Stuff We’ve Seen

Barbenheimer: Jim and Teal Take on the Cultural Hit of the Summer

Barbenheimer is more than a mashup word; it's a cultural phenomenon. Jim took the challenge and saw both Oppenheimer and then Barbie. Did he survive? It's a battle of the unruly teens vs. old man Jimmy. Will texting and watching videos during a movie ruin Jim's good time seeing Barbie? You'll have to tune in to find out.

And while Barbie was probably the last film on Teal's radar screen at the beginning of the summer, he too checked out the pop-culture sensation and was surprised by the depth and layers the movie had in store. Right-wing crybabies like Ben Shapiro, beware; this film may contain scenes of intense positivity towards women. Seek your nearest theater exit for safety. 

Jim and Teal are not Afraid of Beau is Afraid

This week Jim and Teal bring on the good films at theaters and streaming this summer with Wes Anderson's Asteroid City, a hidden gem from Norway, Sick of Myself, and Ari Aster's Beau is Afraid. Are Jim and Teal afraid of Ari Aster's three hour fever dream? Of course not. They took it on, and there is a lot to say. Teal finds interesting comparisons to Lindsey Anderson's O Lucky Man, and Jim agrees.

What else? Jim dials up some destiny with the latest Indiana Jones movie, and guess what's currently filming in Jim's state of Vermont? Jim fills Teal in on his excursion to East Corinth, VT to check out the exterior town sets for Beetlejuice 2.

Enjoy!

The Flash in the Pan: When America Decided DC Stands for, Don’t Care

The Flash, the latest comic book summer tent movie arrived and imploded. What went wrong? Why did audiences turn away in droves? Jim saw the movie, and he provided Teal with a report. Also, why did Disney seemingly cut six second from the Academy Award-winning French Connection? And why is Discovery Warner Brothers CEO, David Zaslav bent on proving how much he hates movies by chopping the heads off the brain trust at TCM (Turner Classic Movies)? 

This week Jim and Teal cover all this, poorly constructed deep-sea submersibles, and Hungarian cinematic master, Bela Tarr. Strap in, there's a lot of stuff to cover.

Jim and Teal go Across the Spider-Verse

Stuff We've Seen's Jim and Teal hit the cinema to see Spiderman: Across the Spider-Verse. Both Jim and Teal were huge fans for the first Spider-Verse installment. What will they think of this second chapter? Also on this episode, J&T look at two other comic-book adjacent and related films from the 1980s, Disney's Condorman (1981) and Flash Gordon (1980.) 

TvA: Teal Versus Antonioni

It's tit-for-tat on this week's Stuff We've Seen as Jim chooses two films from the 2022 BFI Sight and Sound Critics Poll of the 264 greatest films of all time that he believes should not be on the list. In their place, Jim finds two suitable replacements. 

One film that Jim targets for demotion is Antonioni's 1962 film, L'Eclisse. While Jim didn't feel the film, as a whole, warranted a place on a list of the greatest films of all time, it was one ten-minute sequence during the first portion of the movie that shocked and upset him, and led Jim to determine that L'Eclisse must be re-evaluated. 

What did Teal think? L'Eclisse left him so angry that he is now a confirmed Antonioni hater. What???

Tune in to this episode and find out what made Teal so angry, and shocked Jim so bad. What film is Jim subbing in for L'Eclisse, and what's the other movie on the list targeted for demotion and why?

All answers will be revealed in this episode of Stuff We've Seen.

Enys Men and Bait: Mark Jenkin, the Celluloid Warrior

Cornish filmmaker Mark Jenkin puts the film back in movie making with his latest offering, Enys Men. This 16mm environmental horror/ filmic poetry tomb is a visual feast for those looking for something further afield. Jim and Teal explore Jenkin's two features, Enys Men, and his 2019 feature debut, Bait. Both movies create an atmosphere all their own, with a look unlike anything else out there.

Also, to start off this episode, Jim gives Teal a report on seeing Med Hondo's 1977 film, West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves of Liberty, which he caught at a rare screening at the Harvard Film Archive.

2022 BFI Sight & Sound Greatest Films List: Examining the Worst Selections

BFI 250 list, we just can quit you. Jim is still on his mission to see all 264 films on the 2022 Sight & Sound Critics Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time List. On this episode, Teal quizzes Jim on some of his least favorite selections from the list. While they are not all bad films in Jim's opinion, he found it difficult to reconcile the motives behind their inclusion on a critic's list of ten of the greatest films to include.

Easter Films: Jim and Teal Get Biblical

That's right, all your Easter favorites, from Ben-Hur and The King of Kings, to Passion of the Christ and The Last Temptation of Christ, Jim and Teal cover the films that make springtime, springtime. Get ready for J&T's version of Sunday school where minister Jim teaches Teal a thing or two about the New Testament.

The French New Wave: Jim and Teal Go Boating

It's time for a shaggy dog tale, or time to get taking for a story ride with Jim and Teal as they explore two films from the latter portion of the French New Wave. Let's call it, the French Next Wave, with filmmakers such as Jacques Rivette and Jean Eustache taking the helm, and making their mark in the 1970s.

On this week's episode, Jim and Teal discuss two films from the BFI 2022 top 250 Greatest films of all time list, Celine and Julie Go Boating, and The Mother and the Whore. Jim challenged Teal to see both these films, and in this episode Jim will find out if Teal liked these movies, and Teal will find out why Jim challenged him to see him.

Catch up with a couple of lesser-known films in the U.S. with this stroll down the podcast lake.

2023 Oscar Predictions: No Country for Old Wells

Since Jim and Teal won't be taping a post-Oscar's episode they wanted to weigh in on the big night and talk about 2023 Oscar Predictions before the show. Will Everything Everywhere All at Once be the big winner of the night, or could there be some surprises in store this year? Signs point to an unpredictable night in several categories.

Speaking of Oscar predictions, and the discussion around them, Jim takes issue with two opposite approaches to the Oscar conversation. First, is what Jim feels is a dishonest take from film critic Peter Travers. Next, Jim zeroes in on film-coverage bad-boy, Jeff Wells. Once, a must read for Jim, Wells' longtime column on his site, Hollywood Elsewhere, has taken a bizarre turn to anti-wokes'ville, and Jim takes particular issue with Wells' relentless takedown of Everything Everywhere All at Once. Can Teal find some common ground with the internet film raconteur?

 

Oh, and there is still enough time in the episode for Jim and Teal to tell you how much they hated Knock at the Cabin.