In what is becoming an amusingly familiar story, it took a few attempts for my guest and I to get our ducks in a row and get this episode to happen. Perhaps because of that we chattered on a little long thins time. Or perhaps it can be chalked up to us being excited about INCEPTION, or grumpy about one particular critic.
Regardless...when I get a Lammy Award Winner in the hot seat, I'm not one to waste the opportunity. Thus, I'll count the long running time as a good thing. I'll work on getting it to a shorter experience next episode.
For now, make a cup of coffee or two, here's the Chris Sabo episode...
Here's what's in store in episode seventeen...
Runtime
79 minutes, 50 seconds
Up for Discussion
1. Introduction
2. KNOW YOUR ENEMY - Q & A with this episode's guest, Meredith Carter from M. Carter @ The Movies. (1:30)
3. COME TALK TO ME - Listeners confess their guilty pleasures. (8:31)
4. WHAT'S GOIN' ON - NY Press critic Armond White just doesn't get it. (16:39)
5. THE NEW SLANG - Review and reaction of INCEPTION (27:37)
6. THE BEST OF YOU - Meredith and I count down our top five southern movies (45:34)
Note: During the 'What's Goin' On' segment, we discuss a conversation from another podcast. If you want to hear that bit of lunacy, it can be found here at /Filmcast.
Comments and feedback are welcome, and thank-you very much for listening.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Midnight Radio: The Matineecast Episode 17
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27 comments:
Although Ryan was kind enough to call it "cute," excuse my repeated use of the word "absolutely." I had seen the new Twilight film a week prior. The glitter made me, like, dumbish.
The problem with attacking Armond White on the basis of what he does and doesn't like is that you don't really get at why he's an awful critic. You even just got through saying that people are entitled to like and dislike what they please.
The real issue with White is that he's truly gifted as a critic: he was a film professor for a time, not only is a member of various critic groups but was actually the president of the New York Film Critics Circle. He is not an idiot or someone who just arrived on the scene and started trolling. Instead, he ended up setting aside insightful criticism in favor of disorganized rants to capitalize on notoriety. He doesn't even use film knowledge anymore, instead setting up strawmen and knocking them down without ever getting into specifics, much less complex analysis. That's what makes him awful, the motivation behind his choices, not the choices themselves.
@ Jake... I actually used to think that - that White was just saying the opposite of what everyone else says to get readership and make an argument.
But reading his comments and listening to the audio portion that's been posted so far...I don't believe that to be true.
I now completely believe that while he is a very smart man, and a gifted writer - he has lost sight of the plot. He DOES use his film knowledge, but when a man tries to counter argue the merit of "24" by comparing it to INTOLERANCE...he's clearly comparing apples to oranges and just. doesn't. get it.
(Thanks for listening!)
*grabs smart people glasses* time to check it out.
That was one awesome answer from Danger on guilty pleasures. Makes me think. Perhaps an article on why no movie should be a guilty movie is in store.....
I think the dream of all of us is to own our own theater. My dream double feature: Rashomon + Unusual Suspects. 4 hours of narrative lies and cinematic goodness :)
Avoiding Inception talk till I see it *lalalalalalalalala*
O' Brother Where Are Though is one of my family's favorites, and you know me and the Coen bros. don't see eye to eye. I don't think anyone can beat To Kill a Mockingbird. It's just classic to the bone. Gregory Peck was perfect in it.
I am trying to listen to it, but for some reason it is not playing. Any suggestions (aside from pulling my head out of my ass)?
@ unruly... Try getting it through the Itunes Music Store (it's free). Go to the IMS and search "Matineecast". You can then stream or download episode 17...
...and y'know, get your mitts on back episodes if you like my handiwork.
Thanks, it works now.
79 minutes? Wuss...
I like Ebert's take on White in his recent blog post. I really don't care if someone likes or dislikes a film - I just want to hear why they do and maybe learn something. I can't help but feel that White works backwards in his reviews - ie. "I want to feel this way and here's how I'm going to rationalize it". That doesn't interest me and I kinda wish people would stop talking about him now...Me included.
Looking forward to listening to this show.
@ Meredith... many of your "absolutely"s were left on the cutting room floor. No apologies neccessary. BTW - I did indeed get everyon'e attention at the office today when I used the term "As all get out".
Thanks again for your swell job of guesting!
@ Univarn... Nah - a film can be guilty, so long as we recognize it as guilty. It's the difference between thinking REAL GENIUS is awesome because it's fun, and thinking it's awesome because it's awesome. Feel free to post about it though and prove me wrong.
I'd definitely pay to see that double feature!
@ Traveller... So - what'd you think?
@ Bob... Funny you mention Ebert. later in the interview I quote, White essentially calls Ebert an underqualified hack.
It blows my mind because the guy just had a chance to step up to the mic and convince a lot of the people who don't like him that his opinions are valid, and he blew it with pompous attitudes, doublespeak, and complete foolishness.
Anyways, enjoy all 79 minutes of my wrongness.
@Mad I suppose I'll go along with it. I do need to correct myself. Unusual Suspects = Usual Suspects. Having one of those days where my head and fingers aren't conversing properly.
Ooo... programming my own double feature. Ok, how bout this...
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY and PINK FLOYD'S THE WALL
The two biggest cinematic trips I've experienced. Just woah!
I'm interested by what White says. I don't agree with him either. It's a pathetic excuse for his contrarian tendencies! I mean, I'll be the first to say that I'm not as professional or in the possession of a larger range of AO Scott or Ebert or Travers, but, come on! At least we're doing something! We at least critique on merit, like you said. All the blogs on my blogroll and others can all say, with serious conviction, why or why not they did or did not like say something.
Damn, man. Thanks for the shout out!
I'm not gonna say anything on INCEPTION here. You'll have to listen to the next LAMBcast.
Great episode, as always!
I've had some more time to think about Armond White's comments, and I believe Jake makes the best argument. The man is not some testy unqualified yahoo off the street -- he's intensely knowledgable about films and film criticism. (He's also pompous and tactless, but I digress.) It's funny that he spends so much time bashing Roger Ebert and Internet film writers, going so far as to accuse gainfully employed film critics of "watering down" their analyses, and then he does the same thing! He eschews real criticism in favor of antagonism.
At least, that's the ONLY REASON I can imagine someone would praise Michael Bay over Christopher Nolan. There's personal preference, and then there's courting controversy simply because it gets you attention.
@ univarn... We've all had days like that - hell I'm having one right now! Still understood what films you were programming, and still thought to myself "Where can I buy a ticket?"
@ Sebastian... Will they be handing brownies out at the door? You're more than welcome for the shout out...and you have me curious to hear the LAMBcast. After two episodes worth of yelling at y'all in vain for your Pixar views, I'm anxious for redemption.
@ Meredith... White's comments that I sent you in prep for this show is actually only half the story. Listen to the /Filmcast that i linked in the post for this Matineecast and listen to him repeatedly compare apples and oranges. I was left gobsmacked by some of his critique...and completely convinced that his valid answers are offset by the fact that he never seems to be listening to the questions.
My double feature would have to be some old fashioned Kurt Russell awesomeness. Start things off with The Thing and then immediately go for some Big Trouble in Little China. Not very creative but hey, you said "if it were your theater right"P
That would have to play at least once a week:)
The very obvious double feature: Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz.
Okay guys another epic reply for you lets kick off with an inception mindfuck, I wanted to mention this in my review but it would be too much of a spoiler. Here goes,
There are three options for the ending not two:
1 - it keeps spinning and he is in limbo
2 - it topples, he is home
3 - the one you didn’t mention, it doesn’t matter what the top does, he never made it out of limbo the first time when Mal killer herself to get out.
I have a week of double features for you. All linked in one way or another from the tenuous, the most beautiful Technicolor and Black & White movies on Monday to, well look at Sunday!
Monday:
La Dolce Vita
The Red Shoes
Tuesday
The Lost Boys
Near Dark
Wednesday
Two-Lane Blacktop
Vanishing Point
Thursday
Jackie Brown
Out of Sight
Friday
From Russia With Love
Casino Royale
Saturday
Fandango
Dazed and Confused
Sunday
The Passion of the Christ
Life of Brian
Have to agree on To Kill a Mockingbird, Seen the movie so many times but only got around to reading the book about five years ago. A couple more films for the list:
In the Heat of the Night
Smokey and The Bandit
I want the HAPPY Inception ending although I loved M's point that it could still be a happy ending even if it wasn't real.
As far as double features, I have a few good ones:
Dark City and The Matrix
Dawn of the Dead (70's) and Shaun of the Dead
Serenity and Star Trek (2009)
Time Crimes and Triangle
Them and The Strangers
Casino and Goodfellas
Batman (1989) and Batman Begins
Death Proof and Planet Terror... ha
Wanted and Kick Ass
13 Going on 30 and Big or 17 Again
Road House and Big Trouble in Little China
Those all sound pretty fun to me.
Awesome episode- I'm so glad you and Meredith were finally able to collaborate! Nice breakdown of Inception, and really interesting top 5 topic. Out of all the films mentioned I've only seen Junebug, Oh Brother Where Art Thou? and (unfortunately) Gone With the Wind, so I'll have to really step up my Southern movie intake!
Love the reader feedback question this week, since it's also been a fantasy of mine to run my own theater. I find myself planning marathons more often than double features, but the first that sprang to mind was THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI ACROSS THE EIGHTH DIMENSION and REPO MAN. They're both unpredictable sci-fi films from 1984 that would be really fun on a big screen with a good crowd.
@ Marc... I'd make that an every-saturday-night showing.
@ Sasha... Obvious, but nevertheless enjoyable.
@ Fandango... I did think of that actually, and have been pondering it more and more as the week has gone on. The fact that there are so many ways to interpret the movie might be what I love most about it.
Never seen Smokey, but Heat of The Night was *this* close to making my list. Good call. As for your double features - I'm recording episode 18 tomorrow. Something tells me that response might be getting the Danger Girl treatment.
@ Kaiderman... ANOTHER swell series of double features. Love it! Of all of those, I think Casino and Goodfellas would be the way to my heart.
@ Alex... It's OK - you're a yankee so you can be behind on your southern movies.
Funny that you mention Buckaroo Banzai, because I recently listened to a Q&A with John Lithgow about that movie and it really got me in the mood to watch it. Anything I need to know about it to properly prepare myself?
I thoroughly enjoyed the podcast hatter. I found the conversation between the two of you to be easygoing and entertaining, there seemed to be a real sense of camaraderie between the two of you, even with all the "Lammy recount" talk (or maybe even because of it).
I wanted to offer a suggestion about the two movies I would show in a double feature if I owned my own cinema. I am posting it here because I forgot where exactly I should post it.
1: "For a Few Dollars More." For me this is the best of the Dollar/Man with no name trilogy because it is more developed than A Fist Full of Dollars and not nearly as rambling as The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
2:"The Empire Strikes Back." Another second part of a trilogy that also happens to be the best in the trilogy (imo).
And why would I show these two back to back--well they both have bounty hunters, betrayal, epic landscapes, awesome musical scores, and revenge. Okay, so maybe that's not much of a real connection, but I still think it would be downright pants wettingly delightful to see these two masterpieces back to back on the big screen. Just imagine going from the vast expanse of the American (really Spanish) desert landscape to the openness of space and the frozen cave of Hoth.
Hmm well Buckaroo Banzai is... kooky, to say the least. I adore it but it's definitely not for everyone. Just expect the unexpected and don't take it too seriously! Also be ready for a lot of references to past events that are never explained- it sort of feels like this is the middle film of a trilogy. I hope you like it!
I recently rediscovered Buckaroo Banzai and wrote this about it.
@ Unruly... It's funny. Even though the bulk of my guests are talking me for the first time, I often find that chemistry and camaraderie abounds. Gotta be the common link of love for movies.
As for the 'LAMMY Recount' comments, they were mostly made to amuse myself. It's doubly amusing when you consider that Meredith and I finished one vote apart!
Love your double-feature suggestion, and happy to hear you like my podcasting handiwork. Hopefully you'll give a listen to a few episodes more.
@ Alex... Cool beans. I'll try to turn my brain off and just enjoy.
@ Fandango... I'll keep the link handy for post screening reading.
Straight from Fletch's mouth on Lambcast #31 where he said these would make a great double feature:
Lars and the Real Girl and Pin... some movie that involves puppet rape!
This is probably my FAVORITE episode of the Matineecast. The Inception talk was fantastic and being from the South (Little Rock, AR, in fact) I love the talk on Southern films. My number one is most definitely O Brother. I'm still amazed that two Minnesotans were able to portray the rural South so beautfully and humorously, without making all the characters into dumb redneck caricatures.
As for a double feature, I'd have to go with the original Dawn of the Dead and Fight Club.
My villains getting their comeuppance double bill: Freeway and The Cook the Thief His Wife & Her Lover
@ Kai... So very wrong. And you can tell Dylan I said that!
@ Rachel... Good choices for a double-bill, I'd definitely buy tickets for those!
Glad you enjoyed our southern discussion, and that it didn't come off as "A Crazy Canuck Talks Out of His Element". Wasn't sure if this segment was gonna work so well, but if it passed your standards I'll take it!
@ CS... Never seen either one of 'em! Tell me about them at the bar tonight.
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