The sixth and final film in our Risqué Romance cycle is Luca Guadagnino's meatlovers romance, Bones and All (2022).Coming off his break out art-house hit Call Me by Your Name (2017) and his wonderfully bizarre remake of Suspiria (2018), Luca Guadagnino rejoined with white hot Timothée Chalamet to adapt this young adult novel about the ills of eating human flesh. The book, a vegan polemic, is translated here by Luca with his normal grace, poise, and naturalism. Joining Chalamet is the splendid performance of Taylor Russell as the two young lovers crisscross the eastern half of the US. Also strangely a 1980s period piece, Bones and All becomes a gumbo of genre, style, and tone. It doesn't really work, but there is a joy in the experience of trying to make sense of it all. Mark Rylance shows up to piss off Chris and for me to fall in love again.For our chaser film, we reconnect with Her (2013), a techno-romance that captured the thirty something zeitgeist of the late Obama years as we became soulmates with our iPhones.

We decided to do an end of the year show for 2022. Life has been hectic so we haven't been able to post on our normal schedule, and we have a longer break coming up before Season 10 of Film Trace kicks off. So we decided to do a one-off show to give the people what they want: Drama!Chris and Dan present the top five behind the scenes dramas in film for 2022. The goal of our show is to tell the listener the story of how a film came to be. Sometimes everything goes right, and we get Top Gun: Maverick. Sometimes it doesn't go right and we get Morbius. The successes are fun to talk about but the abject failures are truly delicious. Join us as we trace the lives of five films that face planted in 2022.

The fifth film in our Risqué Romance cycle is Ang Lee's western romance, Brokeback Mountain (2005) Special Guest: Amanda Jane Stern - writer, actor, and producer from New York City. She wrote, produced, and starred in the new erotic thriller Perfectly Good Moment, soon to be playing at a film festival near you!When Brokeback came out in the mid-Aughts, it was supported by effuse buzz and whispered homophonic jokes. This was not unlike the release of The Crying Game in the early 90s. Both films were from smaller studios and gained traction due to their misperceived salaciousness. Looking back on Brokeback, the film's reputation is bizarre and totally ill-fitting. The film is a quiet and slow mediation on how love blossoms quickly but then withers for decades only to constantly reemerge through turned soil, like a perennial bud. Its loss to Crash at the 2006 Oscars for Best Picture feels more and more criminal with every passing year. Brokeback Mountain is one of Ang Lee's enduring masterpieces alongside Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.For our chaser film, we reexamine the 2002 film Secretary, which felt like a slight curiosity on release but plays totally differently now. Very much a hidden gem.

The fourth film in our Risqué Romance cycle is Lana and Lily Wachowski's debut film, Bound (1996).Like the Wachowskis' more successful and canonical sophomore effort, The Matrix, Bound both works wonderfully on its own as a playful lesbian-centered noir and as a challenge to the WWII-era subgenre, as well as modern crime films writ large, to reconsider and deconstruct masculinity and femininity alike. Essentially a chamber drama with Hong Kong action-inspired flair, its lead performances from the still-underrated Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon leap off the screen with ferocity while also retaining a delicate sense of intimacy. The supporting cast, including reliable Wachowski mainstay Joe Pantoliano and a magnetically maniacal turn from Christopher Meloni, fleshes out the film's ahead-of-its-time graphic novel pulp sensibility too. The whole affair comes off as not just risqué but downright revolutionary.For our chaser film, we discuss the trashy erotic thriller Poison Ivy (1992). Directed by exploitation master Roger Corman protégé Katt Shea and largely a footnote of the decade's offerings, its queer undertones and Lolita riffing merit discussion, not to mention the fact that it somehow spawned three direct-to-video sequels.Dan is off this episode, but joining Chris in his absence is the insightful and talented freelance film writer and frequent Little White Lies contributor Lillian Crawford.

The third film in our Risqué Romance cycle is the small yet delightful, Valley Girl (1983).Valley Girl, the paradigm of an indie film, transcended its own means of production to become an oddly dismissed 80s mall romcom. As one reviewer aptly stated, the influence of Valley Girl was so massive that it's hard to watch it without feeling a sense of deja vu. Helmed by Martha Coolidge, who went on to direct the classic Real Genius and to become the president of the DGA, Valley Girl features Nicolas Cage in his breakout lead role. Coolidge placated the indie studio's grindhouse expectations while at the same time deftly producing one of the more authentic 1980s romance films.For our chaser film, we explore My Beautiful Laundrette (1985), a homosexual love story that plays down any risque notions. Written by a playwright, this gem of Britain's Channel 4 glows brightly despite its three decades of age.

The second film in our Risqué Romance cycle is Terrence Malick's debut film, Badlands (1973)Loosely based on the real-life murdering spree committed by Charles Starkweather and Caril Ann Fugate in the late 1950s, Badlands quickly steers clear of true crime tropes and traditional story structure. While Terrence Malick is at his least idiosyncratic here, the vibe and flow of the film are resolutely unique and unexpected. Perhaps the strange pacing and narrative focus should have been expected from a Hollywood outsider who nearly got his Ph.D. studying the existential philosophy of Martin Heidegger. The fully colored lens through which Malick displays the violent journey of Kit and Holly (Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek) has not been drained of its vibrancy despite being fifty years old. The film shows how fame can easily dislocate the guttural horror of violence, a sophisticated message that has only strengthened over the decades. For our chaser film, we discuss the twee-influence of Harold and Maude (1971). The gender roles are reversed in this March-December romance, and we debate how this alteration affects the whimsy that props up this pitch-black comedy.

The first film in our Risqué Romance cycle is Stanley Kubrick's infamous Lolita (1962).We start out this new season by tiptoeing through the minefield that is Lolita, a notorious film adaptation of the even more notorious novel by Vladimir Nabokov. It is hard to fathom that housewives and bankers were reading Lolita on the subway in the 1950s, but that is how popular this novel was during the Eisenhower years. This classic unfilmable novel is bizarrely translated by Kubrick, which greatly aggravates the problematic nature of the story. Chris and I debate whether we could even call this a romance film. For our chaser film, we discuss an often-overlooked kitchen sink drama from England, A Taste of Honey (1961). Where Lolita stumbles all over the place trying to say something profound, Honey says it with the smallest of glances and touches.

The sixth and final film in our Absurdist Action cycle is Seijun Suzuki's masterpiece, Branded to Kill (1967)When we decided to do Absurdist Action as the theme of this cycle, we both struggled to find a starting point. Over-the-top action movies were the lingua franca of 1980s American cinema, and we had dozens of Reagan-era films to choose from as an origin. But as we tried to trace the theme back further, things became quite murky: Kung Fu, James Bond, Micheal Cimino, heist movies, cop movies, military shoot 'em ups. Chris wisely choose this yakuza B movie as our starting point, and it rings incredibly true to the theme.The undercurrent that connects Bullet Train to Bad Boys to 48 Hrs can be seen clearly in Seijun Suzuki's surrealist gonzo hitman film. Branded to Kill was shot in 25 days and edited in the three days before it was released. It was a factory film. The studio hated it and fired Suzuki. It was mostly unseen outside of Japan until the late 1990s when it was released on home video. Branded To Kill is a fever dream that runs solely on poetic logic. It is definitely absurd, and intoxicatingly provocative. Explicit sex, epic violence, and free verse plotting make this the missing link of Absurdist Action films. For our chaser film, we beat back the current of modern cinema to explore Beat the Devil (1953), a lark from John Huston and Truman Capote that became kitsch for the coastal elite set.

The fifth film in our Absurdist Action cycle is Michael Cimino's wonderful debut, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot.Special Guest: Daniel Malone from the great ‘You Talkin’ to Me?’ film podcastMichael Cimino will forever be a mystery. He seemingly appeared out of nowhere with Thunderbolt and Lightfoot in 1974 after winning favor with Clint Eastwood by punching up the script for his Dirty Harry flick Magnum Force. Cimino followed up his debut with The Deer Hunter (1978), arguably a masterpiece. He then came crashing down with the infamous Heaven's Gate (1980), arguably another masterpiece that was saddled with a supernova budget and an anathematic critical response. Within a single decade of working in Hollywood, Michael Cimino became a notorious and beguiling legend. Thunderbolt is a finely chiseled yet indecipherable clue to the persistent enigma of Cimino. Here the men are resolutely stoic yet desperate for connection, the landscape is brutal but intoxicatingly gorgeous, and America is both wide open and falling apart at the seams.For our chaser film, we scope out The Hot Rock (1972), an ensemble heist movie that juggles folly, irony, and low stakes.

The fourth film in our Absurdist Action cycle is Walter Hill's buddy cop paradigm, 48 Hours.Special Guest: Ryan Hendricks, friend of the show and Hollyweird insiderThe buddy cop movie would not exist without 48 Hours. Ironically, the buddies involved aren't both cops. Third pick Eddie Murphy has his breakout role here playing a convict put on temporary release for forty-eight hours to help track down a cop killer. Nick Nolte is a grizzled detective tasked with wrangling Murphy as they criss-cross a sleazy 1980s San Francisco. Time perhaps has not been kind to 48 Hours. The incessant side quest of Murphy looking for "trim" and the blatant racism highlight the inescapable and ignominious realities of late 20th century America.For our chaser film, we go the distance with Midnight Run (1988), an oddly underappreciated showcase for Charles Grodin and a stoic De Niro.

The third film in our Absurdist Action cycle is Michael Bay's debut, the paradigm of absurd action movies, Bad Boys.Special Guest: Harry Mackin from the fantastic Trylove Podcast. Bayhem has its own origin story. Shot with a small budget and jerry-rigged script, Michael Bay exploded into the multiplex with this longshot buddy cop movie. Originally meant as a vehicle for SNL all-rounders, Dana Carvey and Jon Lovitz, Bad Boys was saved by the snappy and kinetic duo of Martin Lawerence and Will Smith. Michael Bay planted his flag in modern cinema here with a brute-force style. He may have single-handily reduced the average shot length of action movies to below three seconds.For our chaser film, we shift to Hong Kong for The Legend of Drunken Master aka Drunken Master II (1994). Harry helps us with our kung-fu history, and we reminisce about the lost art of physical fight scenes.

The second film in our Absurdist Action cycle is Edgar Wright's iconic action comedy, Hot Fuzz.Special Guest: Max Covil, Rotten Tomato Approved Film Critic from the great It's the Pictures podcast and newsletter.If Edgar Wright is an auteur, then Hot Fuzz could easily be his calling card. This hyper-rewatchable UK export plays dual roles as both a great action movie as well as a meticulous satire of action movies past. Here we get textbook Wright: ping pong dialogue, spastic quick cuts, bite-size montages, brilliant soundtracking, joke per cut quotas, and indigenous English humour. It is the high point of the Cornetto Trilogy and perhaps is rivaled only by Scott Pilgrim as Wright's best film.For our chaser film, we visit In Bruges (2008) to decipher the allegory within the pitch black lilt of Martin McDonagh's Irish comedy.

A New Cycle Begins! The first film in our Absurdist Action cycle is the rock 'em sock 'em 2022 release, Bullet Train.The action comedy is a delicate balance. Too much comedy and the stakes feel too low. Too little and the tone becomes muddled. Bullet Train attempts to walk this fine line and stumbles into an abyss of tedium right from the start. Brad Pitt is a loosey-goosey hitman who is tasked with finding a briefcase amongst other assassins aboard a high-speed train in Japan. Former stuntman, David Leitch, takes the helm and the results are decidedly mixed. While some sequences sparkle with visual pizzazz and charm, much of the incessant bombast falls flat and the final result is a drowsy affair.For our chaser film, we revisit the highly successful 21 Jump Street (2012), the early 2010s Lord and Miller requel calling card.

The sixth and last film in our Existential Thriller cycle is Alfred Hitchcock's farewell to London, the macabre and dissociated Frenzy.Upon release, Frenzy was widely seen as a return to form for Hitchcock, but it has developed a rather odd reputation since its release fifty years ago. This gritty serial killer romp through Covent Garden has been cited as a forerunner to the bleaker side of thrillers we have seen in spades over the last three decades. But as we unpeel the layers, a more insidious ideology quickly becomes apparent. The misogyny is deafening, and the dim view of humanity soaks deeper than cynicism. Hitchcock was an angry man near the end of his life, and Frenzy is his rage-filled swan song. For our chaser film, we survey Wait Until Dark (1967), a pulpy psychological thriller starring Audrey Hepburn with a career-best performance from a young Alan Arkin.

The fifth film in our Existential Thriller cycle is William Friedkin's grim and precise Sorcerer (1977).Released in the shadow of Star Wars and Friedkin's own masterpiece, The Exorcist, this bizarre down-and-out adventure film was a total financial failure. Critics didn't much like it either. But time has a funny way of shuffling the deck, and Sorcerer has found itself with a lucky draw. Film critics, nerds, and aficionados have reclaimed Sorcerer as a lost masterpiece. But some at Film Trace are skeptical. Is the Letterboxd set being hyperbolic or was Friedkin's fatalistic road trip movie really a high mark of the auteur golden age? For our chaser film, we transverse the wobbly Deathtrap (1982) and try to plot its bewildering narrative convulsions.Special Guest: The Mikes from Forgotten Cinema, a podcast for forgotten films that deserve a second chance.

The fourth film in our Existential Thriller cycle is Neil Jordan's infamous 1992 political enigma, The Crying Game (1992).A film's notoriety can easily mute or distort what is actually on the screen. The Crying Game is an interesting and rich movie that was unfortunately overwhelmed by its own infamy. The film's US distributor, Miramax, decided to start a sly whisper campaign to create controversy surrounding a plot twist in the film. The hush-hush angle worked wonders and the film became a smash hit in America. The popularity of the film along with Miramax's carnival barker campaign masked Neil Jordan's layered and fiery script as well as the immense and historic performance of Jaye Davidson. The film deserves a deep reconsideration outside the cultural confines of the atavistic early 90s.For our chaser film, we untangle the narrative tendrils of David Mamet's oft-passed-by House of Games (1987). Special Guest: Natasha Alvar, film editor at Cultured Vultures and Rotten-Tomato Approved film critic.

The third film in our new Existential Thrillers cycle is David Fincher's Norcal mindbender, The Game (1997)David Fincher is one the most powerful and popular auteurs working in film and tv today. We revisit what has strangely and wrongly become one of his minor works. Fincher teamed up with Micheal Douglas in the pre-Fight Club days to concoct this highly entertaining yet perplexing thriller. The audience is effectively thrust into the chaos unfolding around the protagonist as his palatial life begins to crumble. By the end, it feels like you have been on a theme park ride, or rather, you have been taken for a ride. The much scoffed-at ending perfectly fits the kaleidoscopic tone of the proceeding ninety minutes. This is genre work gone mad.For our chaser film, we regrettably reexamine Christopher Nolan's Insomnia (2002). What an absolute trudge of a film. Thankfully our broteur whisperer, Molly, helps us decipher this broodfest. Special Guests: Great friend of the show Molly is back!

The second film in our new Existential Thrillers cycle is Tony Gilroy's aughtie classic, Michael Clayton (2007).On paper, Michael Clayton probably seems like a taut legal thriller played to the middle-aged set, a John Grisham movie with the latest A-Listers. Tony Gilroy chose a much different path by crafting a cerebral thriller infused with corporate nihilism and existential longing. Clooney plays Clayton as a formerly charming bagman who stayed too long at the party. He is stranded and saddled with financial debt, vertiginous self-doubt, and severe moral failing. Clayton is living in what Jean-Paul Sartre would call bad faith. He must face the immediate danger all around him while also breaking free from his calcified moral will. A seemingly small film greatly amplified by Gilroy's impeccable craftsmanship and brilliant performances from Tilda Swinton, Tom Wilkinson, and George Clooney.For our chaser film, we grapple with The Hunt (2012), a Danish film detailing how hearsay can become an avalanche that can bury anyone's life. Created before cancel culture was a thing, The Hunt offers a rather intense refutation of how groups pass judgment.Special Guests: Tommy Thevenet & Tim Sestito from the great Haven't Scene It: A Movie Podcast

The first film in our new Existential Thrillers cycle is Alex Garland's bizarre and bold Men (2022).Alex Garland has quietly made himself into one of the more exciting filmmakers of the A24 set. The former novelist turned screenwriter turned auteur exploded onto the arthouse scene with his first film Ex Machina (2014). The success of that film led to his major studio debut Annihilation (2018). The spectacular failure of that film led him back to the indie world where we find him with Men. What starts out as a woman-alone thriller transforms into a formalist nightmare, for all parties involved. Garland shoots for the stars, but where does he actually land?For our chaser film, we pursue Yorgos Lanthimos' The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017). While less conspicuous than our main film, Deer has deep and twisted roots that slowly reveal themselves in this glacial thriller.

The sixth and final film in our Self-Aware Horror cycle is the landmark exploitation film, The Last House on the Left (1972). Made off the proceeds of a successful pornographic film, this genuinely gonzo horror film sparked the careers of two kings of horror, Wes Craven and Friday the 13th creator, Sean Cunningham. On the surface, this rape-revenge exploitation film plays it straight: shock, rape, murder, revenge. But beneath the schlock is an avant-garde rip current that is essentially a middle finger to American Exceptionalism, a canary in the coalmine for a desiccated and fraying empire. This is a bizarre juxtaposition that never really settles right in your stomach. What is depicted vs what you feel seems separated by a grand canyon of satire, which is why we chose this as our final film in our Self-Aware Horror series.For our chaser film, we try to decipher The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967). It is a lark, a common parody, or is there something more going on in Roman Polanski's first major studio film. The year after Vampire came out, modern horror began with The Night of Living Dead. We try to decide whether Vampire Killers was a harbinger or an anachronism.