Episode 33 - It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World

A cast of what seems like thousands are on a race for a buried fortune, at least they think it exists, but they don't know exactly where to look, but they know that a giant "W" marks the spot. Why not an X? Don't ask, it's a W which is right next to X in the alphabet. And the whole movie makes about as much sense as that comment!  It's a crazy, or dare we say, mad race to the finish. We give it a go and tell you what we think.

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Episode 32 - The Third Man

It's Vienna, 1949, Holly Martins steps off a train and into a mystery, full of intrigue and backstabbing. Just another day at the office for Mr. Martins? No way, he's a clueless American writer of pulp westerns. He's completely out of his depth and that's the fun of the movie. It unravels before our eyes in glorious black and white with the incomparable zither score by Anton Karas. Directed by Carol Reed, With an all star cast of Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles, Trevor Howard, and Valli, the movie is a true masterpiece of film-making. 

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Episode 31 - Beat The Devil

Released in 1953, this independent production didn't garner much in the way of accolades or revenue at the box office. In fact, it's been called a "lost classic". For one reason or another it's fallen into the public domain. You can watch it online via the Internet Archive. 

Described as a mix of film noir and comedy, the cast is solid, the director, well, it's John Huston and the script? Written in collaboration with Truman Capote. What could go wrong?

Is it really a "lost classic" or has it been forgotten for good reasons? 

Here's the IMDB page for "Beat The Devil"

Next week we're excited to review "The Third Man" because we know it is truly a classic movie!

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Episode 30 - The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre - Part 2

Dobbs continues his descent into madness, Curtin narrowly escapes with his life and Howard finds a tropical paradise in the middle of the Mexican dessert. Really, what? Did Howard look right into the camera in that scene and nod to us as the audience. Yes, he did! But that’s not all, there’s so much to talk about in this movie. Our review is nearly as long as the movie itself.

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Here’s the IMDB page for “The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre” 

Up next is “Beat The Devil” our final installment of the John Huston / Humphrey Bogart movie marathon.

Episode 29 - The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre - Part 1

Gold does strange things to a man’s soul as we find out in Warner Brothers / First National Picture’s adaptation of B Traven’s classic "The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre". Who is B Traven? Why can’t Dobbs see that he’s got gold fever? How much gold is enough gold? So many questions and so few answers in a truly great movie, one of Humphrey Bogart’s best and definitely one of John Huston’s best. And let's not forget great performances by Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett, and the unforgettable Alfonso Bedoya. But our favorite, in a role of a lifetime, has to be Walter Huston. It’s also one of the only (or the only) movie where a father and son both won an Oscar in the same year for the same movie. Bob and I like that part especially. It’s good to see a father and son achieve great success together.

This is the second movie in our John Huston & Humphrey Bogart movie marathon. 

Here's the IMDB page for "The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre" and here's the IMDB page for our next movie "Beat the Devil". But hold on! Next week we're back for Part 2 of our epic deep dive on one of our favorite movies.

Episode 28 - The Maltese Falcon

Roger Ebert gives it his highest rating, the American Film Institute voted it one of the best movies ever made and starring Humphrey Bogart who was voted the best actor of all time, The Maltese Falcon delivers the goods with incredible acting, directing, and cinematography. 

Bob and I delve into some of the questions left open at the end of the movie. I even throw out my personal theory on what really happened to The Maltese Falcon. 

Prepare  yourself for the adventure as we walk the streets, corridors and rooms of San Francisco, 1941, in search of The Maltese Falcon.

Here's a link to the IMDB page for The Maltese Falcon

Next up, movie #2 in our John Huston / Humphrey Bogart marathon: Treasure of the Sierra Madre

Episode 27 - To Sir, With Love

A #1 pop hit song kicks off this tale of inner city kids and their inexperienced but masterful teacher and how they all end up deeply affecting each others lives. A powerful portrayal by the consummate Sidney Poitier and a wonderful job of writing and directing by James Clavell bring combine to make a truly memorable movie. 

So travel back in time with us to the dock yards, back alleys and school rooms of London, 1967.

Next episode we kick off a three episode movie marathon of John Huston and Humphrey Bogart movies, starting with the Maltese Falcon, then Treasure of the Sierra Madre and ending with Beat The Devil. 

Here's a link to the IMDB page for To Sir, With Love and a link to the page for Maltese Falcon.

Episode 26 - White Christmas

“The sun is shining, the grass is green,
The orange and palm trees sway.
There's never been such a day
in Beverly Hills, L.A.
But it's December the twenty-fourth,
And I am longing to be up North”

Nope, you’re not going to hear this original first verse to the iconic and hugely successful “White Christmas” song in the movie or in any of the popular versions of the song released since the 1940’s. But it says a lot about the state of mind of Irving Berlin. He was missing his family in New York City and that feeling comes through in the rest of the song and in the movie “White Christmas” released by Paramount Pictures in 1954.

The movie was a big hit for the studio and helped launch the career of Rosemary Clooney. Of course, Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, and Vera Ellen were already stars in their own right, but Vera Ellen only appeared in one movie after this one. Bob and I talk about all of this and more in our inaugural Christmas episode.

So sit back, put another log on the fire, cozy up with a loved one and enjoy the sounds of “White Christmas”

Next episode we head to 1967 London for “To Sir, With Love”. 

Episode 25 - Zatoichi: The Tale Of Zatoichi

What do "the adventures of a blind, gambling masseur who also happens to be a master swordsman", the television show "Sons of Anarchy" and Star Wars all have in common? Tune in and find out as we connect some tenuous dots between a wide range of genres and time periods in our review of "Zatoichi: The Tale Of Zatoichi" the first of 26 movies and 100 television episodes produced between 1962 and 1989 that follow the life and exploits of Ichi, the wandering blind ronin or as Ichi says "yakuza". 

Next episode we had planned to watch "To Sir, With Love" but then realized that our podcast will come out the day before Christmas and so of course we have to watch a Christmas movie. Settle in, pour yourself something warm to drink and prepare for a "White Christmas".  Enjoy!

We'll circle back to the movie "To Sir, With Love" in four weeks time.

Episode 24 - 3:10 To Yuma (1957 vs. 2007)

Will Dan Evans get Ben Wade to the 3:10 to Yuma in time? Will Dan redeem himself in his son's eyes? What other uses of cutlery will Ben find along the way? All these questions and more are answered in "3:10 To Yuma".

Bob and I compare the original movie released in 1957 to the new movie released 50 years later in 2007. Can you say "turn the drama dial to 11" because that's what they did in the 2007 version and we think it works!

Next episode, we go international for some samurai swordsmanship with "The Tale of Zatoichi" summarized on IMDB as "The adventures of a blind, gambling masseur who also happens to be a master swordsman." Come on!?! How awesome does that sound? Pretty awesome. And you'd be right!  And in episode 26 we'll be watching "To Sir With Love" starring Sidney Poitier

Episode 23 - The Good Earth

"O-Lan, you are the earth."

Those are the closing words to MGM's 1937 film adaptation of Pearl S. Buck's "The Good Earth". Bob and I land squarely in the middle of our rating scale on this one (spoiler alert). We like Luise Rainer, who won an Academy Award for her role as O-Lan, the cinematography is great and there are some great scenes (how did they film the locus scene?!?). But it suffers from being too long and from some questionable directing and acting choices. Well, there you have it. We really like some parts, and we really question some other parts. 

Next time we are tackling a double-feature with "3:10 to Yuma", the original from 1957 and the remake from 2007. It will be a fun and full episode.

Episode 22 - The Innocents

Just in time for Halloween here in the United States, we pick a perfect movie to review if you like to be creeped out, shocked and generally made to feel like you won't be able to sleep tonight. Pull up the covers, snuggle close to a loved one and prepare to meet "The Innocents".

Here's a link to the IMDB page for "The Innocents". Next episode we review the epic "The Good Earth" from 1937. Something a little less chilling I predict. Enjoy!