The Matineecast

Runtime

74 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction

2:41 Know Your Enemy with Guest – Stevee Taylor

20:41 The New Slang: PASSAGES

58:51 The Other Side: Stevee and Ryan talk further reading after Randall Park’s film

Thoughts from your host…

And so it goes, another season come and gone…

I’m really thankful for my listeners and my guests these days, since when you do this as long as I’ve been doing it, the crowd changes on you! Time moves along and people find other interests that consume their precious time. It’s life, right?

Heck, as I write this the spectre of TIFF looms large on the horizon, and there too I don’t bump into nearly the same crowd I once did! Times change, people change, and somehow I podcast on.

It’s been a fun year – and should continue to be so since I’m certain there’s still a lot of indies I need to catch up with! (BOTTOMS, anyone?). So while I work on a smaller TIFF slate than usual, and plan for a few other epic September adventures, I want to thank you for tuning in one time or twenty times this season and sharing some of your precious time with me

Links Mentioned in Episode 312:

Matineecast 303 where we discuss THE FIVE DEVILS starring Adèle Exarchopoulos

Matineecast 307 where we discuss YOU HURT MY FEELINGS

Stevee’s Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

55 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction with Guest – Marya E. Gates

3:58 The New Slang: SHORTCOMINGS

38:47 The Other Side: Marya and Ryan talk further reading after Randall Park’s film

Thoughts from your host…

Is it just me, or does moviegoing feel like it’s in a bit of hangover?

We all had so much fun with “Barbenheimer” – we played Matchbox Twenty on repeat, and trotted out the frazzled-looking Cilliam meme over and over for two whole weeks now. And now we don’t know what to do with oursleves.

It’s like Spring Break lasted two weeks instead of one, and now we have an even harsher hangover.

The writers and actors striking in the background aren’t helping either, since their fight for their rights makes it feel a little hard to have a good time. One never wants to turn the music up too loud when the neighbours are going through tough times.

All the same, it’s hard not to look ahead to the fall and start wondering what we will get when we start soaking up our Dunes, and our Killer Moons, and our Napoleons and such.

But here we are in August – somewhat stuck in between “after” and “before”.

Stuck as we may feel, there’s almost always something worthwhile out there…sometimes it just takes a little more searching to find it.

Give us an hour and let us search with ya, won’t you?

Links Mentioned in Episode 311:

The mahjong scene in CRAZY RICH ASIANS:

Jeff Yang’s explanation of the mahjong scene as published in Vox

Randall Park’s song at the end of ALWAYS BE MY MAYBE:

Randall Park’s “IKEA Heights” web series:

Marya ranks all 92 episodes of The OC for Vulture

Marya’s Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

56 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction with Guest – Kelly Zemnickis

4:42 The New Slang: THEATER CAMP

37:36 The Other Side: Kelly and Ryan talk further reading after Molly Gordon and Nick Lieberman’s film

Thoughts from your host…

It probably seems a little strange to be dropping an episode these days that isn’t about BARBIE or OPPENHEIMER. For the record, I saw them both and enjoyed each for different reasons. There’s a lot of me that thinks it’s more than a little beautiful that what was originally being positioned as a “Box Office Battle” instead turned into a celebration of moviegoing.

It was beautiful to see the multiplexes busy again. I can’t remember the last time I did…and who knows how long it will be until I do again?

On this little dog and pony show, we decided to give them a pass only because you can hear about them pretty much everywhere else…so why not talk to you about something different?

It’s interesting to say that aloud since there is suddenly a bit of a reckoning happening between critics and influencers. I’m not on the payroll of any publication, so am I only hyping? Do I fall into that latter category? Am I trying to talk you into spending your money a certain way?

Certainly not.

We see what we see here and yes: sometimes we say that it’s worth a look, but only if we believe it holds merit and offers you something in return for your time and attention. It’s hard to suss out such things sometimes. There’s a lot of filler out there that is being waved in front of you…after a while it’s hard to tell the gold from the brass.

So we try to share our experiences, and just for good measure we dot the conversation with our life experiences. Maybe those experiences didn’t feature atomic bombs or Matchbox Twenty…but we came by them honestly, and we thank you for letting us share them.

Links Mentioned in Episode 310:

A 12 year old boy sings a song from “Waitress” on America’s Got Talent:

The Burbank Comedy Festival where Kelly will be performing August 17th & 18th

“It’ll Be Fine” – Kelly’s video podcast

Order Up – Kelly’s food podcast (audio) :

Kelly’s Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

74 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction

3:06 Know Your Enemy with Guest – Douglas Robinson

26:39 The New Slang: NIMONA

57:14 The Other Side: Douglas and Ryan talk further reading after Nick Bruno and Troy Quane’s film

Thoughts from Your Host…

These are strange times that we are living with as film fans.

Writers and actors have taken to the picket lines, all while management threatens to replace them with computers and can’t find a way to more equitably carve up the billions that they recoup from the artists’ work. (That’s billions…with a “B”). So it goes that everyone has gone home.

To be clear, rightfully so.

Like so many other things in life, film is a business – I’ve never held any illusions to the contrary. Yes, it is also art, and has a place within the cultural touchstones that we leave behind for discussion, reflection, study, and consumption. Given that it is more costly than any other art forms – the business end of it demands respect. There just must be a better way of doing business in an ever-evolving digital world.

The writers have been patiently waiting for months with little real reflection of their action beyond live television quickly shuttering (late night talk shows, variety programs like SNL, etc). Things will really get gnarly in two months when television starts a new season with no episodes to premiere.

Ditto with film – this year is fine, but next year is going to be messy with no scripts being adapted.

Then there’s he actors who have all quickly gone and stopped promoting the work they have completed. Fighting both for the rights of the lowest-paid amongst them, and also for a better say over their likeness.

Can we blame them? In an age where so many of us are worried about our jobs being automated, their concerns are valid, no?

For now, along we go with this little podcast – covering the work with a critical eye, expressing our passion and providing perspective. Things may change, but in the short term we soldier on.

Links Mentioned in Episode 309:

Sondre Lerche’s soundtrack for DAN IN REAL LIFE

Panels from ND Stevenson’s original graphic novel “Nimona”

Douglas’ Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

55 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction

3:18 The New Slang: PAST LIVES with Guest Heidy Morales

45:01 The Other Side: Heidy and Ryan talk further reading after Celine Song’s new film

Thoughts from Your Host…

First things first – Three Oh EIGHT.

In the introduction and wrap, you will hear me refer to three-oh-nine, but that was just me getting ahead of myself. Apologies for the little “oops”.

You may also notice that this episode is a little later than usual. As I mention in the intro (not long after saying “308”), I really wanted to get a full episode in on this title and that took a little more work that usual. Look for someone who’s seen “Across the Spider-Verse”? Easy-peasy. Finding someone who’s seen the latest A24 joint? A little trickier.

However, I still believe it’s worth bending the rules a but to get in episodes like this.

Besides the specific insight that Heidy brings to the table, I really hope that any of you lovely folks who tune into this episode may listen to us get into the nuts and bolts of this small film and grow curious.

Titles like this are making their way out into the world faster and faster. It used to be that you had to hope your multiplex would assign Cinema 9 or Cinema 10 to a title like this before too long…or that the one arty theatre a few towns over would pick it up. Now titles like it are showing up available to digitally rent after just two or three months…sometimes quicker.

Maybe you see it listed and you remember seeing an episode of this show dedicated…

Maybe you watch…

Maybe you find it to be a worthy and wonderful use of your time…

…If so – taking the extra time to get the episode up was totally worth it!

Here’s hoping.

Links Mentioned in Episode 308:

A conversation with Lindsay about David Lean’s BRIEF ENCOUNTER (Note – My perspective has changed a great deal since discussion thirteen years ago)

Heidy’s Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

62 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction

3:18 The New Slang: YOU HURT MY FEELINGS with Guest Keisha Howerth

41:42 The Other Side: Keisha and Ryan talk further reading after Nicole Holofcener’s new film

Thoughts from Your Host…

There’s something about the summer indies that makes me especially happy.

Perhaps it’s the pure audacity – the gall to look at the wild hype and massive commerce represented by the franchises and say with quiet confidence “What about us?”

I think about Before Sunset (or Before Midnight), The Farewell, The Green Knight, (500) Days of Summer, Beasts of The Southern Wild, Winter’s Bone, Boyhood, The Tree of Life, A Ghost Story, Leave No Trace, and dozens of others.

Year after year, the river of cinema that flows through the summer months is absolutely littered with so very much gold if you are just willing to stand in the stream and dip your pan into the mud.

The pure audacity of it makes me smile. The confidence and nerve that the storytellers and studios steel themselves with in the face of such calamity. The belief that these films will be found…and that they are ready to reward us for the search. It goes beyond the idea of counter- programming. It’s programming. It understands that every mix tape of bangers needs to have some slow jamz too to give it all balance.

For the most part, thats why we’re here; to hand you a pan and point you towards where the gold is.

Don’t get me wrong – I love me some Spideys and some Indys and some Oppenheimer and what have you…but these sorts of stories?

They’re the ones I want people to point me towards and the ones I want to point you towards in return. Just as a way to share the happiness, y’know?

Links Mentioned in Episode 307:

Keisha’s previous appearances where she answered “Know Your Enemy” – Episode 247, Episode 270, and Episode 290

The original short story “The Gift of The Magi” by O. Henry

Keisha’s Letterboxd feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

85 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction

3:31 Know Your Enemy with guest Andrew James

9:16 The New Slang: HEAT

63:16 The Other Side: Carolyn and Ryan talk further reading after Chris McKay’s film

Thoughts from Your Host…

It’s probably no surprise that the beginning of June is coil of memories for me. There have been travels, new jobs, wonderful experiences, food, drink, laughter along with both tangible and intangible gifts.

For much of my life, this week has been about my friends.

It wasn’t always this way – not really. When I was a boy, the kids I knew didn’t really celebrate with me. When they did, they even used it as a way to make fun of me later. It didn’t take long though for me to find people who cared – who loved. Who in their kindness and generosity made me a kinder and more generous person. Soon, gathering them together became what this week was all about.

To this end, I am grateful for my friend that has joined me today to talk about an old movie we love, and for you, my friends, for stopping by and listening.

I do understand that in the course of time, life will slowly start to make this a harder and harder week…but this year, it finds me in a good place. For that, I am also grateful.

Thank you for your time – here’s to life!

Links mentioned in Episode 306

Birthday Episodes past – HIGH FIDELITY, THE APARTMENT, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK, BULL DURHAM, ALMOST FAMOUS, OUT OF SIGHT, RAGING BULL, SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, and VERTIGO

The trailer for THE BEASTMASTER:

The look Tom Sizemore gives an onlooker at the diner:

Andrew’s Letterboxd feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

82 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction with guest Jim Laczkowski

3:44 The New Slang: BEAU IS AFRAID

49:07 Spoiler Section

Thoughts from your host…

Movies like this are why I love discussing film.

I adore a film brazen enough to get ugly…to take me to the places I don’t like going and make me remember so very clearly why I don’t like going there. I like watching people who are not at all like me work through their shit, because it makes me feel like my own shit isn’t really all that shitty.

More than anything – I love when someone sits shotgun next to me as cinema takes me on these strange road trips. We can look out the windows and say

Is that…?
I think it is.
But it can’t…
And yet it is!…

Discussion doesn’t need to be about whether or not a film is good. It doesn’t even need to be about whether or not it made sense. At its best, film discussion is about what the art form makes us feel.

Afraid, amused, ashamed, anxious, intimidated, inspired…you feel it, let’s talk about it!

This film made me feel things – and it was clear from the hop that my guest felt plenty of his own feelings. I believe it made for a wonderful episode, and I hope it inspires some of you to track-down this weird, epic opus.

Whenever you do – come find me. I’d love to continue the conversation.

Links mentioned in Episode 305:

Matineecast 201 where we discussed HEREDITARY

Matineecast 227 where we discussed MIDSOMMAR

Jim’s Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

63 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction

3:31 Know Your Enemy with Guest – Carolyn Mauricette

21:14 The New Slang: RENFIELD

52:22 The Other Side: Carolyn and Ryan talk further reading after Chris McKay’s film

Thoughts from Your Host…

Around this time last year, we were using this space to talk about EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE, ALL AT ONCE. This year, we’re talking about RENFIELD. What can I say? Spring is a strange season for film.

I will never stop wondering why that is – why studios think that this time of year should be devoid of quality offerings. Plenty of franchises have proven that titles released before the ground thaws can make bank. And the example cited above shows that films can still be remembered come awards time. So what’s the deal?

So in the meantime, while we wait out the tabletop film and the video game film, we turn our attention to the undead and a great friend taking her turn in the guest spot.

Grab your holy water and your warning signs of toxic relationships and join us, won’t you?

Links mentioned in Episode 304

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia – “Kitten Mittens”:

Carolyn’s Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!

Runtime

77 minutes

Show Contents

0:00 Introduction

3:30 Know Your Enemy with Guest – Jolie Featherstone

22:16 The New Slang: THE FIVE DEVILS

52:22 The Other Side: Jolie and Ryan talk further reading after Léa Mysius’ film

Thoughts from Your Host…

I know, I know – everyone is talking about the video game movie and here we are talking up some little French offering. It probably seems like buying ourselves fresh apples on free cupcake day.

Here we are though – apples in hand – coming to y’all with a great conversation about why we love certain classic actors and titles, what makes a “dirty” film, and some absolutely delightful international titles that we believe are worth watching – all of which are rather easy to find. We even finally get our rhythm back and bring you the classic Matineecast features for the first time since

As I mention in the intro, my guest today always seems to happily sit down to discuss some very under-the-radar titles (give or take a few best picture nominees). For this, she will always have my gratitude, since she is taking the time to put on a show very few people will sit in the audience for.

She is doing it both because she loves the medium, and because she is a very good friend – and for that I’m both a lucky podcaster and a lucky friend.

The apples are delicious today – come have one with us, won’t you?

Jolie’s Twitter feed can be found here. Comments and feedback are welcome and thank you very much for listening. 

Enjoy!