The Human Face (2001) Review

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(More customer reviews)The Human Face is a fascinating but scattershot approach to the topic. John Cleese's approach is sure to delight his fans and annoy his detractors. He manages in his own unique way (while ripping Elizabeth Hurley's face off and shooting fellow Monty Python alum Michael Palin not once, but twice! Pythons always were excessive!) to convey many interesting and pertinent facts concerning the human face and our reactions to it.
Several sections were absolutely fascinating. The discussion on the evolution of the face claims that humankind's move toward an upright posture created an emphasis toward the eyes and visual stimuli and away from the nose and the sense of smell. Our profound reactions to facial expressivity are demonstrated in MRI brain scans that reveal activity deep in the amygdala as a reaction to faces showing fear although no conscious reaction was felt. Several curiosities reminiscent of "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat" are explored, including a man who, following an automobile accident, wholeheartedly believed that his parents had been replaced by other people who looked exactly like them--he was able to recognize their physical appearance but had lost the emotional attachment that allowed him to recognize their relationship. Most heartening was a young woman with an exceptionally large jaw who had not only come to accept her looks but further to find her unique appearance a source of pride.
The series closes with an examination of fame, and here it seems to go astray--so much so that Cleese resorts to acts of gratuitous violence against Palin. The focus shifted rather unsettlingly away from the face to the idea of fame. The linking premise, of course, is that in the modern day it is our faces which make us famous (or not), while in the past it was our actions, and before the days of photography and portraiture particular faces were unknown. This departure is not enough to spoil an otherwise excellent and wildly quirky series, though.

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A four-part BBC series examining the science behind facial beauty expression and fame in lighthearted fashion.Running Time: 200 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre:DOCUMENTARIES/MISC. UPC:794051157225

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The Iceman Interviews (2003) Review

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(More customer reviews)The Iceman Interviews is a 45 minute collection of interviews with Richard Kuklinski and uses pretty much all the same footage as another DVD called Confessions of a Mafia Hitman. Although both DVDs are interesting and offer a peek into the mind of a hitman, arguably a serial killer, although he got paid for it at times, this one has a section titled The Iceman and The Psychologist. That makes all the difference.
This 15 minute interview that Richard Kuklinski has with a psychologist is very eye-opening and really delves into how and why Kuklinski would 1. perform these heinous acts, and 2. be able to perform these heinous acts. It's very interesting to see Kuklinski talk about how these actions made him feel, as well as talking about his childhood and the way his father treated him.
If you're at all interested in psychology or the psychology of serial killers and other abnormalities in the human psyche, this section will keep you enthralled. I only wish it were longer.
The rest of the DVD contains footage and interviews that the other DVD contains as well. In these sections Kuklinski talks about how he went about his career as a hitman, and describes different murders that he committed.

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An abused young man. A hair-trigger temper. A trail of dead bodies. What makes a cold-blooded killer tick? THE ICEMAN AND THE PSYCHIATRIST is now available for the first time on DVD. Renowned forensic psychologist Dr. Park Dietz gets up close, personal and even confrontational with psyche of one of the most dangerous men alive. Bringing together the earlier THE ICEMAN TAPES: CONVERSATIONS WITH A KILLER and THE ICEMAN: SECRETS OF A MAFIA HITMAN with the newly released Dietz interview, this new special edition, THE ICEMAN INTERVIEWS is the ultimate compendium of the mind of a murderer. Includes Richard "The Iceman" Kuklinski's riveting on-camera confession, exclusively for HBO, of the murder of police officer Peter Calabro. Making news in February 2003, Kuklinski accepted a plea bargain for a concurrent 30-year term to his 60-year prison sentence and implicated Sammy "The Bull" Gravano in the crime. THE ICEMAN INTERVIEWS - this new special edition is guaranteed to run chills up and down your spine all over again.

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Lie to Me: Season One (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)When I saw the dismal review with one star rating about which was about Fox network and not the tv show Lie To Me, I had to write one. Lie to Me is loosely based on the real life work of psychologist Paul Ekman. I studied some of Ekman's work and read one of his books. I believe this show is very interesting and as true as it can be to deception expert training. I loved the real life footage they show from time to time to mirror the actor's micro-expression. Fascinating work. This show is a mix of fiction and non-fiction and it's quite a nice break from "reality" TV.

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Tim Roth stars as Dr. Cal Lightman, a compelling new drama from the producers of 24, about the world\'s leading deception expert who studies facial expressions and involuntary body language to expose the truth behind the lies.
Audio: English: 5.1 Dolby Surround
Language: Dubbed: English / Subtitled: English, French & Spanish
Theatrical Aspect Ratio: Widescreen: 1.78:1
Disc 1: 190 Minutes
Pilot
Moral Waiver
A Perfect Score
Love Always
Disc 2:
Unchained
Do No Harm
The Best Policy
Depraved Heart
Disc 3:
Life Is Priceless
Better Half
Undercover
Blinded
Deleted Scenes
Disc 4:
Sacrifice

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In Treatment: Season One (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a powerful, deeply moving, intelligent, emotionally nuanced series. It consisting of nothing more than psychotherapy sessions between a cast of reoccuring characters, this show fills an important niche missing from most television -- the richness, complexity, and heartbreak of the "emotional life."
Are you tired of seeing thin, carbon-copied and cliched characters in movies and television shows? Then this is the perfect series for you, because here the whole point is to explore the inner lives of the characters.
Does the the fact that this series focuses a great deal on the emotions of the characters mean that there is no "action?" Only if you define "action" as soley encompassing explosions or giant robot attacks.
To me, however, there was more action in this show than almost any other I've seen: there was the complexity of coming to terms with the guilt of death, of a disintergrating marriage, of children torn between parents, of unrequieted love, of the intense pressures to be successful, of professional jealousy, of the quiet desperation of everyday life, and the pain and bravery of those trying to take control of their lives.
The writing is really quite incredible. I was time and again rivited by the ways in which the story tellers captured and traced the emotionally raw and complex workings of the human heart- the tangled web which constitutes human relationships.
Some detractors have said they find the characters "annoying:" these characters strike me as "real," for, in life, people are themselves complex and full of paradoxes, at times annoying but at others deeply sympathetic. I came to be involved with all the characters, and, in the end, they all suprised me, up until the very last episode.
The acting is also superb. Gabriel Byrne (as the therapist "Paul") gives the performance of his lifetime, and Mia Wasikowska gives a star making performance as "Sophie," a troubled gymnast.
This is a show for people who find themselves interested in the human mind and heart, particularly, in the complex ways in which we become entangled with our fellow human beings, and often punish ourselves, lie to ourselves, and hide from our own inner truths. What is the thrill of an asteroid threatening to destroy the Earth compared to the everyday struggle with such things as love, guilt, and the fear of facing another day on this planet.
Truly, one of the great shows I have seen- original, thought provoking, powerfully acted, intelligently written, and as deep and as rich a portrait of the human soul as we're likely to ever get on television.

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HBO premieres the first of 43 episodes of In Treatment, a new half-hour drama series starring Gabriel Byrne, and adapted from an enormously popular Israeli series created by Hagai Levi (one of HBOs executive producers, along with Rodrigo Garcia, Steve Levinson and Mark Wahlberg). Set within the intimate confines of individual psychotherapy sessions with five sets of patients, the series centers around Paul (Byrne), a therapist who exhibits an insightful, confident demeanor when treating his patients, but displays a crippling insecurity while counseled by his own therapist, Gina (Dianne Wiest). Patients undergoing treatment with Paul include a young doctor (Melissa George) who has fallen in love with Paul, a Navy pilot (Blair Underwood) reevaluating his life after a failed mission in Iraq, a teenage gymnast (Mia Wasikowska) with suicidal tendencies, and a sexually passionate couple (Josh Charles and Embeth Davidtz) who are troubled in all other areas of their lives. In addition, Pauls wife Kate (Michelle Forbes) will be featured prominently this season.

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