Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) Audio Commentary

Paul Newman and Katherine Ross, dodging raindrops

RC-2013-113: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)



William Goldman researched the story for years, and director George Roy Hill toiled through the production with a bad back so that now, years later, some creep on the Internet can blithely say that their fim doesn't seem as great to him as it used to. Yes, I used to like it so much more than I do now, and throughout the commentary I analyze the diminishing returns, taking the time to parse the difference between movies that are nostalgic about the old west and movies that are nostalgic about movies about the old west. I like Burt Bacharach but think his song is one of the oddest choices ever made in an otherwise solid film. There is much laughter at the heroes' leap off the cliff, and much eye-rolling at Newman's bicycle gags. Sync up by hitting "pause" after the 20th Century Fox logo has faded to black, then wait for the countdown.

Show Notes

• The nuances of Goldman's script
• The Team America montage song
• An interview with Goldman 

Listen to the mp3. Or get it from iTunes.

Laura (1944) Audio Commentary

Gene Tierney was so hot that she could make a frumpy rain hat look sexy

RC-2013-112: The Film Noir Series — Laura (1944)



Otto Preminger's Laura is beloved by many a noir aficionado, and I'm out to figure out why. (Could it have something to do with Gene Tierney being nuclear hot? Hells yeah.) I have fun with the movie, lamenting the fact that the opening titles sequence wasn't created by Saul Bass and declaring that Preminger's directorial style is "slick." Listeners might begin to suspect that there isn't an actor from the 30s and 40s that I don't adore as I swoon over the verbal acuity of Clifton Webb, the implacable demeanor of Dana Andrews, and the radioactive...uh, talent of Tierney. Along the way, I analyze the bizarro story story structure, discuss Daryl F. Zanuck's alleged homophobia, and examine the lapels on Vinny Price's double-breasted suits. Due to the Rank Speculation software I have running on my brain, I also speak about how Laura may have weighed heavy on the mind of David Lynch when he made Mulholland Dr. and how Preminger's picture also has similarities to Gilda, Vertigo, and a couple other classics the posters for which are hanging in my bathroom.

Show Notes

• The late Roger Ebert's "Great Movies" essay on the picture
• Some insight into David Raskin's score
• Clifton Webb's unofficial, posthumous web presence (!) 
• Richard Shickel's review of that Preminger biography I mention
• A tumblr dedicated to sexy-ass Gene Tierney

Listen to the mp3, or kick it iTunes style.

No Country for Old Men (2007) Audio Commentary

The dark knight rises...

RC-2013-111: No Country for Old Men (2007)



Let's call this episode "The Roger Ebert Memorial Commentary." The prolific critic felt No Country for Old Men was as good as any picture made by the Coens (and in the very next clause he warmed my heart by adding, "and they made Fargo.") Still giddy from a recent revival screening, I quit swooning long enough to explicate a lot of what makes this movie so great. I describe the skillful visual storytelling techniques, the strange deja vu structure, and the philosophical concerns found in the works of both the Coens and Cormac McCarthy. I sing the praises of Woody Harrelson, too. Then, after taking some of the more asinine criticisms and interpretations to task, I get around to articulating my own reading of the film (sort of). This one's for Roger.

Show Notes

• That super-comprehensive Wikipedia page on the film's themes and analysis
• An example of some slightly less-than-thoughtful criticism of NCFOM, along with a withering rebuttal to said criticism
• David Denby's review in which he wonders why Llewelyn didn't get a death scene
• A cool Coen Bros. fan site
• McCarthy's two-man play, The Sunset Limited
• A Sight & Sound essay on NCFOM

Listen to the mp3. Or get the track at the gettin' place, iTunes.

Ebert

A young Roger Ebert, a lifelong newspaperman, peruses his beloved Sun-Times in the newsroom

The news of Roger Ebert's death has impacted nearly everyone who loves movies, and many who don't. He attained the kind of trust and name recognition that only a handful of critics have ever enjoyed. And he deserved it. Ebert was smart without being a pedant, open-minded without being wishy-washy. He wrote with a palpable ecstasy for movies, and for other things.

The next episode of this podcast will be posted soon, and it will be dedicated to Ebert. He will be missed.

Double Indemnity (1944) Audio Commentary

The old noir trope of putting a Chandler and a Wilder on a loveseat...

RC-2013-110: The Film Noir Series — Double Indemnity (1944)



We continue down the noir path with a lively dissection of Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity. Right from the start I cop to being in love with nearly every aspect of the film, particularly its three leads. Although I lack the suave drollness of Walter Neff, I make up for it by telling a few charming tales about the film's production and the testy relations between Wilder and Chandler. You'll hear me explain why the boss of the insurance company, Mr. Norton, reminds me of Principal Ed Rooney from Ferris Bueller's Day Off. There is then some wondering out loud as to whether the film actually has something serious to say about the issue of nepotism-versus-meritocracy in WWII-era America. Though I giggle Walter's flurry of sexual innuendos, I don't try to come up with any myself.

Show Notes

• A rundown of Barbara Stanwyck's pre-code naughtiness
• Fred MacMurray's appearance on "What's My Line"
• Wilder speaks about the film and its alternate endings
• More lowdown on the gas chamber ending that was scrapped by Wilder
• An essay about film noir by Stanley Crouch
• The definition of film noir, ctd.

Listen to the mp3. Or go straight down the line to get it at iTunes.