Stuff We’ve Seen

Promising Young Woman and News of the World

This week James and Teal have two big 2020 year-end films for you, Promising Young Woman and News of the World. We promise to keep the spoilers to a minimum, but be warned: there are some spoilers mentioned for both movies. News of the World it probably doesn't matter as much, but if you want to be 100% surprised by Promising Young Woman, you may want to skip Podcast town at about the 45min mark.

What else? James takes Russell Crowe's side in the recent Master and Commander dust up, plus he discovers some interesting Japanese Noir on Criterion. There is a lot to like in this episode so what are you waiting for? Listen now!!

Nightmare on Elm Street 3, Ghost Story, and Other Tales From the Original Dream Warrior, Craig Wasson.

Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. Ghost Story. Body Double. These are a few of the iconic genre films from the 1980s people remember, and on part 2 of SWS's interview with Craig Wasson he tells us stories from all of three of them.  And tune in to find out which host, James or Teal, had a crush on Heather Langenkamp.

Craig Wasson: Thank God for My Guitar

Craig Wasson is a name many will recognize from some key films in the 1980s, from Body Double to Ghost Story and Nightmare on Elm Street. Wasson was certainly a favorite of Both James and Teal, and through a bit of luck, and an introduction made by their friend Al, Wasson was kind enough to come on Stuff We've Seen.

This is the first of two episodes featuring guest, Craig Wasson. In this episode Wasson talks about how he got started with acting, and you'll hear how some coincidences, luck, and talent with the guitar got him started on his acting journey.

We'll cover Wasson's early work in Boys in Company C and Go Tell the Spartans, to his breakthrough role in a real hidden gem of a film, 1981's Four Friends, directed by Arthur Penn. Along the way, you'll hear some spot-on  Wasson impersonations of some legendary actors, and some great stories from an actor whose 70s-80s filmography is worth further exploration.

 

WW84, Midnight Sky, and Losey, Losey, Losey!

This first episode of 2021 starts off with a couple of streaming stinkers, WW84, and Midnight Sky. WW84 is HBOMax's much anticipated sequel to Wonder Woman, and it hits so far off the mark the movie left Jim wondering who green lit this thing?

While Jim hated the Wonder Woman sequel, Teal found plenty to gripe about with George Clooney's Midnight Sky.

All is not lost, dear listener. Bill from Queens stopped by the show to help Jim and Teal out with a discussion on film director, Joseph Losey. Flying way under the appreciated film director radar, Losey directed some classic films, and for the first time Jim and Teal caught up with them. A special shout out to listener, Andrew Parry, who wrote Jim and Teal and asked if they would discuss Losey's The Servant (1963) and Mr. Klein (1976.) And boy, oh boy, were they glad for the suggestion. While the new offerings from hollywood might let them down, discovering Losey is a film-lover's dream. 

It's a jam-packed episode with lots of movies. Several of Joseph Losey's offerings can be found currently on the Criterion Channel, and some on Amazon Prime as well.

Mank: David Fincher's Technically Detailed Look at Hollywood's Past

Mank is one of the eagerly awaited year-end films from Netflix. Directed by David Fincher, Mank is about the writing of one of the most famous films of all time, Citizen Kane. How does one go about writing a fictionalized film loosely based on William Randolph Hearst? How does one tell a fictionalized story about the washed up Hollywood writer who would create a genuine script masterpiece? 

So far, the critical response to Mank is mixed. What were people expecting? Is Mank too much of an art film for the regular film goer? Did people just want a detailed look at the making of Citizen Kane? For that, they could rewatch the HBO film, RKO 281, which pretty much covers that.

This week Jim and Teal dive into all these aspects of Mank, and give their insights on what they felt the movie gave them as filmgoers.

 

In addition to Mank, Jim and Teal start of the program with some tales of holiday films they've watched during the past month, including a couple of lumps of coal, Noel and Last Christmas. 

Happy Holidays everyone!!

-J&T

Raising Cain: A Brian De Palma Triple Threat

Jim and Teal triple their money with this third installment of their look at the films of Brian De Palma. In part three they take a peek at some of Brian's later work, and they zero in on two films, Body Double and Raising Cain. 

Lots of interesting stories and tidbits for a listener to enjoy. So what are you waiting for? Go listen, and enjoy!

Jim and Teal Double Down on De Palma

With over 30 features to his credit, Brian De Palma can't be covered in one episode, so Jim and Teal give you part 2. And even Part 2 won't cut it, so there will be a third installment on the way.

In this episode Jim and Teal talk Carrie, The Fury, Dressed to Kill, The Black Dahlia, and Casualties of War, plus sprinkings of his other work make it into the episode as well.

Next week's episode will cover Body Double and Raising Cain, and some other De Palma stuff. Enjoy!

Brian De Palma: Jim and Teal Get Obsessed.

What began as a curiosity turns into a full-blown Brian De Palma obsession as Jim and Teal tackle the filmography of one of cinema's great genre technicians. This episode is just a starting point of discussion, and there will be several more episodes of De Palma to come. 

We're not just talking Scarface, Untouchables, and Carrie, people. We are going full rabbit hole with this director, and uncovering early work, late entries and everything in between. The hope here is, after listening to our De Palma episodes, you'll want to check out more of his work too.

Death by Alogrithm: The Search for Movies with Style, Substance, and Soul

How did things go off the rails so quickly? Jim and Teal quickly find themselves down a rabbit hold of Robert Zemeckis' making, and the only way out of it is through the films of Yorgos Lanthimos. Teal finally watched Alps and Dogtooth, and he's all in with the daring Greek director's original filmic vision. 

But that then sends Teal into complaint mode, as he found himself watching two paint-by-numbers genre movies on Netflix that were so devoid of style and substance, he swears they were designed by an algorithm.

Sticking with the genre theme, Jim does some exploring of his own, and makes his way down under for a little Ozploitation.

This episode is full of weird, wild twists and turns. Enjoy!

You Don't Know Jack! Nicholson Vs. The Academy

This week Jim and Teal tackle the new Sofia Coppola film, On the Rocks, plus they take a deep dive into the many roles of Jack Nicholson. All this plus Jim watches one more Criterion Horror film, The Vampire Lovers, and Teal examines 1BR.