Director"s Club

03:33:35

Episode 169: Brian De Palma Redux

Director"s Club ·

2019/12/31

It's time for a new take on a director previously covered by the Director's Club. We won't keep you in suspense - It's Brian De Palma Redux! Former DC host, Jim Laczkowski reprises his role in the spirited debate on the career of one of our more controversial subjects. We'll cover such horror staples as "Carrie" and "Dressed to Kill" as well as contrast him to another director who may have influenced him just a bit. We won't forget early favorites like "Phantom of the Paradise" or mainstream

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03:57:07

Episode 168: Ingmar Bergman Part II

Director"s Club ·

2019/12/22

It's been a while, but the Director's Club was spending some time putting together the Part Two of our Bergman 101 Project looking at all the films of the master director. This point of his career features some of the more legendary films of all time, and with the help of Film Discussion Group co-organizer Peter Richards, we not only look through a glass darkly at classics like "The Seventh Seal", "Wild Strawberries", and "Persona", but we also encounter a dark religious fable, a horror film about

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02:19:48

Episode 167: Isao Takahata

Director"s Club ·

2019/10/10

In this episode the Director's Club casts their attention to the wonderful worlds drawn by legendary animation Studio Ghibli - but not the director you expect! Because while director Isao Takahata was not as prolific as Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, he put together a remarkable run of films in his own right, ones which pushed anime into whole new stylistic realms while touching on Japanese history and folklore to explore themes of memory, belonging, responsibility, and creative artistic

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03:37:34

Episode 166: Ingmar Bergman

Director"s Club ·

2019/09/09

The Director's Club wanted to do something special on what would have been legendary director Ingmar Bergman's 101st year, so we're putting together a three-part series we're calling Bergman 101, where we look at every full feature he made that had a theatrical release! In Part I, we see how he made his start with melodramas but soon branched out to an astounding variety of films (like a film noir and a screwball comedy!), until he took his career to new artistic and public recognition with "Smiles

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01:32:21

Bonus Episode: Keith Gordon + Underrated Films Of The...

Director"s Club ·

2019/08/13

Cross-posted from Voices + Visions: Another special bonus episode from the former host of this here show. So you might remember him as Arnie from Christine and that's where I first became aware of the terrific talent of one Keith Gordon. He's been on Voices + Visions / Director's Club a few times now, thus beginning a yearly tradition where we check in, talk about what he's been up to, but also take the opportunity to nerd out about cinema. On the last episode, we went over what it was like working

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01:29:41

Bonus Episode: Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood...

Director"s Club ·

2019/08/04

What happens when old-school Director’s Club meets the new? Join Brad, Al, alongside former hosts Jim + Patrick as they dive head first into the world of Tarantino, focusing on his latest creation, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. A film that no one else seems to talking about so we figured we should. Does everyone agree it’s one of his best? Only way to find out. Put down the needle on your vinyl, turn up the radio dial, throw on an old TV Western, and tune in. We talk about the film at length,

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03:43:13

Episode 165: Robert Altman Redux Part II

Director"s Club ·

2019/07/11

The Director's Club returns to the films of Robert Altman, looking at the ups and downs of his career after he nearly became exiled to Sweethaven due to the "Popeye" debacle. We explore how he worked his way back with innovative takes on theatrical material like "Secret Honor" and "Fool For Love", returned back to critical and popular attention with "The Player" and "Short Cuts", created memorable characters like Griffin Mill, Maggie Smith's Countess from "Gosford Park" / "Downtown Abbey", and

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03:42:04

Episode 164: Asghar Farhadi

Director"s Club ·

2019/06/17

After some unfortunate and inadvertent delays, the Director's Club is backto the podcasting trade with an episode on the amazing Iranian director Asghar Farhadi! With the help of the Chicago Film Discussion Group's Peter Richards, we have a deep exploration into his films, which at their best explore the conflicts between people in a way that combines Hitchcockian intensity, an astounding attention to detail, and tremendous performances delivered with a grace that feels effortless, and has led to

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02:56:09

Bonus Episode: Jim Turns 41

Director"s Club ·

2019/05/11

Cross-posted with Voices + Visions Just like last year, my dear friend and fellow podcaster Patrick Ripoll returns for a very special episode of this show. Around the month of May, I ask Patrick to return to a microphone to talk a variety of topics. We play catch up on our lives, talk about our latest projects, and review two movies that we've assigned to one another. The two movies for this year were the Hong Kong late 80s action flick IN THE LINE OF DUTY IV as well as the gorgeous Anime

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40:51

Bonus Episode: Alex Ross Perry

Director"s Club ·

2019/04/19

Cross-posted from Voices & Visions A few years back, I had the pleasure of talking with Alex Ross Perry for my then-titled Pop Culture Club podcast. We spoke about QUEEN OF EARTH and the greatness of Elisabeth Moss. For his 6th feature film, he recruits one of our very best actresses working today once again for HER SMELL. It’s the story of a rock star addict played by Elisabeth Moss, who is on the edge of self-destruction. This time a familiar story is beautifully filtered hrough the lens of a

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02:39:11

Episode 163: Walt Disney Part II

Director"s Club ·

2019/04/07

The Director's Club returns to the shores of Disneyland to take a look at the creative efforts of Walt Disney as he expands his interests to live action films and even nature documentaries, as his techniques in animation were also changing due to artistic and financial needs. We talk about the many remarkable facets of his later films and how he was able to maintain creativity while building the empire of the entertainment world we know today. (0:00) Intro to Walt Disney in transition ("Dizz Knee

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01:01:38

Bonus Episode: "The Other Side of the Wind"

Director"s Club ·

2019/03/25

The year 2018 provided a rare gift for film fans - a new film from Orson Welles! A team of filmmakers and Netflix funders came together to take one of the his unfinished works and complete it for viewing on movie screens and streams. The Director's Club was lucky enough to get a theatrical look, and in this episode we talk about the effectiveness of the result, the themes that emerge from the movie, how those themes fit with Welles' history and his other films, and how it's both of and way ahead

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02:51:20

Bonus Episode: 1989 Review - The Year In Movies -...

Director"s Club ·

2019/03/07

https://tinyurl.com/1989retro PART TWO: Cross-posted with Voices & Visions as well. You can follow the list from 1989 that we cover linked above. Ladies and gentlemen, let's go back thirty years to when three film critics were first falling in love with movies. The mid-80s informed a lot of our taste, and much like previous years' retrospectives, it's always a blast to go back and see what holds up and what we each consider to be favorites and least favorites from a particular year. Joined

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03:10:05

Bonus Episode: 1989 Review - The Year In Movies -...

Director"s Club ·

2019/03/06

https://tinyurl.com/1989retro PART ONE (OF TWO): Cross-posted with Voices & Visions as well. You can follow the list from 1989 that we cover linked above. Ladies and gentlemen, let's go back thirty years to when three film critics were first falling in love with movies. The mid-80s informed a lot of our taste, and much like previous years' retrospectives, it's always a blast to go back and see what holds up and what we each consider to be favorites and least favorites from a particular year. Joined

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02:43:43

Episode 162: Walt Disney

Director"s Club ·

2019/03/04

This episode of the Director Club is somewhat unique in that our subject is NOT a director. However, when the subject is Walt Disney, one of the 20th century's most acclaimed visionaries, we will see how his dreams launched a studio and revolutionized animation. In part one, we?ll explore Disney's Golden Age, from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (the first animated feature), "Pinocchio", and "Fantasia", all the way through "Cinderella" and his first efforts in live action. (0:00) Walt Disney's

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02:33:56

Episode 161: Steve McQueen

Director"s Club ·

2019/02/05

The Director's Club welcomes 2019 (and the recent release of "Widows") with a look at British director Steve McQueen. With the help of Chicago Film Discussion Group co-organizer Belinda Silber, we'll look into how McQueen's art background, ability to hold on an image, and interest in meaning through physical suffering has put a fascinating spin on several of his films (and how it helped create a masterpiece in "12 Years A Slave"). (4:53) "Hunger" ("Keep Yourself Alive") (36:01) "Shame" ("Too Much

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57:30

Bonus Episode: "Roma"

Director"s Club ·

2019/01/11

The Director's Club was so taken by the theatrical airing of the latest Alfonso Cuarón movie, "Roma", that we had to rush out a discussion about it while it's still in theaters! With the help of the Chicago Film Discussion Group member Ken Silber, we take a look at how the movie screen (and movie audio!) enhances the qualities of his latest film, how it relates to Cuarón's life and his other movies, and the many ways it looks back to view a person's life from the dramatic extremes to the grace found

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03:08:29

Episode 160: Favorite Films Of 2018 (Part Two)

Director"s Club ·

2019/01/04

It's the most wonderful time of the year. Our annual favorite films of 2018 tradition continues for the 8th year in a row, this time including former hosts Jim and Patrick, joined by current host Brad Strauss as we reveal our Top 25 favorites as well as picking our favorites for actor, score, reading listener e-mails and more! 00:00 - 58:00 - #7, #6 Favorites 58:01 - 01:00:52 - Jim Sings Bill's List Of 40 Favorites 01:00:53 - 03:05:25 - #5 - #1 Favorites 03:05:26 - 03:08:28 - Outro / Jim's

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02:44:33

Episode 160: Favorite Films Of 2018 (Part One)

Director"s Club ·

2019/01/04

It's the most wonderful time of the year. Our annual favorite films of 2018 tradition continues for the 8th year in a row, this time including former hosts Jim and Patrick, joined by current host Brad Strauss as we reveal our Top 25 favorites as well as picking our favorites for actor, score, reading listener e-mails and more! 00:00 - 03:52 - Introduction / Brad's Favorite Song of 2018 03:53 - 01:11:55 - Sub-Categories / Awards 01:11:56 - 01:49:36 - #25 - #11 Favorites 01:49:37 - 02:44:33 - #10 -

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03:29:45

Episode 159: Frederick Wiseman

Director"s Club ·

2018/12/26

In this episode, the Director's Club goes the verite route as we look at the films of legendary documentarian Frederick Wiseman. Joined by Chicago Film Discussion Group co-organizer Peter Richards, we go over the vastswath of a remarkably consistent body of work that delves into extensive looks at towns, schools, strip clubs, boxing gyms, and social organizations of all kinds, and explore how their deliberately removed perspectives and extended scopes allow for a contemplative insightful look at

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