FS #288: The White Ribbon / The Book of Eli / 2009 Top 5 Blowout

Jan. 22: File under the 'When the cat's away' department. This week Adam is out-of-town kicking off his mandatory two year world-wide Filmspotting mission... or attending Robert Redford's annual Parker Posey film festival in Wyoming. Something like that. Either way, Matty is left behind to throw the show together himself. So, for an opening, instead of a single review, DJ Matty B mixed together reviews of two new movies -- "The White Ribbon" and "The Book of Eli" -- and looped in some killer Rihanna and Herzog vocals to craft an up-tempo house dance track... which is followed by ten minutes of dead air and intermittent invective as Matty didn't realize he had not paused the recording while watching the end of the Lakers-Cavs game. Filmspotting would like to make preemptive apologies to the family of Pau Gasol, who we are sure is a wonderful person who in no way entertains illicit relations with other members of his family or other species. In place of some great Listener Feedback, Matty offers up a selection of some of his favorite YouTube clips, which would work great if there were any type of video component to the show. And, proving once again that all cycles are cyclical, Matty complements the show's 2009 Top 5 Blowout with a copy of his recitation of "The Miller's Tale" in perfect Middle English, which I think we can all agree is the oddest audition tape "The McLaughlin Group" has ever received.

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


Filmspotting #288
:13-11:14 - Review: "The White Ribbon"
11:15-21:24 - Review: "The Book of Eli"
Music: Animal Collective, "Doggy"
22:11-26:52 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: S. Aparicio)
26:53-33:13 - Voicemail, Polls, Notes
33:14-43:09 - Listener Feedback
Music: Animal Collective, "Also Frightened"
43:57-52:37 - New DVDs / Donations
52:38-1:13:19 - 2009 Top 5 Blowout
1:13:20-1:16:09 - Close / Next Show / Outtake

NOTES

- If your version of this podcast doesn't have the same audio quality as normal, that's because we were adjusting some settings. Hopefully everything is back to normal, but earlier downloaded versions of this show may sound a little less crisp.

- Filmspotting's Top 25 Films of 2009

- Learn more about "William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe", which is playing now at the Gene Siskel Film Center.

- Get a chance to win "The Boys are Back" on DVD.

- Sundance/Filmspotting Meetup details.

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

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

FS #202: Funny Games / Paranoid Park / Live Flesh / Top 5 Fourth Wall Movies

March 21: This week Adam outfits Matty in requisite black sweater and beret and forces him to enjoy an arthouse double feature. Will Matty reject Michael Haneke's ultra-violent "Funny Games" and Gus Van Sant's languid "Paranoid Park," or revel in both? Plus, the boys dabble in Verfremdungseffekt for a countdown of their Top 5 Movies That Break the Fourth Wall.

Also on the show: Listener Feedback, Massacre Theatre and the Pedro Almodóvar Marathon continues with a pregnant Penelope Cruz and a wheelchair bound Javier Bardem in 1997's "Live Flesh."

Music by The Nadas from their new album "The Ghosts Inside These Halls" courtesy of Authentic Records.

Filmspotting is presented by Spout, a gathering place for people who love movies. Spout.com presents BUTTERKNIFE, a new generation detective series made by a new generation of filmmakers. Up now at butterknife.spout.com!

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...And by TLAVideo.com. Buy DVDs online at the Filmspotting store!



Filmspotting #202
:35-12:33 - Review: "Funny Games"
12:34-20:08 - Review: "Paranoid Park"
Music: The Nadas, "Loser"
21:09-25:01 - Anthony Minghella, Notes, Polls
25:02-34:53 - Listener Feedback ('60s Movies)
Music: The Nadas, "Blue Lights"
36:11-39:36 - Massacre Theatre (Winner: Josh Jenkins)
39:38-46:05 - Almodóvar #2: "Live Flesh"
Music: The Nadas, "Goodnight Girl"
46:56-50:04 - New DVDs, Donations
52:37-1:02:54 - Top 5: Fourth Wall Movies
1:02:55-1:05:50 - Close/Next Show/Outtakes

NOTES/CORRECTIONS
- Lest you think my No Country-ish reading of "Funny Games" is completely nuts, check out this video interview I found with Michael Haneke discussing his original "Funny Games" -- note particularly the last 45 seconds or so. "All the rules that exist to keep society functioning are nothing to them. And faced with characters like that, you don’t stand a chance. I think that’s what is so shocking." Indeed, Mr. Haneke. Indeed.

- Check out Frederick Wiseman docs on DVD from Zipporah Films.

- Alas, no "Matty's Movie Minute" this week as Matty just couldn't squeeze in another film.

- During the '60s movies feedback it was suggested that "Shampoo" was a Warren Beatty movie. Of course, Hal Ashby directed it; however, Beatty wrote it and it has his fingerprints all over it. I still say it's a bit overrated. It was also suggested that "Shampoo" was Beatty's first movie; it wasn't.

- You can find a decent plot summary for "Live Flesh" here.