For Screen and Country

Brendan and Jason go back to films somewhat related to movies on the BFI Top 100 with And Now for Something Completely Similar.   While maintaining social distance, Brendan and Jason discuss the BBC television adaptation of The 39 Steps released in 2008. Much is discussed such as the way in which the screenplay 'modernizes' the female companion, Hannay acting way too much like James Bond, more pal...

Brendan and Jason go back to films somewhat related to movies on the BFI Top 100 with And Now for Something Completely Similar.   With the surprisingly low-ranked and eerie 1973 original The Wicker Man already on the list, Brendan and Jason welcome back Steve and Izzy from Everything I Learned from Movies to talk all about the 2006 remake starring Nicolas Cage. They discuss everything from Neil La...

Brendan and Jason go back to films somewhat related to movies on the BFI Top 100 with And Now for Something Completely Similar.   Following the legendary Lawrence of Arabia (#3 on the list), the guys talk about the follow-up nearly thirty years later - Lawrence After Arabia starring Ralph Fiennes in the title role. They discuss the difficulty of following up a war epic with a very small-scale movi...

Brendan and Jason go back to films somewhat related to movies on the BFI Top 100 with And Now for Something Completely Similar.   First up on the docket is Ken Russell's The Rainbow, an adaptation of D.H. Lawrence's book of the same name and the film that takes place before Women in Love (#87 on the BFI Top 100) in the literature timeline. The guys discuss lots of stuff like the movie starting wit...

In a departure from the usual claptrap, your hosts take a look at a recent (!) movie in the form of the Oscar-winning film, 1917. Marvel at Jason's encyclopedic knowledge of war history, weigh in on the debate about the "one continuous take" being immersive or distracting, listen in as George Mackay's award season snub is discussed and also enjoy one really bizarre recommendation at the end.   Nex...

It's time to get dark as Brendan and Jason tackle the black comedy The Ladykillers featuring Jason's hottest take on a film thus far! The two also spend most of the episode praising the performances of Alec Guinness and Katie Johnson, they talk about Peter Sellers being criminally under-utilized, Alexander Mackendrick's warped world-view, the heist scene and much more. Next week: The guys take a b...

It's time to get your bassoons, flugels and what-not and talk all about the 90s tale of a poor coal mining town on the brink of mass unemployment - Brassed Off. Brendan and Jason discuss everything in the film including the incredibly misleading marketing in America (along with the hilariously inaccurate trailer), Stephen Tompkinson's great tortured performance, the wonderful brass band soundtrack...

British gangsters galore! This week, Brendan and Jason talk all about The Long Good Friday (#21 on the list), the film that established Bob Hoskins as an acting phenomenon. They'll talk all about Hoskins' tour-de-force performance especially during the final moments of the film, they discuss the lack of a musical score, the stories about Helen Mirren fighting for her character behind the scenes, t...

Pre-conceived notions are challenged this week as the guys discuss Shakespeare in Love (#49) aka the flick that won Best Picture over Saving Private Ryan. Brendan and Jason also debate the ending, talk about the surprising performance from Ben Affleck, they discuss the troubled history of Miramax and Harvey Weinstein and much more. The guys also roll the dice to find out what they'll be watching n...

Back to David Lean with his take on the Charles Dickens classic Great Expectations, which is apparently the FIFTH best British movie of all-time! The guys dive into the early work of Lean and how a seemingly smaller-scale film still brandishes his vast filmmaking style, they marvel at the horror elements on full display, they admire the loving homage to the film in a certain juggernaut of an anima...

Albert Finney is an angry young man... and he starts off the next batch of 20 movies with the kitchen sink drama Saturday Night and Sunday Morning. Brendan and Jason discuss Finney's earlier acting days, the way in which the film approaches some very delicate subjects like abortion and infidelity, the rigid production design of the film and much more. The guys also roll the dice to find out what t...

The time has arrived.   Brendan and Jason have covered the next round of 20 films (40 in total!) on the BFI Top 100 and so comes the moment to crown performances, cinematography and... racism? Ah yes, truly the most wonderful time of the year. We also get the official rankings! Did Jason care as much about Don't Look Now as Brendan did? How do the guys differ on Dr. No? And which rankings are pret...

Teaching is one of the most underrated professions in the entire world and so what could be better to celebrate them than by discussing the 1939 classic, Goodbye Mr. Chips. The guys discuss some of the lamest schoolboy pranks, the performance of Robert Donat as he plays MANY different ages, the influence on modern 'inspirational teacher' films, the life of legendary producer Irving G. Thalberg and...

To pod or not to pod? That is the question that Brendan and Jason attempt to answer this week when they discuss the 1948 version of Hamlet (#69 on the list). Is this as worthy as Olivier's Henry V? Are Olivier's interpretations truly the definitive representation of Shakespeare? How does this film differ from other takes on the play? What about Kenneth Branagh, huh?! All that and more on a new epi...

In the conclusion of the Brit Picks mini-series, Brendan and Jason go to the audience and end up discussing the very divisive Jonathan Glazer (again) film, Under the Skin. The fearsome duo end up discussing the very nature of humanity as presented in the film, the effective use of non-actors in many pivotal scenes, the technique behind the sound design and lack of dialogue and much more. Plus: the...

In a quick little aside, former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien is joined by Hollywood legend Jimmy Stewart to ring in the new year!   Brendan and Jason return next week with a full episode as they discuss the final Brit Pick - Under the Skin.   Full List: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BFI_Top_100_British_films Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/forscreenandcountry Twitter: https://www.twitt...

No full episode this week but not to worry because your favourite Southern gentleman, Santa Claus himself, paid the show a little visit to spread some down-home Christmas cheer.   Next week: More nonsense! The show returns with a final edition of Brit Picks discussing Under the Skin on January 6th.   Full List: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BFI_Top_100_British_films Facebook: https://www.facebook....

In the final full-length episode of 2019, Brendan and Jason talk about a Christmas movie that ought to be in consideration for a revival of the BFI Top 100 - the 1951 television staple Scrooge. Many things are pondered in this episode - are the Cratchetts TOO schmaltzy? Is Alastair Sim truly the greatest Scrooge of all-time? Why does Jimmy Stewart keep invading the podcast? Is he even British? All...

DISCLAIMER: There was a bit of an audio malfunction this week so Jason sounds like he's in another room or very far away. Rest assured, it will be normal going forward after this week's episode. The audio is still fairly clear.   Brendan completely changes the tone on this week's show when he fights for the inclusion of Mike Leigh's uplifting comedy-drama Happy-Go-Lucky. In a film where the streng...

This week, the guys bring the first of four off-brand episodes with an in-depth discussion of a possible future BFI Top 100 list contender in Jonathan Glazer's Sexy Beast. Jason makes his case for the possible canonization of this film and they go deep on Ben Kingsley's outstanding performance, the differences between this and a typical British gangster film, the story behind the scenes involving ...

It's time for another epic as Brendan and Jason tackle the 1982 Richard Attenborough-directed biopic Gandhi. Is this one of the best performances of all-time with Ben Kingsley's Oscar-winning acting? Do the guys differ on their opinions of the movie as a whole? How are the American characters portrayed in the movie? All this and more in this week's episode! Next week: The first edition of Brit Pic...

This week, Brendan and Jason go back to the James Bond well with the movie that started it all - Dr. No. There were things that didn't hold up very well in Goldfinger but did this movie have more of the same? Were Jason's worries put to rest with there being less 'walking around' then he expected? The guys get into the iconic moments from the film, the slightly problematic representations of peopl...

This week, the guys investigate a very strange sort of biopic where anachronisms matter not and historical accuracy be damned! Derek Jarman's strange spectacle Caravaggio is dissected (insofar as much as the guys can parse the happenings in it) while special attention is also paid to the crazy life of Jarman himself, we get two very early performances by both Sean Bean and Tilda Swinton and Americ...

This week, Brendan and Jason learn all there is to know about The Crying Game with #26 on the BFI Top 100. It's a film that was considered revolutionary at the time for its stance on gender politics but does it stand the test of time or is it dated in 2019? The guys also delve into the underrated performance of Miranda Richardson, whether the "twist" is ever going to fool anyone in today's age and...

Happy Halloween! In celebration of the spookiest time of year, Brendan and Jason decide to talk all about The Wicker Man - the 1973 cult classic that inspired the Nicolas Cage remake. Is this film arguably just as weird as the film that succeeded it? Our main character is a 43-year old virgin, you say? The guys delve into a lot of the surreal aspects of the film, one star's harsh recounting of the...