MRAC Film Club

Episode 66 - This week we pay homage to the late great maker of dreams and nightmares on film, David Lynch. This was recorded on what would have been his 79th birthday on January 20th. We begin the discussion by sharing our favorite Lynch moments from this month, and then break down two of his films that couldn't be more different. Although the majority of the discussion is focused on sharing...

Episode 65 - It is with a heavy heart that we release this episode, week 3 of David Lynch Month. The news broke yesterday that David Lynch has passed at the age of 79. Since we recorded this prior to the news breaking, we do not discuss his passing. In fact, there is some more criticism of Lynch as an artist by one of us, since we are still divided on his films (for the most part). But luckily we...

Episode 64 - This is week two of our David Lynch filmography and we are watching and talking Blue Velvet (1986) and Dune (1984). Although Dune came first chronologically we lead off with Blue Velvet to give it the bulk of the conversation. And although Blue Velvet is considered a classic of Lynch's and a staple in film school curriculum, the crew is divided on this one. This division leads us once...

Episode 63 - Pack your bags as we are heading into the mind of David Lynch. This month we will be doing a 5 week deep dive into the filmography of David Lynch. Since David Lynch has 10 feature films to his name, we will be looking at 2 films per week, but with a main focus on one. We can't promise Pete will watch every one but he'll try. This week the main feature is Lynch's surreal debut film Era...

Episode 62 - This is the part of the year we look forward to more than any other. We but a bow on 2024 and reflect on a year of MRAC by discussing our favorite films, directors, characters, the best kills, practical effects, worst parenting and much more of what we watched this past year. It's always a wild ride so pour yourself a drink and join us for the fun. And coming soon is the first part of...

Episode 61 - Happy Holidays! This week we wrap up the month and the year 2024. It is the fourth and final week of La Banlieue and we spend it watching and discussing Les Miserables (2019). This is another story about life in the projects in the outskirts of Paris, but this one centers on the theme of corruption in the police force. After we break it down we salute Pete for a cohesively curated mon...

Episode 60 - The week we are out of the classroom and back onto the mean streets of la banlieue, as we watch and discuss Divines (2016), and the supplemental Sherherazade (2018) Divines is a film about a young girl with big dreams to make it big and earn her way out of the projects. We have seen this story before but how does this one differ other than being French? Sheherazade is another interest...

Episode 59 - This week we hit the classroom as we watch and discuss Entre Les Murs (2008) , aka The Class . This is a fictionalized story of the French writer, François Bégaudeau, as he attempts to wrangle a group of students from a tough Parisian neighborhood in his literature class.... or as we like to call it, the French Dangerous Minds. Did Bégaudeau do as good of a job as Michelle Phifer? Tun...

Episode 58 - Bonjour! It's a Pete month, which means we are doing something silent and/or French. This month it's the latter as we explore La Banlieue , or the suburbs. All this month we will be looking at the suburbs through the eyes of the French. First up on the docket is La Haine (1995) , Enlgish title Hate. This film takes place in the projects outside of Paris in the aftermath of a viloent p...

Episode 57 - It is an exciting week as 1/2 of us travel to Japan to record the conclusion of our 10 week series on the Japanese New Wave films of the 1960's. Please excuse the audio for this one since Marco and Ragucci were recording from a phone inside of a mini camper van in a parking lot. And while this week's film, The Man Who Left his Will on Film (1970) might not of been everyone's favorite,...

Episode 56 - Another week, another doozy of a Japanese New Wave film. We watch Eros Plus Massacre (1969) , which according to David Desser's book of the same title, encompasses all of the themes we have been exploring in this series. This week and next we wrap up our coverage of the Japanese New Wave by looking at three films that summarize these themes. Join us as we dive in and make sure to join...

Episode 55 - This is week 8 of our 10 week deep dive into the Japanese New Wave films of the 1960's. This week we watch and discuss Apart from Life (1970) directed by Kei Kumai. This one is a deep cut of Japanese cinema which covers more in depth the issue of discrimination in post war Japan, an issue that was not often addressed. Apart from Life tackles the issue head on by featuring once again K...

Episode 54 - It is week 7 of our 10 week deep dive into the Japanese New Wave films of the 1960's. This week we watch and discuss Death By Hanging (1968 ), directed by Oshima Nagisa, which explores the topic of Korean discrimination in Post-War Japan. Few films explore this topic of the plight of first generation Koreans in Post-War Japan, and this is a big one. In Death By Hanging a young Korean...

Episode 53 - This month we return once again to Japan. This is part 6 of our two month, 10 part deep dive into the films of the Japanese New Wave films of the 1960's. This week we pick up where we left off last time and explore the sub theme of the representation of women in the Japanese New Wave films. We discuss Onibaba (1964) . And who better to explore this theme than 4 middle aged American wh...

Episode 52 - 9, 10... QQ's back again. We are back and just in time to wrap up Halloween. We finish our October coverage of the Elm Street Franchise with Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991) , and Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994) . And as we have been doing all month, we dive into the definitive Elm St documentary, Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy . Join us for the fun as we wrap up...

Episode 51 - One, two, MRAC's coming for you. We continue our Elm Street Franchise review with A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988) , and A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child (1989) . This is the point of the franchise where many say it started to go down hill. Will these sequels win Marco over? Will Pete stay awake? Tune in to find out. And email us at mracfilmclub@gmail.com

Episode 50 - It's our 50th episode! We celebrate this continuing with our Elm Street Franchise review. We watch and discussed A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985) , and A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) . One of these is arguably one of the least revered films of the Elm Street Franchise, and one if them is considered to be one of the best. Which one is which and w...

Happy October! And welcome to the start of our review of the Elm Street Franchise. We are going all in this month (well, maybe not Pete) and watching all of the films in the franchise, including the remake and the documentary Never Sleep Again. This week we cover the OG Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) and the 2010 remake . Listen as we share our thoughts and impressions of this iconic franchise. 1,...

Episode 48 - G'day everyone and greetings from down under. This is our fourth and final week here in Australia watching and discussing Australian Horror, and we end with a bang with Killing Ground (2016) . This is a tough watch for some and a must watch for horror fans. Tune in to hear us break it down, and after the discussion Brian reveals our October theme, which will be the Elm St Franchis...

Episode 47 - It's Love week! Welcome to part 3 of our continuing coverage of Australian horror. This week we are headed to the suburbs, and once again we watch a film that is based on a true story, although it is not explicitly stated. We watch and discuss Hounds of Love (2016) and the supplemental The Loved Ones (2009) . What did QQ think of that dog scene? I think we all know, but tune in fo...

Episode 46 - Crikey! It is week 2 of our trip down under to talk Australian Horror. The theme this week is horror in the water where we watch and discuss The Reef , a 2010 shark film. We also get bit into the supplemental films, Rogue (2009) and Black Water (2007) , both of which are crocodile films. Who will come out of this one alive? Tune in to find out. And tune in next week as we head to Auss...

Episode 45 - Pack your bags because we are heading down under this month to cover Australian Horror. The films we look at this month will explore the theme of setting as character and how the land plays a role in each film. This week we are headed to the outback to watch and discuss Wolf Creek (2005) . Wolf Creek is an Australian slasher film and introduced the world to the character of Mick Taylo...

Episode 44 - Face/Off (1997) starring Nicholas Cage and John Travolta was a huge blockbuster hit at the time of its release. Does it still hold up? What would it have been like with two different lead actors? Give it a watch and tune in to find out. And tune in next week as we go down under and start a new theme: Aussie Horror. The first film up is Wolf Creek (2005) Nick Cage's face on cats: h...

Episode 43 - We are back at it again with more face action. Pete uncovers a hidden gem with Scalpel (1977) , which was originally titled False Face . We discuss the oddity that is this film and get into the weeds as always. Join us for this discussion and tune in next week for the conclusion of About Face month as we watch Face/Off (1997). file all questions comments and complaints to: mracfilmclu...

Episode 42 - We had some delays due to scheduling conflicts but Face month continues with our coverage of the French classic E yes Without a Face (1960) ... because no Pete month would be complete without something silent and something French. This film received a negative reaction from film critics in France when it was released but has gone on to become a classic. What do we think about it? More...