Monday Morning Critic Podcast

Darek Thomas

My name is Darek Thomas and I am the host of Monday Morning Critic Podcast. My podcast is a labor of love created out of my passion for my guests, their work and a variety of shows, movies and people that have changed my life. Welcome to Monday Morning Critic.www.mmcpodcast.com

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TV & FilmTV & Film

Episodes

Episode 464 | Land of Bad | Composer: Brandon Roberts.
May 8 2024
Episode 464 | Land of Bad | Composer: Brandon Roberts.
Episode 464"Land of Bad" | "Thanksgiving" | Composer: Brandon Roberts.Composer Brandon Roberts joins me to talk about his work, (Thanksgiving, Land of Bad) Thomas Newman, composing music, John Williams, Awards and so much more.Emmy Award winning composer Brandon Roberts’ music can be heard all over the scoring world today. From the Academy Award winning documentary Free Solo, to the pulsing action of World War Z and Logan, to the surreal reimagining of Jordan Peele’s Twilight Zone and the horror of Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving.Upon graduating from the USC Scoring for Motion Pictures & Television program, Brandon began composing for films, television and albums in a wide range of styles. Projects include such large-scale feature films as A Quiet Place (I and II), Logan, Chaos Walking, and World War Z. In addition, he has composed for several independent features including: The Woman In Black (I and II), Warm Bodies, The Giver, and Unbroken: Path To Redemption. Brandon’s music can be found in acclaimed television shows as well, including Battlestar Galactica, V, AMC’s Revolutionary War spy drama, TURN:  Washington’s Spies, and Freeform’s Motherland: Fort Salem. Brandon’s recent co-scores with frequent collaborator Marco Beltrami include Jordan Peele’s CBS All Access reboot of The Twilight Zone, the Fox horror feature Underwater starring Kristen Stewart, and the Focus Features political documentary The Way I See It which earned a People’s Choice Award for best documentary score. The popular summer Netflix horror trilogy, Fear Street, featured a co-score with Beltrami (Fear Street: Part 2) as well as additional music in Pt1 and Pt3. Brandon’s other recent scores include additional music on the Paramount feature Tom Clancy’s: Without Remorse, starring Michael B. Jordan and New Line Cinema’s, The Nun II.Brandon resides in Tarzana, CA and is a dual-citizen of United States and Canada.#moviemusic #composer #music #podcast #shorts #fyp #interview #landofbad #thanksgiving #horrorstories #movies #moviecomposer #moviesongs #cinema #johnwilliams #thomasnewman https://linktr.ee/mondaymorningcritic
Episode 459 | The Gentleman, Wrath of Man, The Covenant | Composer: Chris Benstead
Apr 5 2024
Episode 459 | The Gentleman, Wrath of Man, The Covenant | Composer: Chris Benstead
Episode 459. The Gentleman, The Covenant and Wrath of Man. Composer: Chris Benstead. Chris Benstead and Guy Ritchie have made one hell of a team the last few years. Academy and BAFTA award winner Chris Benstead, is a British composer with a distinct and captivating voice. His remarkable career spans a multitude of noteworthy projects. Collaborating extensively with director Guy Ritchie, Chris composed the score for the upcoming feature The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare starring Henry Cavil, and recently finished the much anticipated NETFLIX series The Gentlemen, a follow up to the 2019 film that Chris also scored. His music for Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant (starring Jake Gyllenhaal) and the Jason Statham thrillers Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre and Wrath of Man were received to much critical acclaim. His work on Disney’s blockbuster hits Aladdin and Beauty and The Beast showcases his versatility. In collaboration with Alan Menken, Chris not only composed additional music for these iconic films but also played a pivotal role in producing and arranging the songs for a modern audience. Recent additions to his impressive portfolio include scoring the action thrillers Jericho Ridge and Rupture directed by Hamzah Jamjoom. Chris received OSCAR and BAFTA awards for his work as re-recording mixer on Alfonso Cuaron’s masterpiece Gravity, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney. Chris’ unique skillset allowed him to mix and sculpt the music in an extremely immersive way, pushing the limits of surround sound and exploiting the new ‘Dolby Atmos’ standard. Previously, as an in-demand music editor Chris worked on over 40 films including the latest James Bond film No Time to Die, Wonder Woman, Black Swan, Brave, Thor and Cinderella and has worked with some of the most high-profile directors in the industry including Paul Greengrass and Sir Kenneth Branagh. Chris is a versatile multi-instrumentalist and achieved a First-Class honours in music and sound recording from the University of Surrey. He was also named as Alumni of the year for his ground-breaking achievement in music mixing on ‘Gravity’. https://linktr.ee/mondaymorningcritic #guyritchie   #thegentleman #theojames  #movie  #moviemusic  #wrathofman  #moviescore  #thecovenant  #fyp  #shorts
(Episode 446) "The Shawshank Redemption" Actor: Don McManus.
Feb 6 2024
(Episode 446) "The Shawshank Redemption" Actor: Don McManus.
Episode 446."The Shawshank Redemption"Actor: Don McManus.Don and I talk Seinfeld (Duncan Meyer), Dexter, The Shawshank Redemption,  Vice and  his most recent film Joker: Folie à Deux.A veteran character actor on some of TV's most quirky series, Don McManus got his first recurring role playing Erick Reese Hillman, the first gay character to marry his boyfriend on television, on the critically acclaimed CBS dramedy "Northern Exposure." Next up for McManus was a change of pace, playing dynamic manager Lee Michaelson in Steven Bochco's searing courtroom drama "Murder One" and a recurring role as a recovering alcoholic on the gripping family drama "Party of Five." McManus continued to work steadily, with guest roles in such high-profile series as the political drama "The West Wing," the crime series "Cold Case," and the refreshingly original sitcom "Malcolm in the Middle." His next big recurring role was as Assistant District Attorney John Lennox on David E. Kelley's off-kilter law series "Boston Legal," where he appeared as an attorney who battles Crane, Poole, & Schmidt. In between his busy television schedule, McManus also found the time to appear in several films, including the critically acclaimed prison drama "The Shawshank Redemption," Paul Thomas Anderson's absurdist "Punch-Drunk Love," and the big-budget Nicolas Cage adventure "National Treasure."Welcome, Don McManus.https://linktr.ee/mondaymorningcritic#theshawshankredemption #seinfeld #vice #dexter #podcast #fyp #interview #shorts