Parisot, Dean

Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Second Season

It's more of the same for Larry David's sitcom from HBO, and for fans, that's a good thing. The show--largely extemporized--follows suit of David's former series, Seinfeld: it's a show about nothing, just the everyday life of the star going about his pseudo-real world. But David's show has far more edge (thanks, in part, to airing on cable TV) with all the bad luck, embarrassing situations, and dreadful behavior as its premiere season. The closest thing to an arc is David's season-long pitch to the networks for a new show starring former Seinfeld stars Jason Alexander and Julia-Louis Dreyfus. Each network is lampooned, especially HBO, which David has a bad history with in this alternate world. Sure to repel those with soft funny bones, Curb's acerbic comedy allows jokes where David is accidentally framed--if ever so briefly--as a child molester, wife abuser, or murderer. But for those who do love his shtick, there are big laughs, especially when we bump into characters as unbridled as David, like a fellow writer who is quite protective of his dad's invention, the Cobb salad.

Many comic actors pop up, some as "themselves" (Richard Lewis, Rob Reiner) and others as characters (Rita Wilson, Ed Asner) along with the delights of co-stars Cheryl Hines as David's wife and his affable manger, Jeff Garlin. There are several touchstone bits: what a thong brief can do to a relationship, a run-in with pro wrestler, Larry's first baptism, and one very collectible doll. To pick one episode to capture this second season--and its grandstanding nature--it would be "Shaq," in which the NBA star is accidentally tripped, changing David's usual bad luck with gut-busting results. --Doug Thomas

Larry David has it all - money, security, famous friends, a nurturing wife, a devoted agent, a new oceanfront home. So why is he still so intent on making a mess out of his life? Just because you've made it doesn't mean you've got it made. Curb Your Enthusiasm, folks - it's the HBO comedy series starring Larry David...as Larry David!

Episodes:
1 - 1. The Car Salesman
2. Thor
3. Trick or Treat
4. The Shrimp Incident
5. The Thong
2 - 6. The Accupuncurist
7. The Doll
8. Shaq
9. Baptism
10. The Massage


System Requirements:

Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Third Season

The third season of HBO's comedy sensation offers more of the same. "Not that there's anything wrong with that," to quote Larry David's other television series, a certain little sitcom called Seinfeld. Consequently, Curb Your Enthusiasm's junior year means more Larry (Larry David) and more of his hilariously embarrassing mishaps. It also means more of his patient spouse Cheryl (Cheryl Hines), avuncular manager Jeff (Jeff Garlin), Jeff's foul-mouthed wife Susie (Susie Essman), and assorted celebrity pals, including Richard Lewis, Ted Danson, Wanda Sykes, Paul Reiser, and Martin Short, all playing themselves (or, like Larry, versions thereof).

The theme that (loosely) ties these 10 episodes together is Larry's involvement in upscale eatery Bobo's, in which Danson and Michael York (yes, that Michael York) are co-investors. As expected, the restaurant will serve to complicate Larry's life in every conceivable way--and vice versa. But the funniest (and most profane) episode must surely be "Krazee-Eyez Killa," starring Chris Williams (Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story) as the fidelity-impaired gangster rapper to whom Wanda has become engaged. This riotous installment, which sends up Jewish, Italian, and African American gangsters alike, won an Emmy for Robert B. Weide's direction and features that old master-of-direction himself, Martin Scorsese, who first appeared in "The Special Section" (in which Larry bribes a gravedigger to relocate his mother's gravesite). It's also the episode in which Larry gets a hair stuck in his throat. That hair, which once belonged to someone rather close to him, will remain lodged there for the next several episodes, until a "divine intervention" in "Mary, Joseph and Larry" dislodges it once and for all--along with the last of Larry's dignity. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

(HBO Comedy Series) Larry David has a charmed life--success famous friends a patient wife a dedicated manager and a trendy new restaurant...so what's his problem? See Larry spike some brownies recommend a deranged nanny thwart an Alanis Morissette concert rob a grave and get a kid drunk. Along the way he encounters Martin Scorsese Cheri Oteri Richard Lewis Krazee-Eyez Killa and the Holy Family...and manages to piss them all off.Running Time: 300 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY UPC: 026359114922 Manufacturer No: 91149

Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Fourth Season

He never learns. In the fourth season of his award-winning HBO comedy series, the quasi-fictional character of Larry David continues to say--and do--whatever he wants whenever he wants. In the first episode alone ("Mel's Offer"), in which Mel Brooks offers him the role of Max Bialystock in The Producers, David offends a doctor, a lesbian couple, a wheelchair user, and Ben Stiller (by not shaking his hand after he sneezes). Then, in the second ("Ben's Birthday Party"), he offends a blind man--by telling him his girlfriend's not as hot as she claims--and pokes Stiller in the eye with a skewer while attempting to show agent Jeff Greene (Jeff Garlin) his new golf move.

Larry continues to offend Stiller until he drops out of The Producers and, in the fifth episode ("The 5 Wood"), David Schwimmer (Friends) steps in. The following episode ("The Car Pool Lane"), in which David attends a Dodgers game--with a prostitute, so he can use the carpool lane--made history when it set an innocent man free. Unused footage from the show, entered into evidence by the defense attorney, confirmed his client's alibi that he couldn't have committed a murder because he was at the game (alas, the Braves still trounced the Dodgers). Other guests include Ted Danson ("The Weatherman"), Russell Means ("Wandering Bear"), and Gina Gershon ("The Survivor") as a Hasidic hottie. In addition, the hour-long season finale ("Opening Night") boasts a bevy of stars, including David's old colleague Jerry Seinfeld, Nathan Lane (Broadway's original Bialystock), and fellow Tony Award winner Anne Bancroft (The Miracle Worker). As they've done since the early days, Cheryl Hines (Cheryl David), Susie Essman (Susie Greene), and Richard Lewis and Wanda Sykes (as themselves) do what they can to keep one-man demolition derby David in check. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Larry David lives a charmed life-an understanding wife, famous friends, a supportive manager and an angelic singing voice so what's his problem?

See Larry buy medical marijuana, take a hooker to a baseball game, steal a golf club from a corpse, ruin Ben Stiller's birthday part, attempt to cash in on his tenth anniversary present with Gina Gershon and trip the light fantastic in The Producers with Mel Brooks and David Schwimmer.

DVD Features:

Fun with Dick and Jane

Remakes are always a gamble, so it's a pleasant surprise that Fun with Dick and Jane pays off with unexpected dividends. It's as entertaining as the 1977 original starring George Segal and Jane Fonda, and the teaming of Jim Carrey and Téa Leoni makes this a safe bet for comedy fans, in spite of a slapstick screenplay that fails to achieve its fullest potential. Rather than attempt a darkly comedic send-up of the Enron scandal that left thousands of stockholders in financial ruin, director Dean Parisot (Galaxy Quest) opts for a lighter, more accessible (read: commercial) satire of corporate greed and cynicism, beginning in the year 2000 when Dick (Carrey) gets a plum promotion as a mega-corporate communications director just as his boss (Alec Baldwin) is preparing to bail out before stock prices plummet. Dick's wife Jane (Leoni) has quit her job as a travel agent, so the corporate bombshell leaves them penniless and desperate, resorting to petty thievery and, eventually, plotting high-stakes revenge against the greedy executives who ruined their lives. As a send-up of financial distress in a ravaged post-Enron economy, Fun with Dick and Jane delivers laughs with just enough pointed humor to give it a strong satirical edge, and Carrey's reliable brand of zaniness is controlled enough to balance nicely with Leoni's more subtle (and woefully underrated) skills as a screen comedienne. And while the "special thanks" end-credits hint at the sharper, more biting satire this might have been, there's enough fun with Dick and Jane to make this recycled comedy worth a look. --Jeff Shannon

Manager Dick Harper and his attractive young wife Jane are used to a comfortable lifestyle. They just build a swimming-pool when Dick is fired very unexpectedly - leaving him with $70000 debt on the house. They try to hide this from the neighbors and just cut down their expenses but soon it's obvious: living from unemployment bonus drives them crazy it's uncertain if they can keep the house. Dick decides that robbing drug stores is their only way out - but this takes more skill than expected! Only as a team Dick and Jane can succeed.DVD FEATURESAnamorphic WidescreenSubtitles: EnglishScene SelectionsFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG UPC: 043396102286 Manufacturer No: 10228

Complete Kathy & Mo Show - Parallel & The Dark Side

With great insight wit and compassion the QUEENS OF COMEDY -- Kathy Najimy (Sister Act Veronica's Closet Dirty Blonde) and Mo Gaffney (Mad About You Happy Texas Absolutely Fabulous) bring their unique perspective to an incredible variety of hilarious characters and situations that will have you laughing from start to finish!The 2-DVD set features both award-winning specials The Kathy & Mo Show: Parallel Lives (a decidedly wicked and hilarious look at men women and modern America) and The Kathy & Mo Show: The Dark Side (a no-holds barred frank and funny look at religion gay rights and feminism) plus 20 years worth of never-before-seen film clips culled from Kathy's & Mo's private collections newly filmed footage and audio commentaries making The Complete Kathy & Mo Show a must-have for all Kathy & Mo fans! This phenomenal 2-disc set runs 230 minutes total!System Requirements:Running Time: 138 MinutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: NR UPC: 014381288728 Manufacturer No: ID2887IMDVD

Romantic Comedy: 4 Film Favorites

Summer Catch Rock Star Home Fries Addicted to Love

Home Fries

A man is frightened to death by a menacing military helicopter, piloted by two young Texan men who just happen to be the dead man's stepsons, Dorian and Angus (Luke Wilson and Jake Busey). To complicate matters, the dead man had had an affair with young Sally (Drew Barrymore), a clerk at the local Burger-Matic who didn't know the guy was married. Now she's pregnant and looking for a supportive guy to be her unborn child's potential father. Dorian fits the role quite nicely, but Angus thinks Sally knows about the helicopter incident, and their scheming mother (Catherine O'Hara) is trying to mastermind a cover-up, and....

So goes the cleverly amusing plot of this light, character-based romantic comedy, which proves Barrymore's charm and versatility once again, gives O'Hara one of her best roles, and moves right along at its own amiable pace. Small-town romance combines with darkly tinged comedy (scripted by X-Files staffer Vince Gilligan), and first-time director Dean Parisot guides it all with casual assurance. There's nothing going on here that's particularly inspired, but Barrymore and Wilson (an off-screen couple during production) make a delightful pair, and the cast makes the most of some hilarious down-home dialogue. All in all, a very pleasant diversion. --Jeff Shannon

Get a Life - Vol. 1

Get A Life Vol. 2

Why buy a collection of episodes from a TV series that lasted a mere two low-rated seasons? Because Get a Life was so far ahead of its time, TV still hasn't completely caught up yet. Chris Elliott, TV's original jackass, stars as Chris Peterson, a 30-year-old paperboy who still lives with his bathrobed and perpetually embarrassed parents (the venerable Bob Elliott and Elinor Donahue, who was "Princess" on Father Knows Best). The first slacker sitcom subverts conventions with its unapologetically obnoxious and delusional lead character in this well-chosen quartet of episodes. Chris auditions for a local theatre production, "Zoo Animals on Wheels." In "Married," he meets, marries, cheats on, and divorces a model all in one day. He is a fish out of water in "The Big City," and a man stuck with his father in a two-man sub lodged in his own bathtub in "Neptune 2000." Since its 1992 cancellation, Get a Life has taken on a life of its own, its legend perhaps enhanced by the fact that it has not been widely syndicated. For devoted fans, this collection is the next best thing to a Get a Life reunion (don't hold your breath). --Donald Liebenson

Galaxy Quest - DTS

You don't have to be a Star Trek fan to enjoy Galaxy Quest, but it certainly helps. A knowingly affectionate tribute to Trek and any other science fiction TV series of the 1960s and beyond, this crowd-pleasing comedy offers in-jokes at warp speed, hitting the bull's-eye for anyone who knows that (1) the starship captain always removes his shirt to display his manly physique; (2) any crew member not in the regular cast is dead meat; and (3) the heroes always stop the doomsday clock with one second to spare. So it is with Commander Taggart (Tim Allen) and the stalwart crew of the NSEA Protector, whose intergalactic exploits on TV have now been reduced to a dreary cycle of fan conventions and promotional appearances. That's when the Thermians arrive, begging to be saved from Sarris, the reptilian villain who threatens to destroy their home planet.

Can actors rise to the challenge and play their roles for real? The Thermians are counting on it, having studied the "historical documents" of the Galaxy Quest TV show, and their hero worship (not to mention their taste for Monte Cristo sandwiches) is ultimately proven worthy, with the help of some Galaxy geeks on planet Earth. And while Galaxy Quest serves up great special effects and impressive Stan Winston creatures, director Dean Parisot (Home Fries) is never condescending, lending warm acceptance to this gentle send-up of sci-fi TV and the phenomenon of fandom. Best of all is the splendid cast, including Sigourney Weaver as buxom blonde Gwen DeMarco; Alan Rickman as frustrated thespian Alexander Dane; Tony Shalhoub as dimwit Fred Kwan; Daryl Mitchell as former child-star Tommy Webber; and Enrico Colantoni as Thermian leader Mathesar, whose sing-song voice is a comedic coup de grâce. --Jeff Shannon