Film Journal

The Star Wars Rip-Off Boom of the 1970s

13K views · 2mo ago · 40:31

After Star Wars changed Hollywood forever, filmmakers around the world raced to reverse-engineer its success. George revisits Starcrash (1978), Message from Space (1978), Battlestar Galactica (1978), The Humanoid (1979),and Roger Corman’s Battle Beyond the Stars (1980) to ask what these colorful, ambitious, and occasionally shameless imitators understood about George Lucas’s phenomenon—and what they completely missed.

Topics: Starcrash (1978) · Battlestar Galactica (1978) · Message From Space (1978) · The Humanoid (1979) · Battle Beyond the Stars (1980)

All the President’s Men: Nixon, Watergate & the Movies

3.2K views · 2mo ago · 20:25

If you like my work please consider subscribing, liking or becoming a channel member! All the President’s Men is one of the great American films of the 1970s—a gripping, beautifully crafted procedural that helped define not only how we remember Watergate, but how we remember Richard Nixon himself.

The Epic Films of Ray Harryhausen

451 views · 2mo ago · 1:21:23

Join George & Ryan for a spirited discussion about The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad Jason & the Argonauts Sinbad's Golden Voyage Clash of the Titans

Summer Movie Wrap Up

386 views · 3mo ago · 1:27:37

Join us for a rousing discussion of: The Odyssey, Disclosure Day, Backrooms, He-Man.

Sam Rami's Spider-Man Trilogy

462 views · 3mo ago · 1:56:13

George & Ryan talk about the one and only Spiderman

The Immortal Appeal of Highlander (1986)

3.7K views · 5mo ago · 18:03

George discusses Russell Mulcahy's 1986 cult favorite Highander- why it's great, as well as its place within the pantheon of 80's action cinema.

The Predictive Power of Michael Crichton’s Looker (1981)

50K views · 5mo ago · 16:27

Spielberg's Aliens

548 views · 5mo ago · 1:39:14

In this episode, we discuss Steven Spielberg’s recurring fascination with aliens through Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and War of the Worlds. We look at how each film approaches extraterrestrial life differently — wonder, friendship, and fear — and why one of Hollywood’s biggest blockbuster directors keeps returning to the subject.

Straight Time (1978) Review & Analysis

3.9K views · 5mo ago · 11:38

George explores Straight Time as far more than a typical prison-release drama, uncovering a bleak and deeply unsettling meditation on criminal psychology, self-destruction, and the possibility that some people are simply incapable of living “straight.” Through Dustin Hoffman’s tightly wound performance as Max Dembo, George examines the film’s grim portrait of 1970s Los Angeles, the seductive pull of criminality, and the thin line between social failure and personal nature,…

70's Political Thrillers

905 views · 5mo ago · 1:13:33

Great thrillers from a tumultuous political era. George and Ryan discuss four great movies from the era of the cold war and watergate Executive Action ( 1973) The Parallax View (1974) 3 Days of the Condor (1975) and more!

The Highlander Episode

480 views · 6mo ago · 1:03:32

There can be only one! Ryan Cinecrisis and George discuss the first three Highlander films.

Early Films of Chuck Norris

440 views · 6mo ago · 1:06:10

To commemorate the death of the great Chuck Norris, George and Ryan discuss three early films in Norris cannon, his three picture deal with American Cinema Releasing Good Guys Wear Black (1978) A Force of One (1979) The Octagon (1980) Join in the fun as we discuss Chuck's career, his legacy and three fun early pictures.

Excalibur (1981) Myth & Rebirth

51K views · 9mo ago · 28:48

George discusses John Boorman's 1981film "Excalibur" the most faithful adaption of the Arthurian legend ever put to film. In this essay George discusses the historical and literary roots of the Arthur story, the merits of the film and what it has to say about man's relationship to nature- the land, the contradictions inherent in the story- it's christian and pagan themes, as well as the mythical idea of Arthur and his kingdom and the cyclical nature of civilization.

Celebrating Frankenstein

494 views · 1y ago · 1:40:04

Join George and Ryan as they discuss Frankenstein and his indelible monster. A horror story that has continued to thrill audiences in one form or another for more than 2 hundred years!

Horror Films of the 30's

512 views · 1y ago · 1:26:32