Two Geeks And A Git Classic Movie Reviews

SPOILERS AHEAD! The trio are, once again, splitting their review into two parts, to preserve the integrity of the viewing experience for those who haven't seen "Unbreakable" yet! This is a supplement to the previous episode (139A) and contains only the discussion of the ending of the film!

Our second film by writer/director M.Night Shyamalan is one that flew under the radar for many, and thus came out with few expectations. It surpassed all of them, however, and more, and turned in a truly unique superhero film unlike any other we've seen on the big screen, even today! Security guard David Dunn (Bruce Willis) is the lone survivor of a train crash, who reunites with his estranged wife Audrey (Robin Wright) and his devoted son Joseph (Spencer Treat Clark). He then finds he has gained the attention of art gallery owner and anthropological theorist Elija Price (Samuel L. Jackson) who suggests that David's survival may not have been a fluke, but an indication that he's at the upper end of the curve of what we define as "human." Again written and directed by Shyamalan, shot by Eduardo Serra, and also scored by the genius that is James Newton Howard, this film has a look and feel that is unlike any other superhero film you've ever seen, and treats it with more seriousness as well! For this film also,

SPOILERS AHEAD! The trio split the review into two parts, and this is the part with the spoilers! It's a supplement to the previous episode (138A) and contains only the discussion of the ending of the film!

Writer/Director M. Night Shyamalan is the focus of this pairing, and the trio are going back to look at his first two breakout hits, starting with 1999's "The Sixth Sense." Child psychologist Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) tries to help Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), a very troubled young boy, discover a way to heal from his illness. It turns out, however, that his illness isn't so much sickness as it is paranormal ability! Written and directed by Shyamalan, the film also stars Toni Collette, Olivia Williams, and Donnie Wahlberg in a role you won't recognize him in! Couple that with the amazing cinematography Tak Fujimoto and the beautifully disturbing score by James Newton Howard, and you have a film that keeps you interested, unnerved, and fascinated right through the very end, which we don't discuss (in full) in this episode, but in a separate supplemental episode, so as not to spoil the experience if you haven't seen this film yet! Check out the next episode to hear the spoilers about the ending!

Our second episode in our "Films that made directors famous" pairing hit in 1975 and scared a nation away from any of the ocean beaches for a time! We are, of course, talking about Steven Spielberg's break-out hit, "Jaws!" Based on the Peter Benchley novel and starring Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss, Lorraine Gary, Murray Hamilton, Carl Gottlieb, Jeffrey Kramer, and Susan Backline, this is the story of a great white shark who decides to make the waters off the small resort town of Amity its private feeding grounds, and the three brave men who set out on a small ship called "The Orca" to stop it once and for all. This film also made John Williams a household name, and netted Williams an Academy Award for Best Original Score in 1976! And finally, hear which on-again, off-again director the trio will be reviewing films from next week (the good ones, of course)!

This episode begins our "Films that made directors famous" pairing, and we start in 1973. Fresh off his critical success with "THX 1138," George Lucas decided to create an homage to the last year Americans lived in blissful ignorance of the turmoil to come, when boys and girls, rock and roll, and hot rods were everything, and life was just a little easier. "American Graffiti" was Lucas' first huge box-office hit, and it started the careers of so many actors who would go on to become household names! Directed by and co-written by Lucas, along with Gloria Katz and Willard Huyck, the film features Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Charles Martin Smith, Cindy Williams, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips, and the one and only Wolfman Jack, in a tribute to the 50s lifestyle, which had carried over into 1962. And while the film doesn't exactly follow a traditional three-act structure, the individual stories are held together by the incredible 50s rock soundtrack!

The second film in our 1972 Blaxploitation pairing arrived in November of 1972. Directed by Ivan Dixon, and written by John D.F. Black (who wrote the original Star Trek series classic "The Naked Time" in 1966), the film follows "T", sometimes called "Mr. T" by those who respect him, as he works to protect the people in his neighborhood, help them through their hardships, and see that their life is generally just a little better. But when he gets framed for the murder of a crime boss, he has to go to great lengths to find the solution to his own trouble! Starring Robert Hooks, Paul Winfield, Ralph Waite, Paula Kelly, and Gordon Jump, this is one of the best of the genre, made even greater by its score, the only one ever written by Marvin Gaye! And find out what films the trio will be reviewing next that catapulted George Lucas and Stephen Spielberg into the Hollywood spotlight (and it may not be the movies you think)!

It's back to the 70s, and back to Blaxploitation films for the next pairing! First up, it's August of 1972 and a new phrase becomes part of the vernacular: Super fly. But why? Well, because a movie with a message, a philosophy, and an amazing soundtrack introduced it to everyone! Priest and his partner, Eddie, want to get out of the cocaine-dealing business, so they plan one last major score to set them up for their retirement! Directed by the legendary Gordon Parks, and starring Ron O'Neal, Carl Lee, Sheila Frazier, and featuring a soundtrack/score written by musician extraordinaire Curtis Mayfield! A classic early example of the genre, and such a good film considering the tiny budget it was made from!

The second film in our tribute to Penny Marshall is one of her lesser-known films, not as successful as "Big," but no less deserving attention. "Renaissance Man" from 1994 was directed by Marshall, and stars Danny DeVito, Gregory Hines, James Remar, Ed Begley Jr., Lillo Brancato, Stacey Dash, Kadeem Hardison, Richard T. Jones, Khalil Kain, Peter Simmons, Gregory Sporleder, Mark Wahlberg, and Cliff Robertson. It's the story of Bill Rago, an unemployed advertising executive who gets assigned to teach comprehension on an Army base. Stuck trying to figure out how to teach the course, he inadvertently interests his students in Shakespeare's "Hamlet" and transforms his students while transforming his own life as well! If you're a teacher, or know a teacher, or have ever had a good teacher, you'll appreciate this film! Next up, the aforementioned second look at Blaxpoitation films!

Actor and director Penny Marshall passed away on December 17th, 2018 at the age of 75. Because her impact on film was so entertaining and so profound, Buddy, Chad, and Jeff decided to push back their second look at Blaxploitation films. Instead, this episode looks at Penny Marshall's first "big" hit, with 1988's "Big!" Directed by Marshall and starring Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins, Robert Loggia, John Heard, Jared Rushton, Jon Lovitz, and Mercedes Ruehl, this film follows 13-year-old Josh who makes a wish on a strange arcade fortune teller, and gets it when he wakes up the next day big... in an adult's body. This film features some stellar performances, none the least of which are the child actors! Truly a classic in the history of film, and deservedly netted Tom Hanks an Oscar nomination for Best Actor!

Happy holidays from Buddy, Chad, and Jeff! For the second film in our "Twisted Christmas" pairing, we move ahead five years to Disney's first full-length stop-action animated film! From the mind of Tim Burton, directed by Henry Selick, and featuring the music and vocal talents of Danny Elfman, it's 1993's "The Nightmare Before Christmas!" Starring Chris Sarandon as Jack Skellington (although the singing Jack is Danny Elfman) and co-starring the voices of Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix (of "Beetlejuide" fame) Paul Reubens, and the incredible vocal talents of Ken Page, this is the story of what happens when the leader of one holiday discovers that there are others, and decides to try to do a different one better than it's been done before! With amazing animation, a truly imaginative story, and flat-out fantastic music, this became an instant classic! Plus, find out what year the trio is going to focus on for their "New Year's" pairing!

Happy holidays from Buddy, Chad, and Jeff! It's the first of our "Twisted Christmas" pairing and it starts with 1988's Bill Murray-led "Scrooged." Directed by Richard Donner, and starring Murray, Karen Allen, John Forsythe, Bobcat Goldthwait, David Johansen, Carol Kane, and Robert Mitchum, this is a modern re-telling of the story of Scrooge, but this time with a lot of laughs to go along with the normal pathos-filled morality tale! It's a practical-effects smorgasbord combined with a delightfully creepy-yet-christmas-y score by Danny Elfman and some top-notch acting performances that combines to be the gift everyone wants for their holiday season (even if someone doesn't quite agree)!

Part 2 of our look at radio personality biopics takes a radically different turn from our first! Petey Greene (Don Cheadle), an ex-convict, charms his way onto WOL, the number one rhythm and blues station in Washington, DC with the help of program director Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor) in 2007's "Talk To Me!" It's rough at first, and tempers fly, but after a devastating turn of events on the national scene, Greene demonstrates his true talent and brings DC through a dark and dangerous night! Directed by Kasi Lemmons, and co-starring Taraji P. Henson, Mike Epps, Cedric the Entertainer, and Martin Sheen, this film demonstrates how radio, and the right person at the right time, can unite a community for all the right reasons! Plus, discover what two "twisted" films the crew has picked out for their holiday episodes!

This pairing is all about radio personality biopics, and we're starting with perhaps the most well-known radio personality of all time, the self-proclaimed "King of Media," Howard Stern, the the 1997 film based on his book of the same name, "Private Parts!" Directe by Betty Thomas, and starting Mary McCormack, Paul Giamatti, Allison Janney, and, as themselves, Fred Norris, Robin Quivers, and Howard Stern! This is an inside look into the history and evolution of one of the most notorious radio personalities of the 20th and 21st centuries, even if some of it is a bit of hollywood magic rather than the actual truth. But it shows that the Stern we all know and love (or hate) from on-air is only a character, a personality that he puts on to do his shows, and that he is subtly but substantially different "in real life!"

The second of our looks at improvised mockumentaries about music moves forward almost 20 years, to 2003's "A Mighty Wind!" If Christopher Guest and crew had a brilliant idea in "This is Spinal Tap," they'd perfected it with this movie! Directed by Guest, and co-written by Guest and Eugene Levy, this film takes place just after a giant in the Folk industry has passed away, and his children decide to stage a reuinion some of the biggest groups he helped along, as a tribute. The film co-stars Mary Gross, Harry Shearer, Michawl McKean, Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Bob Balaban, Jane Lynch, John Michael Higgins, Parker Posey, Jim Piddock, Don Lake, Ed Begley Jr., Larry Miller, and Jennifer Coolidge. The New Main Street Singers, the Folksmen, and Mickey and Mitch, with some baggage and more than a few issues, join the tribute concert. Along the way, we learn a lot about the groups (and in a couple cases, probably too much), and watch through the concert itself. Hilarious, full of original music that both pokes fun at, an

It's improvised mockumentaries about music for this week's pairing, starting with the directorial debut of Rob Reiner, the film co-written by Reiner, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer, the ultimate send-up of rock mockumentaries, 1984's "This is Spinal Tap!" Starring Guest, McKean, and Shearer as the three members of "the loudest band in rock," this film follows the intrepid-yet-inept heavy metal trio through their comeback tour, touting the release of their new album "Smell the Glove." Featuring the additional talents of Bruno Kirby, Ed Gegley Jr., Fran Drescher, Patrick Macnee, Dana Carvy, Billy Crystal, Howard Hessman, Paul Shaffer, Fred Willard, and Angelica Huston, this film was the prototype for mockumentaries-to-come, establishing a genre that Guest and company have been successfully mining ever since!

Our second film in our pairing of live-action Disney musical fantasy films is the 1971 sleeper-hit Bedknobs and Broomsticks! The film shares several people, including director Robert Stevenson, star David Tomlinson, and musical scribes Richard and Robert Sherman! With the help of star Angela Lansbury, and co-stars Roddy McDowell, Sam Jaffe, John Ericson, and Reginald Owen, this film tells the story of Eglantine Price, an apprentice witch with a plan to help the war effort during World War II. When she gets three London orphans foisted off on her, things go from chaotic to truly magical! Nominated for five academy awards, and winner of the award for Best Special Effects, this movie answers the question "What happens when magically-animated armor goes up against a squad of Nazi soldiers! Plus, the trio discuss what documentary sub-genre they'll be tackling in the next pairing!

A magical nanny literally floats down from the sky to turn around the lives of a London banker, his suffragette wife, and their two precocious children. Directed by Robert Stevenson and starring Julie Andrews (who won an Oscar for the role), Dick Van Dyke, David Tomlinson, Glynis Johns, Arthur Treacher, Reginald Owen, and Ed Wynn, this became one of the jewels in the crown of Walt Disney's kingdom. With such memorable songs like Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, A Spoonful of Sugar, Chim Chim Cheree, and Step in Time, written by Oscar award-winning brothers Richard and Robert Sherman, this is the film that has entertained children and adults for over 50 years!

Part two of our Halloween horror pairing is the 1982 remake of "The Thing" by horror master John Carpenter! Based on the 1951 "The Thing From Another World," Carpenter took the sci-horror genre and turned it up higher than ever before! Directed by Carpenter from a screenplay written by Bill Lancaster, this version sees Kurt Russell, A moustache-less Wilford Brimley, T. K. Carter, David Clennon, Keith David, Richard Dysart, Charles Hallahan, Peter Maloney, Richard Masur, Donald Moffat, Joel Polis, and Thomas G. Waites as the crew of Antarctic Base US #31, an isolated research facility. A chance encounter with a Norweigen helicopter and its inhabitants spins their "normal" lives off into an otherwordly carnival of subterfuge, suspicion, accusation, blood, and terror. Plus, learn what cinematic balm the trio has prescribed for the post-Halloween weeks as they discuss their next pairing!

The film that came to define the "Sci-Horror" genre, 1979's "Alien" starts off our Halloween horror pairing! Directed by Ridley Scott, from a screenplay written by Dan O'Bannon (one of the authors of the original story), this film made Sigourney Weaver a household name in the sci-fi world! Also starring Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm, and Yaphet Kotto, this film introduced audiences to how something as wide open as space could, in fact, feel claustrophobic, and how a cat's hiss could turn your insides to water! With Alien designs inspired by the twisted H. R. Giger, this film would go on to spawn a sci-horror franchise that's still turning out new films!