Episodes
Monday Mar 27, 2017
GTGC #214 - Clueless
Monday Mar 27, 2017
Monday Mar 27, 2017
The ground for good discussion on Clueless is laid quickly in our brief review section as our co-hosts find themselves split on the overall quality of the film. Dustin, being from the generation the film was made for, finds he now actively dislikes the film which he quite appreciated at 19. Dalton on the other hand comes to the defense of Clueless as a film he doesn't love, but certainly sees the value of.
The show then moves to gameplay as the hosts discuss their favorite teen romance films. Specific films are obviously covered, but it isn't long before it becomes more general breakdown of what makes a good teen movie. Things then get closed out with a brief sub-game in which Dustin and Dalton discuss their favorite films from the king of 1980's teen movies, John Hughes.
With more time left for games, the hosts get down to business and talk analysis. The major topics are queer representation and to a lesser extent racial representation, class awareness and finally what it means to be a teenager.
That's it for this week listener, but if you think we're done, well as if! Stay tuned next week as the gang is getting ready to discuss a seminal work of international action cinema. See you then!
Monday Mar 20, 2017
GTGC #213 The Running Man
Monday Mar 20, 2017
Monday Mar 20, 2017
This week we examine a film loosely based on the novel The Running Man, by Stephen King, writing as Richard Bauchman. Arnold is up to his usually cheekiness, full of efficient distribution of violence and perhaps violent one-liners. It's so 80's-tastic and yet very much a film for contemporary thinking and we would love you all to tune in.
We begin this week as always talking about our opinion of the film and generally find this to be pretty disposable (spoiler alert). However, despite its overall schlockiness, we find this film to to be ripe for analysis.
The show warms up with this week's game, our favorite manhunt films. Be sure and listen closely here dear listener, because though we mention several films that have been mentioned and even the subject of previous episodes, there are some gems in here to add to your GoodTrash syllabus.
Once we get down to analysis, we begin with a conversation about the prescience of a film made in 1987 that depicts a future 2017. This leads to a conversation about the cycles of anti-fascist cinema of the 80's, the early 2000's and today. We then move to a discussion of the misogyny of this film and it's relationship to rape culture and the difficulty of filming confrontations between men and women. Finally, our conversation moves to a discussion of the surveillance state, reality TV, and the difficulty of disappearing in the 21st century.
Get into it!
Monday Mar 13, 2017
GTGC - #212 Point Break (1991)
Monday Mar 13, 2017
Monday Mar 13, 2017
After a brief break, Dalton and Dustin return to break open Kathryn Bigelow’s 90’s action movie classic, Point Break. Classic, you question? Yes, classic we say. It’s a film that pits two of the decades most beloved heartthrobs against each other and has surfing and skydiving. What more could you want?
The conversation gets off to a quick start as Dustin and Dalton argue the merits of the film and it’s direction. The episode then moves into the game—a tribute to the recently departed Bill Paxton. As always though the real business of this show is analysis, and that’s exactly where the conversation moves after the game.
This week we start something a little different. As our typical roundtable of talkers has become something more akin to a duo, we have decided to make things a bit more conversational. Dalton kicks it off by engaging with the obvious gay subtext of Point Break and other films of the era. Dustin then brings in an eco-critical analysis of the film’s juxtaposition of nature and civilization. Dalton and Dustin discuss the spiritual and anti-spiritual relationships the characters have with the ocean and society.
This brings us to one of our favorite discussions: violence in cinema. However, the nuance this week is the way in which the film connects violence to nature. We end our discussion by examining how this relationship is realized formally in both shots and color used by Bigelow to contrast the beach with the city.
Surfs up!