Can We Still Be Friends?

With the Academy failing to nominate a single non-white actor in any acting category for the second year in a row, Nate and Ryan watch John Singleton’s breakout 1991 film Boyz N the Hood.  The film earned the first-time writer/director nominations for Best Original Screenplay and Best Director, making him not… Continue reading The post Ep. 36: Boyz N the Hood appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

This episode contains explicit language. Following Birdman’s Best Picture win at the Oscars last year, director Alejandro G. Inarritu seems poised once again to be the front-runner this year with his new film The Revenant.  Nate and Ryan have often debated the merits of Inarritu, and his 2005 movie Babel remains one of… Continue reading The post Ep. 35: Birdman appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

For this holiday season, in the spirit of togetherness, Nate and Ryan discuss The Muppet Christmas Carol.  Last year’s Christmas episode turned out to be one of their bitterest episodes yet.  In an effort to undo the negativity of that episode, Nate and Ryan discuss a movie they agree is one… Continue reading The post Ep. 34: The Muppet Christmas Carol appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Nate and Ryan reach way back into the James Bond archives to watch Goldfinger, the third installment of the James Bond franchise, starring Sean Connery.  As Daniel Craig’s latest Bond adventure Spectre hit theatres, Nate watches one of Ryan’s favorite Bond films for the first time.  Nate and Ryan discuss how well some… Continue reading The post Ep. 33: Goldfinger appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

As Halloween approaches, Nate and Ryan prepare by watching A Nightmare on Elm Street, the slasher classic written and directed by horror master Wes Craven.  A Nightmare on Elm Street helped write the rules for slasher horror pics and was the forebearer to a number of imitation slasher cash-ins.  Freddy Krueger… Continue reading The post Ep. 32: A Nightmare on Elm Street appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Thirty years ago, Terry Gilliam triumphed over studio exec Sid Sheinberg to bring his version of 1985’s Brazil to theaters.  Gilliam’s final cut proved to be a truly unique piece of cinema and was perhaps the first and last time Gilliam would really see his vision for a movie fully realized.… Continue reading The post Ep. 31: Brazil (The Final Cut) appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Inspired by the release of the newest Mission: Impossible installment, Nate and Ryan go back to where it all began (well…began again) and rewatch Brian De Palma’s 1996 action thriller. In the cold light of adulthood, Nate and Ryan discuss whether the things that thrilled them as children still work.  They also… Continue reading The post Ep. 30: Mission: Impossible appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Nate and Ryan invite back Erick Fortmann to discuss Gone With the Wind, the 1939 classic that has always captivated moviegoers.  However, over time, the reception of the movie and its messages have been called into question.  Most recently, in the wake of the controversy over the Confederate flag, the image… Continue reading The post Ep. 29: Gone With the Wind appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Nate and Ryan discuss Pixar’s 2004 hit The Incredibles, directed by Brad Bird.  Though Nate and Ryan don’t disagree on many Pixar movies, they have never agreed on where The Incredibles fits into the overall Pixar universe.  With Inside/Out once again proving the Pixar can entertain children while bringing adults to tears,… Continue reading The post Ep. 28: The Incredibles appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

This week marks the 35th anniversary of the release of The Blues Brothers, the much-loved comedy starring Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as the titular brothers.  The Blues Brothers was the first movie to come from Saturday Night Live and is widely regarded as one of the best to come out of the… Continue reading The post Ep 27: The Blues Brothers appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

With all the feverish praise that George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road is garnering, Nate and Ryan watch and discuss the film that started it all, 1979’s Mad Max, starring Mel Gibson.  Set in the near future, Mad Max tells the tale of a decaying world where roaming biker gangs terrorize peaceful… Continue reading The post Ep. 26: Mad Max appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Nate and Ryan get ready for one of the the most anticipated sequels of the year by watching Pitch Perfect, the 2012 film starring Anna Kendrick that struck gold with its acapella take on the classic underdog story.  Pitch Perfect struck a chord with audiences with its blend of humor and pop… Continue reading The post Ep 25: Pitch Perfect appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

For this episode, Nate and Ryan watched The Net, the 1995 thriller starring Sandra Bullock.  The movie celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, and with the recent passage of Net Neutrality by the FCC, they decided to watch this cautionary tale of the dangers of the internet.  Truth be told, Nate… Continue reading The post Ep 24: The Net appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Nate and Ryan welcome special guest Erick Fortmann to discuss the seminal documentary Grey Gardens, directed by the late Albert and David Maysles.  The Maysles established themselves as pioneers of documentary in a time when documentaries were the stuff of newsreels and educational film.  They made their name with 1968’s Salesman and… Continue reading The post Ep 23: Grey Gardens appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Birdman‘s Best Picture win at this year’s Oscars made Nate and Ryan want to revisit Michael Keaton’s turn as a superhero in Tim Burton’s 1989 blockbuster Batman.  This movie was a staple of Nate’s childhood, but one that Ryan only saw as an adult.  They discuss how the movie has held up… Continue reading The post Ep 22: Batman appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Even though Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel didn’t win big at the Oscars (you’ll notice we recorded the episode before the show, thereby sounding woefully out of touch), Nate and Ryan were still glad to rewatch Anderson’s 2007 film The Darjeeling Limited.  Even among ardent Wes Anderson fans, The Darjeeling Limited seems… Continue reading The post Ep 21: The Darjeeling Limited appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Inspired by the Oscar chances of Richard Linklater’s brilliant film Boyhood, Nate and Ryan go back to where it all began for Linklater and watch his breakout 1991 film Slacker.  Slacker is often praised as one of the landmark films of the early ’90s independent film renaissance and served to jump start Linklater’s… Continue reading The post Ep 20: Slacker appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

The violent division of our last episode is healed as Nate and Ryan discuss Punch-Drunk Love, Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2002 romantic comedy starring Adam Sandler. Nate and Ryan discuss the intricacies of a movie that can seem inaccessible and confusing to first-time viewers, but might be simpler than they think. Let… Continue reading The post Ep 19: Punch-Drunk Love appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

Nate and Ryan have it out over 1983’s beloved A Christmas Story just in time for the most wonderful time of the year: Christmas movie season. This is one of their earliest film fights, and time has done little to calm the storm.  As with any good blizzard, it’s best to… Continue reading The post Ep. 18: A Christmas Story appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.

In this episode Nate and Ryan finally watch a movie they’ve both been meaning to get around to: The Ice Storm.  Directed by Ang Lee and released in 1997, The Ice Storm explores the ennui of 1970s suburban Connecticut during an unseasonably cold Thanksgiving week, appropriately enough.  Kevin Kline plays Ben Hood, a… Continue reading The post Ep. 17: The Ice Storm appeared first on Can We Still Be Friends?.