Did you really think we'd do a series on female directed films and not talk about Amy Heckerling's Clueless ? AS IF!! Flixwise regular, Anne Marie Kelly, outlines why she thinks the seminal 1995 teen comedy is worthy of the Flixwise Favorites List. She'll have to convince Lady P, Kristen Sales, and Marya E. Gates that her fondness for the film stems not just from wardrobe envy or a '90s nostalgia trip, but from the film's formal attributes and cultural significance as well. Listen up to see if t...
Oct 20, 2015•44 min
Lady P and Anne Marie Kelly are joined by Ed Neumeier, the writer and producer of ROBOCOP and STARSHIP TROOPERS, to talk early science fiction films. Their discussion centers primarily on the 36th film on the Sight and Sound Greatest Of All Time List: Fritz Lang's 1927 German Expressionist classic, METROPOLIS. They give a brief overview of the socio-political environment at the time of production (yep, that means Hitler), and talk about how the film co-opts the styles and themes of several early...
Oct 06, 2015•1 hr 11 min
For our 2nd entry in the "Flixwise Favorites: Female Filmmaker" series, Marya E. Gates tries to convince Kristen Sales and Lady P that Gillian Armstrong's 1994 feature, LITTLE WOMEN, is worthy of our canon. Topics include: the film's rendering of Alcott's original text, the gorgeous set and costume design, the ageless beauty of Susan Sarandon, and stupid-Amy and her stupid limes. Plus, they tackle the issue that's been dividing our nation since the film's release: Laurie vs Professor Bhaer....
Sep 22, 2015•48 min
Welcome back to the show Marya E. Gates and Kristen Sales! Taking a cue from Marya's "A Year With Women" project, we've started running our own "Flixwise Favorites: Female Filmmaker" series. First up, Kristen tells us why she thinks Kathryn Bigelow's 1991 film, POINT BREAK, is totally radical and should be considered one the greatest movies of all time. It turns out the film's tagline, "100% Pure Adrenaline", is a little misleading. According to Kristen, POINT BREAK is not just one of the most i...
Sep 15, 2015•46 min
It's a lady filmmaker podcast! With special guests Marya E. Gates of Cinema Fanatic and Kristen Sales of Sales on Film . First, the panel methodically steps through the 36th movie on the Sight and Sound Greatest of All Time list: Chantal Akerman's 1975 feature, Jeanne Dielman 23 quai du commerce, 1080 Bruxelles. There's a lot to unpack in Akerman's meticulous rendering of the daily rituals of a Belgian housewife-turned-prostitute. For some, the film is a reverent tribute to motherhood and the do...
Sep 01, 2015•1 hr 3 min
Aaron West of the film blog Criterion Blues joins Lady P and Flixwise co-producer, Martin Kessler, to talk about whether or not the 1978 animated adaptation of Richard Adams' classic novel, WATERSHIP DOWN, is worthy of the Flixwise Favorites list. WATERSHIP DOWN has been favorite of Aaron's since adolescence. Listen up to see if he can convince his fellow panelists that his continued admiration is based on more than childhood nostalgia. Along the way, they discuss religious allegories, fascism--...
Aug 18, 2015•36 min
On today's podcast, we're paying tribute to "The Master of the Macabre", Alfred Hitchcock. On-hand to assist Lady P in dissecting Sir Alfred's filmography is renowned film historian, author, and Professor Emeritus from Indiana University, James Naremore. For our first topic, we have the Sight and Sound Critics' Poll's 34th Greatest Film of All Time: PSYCHO (1960). Our guest, James, originally offered up his in-depth take on Hitch's infamous feature in his 1973 book Filmguide to Psycho. However, ...
Aug 11, 2015•57 min
In an attempt to disprove the widely-held belief that all film critic's hate fun, the Sight and Sound folks voted Buster Keaton's hilarious silent picture, THE GENERAL(1926) as the 34th entry on the "Greatest Film of All Time" list. But is the film worthy of the 34th spot? Answering that question is your host, Lady P, Classicfilmfan.com editor Carrie Specht, and filmmaker/action-movie-connoisseur Jenna Payne. They take turns offering up takes on the film, and sharing in their admiration for The ...
Jul 28, 2015•1 hr 3 min
Lady P is joined today by Flixwise regulars Martin Kessler and Carrie Specht to discuss the 33rd entry on Sight and Sound's "Greatest Film's of All Time" list, Vittorio De Sica's BICYCLE THIEVES. Upon its release in 1948 BICYCLE THIEVES was immediately hailed as a classic and It even managed to snag the number 1 spot on the 1952 Sight and Sound critics poll. While the film has dropped a few rungs on the Sight and Sound list, it is still considered by many to be the high-water mark of Italian Neo...
Jul 14, 2015•58 min
Our newly appointed co-producer, Martin Kessler, was recently shocked to discover that Paul Verhoeven's 1997 alien invasion film, STARSHIP TROOPERS, did not make the Sight and Sound Critics' Poll. His outrage might seem a little misplaced given STARSHIP TROOPERS' low to mediocre ratings on Rotten Tomatoes and other movie review aggregator sites. After all, this is a "Critics' Poll" we're dealing with. But Martin would not to be deterred by any silly critical consensus. He knew in his heart that ...
Jun 30, 2015•38 min
Lady P is joined by Carrie Specht and Anne Marie Kelly to talk about Martin Scorsese's 1976 feature TAXI DRIVER. TAXI DRIVER is tied for the 31st spot on the Sight and Sound Critics' Poll with another "Golden Age" cornerstone: Francis Ford Coppola's THE GODFATHER PT. II . Yes, two of the darkest entries in the 1970's cinema canon landed side-by-side on the "Greatest Films of All Time" list. A coincidence? Perhaps. But nevertheless, while one may forever be the loneliest number, 31 is now officia...
Jun 16, 2015•1 hr 4 min
It's the rootinest tootinest hoedown in the west! Filmmaker and friend of the show, Caroline Golum, is on hand to tell us why she thinks Nicholas Ray's JOHNNY GUITAR should be included in the Flixwise Favorites List. She's gotta convince her fellow panelists, Lady P and Anne Marie Kelly, that Joan Crawford's turn as a reluctant gunslinger is more than just campy fodder for the midnight movie crowd. JOHNNY GUITAR wasn't a great commercial or critical success upon its release, but the years have b...
Jun 09, 2015•43 min
On today's show, Anne Marie Kelly and Carrie Specht join Lady P to talk about the 31st feature on the Sight and Sound Critics Poll: Francis Ford Coppola's THE GODFATHER PT II. Regular listeners will recall that Lady P was less than totally ecstatic about the previous GODFATHER entry; and any criticism of THE GODFATHER series qualifies as heresy amongst some cinephiles--movie people have ways of taking care of heretics. Find out if Lady P's changed her tune for Part II, or if she'll soon find her...
May 26, 2015•1 hr 8 min
...It's a free radio show that you can download and listen to at your leisure (and all the producers ask in return is that you go and rate it at iTunes )...But that's not important right now! This July marks the 30th anniversary of the release of the Zucker Abrahams Zucker disaster parody AIRPLANE!. We know we're a little early to this party, but we feel it is never too soon to commemorate the great sacrifice of one Lt. George Zip (RIP!). And so we've decided to Striker while the iron is hot, an...
May 19, 2015•40 min
Lady P is joined by film historian Professor Joseph McBride to celebrate the centennial birthday of Orson Welles(1915-1985). For some, Welles is known strictly as the man who wrote, directed, and starred in what many consider to be the greatest film ever made: CITIZEN KANE. Others have come into contact with Welles as a television personality with guest appearances on shows like I LOVE LUCY and THE DEAN MARTIN CELEBRITY ROASTS. However, while the popularity of his first feature film--and his pub...
May 05, 2015•35 min
Our Holocaust Remembrance continues, as we take a look at the 1989 documentary WEAPONS OF THE SPIRIT. Last week, we talked about Claude Lanzmann's 1985 landmark film SHOAH : a film which chronicles, in great detail, the process by which the German Nazis went about planning and executing the horrors of the genocide of the European Jewry. This week's film looks at The Atrocity through a very different, but no less important lens. WEAPONS OF THE SPIRIT focuses largely on the inhabitants of a small ...
Apr 21, 2015•40 min
The evening of Wednesday April 15th, 2015 marks the start of Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Remembrance Day. In recognition of this occasion we thought it would be appropriate to discuss the 29th entry on the Sight and Sound List: Claude Lanzmann's 1985 film, SHOAH. On today's episode, Lady P is joined by her friend, Michael Adams, to talk about Lanzmann's 9 and a half hour documentary, which details the process by which Nazi Germany went about extinguishing the European Jewry. In the discussion they...
Apr 14, 2015•51 min
On today's show, worlds have collided and humankind is doomed. It's the long-awaited Wrong Reel /Flixwise collaberation! James Hancock and Mikhail Karadimov, two-thirds of our favorite east coast podcasting team, are on hand to talk about the 29th Greatest Movie of All Time: Andrei Tarkovsky's STALKER aka The Jean Grey Origin Story. And, speaking of X-Men, we will also be discussing the recent proliferation of Apocalyptic entertainment. X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST is just one of many contemporary...
Mar 31, 2015•1 hr 1 min
It's a cinematic tour through The City of Angels, and Lady P's at the wheel. Riding shotgun is film scholar, and Professor Emeritus from Indiana University, James Naremore. Together they're going to try to navigate the twists and turns of the 28th movie on the Sight and Sound Critics' Poll, David Lynch's MULHOLLAND DRIVE. James wrote about Lynch's nightmare-ish take on the Hollywood fantasy in the most recent edition of his landmark book, More Than Night: Film Noir in Its Contexts . James revisi...
Mar 17, 2015•55 min
On today's show, it's two unconventional biopics about two unconventional artists. Lady P is joined by guests, Emma Guerard and Martin Kessler, to talk about the 27th Greatest Movie of all Time, Andrei Tarkovsky's ANDREI RUBLEV. This is the second Tarkovsky entry on the Sight and Sound Critics' Poll (We've talked about MIRROR in a previous episode). But is Tarkovsky worthy of two appearance in the top 30? Next, the panel goes from Tatars to Turners, with Mike Leigh's 2014 feature film, MR. TURNE...
Mar 03, 2015•56 min
Today, Lady P is joined to by Anne Marie Kelly and Margaret de Larios to talk about the 2015* Academy Awards. Anne Marie and Margaret both write for The Film Experience , which specializes in movie awards coverage. That means you can trust that they've analyzed the spread, and they can tell you approximately who's going to walk away with all the awards this coming Sunday. Will it be BOYHOOD or BIRDMAN? Michael Keaton or Eddie Redmayne? Julianne Moore or... no it's definitely Moore. Have your bal...
Feb 17, 2015•54 min
Today, Lady P is joined by Emma Guerard and Tad Chamberlain to talk about the 24th Greatest Movie of All Time, Carl Theodor Dreyer's ORDET. The movie certainly stirred up a lot of existential angst among the panel. Lots of questions arise: What is the meaning of life? Does God exist, and If so, in what capacity? And perhaps the greatest puzzler of them all, what the hell is going on with that ending? Listen up to see if they come up with any satisfying answers. Then the panel takes part in the a...
Feb 10, 2015•54 min
Lady P is joined today by frequent guest, Emma Guerard, and newcomer, GuiltyFilm Podcast host Kevin McKee, to talk about the Sight and Sound Critics' Poll's 24th entry to the Greatest of All Time List: Wong Kar Wei's IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE. Listen up to see if our panel is equally taken with Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chen's tale of love and longing. Then, the panelists take a cue from Mr. Chow and unburden themselves of a few shameful secrets. Unfortunately, airfare to Angkor Wat just wasn't in the budget...
Jan 27, 2015•54 min
For our first Sight and Sound entry in the new year, Lady P is joined by film historian Professor Joseph McBride to talk about the 63rd Greatest Movie of All Time, SUNSET BOULEVARD. You may have noted that we've jumped ahead a few spots on the Critics' Poll. That's because we thought it would be nice if the podcast coincided with the BAM/PFA's Wilder retrospective, which kicks off this Thursday(1/15). Also, we just really felt like talking about SUNSET BOULEVARD. 'Nuff Said! Next we move from Wi...
Jan 12, 2015•1 hr 3 min
It's exactly what it sounds like! Today Lady P is joined by Emma Guerard and Anne Marie Kelly, to talk about the best movies, tv shows, performances, haircuts, etc. from last year. There are top 5 lists, there's Tilda Swinton fawning, there's fist-pumping (Go ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK!), there's bubble bursting (Looking at you, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY), and both grave and hopeful predictions for the year ahead.
Jan 06, 2015•1 hr 3 min
... lock him up real tight, something something something some, laa la la la la la laaa. Alright, now that that song is blasting in a perpetual feedback loop in your brain's audio center (you're welcome!) you are probably in the mood to listen to a trio of nerds talk about Tim Burton's and Henry Selick's modern holiday classic, THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS. This is a special listener submission to the Flixwise Favorites. Alex Keller is on hand to make the case for why he thinks NIGHTMARE is on...
Dec 23, 2014•28 min
Yesterday, December 15th 2014, marked the 75th anniversary of the release of the Selznick adaptation of GONE WITH THE WIND; a film that is often cited as the crowning achievement of a year that's brimming with classics. For those who are mathematically challenged (No judgement here. This is movie podcast, not an algebra podcast) that year is 1939, the supposed "Greatest Year in Cinema History." And why, you ask, should anyone give a damn? Well, in this episode Lady P is once again joined by two ...
Dec 16, 2014•57 min
On today's show Lady P is joined by Gabe Haggard and The Film Experience's Anne Marie Kelly to celebrate the 84th birthday of Jean Luc Godard. To mark the occasion the panel discusses one of Godard's best remembered classics, CONTEMPT. And what do you know, CONTEMPT also happens to be the next entry on the Sight and Sound Greatest of All Time list. However, just because it's someone's special day doesn't mean the panel's gonna be any less critical of this supposed masterpiece. To do any less wou...
Dec 02, 2014•58 min
On today's show Lady P is joined by two Gs, Gabe Haggard and Gary Lampert, to chat about a family of Original Gs. Get ready for a close dissection of one of the most powerful, and oft-parodied, portrayals of 20th century American masculinity, plus lots of very silly Marlon Brando impressions. It's the Sight and Sound Critic's Poll's 21st Greatest Movie of All Time, Francis Ford Coppola's THE GODFATHER. Is it worthy of the 21st spot? Listen up to find out. For the second topic (which may or may n...
Nov 18, 2014•1 hr 2 min
On this episode Lady P is joined by Bill Krohn, the Hollywood correspondent for the renowned film journal Cahiers Du Cinema. First up, we're paying a little tribute to Italian film star Monica Vitti, who turned 83 yesterday, with an analysis of one of her most famous works, Michelangelo Antonioni's L'AVVENTURA. L'AVVENTURA also happens to be the 21st movie on the Sight and Sound Critic's Poll. Nice how that worked out. Then the podcast sets sail for HELL'S ISLAND. Lady P and Bill chat about his ...
Nov 04, 2014•51 min
