The Film 89 Podcast

On Episode 147 of The Film ‘89 Podcast, Skye and returning guest-host Stephen Simpson are celebrating the 60th anniversary of and also taking an in-depth look at the making of director John Frankenheimer’s epic, nearly 3-hour-long motor racing drama, Grand Prix. Starring James Garner, Yves Montand, Eva Marie Saint, Toshiro Mifune and a huge international supporting cast, Frankenheimer’s movie is a marvel of technical filmmaking that captures the thrills and danger of Formula 1 as few other films have. Filmed alongside the 1966/67 F1 season with unprecedented cooperation from the drivers and teams of the era, Grand Prix is arguably the finest big-screen representation of motor racing ever made, and a time capsule of a period when the sport was on the cusp of changes that would alter it forever.

On Episode 146 of The Film ‘89 Podcast, Neil and Skye are traveling back in time 35 years to discuss a film that represented something of a transition from the typical ‘80s action film to the genre’s ‘90s iteration. Based on a script by Shane Black that Warner Bros. were willing to pay a then record setting fee of $175 million for, and directed by acclaimed filmmaker Tony Scott, The Last Boy Scout starred Bruce Willis, Damon Wayans and a great supporting cast. Willis, following two recent box office failures in The Bonfire of the Vanities and Hudson Hawk, was in need of a hit and a Shane Black scripted action vehicle must have seemed like a sure thing at the time. Unfortunately, the production was no smooth ride and Black’s script changed significantly during the shoot. This, coupled with tensions on set between the principles as well as between Scott and producer Joel Silver, resulted in a film fraught with problems which may have in some way contributed to it’s studio failing to market the film as well as it should have. The Last Boy Scout failed to ignite the box office but would go on to become a much loved relic of early ‘90s action cinema and in retrospect is a film that really should have fared better given it’s gritty, noir inspired tone and razor sharp script and is a film that the hosts of tonight’s episode love, and have much to say about.

On Episode 145 of The Film ‘89 Podcast, Steve, Skye and returning guest host, filmmaker Kyle Reardon, celebrate the 70th anniversary of legendary director John Ford’s epic 1956 western, The Searchers. Directed by one of the most revered and influential filmmakers ever to step behind a camera, and starring one of cinema’s true icons, John Wayne, in one of his most complex roles, The Searchers tells the tale of civil war veteran, Ethan Edwards, a man wrestling with his own dark side, and his adopted nephew Martin (Jeffrey Hunter) and their years long search for Ethan’s niece, Debbie, taken from her family by a Comanche Chief after a raid on Ethan’s brother’s homestead. Shot in stunning Vista Vision and featuring some of the most astonishing cinematography ever seen in a motion picture, Ford’s film was is arguably the peak of a staggering career that spanned seven decades and a film that’s become widely regarded as one of the greatest American films of not just the 20th century, but all time.

On Episode 144 of The Film ‘89 Podcast, both Neil and Skye are mistaken for Paul Allen as they discuss director Mary Harron’s 2000 adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ 1991 novel, American Psycho. Set in Manhattan during the Wall Street boom of 1989, American Psycho follows the life of a wealthy young investment banker named Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale). Bateman narrates his everyday activities, from his charmed yuppie recreational life of pampering and fine dining among the Wall Street elite of New York to his forays into murder by night. The guys discuss the film’s complex plot, one that can have any number of varying interpretations as to both the reliability of the film’s narrator and the questions raised as to whether Patrick Bateman is a crazed serial killer or if this is all just an elaborate fantasy concocted as a means of dealing with the banality of the world he lives in. Featuring a superb supporting cast, brilliant direction and a killer soundtrack, American Psycho is arguably more of a bleakly dark satire than it is a serial killer thriller, and is certainly a film more than worthy of the Film ’89 treatment.

On Episode 143 of The Film ‘89 Podcast it’s that time of year again. Towards the end of every year since 2022, Film ‘89 has celebrated the 60th anniversary of a James Bond film. In 2022 we started with Dr. No, in 2023 we covered From Russia With Love and last year we covered Goldfinger. Now Skye and one of the greatest film poster artists working in the business today, Tony Stella, return to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the fourth James Bond film, Thunderball, which had its world premiere in Tokyo, Japan on December 9th 1965. Thunderball came out at the very peak of Bondmania. Sean Connery was approaching mega star status and the books and films were as popular as they would ever be. Made on a budget that was more than the combined budgets of the previous three films, Thunderball was a hugely ambitious film with complex underwater action sequences the likes of which audiences had never seen before and it would go on to become the most successful Bond film ever, and based on ticket sales alone, it still is. So get on your wetsuit, pick up your spear-gun and join Skye and Tony as they take the deep dive on what they feel is one of the most underrated of all James Bond films.