FS #240: The Reader / Top 5 Lead Performances of 2008

Jan. 9: Oddly enough, the 2008 cinematic holiday season sported quite a festive National Socialism theme. Given the choice, Adam and Matty probably preferred spending time with Kate Winslet's sexy ex-Nazi Hanna Schmitz in "The Reader" more than they did Tom Cruise ("Valkyrie") and Daniel Craig ("Defiance"), but they still took issue with several aspects of director Stephen Daldry's latest effort. Miss Winslet's performance was good enough to land her ... wait, wait, oh no, Mean Gene, is that Randy the Ram's intro music? That can mean only one thing, it's time for Filmspotting's thespian royal rumble. Steve Prokopy from Ain't Cool News will join our in-house tag team duo to list theTop 5 Lead Performances of 2008.

Plus: Massacre Theatre, Listener Feedback, and music by Chuck Prophet from the album "Soap and Water."

** Filmspotting is presented by Spout.com. Check out year-end lists like the best movies that played in theaters, the best movies that didn't, and the best music videos, all on blog.spout.com. **



Filmspotting #240
:24-10:54 - Review: "The Reader"
Music: Chuck Prophet, "Small-Town Girl"
11:46-15:14 - Mass. Theatre (Winner: S. Schwarz)
15:15-26:51 - Voicemail, Polls, Feedback
Music: Chuck Prophet, "Freckle"
28:47-47:40 - Top 5: Actors of 2008
Music: Chuck Prophet, "Let's Do Something Wrong"
48:34-58:36 - New DVDs, Donations
58:37-1:12:17 - Top 5: Actresses of 2008
1:12:18-1:15:13 - Close/Next Show/Outtakes

NOTES/CORRECTIONS
- Movie City News' Top 10 Scoreboard

- "Why 'Doubt' and 'Frost/Nixon' work better as plays"

- We didn't see "I've Loved You So Long" because Adam has managed to misplace the DVD screener we were sent. Yes, he feels bad about it.

- Matty's Top 25 (and Bottom 10) Movies of 2008

- Our guest Steve Prokopy gets a shout-out in this edition of Roger Ebert's "Movie Answer Man."

Filmspotting Fix: Revolutionary Road / The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Jan. 2: Adam and Matty never did like that strange couple down the street on "Revolutionary Road"... they always just seemed a tad different: never borrowing a cup of sugar, always absent from the neighborhood barbecues. So the lads were hardly surprised to learn the Wheelers (Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio) were having some serious problems. Grab a cup of coffee and pull a chair up to the Filmspotting formica table and get all the dirt on director Sam Mendes' new film. Plus, director David Fincher describes the titular character in his latest film, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," as "an extraordinary man in very ordinary circumstances" -- and when a backwards-aging Brad Pitt crosses paths with two very ordinary film critics, it makes for one extraordinary podcast.

** Filmspotting is presented by Spout.com. Check out year-end lists like the best movies that played in theaters, the best movies that didn't, and the best music videos, all on blog.spout.com. **