Similarly to how the film’s lead character returns to the same events over and over, the 1995 sci-fi thriller 12 Monkeys represents filmmaker Terry Gilliam circling back on his own career in a few notable ways. Firstly, and most obviously, it’s another time travel story, familiar in theme to (if very different in tone from)… Read More Science Ain’t an Exact Science | 12 Monkeys (1995) 4K Ultra HD
After my last couple Film at 11 podcast episodes, I needed an easy win that I knew my son would enjoy. I’d previously watched Raiders of the Lost Ark with Joseph back in Episode 21, and he was such a fan of it he dressed up as Indiana Jones for Halloween this year. Following up… Read More Film at 11 Podcast: Episode 38 | Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
I thought I’d have a slam dunk watching the original 1982 Tron with my son Thomas for the Film at 11 podcast this week. The kid plays frisbee and loves video games, so how could he not like a movie that combines the two things? I probably should have guessed that wouldn’t go over as… Read More Film at 11 Podcast: Episode 37 | Tron (1982)
Having covered the original Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein on our Film at 11 podcast a couple weeks ago (Ep. 34), I thought it would be a fun idea to close out this year’s Halloween run by watching Mel Brooks’ classic 1974 parody Young Frankenstein with my son Joseph. Sadly, he didn’t respond to it… Read More Film at 11 Podcast: Episode 36 | Young Frankenstein (1974)
With his breakout 1987 directorial debut Hellraiser, Clive Barker seemed poised to establish himself as one of the horror genre’s great auteurs, as talented and successful at filmmaking as he was at writing bestselling novels. However, even while his books drew legions of fans, Barker’s second movie, 1990’s Nightbreed, fizzled with both critics and audiences.… Read More A Narrow Path Between Divinity and Trickery | Lord of Illusions (1995)
The choice of movie to watch with my son for the Film at 11 podcast came right down to the wire this week. This is another Halloween-themed episode, and until just about two minutes before recording, I was all set to run with the original 1982 Poltergeist. Those plans shifted when I decided that Thomas… Read More Film at 11 Podcast: Episode 35 | Hellboy (2004)
“We all sell out every day. Might as well be on the winning team,” says a character in John Carpenter’s They Live, a movie originally sold as a sci-fi/horror flick but that has become more famous over time for its blunt political satire. Originally produced at the height of the Reaganomics era, the film’s messaging… Read More Obey, Consume, Conform | They Live (1988)
In most of our Film at 11 podcasts, I’ve focused on introducing my sons to movies from the 1980s and ’90s, because those were the years when I fell in love with film and was most active going out to the theater. For this week’s Halloween-themed episode, however, I take Joseph back much, much farther,… Read More Film at 11 Podcast: Episode 34 | Frankenstein (1931) & Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
I’d never be so brazen as to call the low-budget, arty vampire film Nadja any sort of neglected or misunderstood masterpiece. It’s not nearly good enough to earn that distinction. However, watching the movie again so many years later takes me right back to a very specific moment in the indie film renaissance of the… Read More The Pain of Fleeting Beauty | Nadja (1994)
As Halloween approaches, it’s time to start watching scary movies with my kids. Because my sons are both 11, however, I won’t start them with anything too strong, at least not right away. For our Film at 11 podcast this week, Thomas and I sit down with The Monster Squad, director Fred Dekker and writer… Read More Film at 11 Podcast: Episode 33 | The Monster Squad (1987)
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