Cinecast #42: Out Of The Past

A History of Violence: A quick look at Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg's career reveals the director's obsession with exploring the dark, sometimes perverse corners of the human psyche. Movies like "The Fly," "Dead Ringers" and "Crash" all see Cronenberg examining the dark terrain that lurks beneath our everyday public exteriors. "A History of Violence," adapted from the graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke, continues in that tradition with remarkably successful results. Patient, provocative and wholly compelling, "Violence" is one of the best films of the year. (Actually, Adam says it IS the best film of the year so far.)

Also on the show, our Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week and our Top 5 Actresses.

Music by Slobberbone courtesy of Bloodshot Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #42
:30-11:25 - Review: "A History of Violence"
11:26-16:00 - Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week
Music: Slobberbone, "Barrel Chested"
17:17-33:52 - Top 5 Actresses

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast #41: Signal Received

Serenity: Writer/director Joss Whedon's talent for bringing humor and unexpected depth to a genre that frequently favors special effects over dialogue and character development will come as no surprise to fans of Whedon's "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" series; but it certainly came as a surprise to Whedon initiates Adam and Sam. Though not without a few minor flaws, Whedon's new film "Serenity" is impressively imagined and executed -- and it has more brains and wit in its first five minutes than all three Star Wars prequels combined. All goes smoothly until the end of the review when Sam gives Whedon the mother of all backhanded compliments.

Also on the show, the Western-a-Week Marathon continues with a quick conversation about John Ford's 1939 classic "Stagecoach." Plus, Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre -- presented by Movies Passions.com -- and a look ahead to Friday's Top 5 Actresses.

Music by Dan Bern courtesy of Messenger Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #41
:35-16:37 - Review: "Serenity"
Music: Dan Bern, "Baby Bye Bye"
17:47-20:12 - Cinecast Corrections
20:13-26:16 - Western-a-Week Marathon #3: "Stagecoach"
26:17-30:15 - Listener Feedback
Music: Dan Bern, "Take Back The New Millennium"
31:50-37:08 - Listener Voicemails
37:09-39:35 - Massacre Theatre
39:36-44:32 - Top 5 Actresses Preview

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Schedule

No Mailbag today or tomorrow as we prepare for our two shows this week, which will be posted Thursday and Friday instead of our usual Tuesday and Friday (see previous post).

Thursday: "Serenity" review, Listener Feedback, Western-a-Week: "Stagecoach", Massacre Theatre and Top 5 Actresses preview.

Friday: "A History of Violence" review, Overlooked DVD Picks and Top 5 Actresses.

** Thanks to Matt Singer and the Independent Film Channel for the IFC News feature on Cinecast that is currently airing! Hopefully IFC will give me permission to make the video clip available soon.

Programming Notes

We mentioned in Friday's podcast that we were preparing to reluctantly review "Flightplan" on Monday's show because our weekend schedules might prevent us from seeing the film we both really want to see -- "Proof." As it turns out, the film we both REALLY want to see, David Cronenberg's "A History of Violence," is playing in Chicago and we will get to it. So look for that on our next show...

Also, Cinecast has been "selected" to attend an advanced screening of "Serenity" in Chicago on Monday night. Assuming all goes well and we get in, we'll have our review on Friday. Shiny. (Learn more about "Serenity" below.)

One other quick note... since we will be seeing "Serenity" Monday night -- the night we usually record Tuesday's show -- our first show may go up later in the week than normal. Thanks for your patience.

Joss Whedon, the Oscar® - and Emmy - nominated writer/director responsible for the worldwide television phenomena of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE, ANGEL and FIREFLY, now applies his trademark compassion and wit to a small band of galactic outcasts 500 years in the future in his feature film directorial debut, Serenity. The film centers around Captain Malcolm Reynolds, a hardened veteran (on the losing side) of a galactic civil war, who now ekes out a living pulling off small crimes and transport-for-hire aboard his ship, Serenity. He leads a small, eclectic crew who are the closest thing he has left to family –squabbling, insubordinate and undyingly loyal.

Cinecast #40: Top 5 Bleeding Hearts

Acting as a rebuttal of sorts to director Andrew Niccol's cynical and unsophisticated critique of blackmarket arms dealing in "Lord of War" (reviewed on Cinecast #39), Adam and Sam assemble their Top 5 Movies with a Conscience -- 10 films that measure their righteous indignation with intelligence, compassion and wit.

Also on the show, week two of the Western-a-Week Marathon featuring some genial bickering over John Ford's "The Searchers." Plus, a 'very special' edition of Listener Feedback and our Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week.

Music by Bottle Rockets courtesy of Bloodshot Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #40
:29-10:18 - Western-a-Week Marathon: "The Searchers"
10:19-14:35 - Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week
Music: Bottle Rockets, "Mendocino"
15:46-19:16 - Listener Feedback
19:17-35:47 - Top 5 Movies with A Conscience

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast Mailbag (9/22)

Hey Sam and Adam,

Great show! I listen every week at work here in Sioux Falls, SD. Here are a few must see horror flicks for your horror marathon.

• An American Werewolf in London

• The Shining

• Salem's Lot

Although Salem's Lot is a made for TV movie, it is a good horror flick. Looking forward to this marathon. Cheers! --John Ashlock

Great to hear from you, John. Your email has helped make me feel a little less insecure about the upcoming Horror Marathon because I've actually seen all three of those movies! I love "The Shining," which is still creepy and terrifying; and I loved "American Werewolf" in my younger days.

However... "Salem's Lot" will absolutely not be part of this marathon. Not just because I've seen it, but also because I'm not 100% certain I could sit through it without flashing back to the grade school version of myself, paralyzed with the knowledge that any minute one of my friends will ascend to my window with yellow eyes and plead with me to let him in! I'm telling you, this movie is single-handedly responsible for the fact that I haven't seen a lot of horror movies. I related this story in a previous episode of Cinecast, can't recall which one... I'm still hesitant to sleep with my curtains open because of "Salem's Lot!"

Adam

Cinecast Mailbag (9/21)

"Where's Alfred?" And other concerns...

Greetings Gentlemen,

I've been a loyal and enthusiastic listener for many months now, and I want to thank you so much for your wonderful, and refreshingly reliable (hey, it actually gets posted on a regular basis) podcast.

Here is my concern: Where's the Hitchcock? Can it possibly be that both of you fail to see the genius?! There's been no mention at all of the great pallid, pudgy one in any of the shows I've heard while zipping home from work, and frankly I'm disappointed! Am I missing something - or are you?!

Other minor quibbles and strokes:

1) A special western a week? Allow me to express the collective Blah.

2) Where's the sex? If you've had a list of the sexiest/most romantic/most-insightful-into-human-relationships flicks I've missed it. (See "An Affair of Love," "Secretary," and most of all "Innocence.") You guys are doing a great job pandering to your straight male audience with the Yippiee Yahooo a week -- toss the rest of us a bone! Get in touch with your feminine side and slather on a little sexy.

3) Love the whole list concept in general. Bite sized and easily digestible.

4) I forget which one of you hated Star Wars, but that one is clearly starkers.

Thanks again for the great podcast! Claire Novo, Newtown, PA

Thanks for the kind and comprehensive e-mail, Claire! Let me start from the top. You're right. I'm not sure Alfred Hitchcock has come up more than once or twice in the six months that Adam and I have been recording Cinecast -- and none of his films have landed on a Top 5 list. But lots of great movies and great directors have gone unmentioned on the show. Hopefully that means that Adam and I have enough material to keep Cinecast going for a while. Off the top of my head, I know I've seen Hitchcock's "The Man Who Knew Too Much," "Rear Window," "Vertigo," "Psycho" and "North By Northwest." A pretty small sampling, admittedly. But I have to admit, too, that the only one of those films that I really truly love is "Rear Window" -- and please don't get me started on "Vertigo" or we might have a bloodbath -- which would explain the missing Hitch films from my Top 5 lists. Then again, we haven't done a Top 5 Suspense Films. So there you go.

A "collective blah" for the Western-a-Week Marathon? "Collective" for all the westerns in our marathon, or "collective" meaning you've got a bunch of pals that are humbugging John Ford, et al, with you? I'll be honest, Westerns have never really appealed to me (the exception being "Unforgiven," a film I find compulsively re-watchable). But bluegrass music never used to appeal to me either. And now I'm a total fiend for the banjo. Don't be a cynic! Join our Magical Mystery Tour through the great American genre!

"Where's the sex?" you ask. I guess we're assuming that most Cinecast listeners don't want to hear Adam and I "slather on a little sexy" and discuss the movies that get us all hot and bothered. Let me speak for myself: I don't want to hear about the movies that make Adam all hot and bothered. Among your recommendations, I've only seen "Secretary," a movie whose charms lasted all the way through the opening credits. I thought it was pretentious and remarkably un-sexy. Your other two picks look more promising. I'll add them to "the queue." Also, not sure if it counts, but Adam and I did devote a Top 5 list to "relationship movies" back on Cinecast #7. Which isn't the same thing as sex, I realize, but it's kind of the same ballpark. Or so I've heard.

Thanks again for your kind words about our "bite-sized and easily digestible" Top 5 lists. We enjoy making them -- despite the fact that Adam mentions how "hard" it is to assemble his list every single week. [Adam responds: "Guilty as charged."]

And for the record, it was me who hated Star Wars, but I have no idea what "starkers" means. Does it mean "insightful, with an impeccable taste in film"?

I didn't think so.

Sam

Cinecast #39: War 4 Sale

Considering Andrew Niccol's track record ("The Truman Show," "Gattaca"), it's not surprising that the writer/director's latest, "Lord of War", is more ambitious than the film's glossy gun-show trailer makes it out to be. But ambition alone doesn't make for a great movie. A strong, charismatic performance from star Nicolas Cage can't save "War" from being "very flawed" (Adam) or "maybe the worst film I've seen this year" (Sam). Some bickering about the film's supporting cast adds to the fun.

Also on the show, Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre -- presented by Movies Passions.com -- and a look ahead to Friday's Top 5 Movies With A Conscience.

Music by Alejandro Escovedo courtesy of Bloodshot Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #39
:34-13:11 - Review: "Lord of War"
Music: Alejandro Escovedo, "Castenets"
14:08-27:50 - Listener Feedback
Music: Alejandro Escovedo, "I Was Drunk"
28:42-31:55 - Massacre Theatre
31:56-36:13 - Top 5 Movies With A Conscience Preview

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast #38: Scent of a Fight Club

"Scent of a Woman" meets "Fight Club" meets "Fever Pitch" (the original, of course) ... What happens when you treat the subject of soccer hooliganism with the same respect and affection that you show the game of soccer itself? You get a clumsy piece of braindead claptrap like "Green Street Hooligans." Some impressive acting from the native Brits, especially Charlie Hunnam as Green Street's badass leader, is the unfortunate victim of this doomed-from-the-premise endeavor. Recovering hobbit Elijah Wood doesn't fare so well as a Harvard-educated Yankee infiltrator.

*Production Note: For many of you who downloaded this show early on Friday, you may have noticed a 20 second pause in the setup to my #1 Foreign Film. You were supposed to hear a clip of Griffin Mill from "The Player" saying this line: "Great movie, huh? So refreshing to see something like this after all these... cop movies and, you know, things we do. Maybe we'll do a remake of this!" I apologize for the error and for wasting your time. Thanks. -Adam

Also on the show, our Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week and the Top 5 Foreign Language Films.

Music by Rainmarket ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #38
:32-10:02 - Review: "Green Street Hooligans"
10:03-15:00 - Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week
Music: Rainmarket, "Hurricanes"
16:10-31:43 - Top 5 Foreign Language Films

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast Mailbag (9/15)

The Others...

I'm looking forward to Serenity. I _insist_ that you review it. Thanks for the show. --Jeremy Sheeley

Jeremy, you're not alone. In fact, based on the feedback we've gotten I think it's fair to assume that "Serenity" is responsible for most of those 'Other' votes in the poll question asking which Fall movie you're most excited about. We WILL review it. I am on disc 2 of the series right now and can safely say that I'm hooked. But here's a potential dilemma I'm curious about, as there seem to be a number of Firefly/Serenity fans who are also Cinecast fans? What if we hate the movie? Or even just think it's mediocre? Firefly clearly has such a passionate fan base that I'm concerned the deluge of hatemail could make all of our top 5 overrated movies feedback look like letters home to mom. Can't wait!

Oh, what's in a name anyway...

Could you maybe change this to 'foreign language films'? I'm Australian, and I would be very surprised to see any Aussie or even British films on this list. I understand the distinction and, being used to the fact that America is the centre of the universe, am not offended, but it wouldn't hurt to be a bit more precise, boys. -Kate

Well, thanks for not being offended, Kate. In our defense, I do recall making the distinction that these were foreign 'language' films in our setup/apology on Tuesday. But you're right that we avoided any Australian or British films, so we absolutely could have been more precise. The Oscars includes the word "language," so we probably should have too.

Cinecast Mailbag (9/14)

The 411 on "2046"...

In the Criterion DVD of "In The Mood For Love," Wong Kar Wai talked about making a movie that spanned a decade involving the lives of the two characters Chow Mo-wan (Tony Leung) and Su Li-zhen Chan (Maggie Cheung), but was only able to do half of it because of financial restrictions. "2046" is the second part of that decade, as it continues to follow Chow's life. The line that is used by Chow throughout "2046" ("In the old days, if someone had a secret they didn't want to share, they went up a mountain, found a tree, carved a hole in it and a whispered the secret into the hole. Then they covered it with mud. And leave the secret there.") refers to "In The Mood For Love," where the line is said by Chow and at the end it shows him doing exactly the same event at a ruin site in Cambodia. It is his way of ending his impossible relationship with Su. [I]n "2046" we see a change in Chow. Scarred by the romance and eventual rejection of Su, Chow has become an unemotional misogynist. He has become the complete opposite of what he embodied in "In The Mood For Love." He becomes this tragic figure. He is cold and possibly shell-shocked, as he feels that he will never love again. He has grown a mustache, which reflects his devilish behavior and more mature attitude.

I did not like "2046" compared to Wong Kar Wai's previous movies. The movie dragged for the first hour and didn't become interesting until the last forty minutes. I felt the futuristic sequences were redundant because the author's feelings were already being shown and played in the "present" sequences. Also, my bias for this movie may be the fact that Chow has become the total opposite of what I admired. I recommend watching "In The Mood For Love" because it is a far superior film and (also) makes you have a better understanding of 2046. -- W, Brooklyn, NY

Thanks for the e-mail, W. It may not have been clear in our review, but I actually did see "In The Mood For Love." But it was a couple of years ago. And I have the memory of a sieve. So I didn't realize when I watched "2046" that Tony Leung's character was the exact same one he played in "In The Mood For Love." I took "2046" as a completely isolated artistic entity. But before I explain which of the two films I prefer and why, here's another listener who agrees with you -- she's even got "2046" cinematographer Christopher Doyle in her corner.

Dear Sam and Adam, I love the show and was interested to hear your review of "2046" -- a movie that I found beautiful to look at but -- and I am not ashamed to say it -- a self-indulgent narrative mess. I was reminded of your review of The Brothers Grimm, when you said that if you are going to watch a chaotic mess of a movie, better Gilliam's chaos than anyone else's. I feel the same way about 2046. I would rather watch a flawed but visually stunning movie like 2046 than something less flawed but more prosaic, like, say Traffic.

I was lucky enough to see Christopher Doyle, the cinematographer who shot In The Mood For Love and 2046 in London earlier this year. He summed up my feelings when he said that 2046 was "totally redundant." In The Mood For Love was so perfect, and said everything that needed to be said about Tony Leung's character, (and about) love, and marriage, memory, longing, (and) regret. Why add to it? -- All the best, Sabina

Thanks for the e-mail, Sabina. To answer your question, "Why add to it?" To make a better film, that's why. I realize that I'm going to be in the minority here because "In The Mood For Love" seems to have achieved nearly instant classic status; but if I had to choose a favorite between "In The Mood" and "2046," I'd pick Wong Kar Wai's "self-indulgent narrative mess" over his subtlely written, beautifully filmed but kinda boring "masterpiece" any day. "In The Mood For Love" is full of ravishing images, great acting and a wonderfully sustained atmosphere of regret and repressed longing, but I also found it a little dull. It's an incredibly unsophisticated perspective, I realize, but I saw it so long ago that I'm not really in a position to articulate myself any better than that. "2046" may be indulgent, but I never found it dull. It had an exciting looseness and a wit to it that is largely absent in "In The Mood." That being said, now that I know that the two films were imagined by Wong Kar Wai as a single story, I'm eager to see both of them again and see if my current opinion stands.

Cinecast #37: Still In The Mood For Love

As challenging to discuss as it is to summarize, Wong Kar-Wai's intricate new film "2046" sees the celebrated Hong Kong director exploring familiar ground -- romantic obsession and unrequited love in 1960's Hong Kong (see: 2000's "In The Mood For Love"). Although Adam and Sam disagree on how successful the director is in achieving his lofty ambitions, they agree that he and his trio of cinematographers create some of the most beautiful images they've seen on screen this year. Cut from the broadcast: a 30 second exchange between your hosts as they debated the correct pronunciation of "Zhang Ziyi."

Also on the show, we kick off the "Western-a-Week Marathon" with some thoughts on "High Noon." Plus, Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre -- presented by Movies Passions.com -- and a look ahead to Friday's Top 5 Foreign Films.

Music by Martin Sexton courtesy of Kitchen Table Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #37
:33-14:45 - Review: "2046"
Music: Martin Sexton, "Black Sheep"
15:39-29:39 - Cinecast Online Poll, Western-a-Week Marathon: High Noon, Listener Feedback
Music: Martin Sexton, "Glory Bound"
32:06-35:24 - Massacre Theatre
35:25-41:21 - Top 5 Foreign Films Preview

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast #36: An Adaptable Top 5

Nostalgia picks for bookworms ... This week's Top 5 features ten films that Adam and Sam love watching -- and reading. The films that make up the Top 5 Book Adaptations are great movies based (for the most part) on great books. Also on the show, our Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week, and Sam reviews the new Werner Herzog documentary "Grizzly Man".

Music by Chris Whitley courtesy of Messenger Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #36
:24-5:49 - Sam's Review: "Grizzly Man"
5:50-13:08 - Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week
Music: Chris Whitley, "New Lost World"
14:02-27:46 - Top 5 Book Adaptations

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast Mailbag (9/8)

Time for a little digging...

I just wanted to say that the constant gardener was a welcome respite from the norm and to me it seemed less a political thriller and more of a relationship movie between ralph fiennes' character and rachel weisz's. i know the movie is set in this political thriller genre involving pharmaceutical companies, but i think the problems you had with the second half of this movie are because maybe the more fiennes' character learns about his wife, the more in-your-face the message feels because it is what his wife believed and what fiennes' character needed to know to better understand her. so the message was less about telling the strife of Africa and more a man learning what kind of person his wife was. the message just played into it. maybe i'm wrong, but it felt at all times to me like a love story. anyway, i love your show, so keep doin what you're doin. --Chris

P.S. i hope this is not too old a reference for the show, but i thought "the upside of anger" was worth it for the one cool line Costner delivers toward the end after he kicks in Joan Allen's bathroom door. I won't say it, but it sums up how crazy all womankind can make a guy.

Thanks for the email, Chris. For the record, Sam and I both did watch the rest of "The Upside of Anger," and I thought the scene you reference here was one of the best in the film (not enough like it, unfortunately). We actually recorded about 5 minutes worth of discussion on "Upside" to make up for the trashing we gave the first 15 minutes, but just didn't think it fit into the show. If enough people are interested, I might make that clip available at some point.

You raise some good points about "Gardener." In fact, several listeners wrote in to defend the movie more as a love story than a political thriller. I'm willing to accept this to a point; if I recall, it was Sam who was more concerned with the thriller issue, though I too recognized the lack of suspense. For me the big issue was, as you mention, the in-your-face presentation of the message along with the potential exploitation of oppressed Africans simply to make moviegoers feel guilty. ("City of God," in contrast, really forces you to consider the plight of the impoverished without feeling like they're props on a set.) If you go to the movie's official site, the first audio clip you hear is the line, "Big pharmaceuticals... they're right up there with the arms dealers." Meirelles may have had nothing to do with the web site, of course, but it kind of shoots down the theory that this is just a love story. Maybe big pharmaceuticals are that evil and maybe they're not. I'm not interested in decrying or defending pharmaceutical companies or making any kind of lofty statements about capitalism, but this type of propagandizing -- in the context of this film, anyway -- put me off for some reason.

Listener Casey Rhodes in San Francisco articulates this quite nicely...

I felt compelled to chime in for the first time after listening to your recent review of Fernando Meirelles’ "The Constant Gardener". First of all, let me say that I do acknowledge and appreciate the raw talent and skill that Meirelles exhibits in both "City of God" and "Gardener". It's unfortunate that the level of Hollywood movies that have come out recently have forced us to be more appreciative of a director that at the very least does not resort to the lowest common denominator in order to tell his story.

That being said, I have to say that I do agree with your criticism of the movie's inability to deliver the suspence and tension that it seemed to so desperately want to convey. This is predominantly due to the director's need to force a public service announcement down our collective throats at a time when the movie should be more focused on plot, pacing, and (God forbid) storyline.

Adam

Cinecast Mailbag (9/7)

Hey guys, I love the show. I've listened since Itunes 4.9. I've got a question for you. Are there any books you recommend reading to learn more about what makes good movies good? I took classes on film in college but I must not have learned the right stuff cuz I'm sometimes clueless as why "the great movies" are so great. Thanks guys. --Zach Swee, Orlando, FL

Zach, I hope you don't mind that I used your email for this Mailbag -- not that you have anything to be ashamed of. Just because everyone else seems to think a movie is "great" doesn't necessarily make it so. Just ask Sam about his top 5 overrated list. On second thought... don't.

I'm not sure my suggestions will help solve your "problem" -- since none of them are specifically about film criticism -- but these are some of the books that have had a significant influence on the way I watch movies. And I'm highlighting these because they aren't really academic -- not necessarily a bad thing, of course -- but these are all entertaining reads that don't require a film degree to enjoy.

Rebel Without a Crew: Or How a 23-Year-Old Filmmaker With $7,000 Became a Hollywood Player by Robery Rodriguez -- The Sin City director's tale of how he made his first movie, "El Mariachi." Inspiring for anybody who wants to make movies; illuminating for anybody who doesn't know that good movies can be made for less than $100 million if the filmmaker has a clear vision and plan to execute it. For what it's worth, Rodriguez considers film school a waste of time and money. And he might be right. But that's a discussion for another time...

On Directing Film by David Mamet -- Mamet isn't the greatest director, and certainly not the most subtle, but he's got fascinating ideas about making movies and how to lift something off a page and enact it on screen in a very precise way.

In the Blink of an Eye by Walter Murch -- Among many others, Murch edited Apocalypse Now and did the sound design for both Apocalypse and The Godfather Part II. In other words, he knows what he's talking about. It's billed mainly as a book for editors, and it does address many practical editing issues, but Murch takes a really insightful approach that extends beyond editing to philosophical questions about how/why to make and watch movies.

Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman -- From the screenwriter of The Princess Bride, Butch Cassidy and All The President's Men... Goldman's got an acerbic wit and has some great "inside" stories from the various sets and projects he's worked on. Best lesson here is that a good screenplay isn't about dialogue; it's about structure.

Hope that helps a little.

Adam

Cinecast #35: The Secrets Garden

It's unanimous: "The Constant Gardener" is the best directed movie of the year -- or, the best directed first half anyway. "Gardener," a romantic thriller set mainly in an impoverished region of Kenya, is Fernando Meirelles' follow-up to his brilliant 2002 debut "City of God." Meirelles shows himself to be a detailed and visually inventive director, but his strengths are of little help once the film launches into the plot-heavy and perhaps exploitative second half. Sam and Adam still want you to see the first half. It's that good. Or better yet, just rent "City of God."

Also on the show, Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre -- presented by Movies Passions.com -- and a preview of Friday's Top 5 Book Adaptations.

Music by Waco Brothers courtesy of Bloodshot Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #35
:31-12:31 - Review: "The Constant Gardener"
Music: The Waco Brothers, "Rest of the World"
13:53-23:27 - Listener Feedback
Music: The Waco Brothers, "Fantasy"
24:29-27:36 - Massacre Theatre
27:37-35:29 - Top 5 Book Adaptations Preview

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast #34: Tough Guys Don't Top 5

Inspired by a two-year old copy of Maxim magazine (yes, really), this episode of Cinecast features the unveiling of our Top 5 Movie Badasses. Fearless, physically intimidating and not afraid to kill a man if he's got it coming to him, these scary sons of bitches are some of the most memorable movie characters in the history of film. (OK, except for Adam's #1, which prompts one of the most priceless moments in Cinecast history... Sam's clearly unimpressed, "Oh, wow.")

Also, Sam shares some quick thoughts on "Junebug," a great new film from debut filmmaker Phil Morrison, and our Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week.

Music by Johnny Society courtesy of Messenger Records ... Cinecast theme music by Age of the Rifle.



Cinecast #34
:26-4:46 - Sam's Review: "Junebug"
4:51-11:34 - Overlooked DVD Picks of the Week
Music: Johnny Society, "I Can't Win"
12:34-25:41 - Top 5 Movie Badasses

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send us an e-mail at cinecast@cinecastshow.com. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Cinecast #34 Up Soon...

We promised to have Cinecast #34 posted a little early... so Friday's show will be up tonight. The Mailbag will be back next Wednesday.