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Post by Patcat on Nov 1, 2006 9:28:40 GMT -5
I think Goren's heart and mind may be divided, but they're definitely focused on his work--both he and Eames thought there was something wrong with Fife's testimony and both argued strongly for further investigation. Aside from his confrontations with Ross, I though Goren reasonably steady last night.
Eames was really sharp with her remarks last night, though.
It seems to me that Ross is very tough with his detectives in private; in public, however, he's very supportive.
Patcat
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Post by musicwench on Nov 1, 2006 10:30:15 GMT -5
Loved last night's episode! I thought it was well done and was very impressed with Liza Minelli's performance.
I also believe when Goren and Eames both showed up at Beth's door, they were both showing up to question her. I don't believe they were expecting dinner either. Probably they had Goren call her to say he needed to speak to her again, she was delighted and prepared dinner and then when he showed up with Eames she was surprised because she was expecting him alone. I thought Eames made a split second decision to leave and the look Goren gave her was one of "gee, thanks for leaving me alone with her and thanks for the snarky remark about calling 'if' I need ride later." Fast thinking and great move on the part of Eames, IMO.
Loved the twists to the episode. I really thought at the beginning they were going to pin it on Beth.
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Post by mikeyrocks on Nov 1, 2006 10:48:42 GMT -5
Thanks for the info. on the young actor in this episode sobergal95 - Great insights on the episode as well.
I haven't had the chance to chat with you yet - So welcome to the board - it really is a wonderful place. Full of interesting and thought provoking discussion. I Look forward to chatting with you sometime ;D
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mimi
Detective
Posts: 231
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Post by mimi on Nov 1, 2006 11:20:38 GMT -5
I can't say I really liked the episode. Too close to the real story. Not much nuance there! I prefer when they take a real story and bring it on another tangent and, better yet, when they mix several stories to make one. Not sure who I was more creeped out by - Fiff or Nate. Beth is the one who creeped me out the most. With her 3inches thick makeup, she brought the title to an all new level. I wasn't convince by Minelli's acting, I had a sense she was playing herself instead of the character. It rang phony to me. I can't say I like the home movie "flashbacks" either. I could tolerate one or two times, because it served a purpose, but it was brought back too many times and lost its impact. I'm beginning to see a pattern that the murders are becoming a pretext to bring out the relationships between the characters or between a character and oneself; which is great shift for a series to take, but in the CI's case might be a little too late to flow well. It was done early on with shows like House and Six Feet Under where respectively, the disease and the solving of the disease are now excuses to watch House interact with his team, Wilson, Cuddy the patient or himself; and the dying character and the way he/she died was the thread that binded the episode. Again, in this episode the writing team might be preparing us to Mamma Goren's arrival with the "I know the type" in reply of the "self-medicating" comment.
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Post by Metella on Nov 1, 2006 11:30:03 GMT -5
From what I remember of Liza - she was vibrant and different than this character and under that framework; I thought she did a great job of the good but weird and needy mother.
I didn't like the homevid flashbacks - but I think they went with the story - so I see they had a purpose and also reflected the ad-nausium flashbacks we got with the real story - they almost made Jon-Bonet seem unreal - seeing her so many time in her onstage persona.
I had the neighbor as my "person of interest" from the start.
! Righteous ! no stalker cam.
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Post by sarahlee on Nov 1, 2006 11:39:21 GMT -5
Sarahlee,I enjoy your phrase "blush of expressions" . [glow=red,2,300] [shadow=red,left,300]Why, thankyou! [/shadow][/glow]
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Post by lisianthus on Nov 1, 2006 11:54:36 GMT -5
Eames wasn't the one to call the rookie cop 'emotional'. She stated that when she entered the Academy a year after this case, the rookie female cop was held up as an example of why women weren't good cops, making it more difficult for every woman thereafter. She had her disgust at the 'boys club', disgust at the Academy, and disgust at the rookie who made it harder for every woman after that to be a cop. After talking with the rookie about the case, hearing reasons behind the decisions, Eames had more resecpt for her.
I hope that says what I wanted it to....
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Post by Summerfield on Nov 1, 2006 12:09:34 GMT -5
This was a good solid episode. Liza Minnelli was terrific. I had worries she would play a caricature of herself or at least one of those overwrought "stage mothers." Her portrayal of a lonely grieving woman was perfect. The fact she was willing to forgive Jamie showed what a loving mother she was and could have been to Amberleigh. I was left with the feeling she would take Jamie under her wing after the episode ended?
Funny, I thought that our Goren was back! Granted there were a few scenes he looked a little puffy, but the majority of the show he was on. It would be contrary to behave animated and lively given the nature of the crime.
I was reminded of the father in "Cold Comfort." Nate would sacrifice his own son for his own greedy purposes. Shame on him. While they explored mother and father issues again, Mother Goren and "my old man, the cop" weren't mentioned. Yay!
Goren and Simon in the interrogation was really creepy but so well done, so subdued. Imagine Stabler in that same scene. Bravo to the director and the actors! Did anyone notice the lighting technique during that scene? Symbolism?
Final thought: What's with Goren plying alcohol to witnesses/suspects? That seemed out of character.
Oops, forgot the orange juice. We see the orange juice commercial and then cut to Simon eating a hot dog and sipping orange juice. Am I looking for something that isn't there?
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Post by Summerfield on Nov 1, 2006 12:28:09 GMT -5
My apologies, but I couldn't figure out what Beth was singing while preparing that chicken. Suddenly "Blame It on The Shangi Chicken" popped into my head.
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Post by caseyswife on Nov 1, 2006 13:08:06 GMT -5
I just rewatched this episode and I have to agree with Summerfield - I thought Goren was "back" in this episode more than any other so far this season. From shoving the guy in the airport to poking around Beth's house, from arguing with Ross and interacting in the interrogation scenes with Fife and Jaime and having dinner with Beth... I thought he was in fine form. And they seemed to have calmed down a bit on the whole tie thing, so that was a relief. (Not that I don't like Bobby tieless, but you know what I mean. ) And I also like your observation about Ross, Patcat. He may challenge his detectives in the squadroom, but he doesn't take it public or make it an issue outside of the office. Good choice. caseyswife
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Post by NikkiGreen on Nov 1, 2006 13:41:34 GMT -5
From zap2it, Liza underplays on 'Criminal Intent'. SeriouslyI thought that LM was really good. Sounded like her Mama in some parts. I really liked the part where Beth was getting ready for her 'dinner date' with Goren. ;D Otherwise, the episode was 'meh'.
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Post by Techguy on Nov 1, 2006 14:16:47 GMT -5
Did anyone else catch Goren saying a phrase in Vietnamese at the airport?
I admit I had concerns going in that the all-too obvious resemblance to the JonBenet Ramsey case, and the casting of tabloid fodder Liza Minnelli as the stage mother, would push "Masquerade" over the line into cheap self-parody. However, the twists and turns in the plot, plus Ms. Minnelli's understated performance as the grieving stage mother Beth, were sufficient to overcome my reservations.
Although I could have done without the repeated showings of Amberleigh in her harem Halloween costume, I was pleased with the total absence of a stalker cam. And as the plot wore on, I eliminated almost all the suspects one by one. Simon Henry Fife is too much like the real John Mark Karr. If Beth were the guilty one it would have come across as a cheap shot against JonBenet's now-deceased mother Patsy. And Nate's son Jamie is too much like Michael Skakel in the Martha Moxley case so I eventually eliminated him too. So unless CI pulled a rabbit suspect out of the hat at the last minute, I knew it had to be Nate. What kept me riveted was how and why he killed Amberleigh, and how Goren was going to nail him.
Ms. Minnelli is touching and completely sympathetic as Beth, trapped in time and still unable to forget how she denied her daughter one more piece of candy on the night she died. And Bill Irwin is creepily and eerily effective as the enabler Nate Royce who has his own secrets and personal agenda to protect. Goren and Eames are on top of their game, unburdened by personal melodrama, and focused on doing right by the NYPD to get to the bottom of Amberleigh's murder. Ross is confrontational when necessary and supportive when needed. And Nancy Grace--oops, I mean Geneva Carr as Faith Yancy--shows up again at just the right moments, oozing sleaze and self-righteous egomania.
"Masquerade" is a very good episode, one of the better offerings so far in Season 6.
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effie
Detective
off chasing plot bunnies...
Posts: 264
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Post by effie on Nov 1, 2006 15:22:20 GMT -5
The closed captioning had something like "speaking Chinese" when Goren was talking to the girl behind that tiki hut counter in the opening ... but since Ross talked about "Vietnamese sewer" we can assume that the cc people were just confused (it happens a lot).
Had to take a moment to run the scenario in my head when Goren said to Fife "we weren't briefed, we just found out an hour before we left" etc... Imagine showing up at work, getting a call, and having the fly halfway around the world and back just to pick up some perp. That's a lot of time on a plane!!
Rough day at the office dear? And did anyone else think Eames looked lonely sitting by herself on the other side of the aisle. But then, the tradeoff is I guess, she gets to drive, Goren gets to ride with the perps. :0) At least she had a magazine to read.
Still up in the air about whether she expected to be invited in for dinner or not. When discussing Beth earlier, she was all about it being Goren to talk to her as she was all googly eyed at him, so it's hard to say. I could see it going either way, but I kept wondering where she was going to go to wait to see if he called her to come and pick him up. Depending where in Brooklyn Beth lives it could be on her way home, but maybe not. And unless Beth obliged, how the heck else was he going to get home?!
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Post by Patcat on Nov 1, 2006 15:23:38 GMT -5
Bill Irwin commits to everything he does--a brilliant mime and clown.
The thing that makes Goren and Eames great detectives is not only their intellects (which are both considerable), but that they follow the evidence to its conclusions. As much as they can, they attempt to keep their own prejudices out of the equation and refuse to allow anyone or anything to push them into making a decision.
Patcat
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effie
Detective
off chasing plot bunnies...
Posts: 264
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Post by effie on Nov 1, 2006 15:25:46 GMT -5
Too true, Pat, about Bill Irwin. He didn't have a lot to do in the episode, but he made the most of it, and I LOVED that he would NOT look at Beth at the end when she kept asking him to.
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