Film Junk Podcast Episode #757: I Know This Much is True

Posted by on June 30th, 2020   Filed under: Featured, Film Junk Podcast

podcast757

0:00 – Intro
11:45 – Review: I Know This Much is True
55:20 – Top 5: Best Movies of the Year So Far
1:09:05 – Other Stuff We Watched: The Assistant, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, Days of Thunder, The Lion King (2019)
1:27:50 – This Week on DVD, Blu-ray and VOD
1:31:20 – Outro

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  • John

    Suggestions for a Stallone Premium:
    Demolition Man, Cobra, Tango & Cash, Cliffhanger, Nighthawks

  • Sam

    Decent lineup, though can’t say I’m too thrilled about a Stallone premium considering there are already Rocky and Rambo premiums but I buy and enjoy every single premium regardless. So I’ll take whatever the boys will give.

    Maybe Over the Top, Daylight, or Driven to rehash an age old topic.

  • Ben Bueno

    Hi Sean, have you guys thought about doing a premium on a non-american director? Someone like Lars Von Trier, Michael Haneke, someone from the French New Wave, Polanski, Herzog, Verhoeven, Mike Leigh, Kurosawa, Park Chan-Wook… I don’t know! I really enjoyed the Argento premium for example and I think it could be really fun. Plus the thought of Frank watching some of this stuff just makes me happy.

  • Film Gob

    the frank note (uuuuhhh) sums up cinema in 2020

  • TimC

    As a Jaguars fan, I loved Frank’s “steal the show” reference. I was already suspicious that his frequent use of “certainly not” was inspired by the same clip. Can you confirm, Frank?

    For reference:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HVQ160TF5U

  • Sean

    Some of those have been considered. I am a bit surprised we haven’t done Herzog yet since we all know Jay is the one pulling the strings. Miyazaki is also a strong possibility for the near future.

  • colin the dude

    They should throw in at least one notoriously bad one. Rhinestone or Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot. Always makes for funnier discussions.

  • Ben Bueno

    I just got the impression that Jay despises Anime so I didn’t even think that would be possible but hey, that actually sounds like a great idea!

  • andyluvsfilms

    My Top Five – Big Time Adolescence, Guns Akimbo, Butt Boy, The Way Back, Invisible Life.

  • Ben Bueno

    Mine is:
    1. Bad Education (4/5)
    2. Beastie Boys Story (4/5)
    3. The Gentlemen (3.5/5)
    4. The Invisible Man (3.5/5)
    5. The Hunt (3/5)

    Which are also almost all of the movies I watched, the others being Da 5 Bloods and The Lodge which were both 2.5/5.
    This year seems like the first year ever where I think everyone can unanimously agree with Frank that it actually is the worst year ever.

  • Nobody

    I wonder if a Miyazaki premium would benefit at all from being altered to include other Ghibli directors like Isao Takahata, or maybe a more general anime movie premium, only because it might prevent fatigue if someone doesn’t like Miyazaki’s style. I also have similar thoughts on the Bruce Lee premium – what if it was a Bruce Lee/martial arts premium so something like a King Hu movie or Sammo Hung’s awesome Eastern Condors could be included? I think Frank’s reaction to a Bruce Lee premium will end up being similar to the Jackie Chan one.

    As for movies with 2020 North American release dates, two titles that deserve more attention are the Chinese noir The Wild Goose Lake and the Korean drama House of Hummingbird.

  • Nic

    The Argento premium is one of my favorites as well! Really enjoyed the discussion and it was great to hear Frank embrace a foreign director for once. With Blu Underground releasing Zombi, The New York Ripper and House By The Cemetery on 4K, is there a chance for a Lucio Fulci premium (perhaps in October)? Fulci is a bit more eccentric and not as stylish as Argento but he is pretty essential for any Horror fan IMO

  • Falsk

    Speaking of quiet, lingering, and contemplative, how come no one has watched Never Rarely Sometimes Always?

  • Ben Bueno

    I personally didn’t like Zombi or The Beyond (although you can’t deny the awesomeness of some of the standout scenes) but hey, that actually sounds interesting and I wouldn’t mind trying out some of his other films. I basically welcome anything outside the huge mainstream franchises because I think the guys have covered pretty much all of them at this point

  • Ben Bueno

    I totally agree, a general Ghibli podcast is a great idea, you gotta include Whisper of the Heart and Grave of the Fireflies!

  • Ben Bueno

    Also about Martial Arts HK stuff, I’m currently just getting into these myself and that could be amazing too, I downloaded Eastern Condors just the other day even. There are so many possibilities! I might have to drop tier just to prevent future premiums like the Video Game Movies one from happening lol

  • OsoDuck

    Miyazaki would be amazing.

  • Sam

    Totally agree about including some Sammo Hung or others in general, I enjoy and appreciate Bruce Lee but his movies really aren’t all that great comparatively to others that came out after or even before. Including Sammo, Jimmy Wang Yu, the Venom movies, could add some exciting movies to talk about.

    Wouldn’t sell as well but even a Sammo Hung director premium would be awesome compared to just the Bruce Lee movies. A Tsui Hark premium would be amazing some time but considering even wishing for his movies to be released on blu-ray is too much to ask so a premium ain’t happening.

  • Nic

    Even as a Fulci fan I would struggle to argue that his films are “good” in a conventional sense. But their oddity adds to their creepiness for me and I think the films would make for a great discussion. Fulci worked in a range of Horror subgenres so the slate of films could be a little more diverse compared to Argento. If nothing else there are also some of the greatest gore moments ever in his movies and I’m sure all of the boys would appreciate that

  • Lior

    Are you guys still skyping the show? I thought restrictions have eased somewhat recently. Is it still so bad that three friends can’t meet up? Or have you simply gotten accustomed to this format? I mean, I admit it seems to work pretty well, I can hardly tell the difference unless there’s some technical glitch, but technical glitches can happen on a regular show too.

  • TimC

    Something gave me the impression that they were in the same room, for one of the recent shows, but can’t remember what it was.

  • Sean

    We are still Skyping. We haven’t really talked about getting together in person yet, Ontario is still recommending social circles of 10 or less and maintaining social distancing outside of immediate family. No real reason to risk anything at this point.

  • Sean

    It’s been on my list of stuff to check out but keep getting it mixed up with Sometimes Always Never.

  • Nobody

    Absolutely, agree on all of those. I think an an all Bruce Lee premium would mostly revolve around his star power and abilities without so much to say about the movies themselves.
    It really is a shame when it comes to the lack of releases for Hark’s work, considering he’s such a key figure in action and HK cinema.

  • Nobody

    Not sure if you already know, but Sean and Jay actually reviewed Grave of the Fireflies on their Movie Club podcast. I believe Jay watched a dubbed version and hated it. I wonder if his opinion would be any different today.
    Hope you enjoy Eastern Condors!

  • Falsk

    It’s good!

  • Lior

    There is a whole swath of foreign cinema which is underrepresented on Film Junk, outside of Jay’s delve into art house horror, Werner Herzog, and other high profile European films, and Sean’s occasional foray into some classics (and getting accused by Frank as having “classitosis”.) I don’t really consider Bruce Lee movies or Jackie Chan movies or Miyazaki as foreign because they have become so popular and mainstream that they are known in North America as much as American directors or movies do. I think it’s a matter of demand. I’d like to think the community here will support a show on Luis Bunuel or Kurosawa, but I don’t know. Maybe it’s not sexy enough. I just finished watching some of Bunuel’s incredible films on the Criterion channel and can only dream what a Film Junk Bunuel show will be like…

  • Ben Bueno

    Sean and Jay watch a good amount of foreign stuff, especially Jay, give them some credit. It’s just Frank who doesn’t give them a chance.
    Anyway, I don’t know how much demand is out there for this stuff but Sean consider me and Lior as interested :)

  • Lior

    Yeah, I know Sean and Jay watch foreign films, I was not trying to imply otherwise. I just wanted to agree with you as to the fact that world cinema is not necessarily explored consistently on the show in the form of specials such as premiums, for example. It is not intended as a criticism of the show on my part, just a shared observation. I love the show either way and accept it as it is, but I think it’s okay to support constructive feedback when given the chance. So basically, yup, I just wanted to lend my vote for your proposal. :-) And if we step outside of foreign movies, I know Jay watches quite a few silent films, for example, so imagine a premium on some of those… the ratings will go through the roof! lol (but I would love it).

  • Ben Bueno

    This might call for a Tier drop.. Might be the only way we could make this happen!

  • Christopher Nolan/WB should just release Tenet on demand and have a later Theatrical Encore when it’s safe to do… Same goes for all other films slated for the summer.