A moovie podcast
We’re joined by two philosophers of art to discuss how they’ve helped each other come to a greater appreciation for this quirky but lovable entry into the Fast and Furious franchise. We discuss how art can change depending on the context in which it is embedded, and the ways the franchise could have gone after this film. We also compare notes on the different ways we’ve come to appreciate this film over time.
I have money, it’s trust and character I need around me. You know, who you choose to be around you lets you know who you are. One car in exchange for knowing what a man’s made of? That’s a price I can live with
Han
Join us and Emily St. James to discuss Fred Claus (streaming now on Max)! We marvel at the film’s strange and unnecessarily complicated backstory about the cosmology of sainthood, discuss Santa Claus’s moral epistemology, elf-yourself levels of CGI, why everyone deserves a second chance, and somehow spend five minutes discussing the phenomenon of “ugly hot”.
There’s no naughty kids, Nick. They’re all good kids.
Fred Claus
Time to get HUSH HUSH with Blake Howard (One Heat Minute Productions). Noir, moral compromise, postwar LA, the American Dream, police, the LAPD, Dante FREAKING Spinotti, and MORE!
Don’t start tryin’ to do the right thing, boy-o. You haven’t the practice.
Cpt. Dudley Smith
Joe is going to die. But he has a chance to be a hero, and live like a king. Only, that means he’ll have to jump into a volcano. Is Joe’s story all of ours? We sit down with Chad Perman (founder of Bright Wall / Dark Room) to dig into what makes this zany, existential, transcendent, hilarious, slapstick, profound movie so good. Along the way, we discuss the Kantian sublime, Heidegger’s notion of being-toward-death, the meaning of life, and flibbertigibbets!
I saw the moon when we where out there on the ocean. Shinning down on everything. I’ve been miserable for so long. Years of my life wasted. For you. Been a long time comin’ here to met you. A long time, on a crooked road.
Joe Banks
“The smaller the audience, the bigger the history.” So, at least, said Tony Wilson, co-founder of Factory Records and larger than life character at the center of Michael Winterbottom’s 2002 punk pseudo-music-doc, our topic today! We are joined by Professor of Italian Studies at Boston College to explore the pull of nostalgia, anticipated retrospection, how the film’s blend of fact/fiction/and legend reflects the mythmaking of its protagonist, and, of course, the music duh!
We’re all equal in the grave. Except Martin, obviously, who was a huge character. So huge that his coffin wouldn’t fit in his grave. I remember thinking: Martin Hannett, too big for death.
Tony Wilson
James Cameron’s terrifying and overwhelming sequel ALIENS is a rollercoaster that Roger Ebert called “absolutely, painfully and unremittingly intense.” We sit down with Brendan Hodges to explore the film’s power over us, what all that goo and slime means, the film’s anti-bureaucratic “strong individualist” conservatism and second wave feminist ideology, its use of space in allegorical and punishingly literal ways… and so much more. GAME OVER MAN! GAME OVER!
My mommy always said there were no monsters – no real ones – but there are.
Newt
It’s just us for our one hundredth episode talking Sophia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides! We hit all the good stuff: suburban malaise, fear, control, parenting, childhood, Trip Fontaine’s hair, memory, privacy, the joys of human connection, first loves, and Kathleen Turner!
Obviously, Doctor, you’ve never been a 13-year-old girl.
Cecilia
Have you ever wanted to know the TRUE story that inspired King Arthur? Did you know that Arthur was a freedom fighter battling for the independence of Britannia? Wait until you see what armor Guinevere preferred to wear into battle! And don’t forget Tristan and his faithful falcon! Join us and Jon Gabrus (High & Mighty, Action Boyz, 101 Places to Party Before You Die) to unpack this forgotten mid-aughts classic from Antoine Fuqua!
Ahhh, finally, a man worth killing.
Cerdic
Liam Billingham (Die Hard on a Blank / OuevreBusters) joins us to discuss Paul Verhoeven’s meta-propaganda Brechtian war film Starship Troopers. We discuss the film’s odd mixture of big budget VFX with soap opera stars, how it’s three movies in one, the nature of meaning in a world devoid of conflict, and art that risks embarrassment. It’s a squishy, gooey, fun time, so jump on this one way rocket to Klendathu with us, folks!
I’m from Buenos Aires, and I say kill em’ all
Johnny Rico
Cows in the Field