Steven Helmer Publications

Here are some random thoughts I had after re-watching Star Wars for what was probably the thousandth time: What was the point of lying to Luke? I get keeping secrets when Luke ( Mark Hamill ) was a child but a warning about who his father was would have had him much better prepared and at very least, would have helped him understand why his Uncle Owen (Phil Brown) was so reluctant to let him leave. Are runaway droids a problem on Tatooine? The Jawa's main source of income comes from re-selling unclaimed droids which is only a good business model if there are a lot of them just wandering the desert. Not to mention the decision to put restraining bolts on them to keep them under control. Are they sentient enough to realize they are being used as slaves and seek freedom at every opportunity? Overall, Princess Leia takes the destruction of her home planet and the loss of her family surprisingly well. Did Leia ( Carrie Fisher ) even take the time to mourn them after the Death Star was ...

Synopsis: Rich miser Ebenezer Scrooge hates Christmas and his fellow man. On the night of Christmas Eve, he is visited by the ghost of his dead business partner, Jacob Marley, who warns Scrooge of three spirits that will visit him during the night in an attempt to convince him to change his ways before it is too late. Who's in it? The movie stars Albert Finney , Alec Guinness , Kenneth More and Edith Evans. Review: I wasn’t really planning on watching any Christmas movies yesterday afternoon. However, I couldn’t find anything good on TV and, since it had been a long while since I saw Scrooge , I decided to give it a chance. For the most part, I didn't regret that decision. In all honesty, as a musical, this movie does lack a little something. The songs just weren’t that catchy and made the movie drag on a bit more than I normally prefer. In fact, I don’t think they added a whole lot to the film in general and it probably would have been slightly better had the writers just ...

Synopsis: Five famous private detectives and their sidekicks are invited to dine with an eccentric millionaire who challenges them to solve a yet-to-be-committed murder by daylight. When their host turns out to be the victim, the detectives suspect each other and, before they can solve the crime, must survive the night. Who's in it? The movie stars Peter Falk , Truman Capote , Eileen Brennan , Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers. Review: I have known about this movie for some time and have had it on my "must watch" list. I finally had an opportunity to do so this week and, after finally finishing it this morning, I have to say I feel a bit let down. I didn't hate it. It just wasn't as good as I was expecting. I think the big attraction, to me, was the number of recognizable stars that were in this film. I figured, with so many comedy geniuses, there was no way for this movie to be a disappointment. Unfortunately, that didn't turn out to be the case. A lot of t...