Film Junk Podcast Episode #380: Total Recall

Posted by on August 7th, 2012   Filed under: Featured, Film Junk Podcast

0:00 – Intro
3:25 – Review: Total Recall
51:45 – Headlines: Vertigo Dethrones Citizen Kane as Best Movie of All Time, Jimmy Fallon to Host Academy Awards?, Jon Chu in Talks for He-Man Movie, Bill Murray Definitely Out of Ghostbusters 3, Eccentric Billionaire Wants to Make a Real Jurassic Park, Killing Them Softly Trailer
1:08:50 – Other Stuff We Watched: Bernie, Horror Express, Cannibal Ferox, Audition, Q: The Winged Serpent, Rec 3: Genesis, River of No Return, The Nesting, Code of Silence, Detachment, Total Recall 2070, Good Guys Wear Black, The Octagon, I Saw the Devil, Stand By Me, Star Trek: TNG on Blu-ray, Toy Story, The 400 Blows
2:19:10 – Junk Mail: Christopher Nolan Paying Tribute to the ’60s Batman, What Does a Producer Do, Directors That Never Lived Up to their Potential or Went Downhill, 30 for 30 Faves + Gay Cinema, The King Sound Clip, Ranking the Adam McKay / Will Ferrell Comedies, Ted vs. The Watch, Weak Criticism
2:56:50 – This Week on DVD and Blu-ray
3:02:00 – Outro

Film Junk Podcast Episode #380: Total Recall by Filmjunk on Mixcloud

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  • antho42

    Chuck Norris is the Ikeadog of action stars.

  • Dave

    That list is bullshit. It’s British and so was Hitchcock. So, of course Vertigo would top the list. Kane and Casablanca are American movies, so I smell a conspiracy. Oh, and with Turteltaub being American, I guess he’s out as well :)

  • Greg, the movie with Jim Belushi was The Principal. Teachers was the one with Nick Nolte and Ralph Macchio.

    I busted out laughing when you mentioned Body Break.

    I always liked Seeing Things with Louis Del Grande from Scanners.

  • Tum Tum Tyranus

    I kinda wanna yakuza kick that listener who sent you that stupid last question. You guys do talk about the things he listed, but only when applicable. Fucking prick!

  • Greg

    @MovieViewer-Man I totally mixed up The Principal and Teachers. Damn.

    Also…Seeing Things was awesome.

  • patrik

    Solid clip.

  • patrik

    Oh and it’s pronounced Beckinsale. No d..

  • patrik

    I liked the look of Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel. At least that’s one point for the remake.

  • patrik

    I agree with Greg btw, Kate is waaay better than Biel.

  • Frank, whichever Scot told you there’s a silent “D” in Beckinsale is completely wrong. There’s never been any doubt as to how to spell that surname. Besides, her Father was a star in the 70’s for about 2 years (he suddenly died young) and his name is said as it it written.
    Thanks for the episode…

  • Vikke_AJ

    My Chuck Norris Top 5

    1. Invasion USA
    2. Lone Wolf McQuade
    3. The Octagon
    4. Silent Rage
    5. Delta Force

    It’s probably wise to avoid anything made after 1989.

  • dirrrtyfrank

    She’ll always be Kate Beckinsdale to me

  • Gerry

    Whatever happened the new Cantankerous episode you promised a few weeks back, and the monthly Game Junk episodes?

    I haven’t seen Total Recall as it doesn’t open in the UK for 3 weeks but generally Biel kicks Beckinsale out of the park for face and body.

  • Jericho Slim

    I just don’t get how most reviewers can’t judge the new movie on its own merits, without constantly referring back to the original.

    Is it that hard to put the original out of your mind for a couple of hours and let the new movie just be what it is? Apparently so.

  • I can’t speak for Cantankerous but I think Game Junk is probably going to continue to be an irregular thing for the next little while. There were a bunch of complications that came up this summer plus we’re trying to be much more prompt with the Film Junk premium podcasts (not to mention watching 7 movies, in some cases).

    Andrew is done ME3 and ready to record so it’s myself and Frank who have been holding it up. Hopefully by the end of August we’ll get it done. I still prefer to have group discussions about a few games even if they’re not full reviews, but right now we’ve all been playing totally different things.

  • milandob

    30 for 30, i would recomend TWO ESCOBARS as well, great documentary…

  • Drew

    How do you properly spell le za se or whatever that last guy was talking about.

  • Steve Kasan

    Tea Party, Sloan, & 5440. Hmm, I would trade Tea Party & Sloan for Moist & The Odds when it comes to the trio of Canadian 90s Rock

  • Greg you goofed!

    You said TEACHERS with Jim Belushi, but I believe you were thinking of THE PRINCIPAL with Belushi and Louis Gossett Jr. TEACHERS stars Nick Nolte and Crispin Glover and isn’t quite as much fun in the B-movie way that THE PRINCIPAL is. There was even a sequel with Treat Williams if I’m not mistaken, or am I thinking of THE SUBSTITUTE?

  • My bad, didn’t notice the earlier comments. So many violent teacher movies, so little time.

    I happen to really like 187 directed by Kevin Reynolds and starring Sam Jackson myself.

  • @Gerry: The Cantankerous episode that Jay and I recorded turned out so badly that we shelved it. Cantankerous is defunct once more!

  • antho42

    Lens flare is the modern film-making trend equivalent to the autotuning trend in modern music.

  • #14

    I completely agree with your point, yet if the film actually states that it is a Remake (unlike a reboot) I think it would be really hard to not compare it to the original. I think they’re pretty much asking for a comparison, really.

  • kyri

    Hate to spoil the party but Jurassic Park can never happen. Apart from the whole Dna cloning thing, even if you succeed at bringing them back, they will not grow to their normal sizes because the atmosphere of the earth is very different today than it was back then.

    ARE YOU WILLING TO PAY MONEY JUST FOR THE SMALL SHITTY ONES??

    ….

    /*

    what an ego that Len Wiseman must have… not just having the balls to fuck with a Verhoeven masterpiece, but also releasing it right after Dark knight thinking he is going to top it or smthing.

    it seems that Larry David was right about judging a man from the looks of his wife..

    what am I saying…

    Larry david is always right.

    */

  • Not sure what the Sky Captain is up to now, but I do remember he was attached to direct John Carter of Mars at one point.

  • projectgenesis

    “it seems that Larry David was right about judging a man from the looks of his wife.”

    Classic.

  • Steve

    If you like Andrew Davis action thrillers, I recommend “The Package” (1989) which is very reminiscent of the later The Fugitive in its directorial style (and is set in Chicago). It stars Gene Hackman, Dennis Franz, and like The Fugitive an Under Siege- Tommy Lee Jones.

  • bullet3

    Sean, by far the two most entertaining Chuck Norris movies are Lone Wolf Mcquade (a great modern western, with an awesome score), and Silent Rage (bizarre and kinda creepy sci-fi Halloween rip-off mixed with a Chuck Norris movie). Invasion USA is also pretty entertaining in a really retarded way.

  • el ohroy

    Chuck Norris did 9 seasons of Walker,Texas Ranger. I think that run eclipses any movies he’s made.

  • Bas

    For the “Directors That Never Lived Up to their Potential or Went Downhill” I would like to nominate mr. Luc Besson. Léon aka The Professional is one of my favorite movies of all time, but after The Fifth Element (not my cup of tea, but loved by many) it’s been nothing but poop from this guy.

  • Keith

    @Drew #17

    The word is mise-en-scène. Took me forever to figure out.

  • Gerry

    Re the ‘bad’ cantankerous episode, can’t you post it anyway and let us be the judge of whether it’s bad.

    At the very least Jay could put it on you tube.

  • patrik

    #17 Mise-en-scene I think.

    #13 You’re an idiot. In the ass department maybe. Maybe.. Probably not though.

    #29 YEEEEES!! I was gonna mention that. Walker Texas Ranger is comedy gold. I especially like the episode when he’s tossing the old indian guy around and calling him boy.

    Sean and Frank what are you waiting for, ME 3 is amazing. Just piledrive that sucker.

  • Director fails:

    Zach Braff. People hate on GARDEN STATE I know, but I love the film and know a lot of other people do to. Wishing Braff would do some more writing/directing. What happened to that guy? Say what you will about Garden State, you gotta admit it’s pretty competent and evenif you don’t like it you have to admit it shows massive potential for future projects.

    Also Miranda July. She’s only done two things, but I found THE FUTURE to be a massive step down from You and Me and Everyone We Know.

  • Gay Cinema:

    “I Love You Phillip Morris” is one of the best films I’ve seen in the past year.

    And I haven’t seen it yet, but I’m told “Weekend” is fantastic (available on Netflix Instant).

  • Bas

    Biel Vs. Beckinsale:

    Sharon Stone (at the time of the original) kicks both their asses!

  • You guys have never said the phrase Mise-en-scene on the podcast before, that I can recall, but I think you do talk about the concept a lot. It’s new to me, so I just looked it up [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mise_en_sc%C3%A8ne]. Isn’t it what gives Wally Pfister and Wes Anderson their artistic individuality. But you do talk about it in more general terms than some other podcasts might, and that’s fine with me.

  • Gerry

    For an explanation of every type of producer imaginable check out Dov Simmens book. Nolan and Tarantino took his 2 day course before they started out.

    Gay Cinema, a favourite film of mine is Gods And Monsters. Ian McKellan plays gay director James Whale.

  • Brendan

    As I recall, the Sky Captain director was one of those guys that got a big movie deal based on a essentially a tech demo. He did an effects driven short film, which I think he did all himself on his home computer. That short was basically the same as the full Sky Captain film.

    So it’s much like how Neil “Blumpkin” turned Attack in Joberg to a full film with District 9. But District 9 was a success, Sky Cap’n wasn’t, so I’m not surprised his career never progressed.

  • “@Gerry: The Cantankerous episode that Jay and I recorded turned out so badly that we shelved it. Cantankerous is defunct once more!”

    Sabotage!!

  • Steve

    Blomkamp’s next film Elysium is in post-production right now. I hear it’s kind of a big deal.

    As far as a good gay film, how about C.R.A.Z.Y.?

  • sansho1

    Sean, I hope after you finish your Chuck Norris kick (hey-o!!!) you might decide to go down a rung or two on the early ’80s martial arts ladder and watch a couple of James Ryan flicks, if any are available. They were a hoot — he would spout a lot of cheesy Eastern philosophy, and they would add whooshing sound effects to every little move he made. Love whooshing sound effects! Even the titles were great — Kill Or Be Killed (aka Karate Killer), Kill And Kill Again. They’re really a must.

  • Jane

    Gay cinema – I recently watched A Home at the End of the World (2004) starring Colin Farrell. It’s a drama about two guys growing up in the 60s-70s-80s.

  • HuckCity

    A great Canadian show is Lost Girl (HBO Canada)

  • projectgenesis

    Doesn’t mis-en scene just mean props or non-living things we see on screen? Frank talks about this stuff all the time with logos and such. I love the use of the 80s-era coca-cola in House of the Devil or the Weyland-Yutani logo in Prometheus. Silly name but its talked about all the time.

  • It means “everything that happens in the scene”, analyzing the scene as its own entity. That includes actors, of course. But ask five people and you’ll get five different definitions of the term, so who knows.
    As the guys mentioned, it’s mostly just a classical definition used in film school theory classes and in academic-style film analysis.

    If we’ll get a Hitchcock show I’m sure there’s gonna be much more “deep” film talk. I mean, great directors actually have a mis-en-scene to speak of. What’s the mis-en-scene in found footage films, for example? There isn’t even a composition to speak of.

  • P. Traum

    Well of all the movies that come out, you’d think Frank would go off on this one with a good hearty DIPSY-DOO, but no…..

    That tells me the movie ain’t worth seein’. Although, honestly, I’d watch Kate Beckinsale take a shit. She does it for me.