Off Screen Death

Off Screen Death

By Michael Denniston and David GianniniTV & FilmFilm ReviewsFilm History
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Off Screen Death episodes

  • Wild Mountain Thyme (RT 26%)
    "One remains staggered that sentient human beings who walk upright and use cutlery believed this was a respectable use of their valuable time."

    Donald Clarke of the Irish Times is harsh but fair in his assessment of yet another star vehicle that misuses the talents of one of your host's favorite leading ladies. You know... we are beginning to see a trend here of women in Hollywood not getting the best material befitting of their talents. Perhaps that's a trend someone should look into.

    Not us though.

    For we can not take another movie like WILD MOUNTAIN THYME.

    Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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    33 min
  • Opening Weekend Wasted w/ FOUR GOOD DAYS
    "These are important stories that should be seen, but audiences need more than scripts that are primarily acting exercises."

    Nell Minow of RogertEbert.com is a true professional in her distaste for awards chasing films like FOUR GOOD DAYS... but as amateurs talking into a tin can over a Zoom call we are free to get down into the mucky muck and not care much for Mila Kunis without teeth.

    Even if one of us did pay discount Tuesday prices for the privilege.

    Our guest on the other hand, Derek of The Grand Gesture and Your List, My Command podcasts paid full VOD rental price to essentially go to work again on a Saturday morning. He had as much fun as you will as we watch Glenn Close continue to not win awards in dull movies. Enjoy!

    Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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    39 min
  • Touch of Evil (Sight and Sound #57)
    "The film has always been a favorite of those who enjoy visual and dramatic flamboyance."

    From probably our best known critic, Roget Ebert, and we agree! TOUCH OF EVIL is proof that even movies on all of these pretentious lists can actually be fun. We take a look at what amounts to a B movie, but with a great director at the helm. We also touch on the objectionable brownface of Charlton Heston (of all people) as a Mexican officer of the law, as well as the glorious acting ability and beauty of Janet Leigh.

    Join us as we travel across the border and talk great endings, boring heroes and the fun of being a heel in TOUCH OF EVIL.

    Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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    42 min
  • Opening Weekend Wasted w/ THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW
    "Watching it, you have to wonder exactly what kind of movie anyone though they were making."

    Alissa Wilkinson of Vox plainly states what we agree with, that this movie is a complete mess and a mishmash of poor choices.

    Join Mike, Dave, and returning guest Web of TRILOGY IN THEORY (finally here for a movie with pasty white people) as we try to work through the convoluted story.  We fear that we won’t be much help.

    • Web can barely recall the name of the movie after about 25 minutes of frustration.
    • Dave can't resist making abuse jokes at the expense of Gary Oldman.
    • Mike ends up defending musicals of all things!

      • We muddled through THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW (the actual title), but we manage to have more fun than we did while watching it!

      Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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      36 min
    • Remember My Name (RT 67%)
      "Throughout REMEMBER MY NAME the actors work hard to fulfill the surface requirements of scenes that have no dramatic foundation, and the results are often skittish and baffling."

      Unlike Janet Maslin of the New York Times one host can't get enough Anthony Perkins so we return to him as a leading man in this episode. This produces troubling results as the other host thinks he's a "nice guy" in this somewhat hard-to-find film (unless you aren't an animal and have Turner Classic Movies) and that brings up questions that are best left unanswered about this host's dating life. What is not in doubt is that Geraldine Chaplin (not Paige) gives an all time performance about a persistent woman who is sex-positive and suffers no fools. We think that was the message here. Don't question us.

      Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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      39 min
    • Opening Weekend Wasted w/ HERE TODAY
      "This is maybe one of the worst movies I've ever seen. It's just terrible, awkward, stiff, and never funny."

      Filmweek’s Christy Lemire says in one sentence what we do in about 40 minutes. If you think details are important, listen to our show.  It’s better than reading, anyway.

      Those details? Well...

      • Billy Crystal is not funny.
      • HERE TODAY is bad at manipulation.
      • A discussion of whether or not a stick of butter is kinky.
      • Billy Crystal is not hot enough to be in this movie.

        • We provide this service for you, so you don’t have to watch HERE TODAY.  It’s not even sticking around in theaters anyway!

        Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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        40 min
      • Psycho 1960 (AFI #14) and Psycho 1998 (RT 39%)
        "The first American movie since TOUCH OF EVIL to stand in the same creative rank as the great European films"

        “As Norman Bates, Vince Vaughn makes us better appreciate how much Anthony Perkins brought to the original project.”

        Same title, same shots (mostly), slightly different results from the critic’s circle. In our Mother’s Day episode (get it? Sorry.), Mike and Dave take a close look at the classic, PSYCHO. To get a slightly different angle, Dave finally watches the remake from 1998, which Mike is weirdly obsessed with, and has been since 1998. 

        Will any of this hold up? Is there any reason to watch the 1998 version? Listen and find out!

        Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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        59 min
      • Opening Weekend Wasted w/ TOM CLANCY'S WITHOUT REMORSE
        "There are forehead-smacking lapses of common sense and the conspiracy at the movie's core is just plain dumb."

        This is one of many “splats” from the dumbass critics who didn’t like WITHOUT REMORSE as much as you very smart hosts of Off Screen Death.

        Let’s go over this, shall we?

        • Michael B. Jordan rules... again.
        • Muscles are good, actually.
        • It's a little predictable but who cares? Shut up.
        • We like fun and no one else does.

          • Both hosts hope you listen to us and not the word of mouth and watch this WITHOUT REMORSE. If you do, maybe we get a sequel?  Make us happy.

          Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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          27 min
        • Vanilla Sky (RT 42%)
          "I now find Cruise tolerable only when he's in a movie that undercuts or ridicules his narcissism-- as EYES WIDE SHUT did and as this movie does even more noticeably."

          Jonathan Rosenbaum is not nice to Tom Cruise... but he's not wrong here. FOR THAT... you must listen to one host (Dave) as he clearly makes poor dating decision one after the other and did not learn a SINGLE THING from Cameron Crowe's masterpiece VANILLA SKY. The lessons, such as they are:

          • Cameron Diaz brings sustenance (and sex!)
          • Penelope Cruze brings cute banter
          • See which one you can survive on in the wilderness (or a desolate Times Square)

            • This is the single greatest film that has, or will EVER, appear on this feed. You are welcome.

            Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

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            44 min
          • Opening Weekend Wasted w/ STOWAWAY
            "For all the empathy it expects of its viewers... the film is troublingly removed from human reality."

            When in doubt... go to The New York Times when you need a solid Rotten Tomatoes splat to back up your argument. And what points does this episode contain?

            • Netflix is the modern straight to video and we wish they would stop.
            • But... Anna Kendrick.
            • Is a Diet Coke version of APOLLO 13 and THE MARTIAN really a problem that needs solved?
            • On the other hand... Anna Kendrick.
            • And finally... is Anna Kendrick a movie star? Who cares; she's Anna Kendrick.

              • We hope the above will help illuminate whether or not you should have spent your weekend watching STOWAWAY.

              Subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Spotify Twitter @offscreendeath Instagram @theoffscreendeath Letterboxd: @daveagiannini and @projectingfilm Artwork by Nathan Thomas Milliner Music by Joplin Rice

              Find out more at https://offscreendeath.pinecast.co

              This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

              33 min

            About Off Screen Death

            From the publisher's feed

            A podcast about all the things we must do before the inevitable. Mostly watching movies. However one host intends to use that time wisely by looking at respected lists of curation from the likes of Sight And Sound or the AFI's Top 100. Meanwhile the other watches a lot of STARZ.