[ indistinct chatter ]

Latest Episodes:

129. Brilliant 1970's Crime Comedy 'Cops and Robbers' (1973) Aug 03, 2022

Show notes

A random IG post sends Jason down the Joe Spinell wormhole and he emerges in 1973 to experience for the first time 'Cops and Robbers', Aram Avakian's film of a Donald E. Westlake comedy screenplay about two NYC cops who decide to try their hand on the other side of the law.

Featuring pitch-perfect period performances (say that 10 times fast)...'Cops and Robbers' is a really good gem of a 70's film, and has two great lead performances by NYC acting stalwarts Cliff Gorman and Joseph Bologna. Jason shares a cherished memory of being clueless in a CBS employees bar in the early 90's and meeting Cliff Gorman.

Topics covered: Joe Spinell's particular tortured genius for bit character parts. The Godfather bit where Spinell's Willie Cicci is called "Mr. Quested" by a Senator and brings the house down with "Oh yeah, the family had a lotta buffers".

Also: Roscoe Lee Browne for the ages. ENJOY! Thanks for listening!

128. Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Ethan Hawke & HBO's 'The Last Movie Stars' (2022) Jul 26, 2022

Show notes

Ethan Hawke's meta-documentary about the lives, love, losses, and careers of Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward is a worthwhile, often confounding effort with rewards and challenges alike.

In this episode Jason talks about the origin of the documentary in the discovery of some transcripts of interviews conducted by a Newman associate in pursuit of a memoir and biography that Newman wanted to work on. For unknown reasons, Newman later abandoned the project and burned the audio tapes. But the transcripts survived and form the basis for actor-interpreted versions used in Hawke's documentary to varying degrees of success.

The documentary tackles weighty issues like the loss of Newman's son Scott, the struggle within a marriage to survive the orbital tilt of Newman's level of super-stardom, and Newman's battle with alcoholism...a battle it seems he never quite won.

By turns infuriating and moving, the film is a worthy but effortful watch.

Also discussed: Alan Cummings lip-sync performance in the documentary 'My Old School', the AI Bourdain quotes used in his posthumous doc, and Peter Jackson's use of machine learning processes to reveal (or create) conversations in 'The Beatles: Get Back'.

127. An Appreciation of James Caan & 'The Gambler' (1974) Jul 12, 2022

Show notes

When James Caan died last week at 82 it was cause for a pause of appreciation for the work he left behind. I went searching for a 70's Caan film I hadn't yet seen, having done most of his ouvre at one time or another. I settled on Czech filmmaker Karel Reisz' brilliant 1974 film 'The Gambler', based on a James Toback script and I'm so glad I did. Before jumping into that film, this episode offers a brief re-appraisal of Caan's work in 'The Godfather' and in Michael Mann's 'Thief' (Caan's favorite film role), and a consideration of the relationship audiences end up having with actors with long careers onscreen and in the public eye, human flaws and imperfections all.

126. 'My Bodyguard' (1980) Jul 06, 2022

Show notes

Tony Bill's directorial debut 'My Bodyguard' holds a special and heartwarming place for the 99% of us not fortunate (or unfortunate) enough to have been the most popular kids in school. 'My Bodyguard' is filled with respect for the difficulties of everyday teenage life in a realistic manner, and features wonderful performances from 1980's teen actors like Matt Dillon, Chris Makepeace, Adam Baldwin and Paul Quandt. The film, I posit in this episode, offers a more honest portrayal of teen life than any of the more-successful and better-known John Hughes films of the era, and goes to surprising depths in exploring male friendships, latchkey kids figuring out their place in the world, forgiveness and the setting of boundaries even when it seems most difficult.

Most Recent Previous Episode is "If You're New To The Pod Start Here"

Links to episodes about High School movies we've done on the pod:

125. If You're New to the Podcast, Start Here Jun 28, 2022

Show notes

125 episodes? Who knew? If you're new to the podcast and wondering what's out there in those previous episodes, this short introductory episode will provide a bit of a roadmap to orient you to some episodes you might be interested in. Thanks for checking out the podcast!

124. Brian DePalma, John Travolta, Sissy Spacek & 'Carrie' (1976) Jun 21, 2022

Show notes

Thrilled to be joined by 3-time FCAC guest star, actor/writer/director Lee Wilkof and to delve into the making of Brian De Palma's most enduring and affecting film, 'Carrie', starring Sissy Spacek in a role she fought for, John Travolta in his first substantial film role just after being cast in 'Welcome Back, Kotter', and the future first ex-Mrs. Brian De Palma, Nancy Allen, who was about to give up on film acting when a casting director spotter her in the unlikeliest of places. Details in the episode. Lee and I talk about how empathetic and heart-rending Sissy Spacek's performance is, about Piper Laurie's casting after a 16-year absence from acting, the three key set pieces: the shower scene, the prom scene, and the Piper Laurie/Carrie death scene and coda.

Lee's first appearance on the pod discussing his long career is here.

Lee's 2nd appearance, where he and I discuss the brilliant Coen Brothers film Fargo is here.

If you're an actor or film/tv/entertainment person you will definitely see yourself somewhere in Lee's feature directorial debut, No Pay, Nudity. It stars Gabriel Byrne, Frances Conroy, and Nathan Lane.

123. Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds & John Boorman's 'Deliverance' (1972) Jun 14, 2022

Show notes

John Boorman's 1972 adaptation of James Dickey's novel "Deliverance" is a unique New Hollywood film in that its origins lie more in the older studio system yet the film upon release would become of of the most notorious films of its time and an iconic classic that's still discussed and debated today. On this episode of the podcast my friend and returning FCAC guest Ted Jessup joins to talk about a film he's loved and been traumatized by since he was 13 (see Ep 86 'The Odessa File' and Ep 75 'Rosemary's Baby' for more Ted on the pod). A sort-of Western, a dissection of toxic male behavior, a hillbilly noir, a slam of Southern culture...the film has been used and abused by decades of opinionated takes but in this episode we take a fresh look at this remarkable film and appreciate its powers anew.

Ted's Wikipedia page.

Listen to Ted's FCAC episode on Rosemary's Baby

Listen to Ted's FCAC episode on The Odessa File

122. Tom Cruise Saves Summer: 'Top Gun: Maverick' (2022) Jun 07, 2022

Show notes

Tom Cruise and Joseph Kosinki's smash hit 'Top Gun: Maverick' has been out for a couple weeks now and if you're a rational, sentient human being, you've already seen this film in the theater and enjoyed it immensely like 99% of audience members and 97% of critics on Rotten Tomatoes. For the 1% - 3% of you who were unable to set aside your limited worldviews and/or aversion to fan-servicing mass-market entertainment that's NOT Marvel-made...well, there's hope for you yet as my episode this week talks about all the myriad reasons there are to like and support this film, in the theater.

121. The Muppet Show (1976) May 31, 2022

Show notes

In this episode, Richard Brown and Jason Cilo tackle the making-of 'The Muppet Show', Jim Henson's seminal variety-show program of the late 70's. Topics covered: the surprising British history of 'The Muppet Show', musings about Kermit's unique spirit and personality, Miss Piggy's actual rags-to-riches life story, Frank Oz's singular talents, an appreciation of Gonzo, the curious misnomer of 'Guys' and 'Men' appearing in formative Muppet docs and period books, the 5 best 'Muppet Show' episodes of all time, AND MORE!

120. Battlestar Galactica (1978 & 1980) May 12, 2022

Show notes

The original 'Battlestar Galactica', while a flawed and imperfect science-fiction TV series of the 1978 season, remains one of the most important and influential science-fiction TV series of all time.

I'm joined again by Richard Brown (see our 'WKRP in Cincinnati', 'Taxi', and 'Network' episodes for more RF Brown) as we delve into the creation story of Battlestar and its creator, Glen A. Larson, known as "Glen Larceny" for his transparent adopting of movie concepts for his tv series. We run down some of Glen's Greatest Hits.

Jumping into the making of the series, we drop down to discuss the insanely complicated way that the Cylon robot voices were produced back in the day. Audio geeks and vintage recording equipment nerds will particularly enjoy that section, with full credit to YouTuber Supajc for his excellent video series.

As Rick and I run through the cast and crew of Battlestar, we talk pros and cons and what-might-have-beens. I of course profess a decided appreciation for the much-maligned "Battlestar Galactica 1980", an admittedly misguided too-late network attempt to get the show right once and for all.

Alternative Casting, the Columbo Cinematic Universe, and MORE!

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