This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discussed Steve Jobs from director Danny Boyle and writer Aaron Sorkin. Movies that feature great directors are always a safe bet. Movies that feature great directors and a great screenwriter, now you’re really talking. Collaborations between brilliant directors and writers usually make for some of the best films of all time. Of course not all work out well or make a hit, but when they do hit, they hit hard.

That being said, what Top 3 director/writer collaborations would make your list? Here are the one’s that made ours:

*Keep in mind we have different criteria for our lists as well

Brendan

1) William Peter Blatty / William Friedkin – The Exorcist
2) Melissa Mathison / Steven Spielberg – E.T.
3) Paul Scrader / Martin Scorsese – Taxi Driver

DJ

1) Christopher McQuarrie / Brian Singer – The Usual Suspects
2) Simon Pegg / Edgar Wright – Hot Fuzz
3) Tony Gilroy / Paul Greengrass – The Bourne Supremacy / Ultimatum

Chase

1) Paul Scrader / Martin Scorsese – Raging Bull
2) Simon Pegg / Edgar Wright – Shaun of the Dead
3) Jonathan Nolan / Christopher Nolan – The Prestige

JD

1) Robert Towne / Roman Polanski – Chinatown
2) Paul Scrader / Martin S. – Taxi Driver
3) Christopher McQuarrie / Brian Singer – The Usual Suspects

Honorable Mentions (Combined)

Roberto Orci & Alex Kurtzman / J.J. Abrams – Star Trek, David Mamet / James Foley – Glengarry Glen Ross, Brian Helgeland / Clint Eastwood – Mystic River, Chris Terrio / Ben Affleck – Argo

Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. There are obviously a lot more pairings to choose from, despite some great contenders on our lists. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at [email protected].

For the entire podcast, click here or listen below.

For more lists done by the InSession Film crew and other guests, be sure see our Top 3 Movie Lists page.

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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we reviewed Steven Spielberg’s latest film, Bridge of Spies. Spielberg has certainly been known for his unique fingerprint that you can certainly see in all of his films, making him one of the best filmmakers of all time. And depending on how you look at it, “Spielbergian” could mean several different things. Perhaps his sentimentality that he’s known for? Or his amazing action set pieces? Or perhaps it’s his world building that you love? Either way, there’s a lot to choose from and the conversation was quite interesting

That being said, what Top 3 “Spielbergian” moments would make your list? Here are the one’s that made ours:

*Keep in mind we have different criteria for our lists as well

Brendan

1) I’ll Be Right Here – E.T.
2) Roy’s First Encounter – Close Encounters of the First Kind
3) Manufacture Chase Sequence – Minority Report

DJ

1) Truck Chase Sequences – Raiders of the Lost Ark
2) T-Rex Attack – Jurassic Park
3) We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Boat – Jaws

Mike

1) The Assassins Vengeful Murder of the Dutch lady – Munich
2) “I Pardon You” Scene – Schindler’s List
3) Indiana Jones Shoots Swordsman – Raiders of the Lost Ark

Honorable Mentions (Combined)

Private Ryan Backstory/I Keep This For Myself – Saving Private Ryan, Captain Miller Trying Not To Cry – Saving Private Ryan, Oscar Schindler Ring Scene – Schindler’s List, Quint Speech – Jaws, Welcome to Jurassic Park – Jurassic Park, Among many others…

Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. Spielberg obviously has many other moments we didn’t get a chance to talk about, so there’s a good chance your list is different than ours. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at [email protected].

For the entire podcast, click here or listen below.

For more lists done by the InSession Film crew and other guests, be sure see our Top 3 Movie Lists page.

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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we reviewed the latest film to explore Neverland, Pan. In Pan, Peter wears a symbol around his neck, “the pan”, which becomes a symbol of hope for the lost boys of Neverland. Symbolism has always been littered in art and film since the beginning of the medium and many films have featured macguffins or symbols as a way to reflect those thematic notions that the characters would experience within the worlds that they come from. Some are more thematic than others, but we came up with some solid movie symbols to discuss.

That being said, what Top 3 movie symbols would make your list? Here are the one’s that made ours:

*Keep in mind we have different criteria for our lists as well

JD

1) The One Right – The Lord of the Rings
2) Lightsabers – Star Wars
3) Writing of “Andy” on Toys – Toy Story

Brendan

1) Monolith – 2001: A Space Odyssey
2) Origami Unicorn – Blade Runner
3) Devils Tower – Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Beth

1) The Deathly Hallows Symbol – Harry Potter
2) The Rebel Alliance Symbol – Star Wars
3) The Dark Mark – Harry Potter

Honorable Mentions (Combined)

Briefcase – Pulp Fiction, Rosebud – Citizen Kane, Hat / Whip – Indiana Jones, The Lightening Scar – Harry Potter, Table Top – Inception, Wilson – Castaway,

Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. The great thing about symbols and what they represent, is that it’s very subjective and the view gets to decide what it means for them. Meaning, this list is about endless. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at [email protected].

For the entire podcast, click here or listen below.

For more lists done by the InSession Film crew and other guests, be sure see our Top 3 Movie Lists page.

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This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we reviewed the fun Ridley Scott film, The Martian, which of course features an abandoned Matt Damon on Mars. So to go off of that, we discussed our Top 3 abandoned movie characters. There are several ways you could define abandonment within the context of film. Characters in a survival film could be defined as “abandoned” or perhaps a character that finds himself in isolation. Criteria here is important and we refined ours enough that we feel our list’s represent “abandonment” pretty well.

That being said, what Top 3 abandoned characters would make your list? Here are the one’s that made ours:

*Keep in mind we have different criteria for our lists as well

JD

1) David – A.I.: Artificial Intelligence
2) E.T. – E.T.
3) Hagen – White God

Brendan

1) Jessie – Toy Story 2
2) David – A.I.: Artificial Intelligence
3) Shadow, Chance, Sassy – Homeward Bound

Chris

1) John Carter – John Carter
2) Riddick – The Chronicles of Riddick
3) Kevin – Home Alone

Honorable Mentions (Combined)

Chuck Noland – Cast Away, Paul Conroy – Buried, Dae-su Oh – Oldboy, Simba – The Lion King, Todd – The Fox and the Hound

Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. We came up with some great characters to discuss, but there’s still a ton of other characters we didn’t mention. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at [email protected].

For the entire podcast, click here or listen below.

For more lists done by the InSession Film crew and other guests, be sure see our Top 3 Movie Lists page.

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