Episodes
Sunday Jul 24, 2016
Criterion Year Week 42: Ivan's Childhood
Sunday Jul 24, 2016
Sunday Jul 24, 2016
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...
Ivan's Childhood
Spine Number: 397
Director: Andrei Tarkovksy
Genre: Drama
Russia is a fascinating place. It is a total enigma to most of us in the west. Separated from the rest of the world by one of the most frozen, hostile wastelands imaginable everything about the place is completely foreign to us. Everything from language (including the alphabet), to the customs, to the culture... everything about this massive country is so completely different to that of the west that comparison seems almost impossible. All that most people seem to know is that it's cold, they drink vodka, and they produce ballet and chess players like nobody's business.
However, there are two areas that Russia does not receive the credit it should. First, the human sacrifice Russia made during World War II is so massive that it borders on incomprehensible. To put in in perspective....
80% of Russian males born in 1923 did not survive World War II.
80%. That is as close to a generation being wiped out as you can get. That is the type of number that causes a fundamental shift in the culture of a country.
WWII was won by British Intelligence, American Steel, and Russian blood. Damned near all of Russia's blood.
The second area... the importance of Russia to the development of modern film cannot be overstated. Almost everything about editing that is practiced today originated in Russia.
So... what happens when you combine the tragedy of WWII from Russia's point of view with their mastery of cinema...
To get directly to the point... Andrei Tarkovsky is a bad ass. He is the only filmmaker we will mention in the same breath as Kurosawa when it comes to visual mastery. His command of image is breathtaking on every level.
So, we begin with that, the absolutely breathtaking visuals of a certified genius and combine it with the unimaginable tragedy of WWII Russia, and not just the horror of war, but the horror of war from the point of view of a child, and you get one of the greatest debut features in the history of film.
This movie is a beautiful as it is heartbreaking. There isn't much more to say than that.
So, if you haven't watch it... do yourself a favor, and then join us as we discuss the reason why Russia is so much more hardcore than anyone else.
Next Week:
Spine number 422: The Last Emperor
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 Jul 17, 2016
Criterion Year Week 41: Ace In The Hole
Sunday Jul 17, 2016
Sunday Jul 17, 2016
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...
Ace In The Hole
Spine Number: 396
Director: Billy Wilder
Genre: Drama
In the history of film there may not be a filmmaker with a more solid pedigree than Billy Wilder. Between 1940 and 1967 he was nominated for 21 Academy Awards, of which he won 6. He won for writing, producing and directing. His films are included on so many "Best of" lists that it's impossible to name them all.Name a genre, and odds are he is responsible for a film listed in it's top 10.
Comedy? Check, "Some Like it Hot," and "The Apartment."
Romance? Check. "Sabrina."
Film Noir? Double check, "Sunset Blvd." and "Double Indemnity."
Drama? Check. "The Lost Weekend."
Prisoner of War drama? You know it! "Stalag 17."
I could go on and on. Basically, this guy is as legit as possible.
So it should be no surprise that even his lesser known work is some of the best out there.
We give you "Ace in the Hole."
Kirk Douglas is Charles Tatum, an abrasive, down on his luck newspaper man trying to rebuild his career at a small newspaper in New Mexico when a dream story falls into his hands. A local business owner is trapped in a mine collapse while looking for Indian artifacts to sell in his store. Tatum sees a way back to the top. Create a media circus around this human interest story with him as the ringmaster.
We have said this a lot lately, but this movie is almost more relevant today than when it was made. We live in the time of comments over content, and "Ace in the Hole" shows not only how easy it is for that type of journalistic tactic to form, but how quickly it becomes a self sustaining machine.
So, join us as we discuss everything about how our current media landscape used this film as a guide, rather than a cautionary tale, and how we ended up where we are.
Next Week:
Spine number 397: Ivan's Childhood
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 Jul 10, 2016
Criterion Year Week 40: La Haine (Hate)
Sunday Jul 10, 2016
Sunday Jul 10, 2016
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...
La Haine (Hate)
Spine Number: 381
Director: Mathieu Kassovitz
Genre: Drama
Normally, when you refer to a movie as "timeless," it's referring to a feel or the overall quality. The Godfather 1 and 2 are both such fantastic movies that nothing is lost in viewing them years after the fact. Sometimes, this word has a different meaning.
Mathieu Kassovitz's 1995 "La Haine," while undoubtedly a good movie, is timeless for an entirely different reason. The film follows three young men in the ghetto outskirts of Paris in the 24 hours following a riot. Marginalized young men whiling away their time in a concrete wasteland devoid of any real opportunity. They are disaffected, disrespected, and resentful of being pushed to society's literal and figurative fringes.
While a heavier focus is placed on France's still ongoing immigration... we'll call it "situation," the feeling of anger, helplessness, and division is rather universal. This film is timeless because if you were to watching it today it felt like it was meant for what is happening right now, as it would if you were to watch in in 2005, or 1995, or 1987, or 1975, or 1965.
This film is about people who don't feel like society has anything to offer them, or any use for them. Young people who feel trapped and powerless in a system that doesn't care about them at all. Filled with simmering anger and resentment "La Haine" doesn't make the mistake of offering easy answers. Rather it confronts the fact that there is guilt and victimization on all sides.
In what is probably the most gorgeously photographed non Kurosawa movies we've watched "La Haine" addresses, "a society on its way down. And as it falls,it keeps telling itself: "So far so good... So far so good... So far so good." It's not how you fall that matters. It's how you land"
Next Week:
Spine number 396: Ace in the Hole
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...
Monday Jul 04, 2016
Criterion Year Week 39: The Bicycle Thieves
Monday Jul 04, 2016
Monday Jul 04, 2016
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...
Dazed and Confused
Spine Number: 374
Director: Vittorio De Sica
Genre: Italian Neo-Realism
From the beginning filmmakers have attempted to capture real life. The earliest examples of film were just filmmakers recording every day occurrences. As the art form of film making evolved and ideas of style and artistic expression became part of the art there was still a desire to capture the reality of the human experience.
Well, a couple of world wars came and went and changed the way people saw art. Some sought to provide escape, others sought to confront. Vittorio De Sica decided to use his voice to tell the stories that people lived every day, and that were never given voice. Nothing fancy, nothing flashy, no professional actors or dramatic contrivances, just a voice for those whose stories needed to be told.
And he gave us a movie that, decades later, is still considered one of the greatest films ever made.
Using real locations, non-professional actors, and a story of simple desperation De Sica gave the world "The Bicycle Thieves," one of the most amazing films ever produced.
How great is this movie? Well, we actually talk about it for almost the entire show. No lead in, no real rambling digressions, just an honest discussion of an amazingly powerful film.
Next Week:
Spine number 381: Hate
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...