Words and Movies

We conclude this overstuffed episode with a look at 1976's Network, directed by Sidney Lumet and starring William Holden, Peter Finch and Faye Dunaway.

Finch plays a television news anchor who decides to say exactly what's on his mind, and the audience reaction comes as a huge surprise to everyone. His bosses are only too happy to capitalize on this renewed popularity. But even though he's starting to show signs of mental instability, they continue to exploit him...until it stops paying off.

COMING ATTRACTIONS:

In our next episode we take a look at a pair of political thrillers from overseas. We start with The Battle of Algiers (1966), and move on to 1969's Z (or Zed, if you prefer). Join us, won't you?

Both Sean and I like both of these films so unabashedly that we wound up with a truly overstuffed episode.

This time around we're looking at a pair of films that turned out to be oddly prophetic in their vision, although one of them missed the mark, but only slightly.

In this part of the episode we examine the 1957 film A Face in the Crowd, directed by Elia Kazan and starring Patricia Neal and Andy Griffith as two people whose lives become intertwined when one of them becomes a media sensation. It's a brilliant examination of the "absolute power corrupts absolutely" ethos and leaves us wondering what happens next.

In this half of the episode, we look at When Harry Met Sally... and we learn that not all rom-coms are alike, even if most of them look alike and--unfortunately--sound alike.

COMING ATTRACTIONS:

Next time around we take a look at the dark side of television, starting with A Face in the Crowd (1957) and finishing up with Network (1976). Join us, won't you?

We're wrapping up our brief series of films that can definitely be enjoyed on the individual level, but the ripple effects they caused tend to make the films that follow in their wake to be somewhat less than amazing.

And this week we begin with Halloween, from 1978 and directed by John Carpenter. Jamie Lee Curtis is a teenager who has some truly supernatural adventures in babysitting. This film set some of the slasher film template, but alas some people just have to color outside the lines.

In the next segment we'll find out what happened When Harry Met Sally...

In Part 2 of our episode, we review The Accidental Tourist (1986), directed by Lawrence Kasdan and starring William Hurt and Geena Davis. Hurt plays a man who's learning to navigate his life after a broken heart, a broken marriage and a broken leg. It's a truly delightful, quiet film that will warm your heart...but there's still an unfortunate side effect to deal with.

Next time around we view a pair of films that are wildly different in both tone and content. We begin with the original Halloween from 1978, directed by John Carpenter and starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Pleasance.  From there we go to 1989 for Rob Reiner's When Harry Met Sally... starring Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal. Join us, won't you? 

This is the first of two episodes where we look at a pair of films that don't have a ton in common with one another, but instead have created some cultural ripples that haven't always had a positive effect.

We begin with Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), the first time we've ever gone to the 1939 well after more than 140 films reviewed. This film, directed by Frank Capra, stars James Stewart as a rather naive young man who finds himself at the center of a political storm.

Stick around for Part 2, when we talk about The Accidental Tourist.

In this episode we review the 1981 film Thief, directed by Michael Mann and starring James Caan and Tuesday Weld. Caan plays a safecracker who's finding it quite impossible to break out of his life of crime. On the other hand, maybe he does find a way...

COMING ATTRACTIONS:

In our next episode we'll be looking at a pair of beloved films that have had unfortunate side effects. We'll start with 1939's Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and then move on to 1988's The Accidental Tourist, a film Claude has loved ever since he attended a showing in which he was one of four people in the audience (but that wasn't a knock on the film--tune in and find out the whole story). Join us, won't you?

Both Episode 75 and 76 (this one) have been called "allegory" episodes, but in the interest of transparency we should note that in both cases they're specifically anti-Capitalist allegories. Last time around it was Westerns, and this week we're looking at Gangster movies.

And we begin with The Long Good Friday (1981), directed by John Mackenzie and starring Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren. Hoskins is a man who learns that respectability doesn't necessarily mean legitimacy.

In Part 2, we'll be reviewing Thief, from 1980.

In Part 2 of our episode, The Claim (2000) was directed by Michael Winterbottom and stars Peter Mullan, Sarah Polley, Wes Bentley and Milla Jovovich. This one has a similar theme to McCabe, though the romance side is pushed a little more forward. But there are many striking similarities between the two films, as different as they are.

COMING ATTRACTIONS:

In Reel 76, we look at another pair of allegorical films. We begin with Thief (1981), directed by Michael Mann, and move on to The Long Good Friday (1982), directed by John Mackenzie. Join us, won't you?

This week (and next) we'll be looking at films that use genre as an overlay for their larger message. And we begin with two films that use the Western genre to convey their messages.

We start with McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971), directed by Robert Altman and starring Warren Beatty and Julie Christie, along with several others from the Altman stable of actors. We often see this film listed as an "anti-Western" because it inverts so many tropes in the genre, and we can't really argue with that.

In Part 2, we'll look at a perhaps lesser-known film, The Claim, from 2000.