Dec 18 2017

Episode 105 – Dog Day Afternoon

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Dog Day AfternoonWe continue our focus on crime films with a look at Dog Day Afternoon. John Cazale and Al Pacino star in this look at a bank robbery that goes both comically and tragically wrong. Based on a true story but filled with impressive improvised scenes, the movie represents Pacino at the height of his movie star powers. Jason Kruger joins us to watch the film and he knows, basically, nothing about it at all. If you are like Jason, it is time for you to give this movie a look!

Next up, we will finally watch Pulp Fiction!

The Sting (1973)
The Sting poster Rating: 8.2/10 (295,064 votes)
Director: George Roy Hill
Writer: David S. Ward
Stars: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Robert Shaw
Runtime: 129 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Released: 25 Dec 1973
Plot: Two grifters team up to pull off the ultimate con.

Nov 15 2017

Episode 104 – The Sting

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The StingSemi-regular guest newbie Barb Lind is back and this week, we are watching The Sting with Robert Redford and Paul Newman! The film has lots of twists and turns and if you enjoy that sort of thing, we’d recommend watching the movie before you listen to the second half of the podcast.  We actually always recommend that but in this case, you may well be sorry if you decide to skip into the spoiler filled portion of the episode without taking the time to watch the movie first. This Oscar winner for best picture is a lot of fun and if you’ve never seen it, be like Barb and fix that immediately!

Next up, we continue our movie crime spree with Dog Day Afternoon!

The Sting (1973)
The Sting poster Rating: 8.2/10 (295,064 votes)
Director: George Roy Hill
Writer: David S. Ward
Stars: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Robert Shaw
Runtime: 129 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Released: 25 Dec 1973
Plot: Two grifters team up to pull off the ultimate con.

Nov 01 2017

Episode 103 – The Godfather

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Our next series of films is going to be the crime series and we start with one of the most classic movies about American gangsters you can find, The Godfather!  Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Talia Shire, James Caan, Robert Duvall and…you get the idea. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, this film is genuinely iconic. Even if you haven’t seen this movie, you’ve probably seen several dozen parodies of the film. Our newbie and sometime regular Barb Lind had somehow never seen the movie so we treat her to a first time with the Corleones.

Next up, we continue with he crime theme as we watch The Sting.

The Godfather (1972)
The Godfather poster Rating: 9.2/10 (2,169,748 votes)
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Writer: Mario Puzo, Francis Ford Coppola
Stars: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan
Runtime: 175 min
Rated: R
Genre: Crime, Drama
Released: 24 Mar 1972
Plot: The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.

Oct 15 2017

Episode 102 – Layer Cake

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Layer CakeWe have reached the end of our James Bond Odyssey as we take a look at the film that is, effectively, Daniel Craig’s audition for the role. Layer Cake is a movie clearly influenced with the works of Guy Richie and Quentin Tarantino.  It makes sense, of course, because director Matthew Vaughn produced some of Guy Richie’s earlier work. Barb Lind joins us to delve into this film that has a few problems but is a heck of a lot of fun.

Next up, Barb will return to watch The Godfather

Layer Cake (2004)
Layer Cake poster Rating: 7.2/10 (204,919 votes)
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Writer: J.J. Connolly
Stars: Daniel Craig, Sienna Miller, Michael Gambon
Runtime: 105 min
Rated: R
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Released: 03 Jun 2005
Plot: A successful cocaine dealer gets two tough assignments from his boss on the eve of his planned early retirement.

Oct 01 2017

Episode 101 – Casino Royale

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Casino Royale

Our Bond cycle is now complete as we watch the first outing for Daniel Craig.  Casino Royale was the first re-boot of the Bond franchise although it held over Dame Judi Dench as M. Craig takes over James Bond and pulls the franchise in a direction that helps us understand a little bit about why Bond is the way we all expect him to be.  Chrys VanDerKamp joins us one last time to see if Mr. Craig can rock the suit and the Walther PPK as well as the actors who have come before him.  Spoiler alert: There is no skiing.

Next up, we follow Daniel Craig to Layer Cake!

Casino Royale (2006)
Casino Royale poster Rating: 8.0/10 (726,077 votes)
Director: Martin Campbell
Writer: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, Paul Haggis
Stars: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench
Runtime: 144 min
Rated: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
Released: 17 Nov 2006
Plot: After earning a licence to kill, secret agent James Bond sets out on his first mission as 007. Bond must defeat a private banker funding terrorists in a high-stakes game of poker at Casino Royale, in Montenegro.

Sep 15 2017

Episode 100 – The Matador

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The MatadorHey there!  We said our 100th episode was going to be Star Wars but it isn’t.  That’s a long story and we’ll tell it to you someday.  Instead, we are joined by Barb Lind to watch The Matador featuring Pierce Brosnan!  Brosnan took on this role shortly after his final Bond film and it is a nearly perfect deconstruction of the Bond persona.  The film also features Greg Kinnear as a perfect foil for Brosnan’s foul mouthed assassin.  The soundtrack is also pretty fantastic.  So we’re sorry about Star Wars but we hope you watch this film because it is delightful!

Next up, we will be watching Casino Royale!

The Matador (2005)
The Matador poster Rating: 6.7/10 (46,974 votes)
Director: Richard Shepard
Writer: Richard Shepard
Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Greg Kinnear, Hope Davis
Runtime: 96 min
Rated: R
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Thriller
Released: 27 Jan 2006
Plot: A globetrotting hitman and a crestfallen businessman meet in a hotel bar in Mexico City in an encounter that draws them together in a way neither expected.

Aug 15 2017

Episode 99 – Goldeneye

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GoldeneyeWe are back on the James Bond train as we introduce our guest Chrys VanDerKamp to the Pierce Brosnan film, Goldeneye!  This was Brosnan’s first outing as Bond and may be one of the most enjoyable Bond films of the storied franchise.  There are better Bond films but this one is an awful lot of fun.  It is also the first Bond film to be set after the collapse of the Soviet Union so there are some interesting shifts in tone when it comes to the relationship with Russia.  Bresnan would go on to make three more films as Bond, two of which were not very good.  He always made a great Bond, though, as this film shows.

Up next, we are recording our 100th episode and we’ll be taking a break from our Bond series to show Star Wars to someone who has never seen the film!

GoldenEye (1995)
GoldenEye poster Rating: 7.2/10 (279,746 votes)
Director: Martin Campbell
Writer: Ian Fleming, Michael France, Jeffrey Caine
Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Izabella Scorupco
Runtime: 130 min
Rated: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
Released: 17 Nov 1995
Plot: When a powerful secret defense system is stolen, James Bond is assigned to stop a Russian crime syndicate from using it.

Aug 01 2017

Episode 98 – Hot Fuzz

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Hot FuzzThis episode, we are following Timothy Dalton from James Bond to the Edgar Wright/Simon Pegg comedy Hot Fuzz!  Bob Alberti joins us as our unsuspecting victim.  While he has co-written a play that features a character obsessed with Hot Fuzz, he has, until now, never seen it!  The film is a clever parody and homage to buddy cop movies that is delightfully over the top.  Timothy Dalton seems to be loving his role in this film and the film is packed with many well known British character actors.  You should definitely watch the movie before you listen!

Next up, we will return to James Bond as Pierce Brosnan gets his chance in Goldeneye!

Hot Fuzz (2007)
Hot Fuzz poster Rating: 7.8/10 (557,168 votes)
Director: Edgar Wright
Writer: Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg
Stars: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Martin Freeman
Runtime: 121 min
Rated: R
Genre: Action, Comedy, Mystery
Released: 20 Apr 2007
Plot: An overachieving London police sergeant is transferred to a village where the easygoing officers object to his fervor for regulations, all while a string of grisly murders strikes the town.

Jul 15 2017

Episode 97 – The Living Daylights

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The Living DaylightsWe return to our James Bond series with the first of only two Bond outings by Timothy Dalton – The Living Daylights! Chrys VanDerKamp returns as our guest to decide for herself where Dalton falls in the “who is the best Bond” debate.  Tim and Melissa are both Dalton apologists as he is frequently viewed as one of the worst actors to play the role (but he’s no George Lazenby).  We talk about why we think Dalton is underrated in the role and also why everyone disagrees on which Dalton film is the best.  Melissa prefers this one.  Tim prefers License To Kill.  Melissa won…this time!

Next up – we are going to follow Timothy Dalton to Hot Fuzz!

The Living Daylights (1987)
The Living Daylights poster Rating: 6.7/10 (111,599 votes)
Director: John Glen
Writer: Richard Maibaum, Michael G. Wilson, Ian Fleming
Stars: Timothy Dalton, Maryam d'Abo, Jeroen Krabbé
Runtime: 130 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
Released: 31 Jul 1987
Plot: James Bond is sent to investigate a KGB policy to kill all enemy spies, and uncovers an arms deal that potentially has major global ramifications.

Jul 01 2017

Episode 96 – The Cannonball Run

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Cannonball RunThis episode, we follow the late Sir Roger Moore from his first turn as James Bond to a film where he basically plays himself playing James Bond.  Cannonball Run is a film by Hal Needham starring Burt Reynolds and Farrah Fawcett and – honestly – almost every other actor from the seventies you’ve ever heard of.  Also, there are actors from before the seventies.  And there’s also Jackie Chan.  Because why the hell not? The film is a crazy mess of silly fun filled with some embarrassingly dated racial humor.  We are joined by Kelvin Hatle who has, amazingly, never seen the film before.

Next up, we go back to James Bond and watch Timothy Dalton take on The Living Daylights

The Cannonball Run (1981)
The Cannonball Run poster Rating: 6.2/10 (42,437 votes)
Director: Hal Needham
Writer: Brock Yates
Stars: Burt Reynolds, Roger Moore, Farrah Fawcett
Runtime: 95 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Action, Comedy, Sport
Released: 19 Jun 1981
Plot: A wide variety of eccentric competitors participate in a wild and illegal cross-country road race. However, the eccentric entrants will do anything to win the road race, including low-down, dirty tricks.