The Seat Struck Movie Podcast

"Father, Son, and the House of Gucci" On this week's episode, Simon and John discuss the penultimate entry in the Ridley Scott filmography (at least, until Gladiator 2 comes out), and chat his second 2021 release: HOUSE OF GUCCI, starring Adam Driver and Lady Gaga. We discussed the immaculate costuming and prop work, funky needle drops, and Jared Leto's hall of fame Gallagheresqu...

Curtis, John, and returning special guest (and John Cassavetes film scholar) Dr John Bruni take on Elaine Mays (one of the first female directors) debut film A NEW LEAF (1971). They chat about what they watched this week and the latest news of the week before diving into our topic. TIME STAMPS 00:00:00 Introduction 00:05:42 News of the Week/What We Watched This Week 00:42:45 A NEW LEAF (1971) Disc...

With Simon and Curtis away on vacations, Quinn and John decided to take things easy this week and run through another lineup of HIDDEN GEMS! Maybe one of these movies might appeal to you? We run through a few selections, ranging from horror, offbeat comedy, documentary, and limited series. Before that, since it's our first episode after a few weeks, we run through some belated news. Next week,...

John and Curtis return to Ridley Scott's medieval world and interest in duels with 2021's THE LAST DUEL, starring Matt Damon, Jodi Comer, Ben Affleck, and Adam Driver. The boys discuss the news of the week and what they watched during the week before diving into the film. They talk about the source material, the narratology of the film, connections with Akira Kurosawa's RASHOMON, and i...

"You could have all the money in the world, and you are still a no-good, miserable son of a bitch, and don't you forget it." After a couple of months away from Sir Ridley, we're back on the watch series to discuss his OTHER 2017 picture, ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD. Most folks probably remember the film as a failed piece of Oscar bait, and the infamous decision to re-cast Kevin Sp...

"Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads." This week we discuss the next entry in the Back To The Future series. Joining John and Simon is John's brother (and resident BTTF scholar) Billy. We discussed the production of this film and our favourite scenes from the three big acts in the story. We also make some small references to the third film, nothing too specific, but...

Curtis returns to the Wasteland this week (and his canon picks) with Simon and special guest Magill for George Miller's 1981 Australian post-apocalyptic road masterpiece MAD MAX 2: THE ROAD WARRIOR. They chat about what we watched this week and the latest news of the week before diving into the topic, discussing the future of movie theatres, those kinky S&M outfits, FURIOSA, George Miller&...

Curtis and special guest (and John Cassavetes film scholar) Dr John Bruni (Grand Valley State University, MI) take on Cassavetes' 1970 film HUSBANDS. We chat about what we watched this week and the latest news of the week before diving into our topic, discussing John's new HUSBANDS book project, toxic masculinity, indie cinema, Cassavetes life, impact, and contributions to cinema, '70s New York Ci...

Curtis, John, Simon, and special guest (and resident Apocalypse expert) David Cross visit the Wasteland for Simon's second canon pick: 2015's high octane action blockbuster MAD MAX: FURY ROAD, starring Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, and more. The boys chat about the news of the week, Cannes releases, and what they watched they week before discussing the film. They talk about Furiosa (and her...

John and Curtis return to the Ridley Scott watch series this week with the PROMETHEUS sequel ALIEN: COVENANT (2017). They chat about neomorphs, homoerotic AI, and Scott's bleak vision of the ALIEN universe, as well as discussing the news of the week and what they watched this week. TIME STAMPS 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:01 What We Watched This Week/News of the Week 00:26:18 ALIEN: COVENANT (2...

"I was nobody. But that don't matter either, you know? 'Cause I was thinkin', it really don't matter if I lose this fight. It really don't matter if this guy opens my head, either. 'Cause all I wanna do is go the distance. Nobody's ever gone the distance with Creed, and if I can go that distance, you see, and that bell rings and I'm still standin', I'm...

"It's a hard world for little ones". This week on the pod we kick off a new recurring series looking at films directed by actors. For our inaugural entry, we take a look at one of the greatest 'one-hit-wonder' films in history, Charles Laughton's The Night of the Hunter. While the film was a critical and commercial failure on initial release, one that resulted in Laughton...

"I'm gonna have to science the shit out of this." John, Curtis, and special guest and physicist Nick Champion (from the European Space Agency) take on Ridley Scott's THE MARTIAN (2015) for this latest watch series episode. The boys discuss the news of the week and what they watched during the week before diving into the film. They talk about Andy Weir's novel, Kerbal Space Pr...

LET MY PEOPLE GO! We continue our Ridley Scott Watch Series this week on the podcast by discussing his 2014 big budget adaptation of the Book of Exodus—EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS. Cards on the table: we weren't big fans of the film, but we went over some of the reasons why it didn't work for us, along with some of the things we did like. Before that, we did our usual discussion of news of the...

"...when it comes to grief, the normal rules of exchange do not apply, because grief transcends value. A man would give entire nations to lift grief off his heart. And yet, you cannot buy anything with grief, because grief is worthless" This week on the podcast, John and Curtis celebrated Easter Monday by discussing the bleak, Southwestern crime thriller/horror THE COUNSELOR—written by C...

Curtis "THE RIPPER," John "SKULL SMASHER," and Simon dive into the moving new A24 wrestling drama THE IRON CLAW (2023), about the rise and tragedies of the Von Erich family, and starring Zac Efron, Lily James, and more. The boys discuss what they watched this week and the news of the week before talking about gender and hypermasculinity, toxic masculinity, wrestling as a perfor...

"We were so wrong..." Tune in for the latest Ridley Scott watch series episode of 2012's underrated ALIEN prequel PROMETHEUS with Curtis, John, and special guest Burak! They chat about the disc jockeys, the mythos, AI, the pro-choice scene, the baby alien from ALIEN RESURRECTION, and more. Before the film, they also discuss what they watched this week and the latest film news. Hold o...

For this week's episode, the boys (Simon, Curtis, and John) continue their Ridley Scott watch series with a deep dive into 2010's ROBIN HOOD, starring Russell Crowe (again), Oscar Isaac as slimy Prince/King John, Léa Seydoux as French royalty, Great Big Sea legend Alan Doyle, and many GAME OF THRONES favourites before they were super famous. They also discuss what they watched this week as...

Is HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION (2002) the WORST HALLOWEEN film? Can Michael Myers defeat Busta Rhymes? Curtis, John, and Simon take on the most maligned HALLOWEEN sequel (and the final addition) from the original sequel run this week. They also discuss what they watched this week and the news of the week before diving into the film. Tune in next week for more Ridley Scott canon with ROBIN HOOD (2010)!...

I and the public know what all schoolchildren learn, those to whom evil is done, do evil in return. - W.H. Auden This week on the podcast, John, Curtis, and Quinn discuss the 2008 Ridley Scott-directed intelligence thriller: Body of Lies. We discuss the time and place of this film, as a late Bush Administration, post-PATRIOT ACT, critique of American foreign policy and CIA overreach. We also discu...

Listen as John, and Curtis explore Ridley Scott's tremendous picture...AMERICAN GANGSTER from 2007! But First, the boys talk about what they've watched recently, along with current events in movies and tv. Please enjoy! CAST Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas Russell Crowe as Richie Roberts Chiwetel Ejiofor as Huey Lucas Josh Brolin as Detective Trupo Lymari Nadal as Eva[a] Ted Levine as Lou...

"You ever picked your feet in Poughkeepsie?" This week on the podcast, Quinn joins John to discuss his next canon selection—the iconic New Hollywood classic, and Best Picture winner at the 1972 Oscars: The French Connection. It was John's first time watching this film, so we both had a lot to discuss: the excellent score, the iconic car and subway chase scene, Friedkin's 'ind...

Happy New Year! Curtis and John close out 2023 by discussing another entry in the Ridley Scott watch series, his 2006 Euro wine romcom A GOOD YEAR! Before that, we also chat about some recent flicks we watched. John and Curtis also met up the night prior, so we talk a bit about our bar crawl and our experience at the Mayfair Theatre's monthly secret screening at Saturday Night Sinema. Next wee...

Curtis, John, and special guest Victor dig into Ridley Scott's medieval Crusades masterpiece KINGDOM OF HEAVEN (2005), starring Orlando Bloom, Eva Green, Liam Neeson, Brendan Gleeson, David Thewlis, Edward Norton, and more. They chat about the influence of Peter Jackson's LOTR trilogy and its pre-GAME OF THRONES portrait of the Middle Ages; portrayals of the Middle East in the context of t...

"Welcome to the party, pal" To celebrate Christmas, Curtis and John joined to discuss a movie that is now infamous for sparking endless "is it a Christmas movie or not?" debates, and to celebrate the 35th anniversary of John McClane saving hostages held at the Nakatomi Plaza: the action classic DIE HARD! Since Curtis was in New Hampshire visiting his family over the holiday sea...