Touches You

the audience applauded

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Ringmaster (1998) * (out of 4)Horrid movie about a bunch of trash going onto a television show hosted by Jerry Springer in order to air their dirty laundry. The main guests are a mother (Molly Hagan) who learns that her daughter (Jaime Pressley) is sleeping with her husband (daughter's stepdad). I'm sure there are many people who hate the original Springer show so they'd actually sit through this movie just so they could tell everyone how bad it was. That's not me because I'll admit that I used to get a kick out of watching the show when I was a teenager but having not seen an episode in ages and then revisited it via this movie, I do wonder what I was thinking. However, I'm really not going to hold this movie against the show but I think it proves that the trash on it can be tolerated in 10-minute segments but whenever you try to stretch those stories into a full feature the results can be disastrous. What really killed this movie isn't that it's trash but it's the fact that nothing fun ever happens. The entire group of characters are just boring stereotypes who do just about everything you'd expect them to do. The white trash come to L.A. to get on the show and then the mom and daughter start trying to sleep with a black man from Detroit who is on the show because he cheated on his girlfriend. His other girlfriend and lover then get mad at the white girls and so goes even more fighting. I will admit that a couple of the one-liners are good but as a whole this is just a really poor movie. The performances by Pressly and Hagan are actually good and they do bring some life to the characters but there's simply nothing there. RINGMASTER is a perfect example of a major screw-up.

I will admit that I have seen maybe five minutes of "Jerry Springer". I don't consider myself a snob, but I really think that I am above watching what's on his show. You should try to elevate yourself above that too.I saw this movie as part of a social studies event I was conducting. I was told that this movie really had little to do with Springer himself, rather it centered on the lives of those who would appear on "Springer." Handled better, this movie might have actually been a fascinating look at how pathetic these people's lives actually are. I will admit, I felt a twinge of empathy for Connie (Molly Hagan). This is all she has in life. How sad that she feels she must go on Jerry's show in order to resolve this.I really feel sorry for Molly Hagan appearing in this. Have you noticed that after this movie, she has mainly been relegated to "B" roles on TV? I will say this about Hagan. She is an extremely beautiful and intelligent woman. I have no doubt that she is very earnest in her acting and she tries to play her roles with a lot of empathy. The problem is that Hagan can't carry a scene on her own. She just doesn't have what it takes to do a lead role. Her best work will always be Angel on "Herman's Head" (a show that was not great, but its heart was in the right place) and when she guested on "Seinfeld" as Sister Roberta.

Let me start by saying it's not THAT bad. It's in no way Oscar material of course, but it is not horrible. It's the type of stupid comedy that makes you roll your eyes and laugh at the same time. I'm a huge fan of the "Scary Movie" series, although I and no doubt everyone else who has seen those movies will agree they are inherently stupid. This movie is pretty much the same thing, except based on the "Jerry Springer" show. What separates this movie from the show is the "behind-the-scenes" look at a group of people slated to appear on the show, including white trash duo and mother and daughter Connie (Molly Hagan) and Angel (Jaime Pressly), Detroit "sistas" Starletta (Wendy Robinson), Vonda (Tangie Ambrose) and Leshawnette (Nicki Micheaux) and Startletta's unfaithful boyfriend Demond (Michael Jai White). Several points in the movie make (or attempt to make) you feel pity for these characters, but not in the way it was intended, I don't think. Towards the end of the movie, Jerry has this big long monologue about how people eat up the troubles of celebrities but when it comes to poor people, they can't digest it as well. I was more compelled to feel sorry for these characters for their "great unwashed" status rather than the problems they faced themselves. So, overall, I thought the movie was quite entertaining (although stupid), but fans of the actual show (which I am not) might not find it as satisfying, because the movie contains several moments that are serious and try to teach a deeper lesson that may seem out of place with the usual hijinks.

There is only one reason to watch this pathetic piece of trash and that's......Jaime Pressly!! Oh my god this woman is beautiful, sexy, hot, breathtaking, gorgeous, etc. This was the first movie I saw her in and as soon as it was done I ran out and bought Poison Ivy 3.Jaime's pressence alone is deserving of one star. Aside from the hottest woman in Hollywood there isn't one other aspect of the movie even worth mentioning. Run away....far away......aaaaaahhhhhrrrrrggg!!!!!