Episodes
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Happy Thanksgiving, 70 Movies style!
Ben and Scott are joined by special guest Jim Healy to gather round the table for a tart as a cranberry discussion of Norman Lear's 1971 turkey - Cold Turkey. Sit back with a plate full of stuffing and listen along as we try to make sense of this sour satire of small town life. Along the way we get into Paddy Chayefsky, George C. Scott, top three Walter Matthau movies, Robert Downey, Sr., the delightful Pippa Scott and much more. Plus, a rousing round of "What Else Was Playing That Week?" -
Ben is joined by writer-director, Richard Shepard (The Linguini Incident, The Matador, The Perfection, I Knew It Was You, and most recently, Film Geek) for a deep dive into the vivid 70s Marseilles universe of John Frankenheimer's The French Connection II. Go (re)watch the movie and then join us for a spoiler-filled two hour conversation that touches on the joy of seeing Gene Hackman eat, the heartache of seeing Gene Hackman go cold turkey, the underrated career of John Frankenheimer, running in work clothes and dress shoes, Allison Williams, Roy Scheider, Elmore Leonard, Cutter's Way, and so much more!
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Missing episodes?
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On a special Christmas-themed episode, Scott and Ben dive down the 70s conspiracy thriller rabbit hole with Sidney Pollack's THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR. See if you can follow the breadcrumbs as we:
*Relish Redford's mo-ped machismo
*Casually comment on Cliff's combover
*Fawn fondly over Faye's fabulous photos
PLUS
*Sidney Pollack out-hitches Hitch as the original king of Cameo
*Von Sydow lays a glove on us
*Hank Garrett smushes a schnoz
*Encyclopedia Brown vs. Dick Tracy
AND
*A Seinfeld conspiracy
*What was playing that week? -
On an all-star episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Jim Healy and Scooter McCrae join Scott and Ben for an apocalyptic assault on John Boorman's one-of-a-kind dystopian sex/death romp, Zardoz! Listen along as the quartet analyzes everything from Sean Connery's speedo-loincloth to Sean Connery's bearded ponytail. Hold on to your headphones as we careen down memory lane with tales of close encounters with John Boorman, Jonathan Rosenbaum, and the Coen Brothers. Break out the green bread, this one's a doozy!
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On an all-new episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Ben and Scott cover Martin Scorsese's left-turn follow up to Mean Streets. Topics include:
*Burstyn as auteur
*Voices sell visuals
*Keitel's accents
*Alfred Lutter III is John Cazale Jr.
*Mott the Hoople vs. The Boss vs. Bob Seger
*Vic Tayback, superstar
*What's Happening is NOT Cooley High
*The joy of low-stakes cinema
*The joy of secret jump cuts
*Kristofferson as manic-pixie-beardo
And much much more! -
On a spirited, contentious new episode, Scott and Ben discuss Richard Attenborough's 1978 spook show, MAGIC. Listen and weigh in with your opinions about:
- Fats: sentient or wood
- Corky: psychic or trickster
- Peggy: boobs or eyebrows
- Burgess Meredith: can this guy tell time, or what?
- David Ogden Stiers: hairpiece or herpes?
- William Goldman: old-fashioned or just old school
- Ventriloquism: to throw or not to throw, that is the question
and much much more, including Dead of Night, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Twilight Zone, and Soap! -
On a special double feature/dual podcast episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s/Cinematalk commemorating the screenings of both films at UW Cinematheque, Ben Reiser and Jim Healy take a deep dive into a “Fistful of Feiffers”, discussing both LITTLE MURDERS (1971) and CARNAL KNOWLEDGE (1971). ‘71 was a big year for screenwriter/playwright/cartoonist Jules Feiffer, with Alan Arkin’s LITTLE MURDERS and Mike Nichols’ CARNAL KNOWLEDGE both hitting screens within six months of each other. Listen along as Jim and Ben try to suss out Feiffer’s inspirations, figure out what genres these films do and don’t fall into, Elliott Gould on top of the world, Candice Bergen’s best work, waiting for Godard, Gordon Willis goes wild, Nicholson as man-baby, magnificent Ann Margret, and much more, including not one, but TWO rounds of “What else was playing that week?”.
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All aboard as Scott Lucas and Ben Reiser dissect one of the all-time great thrillers, Joseph Sargent's The Taking of Pelham One Two Three. Hang on to your straps as we:
- Wrap our heads around the catch-all: Neo-Noir
- Bow down to the great Peter Stone (Not a pen name!)
- Pay our respects to Tom Pedi
- Talk NYC Jews and Italians
- Badmouth Tony Scott
- Guess the mayor
- Say gesundheit!
And much, much more!! -
On the long-awaited return of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Scott and Ben indulge their 70s Heston-Dystopia fixation with a double bill of The Omega Man and Soylent Green.
Soak in the radiation vibes as S&B:
- Wax poetic about dad bods and tummy hair
- Argue for the inclusion of The Omega Man as a blaxploitation forefather
- Discover the origins of Phantasm and Dawn of the Dead
- Get all squishy about squibs and uzis
- Wonder about the wardrobe departments of both of these 70s sci-fi fashion-awkward spectacles.
And so much more! -
Boy have we got a podcast for YOU!
Scott and Ben tackle Michael Crichton's 1973 masterpiece, WESTWORLD. Highlights include:
Richard Benjamin, movie star
Yul Brynner, movie star
James Brolin, movie star
John Carpenter, thief
Stephen King, approachable celebrity
Vincent Canby, film critic
And much much more! -
On a brand new episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Ben is joined by Jim and Pat Healy for an earth-shattering discussion of the 1974 disaster movie, EARTHQUAKE. Aftershocks include:
McPadden tackles INCUBUS
Reiser dragged out of TOWERING INFERNO
Heston goes shirtless, AGAIN!
Goddamn Gardner!
Bujold reads the script
Nolan goes Transatlantic
Kennedy cries!
Forlorn Greene!
Marjoe is a madman!
Corduroy is king!
Victoria’s pointy Principals!
And much much more… -
Just in time for Halloween, a brand new episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s takes a fully committed swing at the Citizen Kane of horror movies: The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
Join Scott and Ben as they discuss:
• Adventures in the projection booth
• Tobe Hooper - auteur or not sure
• Tobe or not to be, that is the question
• Paul Partain – actor or not sure
• Ed Neil – James Franco or Roger Waters
• TCM vs Evil Dead – avant-garde vs calling card
• Last House on the Left – classic or crap
• Why is the old Franklin house called the old Franklin house?
• Tobe Hooper calls the MPA for advice on getting a PG
• Gunnar Hansen hates Paul Partain
• Marilyn Burns – track star or not sure
• Grandpa IS Mr. Six
• Daniel Pearl is the Gregg Toland of TCM
• Daniel Pearl shoots every music video ever made
And much more!
Plus: What was playing the week TCM was released in NYC -
Ben Reiser and Jim Healy are joined by Dino Proserpio and Mike Kenny of the I Eat Movies podcast for a freewheeling trip through the 1970 made for tv movie, NIGHT SLAVES. Unearthly highlights include:
Dino Deals Discs
Mike Mind-melds Mahoning
A brief history of the sounds of psychokinesis, from Beneath the Planet of the Apes to The Man With Two Brains
Who is That Lee - Grant vs Remick
David Groh not David Grohl!
Backlot Blues
VHS is the New Black
James Franciscus = Chuck Heston's Mini-Me
Giraffes and Car Crash Victims go Full Tenet
Long Live the New Luddites
Night Slaves II: Titane
The Best Amityville Movie
The Baby vs Trick Baby
and so much more!
I Eat Movies Podcast: https://anchor.fm/ieatmoviespodcast -
On an all-new, epic 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Ben and interim co-host Jim Healy take a deep dive into deep space to dissect an all-time sci-fi/body horror classic, Ridley Scott's 1979 masterpiece, ALIEN.
Come for the atmosphere, cinematography, naturalistic performances and profound mystery, stay for ribald stories of Miss Hidden Valley, Johnny Dangerously, Francis Veber, and an intense game of "Which film has aged better, ________ or Alien?" -
On this special episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Ben and interim co-host Jim Healy take a deep dive into the one-of-a-kind Charles Bronson/Jill Ireland two-hander, FROM NOON TILL THREE (1976). The centerpiece of the episode is an interview Jim recently conducted with Dan Gilroy (NIGHTCRAWLER, ROMAN J ISRAEL, VELVET BUZZSAW) whose father, Frank Gilroy, was the writer-director of NOON. This interview was originally recorded for Cinematalk, the podcast of the UW Cinematheque. We've also got a dissection of Vincent Canby's New York Times review, and a rousing edition of "what else was playing that week?".
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For Scott’s last episode before he goes on tour, we take a deep dish dive into DePalma’s Chicago movie, THE FURY. As would only be appropriate for a foray such as this, we bring along film historians and co- hosts of the Windy City Double Feature Picture Show podcast, Adam Carston and Mike Vanderbilt. Together, the four of us leave no stone unturned, no vein un-bulged, no Cassavetes unexploded, no Douglas undressed… oh wait that last one isn’t right. Anyway, we had an Amy Irving-style blast and we think you will too. Enjoy!
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On a very special episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Scott and Ben are joined by Ben's mom, Diane, for a nostalgic discussion of the Barbra Streisand/Robert Redford romance for the ages, The Way We Were. Topics of conversation include:
Curling Irons
Communism
Soap Boxes
Musicals
M*A*S*H
Flashbacks
Montages
Introverts
Wasps
A Star is Born
and much much more! -
On a contentious episode of 70 Movies We Saw in the 70s, Scott and Ben are joined by special guest, film historian Marc Edward Heuck for a no holds barred discussion of the 1977 car chase classic, SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT. Among the battles fought:
• Coors Banquet vs Coors Light
• Jackie Gleason vs Clifton James
• Burt Reynolds vs Clark Gable
• Sally Field vs a carrier pigeon
• Who wore it better: Sally and Burt vs Scott and Joe
• Dick vs Didie
• Godfather II vs A Touch of Zen
• Hair piece or herpes: Reynolds vs Stewart
Plus Scott vs Marc in a rousing edition of What Else Was Playing That Week? -
Ben and Scott are joined by bass player and club owner extraordinaire, Herb Rosen, for a wild ride down the frothing-white-water-torrent of toxic masculinity known as John Boorman’s DELIVERANCE. Grab a paddle,zip up your life preserver, and steer towards shore as we:
• Get sent out of the room during the scary parts
• Debate the merits of Burt Reynolds sans ‘stache
• Get punched out by James Dickey
• Dislocate our collective shoulders
• Go day for night, old-school style
• Get ambiguous on your ass
• Ditch our stuntmen and drive into trees
• Come out of the forest, Princess Mononoke-style
• Fall out of our canoes, Zapruder-film style
• Use Scott’s left arm to play banjo
• Imagine Seth Rogan in tighty-whiteys
• Get homoerotic with James Spader and Jon Voigt
• Rundown NYMag’s idiotic ranking of all things Spielberg (minus SOMETHING EVIL)
• Mix our metaphors
• Swap Enoses and anuses
• Squeal like a pig en francais
And Much Much More! -
It's been a crazy busy month for Scott and Ben. Ben's been putting the finishing touches on the 2021 Wisconsin Film Festival and Scott's been prepping for the first Local H live shows in a bit. Still, we found two hours to line up on opposite sides for a rough scrimmage over BLACK SUNDAY, John Frankenheimer's 1977 adaptation of Thomas Harris's best seller. Along the way your heroes mix it up over Cronenberg, Demme, Friedkin, and ole Ernie Lehman. And yes, of course we talk Parallax View, not to mention Day of the Dolphin. Dig in, there's plenty of 70s Conspiracy Thriller meat (or plant-based protein) to chew on here.
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