Back to the Balcony

A Hollywood comedy director wants to make the great American Drama - it does not go well. Jimmy England wants guest Chris Wuergler and engineer Phil to like it as much as he does. It does not go well. One of the great screwball comedies of all time with a serious core.

If you feel the "need for speed", maybe a movie about a bus isn't your first choice but if you like high-octane adventure and thrills but don't care about reality then Speed is the movie for you. Guest Chris Wuergler and engineer Phil (not surprisingly), loved it. Jimmy just went along for the ride. Another fun episode.

Yes it's our 250th episode as Jimmy and Phil reflect on it all and Phil makes a big announcement. But wait! They also made each other watch a movie as well to talk about. Jimmy chose Sunset Boulevard (and pointed out the surprising similarity to it and the life of Mae West). And Phil chose the modern noir classic, L.A. Confidential. A little nostalgia, a lot of fun.

Guest Ryan Visser joins Jimmy to find the Meaning of Life but find only a legendary sketch group's most underappreciated film or an absurdist train wreck. No one is neutral about this movie.

Guest Mitch McBeaudry displays an impressive amount of religious knowledge while extolling the virtues of the outragious 1999 movie Dogma. Is it intentionally confrontational to religion or is it about a crisis of faith. Funny as always but surprisingly deep and interesting.

Considered by many - including guest Mario Bernardi - to be one of the funniest movies ever made. Both funny and disturbing by today's standards is it still good enought to survive as one of the classics of all times? A fascinating and hilarious examination of what it takes to be timeless.

Another exception as we wander into the new century to test guest Chris Jarvie's theory that the Pixar movie Cars is the greatest movie ever made about, well, cars. Mario Bernardi wades in with his opinion and what happens is a first rate review full of laughs and insights.

What can we say that's new about Raiders of the Lost Ark. Turns out, a lot. Kristian Reimer joins us for what turned into a far ranging and often hilarious discussion about Raiders. Is it a timeless masterpiece that deserved more recognition at Oscar time or just another adventure film? Listen, and judge for yourself.

Scott Faulconbridge is back and he's talking about a movie that's totally different from what he's brought in the past - 1996's Fargo. But is it really all that different? Jimmy think so but Scott makes a convincing argument for a quirky, black comedy masterpiece. He brings a unique vision - if for no other reason than for where he saw it. Funny and engaging. 

Phil and Jim get together again to watch each other's movie choice and discuss them. Phil made Jim watch Inception and Jim made Phil watch Key Largo. Jim got confused, Phil got bemused. So who do you think got it right?

Happy Valentine's Day everybody. It's our special Valentine's episode with everybody's favourite cutie pie Chris Wuergler. Chris brings a little magic with her movie for lovers, 1998's Practical Magic. But is it all that magical? Or practical for that matter. As usual with Chris, it's another fun episode.

It's a different time, a time when the world was black and white and nothing made sense - especially the movie The Big Sleep. It was Chris Wuergler's choice but even she can't make sense of it. What is there about this film noir classic that nobody on the podcast is getting. Maybe it's just the mystique of Bogie? Listen to find out. Another fun episode.

Predator is like catnip to guys - it drives them crazy. Jimmy and Phil host Nik Duncan and surprise guest Ryan Sim to talk about the Sylvester Stallone macho-fest Predator and it turns into three guys wild about the movie while Jimmy rolls his eyes. There must be something to it because the podcast has never seen such enthusiasm. Lots of fun - mostly at Jimmy's expense.

Chris Jarvie and Mario Bernardi return to talk about the sequel to The Thin Man. After finding the original better than they expected, Jimmy pushed them to check out the sequel. Did they like it? Well, some real surprises on that front. It might just convince you to check out an old movie for yourself.

Our second special Christmas episode takes a look at The Muppet Christmas Carol with guests Chris Jarvie and Christine Kinahan. How does it compare to the classic 1951 version? And is a comparison even fair? Has it enhanced the original or just cashed in with Disneylike touches that blow up what Dickens was trying to say? Or is it just a light piece of fluff we all need at Christmas? A fun listen...

Alistair Sim is easily the greatest Scrooge of all time in 1951's "A Christmas Carol" - or "Scrooge", as it's known in the UK. It's a movie that didn't have much success when released in North America but has gone on to become a beloved Christmas classic. Or is beloved to strong a word? Guest Ryan Sim doesn't think so - but then again he's related to Alistair Sim. It's a magical Christmas episode...

Guest Bret Measor wanted to talk about the remake of True Grit, not the original with John Wayne. Jimmy said no so Bret watched the original and blew both his socks off. The result is a fun romp as Bret finds himself starry eyed over one of the great icons of western movies. If it's a trifle long it's because he just had so much he wanted to talk about and we couldn't shut him up. The result is a...

Mario Bernardi revisits his youth with the movie Diner, in some ways the life of every boy wrestling with adulthood and in some ways in a world all its own. Did it hold up with Mario, the man who notoriously doesn't like to revisit old movies? And Jimmy, the host who rarely finds something to love in a movie like this? Either way, it's a fascinating look at big stars who hadn't yet crossed that th...

They don't actually meet Frankenstein but they do meet a bevy of Universal's iconic creatures in this movie that's both funny and even a little chilling. Larry Smith takes us bacik to a different time when Abbott and Costello were the comedy kings of a generation and the way it works for a comedy team. Larry has a record of outstanding podcasts.

Chris Wuergler goes romantic - or is it action oriented? With Chris it's hard to tell. And so is the The Mask of Zorro - just one of the countless retellings of a story that's over a hundred years old that Jimmy insists can't decide what it wants to be. Despite its flaws its kinda fun, as is this podcast with guest engineer, Kristian Reimer.

It's hard to see Chris Wuergler as an action movie afficianato but she's brought us more action movies than anyone else. Trouble is, now she's brought us The Rock, a slam-bam action movie that makes no sense at all - at least according to Jim. Guest engineer Kristian Reimer tries to keep things on an even keel in this episode that's just about as crazy as the movie.

The movie Chris Jarvie has been begging us to talk about. Is it the gem Chris remembers or is he just all caught up in the car racing thing? A little of both maybe but Jimmy and guest engineer Ryan Sim are intrigued by his stories of the race car exerpience. Not just a good movie review but a fascinating look into racing car culture.

Ryan Sim joins Jimmy England to talk about the movie they think the other should watch. For Ryan Sim it's One Hour Photo with Robin Williams in a role that turns his comic persona on its head with a character who's both creepy and sympathetic. Jimmy makes the case for 1956's The Solid Gold Cadillac with Judy Holiday cutting s swath through 1950's big business and advertising that still resonates t...

Personal favourite Bob Kerr returns to extoll the virtues of 1988's remake of The Blob. It was a time of either great creativity moving towards a new way of story telling or sanitized dreck. Take a guess where Jimmy stands on this. A totally fun episode and possibly the only good thing to come out of this movie.

Mario Bernardi saw it when it first came out - but will he still love it thirty-five years later when anything he had in common with it is long gone? And then there's the question of how much sensitive Robin Williams is enough? An episode of surprising depth.