School of Movies

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The Mask of Zorro Mar 15, 2024

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[School of Movies 2024]

Is this the last true swashbuckler of the 20th Century? It's certainly the Zorro movie so great, and so wildly successful in all of its aims that there hasn't really been a landmark big screen appearance since then (that wasn't the leading man playing a cat). Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta Jones in their prime, and Anthony Hopkins delivering my personal favourite performance of his.

Here, in this commissioned episode, we go through every department, exploring the multitude of exceptional craftspeople, thespians, stunt coordinators, wardrobe heads, practical FX masters, all the while accompanied by the music of the late, great master of horns, composer James Horner. All of their work blends together into an absolutely magnificent, sweeping romantic adventure of revenge and liberation, with not only the greatest fencing scenes ever filmed, but the sexiest!

This is the second of a trio of absolutely astonishing films directed by Martin Campbell. We have already covered the third, (twice!) Casino Royale (2006), and we really do need to get around to covering the first, GoldenEye (1995).

Guest:

Brenden Agnew @BLCAgnew of Cinapse

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Season 1) Mar 08, 2024

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[School of Everything Else 2024]

This is one of two commissioned podcasts on the first two seasons of the best Star Trek shows in decades. Refreshingly lacking in cynicism and tapping into the Kennedy-era energy of exploration and endeavour with a tight focus on character development, this one really is worth your time. We spend two and a half hours of spoilerific, textured discussion time really delving into these first ten episodes.

Kaoru's recommended episodes of the original 1966 series to watch for additional context...

S1-11 & S1-12: The Menagerie

S1-13: The Conscience of the King

S1-14: Balance of Terror

S1-19: Arena

S2-01: Amok Time

Guests:

From Sequentially Yours Kaoru Negisa @Moonpanther22

and Debbie Morse @bastet8300

Jesse Ferguson of Recorded Tomorrow @TheDapperDM

Chris Finik @finmonster09

Rise of Skywalker Revisited Mar 01, 2024

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[School of Movies 2024]

The late 2010s. It is a period of civil war. The vast Empire of Disney has released four of its five first Star Wars movies, to mixed reception. Critically and financially, The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi have done very well, as has Rogue One. However, the two episodes have divided the smaller portion of the global audience that amounts to the vocal fanbase, between those who are thrilled and those who are disgusted.

In a vain effort to smooth things over, it is decided that the pitched final film in this nine-episode Saga be made with nothing upsetting or challenging within. Writer/Director Colin Trevorrow is relieved of duty and replaced by the director of The Force Awakens and the writer of Batman V Superman. These two are then given a hard crunch time to get the movie developed, filmed, finished and released by the end of 2019. It must be by then, because a dark period for the cinema has been prophesised for the 2020s. What was released was designed to mildly please everybody, and as a result, felt largely mediocre, and did not become widely beloved.

Now, after years of living with the pain of this creative fumble, a lone film aficionado sets out into the wilderness of fan edits to see what has been done with the conclusion that left him so disappointed. What he discovered may shock and delight you, or it might induce a powerful rage. One thing is certain, that pain has been put to rest.

X-Men: Evolution Feb 23, 2024

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[School of Everything Else 2024]

This was originally going to be an After School Club episode, but a combination of the community discourse regarding the X-Men, and an extremely well-timed trailer drop for the '97 reboot, AND a horrendous cold that has ravaged Sharon and I, along with our timetable, we're making this a Main Event.

If you're a little younger than us, you may well have been the exact right age and state of mind for this early-2000s animated series, which in many ways surpasses the much-vaunted '92 show. It is gratifyingly forward-facing, accepting that the Claremont era was thoroughly X-plored by its predecessor. And while its release clearly coincides with the early Fox movies, it holds to a high school relationship drama in a world initially unaware of mutants, and in distancing itself from the big screen, manages to be better, and more focused.

That said, there are some annoyances and character-handling that ground our claws, but it's in amongst some of the most relatable incarnations of these long-beloved weirdos. We absolutely urge you to track it down and devour the whole thing.

X-Men '92 Feb 17, 2024

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[School of Everything Else 2024]

The infamous animated series with a theme tune you can hear just by looking at stills of it, finally gets a well-deserved podcast. We actually recorded this several years back, to coincide with the launch of the new X-Men '97 animated show on D+, and we're finally seeing images from that now. Whether it's good or bad, THIS ONE is worth watching, at least some choice episodes of.

While often held up with the likes of Batman TAS, this one's strengths lie less in the flawless execution of those DCEU shows, and more in the goofy heart, wild Claremont-era stories and memorably crystallised colourful characters. In many ways, this is the evolution* of several decades of comic book storytelling, coming out to the world at large, at the opening of their most successful and popular decade. Planting a flag in the ground with a big old X on it, to mark the spot.

We elected to focus only on Season 1 here, as after recording we went on to watch all of it, and that show would be five hours long and quite repetitive. But we nailed the salient points and I hope, managed to outline why this cartoon and its crew of kinda-silly characters meant so much, and could mean even more if Marvel play their cards right in future.

*Oh, and if you were born a little while after us and grew up with the second generation show, X-Men: Evolution, then you're going to love next week's podcast.

Star Trek: Discovery Feb 09, 2024

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[School of Everything Else 2024]

We initially started watching this 2017 Paramount TV series just for some back-story context on a pair of commissioned podcasts we have upcoming on the first two seasons of the sister show about the crew of the Enterprise; 'Strange New Worlds'. As it turns out, after a rocky start, Discovery is really excellent in its own right and we wolfed down the first four seasons.

So, this is a largely spoiler-free round-table discussion on those seasons, to give you folks who haven't yet watched it incentive to maybe give it a go, along with details and character development to keep an eye on. And if you have watched it you will almost certainly love hearing our take, because, as it turns out, we are now in the middle of an unexpected Golden Age of Trek.

Guests:

From Sequentially Yours Kaoru Negisa @Moonpanther22

and Debbie Morse @bastet8300

Chris Finik @finmonster09

Strange Days Feb 02, 2024

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[School of Movies 2024]

It's always a risk, setting a sci-fi dystopian movie only a few years from filming. You're going to make predictions about how the world might look and operate, with new technology or sociological and political upheaval within a time period so immediate that it's the difference between the launch of the Sony PlayStation and the PlayStation 2

But we are currently living in a dystopia increasingly left to the devices of the dumbest of AI, and many of us are wondering "How the hell did all this happen between the PS4 and PS5?". Plus, the writer/producer of this one warned us about Skynet before. James Cameron here teams up with director (and occasional wife) Katherine Bigelow to deliver a grimy neo-noir that failed abysmally at the box office when everyone wanted Batman Forever. A disregarded cult favourite with a mysterious and twisted psychopath murdering people in truly stomach-churning ways, the same year Se7en was a massive smash hit.

The tech is effectively Virtual Reality, only it's recorded, first-person real life experiences that go way beyond mere visual immersion. There are riots on the streets of Los Angeles as a terrifyingly militarised police force close in, and as the clock ticks towards midnight on New Year's Eve in the far-flung year of 1999 a young and twitchy Ralph Feinnes and a statuesque goddess, his long-suffering protector played by Angela Basset find themselves caught up in a dangerous world.

This show was commissioned by Greg Downing, and we had a blast delving into it.

Prey (2022) Jan 26, 2024

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[School of Movies 2024]

After decades of very patchy sequels and spinoffs to the 1987 sci-fi classic, Predator, we finally get one that is not only worthy of, but in many ways surpasses its stealthy action-beefcake-slasher source.

So far we've had Predator 2 (1990), Alien vs. Predator (2004), Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007), Predators (2010) and The Predator (2018). But this one takes note of there frequently being a woman of colour on the cast of the previous movies and this time put her front and centre, telling her story, rather than the grizzled guys she's babysitting.

Relative unknown Amber Midthunder (who has nonetheless been acting since 2001 at the age of 4) stars as Naru, a Comanche girl on the great plains of America, circa 1719. Her skills lie in being highly observant and resourceful, and her frustrations stem from the guys in her group not letting her be a hunter. This of course goes upside down when an outsider touches down in their territory and starts bagging trophies with horrifying ease. And these French fur-trappers are similarly surprised to find an alien Predator carving them up for his own shelf-candy.

From Dan Trachtenberg, the director of 10 Cloverfield Lane comes another absolutely riveting tale of a woman who must fight to survive.

Guest:

Actual Comanche Nama Chibitty @namathenerd

Undertale Jan 19, 2024

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[School of Everything Else 2024]

This is one we have been planning and looking forward to for a long, long, LONG time. One of the most significant indie video games of all time, and for our child, maybe their favourite forever (up against Minecraft and Stardew Valley).

In a gaming marketplace overflowing with charming retro-styled games with a dark, absurd sense of humour veiling heart-breaking stories about coping through pain, loneliness and grief, this one shines out as an inspirational beacon. With Earthbound on the SNES as his chief influence, creator Toby Fox set out to make a game that confounded, mocked and disapproved of RPG tropes, but in doing so, made an adventure where you could kill every enemy you meet... or make friends with them. And doing the latter results in profound and deeply memorable connections.

If you've not played it by now, you probably won't. So, throw the notion of spoilers aside and let's get into the juicy skeleton meat on this one, together.

Guests:

Hollywoo Actress Maya Souris @Mayasantandrea

Professional Underteller Willow Shaw

Gravity Falls (Show 6: Episodes 37-40) Jan 12, 2024

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[School of Everything Else 2024]

Part 6 of 6

We come to it at last. The final episodes of one of the greatest animated shows ever gifted to TV. And we pulled out all the stops this time, because it's bittersweet to say goodbye again.

Originally I planned to get this whole season discussed in one sit-down session, considering how much ground we had covered back in Season 1 with two sessions. But in the end a second was essential. What we have here is that unplanned final session with Kaoru & Debbie (joyfully back after a long absence while they brought a small person into the world) blended with segments held over from that first recording to close us out with fireworks. Many thanks to everyone involved in this challenging and rewarding project. You made it special, like it deserved to be.

Episodes Covered: Dipper and Mabel vs. The Future / Xpcveaoqfoxso / Escape from Reality / Take Back the Falls I / Take Back the Falls II

Guests:

From Sequentially Yours Kaoru Negisa @Moonpanther22

and Debbie Morse @bastet8300

Toby Jungius @TJungius of Through the Wind Door

Hollywoo Actress Maya Souris @Mayasantandrea

Victoria Luna B. Grieve: @VixenVVitch

Theo Leigh of The New Century Multiverse