The Soulless Minions of Orthodoxy - Movie Commentaries

The 1989 film Millennium was adapted from a novel written by John Varely. However, before it became a full length novel it was at first a short story entitled Air Raid--also written by Varley. Varely initially began adapting his short story into a screenplay--around the time of the late 70's-- with hopes of turning it into a film. In the intervening years the short story was fleshed out into the full length novel. Having recently read the novel (which was very good) we spend a lot of time making comparisons between it (the novel) and the finished film. Also, we are fans of time travel in general and Millennium is one of our favorites so it was fun to go back and give it a deeper look. As a film it incorporated a lot of interesting concepts into the story and the concept of time travel that work quite well and still hold up today. But is it good? We think so. Good but not great. We feel it has its shortcomings but we also feel its a notable entry into the time travel sub genre.

Sync Point -- The black point immediately after the 20th Century Fox logo has faded away.

This commentary was recorded using a Region 1 DVD.

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Upon its initial release David Lynch's 1984 adaptation of Frank Herbert's Dune was considered by many to be a great disappointment. We, however, enjoy it very much despite its flaws. Just as many others do. We know we're not alone in that respect. Nevertheless, it is generally looked upon negatively to this day.

As this is the theatrical version there's a lot of comparison to the extended cut. As well as the book and 2000's miniseries adaptation.

So we are very excited to present this commentary and hope we gave the movie its proper dues.

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This commentary was recorded using a Region 1 DVD.

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Some might call it a chick flick, I guess. Most do actually. But a good movie is a good movie. And this one hits the marks without fail. It's a great story about the bonds of friendship. And that's something relatable to either gender.

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Note: This commentary was recorded using a PAL (Region 2) DVD.

This film has become synonymous with the word--failure. Many remember it as a notorious box office bomb and also the many, many woes that plagued its long and delayed production. Nevertheless, we believe many people have come to see this movie as very underrated and unfairly judged since its initial release in 1987. "Criminally underrated" is actually a more apt definition. Maybe this movie doesn't succeed on every level but we feel there's a lot of stuff to be admired in it. More of it works than what doesn't and the stuff that does work is pure gold. (The chemistry between Hoffman and Beaty is the highlight.)

In the end its a movie about guy love and pursuing your dreams no matter what it takes.

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Having recently read the novel from which the film was based I thought it would be interesting to go back and take another look at this much maligned film. Justin and I talk about the book of course--it's similarities and differences from the movie. We also give our own overall impressions of the movie--what we feel works and what we feel doesn't. Perhaps it isn't the best movie in the world but it certainly isn't the worst.

Note -- This commentary was recorded using a Region 2 (PAL) DVD.

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The Day the Earth Stood Still is a classic piece of Sc-Fi. It's simply a wonderful film. We give a lot of praise through out the film but mostly we discuss its story and message.

We also talk about the remake ... a little bit.

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The Time Machine by H.G. Wells is a classic piece of literature in the realm of science fiction. Also, the 1960 film directed by George Pal and starring Rod Taylor is also regarded as a classic. But what about the 2002 adaptation starring Guy Pearce and directed by Simon Wells? It wasn't very well received and quickly faded from memory. It's not a bad movie. It's just nothing exceptional. Sadly.

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Superman IV was critically panned and ignored by audiences at the time of its release and is generally not remembered in a kind way. But there was a lot of ambition and good intentions behind this production. Maybe it's a bit goofy at times but like it or not we think there's some good stuff in it.

Sync Point -- The black point immediately after the Warner Bros. logo has faded to black.

This commentary was recorded using a region 1 DVD.

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Planet of the Apes is a classic piece of Sci-Fi. But what about its sequels? We're taking a look at the third film in the franchise. Overall we enjoy this movie quite a bit, however, we do attempt to deconstruct its plot and characters a little bit in an attempt to make sense of some of its loose story threads.

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Having recently read the novelization of the film (which was based on the original screenplay) we uncovered many aspects of the story that didn't make it to the screen. Join us as we discuss those missing elements and our very fond memories of this film.

This commentary was recorded using the Region 1 DVD.

Sync Point: The black point immediately after the Paramount logo has faded to black.

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