School Of Movies

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Synopsis

Super in-depth analysis of movies (and occasionally TV, and video games). Hosted by veteran podcasters Alex & Sharon Shaw with different guests for round-table chats every week.

Episodes

  • Rings of Power (Season One)

    03/11/2023 Duration: 02h18min

    [School of Everything Else 2023] We all knew this would happen eventually. No Intellectual property that has been known to rake in a billion dollars for a single movie will ever be left alone to stand in glorious completion. Whomsoever holds the rights will use them. Some folks expected a (potentially very misguided) attempt at making the entire Silmarillion for television, or for Amazon to do what it seems likely Warner Bros. eventually will with Harry Potter and just re-tread the books we've already seen adapted exceptionally well to film in the 2000s - this time to a 2020s TV series (ostensibly so that they can use the additional time allowed by the format to be truer to the original text, but you KNOW there would be a ton of new stuff in there that would drive the long-time fanbase crazy!) Instead, Amazon took the first eight minutes of The Fellowship of the Ring, the prologue describing the end of the Second Age, conveyed so memorably and elegantly at the opening of that 2001 film, and cracked that serie

  • The Nightmare Before Christmas

    27/10/2023 Duration: 01h57min

    [School of Movies 2023] An absolute landmark in terms of stop-motion animation within cinema. Conceived in the early 80s by Disney animator Tim Burton and manifesting first in an 11-minute poem after the style of both A Visit from St. Nicholas by Clement Clarke Moore and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas from Doctor Seuss. That was developed into this oddball story of a pale loner of an outsider (who is also wildly popular because of course he is, this is Tim Burton). The skeleton king of Halloween town falls in love with the unfamiliar and delightful trappings of Christmas itself. This leads him into drumming up the spooky but hapless monster people of his realm into crafting their OWN Christmas, with all kinds of horrors! Our guest tonight has literally written a thesis on stop-motion, and we have been waiting for him to record this show. It launches almost exactly at the 30-year anniversary of the movie. Coming this weekend we have a Cutting Class episode on Patreon  with all the material that didn't make thi

  • The Howling ”Trilogy”

    20/10/2023 Duration: 01h59min

    [School of Movies 2023] For our Halloween Spooktacular episodes we begin with a compilation of three After School Club shows, covering the first three of the eight instalments in the Howling franchise. However, despite two of them being from the same director (Philippe Mora) and two of them involving the writer of the original book (Gary Brandner) I struggle to think of three films that feel less like each other in a series. The incoherence and absence of any connective tissue or even thematic consistency almost seems intentional. And it might be a dismal and disjointed experience if it wasn't so hilarious! The 1981 original, directed by Joe Dante (Gremlins, Matinee) is most definitely the nastiest, with the Mum from E.T. (Dee Wallace) being stalked by a werewolf, which then leads to a communal retreat that hosts the world's most obvious werewolf cult. But the 1985 second film "Your Sister is a Werewolf" then seems to yank us away to find out what's happening in the former Czech Republic (what's happening is

  • The Studio Ghibli Series Part 8: Arrietty

    13/10/2023 Duration: 01h14min

    [School of Movies 2023] With the grandfather of the studio, Hayao Miyazaki retired and his son Goro not warmly welcomed by the fans, there was now an enormous question mark over the future of Ghibli that persists to this day. Luckily, there was still amazing talent to be found within their walls. Hiromasa Yonebayashi (better known as Maro) made his directorial debut with one of our faviourites, which positively cries out for watching in HD, The Secret World of Arrietty. It's the tale -adapted from yet another classic children's fantasy book- of tiny people who live unnoticed in our houses, and the perils of their survival. Notable for its different British and American voice actor teams, since over here we got Saoirse Ronan and Tom Holland!  After this, Goro attempted a second movie about confused teenagers, this time with a more delicate touch which achieves it low-key melodrama qualities. And in the absence of a breakout new direction, his father Hayao came back out of retirement to direct one of his most s

  • Final Fantasy VI

    06/10/2023 Duration: 02h33min

    [School of Everything Else 2023] There are many reasons why this 1994 instalment in the long-running Square franchise winds up high on lists of the very best RPGs of all time. It is an ensemble piece with an immediately engrossing story and endearing, growing party of misfits, oddballs and freaks.  The concept of an oppressive, evil empire messing with powerful magic to secure its dominance isn't new at all, but rarely does a single self-contained game tell such a world-spanning tale with no one character standing out as the obvious leader. They are all heroes in their own stories. This, along with Chrono Trigger and Earthbound was the high bar on character-based RPGs that followed in the 90s, and notably during the return to retro style that followed the MMORPG goldrush of the 2000s. Astonishing music from the legendary Nobuo Uematsu gave so many of these memorable characters their own themes, while the superficially simple pixel art and modest map pushed the Super Nintendo to its limits with rich, hidden de

  • The Studio Ghibli Series Part 7: Howl’s Moving Castle

    29/09/2023 Duration: 01h25min

    [School of Movies 2023] Having now won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature Ghibli was facing the retirement of one of their absolute linchpins. Hayao Miyazaki wanted to go out with a bang, so adapted another favourite book of his. Howl was popular, but readers had things to say about changes that were made. After that, his son Goro Miyazaki tried his hand at being a director in the elder's absence. adapting another treasured childhood fantasy, which was declared the worst Ghibli ever upon launch (we don't think that's fair in hindsight; Goro has done way worse since). So, the grumpy Dad returned with a sweet little mermaid story about why his grandchild is just as cute as a button. He would later attempt and fail at retirement several more times! 2004: Howl's Moving Castle (1m 35s) 2006: Tales from Earthsea (44m 21s) 2008: Ponyo (1h 3m 35s) In the middle of our show there is an essay piece from our friend Alejandra Vargas. (NOTE: Part 6, which will be Spirited Away has not yet been recorded, but we will be rel

  • Matilda: The Musical

    22/09/2023 Duration: 01h42min

    [School of Movies 2023] This, folks, is arguably the greatest adaptation of one of Roald Dahl's books made to date. Taking everything that was great about the 1988 book (one of his last, only followed by Esio Trot, The Vicar of Nibbleswick and The Minpins) and one of the abiding favourites for many kids and previously-kids who aren't entirely sure if they have truly grown up yet. It's about a schoolgirl who develops telekinetic powers that she uses to banish a truly horrific headteacher. But that is merely the skeletal plot, there is so much there about being lonely, being neglected and abused and using your frustrations for something positive (making this the Anti-Carrie). And that was conducted in the beloved Mara Wilson and Danny DeVito film from 1996.  But in turning this thing into a successful West-End musical Tim Minchin added some truly memorable, frequently brilliant songs, a whole sub-plot about a story Matilda is weaving together, even more significance for the role of Miss Honey (played with aston

  • The Studio Ghibli Series Part 5: Princess Mononoke

    15/09/2023 Duration: 01h17min

    [School of Movies 2023] Many would call this period the crowning glory of Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki in particular. The maturity and refusal to pull his punches that came with the rich, dark and complex Princess Mononoke illustrated that when it came to humankind's strained, abusive relationship with Nature itself, that bloodshed was an inevitability, He followed this up with a personal favourite of mine, Spirited Away in 2001, but we have a dedicated show on that coming at the very end of this series. 1997: Princess Mononoke (1m 45s) 1999: My Neighbors the Yamadas (51m 30s) 2002: The Cat Returns (1h 4m 30s) The other two are oddities; Yamadas was from Isao Takahata (of Grave of the Fireflies and Balls of the Raccoon) and it's a significant departure from all other Ghibli movies, in terms of animation style and content, being based heavily on a Japanese comic strip about family life. And following that we have Ghibli's only sequel to date, though tonally quite different from Whisper of the Heart, The Cat retur

  • Streets of Rage

    08/09/2023 Duration: 02h11min

    [School of Everything Else 2023] The greatest brawler series in the history of video games. If you haven't yet had the pleasure of playing one of the four Streets of Rage, even if beat-'em-ups aren't your thing you owe it to yourself to investigate the sheer *craft* of these classics.  Beginning with the original in 1991 and refined to magnificence with the second in 1992. They need to be looked at in conjunction with their contemporaries like Double Dragon (1987) the excellent Final Fight (1989) and Turtles in Time (1992) as well as looking forward down the chain of influence to Scott Pilgrim (2010), Fight'N Rage (2017) the recent Battletoads (2020) and the sublime TURTs nerdgasm Shredder's Revenge (2022). As we go through the history of how these were made, by surprisingly small teams with focus on sound design, music, rhythm and variety a picture is formed of a creative ethic. They're also colossal fun!  That is until you hit the North American release of Streets of Rage 3 (1994) which becomes a nightmare

  • Brigsby Bear

    01/09/2023 Duration: 01h51min

    [School of Movies 2023] This is one you almost certainly won't have heard of, but will be happy you found it through School of Movies. It's the tale of a young man named James who has grown up in a post-apocalyptic bunker, raised by his loving parents and wondering what's outside. One night a raid by the cops results in his "parents" being carted off to jail, as it turns out they kidnapped him as an infant and hid him here. Now he has to come to terms with the real world and the awkward fit of his new family and potential friends. Thing is though, he's a colossal nerd for Brigsby Bear. That long-running TV show about a space-faring teddy with a surprisingly deep lore for James to obsess over. However, double-twist... Brigsby was never shown on TV because it was being created by his kidnapper-Father (played by Mark Hamill). Undaunted, James sets out on a personal quest to finish the story for himself. In an unusual show setup we examine the film through two contrasting lenses. Firstly from a long-time fan whos

  • The First Hour and Seven Minutes of Oppenheimer

    25/08/2023 Duration: 28min

    [School of Movies 2023] I think this will be the only piece I create about Oppenheimer (2023). You definitely do not have to have seen it and I won't be saying anything that could be considered a plot spoiler. This is dark, upsetting, heavy and much shorter than our usual Main Event shows. It was intended to be an After School Club, but in the inception it grew and expanded in gravity, density and ferocity, and while there is an aspect that feels self-destructive, I consider it important enough to release to the whole world. Let history decide.

  • Devil’s Advocate

    18/08/2023 Duration: 01h36min

    [School of Movies 2023] Impressive, silly or impressively silly? Those are just three of the possible responses to this 1997 theological legal thriller with overtones of several flavours of horror, including paranoia, demonic and financial.  It's the forked tale of a hotshot Florida lawyer named Kevin who has never lost a case, despite representing cartoonishly villainous defendants. He is recruited by a swanky New York legal firm, headed up by a devilishly charismatic fellow with a deep, dark secret. Can you guess what it is? This was a commissioned show for Greg Downing and it was great fun finally getting our teeth into this overblown Paradise-Lost-meets-Pelican-Brief panto, starring a wildly overacting Al Pacino, Keanu Reeves and a breakout tormented-wife role for a young Charlize Theron.

  • V for Vendetta

    11/08/2023 Duration: 01h35min

    [School of Movies 2023] The Wachowskis are back! This time in producer capacity with their friend James McTeigue who wend on to direct The Raven, five episodes of Sense8 and (our personal favourite, the critically panned but hugely enjoyable, blood-spattered throwback) Ninja Assassin.  In an alternate history dystopian Britain, a young lady named Evey Hammond is rescued by a shadowy figure in a mask who calls himself V and seeks to fight back against their tyrannical oppressors. This is an adaptation of one of the most celebrated graphic novels of all time. Alan Moore originally spun this out over several years in the early 1980s, depicting our country as a near-future, fascist police state that was a cautionary tale to those living under the iron fist of the Thatcher regime. Our guest, Victoria has read this book repeatedly and is able to delineate with truly fascinating insight, the powerful changes made for this 2006 movie.  You will also find out quite a lot about Guy Fawkes and his part in the conspiracy

  • Ghost in the Shell

    04/08/2023 Duration: 01h40min

    [School of Movies 2023] One of the most significant and influential anime movies of all time. Absolutely instrumental in inspiring a big chunk of The Matrix in terms of aesthetic and pondering, metaphysical philosophy. This began as a single-volume cyberpunk manga series written by Masamune Shirow between 1989-1991. That was adapted into the 1995 movie which is the focus of this episode. After that came a bunch of television we are not touching, a sequel focused on the character of Batau, named Innocence, which we recommend, a re-envisioned remaster called 2.0 which swaps the janky 90s CG and green aesthetic for janky 2000s CG and amber aesthetic. Then a bunch more movies and TV and manga. And then in 2017, American studios who always seem to keep making the same mistakes when they adapt anime directly into live action filmed a giant mistake in 2017. The Scarlett Johansson movie is actually better than it could have been, but it makes a fine talking point as comparison between the attitudes and approaches to

  • Masters of the Universe: Revelation

    28/07/2023 Duration: 01h46min

    [School of Everything Else 2023] This is quite an extraordinary case. A Netflix show released in two chunks of five episodes apiece, six months apart, back in 2021. 93% fresh with professional critics. And if you sit down and watch it, this is the best Masters of the Universe story ever told.  And EVERYBODY HATES IT!  Seriously, go check YouTube and get bombarded by the scorn and bile. Observe the 38% audience score. Try finding ANY positive analysis from the fans. It might get easier with time, (especially as a lot of folks only watched the first episode and then reacted with outrage, and many did not catch the second half of the series after all those months) but when we put this episode together our decision had to be to NOT second-guess all the people who loathe this show, and their reasons for hatred. Some cold hard facts about it: He-Man is killed in the first episode. From that point on, Eternia is in trouble, and that could have dire, far-reaching consequences. The focus is on Teela, Prince Adam's for

  • Gonzo Adventures: The Tower of the Sorcerer

    26/07/2023 Duration: 02h56min

    [Digital Gonzo 2013] The 150th episode of Digital Gonzo. This was a one-off show inspired by the episode of Community 'Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'. It's a sit-down gaming session conducted over Skype with myself as Dungeon Master and my guests as a team of adventurers. For this one we were using the flexible, simple ruleset of Advanced Fighting Fantasy by Graham Bottley which itself stems from the gamebooks of Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone (The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, Deathtrap Dungeon) and detailed in the starter book Dungeoneer. This is the first of the two adventures within that book. I wanted to bring you guys something different, in the style I have honed over the years so there's music and sound FX as well as a hefty chunk of silliness and getting into character. The lengthier fights have been edited for pacing but you're mainly missing a lot of dice rolls. The team that begins this story comprises of the following. Thrale Copperhelm: A tough-as-nails dwarf, played by Neil Taylor of GameBu

  • No Country for Old Men / True Grit

    21/07/2023 Duration: 01h36min

    [School of Movies 2023] The final main feed instalment of our Coen Brothers series goes out with a double-bang of exceptionally gripping Westerns. No Country for Old Men (2007, written by the recently departed Cormac McCarthy) is a tense game of cat and mouse. Josh Brolin discovers a drug deal gone very wrong and walks off with the money, and Javier Bardem plays the dead-eyed Terminator slowly but surely closing in on him. This whole case is followed by Sheriff Tommy Lee Jones who is scratching at his head to fathom the trail of violence he is witnessing. And in True Grit (2010) the second adaptation of the 1968 Charles Portis novel, a brand new Hailee Steinfeld, aged 13 commands a grizzled old frump of a bounty hunter played by Jeff Bridges to help her track down her father's killer and see justice done. It somehow manages to surpass the classic John Wayne version in every way. And both of these were influences on my own writing. If you want to hear what we have to say on the remaining Coen Brothers films yo

  • The Studio Ghibli Series Part 4: Porco Rosso

    14/07/2023 Duration: 01h20min

    [School of Movies 2023] This was a whimsical period for Ghibli, they tried a few new things, and established one or two absolute mainstays.  1991: Only Yesterday (1m 50s) 1992: Porco Rosso (11m 50s) 1993: Ocean Waves (25m 10s) 1994: Pom Poko (41m 10s) 1995: Whisper of the Heart (59m 40s) There's a disarmingly frank and sympathetic story of a schoolgirl hitting adolescence wrapped in a Hallmark movie about returning to your rural home town after the big city has crushed your spirit. Conversely there's a high school romance about a doormat crushing on a girl who thinks only of herself. Then there's two of the most abiding and beloved of their canon, in the tale of a high school girl who likes a musical boy which winds up being a powerful statement on creativity, and then there's the World War II pilot who was turned into a pig. But he's much rather be porcine than  fascist.  And finally, an ecological parable starring enormous raccoon testicles! 

  • In the Heights

    07/07/2023 Duration: 02h27min

    [School of Movies 2023] Lin Manuel Miranda's first big break into the off-Broadway musical scene. This 2021 movie adaptation, directed by Crazy Rich Asians-helmer Jon M. Chu is a squeaky-clean but heartfelt tale of the upper east side of Manhattan and its proud, passionate, talkative, motivated yet frustrated population of first, second and third-generation immigrants. It's a story of inheriting the dreams of your parents and trying to reconcile forging your own path.  This one has been a long while coming. We wanted to do a show on it as soon as the cinema release, but since that was just after Lockdown ended it was unlikely many of you folks could safely make a screening. And we wound up recording it last winter, but since it's such a heights-of-summer movie I've waited until now to release it. This week I needed something to lift my spirits, since Sharon has been confined to the bedroom in a self-imposed COVID quarantine. It made the final show unexpectedly painful to put together, but worth all the blood,

  • John Wick: Chapters 2/3/4

    30/06/2023 Duration: 01h59min

    [School of Movies 2023] We covered the first film in May 2019 just before the third hit theaters, and since then they have shaped up to be four of the finest action films ever made. They boast laser-focused attention to choreography, physical genius, artfully photographing long, unbroken takes with astonishing lighting and otherworldy music. All of it revolves around a firestorm of a performance from Keanu Reeves, himself experiencing a deserved renaissance. The fourth film ends on a definitive and deeply satisfying melancholy note. So, while the series itself limbers up for all manner of spin-offs, sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, reboots and action figures, let us take stock of what made this quartet special.  'John Wick Turbo' has been a re-editing project, where I sought to trim away a little of the second film's world-building, adjust the third film's pacing and dial back the fourth film's runtime, bringing all of them to the 101-minute sweet spot of the 2014 original. And talking about this pro

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