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Informed film discussion for the unrefined connoisseur.
Episodes
Sunday Jan 29, 2017
Sunday Jan 29, 2017
The Criterion Collection, the last vestige of truly collectible DVD and Blu-Ray movies in existence. These are well produced, fancy pants editions of important and interesting films for the discerning film lover.
We continue our journey through Jim's collection of movies with...
It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
Spine Number: 692
Director: Stanley Kramer
Genre: Comedy
The thing about the movie business is that it's a business. As much as we love the artistry and the beauty of what they produce, at the end of the day, movies are a business. And as much as we may want to make that business about art, it is, was, and every will be about money. That's not a bad thing, but it does explain some things.
Throughout the history of the industry there has been a figt for an audience. Be it against TV, streamig, video games, whatever, the industry has always been fighting to stay relevant. This has given us amazing things like super wide screen formats, and foolish wastes of time, like 3D (over and over again).
One of these attempts was the string of EPIC films back in the day. Normally, they were big on spectacle and budget. The idea was to create an experience that could no tbe replicated at home.
This weeks movie, Stanley Kramer's, "It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World," took the idea of EPIC and applied it to comedy and decided to spend it's sizeable budget on EVERY SINGLE COMEDIAN ALIVE AT THE TIME, or so it seemed. Sid Ceasar, Milton Berle, Buddy Hackett, Jonathan Winters, Carl Riener, Phil Silvers, Buster Keaton, The Three Stooges, and many, many more all appear in this... I guess "romp," is the only appropriate term.
However, this movie completely belongs to Dick Shawn.
It's a good time. There is no denying that. This is a fun movie, and as long as you don't take any time to stop and realize that there are no sympathetic characters, and that pretty much everyone is either dead or badly maimed by the end... it's still a very good time.
So, enjot an old school, mad cap adventure, won't you?
Next week,
Spine number 696:Foreign Correspondent
Also, check this out.
The Life Masters is now it's own show with its own site and own dedicated feed. That's right, we have two completely different shows!
Right now check it out at www.thelifemasters.podbean.com.
You can also drink in our brilliance on Youtube for both The Film Thugs and The Life Masters.
http://fantasymovieleague.com/
Looks like Summer Movie League has officially become Fantasy Movie League.
It looks quite fun. Here's how it works.
You have an 8 screen theater.
Every week you pick movies and have a budget/salary cap you have to stay under.
Then you compete against other theaters in your league.
It's fantasy football for movie people.
Our league is Film Thugs 2015 and the password is Porterhouse.
And remember, you can be a part of the show any time you wild like. How's that? All you have to do is call or e-mail us. If you live in the US, or any place that makes calling the US easy, just dial 512-666-RANT and leave us a voicemail. We will read the Google Voice transcript and play your message. It's both funny AND informative.
If you live outside the US you can call us on Skype at The_Film_Thugs. You can leave a message, or someone might actually answer.
E-mail us at thefilmthugs@gmail.com and we will read/play whatever you send us, or you can e-mail thugquestions@gmail.com to be part of an upcoming "Ask the Film Thugs" show, where we answer questions on any subject without having heard them first.
Also, we are on twitter @thefilmthugs and on Facebook and Vine.
Also, be sure to check back often for our new endeavor The Life Masters, where we answer questions to other advice columnists.
Thanks for listening, and until next week...
Sunday Jan 22, 2017
Sunday Jan 22, 2017
The Criterion Collection, the last vestige of truly collectible DVD and Blu-Ray movies in existence. These are well produced, fancy pants editions of important and interesting films for the discerning film lover.
We continue our journey through Jim's collection of movies with...
Thief
Spine Number: 691
Director: Michael Mann
Genre: Heist
Michael Mann is in that rare club of directors with a first film that is not only far better than any first feature has the right to be, but also whose first film shows their style fully formed. Few people have figured out how to shoot at night as well as Mann (hint, wet streets), or make shadows against deep blue look as striking, or to present focused anti-hero protagonists with an uncompromising moral code as deftly.
In short, Michael Mann is a bad ass, and his first film "Thief," shows it.
James Caan stars as Frank, an ex con who pulls carefully planned heists while maintaining the facade of a local business owner. In his quest to have a normal life, the normal life he has no real life guide to, he decides to pull a job for a syndicate and get the big payday he needs to walk away.
But things never go that easily, do they?
Everything about this movie is bad ass. The music by Tangeriene Dream, the use of Chicago at night, the cast (including Tuesday Weld, Jim Belushi, and Willie Nelson himself) are all pitch perfect.
Hell, even the original poster is so incredible that it makes Criterion's decision to change it all the more baffling,
I mean... my DAMN!
So, if you haven't checked out this masterpiece yet, do yourself a favor and get on it. If you have, then enjoy it with us again.
Also, the soundtrack to this episode is provided by Zombi, so check them out as well.
Next week,
Spine number 692: It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
Also, check this out.
The Life Masters is now it's own show with its own site and own dedicated feed. That's right, we have two completely different shows!
Right now check it out at www.thelifemasters.podbean.com.
You can also drink in our brilliance on Youtube for both The Film Thugs and The Life Masters.
http://fantasymovieleague.com/
Looks like Summer Movie League has officially become Fantasy Movie League.
It looks quite fun. Here's how it works.
You have an 8 screen theater.
Every week you pick movies and have a budget/salary cap you have to stay under.
Then you compete against other theaters in your league.
It's fantasy football for movie people.
Our league is Film Thugs 2015 and the password is Porterhouse.
And remember, you can be a part of the show any time you wild like. How's that? All you have to do is call or e-mail us. If you live in the US, or any place that makes calling the US easy, just dial 512-666-RANT and leave us a voicemail. We will read the Google Voice transcript and play your message. It's both funny AND informative.
If you live outside the US you can call us on Skype at The_Film_Thugs. You can leave a message, or someone might actually answer.
E-mail us at thefilmthugs@gmail.com and we will read/play whatever you send us, or you can e-mail thugquestions@gmail.com to be part of an upcoming "Ask the Film Thugs" show, where we answer questions on any subject without having heard them first.
Also, we are on twitter @thefilmthugs and on Facebook and Vine.
Also, be sure to check back often for our new endeavor The Life Masters, where we answer questions to other advice columnists.
Thanks for listening, and until next week...
Sunday Jan 15, 2017
Sunday Jan 15, 2017
The Criterion Collection, the last vestige of truly collectible DVD and Blu-Ray movies in existence. These are well produced, fancy pants editions of important and interesting films for the discerning film lover.
We continue our journey through Jim's collection of movies with...
The Devil's Backbone
Spine Number: 666
Director: Guillermo Del Toro
Genre: Horror
"“If there isn’t a monster on the call sheet, I don’t show up for work.”
-Guillermo Del Toro
There are few directors who have a love of film and filmmaking that is evident in every frame of their work. I'm not talking about care or dedication to the art, I'm talking about the kind of love that most of us lose when we grow up. That unadultered, childlike joy and wonder that adults normally don't hold on to, for whatever reason.
Guillermo Del Toro is one of those directors. His absolute love of what he does permeates every image. His stories, no matter how grounded in real life, all have a fantastical element that you cannot create without giving your heart over to the process.
Even a movie as dead serious, and... let's be honest, as much of a downer as "The Devil's Backbone," could only be made by someone who loves what they do.
The subject matter is a bit... well, it's about a boy coming to an orphanage during the final days of the Spanish Civil War and uncovering disturbing secrets. Oh, and there is a ghost.
This movie isn't so much scary as it is creepy, and creepy is way worse. The way movies use scary these days is just cheap, quick jump scares that have no build up and no follow through that leave you just as quickly as they arrived.
But creepy... creepy builds and gnaws at you. It in the room the entire time. Creepy... that's the way to do it.
Creepy also takes time. The kind of time you can only dedicate if you love doing it. And, Del Toro LOVES doing it.
This is an absolute stand out of a movie. It's a simple, effective story, that utilizes everything from performance to lighting to setting flawlessly to create an amazing experience.
Check it out with us, won't you?
Next week,
Spine number 691: Thief
Also, check this out.
The Life Masters is now it's own show with its own site and own dedicated feed. That's right, we have two completely different shows!
Right now check it out at www.thelifemasters.podbean.com.
You can also drink in our brilliance on Youtube for both The Film Thugs and The Life Masters.
http://fantasymovieleague.com/
Looks like Summer Movie League has officially become Fantasy Movie League.
It looks quite fun. Here's how it works.
You have an 8 screen theater.
Every week you pick movies and have a budget/salary cap you have to stay under.
Then you compete against other theaters in your league.
It's fantasy football for movie people.
Our league is Film Thugs 2015 and the password is Porterhouse.
And remember, you can be a part of the show any time you wild like. How's that? All you have to do is call or e-mail us. If you live in the US, or any place that makes calling the US easy, just dial 512-666-RANT and leave us a voicemail. We will read the Google Voice transcript and play your message. It's both funny AND informative.
If you live outside the US you can call us on Skype at The_Film_Thugs. You can leave a message, or someone might actually answer.
E-mail us at thefilmthugs@gmail.com and we will read/play whatever you send us, or you can e-mail thugquestions@gmail.com to be part of an upcoming "Ask the Film Thugs" show, where we answer questions on any subject without having heard them first.
Also, we are on twitter @thefilmthugs and on Facebook and Vine.
Also, be sure to check back often for our new endeavor The Life Masters, where we answer questions to other advice columnists.
Thanks for listening, and until next week...
Sunday Jan 08, 2017
Sunday Jan 08, 2017
The Criterion Collection, the last vestige of truly collectible DVD and Blu-Ray movies in existence. These are well produced, fancy pants editions of important and interesting films for the discerning film lover.
We continue our journey through Jim's collection of movies with...
Safety Last
Spine Number: 662
Director: Fred C. Newmeyer and Sam Taylor
Genre: Comedy
The history of film is littered with iconic images, as one would imagine. I mean, it's an industry of visual artists, so you are bound to get some pictures that stand out. Rocky on the top of the steps, E.T. flying across the moon, Simba being held up to introduce him to the pride, Gene Kelly spinning on a lamppost during a downpour all bring to mind these amazing movies and incredible scenes.
But are there any images that are iconic and recognizable, but that people, by and large, don't know the film that spawned them?
Yes, there are.
This week, we address one such case.
Harold Lloyd, often referred to as silent comedy's "third genuis," alongside Keaton and Chaplin, made "Safety Last," in 1923 and, even if you don't know the movie, you know the image. Lloyd was unrealistically successful in his day. His movies were immensely popular, and he was insanely rich. How rich? His home, Greenacers, cost two million dollars. In the 20's. Adjusted for inflation, that's over $200,000,000. When he died, the 16 acers it was located on were broken down into 14 large lots for other mansions. That's right, his home had enough land for 16 other massive homes.
Oh, and when he wasn't making movies, he was one of the founders of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. You know, the people who give out the Oscars.
So, while Keaton and Chaplin might be more immediately recognizable, Lloyd holds the title as the most successful. Unless on of those guys started an organization that gives out an award that redefines a person's career, and we just don't know about it.
So, why was he not as well known? Well, because unlike Keaton and Chaplin he was able to maintain ownership of his films. So, while the other two saw their work reproduced over and over again, some lapsing into public domain, the rest just being treated as another property owned by companies that just churn stuff out, Lloyd had complete control over his releases. Ever single one was an official release. So, while the other guys saw their films treated as properties, Lloyd's work was carefully preserved and curated.
Why is that important? Firstly because it allowed for these films to be immacuately maintained. The prints are STUNNING. Second, it made his work more of an insider thing. If you weren't a film fan to begin with, you were probably completely unaware of his work.
This brings us to Safety Last. Honestly, this is one of the funniest and most thrilling movies ever made. It's a simple story about a boy trying to impress a girl, but man... the gags and stunts are so outstanding that it elevates the entire thing to a different level.
So, check out this classic piece of American cinema, then sit back and listen to us. Honestly, it's a great way to spend your day.
Next week,
Spine number 666: The Devil's Backbone
Also, check this out.
The Life Masters is now it's own show with its own site and own dedicated feed. That's right, we have two completely different shows!
Right now check it out at www.thelifemasters.podbean.com.
You can also drink in our brilliance on Youtube for both The Film Thugs and The Life Masters.
http://fantasymovieleague.com/
Looks like Summer Movie League has officially become Fantasy Movie League.
It looks quite fun. Here's how it works.
You have an 8 screen theater.
Every week you pick movies and have a budget/salary cap you have to stay under.
Then you compete against other theaters in your league.
It's fantasy football for movie people.
Our league is Film Thugs 2015 and the password is Porterhouse.
And remember, you can be a part of the show any time you wild like. How's that? All you have to do is call or e-mail us. If you live in the US, or any place that makes calling the US easy, just dial 512-666-RANT and leave us a voicemail. We will read the Google Voice transcript and play your message. It's both funny AND informative.
If you live outside the US you can call us on Skype at The_Film_Thugs. You can leave a message, or someone might actually answer.
E-mail us at thefilmthugs@gmail.com and we will read/play whatever you send us, or you can e-mail thugquestions@gmail.com to be part of an upcoming "Ask the Film Thugs" show, where we answer questions on any subject without having heard them first.
Also, we are on twitter @thefilmthugs and on Facebook and Vine.
Also, be sure to check back often for our new endeavor The Life Masters, where we answer questions to other advice columnists.
Thanks for listening, and until next week...
Sunday Jan 01, 2017
Sunday Jan 01, 2017
The Criterion Collection, the last vestige of truly collectible DVD and Blu-Ray movies in existence. These are well produced, fancy pants editions of important and interesting films for the discerning film lover.
We continue our journey through Jim's collection of movies with...
Anatomy Of A Murder
Spine Number: 600
Director: Otto Preminger
Genre: Drama
Courtrooms are inherently dramatic. There are stakes, someone will win, someone will lose... you don't have to add anything to the environment to make it dramatic. Sometimes movies will dress thigns up and try to force some sort of spectacle onto the story, but you really don't need it.
This point is driven home masterfully in Otto Preminger's "Anatomy of A Murder." A young Army officer admits to killing a man. There are witnesses. Open and shut, right? Well...
Not really.
Brilliantly acted, expertly directed, and beautifuly written, Anatomy of A Murder is one of the finest examples of courtroom drama ever filmed.
But there is more. We also talk about how this type of film is becoming scarcer and how the current business model of the flm industry is killing the film industry.
Next week,
Spine number 662: Safety Last
Also, check this out.
The Life Masters is now it's own show with its own site and own dedicated feed. That's right, we have two completely different shows!
Right now check it out at www.thelifemasters.podbean.com.
You can also drink in our brilliance on Youtube for both The Film Thugs and The Life Masters.
http://fantasymovieleague.com/
Looks like Summer Movie League has officially become Fantasy Movie League.
It looks quite fun. Here's how it works.
You have an 8 screen theater.
Every week you pick movies and have a budget/salary cap you have to stay under.
Then you compete against other theaters in your league.
It's fantasy football for movie people.
Our league is Film Thugs 2015 and the password is Porterhouse.
And remember, you can be a part of the show any time you wild like. How's that? All you have to do is call or e-mail us. If you live in the US, or any place that makes calling the US easy, just dial 512-666-RANT and leave us a voicemail. We will read the Google Voice transcript and play your message. It's both funny AND informative.
If you live outside the US you can call us on Skype at The_Film_Thugs. You can leave a message, or someone might actually answer.
E-mail us at thefilmthugs@gmail.com and we will read/play whatever you send us, or you can e-mail thugquestions@gmail.com to be part of an upcoming "Ask the Film Thugs" show, where we answer questions on any subject without having heard them first.
Also, we are on twitter @thefilmthugs and on Facebook and Vine.
Also, be sure to check back often for our new endeavor The Life Masters, where we answer questions to other advice columnists.
Thanks for listening, and until next week...