The Pumpkin Press Review

The Dark Knight Chronicles

Danielle Turner — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 03:20:51 +0000

Once again, we have another production of that mysterious hero; Batman. This production decides to take the Dark Knight to a whole different angle: Full Blast Funny! This is a series that has no intention of taking itself seriously or taking Batman too seriously either. Does it work?

(click this image to watch the series)

You bet it does. I’ve had several laughs through out the video series. The production is well polished and loaded with talent. The storyline has some fun characters and funny lines. It gets a bit cheesy and slow at times. But it’s a lot of fun and my biggest criticism is that there aren’t enough videos in this series. I want more! I give this series a high half-squashed pumpkin. Enjoy!!

The Daily Guru

Danielle Turner — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 03:53:47 +0000

Joel Freimark hosts The Daily Guru, which is a simply produced talk show that gives recommendations and commentaries about musicians and songs, or anything along the music genre for that matter. In fact, it’s so simply produced that it’s boring. And I’m a massive music lover, always eager to learn more about this incredible art form. I, so badly, wanted to like this series.

Freimark clearly knows a ton of cool stuff about music and musicians. There is no problem with a lack of content in each episode. It’s that Freimark speaks a mile a second. Each episode is loaded with a ton of unnecessary hard cuts. And… there’s no music in the show. NO MUSIC!

Episode after episode, Freimark recommends song after song and he doesn’t give us even a tiny sample of the music for that song. I don’t understand why he doesn’t. It’s not like the musicians who own any of his recommended songs will come after him with breech of copyright. After all, he’s promoting them and recommending that his viewers listen and own these songs.

Once in a while, Freimark turns an episode into a history lesson about one musician or another. But no pictures of any of the musicians are inserted in the episodes. No music samples for any of the musicians are included either. Quelle surprise! All we get are hard, fast cuts of Freimark’s head and shoulders – cut after cut after cut, Freimark, Freimark, Freimark.

(click this image to watch the show)

I have to give this show a totally squashed pumpkin. In its current state, it’s unwatchable. But, it has potential to be a great show with a few tweaks in the production. Hopefully, the producers of this series will give it the minor changes The Daily Guru needs in order to be a decently watchable program.

Malice

Danielle Turner — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 02:56:41 +0000

The story of Malice begins, through the voice of the youngest of two daughters, with a typical family day until the phone rings and they learn that their grandmother is dead and their mom inherits the dead matriarch’s home. No time is wasted. The family moves into their new home only to quickly learn that their new home is no ordinary home. In fact, it’s damn creepy!

(click this image to watch the show)

I got hooked on the plot right from episode one. The creators of this series don’t waste our time with useless scenes. They get right down to the meat and potatoes of the storyline. This is a thriller and so it does require a feel of suspense and fearfulness continually boiling through the plot-line. This show does not disappoint. There were many times that I jumped out of my seat. The CGI is surprisingly good for a low budget show. Bravo!

So, why am I giving this show a half squashed pumpkin? While, I do encourage you to give this show a good try, it it does have its flaws. There are plenty of cheesy moments that cannot be ignored, like how Dad can suddenly shoot a gun with perfect precision right after drinking several beers. Somehow, Alice was able to get hot water for her bath, even in a house that doesn’t have electricity. And, there were some decisions that Dad made, or didn’t make, that were a bit hard to swallow. Plus, the episodes are too short. They could be at least 10 minutes long. 5 minutes is much too short for a show of this sort. We loose that emotional tension that a thriller builds with time.

Still, click the image above and watch this web series. It’s fun. It’s entertaining. I love the teen girls. They are cool characters! And both actresses play them very well.

Chosen

Danielle Turner — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 05:54:12 +0000

In this original Crackle online series, a typical day for a typical single father of a young daughter suddenly takes a shocking turn when he finds a box at his doorstep. Encased in the box is a loaded gun and instructions to kill someone he’s never met. And if he doesn’t kill this person? His own family (especially his daughter) is at risk of losing their lives. And so the story begins.

This season holds six episodes. Each one is full of suspense and tension. The production is high quality. The acting is polished. The story is well written. I got hooked on this series right away. I love it! It’s intense. It’s daring. It’s shocking!

There are others, who watched this first season, who were quite vocal about their dislike for the way in which episode 6 ended. If you keep in mind that episode 6 is NOT the end of the story, you can get past that it is quite a shocking cliffhanger. I highly recommend that you give this show a try. Click the image above to start watching it. You won’t be disappointed.

A fully unsquashed pumpkin. Of course!

Epic Meal Time

Danielle Turner — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 05:11:31 +0000

Epic Meal Time is a food blog and video series. Actually, EpicMealTime.com hosts 3 different web series; all on the topic of food. But not just any food. Gross Food!

The show ‘Epic Meal Time’ focuses on the host demonstrating (often with a buddy) truly epic uses for a specific ingredient; like bacon or beef. The show ‘Epic Chef’ is a competition show where two teams are competing against each other with a themed ingredient. The winner is determined by a panel of judges. The show ‘Throwback Thursdays’ is about…? I’m not actually sure. I mean it’s not much different from ‘Epic Meal Time’

I’m not really sure what to say about this series of food videos. It’s definitely focused on a distinct ‘flavor’ of show. I mean no pun by that. It’s gross. Every episode is gross. And they mean to be gross.

It might be that I have a delicate stomach, but I’m going to have to give this a half squashed pumpkin. I know that some people will love this series. It’s not without its humor. It’s playful and there isn’t a boring moment in any of the episode I watched. But… it’s gross and I highly recommend that you don’t watch these shows while eating.

With all that said, do give it a try, especially if you are the type who likes to play with your food. Click the image above to give it a go and have fun!

From Peru to Peru

Danielle Turner — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 05:14:41 +0000

From Peru to Peru is a Webby nominated documentary short that tells the story of a bus load of Peruvians, from the country of Peru (this needed to be stated), show up in the city center of Peru, Nevada. Their mission is to expose these Peruvians of Nevada to the culture and lifestyle of Peruvians from the country of Peru. It’s a playful attempt to share their South American culture with all of us, this documentary’s audience.

The documentary starts by sharing food, then dance and, after, play. These “foreign” Peruvians even manage to convince the local Peru, Nevada sheriff from giving up his doughnuts for a taste traditional Peruvian pastry.

This is a heart warming film that celebrates culture, humanity and friendships. It’s about people being people, loving people. It’s gently funny with a full length smile throughout the entire film. Watch it. It will make you feel good. Click the image above and prepare for a warm tingly side effect. This gets a big fat full sized pumpkin.

TELLY Awards

Danielle Turner — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 04:12:57 +0000

This year boasts the 34th annual TELLY awards. These awards celebrate and honor groundbreaking online video content, among other video talent on cable and regional television. If you think you have an online film or series that deserves a TELLY award judge’s eye, make your entry fast. Final entry deadline is March 1, 2013. Best of luck. I’ll keep you all posted on the next winners of this fine award. Click the image below to go to the TELLY Awards official website.

Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee

Danielle Turner — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 05:58:04 +0000

“Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” is a web series staring Jerry Seinfeld. The series is generally a talk show where Jerry Seinfeld has a chat with a guest comedian or comic actor, over coffee or even a full meal. Each episode cleverly opens with Seinfeld introducing a car, which could be a Rolls Royce or an old junker that looks like it’s got one more run on the road before kicking the bucket. With the car of the episode, he picks up his comedic guest and cruises on over to a location where they eat, drink and chat.

This show is true to the Jerry Seinfeld style; simple, consistent, clever. It’s tightly paced and funnier than hell. Seinfeld seems to have found another talent. He’s quite skilled in the fine art of interviewing. He manages to ask simple, discrete questions of his guests that manage to get them to reveal some of the most personal and engaging stories about themselves and their lives.

This series is an absolute MUST SEE! If I could give this show TWO unsquashed pumpkins, I would. It’s that good. Click the image above to start watching and have a blast!

Back in the Saddle again!

Danielle Turner — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 05:25:25 +0000

I must apologize for such a long stint of no entries. It can get difficult balancing running a company with finding enough free time to continue hobbies, such as this enjoyable blog. I am excited about all the production work I’m enjoying with both my corporate clients and my indie films. I’m working on two films right now: A documentary about public art (it’s been going on for a long time) and a short fiction film called “The Misery of Willow”. I’ll talk more about each of those projects as time moves on and they progress.

In the mean time, I’m thrilled to get back to reviewing online original shows.My first review, after this hiatus, is of a Seinfeld web series called “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee”. The internet has truly achieved a new level of respect as a serious medium for broadcasting entertainment when Jerry Seinfeld and Sony Pictures Television invests their time and money in an original web series. Exciting!

Streamy Awards

Danielle Turner — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 21:13:09 +0000

Online viewership is growing in leaps and bounds. And it’s not just streaming TV shows that are being watched. The web has become the perfect broadcaster for originally produced indie series – from info-shows to good old fashioned entertainment.

In fact, online original programming has risen so high on the internet that an award ceremony has been fashioned to celebrate the successes of this new venue for programming. It’s called the Streamy Awards. Better titles could have been chosen for this award, in my opinion, but it is getting tons of attention. It’s even being taken very seriously by Hollywood and it’s celebrities.

(click this image to see who won the 2010 Streamy awards)