Tag Archives: hitchcock

MPW Blog: Alfred Hitchcock on the Difference Between Surprise and Suspense – by Jason Pyles

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Hitchcock Blog

Prelude
Welcome to the resurrection of the Movie Podcast Weekly blog articles. This will probably only last for one or two articles, so enjoy it.

The Disappearance of Suspense
Lately I’ve been lamenting the absence of genuine suspense in our present-day cinema, especially in the Horror genre. I’m worried that it’s getting to be a lost art, or at least, a lost portion from the cinematic form.

The cynical side of me suspects that the recent generations of filmmakers have stopped spending time learning from “the great ones,” the pioneering filmmakers of the 20th century. I’m worried that black and white film has scared them away.

But I have a more likely theory: I believe we’ve lost genuine suspense with the advent of computer-generated imagery (CGI). Because we’re now able to conjure any being or environs out of thin air, I think the erroneous but pervasive belief must be that we don’t need to spend time “building up” to something; we can just make it happen right now.

Hence, the death of suspense. Continue reading →

Movie Podcast Weekly Ep. 050: Riddick (2013) and Sharknado (2013) and Prince Avalanche (2013) and The Grandmaster (2013) and Four New Top 10 Lists

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Congratulations to us! We’ve hit EPISODE 050, and we’re celebrating the one-year anniversary of our launch (a couple of weeks early) with this 3 hour and 22-minute show! We hope you’ll permit us a little navel-gazing and come along with us and celebrate with some reminiscing and tangents and weirdness. But we get down to business, too:

EPISODE 050 gives you four feature reviews: Riddick (2013), Sharknado (2013), Prince Avalanche (2013) and The Grandmaster (2013). And then your four favorite movie podcast hosts have four new Top 10 film lists for you! Andy brings you his Top 10 current working actresses under the age of 50 (in his humble opinion), and Karl Huddelston delivers his Top 10 movie soundtracks / scores and why they make the film better, and Joshua Ligairi gives us his Top 10 Best working directors under 50 years old, and Jason Pyles declares his Top 10 Most Influential Films on the Cinema Itself (of the last 50 years)!

This episode is dedicated to Michal and Dorota Rutka, Mr. Scott Teal and all our listeners… Thank you!

Movie Podcast Weekly is a show that releases every Monday, giving you reviews of at least one new movie that’s currently in theaters. Download this episode and subscribe! Continue reading →

Movie Podcast Weekly Ep. 016: Gangster Squad (2013) and Zero Dark Thirty (2013)

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For Episode 016, we have another double-feature review for you of “Gangster Squad” and “Zero Dark Thirty,” with special guest screenwriter / producer WILLIAM ROWAN JR. During this show, we’ll also reflect on the nominees for the upcoming, 85th Academy Awards ceremony, as well as our usual Mini Reviews.

SHOW NOTES:
I. Intro
II. Our Thoughts and Predictions on the 85th Academy Award Nominees Continue reading →

85th Academy Award Nominees Announced

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Early this morning the nominees for the 85th Academy Awards were announced, so we have provided that list for our listeners here. Millions of men (and a lot of women) anxiously await the Super Bowl each year, but the Academy Awards ceremony is Jason’s Super Bowl.

How MOVIE PODCAST WEEKLY Will Cover the Oscars:
On Sunday, February 24, 2013 — when the Oscars ceremony airs live nationwide — your hosts of Movie Podcast Weekly will be watching along with everyone else. And since Sunday night is our usual recording night, we’ll record Episode 022 immediately after the telecast. We’ll review that week’s movie, which at this point, appears to be between “Snitch” and “Dark Skies”… And then we’ll recap and reflect on the 85th Oscars ceremony itself and the big winners (and losers). So, our Oscar Episode 022 will release on Monday, February 25, 2013. Our co-host Josh Ligairi will be with us for that show, as well as special guest Dave “Dr. Shock” Becker.

And without further delay, here are the nominees for the 85th Academy Awards: Continue reading →