The Moving Arts Film Journal » FilmCast

TMA FilmCast #30 – Date Night, Repo Men

Eric M. Armstrong — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 08:36:25 +0000

Film is a fickle medium. In any other industry if you take two of the top performers in their respective spheres and put them together you’ve got a hit. Derek Jeter and A-Rod, peanut butter and jelly, vanilla and chocolate. Like Captain Planet, their combined powers create something greater than the sum of their parts. But film is a different animal altogether. The pairing of great actors and talented comedians doesn’t always produce cinema gold. Can comedy giants Steve Carrell and Tina Fey match their small screen Thursday night successes on the big screen with “Date Night?”

And let’s not forget the terrible implications of failing to pass health care reform. Is “Repo Men” up to the task of combining social commentary and B-movie, sci-fi sensibilities into a fun romp at the theater? You’ll have to listen to find out! Oh, and don’t forget to click the link below to find us on iTunes and write us a review!

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TMA FilmCast #29 – Alice in Wonderland, Nicolas Cage

Eric M. Armstrong — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 07:36:13 +0000

Dear Mr. Burton: What happened to you? You used to be so creative, have such imagination. You were strange, unknowable but always managed to imbue your films with such heart and feeling. From “Ed Wood” to “Edward Scissorhands” to “Beetlejuice” your films have always entertained and inspired us. But when you undertook to usurp the brilliant work of Gene Wilder with “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” you crossed the line, and you’ve never come back. “Alice in Wonderland,” or “Alice in Blunder-land” as Scott calls it, marks a new low in your descending career. Why such harsh words for you? You’ll have to listen to find out!

Also, Scott and I go off on a tangent about the enigma that is Nicolas Cage. Genius? Abomination? Or both? How can the same actor be responsible for both “Raising Arizona” and “Ghost Rider”? It boggles the mind.

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TMA FilmCast #28 – Shutter Island, The Crazies

Eric M. Armstrong — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 05:25:53 +0000

What happens when Martin Scorsese, the master of personal, gritty, nuanced filmmaking decides to make a schlocky, B-movie-style, psychological thriller? You get a delicately constructed, multi-layered ode to the classics of Hollywood cinema, of course. Hitchcock, Kubrick and all the greatest elements of the noirs and suspense pictures of the 1940s and 50s are on full display in “Shutter Island.” Also, Scott and I tackle Breck Eisner’s remake of Romero’s 1973 semi-cult-classic “The Crazies.” Can Mr. Eisner outdo the king of the zombies, or is this just another example of Hollywood’s terrible lack of originality? Listen to find out!

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TMA FilmCast #27 – Up in the Air, It’s Complicated

Eric M. Armstrong — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 07:10:29 +0000

What do Peter Sellers’ character in Hal Ashby’s 1979 flick, “Being There” and Jason Reitman’s Oscar-bait movie, “Up in the Air” have in common? More than you might think. Also, can a middle-aged, sexually inactive divorcee be sexy? All that and more in this week’s edition of The Moving Arts FilmCast. Click below to listen or subscribe in iTunes!

*Note: Apologies for the poor audio quality. This is officially the last podcast using sub-par equipment. Thanks to your generous donations we’ve done a little upgrading and hope to bring you TMA FilmCast in hi-fi from now on!

TMA FilmCast #26 – Avatar

Eric M. Armstrong — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 07:40:22 +0000

Growing up in the 80s, Scott and I are quite fond of the brilliant special effects of our youth. From “Jaws” to “E.T.” to “The Empire Strikes Back,” you just can beat some good ol’ practical Hollywood effects. Or can you? This week we’ll discuss James Cameron’s much ballyhooed attempt at making practical effects all but obsolete with his cutting edge CGI technology in “Avatar.” Has Mr. Cameron finally crossed the Uncanny Valley? Are stuntmen out of work for good? And most importantly, Is $400 million and 14 years enough to put together a decent script? You’ll have to listen to find out!

TMA FilmCast #25 – Precious, Invictus (Written Reviews)

Eric M. Armstrong — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 05:25:54 +0000

This week we’re trying something a little different. Scott, my usual co-host, was absent from class during the recording of the show so instead of scrambling to find a temporary replacement I decided to offer the audio versions of a couple of our already written reviews. This isn’t likely to become a staple of the show, but depending upon listener reaction, we may implement this strategy again if we’re ever in the same type of jam. So, please let us know what you think! And don’t worry, Scott will be back next week and we’ll be back to our old tricks when we review James Cameron’s “Avatar.”

Also, we’ve just upgraded our equipment so I hope you enjoy the higher sound quality! Although you’ll also probably notice a few rough edits and some clipping/distortion. Not to worry, all the kinks should be ironed out for next week’s big “Avatar” show! Enjoy!

TMA FilmCast #24 – Where the Wild Things Are, Michael Jackson’s This Is It

Eric M. Armstrong — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:52:23 +0000

Question. Where exactly are the wild things? Well, you could ask Maurice Sendak, Spike Jonze, Max Records… or you could just listen the podcast and find out! Does the childhood classic turned hipster fantasy movie deliver? We’ll tackle that question as well as the ostensible Hollywood cash-grab, “Michael Jackson’s This is It.” How does the 50-year-old King of Pop compare to his 25-year-old or even 10-year-old counterpart? Does this flick have anything real to offer casual movie-goers? All that and more in this week’s episode of the FilmCast!

TMA FilmCast #23 – Paranormal Activity, Zombieland

Eric M. Armstrong — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:33:07 +0000

It’s been a couple of weeks since our last show, but this one is worth the wait (we hope). This week we tackle Oren Peli’s viral, scare-fest phenomenon “Paranormal Activity,” and then on to Ruben Fleischer’s Woody Harrelson-is-a-hillybilly-zombie-killer flick, “Zombieland.” Too much horror to handle? Find somebody to hold on to and let us guide you through the two most anticipated fright-flicks of year. We dare you click that button.

TMA FilmCast #22 – Inglourious Basterds

Eric M. Armstrong — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:24:31 +0000

Quentin Tarantino’s controversial revisionist’s WWII saga, “Inglourious Basterds” has had fans cheering and moralizers crying foul. Does it really deny the holocaust? Is it as boring as some have said? And how many freaking references to classic cinema can a guy fit into a single movie?! To find out you’ll have to listen to the show!

TMA FilmCast #21 – District 9

Eric M. Armstrong — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 07:28:38 +0000

Rookie director, Neill Blomkamp, has received untold accolades for his alien apartheid allegory, “District 9.” Can this $30 million socially conscious film please both the sci-fi fanboys and hardcore film snobs? And what exactly does this mean for fans of “Halo”? You’ll have to listen to find out!