Two Reel Cinema Club

This year is the first time in the history of cinema that every film in the top ten is a sequel or a prequel. Join us at the popcorn counter to talk about what’s wrong with the industry, how we’ve ended up here and what we might do to get ourselves out of this particular creative ditch. Who has the star power to open a non-franchise film these days? How can we encourage more risks? What can we learn from the craft brewery business? And how might A.I., our favourite nemesis, possibly come to our rescue this time around? If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

We have watched the new Sebastian Stan movie A Different Man this week, a low budget, independent, off kilter comedy drama about an actor with neurofibromatosis who transforms his appearance and alters his identity. But do things change for the better or the worse? We’re comparing it to the classic tale of stolen identity, 1982’s The Return of Martin Guerre. These movies offer two takes on similar phenomena, with some wildly varying conclusions. But which film contains the best surprise? Which film looks like a painting brought to life? And which film has a link to animated favourite Robot Dreams? Plus we read a novella by Alexandre Dumas, we discover a personal connection to a beautifully scored Netflix documentary about lost children, no-one saves us from a fun and almost silent alien invasion movie, one of us gets lost in the Maine woods, and we enjoy a word from our sponsors and their nuclear powered mints.  If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

We’re in conversation with probably the world’s number one sound recordist this week, friend of the pod Mike Primmer, who was the man holding the boom in last week’s film A Prairie Home Companion. Join us for not only the best recorded Popcorn Counter ever, but also for some incredible insights into the making of this 2006 classic. How many takes does Robert Altman like to shoot? What’s Woody Harrelson’s guitar playing like? How pregnant was Maya Rudolf? And how was Paul Thomas Anderson involved? Plus some fresh news on the current state of the film industry in California and beyond, and some reflections on the tenth anniversary rerelease of Interstellar. If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Stop singing that Whigfield hit from 1994 and instead join us for a look at Saturday Night, the brand new feature film comedy from Jason Reitman about the first broadcast of US television institution Saturday Night Live. With its fairly soft plot, character based comedy, constantly moving camera and huge ensemble cast it looks a lot like a Robert Altman movie - which is a lucky coincidence, because we’re comparing it to Altman’s final picture, 2006’s A Prairie Home Companion, a gentle drama about life backstage at a long running radio show. It’s one of those weeks where the two films have so much in common that if feels like we’ve watched the same movie twice. But which film stars a character with a face for radio? Which film has more than one connection to I Used To Be Funny? Which film has some of the best sound we’ve heard in a long time? And which film obeys one of the great rules of screenwriting? Plus a judging position on a Sri Lankan popstar lookalike contest, a look back at running a real comedy club, a brief requiem for John Belushi, a nod to BBC Radio Four’s Loose Ends, a visit to a midwestern lake of dinosaur poo, and a new real estate opportunity out at sea from our sponsor. It must be Saturday Night! If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

It’s quiz night once again at the Popcorn Counter this week, in what we’re going to call ‘Pop Quiz’ from now on. This time: detective movies. Can you name forty detective movies given our cryptic, random and rambling clues? Score over 28 to earn our undying respect. In between the questions, we wonder about Orson Welles’ shooting style, recall some outstandingly well recorded dialogue, and summarise capitalism in a single word. If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut Woman of the Hour is our new film at the Two Reel Cinema Club this week, a true life serial killer thriller that mixes perky humour and dreadful violence to powerful effect. We’re comparing it to one of the granddaddies of serial killer movies, 1971’s Dirty Harry. Which film is stacked to the rafters with Christian imagery? Which film takes no interest in the victims of crime whatsoever? Which film feels like four different films squished together? And which film is like a Rosetta Stone that can explain modern American politics? Plus we have a Portland Maine special edition, with two local horror films, two locally born stars and one local real estate deal, as well as a cameo from Churchill, a surprisingly helpful doctor, a naked blues band, a sauce that goes with everything, a real life baddie from the seventeenth century, a complaint from the cliché squad about the colour orange, and a surprise guest appearance by Donald Trump’s ear. If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

It’s not an episode for those with claustrophobia this week, as we get stuck in the elevator on the way to the Popcorn Counter for the second time. At least we have our microphones, so we take the opportunity to practice our best elevator pitches. With Joker: Folie à Deux fresh in our minds, are there any other well known properties that would benefit from a musical redo? Which three films from recent podcasts would we love to see in song? Which three outliers from cinematic history deserve a fresh lease of life with the benefit of a few show tunes? And will we finish our pitches before the fire service arrives to perform a daring rescue?  (Spoiler: yes). If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

When Joker made nearly $1.1bn at the box office, a sequel was more or less assured. But who expected a musical? Join us this week as we watch Joaquim Phoenix and Lady Gaga in Joker: Folie à Deux and ask: is it possible to turn a comic book movie into anything? What does the film say about the state of the world? Is society a civilising force or a tissue-thin cover for anarchy? And how does this new film compare to the movie to which it pays a twisted homage, 1964’s sweet and colourful The Umbrellas of Cherbourg?  Plus we enjoy a new Pixar home run, we watch a documentary about surfing, we wonder what it would be like to read the Bible at 40, we tell a true life story about being arrested, we flick through DSM 5, we try on a new brand of underwear, and we question the significance of cults centred around criminal television personalities. If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Join us at the Popcorn Counter this episode, where we ask: where now for the film industry? You, like us, may have read recently about the current contraction of Hollywood and the collapse of streaming. Is cinema’s obituary mere alarmism or an uncomfortable truth? What will happen to the small and mid sized movies? Where are the opportunities for new and established writers going to come from? Will there be any end to superhero sequels and IP movies? And most importantly, who’s going to make the popcorn?! Articles referenced:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj6er83ene6o https://harpers.org/archive/2024/05/the-life-and-death-of-hollywood-daniel-bessner/ If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

We’re not entirely sure which of us is which this episode, as we stagger out of the new queasy feminist body-swap horror epic The Substance, and into John Woo’s classic body-swap action adventure Face/Off. These two have plenty in common, with actors chewing the scenery and flesh and blood everywhere. But which film is the most joyful? Which film has the most convincing medical procedures? Which film has perfect casting? And which film is 15% gyrating butts? Plus a look at Coralie Fergeat’s previous films Revenge and Reality+, a trip to a puppet theatre, a surprise appearance by John Lennon, a colourful burst of Fellini, a new, delicious and educational sponsor that one of us can barely pronounce, and Christian Slater retrieves a nuclear bomb. If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Everyone loves a ghost story … but gather around in the darkest, quietest corner of the popcorn counter this episode as we tell you a strange and chilling story about how EVERY film is really a ghost story. Well, kind of. We try our theory out on not just The Sixth Sense and Ghost, but The Shining, It Follows, Oculus, Ring, and even Vertigo and Citizen Kane… So what are ghost films really about? And when is it time to slough off this mortal coil and move on…? If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

This episode we’re descending into hell and watching Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, confirming that ‘belated sequels to hits from the 80s’ looks like it’s going to be a thing… Most of the cast is back, as are a number of the same gags. But instead of comparing it to the 1988 original movie, Beetlejuice, we’ve spread our net a little wider to draw parallels with the masterful 2001 Nicole Kidman slow burn supernatural thriller The Others. Two haunted houses, two anxious mothers, two gothic confections. But which film features so many subplots that we forgot half of the characters completely? Which film plays with our expectations and pulls out the rug so often it threatens to destroy the whole carpet? And which film stars one of the greatest comedians of all time….? Plus Vince Vaughn returns as a detective, a Clive Barker classic shows us how horror really works, the Cliche Squad has to establish a specialist ‘hell’ division, we briefly summarise 70s cult novel The Diceman, our sponsor clears the air for us, and one of us wakes up screaming in real life. This podcast is so random! If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

You may think you’ve heard some nerdy podcasts in the past, but we’re going to ask you to buckle up your space suits and accelerate away from the Earth with us into the nerdiest possible sector of the whole galaxy this episode. We’ve seen a few films set in the deepest reaches of space recently - but out of the whole cinematic canon, which film is set FURTHEST from Earth? We’ve done some research, we’ve drawn some charts and we’ve made some calculations, and we think we have an answer. But is the winner a film from Stanley Kubrick, John Carpenter, Ridley Scott, or someone else entirely…? If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

It’s all scary monsters and super creeps at the Popcorn Counter this episode. Join us as we shelter from a storm and count down our 13 favourite scary movies. (Please note, however, that ‘scary’ doesn’t always mean ‘good’.) Including a French film we wish we’d never seen, a Richard Burton film we probably didn’t see, or at least don’t remember very clearly, and a satanic film that should be avoided if you are pregnant… But which film will take the coveted number 13 spot? If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

If there’s one thing we know about the xenomorphs in the Alien films, it’s that they’re very, very good at reproducing themselves…  Join us this episode as we watch the new sci-fi horror picture Alien: Romulus and its 1979 sci-fi horror granddaddy, Alien, and ask ourselves: is it possible we might have watched the same film twice? Romulus may be filled with callbacks and fan service and easter eggs and horror tropes, but is there a thoughtful and effective film hiding beneath them? And although the original Alien is now revered as a classic, have any cracks emerged in its pristine shell in the intervening 45 years? Which film has the more sophisticated take on racism, corporate exploitation and bodily autonomy? And which film features a cameo from Jacob Rees-Mogg? Plus we rewatch a Kevin Costner classic that is very different to how we remember it, we get a new sponsorship deal with an AI phone, we take a quick trip to Hungary, we try to think of a polite way to talk about something R rated, and we issue a disclaimer from the TRCC legal team… If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Going to the cinema is like experiencing a shared dream. (Especially when the film is so bad we fall asleep in it - and that’s happened to us more than a few times.) But who is the finest auteur of films as dreams? Is it Federico Fellini, or David Lynch, or is it Arnold Schwarzenegger in a blockbuster from 1990? Join us at the Popcorn Counter this episode as we mooch about in the dreamscape, drifting in and out of a Steven Spielberg fantasy, a Fritz Lang disappointment and a beautiful afternoon nap with Jean Renoir. (We would advise you bring your own blanket and pillow.) If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

We’re processing trauma and fighting a mighty wind at the Two Reel Cinema Club this episode, as we go to see the new weather-based action sequel Twisters, and compare it to the 1939 family classic The Wizard of Oz. Twisters can’t stop quoting from Oz, but the parallels don’t end there: both films centre around powerful women and both films are about trying to get back to the Midwest. But we still have questions. How many times can one man get struck by lightning before he gets the message? How small can a B plot be before it disappears in a stiff breeze? Which of the two films is a perfect socialist metaphor? And which features Elon Musk in disguise? Plus we immerse ourselves in the Pink Floyd soundtracked version of Oz, dubbed Dark Side of the Rainbow, we question how widespread doping is among professional cyclists, we rewatch Metropolis and Night of the Living Dead while listening to Daft Punk and Arcade Fire to investigate apophenia, we enjoy a Henry Fonda classic and we promote a new range of lecterns aimed at supernatural users. Let's hope altogether it’ll be enough to entertain you while you cower in the storm shelter waiting for the tornado to pass… If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

(*Turns to camera*) You may remember that back in the 1980s and 90s they used to name a lot of films after songs. Seriously. A LOT. It was like an actual thing. So come and join us at the Popcorn Counter this week, where we’ve turned those Song-Named-Movie-Tune-Films into a Song-Named-Movie-Tune-Film-QUIZ. (*Cut to title card with music*) Forty movies named after songs, with plenty of silence while we try to guess the answers, and a few added clues for the hard of thinking. Play along with us at home, in the car or during surgery. Can you beat our score? (*Cut to graphic of an animated question mark with sparkles*) And what’s so embarrassing about movie number forty? (*Musical sting, probably a trombone?*) If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

With films like Capricorn One, Three Days of the Condor and The Parallax View, the Watergate scandal meant the 1970s was the golden age of Hollywood conspiracy thrillers. OR WAS IT?! Join us at the Popcorn Counter this episode as we keep our heads down and ask in quiet voices if conspiracy cinema is not as simple as it first appears. Klute and The Manchurian Candidate predated Watergate. While Captain America: The Winter Soldier and the Jason Bourne films were popular with people who’d never heard of Nixon. Which hard boiled Disney animation is like ‘Chinatown for eleven year olds’? Is the Manchurian Candidate remake worth watching? And which conspiracy classic features a fourteen minute fist fight? If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

We’re lost in the desert, deep in conspiracy country this episode, as we enjoy the new Scarlett Johansson / Channing Tatum ‘how they could have faked the moon landings’ rom com Fly Me To The Moon, and compare it to its direct antecedent, the 1977 Elliot Gould ‘how they might fake the Mars landings’ thriller Capricorn One. The parallels are obvious, the treatments are completely different. Or are they? Which film features ‘fluffy gravity’? Which reminds us of Doris Day and Rock Hudson? Which features a Charlie’s Angels cameo? Which stars the father of Thanos? And which film truly saves the cat? Plus a modern classic from Steven Soderbergh, an environmental documentary with a convicted felon who’s served her time, a discussion of Elon Musk’s bitter foretaste, a flock of birds visits the studio, we tackle the world’s hardest word puzzle with our sponsor, and we discover exactly what NASA does when one of their engineers disappears... If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media: Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com