones who go into and out of freezers, perpetuating themselves in power.<br />The deposed Shah of Iran is being shuttled between England and France on the Channel Ferry (neither country wants him).<br />A MidEast terrorist called L'Acrobat has stolen the dreaded Quark Bomb, which he's selling to the highest bidder.<br />And these events (and a bunch of others) are being recounted by a fast-talking American newscaster named Jay Garrick (see Renwick/Marshall/DC Comics, <i>op cit.</i>).<br /><i>Whoops Apocalypse!</i> didn't play anywhere in the US in its initial run (that I know of; correction welcomed if needed).<br />I've got the 6-episode series on a c2c DVD; it can also be found at YouTube in a two-and-a-half-hour "feature" version, if that suits you.<br />I was going to mention some of the familiar actors who appear in the six shows, but I think I'll let you seek the series out for yourself ( I confess to wishing that I could see your possible reaction to who they have playing US President Johnny Cyclops ...).<br /><br />Oh, by the way:<br />Renwick & Marshall did a theatrical film version of <i>Whoops Apocalypse!</i> several years after the TV series, with a different story, different cast, and even wilder comedy; you can also find this on YouTube, if you're so inclined.Mike Doranhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14427528138598549103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-70617417093719163532020-10-01T19:29:24.117-04:002020-10-01T19:29:24.117-04:00Only slightly. A satirical version would be bound ...<i>Only</i> slightly. A satirical version would be bound to be more serious!Mitchell Hadleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08695771505209080030noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-14126557610021458162020-10-01T19:27:48.933-04:002020-10-01T19:27:48.933-04:00And it keeps you guessing even though you know how...And it keeps you guessing even though you know how it turns out.Mitchell Hadleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08695771505209080030noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-43401491125626849852020-09-30T23:48:50.787-04:002020-09-30T23:48:50.787-04:00Excellent list. "House of Cards" and &qu...Excellent list. "House of Cards" and "The Missles of October" are favorites of mine as well. There was also that episode of "Batman" where Batman ran against The Penguin for mayor of Gotham City, which is only slightly more bizarre than what's going on this year. David Hofstedehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15288510542472710879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6042603612494762084.post-11222795351833663242020-09-30T18:10:51.221-04:002020-09-30T18:10:51.221-04:00Bravo for including "The Missiles of October&...Bravo for including "The Missiles of October" . The immediacy of live-on-tape and the superb performances enthralled my teenage self .<br /><br />melllvarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04818142434693611843noreply@blogger.com