Filmspotting #158: Hot Fuzz / Metropolis / Top 5 Action Movies

April 27: Thanks to the cult success of his zombie movie send-up "Shaun of the Dead," director and co-writer Edgar Wright's follow-up, "Hot Fuzz," is receiving the kind of attention usually reserved for the movies that "Fuzz" lovingly pokes fun at -- big budget action spectacles. Starring Wright's co-writer, Simon Pegg, and "Shaun" veteran Nick Frost, "Hot Fuzz" tries to walk the same fine line between homage and mockery that its predecessor did. Despite being zombie movie illiterate, Adam and Sam loved "Shaun of the Dead." Versed as they are in the '80s action canon from which Wright's film gets most of its inspiration, would they have an even stronger response to "Fuzz"?

Also on the show: Massacre Theatre, Listener Feedback, the fifth film in Filmspotting's six-week Silent Movies Marathon, Fritz Lang's "Metropolis," and -- tying in with "Hot Fuzz" -- the Top 5 Action Movies.

Music by The Clientele courtesy of Merge Records.

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Filmspotting #158
:19-16:31 - Review: Hot Fuzz
Music: The Clientele, "When I Came Home From The Party"
17:18-21:24 - Audio Feedback, Poll Questions
21:25-30:57 - Listener Feedback (B-Movie Actors, Ambition)
Music: The Clientele, "Geometry of Lawns"
31:29-32:28 - New DVDs, Donations
32:48-36:36 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: Tracy Reinke)
36:37-46:13 - Silents: Metropolis
Music: The Clientele, "Spirit"
46:52-49:03 - Audio Feedback - Fireflies & Ebert
49:04-1:02:18 - Top 5: Action Movies
1:02:19-1:04:59 - Close/Next Show/Outtakes + bonus vulgarity

CORRECTIONS/NOTES
- Yes, we realize the 'play' "Glengarry Glen Ross" came out in 1984 ... before the movie "Working Girl."

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send an e-mail or short mp3 clip to feedback@filmspotting.net. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Filmspotting #157: Hot Fuzz Interview / Fracture / Top 5 Movies About Ambition

April 20: From the podcasters who interviewed the men who saw every action movie ever made... it's Adam's interview with the team behind "Shaun of the Dead" and the new film "Hot Fuzz": Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. [Filmspotting's review of "Hot Fuzz" will appear next week on show #158, along with a special Pegg-Frost edition of Massacre Theatre.]

Spider-Man 3 is only a couple of weeks away, which means that the Spring movie doldrums are coming to a close. Except that Spring hasn't really been as full of garbage as Adam and Sam [and the rest of the world?] feared. There have been three great or nearly great films ["Black Snake Moan," "The Namesake" and "Grindhouse"]; two very good, surprisingly smart thrillers ["Breach" and "Zodiac"]; and a couple of decent genre films ["The Lookout," "Disturbia," and, for one half of Filmspotting at least, "300"]. So, would generic-looking thriller "Fracture" be another pleasant surprise? With Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling going head-to-head, it certainly seemed to be a safe bet.

Also on the show: Massacre Theatre, Listener Feedback and -- tying in with "Fracture" -- the Top 5 Movies About Ambition.

Music by The Detroit Cobras from the new album "Tied and True" courtesy of Bloodshot Records.

Filmspotting is brought to you by Peerflix, a fun place to get movies for less. Check out the Filmspotting group page!



Filmspotting #157
:19-14:26 - Review: Fracture
Music: The Detroit Cobras, "Nothing But a Heartache"
15:03-20:06 - Audio Feedback, Poll Questions
20:07-30:34 - Listener Feedback ("Grindhouse")
Music: The Detroit Cobras, "You'll Never Change"
31:09-34:12 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: Matt Brown)
34:13-45:18 - Interview: E. Wright, S. Pegg, N. Frost
Music: The Detroit Cobras, "Green Light"
45:42-47:46 - New DVDs, Donations
47:47-52:58 - Audio Feedback, "Grindhouse" cont.
52:59-1:04:52 - Top 5: Movies About Ambition
1:04:53-1:10:28 - Close/Next Show/Special Extended Outtake

CORRECTIONS/NOTES
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Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send an e-mail or short mp3 clip to feedback@filmspotting.net. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Filmspotting #156: Grindhouse / Disturbia / Sunrise / Top 5 B-Movie Actors

April 13: Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino grew up watching double-bills of made-on-the-cheap genre movies at grimy theatres in LA and Texas. Now they've each made a film for the b-movie pantheon -- "Planet Terror" and "Death Proof," respectively -- and together they've created a '70s-era drive-in experience called "Grindhouse." Described by Tarantino as a "horror film double feature," "Grindhouse" may have been made in a spirit of friendship and mutal appreciation, but in Adam and Sam's hands, the film has been reduced to a street fight -- with only one director left standing.

Also on the show: A review of the new film "Disturbia," and Adam's brief conversation with the film's star, Shia LaBeouf. Plus, Massacre Theatre, a discussion of F.W. Murnau's silent classic "Sunrise," and Filmspotting's 'Bruce Campbell Memorial' Top 5 B-Movie Actors list. Thanks to Vince Rotolo from the B-Movie Cast for his contribution to this week's Top 5!

Music by The Rosebuds courtesy of Merge Records.

Filmspotting is brought to you by Peerflix, a fun place to get movies for less. Check out the Filmspotting group page!



Filmspotting #156
:19-17:21 - Review: Grindhouse
Music: The Rosebuds, "Kicks in the Schoolyard"
18:04-21:24 - Listener Feedback
21:25-27:10 - Review: Disturbia
27:11-33:11 - Interview: Shia LaBeouf
Music: The Rosebuds, "Signature Drinks"
34:04-37:27 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: Brent York)
37:28-45:09 - Silents #4: "Sunrise"
Music: The Rosebuds, "Back To Boston"
45:21-46:33 - New DVDs, Donations
46:56-49:04 - Poll Questions
49:05-1:02:43 - Top 5: B-Movie Actors
1:02:44-1:04:51 - Close/Next Show/Special Guest Outtake

CORRECTIONS/NOTES
- View the complete Top 5 pantheon list here.

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send an e-mail or short mp3 clip to feedback@filmspotting.net. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.

Filmspotting #155: The Namesake / Battleship Potemkin / Top 5 Fathers & Sons

April 6: What happens when Adam and Sam can't make it to an early screening of the most anticipated film of the year ("Grindhouse")? They end up seeing a movie that one of them claims is the best film of the year so far: Mira Nair's adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri's debut novel, "The Namesake." Another example of a film that is being misrepresented by its advertising, "The Namesake" offers much more than just a chance to see if Kumar can pull off a serious role.

Also on the show: Sam offers a rebuttal to Adam's take on "The Lookout," and Adam weighs in on "Blades of Glory" -- a film that Sam VanPerbole labelled "dangerous" a week ago. Also, after a two-week hiatus, Filmspotting returns to its Silent Movies Marathon with Sergei Eisenstein's highly revered "Battleship Potemkin."

Plus, Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre and, tying in with "The Namesake," Filmspotting's Top 5 Movies About Fathers and Sons.

Music by Neko Case courtesy of Bloodshot Records.

Filmspotting is brought to you by Peerflix, a fun place to get movies for less. Check out the Filmspotting group page!



Filmspotting #155
:19-3:56 - Sam on "The Lookout"
3:57-7:06 - Adam on "Blades of Glory"
7:07-17:00 - Review: "The Namesake"
Music: Neko Case, "We've Never Met"
17:51-20:22 - Corrections, Notes
20:23-34:39 - Listener Feedback (Female Friendships, Career Reboots)
Music: Neko Case, "Bought and Sold"
35:35-38:53 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: Sarah Staggs)
38:54-47:10 - Silents #3: "Battleship Potemkin"
Music: Neko Case, "Things That Scare Me"
47:47-49:51 - New DVDs, Donations
49:52-54:45 - Feedback cont., Poll Questions
54:46-1:07:15 - Top 5: Fathers & Sons
1:07:17-1:08:46 - Close/Next Show

CORRECTIONS/NOTES
- This is a re-publish of the re-publish of #155(a) from earlier in the morning due to some technical issues with our feed. Sorry for the confusion.
- CNN's Best (and Worst) Movie Battle Scenes
- Listen to Filmspotting's review of "Jonestown: Life and Death of People's Temple," out now on DVD.

Have a comment or Top 5 list you'd like to share? Send an e-mail or short mp3 clip to feedback@filmspotting.net. Or give us a call at 206-203-CINE and leave a voice message.