The Popcorn Auteur

Alfonso Cuarón is our first Oscar winner for best directing and we were certainly impressed with his talent. Listen as we discuss the effectiveness of Cuarón's filmmaking technique, his worldview, and the potency of Children of Men in today's political climate. Will Jon be won over by Gravity? Will Chris understand how AIDs can be funny? Listen to find out. Note: We do our best with Spanish pronunciations . . . which are not very good.

Show Sources and Notes:

http://www.cracked.com/article_24342_8-times-studios-nearly-wrecked-your-favorite-movies.html http://www.cracked.com/article_24134_6-film-plots-directly-lifted-from-video-games.html http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-movies-that-put-insane-work-into-stuff-you-never-noticed/ http://www.rogerebert.com/cast-and-crew/alfonso-cuaron https://mic.com/articles/66473/alfonso-cuaron-how-the-gravity-director-saved-harry-potter#.iRxDxbkym http://www.rogerebert.com/chazs-blog/rogers-favorites-guillermo-del-toro-alfonso-cuar%C3%B3n-and-alejandro-gonz%C3%A1lez-i%C3%B1%C3%A1rritu http://www.rogerebert.com/far-flung-correspondents/no-longer-an-inconceivable-future-the-vision-of-alfonso-cuar%C3%B3ns-children-of-men http://www.slashfilm.com/new-alfonso-cuaron-movie/ http://www.avclub.com/article/video-essay-illustrates-power-alfonso-cuarons-long-241610 http://www.avclub.com/article/ichildren-of-meni-35640 http://www.avclub.com/article/why-backgrounds-children-men-mattered-225093 http://www.vulture.com/2013/09/director-alfonso-cuaron-on-making-gravity.html http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/05/movies/awardsseason/alfonso-cuaron-discusses-his-films.html?_r=0

George Miller has a most curious filmography. The same man responsible for four Mad Max movies wrote and directed the Happy Feet movies and Babe: Pig in the City. In this episode, we rank the Mad Max saga, discuss the merits of Happy Feet (winner of an Academy Award), and delve into the mythology and messages of Miller's films. How did a low budget Australian action movie spawn a franchise? How are dancing penguins criticized as being anti-Christian? Listen as we try to answer these and more questions about this fascinating filmmaker.

Show Notes and Sources:

http://www.cracked.com/article_23652_6-beloved-movies-that-are-secretly-autobiographical.html http://io9.gizmodo.com/you-may-never-see-a-better-video-than-mad-max-fury-roa-1786534726 http://www.rogerebert.com/balder-and-dash/im-just-here-for-the-gasoline-an-overview-of-the-mad-max-saga https://youtu.be/CegN8_pn0-I http://www.npr.org/2016/02/08/465989808/mad-max-director-george-miller-the-audience-tells-you-what-your-film-is http://www.thewrap.com/mad-max-fury-road-george-miller-not-making-sequels-tom-hardy-charlize-theron/ http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/mad-max-director-george-miller-889872 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/george-miller-mad-max-sequels-861549 https://thedissolve.com/features/exposition/1026-for-mad-maxs-george-miller-all-roads-lead-to-myth-/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3ulYRPvja0 http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-lessons-all-movies-should-learn-from-mad-max/ http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/mad-max-beyond-thunderdome-1985 https://youtu.be/RoltZ7XjaAk

Joss Whedon's cult success and comic book credentials led him to The Avengers, which still ranks as the highest grossing superhero movie. One of our favorites, Whedon's work ranges from science fiction to Shakespeare. Is Whedon a complete filmmaker? What can or will he do next? Listen as Jon and Chris discuss.

Show Notes and Sources:

http://mentalfloss.com/article/63120/qa-joss-whedon-super-heroes-killing-characters-and-existing-outside-pop-culture https://filmschoolrejects.com/23-things-we-learned-from-joss-whedons-much-ado-about-nothing-commentary-45ecf5e01278#.a6ld55t0w http://www.cinemablend.com/reviews/Serenity-1157.html http://io9.gizmodo.com/5905802/why-does-joss-whedon-always-kill-the-characters-we-love http://www.npr.org/2013/06/06/189113956/whedon-adapts-much-ado-about-nothing-for-silver-screen http://www.hitfix.com/whats-alan-watching/tv-the-book-why-buffy-the-vampire-slayer-was-the-best-possible-name-for-that-show https://youtu.be/2Nsl3Of0ZIk https://youtu.be/Fp2iUAVJZvo https://youtu.be/wPnqzENRToA

JJ Abrams is one of the busiest men in Hollywood. Between his producing, writing, and directing credits, Abrams has already amassed a career's worth of credits. Yet, Abrams has only written and directed three movies: Mission Impossible III, Super 8, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Listen as Jon and Chris review the works of Abrams, assess his originality, and compare him to Dawson Leary.

Show Notes and Sources:

http://everythingisaremix.info/blog/everything-is-a-remix-the-force-awakens http://www.avclub.com/review/mission-impossible-iii-3966 https://youtu.be/bN-On2CusDM?t=5m48s https://youtu.be/viDu9SLvF_E https://youtu.be/dtufvcJDwLI https://youtu.be/vpjVgF5JDq8

Christopher Nolan is one of the biggest and most ambitious filmmakers working today. Is he the Steven Spielberg of the 21st Century or a more talented M. Night Shyamalan? Is he a brilliant and innovative storyteller or a cold director relying on gimmicks to fool audiences? Jon and Chris try to answer these and more questions in our examination of Nolan's work to date.

Show notes and sources:

http://www.cracked.com/blog/4-christopher-nolan-movies-no-other-director-could-have-made/ http://www.cracked.com/quick-fixes/5-stupid-complaints-we-always-have-about-chris-nolan-movies/ http://thedissolve.com/features/exposition/820-the-rational-wonders-of-christopher-nolan/ http://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/the-christopher-nolan-school-for-fallen-stars/ http://grantland.com/hollywood-prospectus/brothers-in-brong-how-hans-zimmer-and-christopher-nolan-make-the-boldest-scores-in-hollywood/ http://www.avclub.com/article/christopher-nolan-13769 https://youtu.be/VtH6kiPbMBw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr6NdyP4y-k http://www.cinemablend.com/new/One-Film-Most-Influenced-Christopher-Nolan-Batman-Begins-68992.html http://www.tasteofcinema.com/2014/10-films-that-had-the-biggest-influences-on-the-films-of-christopher-nolan/2/ http://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/5-films-that-influenced-christopher-nolan/ https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/sep/23/christopher-nolan-batman-begins-christian-bale