POP ART: Episode 88, Magic/Dead of Night

POP ART, WHERE WE FIND THE POP CULTURE IN ART AND THE ART IN POP CULTURE.

DUMMY AND DUMMIER: Join me and frequent guest and host of the LAMBcast and Richard’s Film a Day blog Richard Kirkham, as we talk Magic and Dead of Night, two films with ventriloquists with, shall we say, some personal issues.

“Just room for one inside, sir”. So, you have a friend. He’s a dummy, but he’s smarter than you. He’s wooden, but he has more personality than you. He says awful things, but he’s way more liked than you. He’s not real…or is he…Sounds like it’s time for Episode 88 of Pop Art, where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. Today, I am happy to welcome as my guest, podcaster, film enthusiast and the host of the Lambcast podcast, Richard Kirkham, who has chosen as his film the Anthony Hopkins starrer Magic, while I have chosen the portmanteau horror film Dead of Night, both having ventriloquists with mental issues.

And in this episode, we answer such questions as: Why did Anthony Hopkins leave Hollywood after Magic? How did Dead of Night influence physics? What is so creepy about ventriloquists anyway? Why did William Goldman bow out of Hollywood for a while? Who died just a year before the release of Dead of Night and what is her connection to the film? Which actor gets credited twice at the close of Magic? What stopped Dead of Night being made earlier than 1945? Who was the original choice to play Corky? What is the connection of Dead of Night to A Fish Called Wanda and Indiana Jones? Who are Lilian Ross and Elisabeth Welch?

Meanwhile, check out Richard’s Film a Day blog at http://kirkhamclass.blogspot.com/

And the LAMBCast at http://www.largeassmovieblogs.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG, Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

POP ART: Episode 87, The Exorcism of Emily Rose/Requiem

POP ART SAYS HAPPY HALLOWEEN: POP ART, WHERE WE FIND THE POP CULTURE IN ART AND THE ART IN POP CULTURE.

THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT: For the annual Pop Art Halloween Show, join me and my guest, teacher by day, horror aficionado by night, Lisa Leaheey, as we discuss two films about exorcisms, The Exorcism of Emily Rose and Requiem, both films based on the same real life incident.

“Crazy people don’t know they’re crazy” You have a friend. They seem fine, normal, just like the next person. Then, suddenly, they start having fits. They start hearing and seeing things. They speak in foreign languages. Is it epilepsy? Is it schizophrenia? Or is it, could it be, maybe it’s…Sounds like it’s time for Episode 87 of Pop Art, where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. For this episode, I am happy to welcome back as my guest, teacher by day, horror aficionado by night, Lisa Leaheey, who has chosen as her selection The Exorcism of Emily Rose, while I have chosen the German film Requiem, both films, not just about exorcisms, but about exorcisms based on the same real life incident.

Lisa has been my guest twice before. So be sure to check out Episode 59 where we talked Memento and Spellbound, and her first time on for Halloween, Episode 67, where we talked Hell House, LLC and Man Bites Dog.  

And in this episode, we answer such questions as: Who did Jennifer Carpenter’s contortions? Who is a fan of Deep Purple? Why did Derrickson choose Boardman to help write …Emily Rose? What’s a Lola and would you want to be one? What urban legend has sprung up relating to …Emily Rose? What is true horror? Who are Campbell Scott’s parents? What is it about exorcisms anyway? What is the coincidence behind Carpenter being cast? Why are there no MRIs in the two movies?

Check out Between the Scares with Lisa Leaheey at Whatever With Jason Soto at https://open.spotify.com/episode/7a0hdhkumnnpXH0CAYr33i

And check out her podcast The SibList at https://www.facebook.com/The-SibList-109714494695206

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG, Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

POP ART: Episode 86, Monty Python’s Life of Brian/The Gospel According to Matthew

POP ART, WHERE WE FIND THE POP CULTURE IN ART AND THE ART IN POP CULTURE.

THE SON ALSO RISES: Join me and movie hyphenate writer, filmmaker, academic, businessman and coach Tony Klinger (The Who: The Kids Are All Right; Dirty, Sexy and Totally Iconic; Solo2Darwin and many, many others) as we talk about Monty Python’s Life of Brian and The Gospel According to Matthew, two films that take, let us say, different approaches to the story of Christ.

You preach love and peace. You try to get people to think for themselves. You try to create a better world. And what do you get for your trouble? You get crucified. What’s a Messiah to do?…Sounds like it’s time for Episode 86 of Pop Art, where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. Today, I am happy to welcome back as my guest, movie hyphenate writer, filmmaker, academic, businessman and coach Tony Klinger, who has chosen as his film, the satire of religion and Biblical epics, Monty Python’s Life of Brian, while I have chosen Pier Paolo Pasolini’s austere, neorealist The Gospel According to St. Matthew, both films revolving around messiahs.

Tony also joined me previously for Episode 57 where we talked his father’s film Get Carter with Bad Day at Black Rock.

We also covered Monty Python and the Holy Grail on Episode 3 with my guest Jay Cluitt where we combined it with The Seventh Seal.

And in this episode, we answer such questions as: What is the difference between British and American humor? What is the correct translation of the title of Pasolini’s movie? Who is Loretta? What is the difference between a European and American approach to spiritual subject matter? Why did the Pythons lose funding two days before leaving for Tunisia to start filming? Why did it take three years to get Matthew into a theater in England? What was the world’s most expensive cinema ticket? Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? How did the Pythons use Norway’s ban to promote the film? What did the Vatican City newspaper L’Osservatore Romano call Matthew? Who is Mary Whitehouse and would you want to be one? How well would Pasolini do today in regards to the metoo movement? Who is Otto? How did the Tunisian extras criticize the directing of Life of Brian? Was there a doctor in the house?

Check out Tony’s website for more information about his films and projects https://www.tonydklinger.com/

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG , Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

POP ART: Episode 85, Vertigo/Mississippi Mermaid

POP ART, WHERE WE FIND THE POP CULTURE IN ART AND THE ART IN POP CULTURE.

THE FEMALE OF THE SPECIES: Join me and film enthusiast and blogger James Wilson, Blogging by Cinema Light, as we talk Vertigo/Mississippi Mermaid, two films about woman who are one thing in the first half, but something else in the second half.

“You shouldn’t keep souvenirs of a killing.” You meet someone. You fall in love. But something seems…off. In fact, you begin to wonder, is this the person they claim to be or are they somebody totally different…Sounds like it’s time for Episode 85 of Pop Art, where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. For this episode, I am happy to welcome as my guest, film enthusiast and blogger James Wilson, who has chosen as his film Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece, Vertigo, while I have chosen Francois Truffaut’s tribute to Hitchcock, Mississippi Mermaid, both films about men who become involved with women who appear to be one thing in the beginning, but turn out to be something entirely different by the end.

And in this episode, we answer the such questions as: Why were Vertigo and four other movies taken out of circulation and why wasn’t Psycho? What is a Cornell Woolrich and would you want to be one? How and why did Hitchcock go from being a pop culture filmmaker to an artist? How do Truffaut and Hitchcock treat women differently? What is the Vertigo effect? What about the French? What is a before and after picture? Red, green, red, green, red, green…? What was the alternative ending to Vertigo?

Be sure to check out James’ blog Blogging by Cinema Light at https://bloggingbycinemalight.blogspot.com/2022/09/booksmart.html?fbclid=IwAR0A3PFc9_wxqTdiO5kjQMRdme4aoapvetsWBDXeZ-7CKvDVJGfXwDk_fyU

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG , Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

POP ART: Episode 84, Lost in Translation/Toby Dammit

SOMETHING FISHY’S GOING ON: Join me and novelist, film enthusiast and podcaster, Heather Baxendale-Walsh, as we talk Lost in Translation/Toby Dammit, two fish out of water stories about actors in an existential crisis while visiting another country. What could go wrong?

It’s difficult to be a fish. It’s even more difficult to be a fish out of water. It’s even more difficult to be a fish out of water actor having a mid-life crisis on the verge of a breakdown suffering jet leg and not speaking the native language…Sounds like it’s time for Episode 84 of Pop Art, where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. This time, I am happy to welcome as my guest, novelist, film enthusiast and podcaster, Heather Baxendale-Walsh, who has chosen as her film Sofia Coppola’s existential exploration of alienation, Lost in Translation, while I have chosen Federico Fellini’s surrealist classic Toby Dammit, both films about actors in crisis in a foreign country.  

And in this episode, we answer such questions as: Who is the part Anna Faris played not, definitely not, most definitely not, based on? Who was originally cast in the Terence Stamp? What is it about portmanteau films? Where did the idea for the Suntory commercial come from? Is there a Mandela effect here? What do the two Germans say in the sauna? Where does Silent Hill fit in? What did the elderly man in the hospital say?

Be sure to check out Heather’s new book now available on Amazon, The Prophecy https://www.amazon.com/s?k=hb+walsh+the+prophecy&i=stripbooks&crid=3VBTWBQF3LCZE&sprefix=hb+walsh%2Cstripbooks%2C231&ref=nb_sb_ss_fb_1_8

And her website at heatherbaxendale.com

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG , Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

TEN MOVIES ABOUT COUPS D’ETAT

Follow my podcast Pop Art, where we find the popular culture in art and the art in pop culture at Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG

This is next in my series in which I list a group of films that have some relevance to events in the world today. This time, the idea of an overthrow of the government has been in the news of late, so here are ten of my favorite films about coups d’etat.

What are some of yours?

1927 October (Ten Days that Shook the World) – directed by Grigori Aleksandrov and Sergei Eisenstein, it is an exciting, at times almost surrealistic, look at the lead up to the October Revolution.

1933 Duck Soup – Not the most successful of The Marx Brother’s films, but it is the best, this satire of war was directed by Leo McCarey and revolves around the country of Sylvania trying to overthrow the government of Freedonia headed by Rufus T. Firefly, played by who else, but Groucho Marx.

1962 Seven Days in May – With a screenplay by Rod Serling and directed by John Frankenheimer, a Marine Colonel, played by Kirk Douglas, discovers his superior officer, played by Burt Lancaster, plans to lead the military in a takeover of the US.

1962 The Manchurian Candidate – John Frankenheimer again, but with a screenplay by George Axelrod. A group of American soldiers have been brainwashed when captured during the Korean War to help eventually stage a coup of the US.

1969 Burn! – Gillo Pontecorvo’s follow up to The Battle of Algiers follows an agent provocateur, played by Marlon Brando, as he is sent by the sugar industry to overthrow a Portuguese colony in the Caribbean by instigating a slave revolt.

1969 Z – Directed by Costa-Gavras and based on a true story, a liberal, anti-nuclear candidate is assassinated in Greece. But though people try for justice, it ends in a military coup.

1970 Start the Revolution Without Me – A satire of the French revolution and literature thereof. One half of two sets of identical twins end up getting separated at birth; one set grows up aristocratic, one poor. Both get caught up in the intrigue on the eve of the overthrow of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Not a fully successful movie, but Gene Wilder and Donald Sutherland are hysterical playing two parts.

1971 Bananas – Written, directed and starring Woody Allen as a man who is dumped by his activist girlfriend. He decides to win her back by becoming involved in the revolution in a Latin American country.

1980 Dogs of War – A British tycoon wanting the

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

POP ART: Episode 83, Knives Out/Gosford Park

POP ART, WHERE WE FIND THE POP CULTURE IN ART AND THE ART IN POP CULTURE.

WHO DOOD IT: Join me and founder and editor in chief at For Reel, Thomas Stoneham-Judge, as we talk Knives Out/Gosford Park, two locked door, closed circle of suspects murder mysteries.

“We have the nanny cam footage.” It’s a remote mansion. Someone has been murdered. It has to be someone who is staying there. What do you do?…Sounds like it’s time for Episode 83 of Pop Art, where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. For this episode, I am happy to welcome back as my guest, founder and editor in chief at For Reel, Thomas Stoneham-Judge, who has chosen as his film Rian Johnson’s modern day locked room/closed circle of suspects murder mystery, Knives Out, while I have chosen Robert Altman’s period locked room/closed circle of suspects murder mystery, Gosford Park, both murder mysteries that take place at remote mansions with a limited number of suspects.

And in this episode, we answer such questions as: What is a locked room, closed circle of suspects murder mystery? Who did Ryan Philippe replace in Gosford Park? What does Benoit Blanc’s name in Knives Out translate as? What did Raymond Chandler say about these types of murder mysteries? Why did Robert Altman use two cameras constantly moving in every scene? Is Gosford Park a bait and switch? How did Knives Out get around the reading of the will cliche? What is the relationship between Gosford Park and Downton Abbey?

Check out Thomas’ website for ForReel at https://thisisforreel.com

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG , Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

POP ART: Episode 82, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World/Kind Hearts and Coronets

POP ART, WHERE WE FIND THE POP CULTURE IN ART AND THE ART IN POP CULTURE.

ONE DOWN AND…: Join me and animator/writer Glenn Dion (King of the Hill/Big Mouth/Human Resources) while we talk two films about people eliminating one’s enemies one by one.

“Don’t you talk to me about grammar.” We all have obstacles in our lives. Roadblocks that keep us from achieving our goals. But how do we deal with them? Do we work around them? Outsmart them? Manipulate them to our advantage? Or do we do everything to completely obliterate them, destroy their utter existence, ground them to complete dust, so they no longer pose the remotest impediment to our journey?

Sounds like it’s time for Episode 82 of Pop Art, the podcast where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. This time round, I am happy to welcome as my guest, animator and writer Glenn Dion, who has chosen as his film the graphic novel and video game influenced Scott Pilgrim v. The World, while I have chosen the classic Ealing comedy, Kind Hearts and Coronets, both films about someone needing to eliminate a series of people who are stopping them from achieving their goal.

And in this episode we answer such questions as: Why are comic book/graphic novels so popular to adapt to films today? What is it about serial killer comedies? What is transmedia storytelling? Why are the 40s and 50s in film much more cynical than people think? What changes were made to the endings of both films and why? What problematic element of Kind Hearts… had to be changed for US distribution? Who are the unsung heroes of Scott Pilgrim…? What was difficult about the special effects in both films? Why did Scott Pilgrim… bomb? From where do we get the phrase, Revenge is a dish best served cold? What is it about that light switch?

Check out Glenn’s IMDB page at https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0227916/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0 and his shows King of the Hill, Big Mouth and Human Resources.

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG , Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

POP ART: Episode 81, Contact/Another Earth

POP ART, WHERE WE FIND THE POP CULTURE IN ART AND THE ART IN POP CULTURE. SODE.

OTHERWORDLY: Join me and writer Caitlin Duffy (Reacher, untitled Arnold Schwarzenegger Netflix series) while we talk two films about contact with another world, Contact and Another Earth.

“Boy, this is really going to change the Miss Universe Contest”. Are we alone in the universe? And if not, what does that mean? And what would aliens be like? And what would they want? To destroy us? To bring peace? To gain knowledge?…Sounds like it’s time for Episode 81 of Pop Art, where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. It’s the podcast where my guest chooses a movie from popular culture, and I’ll select a film from the more art/classic/indie side of cinema with a connection to it. This time I am happy to welcome as my guest, writer Caitlin Duffy, who has chosen as her film the hard sci-fi Jody Foster film Contact, while I have chosen soft sci-fi Brit Marling film Another Earth, both films about first contact with beings from another planet.

And in this episode, we answer such questions as: What is SETI? What is hard sci-fi as opposed to soft sci-fi? Who do they want to play the president in Contact? Who is the Saw Lady? Why did they use Bill Clinton? What is special about the opening shot in Contact? Cyanide pill or no cyanide pill? Who is Steven Ford’s father? How does Gianni Versace fit in?

Check out Caitlin’s IMDB page at https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3044034/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0 and be sure to check out Reacher on Amazon.

Check out my blog at https://howardcasner.wordpress.com/

My books, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader, The Starving Artists and Other Stories and The Five Corporations and One True Religion can be found at https://www.amazon.com/s?k=howard+casner&ref=nb_sb_noss

Meanwhile, like, follow or comment on my podcast. I’d love to know what you think. And check out the other episodes. On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG , Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites

Check out my Script Consultation Services at http://ow.ly/HPxKE. I offer several types of service. Testimonials can be found at the blog entry.

Finally, I have published a collection of three of my plays, 3 Plays, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08478DBXF as well as two collections of short stories, The Starving Artists and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FS91CKJ and The Five Corporations and the One True Church and other stories, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KY5Z3CF.

Ever wonder what a reader for a contest or agency thinks when he reads your screenplay?  Check out the second edition of my screenwriting book, More Rantings and Ravings of a Screenplay Reader published on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GD1XP9Y

HAPPY PRIDE MONTH: MY FAVORITE GAY FILMS, PART DEUX

In a follow up to my previous post of my top 30 gay films, I realized there were a lot more I wanted to share. Some of these should have appeared on the first list. Others are more obscure films. So here re 25 more. Have fun.

1977 – The Consequence. This 1977 West German film directed by Wolfgang (Das Boot) Petersen is about the son of a prison warden who falls in love with a prisoner. They begin a life together when the prisoner is released, but no one will just let them lead their lives. This was a time when gay films were almost required to have an unhappy ending.

1978 – In a Year with 13 Moons. More Fassbender. Erwin transitions to Elvira, but finds nothing but alienation from family and friends. She struggles to find meaning and purpose while visiting her past.

1980 – Taxi zum Klo. Directed, written and starring Frank Ripploh, this film was groundbreaking at the time in its sexual frankness and honesty about a teacher’s life in Berlin, caught between wanting no romantic restrictions and a lover who wants a monogamous relationship.

1983 – The Fourth Man. An early psychological thriller directed by Paul Verhoeven, it follows a bisexual writer who has sex with a woman, then falls for and seduces another of her lovers, only to find out she’s a witch.

1983 – Lianna. In this early film written and directed by John Sayles, a married woman realizes that she is attracted to women and has an affair with a college professor.

1992 – Swoon. Director Tom Kalin’s dramatization of the crimes of Leopold and Loeb, focusing more on their sexual relationship.

1992 – The Living End. Writer/director Gregg Araki’s early entry in the new queer cinema follows a gay hustler and a movie critic, both HIV+, who meet and fall in love. In what is called a gay Thelma and Louise, one kills a homophobic police officer and the two go on the run.

1993 – Farewell My Concubine. Directed by Kaige Chen, two boys meet in 1924 at a Peking opera school. They friendship lasts their whole lives informed by their country’s turbulent history, one in unrequited love with the other.

1996 – Killer Condom. Written and directed by Martin Walz, from a comic book by Ralf Konig, this German film that takes place in New York, revolves around a condom with teeth that goes around murdering people in a hotel called Quicky. It’s up to a gay police detective who is, shall we say, well blessed, to find the murderous rubber.

1997 – Steam: The Turkish Bath. A man inherits a Turkish bath from his aunt and restores it, leading to his realization that he likes men. Directed by Ferzan Ozpetek.

1997 – The Hanging Garden. Writer/director Thom Fitzgerald’s feature debut is a British/Canadian film about a morbidly obese gay young man who is caught about to have sex with another man. Ostracized by his parents, he considers hanging himself, but leaves home to return ten years later for his sister’s wedding, having lost all his weight and at peace with being gay.

1999 – All About My Mother. Pedro Almodóvar wrote and directed this Spanish film about a mother who, after her teenage son is killed in a traffic accident, tries to find his father who has transitioned into a woman. ‘

2000 – Confusion of Genders. From France and Ilan Duran Cohen comes this story of a bisexual attorney who is sleeping with his boss, his client, his client’s girlfriend and a young man who ends up living with him.

1999 – Aimee & Jaguar. In German director Max Faberbock’s historical drama, it’s 1943 Berlin and a Nazi officer’s wife has an affair with a Jewish woman.

2005 – C.R.A.Z.Y. In French Canada, the youngest brother of a conservative and homophobic Catholic family tries to come to terms with being gay.

2006 – Dark Blue Almost Black. Daniel Sanchez Arevalo’s feature follows two best friends. One whose infertile brother asks him to impregnate his girlfriend since he is in prison. The other who spies on a gay masseuse and discovers he knows one of the clients, leading him to find out something about himself.

2006 – The Bubble. Eytan Fox’s Israeli drama updates the Romeo and Juliet story to modern day Tel Aviv as an Israeli and Palestinian fall in love.

2008 – Antarctica. Another film from Israel. Written and directed by Yair Hochner, a gay man turning thirty drifts from one sexual encounter to another until he finally finds someone who can melt his heart.

2012 – Out in the Dark. Michael Mayer directed this thriller about an Israel lawyer and a Palestinian who fall in love. But their relationship gets complicated when the secret police want to use the Palestinian to help capture those working against the government.

2013 – Stranger by the Lake. In this Alain Guiraudie film, a young man spends his days at a gay cruising spot at a lake. He is attracted to one of the regulars. He sees the man kill someone, but still begins a sexual relationship with him.

2017 – A Fantastic Woman. Winner of the Best International Feature at the Oscars, this Sebastian Lelio drama focuses on a transgendered woman who has to come to terms with the death of her older boyfriend, while confronting his family.

2017 – The Cakemaker. Ofir Raul Grazier wrote and directed this drama about a pastry chef living in Germany who starts an affair with a man visiting from Israel. When the man dies, the chef goes to Jerusalem and takes a job at the widow’s café without telling her who he is.

2017 – Thelma. Directed by Joachim Trier. Thelma comes from a very conservative religious family. When she goes to college, a fellow female student falls in love with her. But Thelma’s denial of her true feelings causes her to subconsciously release her telekinetic power resulting in tragedy.

2021 – Flee. This feature was nominated for Best International Feature, Best Documentary, and Best Animated Feature and under the direction of Jonas Poher Rasmussen tells the story of a young gay man and his family trying to flee to safety after the Soviet Union withdraws from Afghanistan.

2021 – Benedetta. Paul Verhoeven’s over the top, campy treatment of a young 17^th century girl who has visions. This leads her to joining a convent and rising to the top while having an affair with a fellow nun.

Happy Holidays.

Meanwhile, listen, like, follow or comment on my podcast, POP ART, the podcast where we find the pop culture in art and the art in pop culture. Every episode, my guest chooses a movie from popular culture and I’ll choose a film from the more art/indie/foreign/classic side of cinema that has a connection to it.

On ITUNES https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pop-art/id1511098925, Anchor: https://anchor.fm/howard-casner, and Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/5jX4noVGArDJdmcFtmrQcG , Sticher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/pop-art, Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/…, Breaker: https://www.breaker.audio/pop-art, Pocketcasts: https://pca.st/vfjqj6j6, Radiopublic: https://radiopublic.com/pop-art-GExxNb and other streaming sites