FS #293: Shutter Island / Trouble in Paradise / Top 5 Performances That Should've Won Oscars

Feb 26: What do Michele Williams, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ben Kingsley, Max Von Sydow, Patricia Clarkson and Jackie Earle Haley have in common? If you answered that none of those illustrious stars have ever stepped foot in Matty’s living room, you are correct. But they all also have Academy Award nominations to their credit and currently find themselves in the middle of fellow Oscar award winner (for "Kundun," right??) Martin Scorcese’s latest thriller, "Shutter Island." The Filmspotting duo finds itself split on the overall effectiveness of the Dennis Lehane adaptation, with "I-haven’t-met-a-great-director-whose-work-I-couldn’t-apologize-for" Adam finding enough to chew on long after the film had ended, while Matty seems to have spent the better part of the film trying to convince himself he wasn’t watching a Peter Jackson movie. But both the lads agree that the second film in their Ernst Lubitsch marathon, 1932’s "Trouble in Paradise," succeeds on all rollicking fronts. They close out the show with another Oscar-laden segment by handing out their choices for the Top 5 Performances That Should've Won Oscars... But Didn’t. Fittingly, Jack Palance’s ghost shows up in time to give all five slots to Marisa Tomei.

Also on the show: Music by The Right Now and Massacre Theatre -- presented by Pixar Talk. This week's winner will get the Pixar DVD of their choice.


Filmspotting #293
:13-16:41 - Review: "Shutter Island"
Music: The Right Now, "Ain't Going Back"
17:40-22:53 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: L. Nash)
22:54-26:46 - Notes, Polls
26:47-37:40 - Lubitsch #2: "Trouble in Paradise"
Music: The Right Now, "Before I Know Your Name"
38:36-48:00 - New DVDs / Donations
48:01-1:09:15 - Top 5: Performances That Should've Won Oscar
1:09:16-1:12:12 - Close / Next Show / Outtakes

NOTES / CORRECTIONS

- Register for our Billy Wilder class at the University of Chicago's Graham School

- Get more info about TCM's 31 Days of Oscar.

- Please excuse any discrepancy in the Oscar years we mention and actual years the awards were handed out. Some sources go by the year the movie was released, others by when the ceremony was held.

- "The Haunting" is actually a 1963 release, not the '50s.

- Francis Ford Coppola did release "The Outsiders" before "Rumblefish," both 1983 releases.

- Jeff Goldsmith's Creative Screenwriting podcast can be accessed through iTunes here.

- Follow more notes and corrections at http://twitter.com/filmspotting.

FS #261: Away We Go / Drag Me To Hell / Mean Streets / Top 5 Performances by TV Stars

June 12: As everyone knows, Adam and Matty got their start in television on the early '80s sitcom "Mixed Reviews" about two odd couple film critics forced to live in the same apartment. Though the show was short-lived, people still talk about the famous two-part episode "Private Parts, Corporal Danger" in which Adam saves an unsuspecting Matty from the advances of the lascivious nextdoor neighbor (Gordon Jump in an Emmy-winning turn). So the lads were thrilled to discuss this week's "Away We Go," starring fellow television alumni Maya Rudolph and John Krasinksi, and even more excited to list their Top 5 Film Performances by TV Stars. The boys also made time to sneak in the eighth film in their New Hollywood Marathon, "Mean Streets." Listen closely and you can actually hear the slobber on the microphone as Martin Scorsese's first real feature reduces Adam to a blubbering mess: "Remember the scene where Marty follows Harvey Keitel into the bar in slow-mo? That was awesome."

Plus, the debut (and finale?) of Adam's Articulate Analysis examines Sam Raimi's "Drag Me To Hell," and the return of Matty's Movie Minute.

Also on the show: Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre -- presented by In Review Online -- and music by The Airborne Toxic Event.


Filmspotting #261
:25-14:03 - Review: "Away We Go"
14:04-18:00 - AAA: "Drag Me To Hell"
Music: Airborne Toxic Event, "Wishing Well"
19:08-24:25 - Voicemail, Polls
24:26-36:15 - Feedback: Up, Girlfriend Experience, Brothers Bloom
Music: Airborne Toxic Event, "Something Around Midnight"
37:27-41:46 - Mass. Theatre (Winner: W. Wilenz)
41:47-54:20 - New Hollywood #8: "Mean Streets"
Music: Airborne Toxic Event, "Gasoline"
54:59-59:30 - New DVDs/Matty's Movie Minute
59:31-1:04:55 - Notes/Donations
1:04:56-1:19:23 - Top 5: TV Star Performances
1:19:24-1:22:21 - Close/Next Show/Outtake

NOTES
- Wow, HUGE mistake right off the top. Sam Mendes also made "Jarhead." It's a pretty forgettable movie, but still...

- Bill Murray was Herman in "Rushmore," not Max.

- Check out Jeff Goldsmith's Creative Screenwriting Podcast. It can be accessed through iTunes here.

- Link to "Enlighten Up" directed by Kate Churchill

- Those additional reviews on the site Matty promoted... I guess they're coming later.

- Andrew Sarris did write for the The New York Observer.

- Repertory Series at the Brattle - American Independents: The Dawn of New Hollywood

- Matty's Minny Meetup details can be found here.

- Adam's Montreal meetup details can be found here.

- Robin Williams was nominated for an Academy Award for "Good Morning Vietnam."

- Leo DiCaprio a TV "star"? Really? I'm not sure I'm buying Matty's mention there.

- Contest for "Food, Inc." passes

Follow more notes and corrections at http://twitter.com/filmspotting.

FS #205: Shine a Light / Smart People / Bad Education / Top 5 Concert Scenes

April 11: Adam and Matty are in Florida on vacation/watching movies at the Sarasota Film Festival and can't pry themselves away to say anything creative here. We hope you enjoy reviews of Martin Scorsese's new Rolling Stones concert film "Shine a Light," in which Buddy Guy puts Mick and Keith to shame, and "Smart People" with Dennis Quaid, Ellen Page and Thomas Haden Church.

Plus, tying in with "Shine a Light," we count down our all-time Top 5 Concert Scenes in cinema.

Also on the show: Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre and our final Pedro Almodóvar Marathon entry, "Bad Education."

Music by National Beekeeper's Society.

Filmspotting is presented by SpoutBlog and the FilmCouch podcast. Find out why The New York Times says, "SpoutBlog's got it all," at blog.spout.com.

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CONTEST
Spout.com invites Filmspotting listeners to recast "The Princess Bride" for a shot at great prizes at recast.spout.com. One winner will receive Walk the Line Extended Cut, a new 2-Disc Special Edition that includes 17 minutes of bonus footage, extended musical sequences, director commentary, featurettes and more.



Filmspotting #205
:23-12:49 - Review: "Shine a Light"
12:50-18:13 - Review: "Smart People"
Music: Nat'l Beekeeper's Society, "Funeral Procession"
18:50-23:08 - Voicemails, Notes, Matty's Movie Minute
23:09-35:03 - Feedback (Bookends, Heist Movies)
Music: Nat'l Beekeeper's Society, "Swing Dream Requiem"
35:46-39:04 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: Jeff Jones)
37:48-48:17 - Almodóvar #5: "Bad Education" / Poll Question
Music: Nat'l Beekeeper's Society, "Santa Rosa"
51:37-56:14 - New DVDs, Contests, Donations
56:15-1:07:21 - Top 5: Concert Scenes
1:07:22-1:10:35 - Close/Next Show/Outtakes

NOTES/CORRECTIONS
- We never got a chance to single out the amazing roster of camera operators Scorsese employs on "Shine a Light," including Robert Richardson and Emmanuel Lubezki.

- Not sure "Flawless" director Michael Radford can really be considered "Hollywood," but oh well...

- The bottom line on "Heat" is that Matty just really doesn't remember anything about it and does look forward to seeing it again.

- We failed to share last week's poll results and will get to that on next week's show.