Strange Days

Lords of Dogtown

In this episode we discuss "Lords of Dogtown" a 2005 biographical drama about the rise of skateboarding culture in 1970s southern California, directed by Catherine Hardwicke and starring Emile Hirsch and Heath Ledger. We discuss:  -Stacy Peralta writing himself as a total square -how Heath Ledger is completely unrecognizable in this film, and whether he veers into overacting  -America Ferrara's key role as "Thunder Monkey" -why Roger Ebert is wrong about people who live indoors vs. people who live outdoors  and more!

The Game

Today we're talking about "The Game," the 1997 mystery thriller directed by David Fincher and starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, about a wealthy San Francisco banker who is given the opportunity to participate in a mysterious game and has his life turned upside down. We discuss:  -whether the film has replay value -why Nicholas Van Horton agrees to participate in the game -what we think about the film's divisive ending  -whether Nicholas learned any lessons and if there is a morale to the story and more!

Contact

In this episode we discuss "Contact", the 1997 science fiction drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis, based on the 1985 novel by Carl Sagan, and starring Jodi Foster, Matthew McConaughey, James Wood, Tom Skerritt, William Fichter, and Angela Bassett. We discuss:  -why the movie is a great time capsule of the 90's -why Matthew McConaughey should represent earth when we make first contact with extraterrestrials -the line that McConaughey refused to deliver -science vs. religion as a key theme of the movie -does Ellie settle down with Palmer Joss?  and more!

Plane

In this episode we discuss "Plane", the 2023 action thriller starring Gerard Butler and available for rent or purchase on Apple Movies or Amazon Prime. We discuss:   -Was this the best movie plane crash sequence ever?  -Brodie Torrance's insane and unwavering commitment to his job -Why we wish Trail Blazer Airlines was a real company -Why this is perfect date movie

Strange Days

In this episode, we’re talking about “Strange Days,” a Kathryn Bigelow directed cyber punk movie, originally released in 1995, and starring Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, and Tom Sizemore. Audiences seemed to have overlooked this movie when it first came out, but it’s got a new chance to find fans on HBO Max. Watch the movie, then hear our discussion! We delve into:  * Why is Lenny so broke?  * The lack of romantic chemistry between Lenny and Mace  * The surprise bad guy  * Jericho One, and why does Philo burn the tape?  * Fallacy of the talking killer * Cops are bad, but not that bad