MIGHTY MOVIE PODCAST
By Dan Persons
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Podcast Description
Feed your film jones with MIGHTY MOVIE PODCAST! In every 10 - 15 minute episode, you'll join film journalist Dan Persons (Independent Film Channel; Air America) as he takes you behind the scenes for a lively conversation with some of the most innovative and intriguing filmmakers working today.
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1 |
Cinefantastique Spotlight: BATTLESHIP | The aliens have landed! Yes. Again. This time theyâve invaded off the coast of Hawaii, so itâs just like Pearl Harbor, if the attack on Pearl Harbor had included such devastating weaponry as Giant Exploding Pegs and Hot-Rodding Robot Fireballs. Can slacker sailor Alex Hopper (Taylor Kitsch), finding himself in command of the lone, surviving ship and assisted by crewmate Rihanna and visiting captain Tadanobu Asano (just to prove weâre all over Pearl Harbor), find a way of defeating the enemy? Can Hopperâs fiancee Brooklyn Decker, with the help of (actual) double amputee Greg Gadson, destroy the island-based satellite substation before the invading force can signal their cohorts, even as her father, the Admiral (Liam Neeson), stands on the sidelines, shaking his fist and screaming, âHopperrrrrr!!!â (not really, but close enough)? Câmon, itâs a movie based on a board game â are these really questions? Come join Cinefantastique Onlineâs Steve Biodrowski, Lawrence French, and Dan Persons as they debate whether director Peter Berg might have been better served doing a film called CROCODILE DENTIST. Also: Dan gives his capsule review of LOVELY MOLLY, the new exercise in ominous horror by BLAIR WITCHâs Eduardo Sanchez. Plus: Whatâs coming to theaters. HEY! LIKE US ON FACEBOOK (Please?) | 5/21/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Cinefantastique Spotlight: DARK SHADOWS | Two hundred years is a long time to revive a vampire, but then again, forty years is long time to revive the first horror soap opera (not counting an earlier, feature adaptation and a TV reboot in the '90s). In Tim Burton's Dark Shadows, Barnabas Collins (Johnny Depp) is cursed into vampirehood by spurned lover Angelique (Eva Green) in the 18th century and is buried alive (undead?) to await his unearthing in the 1970's. What he finds is the family fishing empire in ruins, the occupants of stately Collinswood manor -- including Michelle Pfeiffer as matriarch, Helena Bonham Carter as drunk doctor, Jackie Earle Haley as drunker handyman, and Bella Heathcote as a nanny who bears a striking resemblance to Barnabas' lost love Josette -- devolved into feckless dissolution, and Carpenters music everywhere. It will take the formidable powers of the Nosferatu to rescue the accursed clan, and prove that there is indeed life after undeath. Cinefantastique Online's Steve Biodrowski, Lawrence French, and Dan Persons have seen the film, and sit down to discuss whether Burton's more comedic take on Dark Shadows' melodramatics are worth the trip back to the Me Decade. Also in this show: What's coming to theaters. | 5/14/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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3 |
Nadine Labaki on WHERE DO WE GO NOW? | A comedy about dire consequences, WHERE DO WE GO NOW? takes a look at the ease with which humanity slips into war, and the sometimes insurmountable difficulties that arise as people struggle to avoid it. Setting the film in a small Lebanese village where Christian and Muslim live side-by-side, director/writer/actress Nadine Labaki tells the tale of women -- wives and mothers who have seen too many husbands and sons claimed in pointless battles -- attempting to stave off another religious conflict through methods ranging from dissuading the men folk with direct entreaties to distracting them with a bus full of Ukrainian strippers (U.N, take note: works better than a planeload of old white guys). As with her previous film, CARAMEL, Labaki manages to mix an empathetic understanding of human tragedy with warm, wry humor. For so gentle an outlook, the film has a powerhouse impact, which made it a genuine pleasure to talk with Labaki for this episode. WHERE DO WE GO NOW? Trailer [youtube Hf1sW3YI1GE nolink] Official Website: wheredowegonowmovie.com | 5/11/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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4 |
Cinefantastique Spotlight: THE AVENGERS | There are so many ways a grand conglomeration of super heroes could turn into a car wreck (case in point: THE FANTASTIC FOUR), that we should be grateful when a film manages just to clear that bar. Fortunately, and quite happily, THE AVENGERS not only manages that base-line feat, but goes far beyond it, becoming a rare example of a top-notch comic book movie. Granted, the team-up of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), and The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), aided and abetted by Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), doesnât boast much more than a bare-essentials plot â demigod Loki (Tom Hiddleston) wants to take over the Earth âcuz⦠well, just âcuz â but under the direction of Joss Whedon, the proceedings offer enough kick-ass action and delicious character moments that plot barely matters. Come join Cinefantastique Onlineâs Steve Biodrowski, Lawrence French and Dan Persons as they break down the first official blockbuster of summer 2012 to find out what makes it pop and where it fizzles. Also: Whatâs coming to theaters. | 5/7/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Temple of Bad: SGT. PEPPER’S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND | Like a black velvet reproduction of Guernica, SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND, the movie, takes one of the landmark works of art of the twentieth century and renders it shallow, pointless and silly. Included in its list of crimes: entrusting the Beatles' most innovative work to the likes of the Bee Gees, Peter Frampton, Steve Martin and Alice Cooper, among an almost infinite roster of incomprehensible casting choices; and placing the whole mess in the hands of a director who was clearly incapable of telling a coherent story (the magical musical instruments need to be stolen because why? And how exactly does that lead to the charming town of Heartland, U.S.A. being turned into Pottersville?), but never met a cheapjack, circa seventies special effects trope he didn't like. Does that mean the film should be avoided like the plague? Aw, hell, no -- here is a musical (rock opera, actually) so wrongheaded in all its aspects that it manages to work its way around to inventing its own brand of awesomeness -- terrible awesomeness, to be sure, but awesome nevertheless. All of which makes it perfect for worship upon the altar of the Temple of Bad. Come join Andrea Lipinski, Keven Lauderdale, and Dan Persons as they delve into this singular time capsule of seventies pop culture, style, and, most of all, hair, and have a few larfs at its expense. SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND Trailer [youtube PQf5Q9NQvhA nolink] Theme I Wonder If God was Sleeping by scottaltham | 5/4/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Cinefantastique Spotlight: THE RAVEN | If truth is stranger than fiction, then can a serial killer inspired by the eminently strange writings of Edgar Allan Poe be said to be even stranger still? In THE RAVEN, a mad murderer has managed to engineer the deaths of his victims in ways that accurately (and in some cases, implausibly) replicate the works of one of the true geniuses of horror, and only Poe (John Cusack) can break the clues that will end the crime spree. Cinefantastique Onlineâs Steve Biodrowski, Lawrence French, and Dan Persons sit down to contrast the film with its source materials and discuss whether director James McTeigue (V FOR VENDETTA) has succeeded in turning Poeâs baroque fantasies into a compelling dark mystery. Also in the show: A brief conversation of THE HOBBITâs less-than-triumphant technical sneak preview, and whatâs coming to theaters. | 4/30/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Cinefantastique Spotlight: THE CABIN IN THE WOODS | Joss Whedon has just been the busy, busy little bee lately, hasnât he? He was one of the producers of the Morgan Spurlock documentary COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FANâS HOPE last week; heâs the director of eagerly awaited THE AVENGERS, coming up in May; and this past weekend he produced and helped co-write THE CABIN IN THE WOODS with first-time director Drew Goddard (who previously wrote CLOVERFIELD). A deconstruction of the by-now-well-known stock âslasherâ horror movie, CABIN takes its clutch of cliche teenagers (played by Kristen Connolly, THORâs Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchinson, DOLLHOUSEâs Fran Kranz and Jesse Williams) besieged in a country cabin by a family of zombie sadists, and twists the scenario around by having it being monitored and manipulated by a bunch of shirt-sleeve, nine-to-fiver types (including Richard Jenkins, Amy Acker, and Bradley Whitford), for mysterious ends. Join Cinefantastique Onlineâs Steve Biodrowski, Lawrence French, and Dan Persons as they critique the critique, looking into what Goddard and Whedon bring to the (torture) table above and beyond a replication of the form, how the filmâs mythology holds up under close scrutiny, and whether the SCREAM franchise has anything to worry about. Then, the gang takes a capsule look at the outer space prison riot film LOCKOUT. Plus: Whatâs coming in theaters. | 4/16/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Philippe Falardeau on MONSIEUR LAZHAR | An Oscar nominee this year for foreign language film, Philippe Falardeau's MONSIEUR LAZHAR finds finely-shaded drama in a venue that has defeated many a filmmaker: a classroom full of children. Partly that's because of the situation: In a Montreal elementary school, a teacher commits suicide, and the desperate principal calls upon a volunteer -- Algerian immigrant Bachir Lazhar -- to serve as substitute. Partly it's due to casting, with relaxed, believable performances from the children -- including that of Sophie Nélisse and Ãmilion Néron as the two kids most deeply affected by the loss -- and Algerian comedian and actor Fellag bringing a gentle authority to Lazhar, a man who's as much in need of healing as his young charges. And largely it's due to Falardeau's keen observation of the modern-day ecology of a school, his fine, affecting portrayal of the interplay between adult and child, teacher and student, and his ability to build drama that only gains in power from its steadfast avoidance of the melodramatic. Click on the player to hear my interview with Falardeau. MONSIEUR LAZHAR Trailer [youtube NTQOCDnumEc nolink] Official Website www.monsieurlazharmovie.com | 4/13/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Cinefantastique Spotlight: BURN, WITCH, BURN | Tricky situation this week: Two genre releases, but one, while good, is getting a very limited release to start; the other, while making it to more venues, doesnât quite merit the attention. So weâre dipping into our 50th Anniversary archives to bring out a goody from 1962: BURN, WITCH, BURN (a.k.a. NIGHT OF THE EAGLE). The tale of college professor who comes to grief when he insists his wife quit employing supernatural forces to help him advance his career, the film boasts a script by Charles Beaumont and Richard Matheson â based on Fritz Leiberâs Conjure Wife â some impressive performances (particularly by Janet Blair as the conjuring spouse), an overall handsome production, and, in the American release, a Paul Frees-voiced prologue that has to be heard to be believed. This weekâs main topic was proposed by Cinefantastique Online managing editor Steve Biodrowski and he joins Lawrence French and Dan Persons to discuss what works and whatâs just a little silly in this little-known but very satisfying exercise in modern-day horror. Then Steve weighs in on the weekâs (semi-)major release, the claustrophobic thriller ATM, and Dan gives his opinion on Morgan Spurlockâs elaborate documentary, COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FANâS HOPE. | 4/8/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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10 |
Morgan Spurlock on COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FAN’S HOPE | For some, it is Valhalla; for others, it is a seething, roiling, chaotic pit of humanity. For many, I suspect, it's a phenomenon just slightly more indecipherable than Naked Lunch. It is San Diego Comic-Con, and documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, with the help of Stan Lee, Joss Whedon, and aintitcool's Harry Knowles, has endeavored to crack the code in COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FAN'S HOPE. Rallying a massive production unit and focusing in on a handful of attendees that include a couple of aspiring artists, a costumer seeking to catch attention with her ambitious creations, and an old-school vendor wondering whether there are any comics left at the con -- plus celebrity interviews from the likes of Kevin Smith, Guillermo del Toro, and Seth Rogen -- Spurlock cuts through the myths of obsessive behavior, social awkwardness and bad hygiene (although there's plenty of that, as well) to create a more human portrait of the people who have found pleasure and fulfillment in the worlds of genre media, and the event where they can let their geek flags fly. Click on the player to hear my interview with Spurlock. COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FAN'S HOPE Trailer [youtube 9iyg5gB3nT8 nolink] Official Website: comicconmovie.com | 4/6/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
| Total: 10 Episodes |
Customer Reviews
Great Podcast
Short, sweet, and to the point describes this podcast to the letter. In fifteen minutes, Dan presents the best in filmmaking with its writers, producers, directors, and actors in brief interviews. Definitely worth subscription price! ;) Keep it up, Dan.
Finally an intelligent podcast for serious film lovers
Not a "critique," but a concise yet penetrating examination of new films via revealing interviews with the filmmakers themselves. Dan Persons is the Charlie Rose of filmmaker interviewers, asking intelligent and intriguing questions based on his extensive knowledge of filmmaking and popular culture. The more you care about movies, the more you will love this podcast.
The Interview You Want
Mighty Movie Podcast is brought to you by Dan Persons, who goes out and interviews a director of current movies in the theater. Dan’s podcast is very insightful and has very balanced questions. For example, his interview with Ang Lee on his movie, Taking Woodstock, is interesting when the topic of homosexuality during Woodstock arises. Though the movie didn’t have the greatest outcome in the box office, this insight in movies from the directors really connects me as the audience to the film in a greater way. Now I feel I actually have a better understanding of what was going inside the director’s mind as he was making the movie. Dan is a great interviewer who you can really lean back and listen to. The format is typical, where Dan first teases the film, gives us part of the trailer, and then commences with the interview. There are some audio problems here and there, but nothing that can’t be fixed in future episodes. With a little polishing here or there, future interviews with directors, writers, and filmmakers will allow the audience to really let the podcast grow. What I would like to see is some audience participation in asking questions, perhaps. It would be nice to have some twitter feed, or other platform, in which we know upcoming interviews he may have and questions we could ask for ourselves. Other than that, Mighty Movie Podcast really gives independent films some press as I just recently found the movie “We Live in Public” and want to go see it badly. So after this review, I’m going to download that episode where Dan interviews Ondi Timoner, the director of that film. Check out the podcast, which is updated constantly on his blog.
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