Episodes
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We're kicking off the Renee-ssaince in earnest after our lost episode last time, it's time to visit COLD MOUNTAIN. Directed by Anthony Minghella (The Talented Mr. Ripley, The English Patient) and starring Jude Law, Nicole and our focus of this mini series, Renee Zellweger, will this be a stirring epic or a significant snooze?
In this classic story of love and devotion set against the backdrop of the American Civil War, a wounded Confederate soldier named W.P. Inman deserts his unit and travels across the South, aiming to return to his young wife, Ada, who he left behind to tend their farm. As Inman makes his perilous journey home, Ada struggles to keep their home intact with the assistance of Ruby, a mysterious drifter sent to help her by a kindly neighbor.
Also featuring a murderer's row of supporting actors, will the trio be warmed by the mountain or left cold by its charms?
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An update.
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Missing episodes?
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OooOOOoooooOO! It's that time of year ghouls and gals! It's spooky season and it's time to bring on our foe of the podcast, Mike, to select his next horrific mix, this year it's Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Skeptical young detective Ichabod Crane gets transferred to the hamlet of Sleepy Hollow, New York, where he is tasked with investigating the decapitations of three people – murders the townsfolk attribute to a legendary specter, The Headless Horseman. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Will this second time dipping into the Burton/Depp be as fruitful as the surprisingly OK Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? How many British thespians can you count in the sleepy town of Sleepy Hollow? And Tim Burton sure does love to cast his girlfriend/partners in like every single movie, huh? All this and more as well as plenty of juicy pop corner chats in our Halloween ep of Mixed Bag! 🎃 👻
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It's time to take another romp down the yellow brick road! As part of our miniseries building up to Glicked, we're now headed to the wonderful land of Oz.
Renowned editor and one-time director Walter Murch made the fateful decision to make a sequel to one of the most beloved films of all time, The Wizard of Oz with Return to Oz (1985) which had a decidedly mixed reaction.
Dorothy, saved from a psychiatric experiment by a mysterious girl, finds herself back in the land of her dreams, and makes delightful new friends, and dangerous new enemies. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
What do Cass, Matt and Jamie think of this 80s dark fantasy spin on the L. Frank Baum books? Who are the Wheelers? Which is Mombi's original head and WHY DOES THE SCARECROW LOOK LIKE THAT?? Shout out to the Nome King with his hot lil ruby slippers.
Keep on eye out next time for our Halloweeeeen ep!
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Are you not entertained?!
Well, the audiences of 2000 certainly were, with a box office smash hit and winner of 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, I think ole Russel come be comforted he won't be eating Crowe with this film by one Sir Ridley Scott.
But, 24 years later and with an upcoming sequel on the horizon, the Mixed Bag crew thought they should dust off the dirt like Maximus loves to do and see if we are glad to set our eyes upon Gladiator (2000).
In the year 180, the death of emperor Marcus Aurelius throws the Roman Empire into chaos. Maximus is one of the Roman army’s most capable and trusted generals and a key advisor to the emperor. As Marcus’ devious son Commodus ascends to the throne, Maximus is set to be executed. He escapes, but is captured by slave traders. Renamed Spaniard and forced to become a gladiator, Maximus must battle to the death with other men for the amusement of paying audiences. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Is the young Richard Harris a hottie? Is Oliver Reed playing a POC or just suuuuper tan? And will Maximus Decimus Meridius have his vengeance, in this life or the next? All this and more as well in this two-part miniseries in our gear up for Glicked!
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Brace for impact because it's another JETBAG: Emergency Landing episode!
And it's our biggest metal bird in the sky yet, Flightplan (2005), starring Jodie Foster has her climbing all around the Elgin E-474 which, while made up, is styled on these massively huge jumbojets with spiral staircases, lush first class and all sorts of hidden compartments!
Flying at 40,000 feet in a state-of-the art aircraft that she helped design, Kyle Pratt’s 6-year-old daughter Julia vanishes without a trace. Or did she? No one on the plane believes Julia was ever onboard. And now Kyle, desperate and alone, can only count on her own wits to unravel the mystery and save her daughter. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Will Jodie and Peter Sarsgaard (NOT from the Skarsgård as James learned this episode) have crackling chemistry? Will Kyle find her daughter Julia? Will Sean Bean die or turn out to be bad? Why didn't we do our research and reference Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes in this episode which this takes inspiration from? All this and more in another rip roaring Jetbag ep.
And be sure to listen to Silver Fox Office with L.C. and Mike here or wherever podcasts are found!
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Get in, loser.
When we're in-between seasons and don't have time for a full personal picks, we turn to our old favourite, the musical! And what better musical from one this year, Mean Girls (2024) which they tried to desperately to hide its musical nature!
New student Cady Heron is welcomed into the top of the social food chain by the elite group of popular girls called ‘The Plastics,’ ruled by the conniving queen bee Regina George and her minions Gretchen and Karen. However, when Cady makes the major misstep of falling for Regina’s ex-boyfriend Aaron Samuels, she finds herself prey in Regina’s crosshairs. As Cady sets to take down the group’s apex predator with the help of her outcast friends Janis and Damian, she must learn how to stay true to herself while navigating the most cutthroat jungle of all: high school. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
With the original film being a seminal film of all of their upbringing, will this remake be top of the plastics or written in the burn book? Does this film even go here? Another reference from the film? All this and more and a thorough discussion of Whānau Marama: New Zealand International Film Festival, shout out to the team that made it happen!
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We've reached the end of our Period Princess miniseries and we're ending with an entry from the Disney renaissance, 1995's Pocahontas.
Pocahontas, daughter of a Native American tribe chief, falls in love with an English soldier as colonists invade 17th century Virginia. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Will the Colours of the Wind blow away the historical inaccuracy and problematic romance? Is Just Around the River Bend rapids or smooth waters? And will we Mine, Mine, Mine gold from this or is there none to be found?
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Our Period Princess continues with Rob Marshall's Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
A sweeping romantic epic set in Japan in the years before World War II, a penniless Japanese child is torn from her family to work as a maid in a geisha house.
Directed by Rob and produced by a whole bunch of the white guys, Memoirs of a Geisha started out as a smash hit bestseller, also written by a white guy, Arthur Golden. This adaptation was criticized for casting non-Japanese actors in lead roles but was nominated for six Academy Awards and won three, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design. So is this memoir something worth opening or was it a story "that should never be told" as the opening narration states?
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It's the start of a new miniseries, it's time for Period Princess! 👸
It's a new era and what better way to kick it off with the ultimate page turner of 2001, The Other Boleyn Girl adapted into this feature film in 2008. Starring Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson and Eric Bana.
A sumptuous and sensual tale of intrigue, romance and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in European history: two beautiful sisters, Anne and Mary Boleyn, driven by their family’s blind ambition, compete for the love of the handsome and passionate King Henry VIII. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Will this sexy version of the Tutor times work its charms?
Other texts discussed are Scavengers Reign, Ukyio, Pain and Glory, Inside Out 2, The Mole, The Getaway and Joe Biden and world politics.
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Cassandra filling in here for James who does the regular captions! Today we're celebrating 🎉 🌈 ᑭŘ𝕀đẸ 爪ｏ𝓝Ⓣｈ 🌈 🎉 here at Mixed Bag so it's time for a queer cinema classic that none of us have seen before.
Vida (Patrick Swayze), Noxima (Wesley Snipes) and Chi Chi (John Leguizamo) are three New York drag queens travelling cross country to the Miss America Drag pageant when they are waylaid in small town USA. Can their fabulousness bring a little joie d'vivre to this sad wee town, or will the locals not take too kindly to realising these three 'career women' have Adam's apples?
In Pop Corner we talk about the Decemberists' As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again, Black Country New Road, The Taste of Things, cinema etiquette drama, Ren Faire, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, the Tony Awards, Charli XCX's Brat, Heartbreak Hotel, Bon Iver's classic album Ice [?] and the glory of sound-cancelling headphones.
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It's the year 2000. It's the first 3D animated film from Walt Disney. It's Dinosaur. And it's a very unhinged episode, we had a blast with this one. Plus, we had a special guest drop in briefly, Cass' brother, Nathan!
An orphaned dinosaur raised by lemurs joins an arduous trek to a sancturary after a meteorite shower destroys his family home. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
It's the final of our personal childhood picks and we're rounding it out with Disney's Dinosaur. Who could forget the epic tale of Aladar, his lemurs and his two elderly friends Eema and Baylene? Everyone, it turns out! Well, it's available now on Disney Plus. Why not listen in to hear how Matt, Cass and Jimmy found this journey back, way waaaay back in time?
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We're back for a mini quick mix this week! Discussions include Grey's Anatony, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, A Highland Song, Animal Well and Telling Lies.
See you next week for a return to our Childhood Movies!
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We're continuing our childhood picks with 1995's Now and Then, starring an absolutely stacked cast including Christina Ricci, Rosie O'Donnell, Demi Moore, Gaby Hoffmann, Thora Birch, Melanie Griffiths, Rita Wilson and Ashleigh Aston Moore. But what is this film? Does it even exist?
Waxing nostalgic about the bittersweet passage from childhood to puberty in this tender coming-of-age tale, four childhood girlfriends – Teeny, Chrissy, Samantha and Roberta – recall the magical summer of 1970. During their walk down memory lane, they reconcile experiences with boys, secrets, bullies and more. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Will this girls version of Stand By Me stand up? How much Now and how much Then are we talking? And when is the return of Ashleigh Aston Moore? All this and more in our latest Mixed Bag!
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It's time for more personal picks from your hosts and James has landed on one fairly lost to time Mouse Hunt (1997). Before Gore Verbinski was documenting pirates in the Caribbean, he was making his debut feature with Nathan Lane and Lee Evans about a pesky mouse that won't go away.
Down-on-their luck brothers, Lars and Ernie Smuntz, aren’t happy with the crumbling old mansion they inherit… until they discover the estate is worth millions. Before they can cash in, they have to rid the house of its single, stubborn occupant—a tiny and tenacious mouse. (Sourced from Letterboxd).
Will this film that distressed young James still have the same effect today? Will Cass and Matt enjoy the slapstick shenanigans or is this a childhood watch that should remain forgotten?
Also featuring an in-depth discussion of the new film Challengers, the song J was trying to reference was the "yeah yeah yeah" one but he forgot words.
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Ellie Stewart returns to the podcast with the final part of the trilogy, Ghostbusters, Hook and The Inbetweeners Movie! (2011). Based on the TV show, will this gross out boys comedy be a dream come true or will our opinion be inbetween good and bad?
High school graduation just wouldn’t be complete without an un-chaperoned, uninhibited and unforgettable final holiday. At least that’s what Will, Jay, Simon and Neil think when they book a two-week stay on an exotic Greek island. As their dreams of sun-drenched days and booze-filled nights are left hopelessly unfulfilled, the lads fight their way into the party scene with hilariously humiliating results in this smash hit UK raunchy comedy. (Sourced from Letterboxd).
Don't forget to check out Ellie and Cassandra in Destiny's Cousin: The Reunion Spectacular, on during the New Zealand International Comedy Festival from the 7-9 May! Further info and tickets available at this link: https://www.comedyfestival.co.nz/find-a-show/destinys-cousin-the-reunion-spectacular/
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NYAD
Love her or hate her, know her or don't, NYAD (2023) and Diana Nyad herself have been in the news lately with the Academy Award nominations of Annette Benning and Jodie Foster for said film. But who is she?
Athlete Diana Nyad sets out at 60 to achieve a nearly impossible lifelong dream: to swim from Cuba to Florida across more than 100 miles of open ocean. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
That's right, controversial swimmer and sometime pathological liar Diana Nyad is being covered and whether she swum assisted or unassisted, there's one thing for certain, Annette is giving it her ALL in this performance. From the very first shot she is blazing intensity. But is the movie any good?
Will you need multiple attempts to watch this movie like Diana Nyad needed to swim from Cuba to Florida? How deep can your voice go? And has your mind never been clearer?
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It's time.
The foundational text. The Rosetta Stone of Dream Blunt Rotation. The one you've all been waiting for.
SALMON FISHING IN THE YEMEN!
What is there to say. The name speaks for itself. But will provide some context.
Made in 2011, it's Emily's last rotation (for now) and her scene partner has appeared on the podcast before, Moulin Rouge's Ewen McGregor.
A fisheries expert is approached by a consultant to help realize a sheik’s vision of bringing the sport of fly-fishing to the desert and embarks on an upstream journey of faith and fish to prove the impossible possible. (Letterboxd)
Did you know Salmon Fishing isn't some bizarre improbable true story, it's just totally made up? It was the debut of author Paul Torday who was aged 60! A big fan of salmon fishing and having lived a life of bureaucracy, he decided to write a comic novel and turned into a smash hit. We'll glad he was able to watch his efforts be turned into a film before his death in 2013.
See whether this relatively forgotten film is a fish flop or a surprise catch with our latest Mixed Bag.
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How much you would run for a dumb hat? That's what 2011's The Adjustment Bureau dares to ask. Our third entry into the Dream Blunt Rotation, Emily is sporting full 2010s fashion in this one but she never gets to wears that trilby.
We also welcome back Spirit himself, Matt Damon. Now we can see him in the flesh instead of his expertly animated horse design and we are disappointed.
FIGHT FOR YOUR FATE.A man glimpses the future Fate has planned for him – and chooses to fight for his own destiny. Battling the powerful Adjustment Bureau across, under and through the streets of New York, he risks his destined greatness to be with the only woman he’s ever loved. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Will David choose between love and his career? Where did John Slattery go? And when will Emily get to a real character again? Also, a final chat of the 2023 Oscar predictions as it drops today!
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The Dream Blunt Rotation continues with John Patrick Shanley's Wild Mountain Thyme. But is this truly a dream blunt? After the reaction to Jungle Cruise, the Mixed Bag crew are hoping the Emerald Isles of Ireland and performances therein can dazzle us with their Irish charm.
THERE’S NOTHING MORE DANGEROUS… THAN AN IRISH WOMAN IN LOVE.Headstrong farmer Rosemary Muldoon has her heart set on winning her neighbour Anthony Reilly’s love. The problem is, Anthony seems to have inherited a family curse, and remains oblivious to his beautiful admirer. Stung by his father’s plans to sell the family farm to his American nephew, Anthony is jolted into pursuing his dreams. (Sourced from Letterboxd)
Will this be another Moonstruck for the Irish community? How will Blunt fare with the accent? And WHERE. IS. FIONA?? Find out if we're buzzing or feel drowsy in need of some honey from Wild Mountain Thyme.
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