Call It, Friendo

This week, we discuss two films from acclaimed director Jane Campion. The first is In the Cut (2003), a psychological thriller that delves into desire and danger as a woman becomes entangled in a murder investigation. The second is The Piano (1993), which tells the haunting story of a mute pianist whose arranged marriage in colonial New Zealand ignites a turbulent journey of passion and autonomy....

This week, we discuss two depressing Scandinavian films. The first is Aniara (2018), which follows a spaceship of passengers drifting hopelessly through space, confronting existential despair after veering off course. The second is Melancholia (2011), which centres on two sisters grappling with personal and cosmic doom as a rogue planet threatens to destroy Earth.   Timestamps What we’ve been watc...

This week, we discuss two films starring Jack Nicholson. The first is The Witches of Eastwick (1987), which blends dark comedy and supernatural chaos as three women discover their powers, and a devilish visitor, in a small town. The second is Terms of Endearment (1983), which traces the complex, tender and often turbulent bond between a mother and daughter over decades of love and loss.   Timestam...

This week, we discuss two Martin Scorsese films dealing with Christianity. The first is The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which presents a deeply human portrait of Jesus, torn between divine duty and earthly desires. The second is Silence (2016), which follows two Jesuit priests facing persecution and crisis of faith while searching for their mentor in 17th-century Japan.   Timestamps What we’...

This week, we discuss two American sports films from 1979. The first is North Dallas Forty (1979), which exposes the gritty underside of professional American football, where painkillers, politics and profit overshadow the game The second is Breaking Away (1979), which follows a group of working-class friends navigating identity, dreams and class divisions in a college town through the lens of com...

This week, we discuss two classic British films from Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. The first is Black Narcissus (1947), which explores the psychological unraveling of nuns in a remote Himalayan convent as desire and isolation take hold. The second is The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943), which traces the life of a British officer through love, war and friendship, challenging ideas o...

This week, we discuss two historical dramas about political resistance. The first is Peterloo (2018), which tells the harrowing story of the 1819 massacre in Manchester, where peaceful protesters were met with deadly force while demanding political reform. The second is The Wind that Shakes the Barley (2006), which follows two brothers caught on opposite sides of Ireland’s fight for independence a...

This week, we discuss two horror films from director Tobe Hooper. The first is The Funhouse (1981), which follows a group of teens who sneak into a carnival funhouse for a night of thrills, only to be hunted by a monstrous killer lurking within. The second is Poltergeist (1982), which tells the story of a suburban family whose home becomes haunted by vengeful spirits, leading to a desperate fight...

This week, we discuss two films from the Wachowski siblings. The first is Cloud Atlas (2012), an epic science fiction film which weaves together six interconnected stories across time and space, exploring how individual actions ripple through history to shape destinies. The second is Bound (1996), a neo-noir erotic crime thriller where two women plot to steal from the mob, igniting a tense game of...

This week, we discuss two films which delve into the Soviet/Russian psyche. The first is Brother (1997), a neo-noir crime drama which follows a young Russian veteran navigating the criminal underworld of post-Soviet Saint Petersburg, where his code of honor and survival instincts are tested amid violence and betrayal. The second is Come and See (1985), a harrowing journey through the horrors of Wo...

This week, we discuss two films written and directed by John Sayles. The first is Matewan (1987), an historical drama which depicts a tense labour struggle in 1920s West Virginia, where coal miners, faced with brutal oppression from company enforcers, unite in a fight for their rights. The second is Lone Star (1996), a neo-Western which unravels a decades-old mystery in a Texas border town, as a s...

This week, we discuss two films starring, written and directed by Orson Welles. The first is Chimes at Midnight (1966), an historical comedy which follows the rise and fall of Sir John Falstaff, a boisterous yet tragic figure caught between loyalty and political upheaval in Shakespearean England. The second is Touch of Evil (1958), a noir thriller about corruption and moral decay, as a Mexican det...

This week, we discuss two films starring French actor Alain Delon. The first is Purple Noon (1960), an adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith novel “The Talented Mr. Ripley”. In the film, a young man becomes entangled in deception and identity theft while vacationing on the Italian coast, leading to dangerous consequences. The second is The Red Circle (1970), a crime thriller written and directed by...

This week, we discuss two films involving Brady Corbet, the director of The Brutalist. The first is Vox Lux (2018), a musical drama written and directed by Brady Corbet, from a story by Corbet and Mona Fastvold. It follows a pop star who rises to fame after a traumatic event, exploring the intersection of celebrity and personal history. The second is Mysterious Skin (2004), a coming-of-age drama w...

This week, we discuss two vampire films. The first is Daughters of Darkness (1971), an erotic horror film co-written and directed by Harry Kümel and starring Delphine Seyrig, John Karlen, Andrea Rau and Danielle Ouimet. A newlywed couple's honeymoon at a deserted seaside hotel takes a sinister turn when they encounter the enigmatic Countess Bathory, whose seductive and vampiric nature threatens to...

This week, Andy J Ritchie goes through the 10 films that formed him, featuring discussion of pre-9/11 optimism, sad bastard music and the most Scottish form of revenge. Next week, we’re back to regular programming with Daughters of Darkness and Near Dark, so get them watched now!   Links Instagram - @callitfriendopodcast @munnywales @andyjayritchie   Letterboxd – @andycifpod @fat-tits mcmahon   Ju...

This week, we change things up with a completely original idea that was definitely not stolen from a popular film podcast. In this bonus episode, Donnchadh Tiernan runs down his 10 most formative films, surprisingly few of which feature gratuitous nudity.   Links Instagram - @callitfriendopodcast @munnywales @andyjayritchie   Letterboxd – @andycifpod @fat-tits mcmahon   Justwatch.com – streaming a...

This week, we wrap up our best of 2024. We talk about: The top 5 films we watched for the podcast this year The worst film we watched Favourite films of 2024 Biggest disappointment of 2024 Favourite TV series Favourite albums Favourite games Most anticipated for 2025 Thanks for listening! See you in 2025!    Links Instagram - @callitfriendopodcast @munnywales @andyjayritchie   Letterboxd – @andyci...

This week, we discuss two films which take a satirical look at the Hollywood blacklist of the 1950s. The first is The Front (1976), starring Woody Allen as a schmuck who serves as a front for a group of blacklisted writers. Several people involved in the making of the film, including the director, writer and a number of actors, had actually been blacklisted in the early ‘50s. The second is Hail, C...

This week, we discuss two American prison films. The first is Shot Caller, a crime thriller written and directed by Ric Roman Waugh. The film chronicles the transformation of a well-to-do family man, played by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, into a hardened prison gangster trying to survive California's brutal penal system after he is incarcerated for his role in a deadly DUI car accident. The second is O....

This week, we discuss two anthology films. The first is The Decameron (1971), written and directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, based on the 14th-century allegory by Giovanni Boccaccio. It is the first film of Pasolini's Trilogy of Life, the others being The Canterbury Tales and Arabian Nights. Each film was an adaptation of a different piece of classical literature focusing on ribald and often irrelig...

This week, we discuss two films that feature characters being terorrised by vehicles. The first is Christine (1983), a supernatural horror film co-scored and directed by John Carpenter and starring Keith Gordon, John Stockwell, Alexandra Paul, Robert Prosky and Harry Dean Stanton. Adapted from Stephen King's 1983 novel of the same name, the movie follows the changes in the lives of Arnie Cunningha...

This week, we discuss two films that delve into the complex dynamics of political ideology and revolution in the 1960s. The first is The Battle of Algiers (1966), an Italian-Algerian war film co-written and directed by Gillo Pontecorvo. It is based on action undertaken by rebels during the Algerian War (1954–1962) against the French government in North Africa, the most prominent being the eponymou...

This week, we discuss the first two films from acclaimed American director Peter Bogdanovich. The first is Targets (1968), a crime thriller starring Tim O'Kelly, Boris Karloff, Nancy Hsueh and Bogdanovich himself. The film depicts two parallel narratives which converge during the climax: one follows Bobby Thompson, a seemingly ordinary and wholesome young man who embarks on an unprovoked killing s...

This week, we discuss two comedy films from the CCU (Chuck Cinematic Universe). The first is Good Luck Chuck (2007), starring Dane Cook and Jessica Alba. In the film, women find their "one true love" after having sex with a dentist named Chuck (Cook). Chuck meets a girl named Cam (Alba) and tries to become her true love. The second is I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry (2007), starring Adam San...