Cinema Gadfly

By Arik DevensTV & Film Society & Culture Leisure

Cinema Gadfly episodes

February 28, 201614. Reality Bites
My guest for this month is David Blakeslee, and he’s joined me to discuss the film he chose for me, the 1994 romantic comedy-drama film Reality Bites. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
As I mentioned in the intro, this show is joining up with the fine folks at CriterionCast
This film doesn’t just feature Ben Stiller, he also directed it
It was written by Helen Childress, who is supposedly working on a television version of the film
Both David and I are nominally members of Generation X, although that can be argued for both of us as well
This film also stars Ethan Hawke and Winona Ryder when they were painfully young
The film bares some resemblance to my choice for the previous episode Chungking Express
The film reminds me of the fiction of Mark Leyner
And also of the essay E Unibus Pluram by David Foster Wallace
It’s hard for me to believe that the music of Peter Frampton changed anyones life
It’s also hard for me to believe that I ever drank a Big Gulp
My grandparents were absolutely part of the Greatest Generation
My mother was coincidentally in Paris for the May 1968 protests
I still remember my mother waking me up to tell me Kurt Cobain had died
David’s phenomenal blog where he’s watching the Criterion collection chronologically is at Criterion Reflections
The film also stars the absolutely wonderful Janeane Garafalo
Rob Lowe’s character in Wayne’s World is my canonical example for a corporate jerk
Watching Regis Philbin fail to pronounce the names of various Washington State cities was always a joy of mine
The film features cameos by David Spade and Andy Dick
Renée Zellweger also makes an appearance, but I don’t think it was a cameo, she just wasn’t well known yet
The Mark Leyner book I was thinking of is called My Cousin, My Gastroenterologist
Even Baby, I Love Your Way is unlikely to have changed lives
Oh and Joe Don Baker is also in this film, really a pretty incredible cast
If you enjoy this film you should check out Noah Baumbach’s Kicking and Screaming or Whit Stillman’s Metropolitan
Rent or buy the film from iTunes
Rent or buy the film from Amazon
36 min
February 15, 201613. Chungking Express
My guest for this month is David Blakeslee, and he’s joined me to discuss the film I chose for him, the 1994 Hong Kong drama film Chungking Express. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
Wong Kar-Wai is an acclaimed director from Hong Kong
The location of this film was inspired by the real life craziness of Chungking Mansions
David’s blog, Criterion Reflections, is one of my absolute favorites
CriterionCast, his other gig, is the best Criterion site I know of. So much great stuff there
They did the first episode of their mainline podcast on this very film, go check it out!
Nanook of the North used to be the oldest film in the Criterion Collection, now it’s The Phantom Carriage
The original line-up for the CriterionCast podcast was Rudie Obias, Travis George, and my friend Ryan Gallagher
Ashes of Time was the film Wong Kar-Wai was making when he took a break to make this one
Fallen Angels is the “spiritual sequel” to this film
In the Mood for Love is Wong Kar-Wai’s most celebrated film
The early films of Wong Kar-Wai were more in the vein of directors like John Woo
The character of Faye in this film is an almost perfect example of a Manic Pixie Dream Girl
In 1994, the 1997 transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong was on everyone’s mind
California Dreamin' is probably the best known song that The Mamas & the Papas ever made
The Cranberries song Dreams was covered for this film by Faye Wong, who plays the character of Faye
The cop in the first half of this film is played by Taiwanese-Japanese actor Takeshi Kaneshiro
This was the last film that legendary Taiwanese actor Brigitte Lin ever made
The Criterion edition of this film features noted British writer Tony Rayns on the commentary track
This is the film that made Tony Leung famous
Tony Leung’s apartment was the real life apartment of the film’s cinematographer, Christopher Doyle
Quentin Tarantino used his new fame after Pulp Fiction to draw attention to this film and get it released in the US
Death by Hanging is a complex film from Japanese director Nagisa Oshima
The Eclipse Viewer is David’s main podcasting gig, I highly recommend it
He co-hosts the show with Trevor Berrett who contributes to a literature blog called The Mookse and The Gripes
Their most recent episode at the time of this podcast is about the melodramas of Raffaello Matarazzo
David gave me my first experience in podcasting when I joined him to discuss Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blowup
Sadly this film is currently not available for rent or purchase in the US anywhere that I can find. If you know someway to watch it, please let me know and I’ll update these notes.
41 min
January 30, 201612. S1m0ne
My guest for this month is Serenity Caldwell, and she’s joined me to discuss the film she chose for me, the 2002 American science-fiction romantic comedy film S1m0ne. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
Andrew Niccol, who directed this film, is also married to its star, Rachel Roberts
Al Pacino is an actor, perhaps you’ve heard of him
Gattaca is also a film by Andrew Niccol
Alphaville is the film we discussed on the previous episode of this podcast
The dot-com era was a period where tech companies with no future got lots of money, completely unlike today
Second Life is a virtual reality world that you can run around in
One of the more notable things about Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace is its ridiculously long title
The first Lord of the Rings film, The Fellowship of the Ring came out in 2001
3.5" hard drives are still used as internal storage in slow computers
The Mac Pro and PowerMac G4 are both computers from Apple, they are both relatively recent
5.25" floppies on the other hand, haven’t been used regularly in a very, very long time
Hackers is a phenomenal film about, well, hacking
An SNL parody of this film would probably just be this film
John Cassavetes was an actor and director, and a pioneer of American independent film
Michelangelo Antonioni made quite a few masterpieces with a monochromatic color palette
Notting Hill is a 1999 film starting Julia Roberts, written by the guy who wrote Four Weddings and a Funeral
Roberto Rossellini was an Italian neorealist director
The Auteur theory is a vision of cinema where the director is the sole voice of the film
The Crow is seriously every goth kids dream
The stars of The Force Awakens, including Daisy Ridley, are newly famous, and dealing with it in interesting ways
People Magazine is a celebrity “news” periodical
Rebecca Romijn is also in this film, in a tiny but fun role
Jason Schwartzman is a national treasure, and can do no wrong
We are in the 2016 presidential election cycle, and Donald Trump is a leading candidate. We’ve clearly gone crazy
I am huge Catherine Keener fan, but man is she misused here
This film stars a young Evan Rachel Wood, she’s great
Winona Ryder is probably the best thing about this entire film
Seriously, there are three versions of A Star is Born already, and a fourth is in the works
42nd Street is another film about the process of stardom
The Tupac Shakur hologram at Coachella was so creepy
Jean-Luc Godard directed Alphaville, among many others
Niccol only wrote The Truman Show. It was directed by Peter Weir, who also made Picnic at Hanging Rock and Dead Poets Society, among others
Niccol’s did direct In Time with Justin Timberlake, as well as The Host, and Good Kill, none of which I’ve heard of
We should do an alternate episode where Siri is our main guest for this film
Go check out The Incomparable, they have some seriously great podcasts
Rent or buy the film from iTunes
Rent or buy the film from Amazon
34 min
January 24, 201611. Alphaville
My guest for this month is Serenity Caldwell, and she’s joined me to discuss the film I chose for her, the 1965 French science fiction noir film Alphaville. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
Jean-Luc Godard is perhaps the most famous of the Nouvelle Vague directors
Noir is a genre I love, with a fairly poor definition. It’s definitely a know-it-when-you-see-it kind of thing
Lemmy Caution is basically the French version of an American James Bond
The Stranger is an existentialist novel by Albert Camus, it’s a fun one
Babar is so damn cute
The Criterion way is pretty much what we do around here
Metropolis is basically the grandparent of all modern Science Fiction films
Blade Runner and Dark City are noir influenced Science Fiction films that feel somewhat similar to this one
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick is what Blade Runner was based on. The book is better
Lemmy Caution is incredibly well played by Eddie Constantine
Capital of Pain seems like a breezy read
Synchronized Swimmers aren’t usually performing as state sponsored murderers
Nineteen Eighty-Four definitely comes off as a pretty strong influence on this film
Instamatic cameras were super new when this film came out, it was part of the futurism
Anna Karina is one of the most well known French actresses of all time
A Wrinkle in Time is a super well loved novel by Madeline L'Engle, with some series science themes
The emperor is from The Empire Strikes Back, which is a film in the Star Wars series. Just in case you didn’t know
JRPGs are pretty well known for their ridiculously overwrought stories and themes
I didn’t like Last Year at Marienbad. There, I said it, now you can judge me
Sith lords are also from Star Wars. We like Star Wars a lot
E = mc2 is a concept we got from Albert Einstein. It has to do with energy. Godard is apparently enamored with it
Surrealism and Dadaism are concepts, somewhat explored here
Tarzan vs IBM would probably not have been a title he could have legally used
4:3 is a description of the aspect ratio of this film
Breathless is the French film that got me into French films. I think I’m not alone on that
A Woman is a Woman is another great Godard film with Anna Karina
Rent or buy the film from iTunes
Rent or buy the film from Amazon
40 min
December 29, 201510. Inside Out
My guest for this month is Maja Henderson, and she’s joined me to discuss the film she chose for me, the 2015 comedy-drama adventure Inside Out. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
Both Maja and I live in the city of San Francisco, it’s basically like this film
Fun fact, I’m a fan of the sport of Hockey
The co-directors of this wonderful film were Pete Docter and Ronnie del Carmen
The film was made by renowned animation film studio Pixar
Psychiatry and Psychology aren’t the same thing
Mindy Kaling was absolutely perfect as Disgust
No one could have been more suited for the role of Anger than Lewis Black
Just as perfect though, are Amy Poehler as Joy and Phyllis Smith as Sadness
Both Maja and I are from the city of Seattle, a place that can trigger varying emotions
Dysthymia was a new term for me, as was DSM-IV
Indeed, neither of us are from Minnesota
I suffered some years from Seasonal affective disorder, which, believe it or not, is called SAD
Big Hero 6 takes place in San Fransokyo
The ridiculous pizza place is technically in Emeryville, not San Francisco
But James Lick Middle School, where she goes to school, is in San Francisco
Her house felt very much like North Beach or Chinatown, both in San Francisco
John Lasseter runs Pixar, if he says do something they’ll find a way to do it
I hadn’t heard of Ralph Eggleston before, but he’s a long-time Pixar employee
Brave and The Incredibles are also wonderful films from Pixar that feature innovative hair animation
I enjoy Cars and Cars 2, but I definitely connected with this film more
Bill Hader did a really nice job as Fear
My hometown of Mercer Island, WA really is probably the safest island in the world
The Central District is nice now, but it was pretty sketchy when I was in school
I do so love a good Alfred Hitchcock joke
Chinatown is a good one too though, I’m happy with that
Someday perhaps I’ll read Waiting for Godot
I grew up on Asterix and Tintin, and I think they hold up for adults, I certainly caught a lot of jokes I didn’t as a child
Rent or buy the film from iTunes
Rent or buy the film from Amazon
36 min
December 19, 20159. All That Heaven Allows
My guest for this month is Maja Henderson, and she’s joined me to discuss the film I chose for her, the 1955 romance film All That Heaven Allows. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
My original thoughts on All That Heaven Allows
Technicolor is a chemical color process for film that produces a beautiful and very distinctive look
Bingo isn’t really a drinking game, but it is fun
A trope is a commonly recurring literary device, in this case that of love fighting disapproval
Jane Wyman absolutely kills it in this film as the main character Cary
Rock Hudson was a freakishly good looking man
It’s true, soap operas have nothing to do with this film
The Hays Code meant that everyone in a film plot had to be married or engaged at all times
Cary’s terrible son Ned is played by the old looking William Reynolds
Her daughter Kay is played by the Rachael Leigh Cook precursor Gloria Talbott
Conrad Nagel, who played Cary’s other suitor Harvey, was actually age appropriate for his role
Rock Hudson’s Ron is definitely something of a Beatnik
He might also be an early proponent of negging, as explained in the terrible book The Game
I’m using normative as a slightly pejorative term
For films involving couples kissing for the first time as they get engaged, watch any of the British films of Alfred Hitchcock
Chianti comes in a very distinctive bottle
Rock Hudson’s Ron is not just a Beatnik, but also living a very Bohemian lifestyle
New German Cinema director Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s homage/remake Angst essen Seele auf came out in 1974
Buy the film from Amazon
37 min
November 29, 20158. Catch Me If You Can
My guest for this month is Allen Pike, and he’s joined me to discuss the film he chose for me, the 2002 biographical crime drama film Catch Me If You Can. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
Stephen Spielberg is a rather well known director
Frank Abagnale Jr. is a fascinating guy, who is well worth reading about
Pan Am was an airline, that I sorely miss, if only for their amazing graphic design
Tom Hanks is a wonderful actor, also worth reading about
I am indeed attempting to watch all the films in The Criterion Collection
Forest Gump is also a film starring Tom Hanks
There are, honestly, quite a few similarities between me and the Grinch
I think we would mostly all agree that Michael Bay is not a good director
On the other hand, Alfred Hitchcock made wonderful, wonderful films
Whether he was an Auteur or not, however, is a debate best suited for nights spent drinking with friends
I enjoyed this far more than the somewhat similar The Wolf of Wall Street
Many people don’t seem to enjoy Leonardo DiCaprio
If you do though, Titanic and The Aviator are films you might enjoy
I don’t get hating Leo, but Tobey Maguire makes perfect sense to dislike
I love Gangs of New York, but I know not everyone enjoyed it, it’s really long
If you haven’t seen Tom Hanks in Road to Perdition, you really should, it’s great
David Lynch’s Twin Peaks is seriously great, go watch it, now, I’ll wait
The last half hour of No Country for Old Men is certainly divisive amongst moviegoers. I loved it
Quentin Tarantino likes his vignettes, oh yes he does
The loop hole that Frank Abagnale used to pass the Louisiana Bar Exam is now closed
Watching GoodFellas or The Sopranos is probably not the best way to learn how to be in the actual mafia
Impostor syndrome is very real though
Photoshop would have made the forgery we see so much easier
Abagnale served time in France and Sweden, never Switzerland
I guess being an expert check forger makes you a great candidate for a job at the FBI
The Yankees definitely only win because of the pinstripes. There is no other reason
Washington Mutual was a bank, it existed at the time of this film, it collapsed in 2009
Saul Bass did the credits for many great films, including the Otto Preminger masterpiece Anatomy of a Murder
Ocean’s Eleven was definitely not the first heist film, there were many others, some of which are French
Casting James Gandolfini, Ed Harris, and Chloë Sevigny would have made for a very different film
It would have also been very different if directed by David Fincher, Gore Verbinski, Miloš Forman, or Cameron Crowe
Ellen Pompeo from Gray’s Anatomy and Jennifer Garner are great in their bit parts
Sorbet is delicious
Rob Zombie will probably never direct a remake of this film, probably
You should already be reading all the interesting things Allen writes at his website
Rent or buy the film from iTunes
Rent or buy the film from Amazon
34 min
November 10, 20157. Brazil
My guest for this month is Allen Pike, and he’s joined me to discuss the film I chose for him, the 1985 dystopian science fiction film Brazil. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
My original review of Brazil
The film was directed by Monty Python alum Terry Gilliam
Who doesn’t love a good black comedy
Or 1940s fashion
Or 1980s technology
Some might argue that bureaucracy has already gone wrong
1985 is, in fact, before 1990
I love Michael Palin in basically everything he’s ever done
Another Terry Gilliam film was Time Bandits, I like this one a lot more
The studio that initially butchered the film was Universal, nice try Sid Sheinberg
The underground screening was for the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, who awarded the film Best Picture
Comparisons with George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four are just silly
The only thing they have in common is some sense of mass surveillance
2006’s Idiocracy by Mike Judge, on the other hand, does sound similar to this film
Seriously. Seriously! No one should get a Pizza Hut tattoo on their face. That’s a bad idea
Ian Holm does a wonderful job as a fairly inept boss
Consistentize isn’t a word, but standardize is
The whole essay by David Sterritt for Criterion is a great read
Robert De Niro’s character is named Archibald “Harry” Tuttle
Bob Hoskins' character is named Spoor, and his partner is named Dowser
Star Trek represents the most hopeful version of the future that I know of
Ok, but for real, don’t get a Pizza Hut tattoo on your face. Not cool
The app design studio Allen runs is called Steamclock, they’re great, you should hire them
The DMV definitely still loves paperwork
TSA Precheck, which is totally available for Canadians too
India has plenty of bureaucracy of its own
San Francisco is an ABC city, which makes opening a bar an insane pain
Vancouver, British Columbia is apparently also a tough place to open a bar
Disruption doesn’t justify all actions, some of these companies need to cut it out
The theme song, also called Brazil, was recorded by Geoff Muldaur
It was also used in the first trailer for WALL-E
There are really, seriously, almost no similarities between this film and Cannibal Holocaust
You should read all the interesting things Allen writes at his website
Rent or buy the film from iTunes
Rent or buy the film from Amazon
36 min
October 26, 20156. Singin' in the Rain
My guest for this month is Jessie Char, and she’s joined me to discuss the film she chose for me, the 1952 musical comedy Singin' in the Rain. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
For the record, I haven’t seen Now You See Me or Glitter
Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds are both phenomenal in this film
I’m still in shock that Debbie Reynolds is Carrie Fisher’s mom
Possibly the quintessential example of Hollywood telling their own story is the film A Star is Born, which was released in 1937, and then remade in 1954, and again in 1976
The transition from silent film to talkies was a rough one on the actors who lived through it
The war on female voices is incredibly destructive
Jean Hagan, who played Lina Lamont, does a remarkable job of creating a voice that would have had trouble transitioning to sound
Make ‘Em Laugh by Donald O'Connor is an incredible feat of acrobatics
It’s fair to say that Lupino Lane paved the way for Donald O'Connor’s career
The Love Parade was definitely not Norman Rockwell America
The song Jessie is referring to is called Broadway Melody Ballet, it’s really weird
Cyd Charisse was the lady that Gene Kelly chose so that he’d have a trained dancer to partner with at some point in the film
The age of consent in California has been 18 since 1913
Gene Kelly was super sick when the filmed the title number
I still haven’t watched Andy Samberg host the Emmys
There are a bunch of Technicolor films in my all-time favorites
This film is just a lot happier than something like Chicago
Apple pie, America, and idealism; what this film is all about
Stay tuned for Jessie forcing me to watch The Sound of Music, I can’t wait
Jessie’s website is part of the normal internet
Rent or buy the film from iTunes
Rent or buy the film from Amazon
26 min
October 15, 20155. The Love Parade
My guest for this month is Jessie Char, and she’s joined me to discuss the film I chose for her, the 1929 Pre-Code musical comedy The Love Parade. You can follow the show on Twitter @cinemagadfly.
Show notes:
Ernst Lubitsch was nominated for three Academy Awards, including for this film
Maurice Chevalier was a very, very French man
The queen was played by the very talented Jeanette MacDonald
The Listicle is an article format that allows for quick writing, often without much thought
The song that Jessie describes as being an adult version of Once Upon a Dream from Sleeping Beauty is called Dream Lover
The Hays Code made it impossible to make a film as irreverent about adult themes as this one
The song where they’re signing goodbye to Paris is called Paris, Stay the Same
Unlike, say, The Sixth Sense, this movie can’t really be spoiled
It cannot be overstated, that this film has virtually nothing in common with the Larry Clark film Kids. Except in the way that it does
The song about being common is called Let’s Be Common
If only Maurice Chevalier could have had an iPad and the Internet
Harrison Ford as Han Solo says and does some things that would come off as super creepy if done by almost anyone else
Bill Hader could have done a phenomenal Maurice Chevalier impression on Saturday Night Live
Lupino Lane, who plays Chevalier’s French servant, was in fact a very British man
Perhaps this film isn’t a strong example of Second-wave feminism
On the other hand, maybe it is an example of Third-wave feminism
Maurice Chevalier was born in 1888, which means he’d be 127 today
The iPhone 6S Plus shoots native 4K video, which is capable of fully reproducing the quality of 35MM film
Jessie’s website is a website
This film is really only available as part of the Eclipse Series 8: Lubitsch Musicals set from Criterion, which you can also buy from Amazon
27 min

About Cinema Gadfly

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A podcast about trading films with friends. Each month I choose a film for a friend to watch and they choose one for me. Then we discuss. Two episodes a month, first my choice and then theirs.

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