Well, it’s finally here, The Lion King (2019) remake is hitting theaters this weekend. To say that we are skeptical is putting it lightly. In fact, when the news first dropped in 2016, we dedicated an entire segment on Episode 189 to talking about this. That’s how dubious we were about the idea. But at the same time, we do quite adore Jon Favreau as a filmmaker, so there is hope with this new iteration of The Lion King. So with that as inspiration for our poll this week, what is your favorite film directed by Jon Favreau?
On Episode 12 of Chasing the Gold, Ryan is joined by Karen Peterson of Awards Circuit to discuss the 2020 Oscar Race so far!
History shows that the first half of the year usually doesn’t bare a lot of Oscar contenders. The race is usually back-loaded by films that come out at the end of the year. But that trend seems to be changing over the last couple of years with films like The Grand Budapest Hotel, Mad Max: Fury Road and Get Out releasing early yet finding Oscar success. At this point last year, we had already seen one Best Picture nominee in Black Panther and heard about another in BlacKkKlansman. So Ryan and Karen’s discussion of the top films of the year so far could be used as a crystal ball to see what film or films could breakthrough to Oscar night.
On that note, have fun with this week’s Chasing the Gold and let us know what you think in the comment section below. Thanks for listening!
We try to make this the best movie podcast we possibly can and we hope you enjoy them. Subscribe today on iTunes, Spotfiy 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 listening to our show. It means the world to us!
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This week on Episode 334 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by Easy Rider, we thought it would be appropriate to talk about our favorite road movies. So, pack your bags, fill up the gas tank and get your tunes ready, we’re hitting the road. This specific kind of film has been a staple for decades and some of them are among the best of all-time. Whether it be action-packed like Mad Max: Fury Road or something more artistic like Easy Rider, road movies have a lot to offer and hopefully our lists are emblematic of that. That said, what would be your Top 3?
(Note: Please keep in mind that we each had different criteria for our selections)
JD
1) Paris, Texas
2) Badlands
3) Nebraska
Brendan
1) Y Tu Mamá También
2) Into the Wild
3) The Wizard of Oz
Dave
1) Y Tu Mamá También
2) Thelma & Louise
3) Almost Famous
Honorable Mentions (Combined) Easy Rider, Inside Llewyn Davis, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Road Warrior, Locke, Midnight Special, The Trip, The Road, Some Like It Hot, Stagecoach, North by Northwest, Logan, O Brother Where Art Thou, Zombieland, Tommyboy, Bonnie & Clyde, It Happened One Night, Sullivan’s Travels, Wild Strawberries, Little Miss Sunshine, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, Dumb & Dumber, Midnight Cowboy, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Peewee’s Big Adventure, Something Wild, Rain Main, Midnight Run, Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas, Road Trip, Harld & Kumar Go to White Castle, The Blues Brothers, My Own Private Idaho, True Romance, National Lampoon’s Vacation, Death Proof, Broken Flowers, Philomena, Magic Mike XXL
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. As mentioned above, this topic is deep and could have variations depending on your criteria. 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, Dave Giannini from the Podcast Directed By podcast joins us to review the iconic Dennis Hopper film, Easy Rider, which recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. We also discuss our Top 3 road movies and JD gives his thoughts on the Netflix sci-fi film I Am Mother.
A huge thanks to Dave for joining us this week. As you’ll hear on the show, it’s been awhile since he was here last and we were overdue in getting him back. His appearance on Episode 146 where we reviewed Brooklyn is one of our most infamous episodes, where Brendan and Dave’s disagreement is still brought up to this today on social media. So, it was great to finally get him back on the show and we had a ton of fun talking the iconic road movie that is Easy Rider.
That said, 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: Easy Rider (9:04) Director: Dennis Hopper Writers: Dennis Hopper, Peter Fonda Stars: Dennis Hopper, Peter Fonda, Jack Nicholson
– Notes / I Am Mother / Everybody Knows (51:55)
Last week we featured some bonus content where JD and Brendan reviewed several films that JD caught up with after coming back from vacation. Originally, we had planned to include the Netflix sci-fi film I Am Mother and Asghar Farhadi’s latest in Everybody Knows, but given the length of that show we decided to hold of on those two films. So, here JD finally remedies that gap and offers up his thoughts on the both of them.
– Top 3 Road Movies (1:09:21)
Pack your bags, fill up the gas tank and get your tunes ready, we’re hitting the road. This specific kind of film has been a staple for decades and some of them are among the best of all-time. Whether it be action-packed like Mad Max: Fury Road or something more artistic like Easy Rider, road movies have a lot to offer and hopefully our lists are emblematic of that. 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!
This week on the InSession Film Podcast: Extra Film segment, Ryan and Jay get together to review the latest film from German director Christian Petzold, Transit, and Michael Curtiz’s Golden Age classic, Casablanca.
Transit is the third film in what Petzold calls his “Love in Times of Oppressive Systems” trilogy, alongside Barbara and Phoenix. Transit is an adaptation of a 1942 novel set in Nazi occupied France. However, the film uses modern aesthetics, giving a very unique vibe to the film. It has been one of the best-reviewed films of the year, and Jay and Ryan were very excited to get back on the foreign film horse. There is a bit of disagreement in the discussion and one host is higher on the film than the other!
Then, the guys take a look at one of Ryan’s all-time favorite, Casablanca! Many elements of Transit mirror those of Michael Curtiz’s classic, so it felt like a natural pairing. What else is there to say?? It’s an all-timer! Listen to Jay and Ryan gush over it!
On that note, have fun with this week’s Extra Film segment and let us know what you think in the comment section below. Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: Transit (5:23) Director: Christian Petzold Writer: Christian Petzold (adaptation), Anna Seghers (novel) Stars: Franz Rogowski, Paula Beer, Godehard Giese
– Movie Review: Casablanca (41:53) Director: Michael Curtiz Writer: Julius J. Epstein (screenplay), Philip G. Epstein (screenplay), Howard Koch (screenplay), Murray Burnett (play), Joan Alison (play) Stars: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid
We try to make this the best movie podcast we possibly can and we hope you enjoy them. Subscribe today on iTunes, Spotfiy 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 listening to our show. It means the world to us!
Director: Jon Watts Writers: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers Stars: Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jon Favreau, Zendaya
Synopsis: Following the events of Avengers: Endgame (2019), Spider-Man must step up to take on new threats in a world that has changed forever.
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Jon Watts’s Spider-Man: Far From Home wrestles with a post-Endgame universe, pushes the boundaries of Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) teenage naiveté, and attempts to encapsulate topical technological discourses. These may seem like lofty ambitions for the friendly neighborhood Spider-man, and in some cases, the filmmakers bite off a bit more than they can chew. However, with a crisp combination of affable acting and foreshadowing, Spider-Man: Far From Home works well as a stand-alone superhero movie as well as a springboard into the next phase of the MCU.
Peter Parker is struggling with the loss of Tony Stark and the effects of Thanos’ snap (what Far From Home deems the “Blip”). Peter is juggling his affection for MJ (Zendaya) and his future as Spider-Man in a world where heroes are required, and threats can appear at any moment. As Peter tries to come to grips with his past and his destiny, he also must deal with the problems that face tje affluent yet uncomfortable youth. A change of scenery comes in the form of a school trip to Europe, which is a welcome opportunity for Peter to leave Spider-Man behind and truly embrace and discover himself as Peter Parker, the teenager. Quickly, Peter’s hopes are dashed as Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) ropes him into assisting a dashing interdimensional hero, Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal), in the defeat of powerful elemental monsters. Soon, however, Peter falters and succumbs to the wiles of Beck (AKA Mysterio) and must race to save his friends and his love apparent before all is lost.
Far From Home emphasizes Peter Parker’s life as a teenager. Sure, he’s been to space and fought Thanos alongside Ironman and Doctor Strange, but deep down Peter is just a teenage boy. Tom Holland does a great job in making Peter likable and awkwardly enjoyable to watch. Peter is trusting, he is naïve, and his personal desires cloud his mind. Some might argue that the MCU Spider-Man got too big, too fast. The friendly neighborhood Spidey was getting equipped by a billionaire mere months after stopping crimes on his local streets. This springboard into greatness may have forced Peter to grow up quickly. Far From Home allows the audience to get adjusted to Peter’s awkwardness, his trusting nature, and his faults. By comparison, Mysterio seems intelligent, confident, and strong. Gyllenhaal brings an effortlessly cool swagger to the screen that makes Beck/Mysterio an intriguingly charismatic character. Once Mysterio’s true intentions are revealed, Peter finds himself personally responsible and must find a way to fix his mistakes.
In a post-Blip world, the public is desperately searching for the new Ironman. The film posits that a new Ironman must be crowned in order to fight any threats on the horizon. Tony’s image is seen everywhere throughout the film, and every location Peter and his friends visit seem to have its own shrines dedicated to the late hero. The film focuses so hard on this inevitability that once Peter commits to helping Mysterio, one can already see the folly of that decision. In some ways, this commitment to Peter’s naiveté shapes him more as a character. He is young, he is trusting of larger-than-life powerful father-figures, and he is constantly distracted by his feelings for MJ. This is a potent combination that is seized upon and exploited. While the inevitable twist is easily predicted, the faults of Peter Parker still exist. It is how Peter confronts his faults and learns from his mistakes that allow him to grow as a character. Ironman was not without his flaws, some of which shape and define the events of Far From Home. Peter learns through his and other’s mistakes to accept himself as being both a flawed human and a bearer of great responsibility. The responsibility to protect what he loves is paramount, however; seemingly the entire world requires a hero, judging by the constant reminder of Tony Stark’s greatness. In this way, Far From Home opens a Pandora’s Box of questions that as a single film it cannot possibly answer. One can only hope Marvel will release more films to answer these questions…
At its heart, Far From Home is more than a story told in a world different from ours, it is a story that shares the same disturbing technological trends that plague our parallel universe. Ambitiously enough, Far From Home grapples with the perils of fake news and the advent of deep fakes. The film deals with these dangers in an over-the-top, Hollywood blockbuster kind of way, but the message is clear. After the Blip, people are living in fear and a void is being created by the deaths in Infinity War and Endgame. That void is just waiting to be filled by any individual that can come along and promise a feeling of safety and security. Far From Home pokes at the philosophical questions of a hard truth vs. a comfortable lie. Mysterio cleverly manipulates the populace and forces them to see something that does not exist, the result of which catapults the next phase of the MCU forward (without giving too much away, staying for the two post-credit sequences is a requirement).
Overall, Spider-Man: Far From Home is a fun and entertaining romp through Europe with the newest incarnation of America’s favorite web-slinger. Far From home asks questions that will certainly be answered in subsequent MCU films. However, Far From Home has the dubious burden of carrying the weight of a post-Endgame universe and therefore holds the responsibility of progressing the future of the MCU, which it does somewhat admirably. While some Spider-Man diehards may be put off by the continued use of Tony Stark’s technology and Peter’s continuing missions outside his neighborhood, Far From Home works well as a bridge between the past and the future. Far From Home does seem to be able to stand on its own even in the face of the enormous pressure placed on its shoulders by the biggest MCU film to date. Far From Home has the possibility of becoming a polarizing film in the annals of the MCU. The Endgame hangover is still being felt, but Spider-Man: Far From Home is a solid film that offers a fun and exciting look into Peter Parker’s life and the lives of everyone affected by the Blip, fear, and fake news.
In recent years, we have fallen in love with the performances by children in Room, The Florida Project, Lion, Moonlight, and on the TV series Stranger Things. We’ve plucked out great performances from children throughout the decades and beyond our borders. Because I have the knack for foreign works and especially the old ones, I’ve always looked for those real performances cultivated from outside the Hollywood system. Some directors are legends behind the camera that have the intuition for great child actors while others had to struggle to get the right feel with them to get the right performance.Here are ten foreign (non-English speaking) movies with children as the central characters.
Germany Year Zero (1948)
Roberto Rossellini’s third film of the War Trilogy after Rome Open City and Paisan is set on ground zero in Berlin right after the surrender of Nazi Germany. Turned to rubble, twelve-year-old Edmund lives with his ill father and two adult siblings who are a burden, leaving Edmund alone to fend for himself but completely depressed in his surroundings. For the innocent Edmund, it is the worst scenario possible and Rossellini gives sympathy for a defeated figure, a victim of a brutal regime in a flattened terrain. It was also personal to Rossellini; he dedicated the film to his son Romano who died suddenly aged nine and cast Edmund Meschke, a young acrobat in the circus, in the lead role because of his similar resemblance to Rossellini’s deceased son.
The Red Balloon (1956)
It is only thirty-five minutes long, but it is a treat from start to finish about a young boy who finds a large red balloon one day and sees that it has its own childish mind, following the boy around and floating outside the window of his bedroom. Soon, it becomes the attraction for other children seeing this one balloon like a pet to the boy. Albert Lamorisse, who would win the Original Screenplay Oscar for this film, made child characters a specialty in his works with his previous film White Mane. Using his own son, Pascal, as the protagonist, Lamorisse provides an enchanting piece that kids and adults loved, representing friendship and childhood innocence so colorfully. Additionally, Lamorisse would also create the game board Risk; sadly his filmography is limited after perishing in a helicopter crash in 1970.
The 400 Blows (1959)
A staple of the French New Wave and amongst the basics of must-see foreign movies, Truffaut’s groundbreaking debut was the first of his semi-autobiographical Antoine Doinel series with 14-year-old Jean-Pierre Léaud. The story of the troublemaker who rebels against his parents and his teacher and engages in various mischief was the ignition of a style of cinema that carried on today. It is such a stirring film that may not be as actually like what we were at fourteen (Eighth Grade was very good) but it does level up on an emotional feeling of seeking freedom at a period life when we may not know where to go. The last long tracking shot of Antoine running away to the beach, reaching it, and a zoom in freeze frame to finish the film is just a master shot of great directing.
Good Morning (1959)
https://youtu.be/DLsg45wHlK4
In post-war prosperous Japan, two boys want a TV for their own home to watch sumo matches, but their parents will not buy them one. In protest, they give the silent treatment. Yasujiro Ozu made a remake of his own I Was Born, But and mocked the growing consumerism of the time through a child’s eyes. This was the second color film of his career and would mark the last few years of his life before dying in 1963. It is a bright film, calm and acceptive of the fart jokes kids like to play with each other. The envy of others and their appliances are also childish with the adults involved, similar to how the children want a TV. It is an interesting juxtaposition between adults talking and children farting in such a perpendicular fashion.
Zazie Dans Le Metro (1960)
After his noir and romantic dramas, Louis Malle went to comedy with this surreal, rapid, and visually crackling story of a ten-year-old who spends the weekend in Paris with her eccentric uncle. Following novelist Raymond Queneau’s creative lingual humor with the French language, Malle creates a neverending parade of gags surrounding the wiseass child (and she is) while mixing it up with speedy cameras, quick cutting, and a complete mise en scene of anarchy which topples over the fourth wall and the gets the cameramen involved. Paris is a playground, on its streets, on the Eiffel Tower – which was shot on location, even in the air – and in its cafes where Zazie decides to have a ball without any care.
Mon Oncle Antoine (1971)
Ranked recently as the second greatest Canadian film ever, it is one of these coming-of-age stories that is very universal without the language barrier but provides insight into what Quebec was like in the 1940s outside in the rural areas during the cold winters. Everyone knows each other, the asbestos mines are owned by the Americans, and Quebec was under a government referred to as “The Great Darkness.” Here, however, it is light-hearted with the story of Benoit, who has lost both of his parents and visits his uncle for the holidays. There, Benoit has his first feelings of sexual attraction, as well as a close encounter with what being next to death is. It is semi-nostalgic, semi-realism, and bittersweet in what a Quebecan child would have gone through, like the director, Claude Juntra, back then.
The Spirit Of The Beehive (1973)
Set in 1940, one year after the end of the Spanish Civil War, six-year-old Ana sees James Whale’s Frankenstein and finds herself haunted by its power. The aesthetic director Victor Erice brings is poetic and reflective of the beginning of the Franco dictatorship right as Spain was at the end of it. The very steady pace, almost like a Tarkovsky film, allows the viewer to take in the scenery, one of desolation at the time, and the darkness that Ana is picking up who Frankenstein is and how much she seems to feel a relationship with a fictional character.
My Life As A Dog (1985)
Before he came to America to make a bunch of mediocre work such as The Cider House Rules, Dear John, and A Dog’s Purpose (apologies to fans of those films), Lasse Hallstrom made a deep impression with a coming-of-age story about a boy in 1959 who moves in with his uncle after his mother becomes very ill. It is given special treatment, using the metaphors with dogs as a way to describe the emotions the boy is feeling when it comes to making new friends and finding his first crush. It also handles the eccentrics of the village the boy now lives in as he has to start reattaching himself to a new society that is nothing like the one he had with his parents.
Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987)
It wasn’t the first time Louis Malle made a film with a child as the centerpiece. Besides Zazie Dans le Métro, the candid Murmur of the Heart (1972), and the controversial Pretty Baby (1978), Malle added his personal touch is this semi-autobiographical drama about a boy in a Catholic boarding school who discovers a Jewish classmate in hiding. Set in Occupied France, Malle lived through this period and was a witness to the event. It is heartbreaking for children can be betrayed and used and, as seen in other noted films, war is cruel and everyone is for sale and noted when a collaborator of the Gestapo says, “Stop acting so pious. There’s a war going on, kid.”
Where Is The Friend’s Home? (1987)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebuVEeMPdyc
Schoolboy Ahmed realizes he has the notebook of a classmate who is on the verge of falling out and has to go on a quest to return it to him in a nearby village. It a small tale about civic duty and looking for others, even as children. The traditional lifestyle of the Iranian countryside is also depicted, courtesy of the master, Abbas Kiarostami, arguably the greatest director to come out of the country. Like in his future works, there is the weaving of human dignity regardless of age that Kiarostami just had a grip of. This was the first of his Koker trilogy, refering to the name of the Iranian village where the stories take place, and would Life and Nothing More and Through the Olive Trees.
One of the two major releases this weekend in theaters is the road comedy Stuber, starring Kumail Nanjiani and Dave Bautista. It looks silly and funny in all the (hopefully) best ways. Road comedies have been a staple in film for a long time and it felt like a great poll this week. So we are simply asking; what do you think is the best road comedy?
For our Episode 333 Bonus Content, coming off the heels of JD’s vacation, he was able to catch up with many films he missed while he was out. So on this show, he reviews (along with Brendan’s help) Toy Story 4, Midsommar, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Late Night, The Dead Don’t Die, Transit and The Souvenir! A lot to go over, but we had a lot of fun!
To listen, use the media player above or click here!
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This week on Episode 333 of the InSession Film Podcast, as we do every year at this time, we discussed our Top 5 movies of the year so far. 2019 may not have the depth or riches that last year gave us by the halfway mark, but its had its fair share of gems. Some of them truly great and will be contenders at the end of the year. This exercise is always stressful, but it’s simultaneously a lot of fun and we had a blast discussing the five films that have stood out to us so far this year. That said, what would be your Top 5?
Here are the one’s that made ours:
JD:
1) Wild Rose
2) Her Smell
3) The Last Black Man in San Francisco
4) Us
5) High Life
—
6) Midsommar
7) Avengers: Endgame
8) Booksmart
9) Apollo 11
10) How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
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Brendan:
1) Her Smell
2) Midsommar
3) The Last Black Man in San Francisco
4) Dragged Across Concrete
5) The Beach Bum
—
6) Wild Rose
7) High Life
8) Booksmart
9) Paddleton
10) Under the Silver Lake
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Dan:
1) The Perfection
2) Arctic
3) Booksmart
4) John Wick 3: Parabellum
5) The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
—
6) Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile
7) Fyre
8) I Am Mother
9) Triple Frontier
10) Avengers: Engame
Honorable Mentions (Combined) The Mustang, Diane, High Flying Bird, Captain Marvel, Transit, Glorai Bell, Toy Story 4, The Dead Don’t Die, Leaving Neverland, Everybody Knows
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. This list is obviously going to differ based on your own personal taste and what you’re looking for in these films. 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, Dan Brenic from Netflix ‘N Swill joins us to review Marvel’s latest in Spider-Man: Far From Home. We also celebrate the first half of the year by discussing our Top 5 movies of 2019 so far!
A big thanks to Dan for joining us this week. He was eager to give his thoughts on Far From Home and he did not disappoint. For better or worse, JD is also back this week, so we apologize to those listeners who were enjoying that reprieve. As you’ll see, this week’s episode is a tad longer than usually – partly because of the Top 5 this week – but also because JD is back on the mic. At any rate, we had a lot of fun with this show and we hope you enjoy as well.
That said, 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: Spider-Man: Far From Home (6:15) Director: Jon Watts Writers: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers Stars: Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Jake Gyllenhaal
– Notes / Upcoming Bonus Content (46:20)
As mentioned above, this is JD’s first show since Episode 330, which means there are many films that he’s seen and wants to talk about. So, in lieu of talking about them on this week’s episode, we are going to be doing some bonus content very soon where he purges his thoughts on Toy Story 4, Late Night, The Dead Don’t Die, Everybody Knows, The Souvenir, Transit, The Last Black Man in San Francisco and Midsommar.
– Top 5 Movies of 2019 (so far) (58:37)
It’s flown by, but here we are at the midway point of the year. 2019 may not have the depth or riches that last year gave us by the halfway mark, but its had its fair share of gems. Some of them truly great and will be contenders at the end of the year. This exercise is always stressful, but it’s simultaneously a lot of fun and we had a blast discussing the five films that have stood out to us so far this year. That said, what would be your Top 5?
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 the InSession Film Podcast: Extra Film segment, Ryan and Jay discuss Ari Aster’s latest horror film, Midsommar, and talk about the best performances of 2019 so far.
One of the most anticipated films of the year makes it way over to the guys on Extra Film. Riding on the success of last years break out horror hit Hereditary, director Ari Aster is starting to make a household name for himself as a rising star in not just the horror genre but as a overall filmmaker. And with Midsommar, Aster has already divided critics and audiences, thus the guys couldn’t wait to talk about this film since divisive movies are the name of the game on Extra Film sometimes. Though reactions have divided most who have seen it, this review lead to one of the most interesting discussions on Extra Film so far this year.
Then in the back half of the episode, Ryan and Jay do something different and take a look back at the best performances of 2019 so far.
On that note, have fun with this week’s Extra Film segment and let us know what you think in the comment section below. Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: Midsommar (8:46) Director: Ari Aster Writer: Ari Aster Stars: Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor, Will Poulter
– Top Performances of 2019 So Far (55:22)
Inspired by Episode 333 and JD and Brendan’s discussion over the best films of 2019 so far, Ryan and Jay thought it would be fun to talk about their Top 5 performances in the lead and supporting acting categories. This is the first time Ryan and Jay have done a Top 5 on Extra Film and wanted to highlight some of the best lead and supporting performances of the year. This was a lot of fun to do for the guys so they can get a good sense as to what performances and films are the best of the year so far and what they need to catch up with before the end of the year. That said, what is your favorite lead or supporting performances of the year?
We try to make this the best movie podcast we possibly can and we hope you enjoy them. Subscribe today on iTunes, Spotfiy 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 listening to our show. It means the world to us!
Director: Danny Boyle Writers: Jack Barth (story by), Richard Curtis (screenplay) Stars: Himesh Patel, Lily James, Sophia Di Martino
Synopsis: A struggling musician realizes he’s the only person on Earth who can remember The Beatles after waking up in an alternate timeline where they never existed.
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The magic of The Beatles is a hard thing to tap into or fully understand. It may be partly natural talent and songwriting ability, partly image, partly timing, maybe none of that or all of it at once. No one can truly comprehend how John, Paul, George and Ringo did what they did in the brief amount of time they worked together. People spend their lives devoted to this music, and The Beatles may have created fan culture as we know it. So, of course, the brave soul of screenwriter Richard Curtis decided to ask a question, one that only stoners late in the evening would ask: “What would the world be like without The Beatles?”
He doesn’t bother to answer it either, as Yesterday is a movie is far more interested in a mediocre romance than anything Beatles related. We follow one Jack Malick (played with wit by Himesh Patel) who’s a struggling musician slumming his way through unpaid bar gigs and other shows. This is no Inside Llewyn Davis though, as the plot comes immediately after a… uh, unexplained incident which presents Jack with a surprising moral quandary. What would you do if you were the only one who remembers The Beatles? No one, not even his manager Ellie (Lily James), who has a crush on him, remembers “Help!”. Jack decides to pass the songs as his, striking up worldwide success. The following events play as a fantasy, as Jack rises through the music industry, churning out boring cover versions of Beatles songs that loses the color in the classics.
Curtis, the mastermind behind this increasingly misguided concept, teams up with director Danny Boyle who lacks the verve here that the central concepts would need. Boyle’s best talent is picking out great scripts, but often times you want to redirect him from his worst visual tendencies. He almost achieves that here by being a basically directing the film with next to no visual ideas. Boyle isn’t to blame here, but Richard Curtis doesn’t engage in what could make this film such fun. Curtis believes that nothing could change the power of a song like “I Saw Her Standing There”, except for the fact that Jack is near 30, and when he sings “Well, she was just seventeen…”, it sure is uncomfortable. Curtis doesn’t realize that the audience for music is far different than it was in 1963. He seems to believe that these poor covers of classics will hold filmwatchers off from asking any number of reasonable questions about the conceit. It’s not hard to suspend disbelief in service of a good film, but it’d be nice to even understand how no one remembers The Beatles.
The actors do try, if you want to throw the film a bone. Himesh Patel is a gifted actor, and his immediate reactions to the lack of The Beatles in the world could lead him to a Golden Globe nomination. His impassioned version of “Yesterday” towards the beginning of the film is the highlight, showing clearly why he was picked for the role. Lily James makes half of her unexplainable character actions reasonable, once again showing why she’s one of the most talented actresses currently working. Kate McKinnon pops up to play a cartoon version of a record label executive, making us question if she’d work out of the context of Saturday Night Live once again. The funniest bit of the film is a short scene in an overextended Ed Sheeran cameo, where we hear his ringtone revealed to be “Shape of You”. If the best part of a film about The Beatles is a lame Ed Sheeran joke, we’ve got problems.
We are at the half-way point of the year (where does the time go?) and this weekend on the show we’ll be talking about our Top 5 movies of 2019 so far. So, for our poll this week, it only makes sense that we ask you the same question. What is the best film of 2019 so far? It’s been perhaps a thin year compared to others in this decade, but there have still been some great gems – both small and large.
Director: Kenneth Branagh Writers: Ben Elton Stars: Kenneth Branagh, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen Synopsis: A look at the final days in the life of renowned playwright William Shakespeare.
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Kenneth Branagh’s film All is True attempts to uncover the final chapter of William Shakespeare’s life. While working as a slow-burning reflection on Shakespeare’s life and a red-hot take on his familial situations, All is True deftly deals with the complex issues of fame, neglect, regret, and expectations. Utilizing beautifully composed shots and intense portrayals, Branagh’s ode to Shakespeare may frustrate devotees of the bard, who may be looking for an accurate biopic. However, less discerning viewers will find humanity and delicacy in a fact-bending story that permeates the screen like a richly conceived Baroque oil painting.
All is True picks up after Shakespeare’s (Kenneth Branagh) beloved Globe Theater is destroyed by fire. Now in retirement, he travels home to Stratford to live out his final days with his wife Anne (Judi Dench) and his two daughters, Judith (Kathryn Wilder) and Susannah (Lydia Wilson). Living without his work, Shakespeare begins to understand the damage he has wrought on his neglected family, especially the women in his life, and must face regrets surrounding the death of his son, Hamnet, who passed away over a decade ago. While the story of Shakespeare’s life in All is True often feels similar to that of a soap opera, a slow bubbling of emotions begins at a simmer and soon reaches a rolling boil. Long lost feelings and secrets burst through unexpectedly as Shakespeare grapples with the family he long abandoned in favor of fame and fortune.
As Shakespeare confronts the neglect and regret with regards to his family, a vibrant world comes into view. Autumnal hues and a stoic camera fill the screen with both beauty and pain. The use of natural light often plunges characters in the dark, lit only by fire and candlelight. One might be reminded of Georges de La Tour’s The Penitent Magdalen, a Baroque work which imbues secrets with a mere glow of a candle. These contrasts between light and dark, hidden and seen, inhabit most scenes. The effect is a filmic world filled with hidden truths just outside the aura of light. Shakespeare is consistently confronted with province he feels he understands, yet secrets continue to be illuminated. How he struggles with the truths as they appear is both cathartic and mournful, but there is a sense of entrapment, as he cannot escape to London to write his plays.
Moments of sheer virtuosity strike All is True at various moments. These moments erupt on screen with all the subtleness of crackling fire on the hearth. Sequences where Branagh utilizes a still camera and long takes, allow his actors to push in and out of light within the depths of the screen. One such scene, when Shakespeare’s youngest daughter and twin to Hamnet, Judith, admits to a long-held secret, Dench, Wilder, and Branagh fill the screen with bitterness, hostility, and anguish. Branagh moves about the pseudo-stage tumbling through every emotion, as his wife and youngest daughter remain still, as if judges handing down a sentence. However, the true wonder of the film comes when Shakespeare’s muse pays him a visit in Stratford. Henry Wriothesley, the 3rd Earl of Southampton (a quite foppish Ian McKellen) and Shakespeare sit before a fire and contemplate Shakespeare’s legacy. The two gifted actors take turns reciting Sonnet 29, each infusing the words with varying sentiments. The effect feels both cathartic and confusing for Shakespeare as he allows himself to contemplate his life’s work. The result is a beautiful moment between two men whose expectations of each other have been subverted for years as the truth is finally exposed.
Of course, this is a theme in All is True: how to stop living in the shadows and allow the truth to be seen as the foundation of all humanity. Shakespeare confronts these truths as a human being, as flawed as he seems. In this way, the myth of the man is stripped away and the hand behind the words is exposed. The methods may seem a bit melodramatic and preachy at times, but the execution is absolutely beautiful. The world that Branagh creates envelops Shakespeare as Patrick Doyle’s melancholy score emphasizes the sadness and bitterness he encounters as he finds his truths. All is True is not a perfect film, but the superb outweighs the soap. Ironically, All is True pushes the boundaries of truth but at all times the film is true to itself, and that’s all one can ask in a world filled with so many truths to uncover.
This week on Episode 332 of the InSession Film Podcast, inspired by Yesterday, we thought it would be fun to talk about struggling artist movies. To say this was a challenging topic is putting it lightly. “Struggling artist” is a vague term and can mean many things depending on criteria and how that is defined. Simply as is, there are a gazillion movies to choose when it comes to this arena, so we did our best to narrow down the options with the rules we choose for our individual lists. Despite the challenge, we are confident that you’ll enjoy the films we ended up picking. That said, what would be your Top 3?
(Note: Please keep in mind that we each had different criteria for our selections)
Brendan
1) Synecdoche, New York
2) Ed Wood
3) The Commitments
Jay
1) Ratatouille
2) Ed Wood
3) Synecdoche, New York
Will
1) The Player
2) Barton Fink
3) La La Land
Honorable Mentions (Combined) Inside Llewyn Davis Love & Mercy The Doors Amadeus Frank Whiplash Birdman Adaptation. Midnight in Paris Can You Ever Forgive Me? The Shining The King of Comedy Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters Clouds of Sils Maria Nashville Her Smell Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story School of Rock Tropic Thunder 50/50 The Big Sick 8½ Exit Through the Gift Shop Crumb Anvil! The Story of Anvil Black Swan The Wrestler Andrei Rublev Basquiat The Diving Bell and the Butterfly At Eternity’s Gate Chef Misery The Prestige Paterson Hedwig and the Angry Inch Phantom Thread The Stuntman
Hopefully you guys enjoyed our lists and if you agree or disagree with us, let us know in the comment section below. As mentioned above, this topic can go in any number of directions depending on criteria and how you define your list. 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, Will Mavity from Next Best Picture joins us to discuss Danny Boyle’s Yesterday and our Top 3 struggling artist movies! Jay (filling in for JD) also gives his thoughts on Toy Story 4, while Brendan offers up some sentiments on The Last Black Man in San Francisco.
A huge thanks to Will for joining us on the main show this week. He’s been on Chasing the Gold with Ryan before, but this was Will’s first appearance on the main show and he was absolutely delightful. We are big fans of his work and it was a pleasure to have him on the show this week. Also, thanks to Jay Ledbetter for filling in for JD, as he was still out on vacation.
That said, 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: Yesterday (5:36) Director: Danny Boyle Writers: Jack Barth (story by), Richard Curtis (screenplay) Stars: Himesh Patel, Lily James, Sophia Di Martino
– Notes / Toy Story 4 / The Last Black Man in San Francisco (47:05)
This week for InSession Film Catch-Up (still the unofficial term), Brendan offers up his thoughts on The Last Black Man in San Francisco after the fellas talked about it on our most recent Extra Film. Jay also gives his sentiments on Toy Story 4.
– Top 3 Struggling Artist Movies (1:03:10)
Okay, so, this was a challenging topic. “Struggling artist” is a vague term and can mean many things depending on criteria and how that is defined. Simply as is, there are a gazillion movies to choose when it comes to this arena, so we did our best to narrow down the options with the rules we choose for our individual lists. Despite the challenge, we are confident that you’ll enjoy the films we ended up picking. That said, what would be your Top 3?
Main Review: Spider-Man: Far From Home
Top 5: Movies of 2019 (so far)
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This week on the InSession Film Podcast: Extra Film segment, Ryan and Jay get together to review the newest indie drama, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, and in the back half of the episode, they review the newest indie sic-fi drama, Fast Color.
Considered one of the more intriguing films to come out of Sundance, director Joe Talbot’s film follows the story of two friends living in a ever changing city they grew up in. With comparisons to the films of Barry Jenkins, Sorry to Bother You and Blindspotting, this was a very anticipated film for the guys to see and they couldn’t wait to talk about it once their screenings ended.
Then, the guys take a look at the film Fast Color, a film that they missed earlier in the year and is now available for Streaming and Video-On-Demand. The film is a interesting story family drama with sic-fi/superhero elements that has been real surprise for most people that have seen it already. Also with some comparisons to Jeff Nichol’s Midnight Special, and knowing how much JD Duran loves that movie, it was a no brainier to review this movie and see if the film lived up to the hype.
On that note, have fun with this week’s Extra Film segment and let us know what you think in the comment section below. Thanks for listening!
– Movie Review: The Last Black Man in San Francisco (5:33) Director: Joe Talbot Writer: Joe Talbot, Rob Richert Stars: Jimmie Fails, Jonathan Majors, Danny Glover
– Movie Review: Fast Color (43:16) Director: Julia Hart Writer: Julia Hart, Jordan Horowitz Stars: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Lorraine Toussaint, Saniyya Sidney
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While Federico Fellini, Roberto Rossellini, and Vittorio De Seca are the first names peoples think of in Italian cinema, another director is a major influence, presenting a more open narrative where we flow with the story and nothing is tied up at the end. For this Italian auteur, he was an intellectual who wanted the audience to focus on what they see rather than what they hear and feel in the story and characters. The story and what our protagonist does was secondary to Antonioni and chose the narrative to be away from the postwar acceptance of what life is and instead examine the emptiness people still felt in their lives. He opposed the traditional storylines with a resolution at the end and proper actions to drive the story. Instead, he emphasized the visual, being ambiguous, and keep the constant theme of modern alienation from society.
Quadrilogy Of Modernity And Its Discontents
He had a few movies in the 1950s but did not have his breakthrough until 1960 with L’Avventura, followed by La Notte and L’Eclisse. The first film deals with the disappearance of a young woman from a boating vacation and the search by her lover and her best friend. Spoiler alert: she is never found. It doesn’t mean she died, but, as time progresses, the feelings of her welfare turn into the romantic tension between the man and woman. Instead of a mystery of what happened to the woman, we have to be invested in the consciousness that befalls the others and their love. This was the first of four movies featuring Antonioni’s lover, Monica Vitti, playing the best friend who cannot understand why she is falling in love with her best friend’s lover, but yet sees it as the only way to move forward. There is no moralism being presented nor do they care; it is part of Antonioni’s own personal ideology as a Marxist, even though this and his later films were never political ones.
In La Notte, a writer and his wife, feeling distant, spend a whole night at their upper-class parties meeting others, restraining their ambitions, and letting everyone else guide them into their space and thus filling their voids. Do Giovanni (Marcello Mastroianni) and Lidia (Jeanne Moreau) still love each other at the end? It is up to one’s interpretation when the sun rises after. Finally, in L’eclisse, Monica Vitti plays a woman, unhappy with her lover, who gets into another relationship with a new man. It didn’t matter that traditional narrative was blown off for a free-flowing style that had no real ending; there is no climax to the movie, just an absence of people. The last Vitti/Antonioni collaboration was his first in color, Red Desert, in which Vitti plays the wife of an industrialist who is isolated from him and his work while surrounded by the wasteland that is an industrial section made to look beautiful. The red and green is a facade over the towering machinery is in contrast to the historical, romantic side of Italy; a hidden political condemnation by Antonioni of what post-war Italy, twenty years removed, has become.
In The English Language
The back end of Antonioni’s notable catalog started when he crossed over to London’s Swinging Sixties with Blow-Up. A fashion photographer (David Hemmings) accidentally stumbles upon a murder in progress and is chased down by presumably a conspirator in the killing (Vanessa Redgrave). The photographer becomes paranoid as he proceeds to hunt down the exact reason for the murder while strolling through a rock-and-jazz London courtesy of Herbie Hancock’s score and an appearance by The Yardbirds with Jimmy Page (of future Led Zeppelin fame) and Jeff Beck. It’s a murder mystery without the police and without a proper resolution, quietly done and without the violence. There is fashion, avant-garde performances from mimes, and sexual frolic.
His follow up, Zabriskie Point is set in Death Valley in the midst of the counterculture’s high point in ’68-’69 when student strikes were common and a student wonders his way into the desert where he meets a young, free-spirited woman. The film was a flop and critically dismissed, but it has since been reassessed as an external film from traditional American cinema of the times. The Passenger features Jack Nicholson as a reporter who takes over the identity of a dead man who turns out to be a mercenary to follow a story in the African desert. Soon, he blurs his real identity with the mercenary to the point where, in the end, he is identified as the mercenary’s name. While there is more of an ending with the last two films, linking to traditional American storylines, Antonioni still leaves behind some questions unanswered for our interpretation.
His career faded in the 1980s with Identification Of A Woman being the last acclaimed work from critics. Antonioni received the Honorary Oscar in 1994 for, “recognition of his place as one of the cinema’s master visual stylists,” and died on 30 July 2007, the same exact day of another legendary auteur, Ingmar Bergman. Antonioni was praised by critic David Bordwell for allowing art films to be open-ended and encouraged future filmmakers to make similar bold works. However, his contemporaries like Bergman and Orson Welles found his work boring for his consistent long takes and longing on something with no meaning. But that is the beauty of Antonioni, you don’t need a full answer to what he is showing you because sometimes we don’t get an answer to something we see in real life. He writes about people and the gaps between them, especially the lonely ones who want to go somewhere. And sometimes, viewers were taken into isolation, where there is no escapism for a happy ending.
Director: Nisha Ganatra Writers: Mindy Kaling Stars: Emma Thompson, Mindy Kaling, John Lithgow, Hugh Dancy Synopsis: A late-night talk-show host suspects that she may soon lose her long-running show.
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There’s a moment near the end of Late Night (directed by Nisha Ganatra) where upstart writer, Molly Patel (Mindy Kaling), stands up to the legendary late night show host Katherine Newbury (Emma Thompson) after taking harsh treatment from her for most of the film.
To my millennial eyes, this scene was a release. I’ve seen older business people treat me differently because of my age. At the same time, there are many scenes where my millennial point of view is put right in the crosshairs as people point out Molly’s love of catharsis and her overbearing first impressions.
This gets to the heart of what makes Late Night such a powerful film. It is incredibly perceptive about age differences and how they affect the workplace. More than that, it is perceptive about differences in general – whether they’re from gender, race, or you take your pick. The film’s script (written by Kaling) goes for all of the above.
We meet Newbury first. She is a British late night legend, known for hosting Tonight with Katherine Newbury for many years. Her calling card is her exceptionalism, though that has also put her in a decade-long dry spell by the time the film begins. In being above the type of comedy that appeals to the masses, she has isolated herself – and the ratings have begun to show it.
She looks for a reason why this could be. One of her writers gives her one idea – that Newbury hates women. She is so taken aback by the comment that she fires him on the spot. But the fact remains that she has no women on her writing staff. Katherine decides to change that, and she demands that they hire a woman writer.
Enter Molly.
When we first meet her, Molly is working at a chemical plant – not a factory, as she points out repeatedly. There, she pursues her dream of being a comedienne by performing “stand-up” over the chemical plant intercom. Her joke about solutions slays.
One day she sees an essay contest where the winner gets a meeting with the executive of their choice. Molly wins, and while previous winners have chosen the CEO of the chemical plant, Molly goes higher. She chooses the CEO of the chemical plant’s parent company who also happens to own the network that runs Katherine’s show.
This gets her an interview to be on Katherine’s writing staff. Though Molly has no experience, Katherine is dead-set on adding a woman, so Molly is chosen. The men in the room scoff at this clear “diversity hire” but Molly pushes forward.
This film is well-written, overall. Kaling does a fantastic job of setting up these age, racial, and gender differences and plumbing them for narrative depth to her comedic story. My main quibble with the script, though, is how it struggles with transitions. I had the feeling that the film never really got into a flow, which was unfortunate given the powerful material. At some points this is the fault of the writing. The most egregious example of this was a blatant product placement where Molly brings McDonald’s to her co-worker and comments on the McNuggets, then just moves on. At other times, it’s an editing flaw – like the scene where network president, Caroline Morton (Amy Ryan), is shown being angry on the phone and then we quickly cut away. This doesn’t really tell us anything new, and it just halts the progression of the story. Because the film did a good job of setting up its characters, we already know that Morton will be angered by what happened on the show. We don’t need an extraneous scene to tell us that.
Also, I can’t say I fell for “I hope I’ve earned the privilege of your time” as a catchphrase. This is how Katherine Newbury ends each one of her shows. An emotional moment near the end of the film uses this phrase in a new way, but it just didn’t land for me.
Those are mostly small critiques in the grand scheme of things, though. I these issues keep Late Night from being a truly great film, but there simply aren’t many truly great films. As it is, Late Night is a really good one, and that’s to be applauded.
As the film progresses, the specter of losing her show hovers ever closer over Newbury. Morton, her boss, even has a replacement ready to go. His name is Daniel Tennant (Ike Barinholtz), and his comedy is of the frat-boy, lowest common denominator variety. In multiple scenes, we see Newbury scoff at his brand of comedy. Yet, he is the one who is set to take over her show. One of my favorite aspects of the film is how it handles this, yet another major divide.
The setup is that Newbury is not “mainstream” enough. In her pursuit of excellence, she has alienated herself from a large audience. However, rather than simply adopt or even look down on the type of broad comedy that Tennant employs, the film finds redemption for Newbury through authenticity. Mainstream doesn’t have to mean dumb. There simply needs to be a connection. Amid many powerful messages in the film, this may have been my favorite.
Overall, this is an enjoyable comedy with a lot of heart. More than that, it has something to say. Not every film these days can combine all of that into one piece, but Kaling and Co. do it very well here. It stops and starts at times, but we definitely need more films like this one.
