Gartbage Film

This week is all about death-defying stunts: it's Jackie Chan's Hong Kong action classic, Police Story from 1985! We talk about stunts going good, stunts going bad, and try to determine just how many comedy bits are too many. One lesson we're learning over and over in this podcast is that best movies are spite-based, and you bet that we've got an Injury & Destruction Roundup fo...

Welcome to the final week of the Month with No Name with arguably the most art-house fare of the month: Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man from 1995. We gush about the unbelievable charm of the ensemble cast, praise our local boys Gary Farmer & Neil Young, and spend time with the latter's unique approach to recording Dead Man 's soundtrack. For every western there is an equal and opposite ant...

It's week 3 of the Month of No Name and we're tackling THE spaghetti western of spaghetti westerns: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly from 1966! We talk about how this movie is simultaneously an anti-war epic and a goofy road trip buddy comedy, how Eli Wallach cannot be killed, and Nick can't resist going in-depth on Morricone's iconic soundtrack. It's a historic movie for wester...

For week 2 of the Month with No Name, we're diving into classic revisionist western, 3:10 to Yuma from 1957! We talk about the brilliance of building a plot around a transit schedule, the lure of a charismatic villain vs a weiner loser hero, and how Frankie Laine (who sang the movie's theme song) had a hand in changing movie music history forever. Erin brings us another Your First Rodeo se...

Welcome to the Month with No Name, our salute to westerns! To start things off we are taking a spoiler-filled look at Jane Campion's 2021 neo-western, The Power of the Dog! We talk wife guys, the cinematic power of loneliness, and how Johnny Greenwood crafted the menacing power of a well-played banjo. Not so sure about westerns? Then you'll love our segment for this month on why you might...

It's the last episode of JAN-Uruk-hai-RY, and we're wrapping up fantasy month with Jim Henson's cult classic from 1986, Labyrinth! We discuss whether Sarah's adventure is real or imagined (or if that's even important!), how Labyrinth excels at evoking Real Teen Fears, and how, like in all aspects of life, David Bowie was the boss of this whole enterprise. And, because we're...

We promise this week our episode is fully conceivable: it's Rob Reiner's Princess Bride from 1987! We talk about how this movie hit as a childhood fav vs. a first-time adult watch, Christopher Guest's inherent blankness, and we gotta call out the sheer volume of Mickey Mouse-ing going on in the soundtrack. And we spend a lot of time complimenting Wallace Shawn. Praise Him. Plus, the re...

Welcome to our final Lord of the Rings episode, fittingly the end of the trilogy: it's the Return of the King from 2003! We talk more about the major differences between the extended and theatrical editions, the literally toxic work environment of Mordor, and, yes, everything about Skullvalanche. Plus, it wouldn't be a Lord of the Rings movie without injuries and destruction to round up! N...

JAN-Uruk-hai-RY continues this week with 2002's Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers! We talk about the warning signs to note if you think your King and/or Advisor are evil and/or possessed, the return of Injury & Destruction Roundup, and Nick is mad about Karl Urban. Howard Shore is the star of this episode as Nick breaks down a bit of the composer's history, and how he approached and de...

Welcome to Jan-URUK-HAI-ry! We're kicking off our new year with a month in the fantasy genre with a pretty big one, maybe you've heard of it, Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring from 2001! Beyond discussing the psychic damage caused by this movie being 20 years old and feeling nearly brand-new, we talk about how Jackson's attempts to get this movie mad...

We're rounding out the year on Gartbage Film with a heaping helping of holiday chaos: it's Joe Dante's Gremlins from 1984! We talk about the much, much darker original script, how Dante & Spielberg crafted their fake reality, and the intricacies of Gremlin society (it's mostly clown hammer-based we think?). Plus we wrap up the year by choosing the most diametrically opposed dou...

Do you hear what I hear? It's the first of our two holiday episodes! Join us for a discussion on Frank Capra's 1946 flop-now-classic, It's a Wonderful Life. We talk about approaching a classic for the first time, the deep fantasy lore of Clarence Odbody, and the Capra cinematic universe's implication of a James Stewart cloning campaign. Our double bills this week are nice and famil...

This week Nick & Erin are breaking format for a big spoiler-filled discussion on Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of Dune! We talk about real stillsuits, how Dune refutes the great man theory of history, and we try our best not to say CHOAM. We spice in (heh heh) loads of details on how Villeneuve envisioned and built Dune's universe, plus we go on record to say that psycho-active space d...

We are pivoting from Noivember to the holidays with the perfect movie: the noir Christmas-time horror The Night of the Hunter from 1955! We talk about what this movie says about sex/canning your preserves, what the 1930's looked like through the eyes of a child (not good), and we set a record for number of most unfortunate impressions done on the pod. And we couldn't talk about this movie...

As we near the end of Noirvember we turn our eyes to a yuletide example of the genre: Shane Black's Kiss Kiss Bang Bang from 2005! Join us as we discuss the holiday comforts, our love of Val Kilmer, and how to write from a deep well of spite. Plus, let's learn a little about noir novelist Brett Halliday and his desk full of pen-names. Next week we continue to straddle the line between noir...

This week we are parking in stranger's driveways, harshly critiquing scripts, and living in past glory: it's Billy Wilder's noir masterpiece, Sunset Boulevard from 1950! We talk about Wilder's fascination with movies on movies, red flags all freelancers should recognize, and that yes, Sunset Boulevard is actually a street name. Plus, a short history on why Norma Desmond could only...

Noirvember continues with 1988's Who Framed Roger Rabbit! Join us as we discuss the effect this movie has on a child's mind, our righteous love of Bob Hoskins, and the wonderfully stupid rules of Robert Zemeckis' 'toons and their city. We learn a lot about the lengths they went to to combine live-action with cartoons (including the resulting halliucinations) and what didn't mak...

It's Noirvember and we're kicking things off on a stylish foot: Bill Duke's 1992 cop drama, Deep Cover! It's got Laurence Fishburne, Jeff Goldblum, a rad hip hop soundtrack, and is generally just cool as hell. Join us as we discuss upwards mobility in the drug trade, what sets Deep Cover apart from other noirs, the very worst job interview question, and Goldblum wearing eyeliner. P...

It's the final episode of spooky season, and we are wrapping up in style: with a campy Vincent Price movie: Theater of Blood from 1973. We talk about what makes a performance "good", the many faces of Diana Rigg, and how to drink meth. But Price is our main course. We discuss the man's personal history, how we interpret his performances, his time as Egghead, and most importantly, h...

Join Nick & Erin as your invisible hosts for James Whale's the Invisible Man from 1933! They discuss maniacal laughter, the importance of scheduling your murders, and the star/decibel power of Una O'Connor. Ever wonder how one makes a man invisible in 1933? What about if he was on Mars? Is it worth consulting the original book you're adapting while writing the screenplay? And just...

Sure hope you like eerie organ music, because Spooky Season continues with Herk Harvey's independant B-movie, Carnival of Souls from 1962! Nick & Erin discuss CIA LSD experiments, how to use your vacation time to make movies, and the indomitable will of secular church organists. Plus, Nick gives a brief history of the most cursed resort in Utah that served as the inspiration of the movie....

It's October, which means its time for Spooky Season: 4 weeks of scary movies starting this week! Find out how we live in fear as we discuss the birth of J-Horror with Kiyoshi Kurosawa's film, Cure from 1997! They discuss the fact that this movie is actually a terrifying void wearing the skin of a police procedural, how J-Horror is different from any-other-letter-Horror, and whether or not...

Join Nick & Erin as they take the plunge and experience Kathryn Bigelow's Point Break for the first time. They discuss male intimacy, how Reagan deserves to be a villain more often, are confused about American college football, and Nick can't stop laughing at the name "Johnny Utah". The world owes Kathryn Bigelow an impossibly huge debt for using this movie to make Keanu Reeves...

Join Nick & Erin as they discuss the Kobayashi's masterpiece, Hara-Kiri! They talk about how no matter the time or place you cannot reason with the rich & powerful, how to properly label your topknot, and they wonder about how many sick days a samurai gets. Nick then takes Erin on deep dive into composer Tōru Takemitsu's pre Hara-Kiri life to explore the context for this movie'...

It's a sci-fi creature feature, it's a statement on nature vs nurture, and it's loads of fun: this week is all about Joe Cornish's directorial debut Attack the Block from 2011! Join Nick & Erin as they discuss picking up on slang, what makes a good monster, and the scariest monster of all (a lack of a social safety net). Next week: Kobayashi's Japanese masterpiece Hara-Kiri...