Movie

Mank, Dark Matter, Joe Robinet, Patreon Topics – Off the Clock

This month’s Patron edition of “Off the Clock” isn’t as much about the TV and movies we’ve been watching as it is about what we’ve been reading and watching on YouTube.

A.Ron’s discussion of Mank tells the story of the writing of Citizen Kane. Jim follows up with another Blake Crouch novel, Dark Matter. Then A.Ron talks about his survivalist YouTube obsession, Joe Robinet. And we close it out with a discussion of the shows we wanted to talk more about this year and those we’re glad we didn’t bother with.

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Heat (1995) – 25th Anniversary Re-Release

Today is the 25th anniversary of an absolute classic crime drama, Heat. If we hadn’t already reviewed it we probably would take the opportunity to do so right now. However, thanks to the generosity of one of our most loyal listeners, Freddy C, you can hear what we thought of it circa Feb. 2018. Thanks again for the commission, Freddy, and everyone else, enjoy the re-release of Heat.

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Lethal Weapon (1987)

The second movie in our Christmas 2020 lineup isn’t traditionally considered a Christmas movie but once you hear our arguments for why it most certainly is, we think you’ll agree. Join us for the podcast to hear our thoughts on the creation of modern buddy cop tropes, the bizarre music choices, (can a saxophone ever be used non-sexually)  and party nog at your daughter’s funeral.

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The Holiday (2006)

Welcome to the first Christmas movie of the 2020 holiday season, The Holiday! It features some major starpower, the likes of Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Cameron Diaz, and Jack Black. Yes, it’s a romantic comedy but you knew we had to do one eventually. There are just SO MANY rom-com Christmas movies out there and we can’t cover JUST the badass classics like Die Hard and Rocky IV! And if there was ever a season for variety, this is the one. COVID has been hard on all of us, so join us for this mostly-wholesome, very sappy, but also highly-enjoyable holiday treat.

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Misery (1990) – 30th Anniversary

Over the years there have been many film adaptations of Stephen King’s work. Today we’re covering one of the finest. Starring Kathy Bates and James Caan, Misery is the story of fandom gone wrong. Or maybe it’s an allegory for over-zealous editors. Or it could be an author’s struggle with drug addiction and the backlash from fans when their writing ventures beyond a specific genre. Join us on the podcast as we debate this question and discuss what makes Misery so great.

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Avengers: Infinity War / Endgame, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Recursion

This week’s Off the Clock covers A.Ron’s rewatch of Avengers: Infinity War, as well as Netflix’s “The Trial of the Chicago 7” and Blake Crouch’s sci-fi book “Recursion.”

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Labyrinth (1986)

What comes to mind when you think of the movie “Labyrinth”? If you were a young girl coming of age in the mid 80s, you probably remember the raw emo sexuality of David Bowie awakening something within you or the hero’s journey told from the female perspective. If you’re Jim you remember a ton of early internet memes centered on David Bowie’s bulge that eventually lead you to watching this bizarrely creative Jim Henson masterpiece. Either way, there’s something for everyone to love in this movie, and hopefully in the podcast we produced for Kevin and Courtney’s commission.

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Casino (1995)

This might be the last time they let street guys like us handle any podcasts this valuable. We’ve had a good run of Scorsese films this year (Goodfellas, The Irishman, The Wolf of Wall Street) but there’s only so much gas is in the Scorsese tank. We canceled our Raging Bull 40th anniversary podcast because we just couldn’t fit it in. Jim’s pumping the breaks on reviewing any more gangster films in the near future. Are we running out of steam? Getting sloppy? I sure hope not because that’s when you make mistakes. That’s when you get whacked.

Join us for a little over an hour of discussion of Scorsese’s 1995 classic Las Vegas gangster film, Casino.

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The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

Looks like The Lord of the Rings is back on the menu, boys! It’s another LotR mega-pod and this time you have epic mouthful to thank. This time we’re covering the rough middle ground of the epic saga, The Two Towers. While it is our least favorite of the LotR movies, that’s not to say that it’s bad. Actually, it’s very good. We take this opportunity to run down our favorite moments, thoughts on the storytelling, differences between the extended and theatrical versions as well as the books, and all the behind-the-scenes details we can get our hands on.

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Leaving Las Vegas (1995)

Sometimes life punches you in the gut. If you’re lucky, you bounce back from it. If you’re not, you become Ben Sanderson, a man who has lost everything and decided to drink himself to death in Las Vegas. Join us for a podcast filled with loss, pain, struggle, and despair. We also discuss the movie.

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