Episode 359: ZPG (1972) & Children of Men (2006)

Special Guest: Mei Fong
Guest Co-Hosts: Keith Gordon, Christine Makepeace

While we often talk about a few movies on every episode -- one main film and some supporting works, sequels, and so on -- we're spotlighting two movies on this episode: Michael Campus's Z.P.G. (1972) and Alfonso Cuarón's Children of Men (2006).

Z.P.G. (Zero Population Growth) stars Oliver Reed as Russ McNeil and and Geraldine Chaplan as his wife Carol. The film is set the near future where global resources have been strained and the environment has paid the price for the blight of human beings which have polluted the air so much that they live under a shroud of smog. The film was inspired by Paul Ehrlich's 1968 clarion call, The Population Bomb which warned of overpopulation.

Alfonso Cuarón's Children of Men is a very loose adaptation of P.D. James's 1992 novel. The film stars Clive Owen as Theo Faron who's biding his time on planet earth as the population is dying -- or killing itself off. No babies have been born in over 18 years which has exacerbated social strife, leading to terrorism, mass suicide, and refugee crises.

Furthering the discussion about population control, author Mei Fong discusses her book One Child: The Story of China's Most Radical Experiment while Keith Gordon and Christine Makepeace join Mike to talk about the two different approaches to similar sci-fi material.

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Links:
Buy The Edict by Max Ehrlich
Read Nightmare for Future Reference by Stephen Vincent Benet
Buy Make Room! Make Room! by Harry Harrison
Listen to The Feminine Critique podcast
Read Understanding Art In Movies: Children of Men Read China Wants to Abandon the Two-Child Policy from ThatsShanghai
Read about Forced Sterilization in Puerto Rico
Read ‘Children of Men’: Alfonso Cuarón’s Bleak but Genius Vision of the Past, Present and the Future

Music:
"Children of the Revolution" - T-Rex

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Episode 292: The Shining (1980)

Special Guests: Douglas Milsome, Garrett Brown, Rodney Ascher, Rob Ager
Guest Co-Hosts: Keith Gordon, Vincenzo Natali

Adapted from a novel by Stephen King, Stanley Kubrick The Shining (1980) tells the tale of Jack (Jack Nicholson), Wendy, (Shelley Duvall) and Danny (Danny Lloyd) Torrance, a family who spend a winter at the Overlook Hotel in Colorado. Jack plans on writing a book but, instead, battles the inner demons of alcoholism and anger, slowly going mad perhaps with the help of the ghosts of the Overlook...

Directors Keith Gordon and Vincenzo Natali join Mike to discuss Stanley Kubrick and The Shining as well as the many interpretations of the films (as presented in works like Rodney Ascher's Room 237 and Rob Ager's Collative Learning series).

Along with Ascher and Ager, cameraman Douglas Milsome and Steadicam operator (and inventor) Garrett Brown reminisce about working with Stanley Kubrick.

Listen / Download Now:

Show Me The Meaning: Subliminally Sublime


The Shining 237: Spilling the Advocaat

Links:
Buy The Shining on Blu-Ray
Buy Room 237 on DVD
Buy Studies in the Horror Film: Stanley Kubrick's The Shining edited by Danel Olson
Buy the The Shining Mini-Series
Buy The Shining by Stephen King
Buy Dr. Sleep by Stephen King
Buy The Shining (BFI Film Classics) by Roger Luckhurst
Visit the official Garrett Brown website
Visit the official Rodney Ascher website
Read MAZES, MIRRORS, DECEPTION AND DENIAL by Rob Ager
Subscribe to Collative Learning on YouTube
Visit The Overlook Hotel
Listen to The Shining: The Musical
Read What The Shining miniseries reveals about the King/Kubrick divide by Tasha Robinson
Read Is Stephen King justified in hating Kubrick's vision for The Shining? by Ryan Vlastelica
Compare the US vs. International Cuts of the Shining
Read What do Delbert Grady and Tony have in common? on the Shining FAQ
Read Here's Horror: Why 'The Shining' Still Terrifies Us by Lisa Rosman
Read THE MAKING OF 'THE SHINING': 'A LOT OF THINGS HAVE HAPPENED IN THIS PARTICULAR HOTEL' by Paul Gallagher
Read The True Story Behind the Legendary “Lost Ending” of THE SHINING By Stephen Johnson
Read STANLEY KUBRICK'S ORIGINAL TREATMENT FOR 'THE SHINING' from Cinephilia Beyond
Watch Free Documentary View from the Overlook: Crafting The Shining Looks at How Kubrick Made “the World's Scariest Movie”

Music:
"The Rock Mountains" - Wendy Carlos & Rachel Elkind
"Nocturnal Valse Triste" - Wendy Carlos & Rachel Elkind
"Music For Strings, Percussion And Celesta: Adagio" - Bela Bartok
"Midnight, The Stars and You" - Al Bowlly & Ray Noble and His Orchestra
"Come and Play with Us, Danny" - Smearballs

Watch:

Room 237: trailer from Rodney Ascher on Vimeo.

The Shining minus Delbert Grady from Richard Trammell on Vimeo.

THE CHICKENING from Nick DenBoer on Vimeo.

VIEW FROM THE OVERLOOK: Crafting The Shining (30 min) Produced by Gary Leva from Gary Leva on Vimeo.

Episode 209: The Quiet Earth (1985)

Special Guests: Geoff Murphy, Sam Pillsbury, Jonathan Rayner
Guest Co-Host: Keith Gordon

Zac Hobson (Bruno Lawrence) wakes at 6:12 one sunny morning to find that he may be the last man on Earth in The Quiet Earth, a compelling Kiwi film from director Geoff Murphy and writer/producer Sam Pillsbury.

We're joined by actor/writer/director Keith Gordon to discuss this post-Apocalyptic film.

Listen/Download Now:

Links:
Buy The Quiet Earth on DVD
Buy The Quiet Earth by Craig Harrison
le" Buy Cinema Journeys of the Man Alone: The New Zealand and American Films of Geoff Murphy by Jonathan Rayner
Buy more of Jonathan Rayner's books
Learn more about Geoff Murphy's films
Read more about Utu Redux
Visit the Pillsbury Wine Company website
Visit the New Zealand Film Commission website
Hear more Jonathan Rayner on our Manhunter episode
Hear more Keith Gordon on our Mother Night episode
Hear our Freejack episode

Music:
"Zac Takes Over" - John Charles
"The Effect Continues" - John Charles
"Last Love Scene" - John Charles
"Preaching The End Of The World" - Chris Cornell
"Sunrise" - John Charles

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Episode 172: Mother Night

Special Guests: Bob Weide, Gregory D. Sumner & Mary Kenny

Perhaps the best adaptation of a Kurt Vonnegut work, Mother Night stars Nick Nolte as Howard W. Campbell, Jr. an American playwright whose Nazi broadcasts may have helped America win the war. But, at what cost? Mother Night stars Alan Arkin, Sheryl Lee, Frankie Faison, John Goodman and a great supporting cast.

Also, we'll be talking to screenwriter Bob Weide (who's currently wrapping up a documentary on Kurt Vonnegut), Gregory D. Sumner, author of Unstuck in Time A Journey Through Kurt Vonnegut's Life and Novels, and Mary Kenny, author of Germany Calling A Personal Biography of William Joyce Lord Haw-Haw.

Our special guest co-host is the director and co-producer of Mother Night, Keith Gordon.

Links:
Buy Mother Night on DVD
Buy Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Buy Unstuck in Time A Journey Through Kurt Vonnegut's Life and Novels by Gregory D. Sumner
Buy Back to School starring Keith Gordon & Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Visit the official Mary Kenny Website
Buy Germany Calling A Personal Biography of William Joyce Lord Haw-Haw by Mary Kenny
Read Bob Weide's memories of making Mother Night
Listen to Keith Gordon on our Static and Love and Death episodes

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Episode 98: Love & Death

We're looking at Woody Allen's Love & Death from 1975. It's a mix of The Marx Brothers and Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Joining us this week is special guest co-host Keith Gordon. We also have a special bonus episode with more of our conversation with Keith on the current state of Hollywood, his upcoming work on Dexter, his project with Christopher Nolan, and more about Rectify the new series on the Sundance Channel which premieres 4/22/2013 at 10PM EST.

Links:
Buy Love & Death on DVD
Buy the Woody Allen Collection Volume 1
Hear more of Keith Gordon on our Static episode

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Bonus Interview with Keith Gordon:

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Episode 45: Static (1985)

Special Guest: Keith Gordon

A quirky little film from Mark Romanek and Keith Gordon, Static (1985) tells the tale of Ernie Blick, an inventor whose latest creation will revolutionize the world.

This week's co-host, Chris Cummins, the Philadelphia-based writer who frequently contributes to Topless Robot, Geekadelphia, and Cashiers du Cinemart.

Links:
Buy Static on DVD

Listen/Download Now:

Interview Outtakes:
Here Keith Gordon talks about some of his films coming out on Blu-Ray and the project he's doing with Chris Nolan.