Ryan and Jay’s Robert Altman Movie Series was a lot of fun, and to wrap it up they got together for some bonus content where they talked about the series as a whole, their Top 5 and handed out some awards! Check it out!
To hear our bonus content episodes early, subscribe now on Patreon. In many cases, though, we offer our bonus content for free after a certain period of time and we do encourage (and very much appreciate) a small donation of $0.99 as a way to help support the show if signing up on Patreon isn’t for you. Click on the PayPal button below to donate and thanks so much for your support. You can also hear much of our Bonus Content via our mobile apps. See the information at the bottom of the post for more details.
[divider]
Mobile Apps!
Listen to all of our bonus content on our apps for just a one-time fee! Whether you have an iPhone, Android or Windows phone, our apps are available in many different ways that is convenient for you. With our mobile app, not only can you listen to all of our bonus content, but our main shows and our Extra Film podcasts as well. Click here for more info!
If you don’t want to purchase our bonus content, but still want to support us, there are other you can help us out. Click here for more info.
We’re probably all familiar with the folk ballad, “Oh My Darling, Clementine”. The origin of the song is unknown, some historians claim that the ballad was based off an old Spanish song which was made popular by Mexican miners during the California Gold Rush (1848-1855) which saw an influx of people (estimated around 300,000 people) come flooding into the state. It is this song that John Ford’s 1946 Western is named after, My Darling Clementine although the film’s narrative has very little to do with the titular character, Clementine (played by Cathy Downs). Instead, My Darling Clementine centers around the real life character, Wyatt Earp (played by the absolutely brilliant Henry Fonda).
The real life Earp was an interesting man, who was at different times a professional gambler, teamster, and buffalo hunter. Eventually, he found his way to the boomtown of Tombstone, where he took up the role of deputy marshal. He became friends with John “Doc” Holliday (played in the film by Victor Mature), a man who like Earp had several occupations including professional gambler, gunfighter and dentist. Both Earp and Holliday would take part in one of the Wild West’s most famous shootouts, the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral that took place on 26th October 1881. The shootout lasted all of thirty seconds.
Wyatt Earp became the stuff of legend. In 1931, a popular biography penned by Stuart Lake entitled Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal was released, and in the 1930s alone two films both named Frontier Marshal were released. Lake retold the story in the 1946 book My Darling Clementine, which Ford acquired the film rights to.
It seemed only natural that John Ford would be the one to direct My Darling Clementine. He had actually met the real life Wyatt Earp who recalled the famous shootout involving Doc Holliday and the Clanton gang. At first, Ford was reluctant to make another film for the film studio, 20th Century Fox, but due to his contract he owed them one more. My Darling Clementine would be Ford’s second Western of the post-silent era.
My Darling Clementine takes a different approach to telling the story of Earp and Holliday. In fact, much of what we see occur in the film didn’t actually occur in real life. There wasn’t a Clementine Carter, the Earp brothers were never cowboys, Old Man Clanton (played by Walter Brennan) actually died well before the events of O.K. Corral and Holliday had been a dentist, not a surgeon. Regardless of these oversights in historical accuracy, My Darling Clementine certainly deserves all the praise that it has rightfully gained over the years.
The character of Wyatt Earp is about as heroic as it comes. He’s the kind of man who rolls up his sleeves and gets on with it. He doesn’t want to become deputy of Tombstone, but the town is so lawless and out of control that ultimately he is the only one that can step up to the challenge. As Earp, Henry Fonda is so effortlessly cool. Similar in attitude to John Wayne’s The Ringo Kid in Stagecoach, he doesn’t try to act cool or tough, it just seems to come naturally to him.
However, this isn’t to say that there aren’t any faults to be had with Wyatt or with the picture. He’s a gentleman towards the character of Clementine, but his treatment and attitude towards Chihuahua (Linda Darnell), a hot-tempered Latina love interest of Doc Holliday, is frankly sexist and borderline misogynist. There’s also issues in terms of the racist treatment towards some characters, most notably a drunk Native American, which feels very uncomfortable to watch through our contemporary lens.
Ford seems less interested in the female characters, Clementine feels far too virtuous and innocent to be a realistic woman, and Chihuahua is treated so poorly. It feels that there is a strong homo-erotic element to the relationship between Earp and Holliday, who at first seem to be enemies towards each other but as the film develops their relationship evolves. Both men have a mutual respect for each other and you cannot help but wonder if their feelings for each other go stronger than simple respect.
Perhaps this was Ford’s intention all along, as in the film’s original ending, Earp simply shakes hands with Clementine rather than kiss her. His reason for leaving Tombstone seems a little thin, but what if we were to discover that he was in love with Holliday; then maybe it would be evidently clear why he can’t stay, the memories would be too painful to bear. It was studio interference led to the film being cut by thirty minutes and that kiss
Regardless of whether or not there’s something more romantic to the relationship of Earp and Holliday, there’s no denying the fact that My Darling Clementine is an important picture. It’s a film about friendship, loyalty and respect. A film about honor. A classic Western fairytale that played fast and loose with the actual history, and helped give birth to the new revamped myth of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we review the Julie Dash film Daughters of the Dust and we continue our Charlie Chaplin Movie Series with his 1928 film The Circus! Plus, a few thoughts on 7500 and The Watermelon Woman.
This is an unprecedented time as Black Lives Matters continues to progress and grow in support. One aspect of that revolves around The Criterion Channel muting the firewall for some of the great black films they have in their catalog, including Daughters of the Dust, which we are very thankful for. It’s a film we highly recommend and we had a great time talking about. We also loved talking about Chaplin once again. In fact, simply in terms of conversation, it may be our best Chaplin review yet.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Daughters of the Dust (6:26) Director: Julie Dash Writer: Julie Dash Stars: Cora Lee Day, Alva Rogers, Barbarao
– Notes / The Watermelon Woman / 7500 (41:59)
As mentioned above, we took a little time to talk about the films we’ve recently seen, and of them includes another film that is now available on The Criterion Channel for free. Brendan was able to see The Watermelon Woman and had some thoughts on what is a fascinating film. JD, on the other hand, caught up with the latest Joseph Gordon-Levitt vehicle 7500.
– Charlie Chaplin Movie Series:The Circus (1:06:24) Director: Charles Chaplin Writer: Charles Chaplin Stars: Charles Chaplin, Merna Kennedy, Al Ernest Garcia
Main Review: Miss Junteenth
Charlie Chaplin Movie Series: City Lights
[divider]
Help Support The InSession Film Podcast
If you want to help support us, there are several ways you can help us and we’d absolutely appreciate it. Every penny goes directly back into supporting the show and we are truly honored and grateful. Thanks for your support and for listening to the InSession Film Podcast!
Director: Judd Apatow Writer: Judd Apatow, Pete Davidson Stars: Pete Davidson, Bel Powley, Ricky Velez
Synopsis: Scott has been a case of arrested development since his firefighter dad died. He spends his days smoking weed and dreaming of being a tattoo artist until events force him to grapple with his grief and take his first steps forward in life.
[/info]
Two-thirds of the way through Judd Apatow’s new film The King of Staten Island, I still couldn’t remember the main character’s first name.
His name, in fact, is Scott (Pete Davidson), but I point this out because I think the film’s main issue is that its main character just isn’t interesting enough. He’s a stoner in his mid-20s still living with his mom, Margie (Marisa Tomei). He’s an adolescent figure, having never figured out what to do with his life. This is the formula that Judd Apatow has built his career on and has surged previous SNL comedians like Adam Sandler and Will Ferrell to superstardom before Davidson.
We quickly learn that a big reason for that arrested development is the trauma he’s endured in his life. His father, Stan, – a firefighter – died when he was young. He had saved two people from a fire before a roof caved in on him.
If that sounds like a rather somber backstory for a comedy starring Pete Davidson, then you’ve come upon the crux of this film. From the very beginning, it’s clear that this film depends entirely on the persona that Davidson has built up. More than that, there’s an even greater reason for Davidson’s unique ties to this film, one of which I was honestly not aware going into the film.
But this is a comedy, and so much of the film’s early going plays off the adolescent nature of Davidson’s persona. His dream is to run a tattoo parlor/restaurant – an idea that multiple characters ridicule throughout the film. But that doesn’t stop Scott from practicing his tattoo artistry. There’s a scene where Scott tattoos a 9-year old kid named Harold (Luke David Blumm) in the woods when the kid notices his tattoo gun and asks for a tattoo. Scott can only get as far as tattooing a crooked line on him before he runs off in pain.
That kid turns out to be the son of Ray Bishop (Bill Burr), who is also a firefighter and ends up starting a relationship with Margie. It’s a preposterous plot, but the film handles it with sincerity. Ray becomes Scott’s worst enemy. This will be the main tension for the remainder of the film.
If we’re being entirely accurate, this film really wants to be more on the “drama” side of the dramedy genre in which it falls. I had some laughs, but there were also some jokes that fell completely flat (particularly a reference to being “Me Too’d”). The film clearly wants to hit home its more dramatic elements, and as the film goes on, the comedic ones fall to the wayside.
Davidson’s persona works very well on Weekend Update, where he can nonchalantly stand outside situations and act like he doesn’t care about, well, anything. It’s hilarious there. But, for most of this film, I wasn’t so sure that it worked as well when he’s the lead actor in a film. His character is hard to root for precisely because he seems intent on not wanting to be rooted for. He just doesn’t care, and he’s set on floating through life this way.
But Davidson clearly comes into his own about halfway through the film when Apatow gives him a searing monologue at a minor league baseball game about why firefighters shouldn’t have children. This is where you realize that Apatow has more in mind than simply playing into Davidson’s common persona.
Having said that, Apatow also finds creative ways to use Davidson’s “forever adolescent” persona beyond just having him be a down-on-his-luck stoner. There are two scenes where characters yell to their kids to tell them to look both ways when crossing the street. The joke comes when the second time involves Scott leading the children on a walk to school. On this walk, Scott asks Harold’s younger sister, Kelly (Alexis Rae Forlenza), what she enjoys. She says she likes singing, and she begins singing “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’” from Oklahoma!. Scott’s next line may have been my biggest laugh in the film.
“I don’t agree with the sentiment of the song, but it was really great.”
That encapsulates Scott’s whole deal. Life has been horrible to him and he doesn’t see any upside around him. And yet, he’s like a puppy dog – still reaching out through encouragement and attempts at being there for those around him.
A turning point in the film comes when Scott’s group of stoner friends ask him to help them rip off a pharmacy. He makes the right choice and backs out, even though his friends implore him. It’s a nice character revelation. He knows his limits, even if it doesn’t seem like that on the surface.
Another key character in the film is Scott’s sister, Claire (played by Apatow’s daughter, Maude). She’s an overachiever, and she has recently gone off to college. Scott, Margie, and Ray all go to visit her, and an interaction at dinner was the other big laugh I had. Ray shows Claire pictures of his kids from a previous marriage. (His ex-wife, Gina, is played strikingly well by Pamela Adlon.) Ray then looks over at Scott and says, “You take them to school don’t you?”
Davidson replies, “Yeah, I know who they are.”
That’s the humor the Davidson nails. His delivery is spot on. The problem is that the movie wants the dramatic parts to be the best it has to offer. But Davidson’s unique skill set is diametrically opposed to that idea. The dramatic elements fell flat because it never feels like he’s fully committed. At least, that’s how I felt for most of the film.
I mentioned Adam Sandler before, and I think his career is a striking comparison for Davidson. We now see Sandler pushing himself with unique parts that allow him to go deep into a character. I think Davidson has that within him, too. He doesn’t have to stay pigeonholed in the “forever adolescent” character. Yes, Sandler built an empire on that prior to films like Punch Drunk Love, The Meyerowitz Stories, and Uncut Gems. Maybe I’d just like to see Davidson get there quicker. Because I do think he has acting talent and he clearly has the ability to create a persona. I just wonder what would happen if those efforts were a bit more focused.
After dinner, Scott is walking with Claire and they are talking about Margie’s relationship with Ray. Scott just cannot accept that it’s a good thing. Claire pushes him to let their mother live her life and try to focus more on better his life – possibly by going to college. But Scott can’t see that for himself. Life has given him a raw deal, and he feels that there’s no sense in trying anymore. He’s just left with what he has.
Now Scott is desperate to get rid of Ray, so he ends up going in with his friends on the pharmacy robbery anyways. Yet, here again, his apathetic nature pops up in a key way. But the movie doesn’t really follow-up on this scene in a satisfying fashion. The scene happens and then it doesn’t have much of an impact. I think this is a major issue for the film. With what happens in this scene, the fact that Scott kind of just moves on from it without much follow-up leaves an unsatisfied feeling for the audience. (We are given one scene where we goes back to talk with his friends about their situation following the robbery, but it doesn’t really tie everything up.)
After this, the film quickly shifts gears to Scott’s attempts to bond with the other people in his life after Margie finally kicks him out of the house. He goes to his on-again-off-again girlfriend, Kelsey (Bel Powley). But she kicks him out too after she realizes he only sees her as a last chance at a safety net, not as a person worthy of a relationship. Finally, the movie gets to where it’s been wanting to go the whole time – he’s forced to bond with Ray.
Let me stop and praise the supporting performances in the film. Marisa Tomei is a great actress. She’s just a great actress – there’s no two ways about it. I’ve never seen her in a role where she does not bring something interesting to it. No one else is on her level in this film, although Powley, Adlon and Steve Buscemi (as the firehouse chief) all have their own scene-stealing moments.
As Scott and Ray bond at the firehouse, the film falls into its worst inclinations, in my opinion. They put Scott to work and teach him life lessons. It all happens with Ray watching closely and the shadow of Scott’s father never too far off. The point of the film is…”haha millennials”, I guess? For much of the film the story seems to be saying that everyone’s still got some immaturity to deal with. But then it just doubles down on the “millennials don’t know how to work” trope in these later scenes. Maybe that’s Judd Apatow’s experience, I don’t know. But it seems like a poor premise for a film.
The nice thing about these scenes is that Buscemi gets his time to shine. He tells Scott about his dad with stories from back in the day. Apatow deploys Buscemi well here just like with Tomei throughout the rest of the film. It’s Davidson that defies deployment. He’s seems constantly detached, and that’s a hard needle to thread.
However, as the film reaches its close, I must say that my experience was largely reoriented. Let’s first talk about the film’s legitimately great closing shot. Scott has learned about hard work, and he has dealt with some of the issues in his life. He has finally reached the point where he wants a legitimate relationship with Kelsey, and he goes to support her on a major life decision of hers with no ulterior motives. This brings them to downtown Manhattan, where the film cuts to black with Scott looking up at the skyscrapers. His life is before him. The possibilities are endless. For the first time, he actually sees his own potential and he’s ready to reach for it.
That closing shot takes on even more meaning when you understand the backstory of the film. Again, I did not know any of this going into it. Learning about Davidson’s own history definitely puts the film in a different light. I’m not going to spell it out for you here in case you, too, are unaware. But, suffice it to say that Apatow and Davidson made key artistic choices here for the purpose of giving Davidson an opportunity to wrestle with his own life. And when the film’s postscript comes up on the screen, it made it impossible for me to forget Scott’s name anymore.
While this ending reoriented the film for me and made it an ultimately more emotionally-resonant experience for me, I don’t think it saves the film. Even that striking final shot has its issues as the film constantly reminds us through Kelsey’s dialogue that she thinks there’s more to Staten Island than people give it credit for. Yet the closing shot seems to say that, while that’s all well and good, you really need to go to Manhattan to do anything with your life. I think that’s a microcosm of the film for me – even the things it gets right just aren’t quite executed well enough.
It’s a film that has its positive qualities – especially when viewed in light of Davidson’s experience – but it doesn’t ultimately bring it all together. As is the case with many Apatow movies, it’s also a little bit too long with some completely extraneous scenes.
However, it does give me some added expectation for where Davidson could go in his career. Maybe he just needed to get these feelings out. I really do think the sky’s the limit from here.
This week on Extra Film, Ryan and Jay conclude their Robert Altman Movie Series with Gosford Park and review The King of Staten Island.
After last week’s disagreement over Short Cuts, the boys get back to agreeing again to tackle the final entry in their Altman podcasting adventures. Gosford Park may seem like a typical British high society drama but with Altman behind the camera, this is turned into an entertaining look at classism. What is surprising is the murder mystery occurs well beyond the halfway mark of the film, yet when it is presented, you feel it’s emotional impact. This is Altman’s final great film and it was such a pleasure to tackle this iconic director’s filmography.
In the back half to the episode, the boys discussed the latest feature from director Judd Apatow. Based around the life of the film’s star Pete Davidson, we follow Scott as he is trying to get his life together while still living with his mother. While Apatow has given audiences many great comedies as a producer and director, this feels like he was going for more of a dramatic turn with hints of comedy. While it didn’t work for Jay, it really didn’t work for Ryan. This lead to a heated discussion over the quality of The King of Staten Island and the future of it’s lead performer/co-writer.
Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: Gosford Park (4:35) Director: Robert Altman Screenplay: Julian Fellowes Stars: Eileen Atkins, Bob Balaban, Alan Bates, Charles Dance, Stephen Fry, Michael Gambon, Richard E. Grant, Derek Jacobi, Kelly Macdonald, Helen Mirren, Jeremy Northam, Clive Owen, Ryan Phillippe, Maggie Smith, Kristin Scott Thomas, Emily Watson
– Movie Review: The King of Staten Island (54:38) Directors: Judd Apatow Screenplay: Judd Apatow, Pete Davidson, Dave Sirus Stars: Pete Davidson, Marisa Tomei, Bill Burr, Bel Powley, Maude Apatow, Steve Buscemi
We try to make this the best movie podcast we possibly can and we hope you enjoy them. Subscribe today on iTunes, Spotify or Stitcher, and please leave us a review on iTunes. You can also find us on Soundcloud, PlayerFM and TuneIn Radio as well. We really appreciate all your support of the InSession Film Podcast.
To hear this Extra Film episode and everything else we do, download our apps on the Amazon Market for Android and the Podcast Box app on IOS devices. The mobile app covers all of our main shows, bonus podcast’s and everything else relating to the InSession Film Podcast. Thanks for your wonderful support and for listening to our show. It means the world to us!
Into our summer, and while there may be some settling of normalcy to be under a mask while going on, there is this hazy feeling in the air about how much the virus can still spread, what can we do more that is safe, and when will we reach our breakthrough for a vaccine/cure. As we still don’t know how the pieces fall, the only thing I can do is watch my TV and not care because I’m safely in my bedroom. (I do care, but if you watch the news, then you get my feeling.) More Criterion Channel! More Netflix! More Amazon Prime! I’m being frugal with my $1,200 check. So, what else did I find during quarantine?
23 Hours To Kill (2020; Netflix)
Jerry Seinfeld’s latest standup special starts with him – not a stuntman – jumping off a helicopter into the Hudson River under “Secret Agent Man.” Making it to the Beacon Theatre in time, Seinfeld goes off about the little things he sees that continues to make things complicated, from evolving technology about texting to what is a real relationship to complaining about being so isolated from social media he doesn’t get involved in. Since we are all about the text or the Tweet, Seinfeld says, “Why don’t I just text you the whole thing, save us all an hour?” For a man who just turned 66, his cranky attitude is still fly and fresh.
The Age of Innocence (1993; Criterion Channel)
Martin Scorsese’s unlikely drama made between GoodFellas, Cape Fear, and Casino sets us in late 19th-Century New York with Edith Wharton’s story about upper-class romance and the norms of engagement and marriage that face its barriers. Scorsese’s long-time collaborator, Jay Cocks, presented him the novel as another project aside from the traditional crime drama. Winona Rider received the Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, but to me, it is Miriam Margoyles as the social matriarch of the upper class who steals the show. Daniel Day-Lewis is exquisite as the gentleman Newland Archer while Michelle Pfeiffer, still in her prime years, is as great as any performance she has given so far as the unfairly ostracised Ellen Olenska.
I had read their names before but never looked into them until a collection of their renowned shorts appeared. Stephen and Timothy, identical twins, both got into illustration and moviemaking while at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia before moving to their current base in London where they made their masterful pieces of animation and stop motion, mostly with no dialogue. Street of Crocodiles is probably their best work, adapting a short story and visualizing metaphors to describe the character’s emptiness with a haunting score to fulfill the void. It’s their dark imagery within their works that has led them to be hired for music videos, stage plays, operas, and ballets to make standout sets. These shorts are a great insight into the brothers’ creative genius that Terry Gilliam and Christopher Nolan are fans of, as well as the Academy from this piece in 2006.
Fight Without Hate (1948; Criterion Channel)
Having just finished my article about notable Olympic documentaries (that will be coming soon), I went back into the total collection and came upon this charming piece of the V Winter Olympics in St. Mortiz, Switzerland, the first Games of any kind since the end of World War II. The title expresses a world where we can compete without the nationalism that poisons the competition (which is alive still, unfortunately) and the movie is a quirky comical commentary on the Games from the POV of a reporter but with the annoyance of his wife asking who’s who, what is that, and when is her husband buying that sweater she wants. But to see how the Winter Games was like before, with most events around one venue and the old-style construction of the bobsled track does make it a fascinating piece of history. Originally produced in French, here’s the American dubbed version.
Troop Zero (2019; Amazon Prime)
This was a bit of charm to me. 1977 Girl Scouts in Georgia, a collective mix of outcasts who get together, led by the outgoing McKenna Grace, to win a talent competition they have no right to be in. But the Troop Leader, played by Viola Davis, gets everyone together regardless of their flaws to outshine the snooty elite, led by Allison Janney. David Bowie may have been proud of them in their unusual dance to Space Oddity. It’s a comedy with heart and is good-natured written by Lucy Aliber, who co-wrote Beasts Of The Southern Wild.
Director: Patrick Vollrath Writer: Patrick Vollrath, Senad Halilbasic (co-writer) Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Passar Hariky, Michael Lutzmann
Synopsis: A pilot’s aircraft is hijacked by terrorists.
[/info]
Joseph Gordon-Levitt is back on the big screen. Well, he would be if theaters were open. He’s had small cameos in Rian Johnson’s last two films, but it’s been four years since we last saw him in a major role in Snowden. And his presence in Patrick Vollrath’s 7500 is a welcomed one. Not only is it great to see him again, but once again he reminds us why he’s such a compelling actor. 7500 leans heavily on Gordon-Levitt, and spoiler alert, he’s really great.
7500 is about airline pilot, Tobias (Levitt), who is flying a passenger airplane from Berlin to Paris when his plane is hijacked by terrorists. Tobias manages to fight them off in the cockpit, but he’s injured along the way and is forced to watch as the passengers on board become chess pieces as they are killed off in negotiations.
It’s in that where 7500 is fascinating. Tobias is forced into an ethical dilemma by maintaining control of the aircraft and keeping the cockpit door locked. Does he break protocol and open the door at the cost of handing over the keys to the terrorist, but saving hostages in the process? Or does he keep himself locked inside, in control of the aircraft, but lose hostages who are being held as ransom to the cockpit? This dichotomy is very compelling thanks to Gordon-Levitt’s performance. And if that wasn’t enough, emotional stakes are also amplified as one of the flight attendants his Tobias’ girlfriend and mother to his child. So, there’s a lot for him to process and the film does a great job of giving Gordon-Levitt room to process everything he’s experiencing. Particularly, the calm rigorousness he demonstrates.
7500 interestingly ups the psychological ante as well with how it handles Kalkan (Passar Hariky), the youngest of the terrorists and the most conflicted about what they’re doing. Without giving away spoilers, let’s just say that he’s a complicated figure and the film does a wonderful job of tethering that with Tobias’ choices and his determination to help Kalkan. Hariky is quite great here as well.
There is one big problem with 7500 though. The motivations of the terrorists are frustratingly trite. They are Muslim for no reason other than to reinforce stereotypes that Hollywood perpetuated for years. We know nothing about them, other than what we learn about Kalkan, who is seemingly very different than his brothers. In the end, while I appreciate the humanizing of Kalkan, the film recklessly tightens the notion that Muslim’s are terrorists. Politically speaking, that’s myopic, but even if we just look at that narratively, it’s mundane and derivative.
That aside though, 7500 is very well made. There’s a pragmatism in Vollrath’s direction that grounds the experience and makes it more visceral. The opening 20 minutes is an authentic step-by-step look at the process of pilots gearing for take off. The camera never leaves the cockpit. A gimmick that could get tired, but it never does. Vollrath does a great job of creating claustrophobia and even horror as the drama escalates. But he’s also not afraid to slow things down and be methodical. The film pauses often to focus on characterization and the ethical dilemma at play.
All in all, 7500 is a riveting experience thanks to Vollrath’s direction and the performances here. The film’s themes are provocative and compelling, but not enough to make up for its misguided notions on Muslim’s. Still, a film worth seeking out for Gordon-Levitt fans.
Well, it’s that time of year already. We are about half-way through the year, and while it hasn’t gone exactly as we expected, we’ve still seen some great films in 2020. Perhaps you watched while streaming them at home, but we’ve no doubt had the pleasure of viewing some great works of art over the last six months. And we’re curious to hear from you as to your favorite of the year so far.
Cast your vote below and stay tuned to Episode 383 to hear the results!
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Richard Newby of the Hollywood Reporter joins us to review Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods and we continue our Charlie Chaplin Movie Series with his 1925/1942 film The Gold Rush! And as usual, we offer up some thoughts on the films we’ve been watching lately.
A big thanks to Richard for joining us once again. He’s one of our very favorite guests and he did not disappoint. We had a great discussion on Spike Lee, Da 5 Bloods and what makes it provocative. And why The Academy should just go ahead and give Delroy Lindo the Oscar. It’s also worth noting that Episode 382 will go down in history as it’s the first show in some time where Brendan and JD had a heated disagreement. And weirdly, it was about Charlie Chaplin, of all people. So, yeah, the show is long and we again apologize, but we sincerely think you’ll enjoy the conversation.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Da 5 Bloods (4:55) Director: Destin Daniel Cretin Writer: Destin Daniel Cretin, Andrew Lanham Stars: Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Brie Larson
– Notes / Discussion (1:01:33)
We took a little bit of a break last week, but we once again offered up some thoughts on the films we’ve been catching up with over the last week or so. On this show we talked about Brewster McCloud, The Trip to Greece, Shirley, and JD gave his thoughts on The Vast of Night.
– Charlie Chaplin Movie Series:The Gold Rush (1:48:36) Director: Charles Chaplin Writer: Charles Chaplin Stars: Charles Chaplin, Mack Swain, Tom Murray, Georgia Hale
Main Review: Daughters of the Dust
Charlie Chaplin Movie Series: The Circus
[divider]
Help Support The InSession Film Podcast
If you want to help support us, there are several ways you can help us and we’d absolutely appreciate it. Every penny goes directly back into supporting the show and we are truly honored and grateful. Thanks for your support and for listening to the InSession Film Podcast!
Director: Michael Winterbottom Writer: Rob Brydon, Steve Coogan Stars: Rob Brydon, Steve Coogan
Synopsis: Actors Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan travel from Troy to Ithaca following in the footsteps of the Odysseus.
[/info]
Michael Winterbottom’s fourth installment of The Trip series, The Trip to Greece, finds the semi-fictionalized versions of Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan retracing the steps of Odysseus from Troy to Ithaca. The Tripto Greece adheres to the same formula of charming chemistry between its costars, beautiful locations, and delectable lunches while still managing to remain fresh and interesting.
If you are familiar with the series, The Trip to Greece will feel like a fulfilling final course to a meal which began some ten years ago. For those unfamiliar, I highly encourage you to take the time to journey though the four installments. The Trip series began in 2010 as a BBC series and since then each series has been edited into feature films to be enjoyed in one sitting. If you would like to catch up on the travels of Rob and Steve before watching The Trip to Greece, make your way through The Trip (2010), The Trip to Italy (2014), and The Trip to Spain (2017). Each will expand on certain themes that reach their apex in The Trip to Greece and act as appetizers to what might well be Rob and Steve’s final holiday.
The Trip to Greece begins with Rob and Steve, semi-real versions of the actors themselves, embarking on their food journey through Greece under the guise of writing a magazine article. Along the way, we are privy to the usual fare that has made The Trip series so popular: comedy bits at well-appointed restaurants, celebrity impressions, deep dives into literature, and a biting criticism of each actor’s body of work. Rob and Steve struggle with mid-life and how to handle the inevitable crisis that arises from such a milestone. They each handle it in their own way, and seeing their progress though a journey that began ten years ago emphasizes the importance these trips have on them both as individuals and as a duo.
The typical off-the-cuff comedy, a mix of scripted and unscripted moments, gives the film an organic feeling that is refreshing and lively. Although the same impressions and types of bits have been used throughout the series, in The Trip to Greece, Rob and Steve still find a way to make them seem new. These include impressions of Michael Caine, Sean Connery, Roger Moore, and Tom Hardy, all of which are still enthralling even after a decade of hearing them. It’s fascinating to see the minds of these comedians work in real time to simultaneously riff off and dig at each other. Just when you think they’ve taken it a bit too far and one of them seems frustrated, they crack on and deliver something truly comical. It’s that line that Rob and Steve find, as a pair, that intrigues. Once that line is found the two attack it with surgical precision. The Trip to Greece thrives in the moments when Rob and Steve are at a table for lunch, pushing each other’s buttons.
Other moments that stand out are the requisite visit from Steve’s assistant Emma (Claire Keelan) and photographer Yolanda (Marta Barrio), which take place in each of the previous series. Here, Rob and Steve are allowed an audience to test their comedic chops. These moments also act to break up the monotony of the two men’s interactions and allow them to open up about each other as well. Fictionalized drama always circles the pair as well. Calls home to wives and children, personal lives kept on the periphery, always taking place electronically, disconnect them from the beautiful world of stunning locales and profound literature. These connections ground the duo in a world they can leave, but never really escape. Reality always catches up to them, and in Steve’s case, pulls them back harshly to it.
The Trip to Greece is a lighthearted and fun foray with two souls that feel like old friends both to each other and to their audience. If The Trip to Greece happens to be their last escapade, then Rob and Steve are leaving on a high note. If you enjoyed the first three films, then what are you waiting for? However, if you are new to Rob and Steve’s adventures, strap in and let the history, literature, and of course comedy take you away to exciting locales.
This week on Extra Film, Ryan and Jay continue their Robert Altman Movie Series with Short Cuts and review a film that it greatly influenced, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia.
After the box office success of The Player, Altman was able to get the financing for Short Cuts, a film based on several Raymond Carver short stories that he had been working on for several years before it was finally greenlit. It is Altman’s most ambitious film, tying together numerous stories that were not originally written to be related in any literal way. The cast is enormous and the themes are universal. For the first time in the Altman, though, Ryan and Jay firmly disagree on the quality of the final product. Listen to find out who falls on either side of the argument!
After debating the merits of Short Cuts, the conversation moves over to Magnolia, on which the guys very much agree. It is another ambitious film with a huge cast and Anderson wears the Altman influences on his sleeve. Ryan and Jay give opinions on who gives the best performances, the music used in the film, the flaws that reveal themselves more on subsequent viewing, and why those flaws don’t really matter!
Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: Short Cuts (4:25) Director: Robert Altman Screenplay: Robert Altman, Frank Barhydt Stars: Andie MacDowell, Bruce Davison, Julianne Moore, Matthew Modine, Anne Archer, Fred Ward, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Chris Penn, Lili Taylor, Robert Downey Jr., Madeleine Stowe, Tim Robbins, Lily Tomlin, Tom Waits, Frances McDormand, Peter Gallagher, Jack Lemmon
– Movie Review: Magnolia (53:31) Directors: Paul Thomas Anderson Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson Stars: Jeremy Blackman, Tom Cruise, Melinda Dillon, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Alfred Molina, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, Jason Robards, Melora Walters
We try to make this the best movie podcast we possibly can and we hope you enjoy them. Subscribe today on iTunes, Spotify or Stitcher, and please leave us a review on iTunes. You can also find us on Soundcloud, PlayerFM and TuneIn Radio as well. We really appreciate all your support of the InSession Film Podcast.
To hear this Extra Film episode and everything else we do, download our apps on the Amazon Market for Android and the Podcast Box app on IOS devices. The mobile app covers all of our main shows, bonus podcast’s and everything else relating to the InSession Film Podcast. Thanks for your wonderful support and for listening to our show. It means the world to us!
Luchino Visconti di Modrone was born in 1906 into one of Italy’s most prominent families that dated back to the 17th century. Based in Milan, Luchino was surrounded by the aristocratic society during the first half of the 20th century, being exposed to classical music and opera as Italy was soon to be ruled by the fascists and the monarchy was in decline because of its association with Mussolini. It is with this irony that a man with a lavish lifestyle became a member of the Communist Party, backing the ideals of Marxism in contract to what fascism was calling for. Even after the fall of Mussolini and the abolishment of the Italian monarchy, the royal lineage still exists with other Visconti family members, and with Visconti, his mix of communist sympathies and expensive styles made him quite the unique character when he began his directing career.
The First Notes
In the 1930s, Visconti got his first work as an assistant to Jean Renoir, another noted figure with left-wing views, in the films Toni and A Day In The Country. Also, there to help out was another nobleman who would have a major film directing career later, Franco Zefferelli. Back in Italy, even with his anti-fascist views, he joined Vittorio Mussolini – the dictator’s second son – in a gathering of various writers and directors to continue Italy’s film industry which included Roberto Rossellini and Frederico Fellini, and Visconti would get his first directing gig, Ossessione. It is considered a precursor to Italian neorealism and well regarded by film critics today. Visconti, however, was not a fan of the neorealism movement, and eventually worked his way out to romanticism mixed with realism.
Senso, his 1954 historical drama, was the first Italian film shot in color. Set in the 1860s during the Italian War of Unification, the film’s opening scene is set and filmed in one of opera’s most legendary theatres, La Fenice. During an opera performance, Visconti gives a pan shot of the whole opera house, showing all five floors of box seats. The film also highlights at the beginning of the war between Italians and the occupying Austrian troops that are present. It sets up the conflict when an Italian countess falls for an Austrian Officer, a forbidden love affair that could mean doom for both. While acclaimed in Europe, it was barely seen in the States because of the Red Scare going on involving Visconti’s communist ties. He followed it up with White Nights, a modern version of Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s short story from 1848, starring the Italian legend Marcello Mastroianni.
Grandiose Visions
After briefly touching upon realism in Rocco And His Brothers, Visconti would take his viewers into a world a century earlier as Sicily is caught up in the last of the battles before Italy was unified as a nation. The Leopard won the Palme d’Or in 1963, which follows the Prince of Salina (Burt Lancaster) and his awareness that the comforts and privileges he has will no longer be in existence as it becomes apparent the nationalists will win and remove their influence. As the old goes on with their ways, the tide of democracy and equality is on the horizon and the Prince can only look at the past he remains attached to. Large sets, massive cast, and a more crisp Technicolor show lasting 3 hours long. The massive success of The Leopard opened the financial doors and multiple projects Visconti would do later.
Two of his works after The Leopard signaled the boldness of Visconti’s visions and how he can create provocative things into an art form, even around the subject of homoeroticism. The first was The Damned, which starred Dirk Bogarde, Charlotte Rampling, and Visconti’s lover for the last years of his life, Helmut Berger. A wealthy German family doing business with the Nazis finds itself in peril when opposition to Hitler results in the patriarch being murdered and the heirs go to their amoral relatives who split into factions for full control. As a depiction of The Night Of The Long Knives, Visconti portrays the arrest and execution as a gay orgy, followed by a shocking scene of incest as a way to incapacitate another member, being coercing a married couple to suicide. Adding to Visconti’s daring subject matter would be an almost sympathetic portrayal of a pederast in Death In Venice, following an ill music composer struggling with aging but finds some energy in a young boy who passes him by occasionally. The film isn’t about such feelings, but about a gay man in the 1910s feeling pain for sexual repression in an era where homosexuality was forbidden.
Curtain Call
Visconti would make three more films despite suffering a major stroke in 1972. At the same as he was recovering, he filmed a four-hour biopic of King Ludwig II of Bavaria with Berger in the title role and co-starring Romy Scheider (Last Tango In Paris) and Trevor Howard (The Third Man). As the King, Ludwig had high tastes like Visconti but was recklessly spending lavishly on the arts, such as backing the composer Richard Wagner, and on himself, leading to his overthrow and death. Because of the King’s apparent bisexuality, Visconti portrayed him as such, which angered the conservative Bavarian population who admired Ludwig II. His last two, Conversation Piece and The Innocent were released without fanfare.
Luchiano Visconti died after suffering a second stroke on March 17, 1976. Despite his communist views, he still held the Catholic Church in high regard and was given a large funeral Mass. As the documentary linked below shows, Visconti’s work is an amusing sight from a man of nobility who was politically and socially not much the same as his descendants. Relatives of his have worked on in the film business, but the throne of an aristocrat in cinema in any language belongs, in spirit, to Count don Luchino Visconti di Modrone.
It’s hard to disassociate Clint Eastwood with the Western Genre. Eastwood and the Western seem to go together in the same way that peanut butter and jelly do, a perfect pairing, a match made in heaven. Over the years, Eastwood has starred as well as directed several Westerns including being the Man With No Name in the Sergio Leone’s Dollars Trilogy, starring in Hang ‘Em High (1968), The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), and Pale Rider (1985) (the latter two films being directed by Eastwood himself). But perhaps his most iconic take on the Western is his Oscar winning film, Unforgiven. A film which Eastwood declared would be his last Western for fear of repeating himself or imitating someone else’s work. Unforgiven takes on everything that Eastwood and the Western represented and dismantles it bit by bit, until what we are left with is an interesting deconstruction of romanticisation of the Wild West and the mythology of the cowboy.
Unforgiven starts off the image of a gorgeous blood red sunset with William Munny (Eastwood) standing over the grave of his recently deceased wife. We are told that his wife’s mother couldn’t understand why her only daughter would marry a man like Munny, a notorious outlaw and murderer who in his own words “killed women and children. [I’ve] killed just about everything that walks or crawled at one time or another.” Although we never see Munny’s wife ever depicted throughout the film, her presence hangs over him, trying to keep him on the side of what’s considered right, until his violence and brutality becomes uncontrollable, slowly boiling over in a bloody climax.
Munny is approached by the “Schofield Kid” (Jaimz Woolvett) who wants to recruit Munny in order to kill some cowboys who attacked and disfigured a prostitute called Delilah Fitzgerald (Anna Thomson). Delilah, Strawberry Alice (Frances Fisher) and several other prostitutes have banded together to create the bounty after the local sheriff “Little Bill” Daggett (Gene Hackman ) didn’t serve out a punishment that matched the crime. Little Bill actually ordered the cowboys to bring several horses as compensation for the brothel owner, Skinny Dubois (Anthony James) reinforcing the idea that these women were seen as property.
Initially Muny refuses to help the Schofield Kid, however he realizes that his hog farm is failing and he must provide for his young children’s future, so he has to reconsider. In what is perhaps the films funniest scene, his children watch as Munny struggles to mount his horse. This is a man whose glory days are long behind him. Munny recruits his friend Ned Logan (Morgan Freeman), another retired outlaw, and they catch up with the Kid in order to track down the cowboys but Little Bill is determined not to have any trouble in his town and will do whatever it takes to maintain law and order.
Like The Wild Bunch, Unforgiven shows us a version of the Wild West that is so far from the squeaky clean days of the Golden Hollywood era. The levels of violence that is depicted on-screen is unflinching and brutal, and each character exists in a sort of grey area, in the middle of good and bad. Munny may do his utmost best to stay true and honest to the promise he made to his wife, but he is the one who ultimately takes the gun from Ned when he fails to shoot one of the cowboys.
Unforgiven takes the concept of the glamorous life of outlaws and cowboys, and shows us just how bleak it really all is. None of the characters are particularly heroic and they certainly aren’t noble. Even, the character of Little Bill, is shown to be a sadist with a warped sense of justice. Power has corrupted Little Bill, shaping him into the tyrant of the small town of Big Whiskey.
On first glance we assume that Munny and Little Bill are complete opposites but the men share many striking and somewhat disturbing similarities with each other, both yearn for a quiet life of domesticity with Munny’s farm and his children, and Little Bill’s cabin that he is building for himself. Both men have a reputation and a past that follows them around, so others fear and admire them from afar. And, both of their lives and personalities seem so entwined with violence and bloodshed that they become consumed by a bloodlust.
It’s nearly thirty years since the release of Unforgiven and the film still stands up today. It’s stunning cinematography by Jack N. Green is breathtaking, with the brilliant use of wide-shots and placing characters in the foreground in order to capture the epic scale and power of the wide-screen. Unforgiven is clearly a film made to be viewed on a large cinema screen, sadly I had to make do with my 45.2 inch TV screen. Lennie Niehaus score and David Webb Peoples script are also extremely noteworthy.
Eastwood is now 90 years old and hasn’t starred in a Western since Unforgiven, Richard Harris who played English Bob has passed away in 2002, Gene Hackman has retired from acting and while Morgan Freeman continues acting, he was recently accused of sexual harassment which may affect any future roles, in that sense Unforgiven marks the end of a chapter in the careers of these great actors. If we can take away anything from Unforgiven, it’s that the past can be so easily romanticised by Classical Hollywood, but reality comes in the form of characters like Little Bill and Willam Munny…complex individuals with complicated pasts, and we can neither forget nor forgive them for what they’ve done.
On Episode 382 this weekend we’ll be talking about Spike Lee’s latest in Da 5 Bloods. Early reviews for the film have been very exciting and we are ready to dig into it. Using that as inspiration for our poll this week, we wanted to take a look at the best performances in a Spike Lee joint. We landed on 15 options, but trust us, we considered about 30 for the poll. There are so many great options to choose from. So please, if your vote isn’t listed as an option, use the write-in option and let us know who you’d like to vote for.
Be sure to vote and listen to the show this weekend to hear the results!
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Caless Davis from Feelin’ Film joins us to review Destin Daniel Cretin’s Just Mercy and we begin our Charlie Chaplin Movie Series with his 1921 film The Kid!
A huge thanks to Caless for being on the show this week. We’ve been wanting to get him on the show for some time now and he did not disappoint. He was absolutely wonderful and it was particularly satisfying to hear about the joy he had watching The Kid. Since JD is back, the show this week is a little long, so please forgive us. But we are confident you’ll enjoy the conversation. Also, stay tuned until the end as we do not have a poll this week. Instead we wanted to highlight black films, filmakers, musicians and artists that we hope more people seek out at this time.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Just Mercy (8:44) Director: Destin Daniel Cretin Writer: Destin Daniel Cretin, Andrew Lanham Stars: Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, Brie Larson
– Notes / Discussion (49:10)
As many of you know, over the last month or so we’ve been talking aobut the films we’ve seen while in quarantine, however we didn’t have as much time this week given the changes we made to the show this week. That said, JD still gave his thoughts on Die Hard with a Vengeance since he was off last week and he’s a big fan of the film.
– Charlie Chaplin Movie Series:The Kid (1:10:55) Director: Charles Chaplin Writer: Charles Chaplin Stars: Charles Chaplin, Edna Purviance, Jackie Coogan
Main Review: Da 5 Bloods
Charlie Chaplin Movie Series: The Gold Rush
[divider]
Help Support The InSession Film Podcast
If you want to help support us, there are several ways you can help us and we’d absolutely appreciate it. Every penny goes directly back into supporting the show and we are truly honored and grateful. Thanks for your support and for listening to the InSession Film Podcast!
This week on Extra Film, Ryan and Jay continue their Robert Altman Movie Series with The Player and review the latest from acclaimed director Josephine Decker, Shirley.
After last week’s review of Popeye, the boys have taken a jump in the Altman catalog with their review of The Player. Altman fell out of favor with the studio system, turning to make many small adaptations of plays throughout the 1980s. But at the beginning of the 1990s, Altman was able to strike up a bargain with The Player, which was a project that had a lot of problems before he stepped onto the set. But once Altman got his hands on this project, he turned into his signature topical, cynical cinematic vision, turning his eye on the Hollywood system at large. With a highly positive review, Ryan and Jay feel in love with this one.
In the back half of the episode, the guys took a look at Shirley. After not liking Josephine Decker’s last effort in Madeline’s Madeline at all, it was going to be interesting to see what both the Extra Film host thought about her lastest. But with Elisabeth Moss leading the charge, and a couple of years apart from that last movie, Shirley is a wonderful turnaround for Decker, as she helms one of the best, if not the best, film released in 2020. Without spoiling any twists and turns Shirley provides, this was another positive review from the guys.
Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: The Player (4:33) Director: Robert Altman Screenplay: Michael Tolkin Stars: Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, Fred Ward, Peter Gallagher
– Movie Review: Shirley (1:01:16) Directors: Josephine Decker Screenplay: Sarah Gubbins Stars: Elisabeth Moss, Michael Stuhlbarg, Odessa Young, Logan Lerman
We try to make this the best movie podcast we possibly can and we hope you enjoy them. Subscribe today on iTunes, Spotify or Stitcher, and please leave us a review on iTunes. You can also find us on Soundcloud, PlayerFM and TuneIn Radio as well. We really appreciate all your support of the InSession Film Podcast.
To hear this Extra Film episode and everything else we do, download our apps on the Amazon Market for Android and the Podcast Box app on IOS devices. The mobile app covers all of our main shows, bonus podcast’s and everything else relating to the InSession Film Podcast. Thanks for your wonderful support and for listening to our show. It means the world to us!
Eighty years ago, when Winston Churchill became Prime Minister and the Dunkirk evacuation saved the British army from annihilation, the UK found themselves under the Blitzkrieg of German bombs. Also called The Blitz, it lasted for over a year as the Nazis were relentless in getting the British to submit to their will before they turned their back on them to focus on the Russians. Standing alone until the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union, Britain became the signal of freedom up against a well-greased machine that sought conquest of an entire continent hell-bent on destruction for a sinister new version for the world under one flag. Thanks to many cameramen who filmed everything around them, putting their own lives at risk, it was preserved and cut to make various propaganda features while also being portrayed in fiction years later.
Documentaries
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gavcGmUE7tI
In 1941, the British released a propaganda film called Churchill’s Island about the defense of the country ever since his premiership began. Made from the National Film Board (NFB) of Canada, who were also at war with Germany, it is constructed of all the reel footage shot of all areas of the country’s defense, including the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force. The film won the first Oscar ever given for Best Documentary (Short Subject) and for the NFB, it was their first Oscar even after being established in 1939. They would also produce Squadron 992, which follows the barrage balloon team that serves to fight German air attacks, and The Children From Overseas, following families who sent their kids across to Canada to avoid the air raids and remain safe for the duration of the war.
When the United States entered the war and Frank Capra was hired to make a series of documentaries under the title, Why We Fight, his fourth focused on the German attack at the UK in their failed attempt to invade the island. Walter Huston narrated the story to inform the American public, especially those who really didn’t want to be in the war, on how the Nazi machine crushed the French and leaving the UK all alone in the fight. It’s an impressive and engaging piece of history which ends with the famous line said by Churchill, “Never was so much owed by so many to so few.” Other notable documentary shots from the propaganda machine include The Call For Arms, London Can Take It, and Dover, which follows the town of the same name which served at the frontline of the battle and was narrated by Edward R. Murrow.
Feature Films
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekE2CzvwTgk
There is obviously the titled Battle Of Britain from 1969 which brought in the best actors from home to take part in this flying epic. Lawrence Olivier, Trevor Howard, Christopher Plummer (as a Canadian pilot), Susannah York, Michael Caine, Robert Richardson, Robert Shaw, Ian McShane, and Michael Redgrave. It was a large scale film with amazing flying sequences that got caught up in the anti-war feeling over Vietnam and failed at the box office. More notably and with more acclaim is Mrs. Miniver, which was shot and released in the middle of the war, but while it was a Hollywood production, it brought a sense of pride for British viewers and gave a sense to Americans what families were doing under constant threat. In 1987, John Boorman wrote and directed Hope and Glory, based on his personal experiences surviving the war through the eyes of a young boy.
More recently, there was the comedy-drama Their Finest by Lone Scherfig (An Education) about the Ministry of Information’s program to make movies for boosting morale. A script girl and her artist husband scramble to make a movie based on two women who survived the Dunkirk evacuation and get an eccentric group of people to make the picture. It’s a charming film about writers and directors, something relatable to those who want to create. Mrs. Henderson Presents from Stephen Frears told another funny true story during the Battle of Britain of a British socialite (Dame Judy Dench) who partners with an impresario (Bob Hoskins) to make a successful show featuring nudity, even though it is technically not allowed to show it. It is the creative freedom to impress and defying the threat by staying open among the bombs that rained over them.
It’s a period during the Second World War of doubt because the British were thought to be sitting ducks against the unstoppable Germans who tied themselves to the Japanese and Italians, seeking to install a New Order on the world. The United States kept out for the meantime, but thanks to the propaganda machine, sympathy was built up to prepare themselves for war. This period also served as the basis for many movies like the entire war did. And, as we enter 80 years of this horrible conflict, they serve as moving pieces of history to a turbulent time.
According to the Oxford English dictionary, Herd or Mob mentality is defined as “The tendency for people’s behaviour or beliefs to conform to those of the group to which they belong.” It’s the driving force that can turn seemingly ordinary people into a violent mob. Throughout cinema there have been various films such as 12 Angry Men, To Kill a Mockingbird and even Assassination Nation, that discussed the perils of herd mentality. However perhaps the most impactful film I have come across is the 1943 Western, The Ox-Bow Incident. A film that seems uncanny in its relevance to the mob mentality and cancel culture that thrives in the online world of social media.
The Ox-Bow Incident is an eye-opening experience that I think many of us would benefit from watching, especially younger people in an educational setting. This is a film which demonstrates how quickly the sense of morality, compassion and empathy for others can deteriorate when a group of people feel threatened. It shows the power and gravitational pull of conformity, the compelling need to fit that lies inside all of us. It’s a Western that is only a Western in terms of its visual aesthetics and setting. It’s a film which could take place at any point throughout the history of mankind, a timeless story that we can always draw and learn from.
Adapted from the 1940 novel of the same name, written by Walter Van Tilburg Clark, The Ox-Bow Incident, takes place in Bridger’s Wells, Nevada in 1885. From the very get-go, the viewer is placed into a state of uncertainty and anxiety, as we follow the characters of Art Croft (Harry Morgan) and Gil Carter (Henry Fonda) as they ride into town and enter Darby’s Saloon. There’s something odd about these two, the other drinkers don’t seem practically friendly towards them and you could cut the atmosphere with a knife. It quickly becomes knowledge that there have been recent incidents of cattle-rustling in the nearby area. And, as Art and Gil are rarely seen in Bridger’s Wells, they are suspected to be rustlers. Gil doesn’t make things easy for the pair when he gets into a petty fight.
The tension is escalated when a man enters the saloon and announces that a rancher named Larry Kinkaid has been murdered. This news sends shockwaves throughout the town, and pThe immediately a posse is formed in order to pursue the murderers, who they believe are cattle rustlers. Judge Tyler (Matt Briggs) informs the mob that they must bring the suspects back for trial. Arthur Davies, (Harry Davenport) is at first opposed to forming the posse, but also joins in an attempt to talk some sense into the townsfolk. They’re led by “Major” Tetley (Frank Conroy) who drags his son Gerald (William Eythe) along with him, in some perverse act of ‘making a man out of him’. In order to avoid raising even more suspicion, Art and Gil join the posse.
At Ox-Bow Canyon, the posse finds three men sleeping, and they believe these are the guilty culprits.These men are Donald Martin (Dana Andrews); a Mexican, Juan Martínez (Anthony Quinn); and an old and possibly senile man, Alva Hardwicke (Francis Ford, the older brother of director John Ford). Believing that these three men are responsible despite the lack of proof, the posse decides to hang them at sunrise.
The film’s events slowly unfold over the course of 75 minutes, with director William A. Wellman building on the tension continuously until the inevitable occurs. Hope is only a fleeting thing, offered to us briefly before being snatched away. In the end, there are no winners in The Ox-Bow Incident, only losers. As outsiders we can clearly see how severe the lack of evidence is against the three men, but we are powerless to stop the force that is the mob. If we are to take anything away from The Ox-Bow Incident, it’s the importance of having the evidence to hand, and to step away from the herd in order to reach your own judgement.
Ultimately, while The Ox-Bow Incident is an astounding piece of cinema and storytelling, it is also a film that leaves you uncomfortable as the viewer finds themselves being confronted with the reality of how dangerous herd mentality can be. This isn’t to say that the mob can’t be a force of good, when people unite behind a sole cause they can promote change for the greater good. If unchecked, it can also strip people of individuality, and it can act as a way for people to hide away from responsibility. You can find the entire film on YouTube, if you have seen it already then I highly recommend you watching it, it just might well be the most important film you watch this year.
This week on Episode 380 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by our review of Die Hard with a Vengeance, we discussed our Top 3 action heroes in film. It’s almost hard to believe that it took 380 episodes to get to this topic. Action movies are a major staple of blockbuster summer fare and we’ve seen some iconic action heroes over the years. To be fair, we’ve certainly mentioned many of them on other lists and discussions, but somehow we haven’t dedicated a specific segment to them and what a better weekend to remedy that. There are, of course, many to consider and that made this challenging, but man it was fun talking about the great action heroes or heroines in film. That said, here are our lists:
(Note: Please keep in mind that we each had different criteria for our selections)
Brendan
1) Sanjuro Kuwabatake – Yojimbo
2) Snake Plissken – Escape from New York
3) Furiosa – Mad Max: Fury Road
Jay
1) Indiana Jones – Indiana Jones and The Raiders of the Lost Ark
2) Furiosa – Mad Max: Fury Road
3) Chev Chelios – Crank
Honorable Mentions (Combined)
Prince Ashitaka – Princess Mononoke
Prince Nausicaä – Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Rambo – First Blood
Ethan Hunt – Mission: Impossible Franchise
Ellen Ripley – Alien / Aliens
The Bride – Kill Bill
Inspector Chan – Police Story
Max – Mad Max
Dominic Torreto – The Fast and Furious Franchise
Bob Parr / Ellen Parr – The Incredibles
Jason Bourne – Bourne Franchise
John Wick – John Wick Trilogy
Johnny Utah – Point Break
Neo / Morpheus – The Matrix Trilogy
John McClane – Die Hard Franchise
Luke Skywalker – Star Wars Franchise
Captain James Kirk – Star Trek Franchise
Martin Riggs – Lethal Weapon
James Bond – James Bond Franchise
Jack Sparrow – Pirates of the Caribbean Franchise
Jack Burton – Big Trouble in Little China
Black Dynamite – Black Dynamite
MacGruber – MacGruber
Django – Django Unchained
Kikuchiyo – Seven Samurai
Inigo Montoya – The Princess Bride
Johnnie Rico – Starship Troopers
Scott Pilgrim – Scott Pilgrim vs the World
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. As is the case with a topic like this, depending on your tastes and criteria, your list could end up being very different than what we talked about. That being said, what would be your Top 3? Leave a comment in the comment section or email us at [email protected].
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, Jay fills in for JD as we review Die Hard with a Vengeance, which recently celebrated its 25th Anniversary. We also discuss our Top 3 action heroes in film and a few other films we’ve seen recently.
Big thanks for Jay stepping up this week and covering for JD. It’s always great when we can get the Extra Film guys on the show. The summer is here and maybe we don’t have the usual summer fare we’re used to, but there is still fun to be had. With Die Hard with a Vengeance recently celebrating its 25th anniversary, it felt appropriate to dive into what makes it the best Die Hard sequel to date. We also had a blast talking action heroes as well.
On that note, check out this week’s show and let us know what you think in the comment section. Thanks for listening and for supporting the InSession Film Podcast!
– Movie Review: Die Hard with a Vengeance (4:40) Director: John McTiernan Writer: Jonathan Hensleigh, Roderick Thorp (certain original characters) Stars: Bruce Willis, Jeremy Irons, Samuel L. Jackson
– Notes / Discussion (42:57)
As usual we talk about the films we’ve been watching and catching up with, and this week we briefly discuss The Vast of Night and the original Italian Job.
– Top 3 Action Heroes (1:01:58)
It’s almost hard to believe that it took 380 episodes to get to this topic. Action movies are a major staple of blockbuster summer fare and we’ve seen some iconic action heroes over the years. To be fair, we’ve certainly mentioned many of them on other lists and discussions, but somehow we haven’t dedicated a specific segment to them and what a better weekend to remedy that. There are, of course, many to consider and that made this challenging, but man it was fun talking about the great action heroes or heroines in film. That said, what would be your Top 3?
If you want to help support us, there are several ways you can help us and we’d absolutely appreciate it. Every penny goes directly back into supporting the show and we are truly honored and grateful. Thanks for your support and for listening to the InSession Film Podcast!
