The Film Thugs Movie Show

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...

Week 10:

Charade

Spine Number: 57

Director: Stanley Donen

Genre: Comedy/Romance/Suspense/Thriller

We really don't have movie stars any more. Not like we use to at least. Yeah, we have people who fall into that category, but they don't have the same vibe as the classic Hollywood stars.

Charade prove this beyond question. Audrey Hepburn and Carey Grant... what more do you need to say? Oh, James Coburn, Walther Matthau, and George Kennedy? Why on earth not?

This is the kind of movie we just don't make anymore. It's a charming film with a charming cast that completely charms and engrosses you. Audrey Hepburn is... well, she's Audrey Hepburn. If you aren't a little in love with Audrey Hepburn... I don't know if you're capable of love. Carey Grant... damn. He's just so cool. Put them together, and it's almost impossible to not adore the result.

So enjoy a truly classic film with us, it's well worth your while.

Next week:

Spine Number 65: Rushmore

Also, check this out.

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.

You can also click on one of our sponsor links below and THEY will pay us. That's right. You won't have to pay a PENNY extra, and Amazon/Onnit/Teefury will give us a little taste.

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...

Jim out.

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...

Week 9:

Armageddon

Spine Number: 40

Director: Michael Bay

Genre: Disaster

Michael Bay is some kind of wizard. This is a man who makes visually stunning movies that make tons of money in spite of the fact that neither critics nor audiences really seem to like them. They are consistently poorly reviewed, and become a punchline about a year after they are released. But for some reason people cannot wait to line up and hand this guy money. He is by no means a bad filmmaker, and according to some sources like Jeanine Basinger (who some consider one of the most important film scholars working today, who is also a film professor who has taught people like Akiva Goldsman and Joss Whedon, and turned Wesleyan University into one of the top ten film schools in the world) he is a "cutting edge artist who is a master of light, movement, and shape." This guy, in his first YEAR as a professional director, created the first "Got Milk" ad and won the two most prestigious awards at the advertising portion of the Cannes Film Festival.

In short... this guy knows what he's doing, and even his most critically panned movies make absolute truckloads of money (he makes around $65 million a year, and is worth over half a billion dollars).

And it all began with a movie about an asteroid.

Granted, this was not his first movie, but this was the game changer. This elevated him into the rarefied air that he breathes to this day. This guy could get anything green lit. A movie about bodybuilders kidnapping someone to try and steal his life... done! A love triangle with Pearl Harbor as a backdrop... done! An unfinished script about robot dinosaurs being ridden by robots that turn into cars... you know it's done!

So, join us as we take in what is, at this point in the list at least, the most baffling Criterion release to date, "Armageddon."

Revel in space dementia, asteroid grand canyons, and just a boatload of other bat shit insanity.

Next week:

Spine Number 57: Charade

Also, check this out.

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.

You can also click on one of our sponsor links below and THEY will pay us. That's right. You won't have to pay a PENNY extra, and Amazon/Onnit/Teefury will give us a little taste.

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...

Jim out.

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...

Week 8:

The Long Good Friday

Spine Number: 26

Director: John MacKenzie

Genre: British Gangster

Gangster movies are as old as movies themselves. It makes perfect sense, if you think about it. I mean, gangsters are cool. They don't play by society's rules, they make a lot of money, and they don't take shit from anyone. Most of the movies in this genre are American, and most of those focus on La Cosa Nostra, the Italian mafia, thanks largely to the legendary Godfather movies. However, there are other types of gangster out there.

For our money there are few who can hold a candle to Bob Hoskins in "The Long Good Friday."

For Americans that last sentence might be hard to understand. Over here, we didn't really get much exposure to Mr. Hoskins before "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" and "Hook" presented a more... family friendly version.

That being said, Bob Hoskins is a certified bad ass in this film. In this, his first major film role, he plays Harold Shand, a hard core British gangster who is on the cusp of going legit. He has ruled the London underworld for 10 years with a hard enough reputation to maintain peace between different "corporations." He returns to London from New York, where he was securing a relationship that would allow him to go completely legitimate and revitalize a part of London that had fallen on hard times, to find himself under attack from an unknown enemy who doesn't seem to play by the same rules, or any rules for that matter. Oh, and Helen Mirren plays his girlfriend, and presents one of the most powerful and in control women in the history of the genre.

Make no mistake, this is an outright classic. It was named #21on the British Film Institutes list of the top 100 British films of the 20th century.

If you haven't seen or heard of it, this is your chance to correct that. Enjoy our take on "The Long Good Friday."

Next week:

Spine Number 40: Armageddon (Yes, that Armageddon. Yes, it is a Criterion release. No, we are not joking, you can look it up.)

Also, check this out.

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.

You can also click on one of our sponsor links below and THEY will pay us. That's right. You won't have to pay a PENNY extra, and Amazon/Onnit/Teefury will give us a little taste.

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...

Jim out.

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...

Week 7:

The Silence of the Lambs

Spine Number: 13

Director: Jonathan Demme

Genre: Psychological Thriller/Serial Killer

Movies and TV shows love to feature serial killers. Just love them to bits. And why shouldn't they? I mean, from a writing standpoint, it's kind of a slam dunk. Someone is killing a bunch of people, the killer has an identifiable modus operandi (or M.O. in movie/TV speak), and there is a built in ticking clock. Plus, it allows you to work with criminal profilers. Those people are basically magic. They can look at a crime and know everything about the killer and through their, often dangerous, mental journeys into the abyss they will find a way to stop the killer and save themselves from the demons within. I mean... the genre has everything.

Well... it does if you don't really sweat things like "accuracy."

The truth is, serial killers don't fit into neat little boxes. Yes, they have patterns that they follow, but they aren't grandiose and showy. Yes, some have been, but by and large a serial killer is driven by a need, a compulsion, and their killings are more of a symptom, to quote Hannibal Lector the killings themselves are "incidental."

Profilers on the other hand are far from magic. They are highly trained behavioral scientists who function to narrow the field. They don't magic psychic the information, rather they analyze the facts and get the basics of who the killer is in an effort to find them. White male, no steady work, physically powerful, owns a home, has an abusive background, has probably tried to get gender reassignment surgery... that sort of thing. They look at the behavior and figure out what "type" of person would commit the crime in question so that resources can be focused.

The Silence of the Lambs bu Thomas Harris is the second in a series of serial killer/criminal profiler books and movies that introduced the world to Hannibal Lector, a pure psychopath who "fits no known criminal profile." A brilliant surgeon and psychiatrist who tortured, killed, and ate countless victims. He's a fascinating character rendered... almost maudlin in some of the adaptations.

Not here.

Here is the portrayal that not only made the character iconic, but elevated Anthony Hopkins to the stardom he enjoys today. It is one of three films to win the big five awards at the Oscars (actress, actor, picture, director, and screenplay).

So, join us as we discuss how serial killers and profilers are portrayed in film, and the world of Thomas Harris's FBI in The Silence of the Lambs and beyond.

Next week:

Spine Number 26: The Long Good Friday

Also, check this out.

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.

You can also click on one of our sponsor links below and THEY will pay us. That's right. You won't have to pay a PENNY extra, and Amazon/Onnit/Teefury will give us a little taste.

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...

Jim out.

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...

Week 6:

Hard Boiled

Spine Number: 9

Director: John Woo

Genre: Hong Kong Action

John Woo defined Hong Kong cinema in the late 80's and early 90's. His over the top action scenes and hyper cool protagonists set the tone for much of what modern action movies have evolved into. The Killer, in many respects, is the most artistic film he made, as we discussed last week. But Hard Boiled... damn. No action move comes close to what Woo achieves here. It's more than just violence, it's poetry in motion. In a genre known as "bullet ballet," and "heroic bloodshed," Woo was somehow able to reach a completely different level than anyone was accustomed to.

So join us in the beautiful violence that is Hard Boiled.

Next week:

Spine Number 13: The Silence of the Lambs

Also, check this out.

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.

You can also click on one of our sponsor links below and THEY will pay us. That's right. You won't have to pay a PENNY extra, and Amazon/Onnit/Teefury will give us a little taste.

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...

Jim out.