For Screen and Country

A little side hustle...   In a bit of an excursion, Brendan and Jason take a week off from the list to discuss the new Downton Abbey film and also talk about other TV shows that have been adapted to the big-screen. What is the secret to making them great? What causes some of them to fail? What are some of the best and some of the worst ones? Take a listen and find out!   The guys also roll the dic...

Bad News Bears... kinda. This week, Brendan and Jason go back to the more obscure flicks (at least to these doe-eyed Canucks) with 1954's The Belles of St. Trinian's. Much discussion is had about Alastair Sim and his amazing dual performance, the character of Flash Harry, pushing the boundaries of censorship and much more. Next week: The guys take a break from the list and discuss the Downton Abbe...

Bow before your majesty!  This week, Brendan and Jason dive into the second-most-recently released film on the list - 1998's Elizabeth. The guys discuss the large amount of historical inaccuracies and if it takes away from the film's quality or not, they discuss the unique visuals one would not expect in a 'stuffy' costume drama, they break down one of the weirdest awards races ever and of course...

What if you suddenly realized you were a foreigner in your own land?! That's what happens in this week's film as residents of a small town called Pimlico suddenly come in possession of a document that proves that they are indeed betrothed to Burgundy, France in Passport to Pimlico. Brendan and Jason discuss some decidedly lighter fare this week in the form of an Ealing Studios comedy with lots of...

EPIC. The long wait is over as Brendan and Jason finally tackle the David Lean epic to end all epics - Lawrence of Arabia. The film is dissected inside and out from the slightly problematic casting to the amazing performance by Peter O'Toole, the film's obvious influence on Steven Spielberg (and a wealth of others), the accuracy of the film's representation of T.E. Lawrence's life, the beautiful d...

Down. With. Unions. This week, Brendan and Jason talk about I'm All Right Jack, an even-handed comedic attack on unions and labour bosses as well as government and corporations. The discussion ranges everywhere from the amazing performance from Peter Sellers to some of the details that don't age particularly well to the massive influence this film had on much more well-known flicks to the origin o...

Finally - the Master of Suspense gets his spot! This week, Brendan and Jason dissect one of the early films of quite possibly the most well-known film director of all-time, Alfred Hitchcock's The 39 Steps. What follows is a discussion about the very modern fast pace of the film, how the film may have inspired every wrongfully-accused man-on-the-run movie ever (or even every piece of escapist ficti...

... Or is this podcast just a figment of your imagination? This week, Brendan and Jason attempt to piece the clues together when discussing Michelangelo Antonioni's arthouse classic Blow-Up. The guys talk about everything including the casual sexism, the theory about the 'lost footage' which would partially explain the 'unfinished' ending, the appearance by the Yardbirds and much more. Plus: sever...

Jason is still out enjoying wedded bliss so we take one more week off and present another episode of What Were They Thinking? where Brendan and Nathan were joined by the soon-to-tie-a-knot co-host to talk all about Wing Commander and how it is probably the worst thing that could have come out of the successful videogame franchise.   Next week: Jason returns at the end of this episode just in time...

Jason is away and getting married this week so we are presenting a very special episode of What Were They Thinking? in which Brendan and Nathan were joined by Jason to discuss the Nicolas Cage/Brian DePalma flick Snake Eyes.   Next week: Another episode of What Were They Thinking? featuring Jason as a guest.   Full List: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BFI_Top_100_British_films Facebook: https://www...

It's the longest most action-packed fact-filled episode of the show thus far! This week, Brendan and Jason return to the list to discuss Terry Gilliam's bizarre satirical film Brazil. The discussion goes everywhere from everything that was on-screen like Robert Deniro's character perhaps being a figment of someone's imagination, the meaning behind all the hallucinatory dreams and the casting of Mi...

For the month of July (and first week of August), Brendan and Jason explore movies that are somehow connected to the ones they've previously covered on the BFI Top 100. And now... for something completely similar...   This week, Brendan and Jason round up the discussion with a pretty obscure one. After the success of 1959's Room at the Top there is of course nowhere to go but SEQUEL! Based on the...

For the month of July, Brendan and Jason explore movies that are somehow connected to the ones they've previously covered on the BFI Top 100. And now... for something completely similar...   This week, Brendan and Jason get prim and proper for the 2008 mini-series adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility. The guys get right into it with some fairly problematic comments from the show's wri...

For the month of July, Brendan and Jason explore movies that are somehow connected to the ones they've previously covered on the BFI Top 100. And now... for something completely similar...   This week, the guys discuss Zulu Dawn, the prequel to Zulu (#31 on the BFI Top 100) and the film that tells a much more tragic story. They discuss the level of politics in both films, the presence of way too m...

For the month of July, Brendan and Jason explore movies that are somehow connected to the ones they've previously covered on the BFI Top 100. And now... for something completely similar... For this week, Brendan and Jason welcome their first official guests on the show in the form of Steve and Izzy of Everything I Learned from Movies (https://eilfm.podbean.com) to talk about the 2002 miniseries ad...

For the month of July, Brendan and Jason explore movies that are somehow connected to the ones they've previously covered on the BFI Top 100. And now... for something completely similar... For this flick, the guys cover another Shakespeare adaptation with Kenneth Branagh's 1989 version of Henry V. As you may remember, the Laurence Olivier version is ranked #18 on the BFI Top 100 while this one is...

For the month of July, Brendan and Jason explore movies that are somehow connected to the ones they've previously covered on the BFI Top 100. And now... for something completely similar... First on the docket is the 2015 BBC television remake of The Go-Between (the 1971 original was #57 on the list). The guys discuss the differences and similarities between both works including cutting one charact...

DONGS-OUT FILMMAKING! Brendan and Jason discuss the existential crises of 1969's Women in Love directed by the infamous and controversial Ken Russell and starring the likes of Oliver Reed and Alan Bates. The guys go deep on this very divisive film and discuss the shocking "wrestling" scene, they discuss how this film isn't really "about" the women despite the title suggesting otherwise, Oliver Ree...

A feminist spin on the male-dominated kitchen sink drama? Things get a little refreshing this week as Brendan and Jason head back to the frequently-seen (on this list) kitchen sink drama but this one ends up being... a little different. The guys discuss A Taste of Honey and marvel at all of the touchy matters being explored like abortion, interracial relationships and homosexuality to name just a...

Jason's got "s--t to do" so this week, the guys have a smaller-than-usual episode (not really mini) talking about some of their favourite British television past and present. They discuss all the classics as Jason recollects old memories and Brendan has like two picks.   Plus: The guys roll the dice to find out what movie they'll be covering next week. What are YOUR favourite British TV shows?   F...

Did you know that Bob Hoskins is in fact a British man? Brendan and Jason talk all about the Bob Hoskins/Cathy Tyson crime caper Mona Lisa. With this being a Neil Jordan film, there are some discussions on how the film handles race and sexuality, how Bob Hoskins does most of his best acting without even using words, the connections between Simone and a much more famous character in a later Neil Jo...

Well, this is definitely a tad different than last week's film... Brendan and Jason explore the world of Italy with a film about a grieving couple dealing with the supernatural (or maybe lack thereof?) and their own shortcomings as they try to move on with their lives. Yes, it's Nicolas Roeg's bizarre arthouse horror film Don't Look Now. The guys talk about everything including the interesting edi...

The next fifth of the list begins with a quaint little character study/environmental film in Bill Forsyth's charming opus Local Hero. Brendan and Jason open their hearts to this film's tiny little Scotland locale and its vast array of charming characters, the fairy tale aspect to the story, Burt Lancaster's super bizarre aversion therapy and much more. Plus: The guys roll the dice to find out what...

The first 20 movies are in the bag so Brendan and Jason are dishing out awards for their favourite performances, most uncomfortable scenes and so much more! The guys also provide their individual definitive ranking of the first 20 films covered thus far from Doctor Zhivago to Room at the Top.   Plus: The guys roll the dice to find out what movie they'll be covering next week as part of the next cr...

It's time for yet another British tale about an Angry Young Man and class struggle as Laurence Harvey has trouble deciding between two lovely ladies in 1959's Room at the Top. Brendan and Jason dive deep into this kitchen sink drama and discuss many things including questioning if the main character truly loves either woman, Simone Signoret's dynamo Oscar-winning performance, the very depressing f...