The Shining (1980)

Time to take a look at a little film about a family going slowly insane together: The Shining from 1980, directed by Stanley Kubrick, based on the book by Stephen King. Hated and revered, analyzed by many who shouldn't, but nevertheless the work of a master.

Join us as we train the light on this controversial film to find out if it really shines all that brightly.

On this track we cover:

- Kubrick's visuals and narrative style
- The production and Kubrick's work methods
- The novel vs. the film
- Shelley Duvall's teeth
- The insane conspiracy theories

DOWNLOAD

Download the mp3 file here. Link.

Subscribe to the commentary podcast in iTunes. Link.

STATS

Participants: David Bjerre and Dennis Rosenfeld.
Day of recording: December 12th, 2013.
Version: US Bluray version.
Movie runtime: 2:23:46

SCREENSHOTS

The Torrance family. Close your mouth Shelley.

The exterior of the hotel, shot in England.

Jack and the scrapbook.

Danny and the mysterious ball.

John Alcott's trick shot.

The twins. Or are they?

Jack and Danny and Jack.

Heeeeeere's to over-acting!

Cut! Print! Let's move on, it's not gonna get better.

Ghosty ghosts of the not European kind.

ARTICLES

American Cinematographer, August 1980
- Interview by Herb Lightman
- Article by Garrett Brown

Kubrick on The Shining: An interview with Michel Ciment. Link.

Stephen King Explains Why He Still Hates Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. Link.

All work and no play. Link.

Lia Beldam reflects on her role as Room 237′s guest. Link.

Aide to Kubrick on Shining Scoffs at Room 237 Theories. Link.

LITERATURE

The Shining: BFI Film Classics, by Roger Luckhurst.
Stanley Kubrick: A Biography, by John Baxter

AUDIO/VIDEO

Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures (2001). Link.

Staircases to Nowhere: Making Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. Link.

Stanley Kubrick's Boxes (2008) (TV Movie). Link.

Blu-ray extras
- The Making of The Shining
- The Visions of Stanley Kubrick
- View from the Overlook: Crafting The Shining

The Shining: Audiobook, Read by Campbell Scott.

LINKS

IMDb. Link.

Wiki. Link.

The Last Man on Earth (1964)

Time to tackle an old.... classic?

This is the original adaptation of Richard Matheson's novel I Am Legend. starring Vincent Price, as the last man on earth, battling hordes of bloodthirsty vampires.

The movie is in public domain, and can be watched for free on YouTube.

On this track we cover:

- The film vs. the original novel
- Later adaptations
- What could have been - unproduced screenplays
- Zombie / vampire / outbreak movies
- The realities of surviving in a post-apocalyptic world

PS: David accidentally says the wrong running time. It's 1:26:44 (not 48).

DOWNLOAD

Download the mp3 file here. Link.

Subscribe to the commentary podcast in iTunes. Link.

STATS

Participants: David Bjerre and Dennis Rosenfeld.
Day of recording: September 19th, 2013.
Version: Bluray or NTSC DVD or online version.
Movie runtime: 1:26:44

SCREENSHOTS

Vincent Price is The Last American in Italy.

Good planning is essential. Even mass murder needs planning.

The stakes are really high in this film. The stakes... Hello?

Vincent Price burns the vampire bodies.

Garden party with Ben Cortman.

Different kind of garden party with Ben Cortman.

Researching the disease.

When the last man on earth meets the last woman...

Another not so subtle expression from Price.

And the final resting place of Robert Neville.

ADDITIONAL SCREENSHOTS

So erhm... If no one showed up for work, who threw the lab coats around?

Moving car in the background.

ARTICLES

Reflections of a Storyteller: A Conversation with Richard Matheson, by William P. Simmons. Link.

Ed Gorman Calling: We Talk to Richard Matheson. Link.

He Is Legend: Richard Matheson, by Paul Riordan. Link.

LITERATURE

I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson.

Censored and Unproduced: I Am Legend screenplay, by Richard Matheson.

Faster and furiouser: The revised and fattened fable of American International Pictures, by Mark Thomas McGee.

Rational fears: American Horror in The 1950s, by Mark Jancovich.

Richard Matheson on screen: A History of The Filmed Works, by Matthew R. Bradley.

The Hammer Vault: Treasures From the Archive of Hammer Films, by Marcus Hearn.

AUDIO/VIDEO

The movie. Link 1. Link 2.

I Am Legend - Makeup test by Steve Johnson FX. Link.

I Am Legend - Makeup designs by ADI. Link.

LINKS

I am Legend screenplay by Mark Protosevic. Link.

I am Legend screenplay by John Logan. Link.

I Am Legend Archive (Interviews). Link.

How Stuff Works - I Am Legend. Link.

Eat by Date. Link.

IMDb. Link.

Wiki. Link.

Mission: Impossible, "Recovery" (1968)

In this bonus episode we talk about the old Mission: Impossible TV show, while we watch one of the classic episodes, "Recovery" - the last episode from season 2

The episode was directed by Robert Totten, and written by William Read Woodfield & Allan Balter.

Please note that this is not a hardcore scene-specific track, just a bit of extra fun, so we can talk about some of the stuff we couldn't fit into the main track for Mission: Impossible (1996).

On this track we cover:

- The style and structure
- The creation of the original show
- Favorite moments from the show
- The slow decline of the series
- And much more

DOWNLOAD

Download the mp3 file here. Link.

Subscribe to the commentary podcast in iTunes. Link.

STATS

Participants: David Bjerre and Dennis Rosenfeld.
Day of recording: June 20th, 2013.
Version: NTSC DVD.
Movie runtime: 0:50:06.

SCREENSHOTS

Peter Graves as The Real Jim Phelps.

Mission briefing during "the apartment scene".

Guest star Bradford Dillman.

The robot hands!

Phelps posing as the downed pilot.

The shredder chute.

Dillman and his devious smile.

Greg Morris as Barney - who finally gets a cozy assignment.

Peter Lupus as Willy. What a trooper.

Martin Landau flashes a victorious smile.

LITERATURE

The Complete Mission: Impossible Dossier, Patrick J. White

AUDIO/VIDEO

Steven Hill in The Firm. Link.

LINKS

IMDb. Link.

Wiki. Link.

ADDITIONAL

You can find even more screenshots and interesting goodies in this The Mission Impossible Visual Companion blog.

Rollin (Martin Landau) smuggles a guy out of prison in a wheelchair.

Mission: Impossible (1996)

Tom Cruise stars as Ethan Hunt in Brian De Palma's 1996 big screen adaptation of Mission: Impossible, the classic TV show, created by Bruce Geller.

Our mission is: To investigate this fantastic action movie, with a critical eye, especially in terms of plot and connection to the original show.

On this track we cover:

- The logic of the plot
- The movie franchise vs. the series
- The origin of the series
- Tom Cruise the movie star
- And much more

Please note this track includes spoilers for all four Mission Impossible films, plus Stolen and The Untouchables.

DOWNLOAD

Download the mp3 file here. Link.

Subscribe to the commentary podcast in iTunes. Link.

STATS

Participants: David Bjerre and Dennis Rosenfeld.
Day of recording: June 20th, 2013.
Version: Bluray or NTSC DVD.
Movie runtime: 1:50:12.

SCREENSHOTS

Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt.

Jim Phelps explains the bad plan to the troops.

Rob Bottin makeup on Tom Cruise. That guy behind him fought aliens!

Prague by night.

Explain this paradox thing to me again.

When we're done here, you guys are gonna have sex, right?

The Kubrick room, by production designer Norman Reynold.

Cruise. Movie star.

A split diopter shot.

The fantastic final explosion.

Jim clearly shoots himself.

To the left: A cameo from visual effect supervisor John Knoll.

ARTICLES

American Cinematographer, June 2000, article by Eric Rudolph.
Cinefex No. 81, April 2000, article by Kevin H. Martin.
Premiere, Issue #109, June 1996, article by Tom Friend.

LITERATURE

The Complete Mission: Impossible Dossier, Patrick J. White
Mission: Impossible - A Novel, by Peter Barsocchini

AUDIO/VIDEO

Bluray and DVD extras.

The Mythbusters episodes mentioned are:
- Crimes and Myth-Demeanors (Airduct stunt)
- Mission Impossible Mask
- Bouncing Bullet (Riding an explosion)

CNBC Show with a Cast Reunion of "Mission Impossible". Link.

LINKS

IMDb. Link.

Wiki. Link.

CORRECTIONS

Alex North wrote the discarded score for 2001, not Lalo Schifrin.

David says the train background plates were shot at high speed. He means low speed, so that they appear to go fast.

ADDITIONAL

You can find even more screenshots and interesting goodies in this The Mission Impossible Visual Companion blog.

Lara Croft Tomb Raider (2001)

Angelina Jolie IS Lara Croft, but is Simon West's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) the ultimate adaptation of the classic computer game? Join us and find out, as we pull apart this Hollywood blockbuster.

On this track we cover:

- The problems with plot and writing
- Simon West's direction
- Angelina Jolie's.... talents.
- Comparisons to Indiana Jones and other adventure films
- The Illuminati

DOWNLOAD

Download the mp3 file here. Link.

Subscribe to the commentary podcast in iTunes. Link.

STATS

Participants: David Bjerre and Dennis Rosenfeld.
Day of recording: April 4th, 2013.
Version: Bluray or NTSC DVD.
Movie runtime: 1:40:32.

SCREENSHOTS

Angeline Jolie tries to stop Simon West before it's too late.

THIS is flirting, Simon.

The actors try to fix the script in a last minute rewrite.

The triangle of unpossible plotting is offered up to the gods.

Space view from Neptune. You can see the plot holes from here.

Bad guy takes a nap. It's not like the fate of the world is on the line... Oh, wait.

No one rides the big pole as well as Angelina.

The boys are out in the cold.

Lara raises the triangle triumphantly. No, we don't know why either.

Father and daughter meet face to face. And then stop speaking for 7 years.

An illustration of cinematographer Peter Menzies Jr.'s strobe technique.

ARTICLES

Cinefex No. 87, October 2001, article by Joe Fordham
American Cinematographer, June 2001, article by Jay Holben
Premiere, June 2001, Tomb With a View, article by Christine Spines

LITERATURE

They Cast No Shadows, by Brian Desborough.

AUDIO/VIDEO

Bluray extras.
The Clangers: The Intruder (Episode 1x05, 28th December 1969). Link.

LINKS

IMDb. Link.
Wiki. Link.