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This is the Movie Podcast Weekly episode from our MPN MeetUp 2017! Episode 261 was recorded on October 13, 2017, outside the MegaPlex Theatre at The District in South Jordan, Utah. Jason was joined by MPW friends and listeners Juan from Texas, Dark Mark from California, Vance from Idaho and film critic Cody Clark from Movie Stream Cast. We bring you Mini Reviews, of course, and Feature Reviews of The Foreigner (2017) and The Mountain Between Us (2017).
If you’re new to our show… Movie Podcast Weekly typically features four hosts — Jason, Andy, Karl and Geek Cast Ry — along with frequent guests. We give you our verdicts on at least one new movie release from the current year that’s currently playing in theaters, as well as several mini reviews of whatever we’ve been watching lately. New episodes release every single week!
SHOW NOTES:
I. Introduction
— MPN MeetUp 2017
[ 0:02:32 ] II. Mini Reviews
Vance: Vance’s feelings on Horror, Rope, Ken Burns’ The Vietnam War, A Ghost Story
Dark Mark: Child’s Play series, werewolf movies
Juan: The Boys in the Trees, Why Juan Doesn’t Like Ryan
III. New in Theaters This Past Weekend [ Friday, October 13, 2017]:
Happy Death Day
The Foreigner
Marshall
The Mountain Between Us
The Babysitter
Goodbye Christopher Robin
Professor Marston & the Wonder Women
American Satan
Breathe
Overdrive
Blood Money
The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)
Human Flow
Tom of Finland
78/52: Hitchcock’s Shower Scene
Te Ata
FEATURE REVIEWS HAVE TIME STAMPS:
[ 0:27:36 ] IV. Feature Review: THE FOREIGNER (2017)
Jason = 6.5 ( Rental / Redbox )
Juan from Texas = 6 ( Rental )
Dark Mark From California = 7 ( Rental )
[ 0:49:03 ] V. Feature Review: THE MOUNTAIN BETWEEN US (2017) [ SPOILERS ] with Cody Clark
Jason = 3 ( Avoid )
Cody Clark = 3.5 ( Avoid )
Vance From Idaho = 3.5 ( Avoid )
VI. Wrap-Up / Plugs / Ending
COMING UP ON MPW NEXT WEEK:
Episode 262 where we’ll be reviewing “The Snowman” and “Geostorm.” Join us!
LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE:
Hear more live podcasting from the MPN Meetup 2017: HMP reviews “Happy Death Day” (2017)
Hear Cody Clark on Movie Stream Cast
Contact MPW:
E-mail us: MoviePodcastWeekly@gmail.com.
Leave us a voicemail: (801) 382-8789.
Follow MPW on Twitter: @MovieCastWeekly
Leave a comment in the show notes for this episode.
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Blog: Geek Cast Live
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Twitter: @GeekCastRy
Jason recommends supporting: Operation Underground Railroad
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Josh’s links:
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Twitter: @IcarusArts
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Hear Josh on The SciFi Podcast
Hear Josh on Horror Movie Podcast
If you’re a Horror fan, listen to Jason and Josh on HORROR MOVIE PODCAST
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Thanks for listening, and join us again next week for Movie Podcast Weekly.
What happened to the Ryan’s fake movie titles game? Is it coming back ? (I like it).
Ack, where is 260?? I’m dying to hear Karl’s take on Blade Runner.
I’m still hoping for Episodes 252 through 255. (Although I do know for a fact that at least Part 2 of this episode is dynamite!)
Poor Jason. Somebody needs to win the lottery or something, so that we can hire Jay a full-time editorial assistant.
I told him I would help with editing. But I think he knows that I might edit out his cinema hating… leaving each episode with very little J remaining. 😀
I like the idea of having some lost episodes, some that won’t come to light until some later, unknown date (if at all). I think it adds a little magic.
But yes, I definitely want to hear a review for Blade Runner. And Logan Lucky.
I’d greatly recommend Rope to any listener of MPW. It’s the sort of movie that has such a simple plot that you can’t spoil the movie unless you reveal the ultimate outcome. The whole idea of a movie beginning with a murder and stashing the body in the apartment that the killers plan on having an immediate party in, hoping to see if they can get away with it is brilliant. There’s always that tension of whether or not someone will stumble onto the body. With the limited cuts and one location, it’s a fantastic movie especially if you’re a fan of plays.
I love how Hitchcock manages to inject suspense and tension into seemingly mundane, everyday moments. There are a number of scenes like that in _Rope_.
Good point about plays. This would make an excellent stage play. It is easy for me to switch my ‘movie brain’ to ‘stage-play brain’ when watching films, especially with the oldies. It is a bit more difficult when the film is more recent. I had a tough time accepting the staginess of a movie like _Fences_ (2016) for example.
Since Rope was originally a 1929 play, there’s been several different versions of the stage play over the years. In fact, if you look on Youtube, you can find a 2006 play on it where the story has been upgraded into being set in the 80’s.
That makes sense that it was originally a play. I guess I just want my local theater to get going on it. This would be a great one around Halloween season.
And man! I wish I could figure out how to add italics in this chat room. My underscore ( _ ) trick works elsewhere…
What’s the secret Cody?
Just regular old Level 1 HTML. Use i and /i, each inside , of course for italics. Use b and /b, again inside (each tag gets its own ), for bold.
Ha, ha. What you’re not seeing there is a (right facing arrow bracket). The arrow brackets are the signal to the blog software to comment out (hide) whatever is between them, as long as ther are no spaces. So if you just put a with nothing in between (which is what I tried to do above), then you hide the brackets and get a blank space.
Dammit, now I’m getting annoyed. Apparently spaces don’t matter. Anything that is between a (left facing arrow bracket) and a (right facing arrow bracket) gets commented out. At any rate that’s how it’s done. I have noticed that this blogging software doesn’t always handle bold formatting correctly. You can also try strong and /strong for bold.
Okay, let me do some testing. Forgive me everyone, but once I get this down my discussion board street-cred is going to skyrocket:
Do you watch Jaws around the Fourth of July or Halloween?
Ah, sweet success. Thanks Cody. Your blog posting HTML skills are exceeded only by your ability to competently review Kate Winslet sexual awakening-themed movies.
Always happy to help. 🙂
I actually don’t watch Jaws all that much. Which is kinda surprising, given that Steven Spielberg is possibly my favorite filmmaker. It’s a great movie, just not one that I go back to again and again.
hahah!
I was lolling at Vance there. Not Cody.
I believe the last few times I’ve watched Jaws was Fourth of July weekend. I’m not adverse to watching it in October, but it’s such a perfect movie to watch in the summer whereas there’s a huge selection to choose from for October.
Agreed Sal. That is what I decided. I will keep Jaws in my Fourth of July lineup.
And yes…I am still getting the hang of italicizing in my posts…Sigh…
Fun mini-reviews section on this episode. I also thought of Murder by Numbers and Funny Games when Jay was talking about a remake of Rope. Neither one sounds like a perfect match for the plot and setting of Rope, but Murder by Numbers in particular is quite close. In addition to Sandra Bullock (and Ben Chaplin as her detective partner), that one has Ryan Gosling and Michael Pitt as the “watch us get away with this” killers. Pitt plays essentially the same role in Funny Games, only as the ringleader instead of the sidekick, which is by far the darker and more sardonic of the two. Neither film is completely satisfying, though Murder by Numbers is easily the more Hollywood conventional of the two. Funny Games is about the killers and their victims only (no law enforcement is involved), but it does get a fat boost from having Naomi Watts and Tim Roth as the beleaguered homeowners under the thumb of the murderous duo.
I saw Murder by Numbers about a year before its theatrical release, back when I (briefly) lived in Los Angeles. It’s one of only three movies I’ve ever seen at a research screening. Interestingly, two of those three are Sandra Bullock movies, Murder by Numbers and While You Were Sleeping.
Vance, you’re in for a treat with The Thing. That’s probably my all-time favorite straight-up horror film. It’s probably also my all-time favorite Kurt Russell performance. The 2011 The Thing is decent (I reviewed it for the Daily Herald back in the day), but the 1982 version is awesome. If you’re looking for something that keeps the blood and guts mostly to a minimum, but is spooky and sinister and disturbing as all get out, then check out last year’s The Witch. I don’t live with anyone who would choose to watch it with me (like, ever, under any circumstances), or I might make that a Halloween tradition.
Speaking of which, the movie that I do watch with my eldest daughter each year for Halloween is Ladyhawke. It’s my personal favorite werewolf movie, although I suppose you could also call it a werehawk movie. Some of the special effects work is a little dated, and some (though certainly not all, despite the reputation that generally precedes the movie) of the synth/guitar-driven soundtrack is definitely a lot dated, but the performances (especially from Matthew Broderick, Leo McKern, Michelle Pfeiffer, Rutger Hauer, and John Wood) hold up, there are a couple of fun sword/crossbow/other medieval weapon fights, the location filming is gorgeous (and generally highly effective), and the romance is tender and satisfying.
Cody, is there something Halloweenish to Ladyhawke?
Maybe not in the modern sense of trick-or-treating and costume parties. (Though there are some pretty sweet costumes in the movie.) There are a handful of pretty atmospheric nighttime scenes, on the other hand, that have a strongly Halloweenish vibe in the sense of mystical terrors and black magic.
The overarching story of ensorcelled medieval lovers kept apart by a dark curse says Halloween to me, of course, but it’s a little deeper than that. There’s a great scene where Leo McKern essentially tells Matthew Broderick a spooky campfire story (complete with campfire), and Matthew Broderick’s first encounter with the werewolf is also excellent. Late in the film, there’s a gorgeous nighttime shot of the gates of a fortified city that almost makes it look like the main characters are entering the maw of jack-o-lantern. There’s also a pretty good roster of villains: John Wood as a corrupt medieval bishop makes the strongest impression, but his top henchman (Ken Hutchison) and the wolf trapper he eventually brings in (Alfred Molina) are both good, too.
If you’ve never seen the movie, or haven’t seen it since the 80s, then I think October is a great time to discover or revisit it.
Awesome! I’ll put it on my werewolf watchlist and hit it up next time there’s a full moon.
Can’t wait to hear what you think, Dark Mark! \iLadyHawkei\ was always one of my faves!
don’t laugh at me if this doesn’t work.
Resisting the urge to laugh….
I’m persistent. I’ll figure it out.
I watched The Thing last night for the first time and really enjoyed it. It is definitely my kind of horror, which usually needs to include a hero I can root for. Kurt Russell was killing it, with a beard that would make Teen Wolf jealous.
Regarding The Witch: I don’t know man, any movie that makes Ryan want to immediately go out and pray somewhere and causes Jay to issue dire warnings about the evilness of it is probably not for my innocent, doe-eyed sensibilities.
YES! I’m so happy you watched and liked The Thing (1982)! I haven’t watched it yet this October. I’ve been waiting for a cold day but it’s been pretty warm in LA lately.
Funny that Funny Games was brought up in comparison to Rope — I watched a movie a couple weeks ago that you guys watched during the MPN meetup and it reminded me strongly of Funny Games. Love both those movies. Single setting films are a huge draw for me, so Rope has been on my list for a long time but I’ve got so caught up with new releases lately that it’s been pushed down. Nice to hear you guys talking about it.
Also, the review for The Mountain Between Us was like the polar opposite of the CHIPS review. Both reviews are MPW highlights for sure
It’s so weird listening to myself. Do I really sound like that in real life? :/
By the way, Jay, the “notify me of follow-up comments by email doesn’t work. I never get notifications anymore and I’m not sure why. It really helps to keep up with what everyone’s posting, so if possible, it would be great to have those notifications back.
You mean well-spoken with a sexy accent? Yep, that’s how you sound IRL.
yup. 🙂
What do Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Louis CK, Charlie Kaufman have in common? They all worked together on the short-lived The Dana Carvey Show, one of the colossal failures in TV history. Hulu has a great doc about that, called Too Funny to Fail. And now I need to watch that actual series (also on Hulu).
Hi All,
Be sure to read this real quick:
https://moviepodcastweekly.com/dont-miss-mpws-mini-review-mania-special-features-episode/
Thanks!
J