Thu, 27 June 2024
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision-making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 52 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by AwardsWatch Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello to discuss the latest film in their Tony Scott series, Crimson Tide (1995).
Back in 1993, the U.S Navy allowed studio executives to come in and film their day-to-day operations in the hope of Hollywood making a submarine film in the vein of Top Gun. But what director Tony Scott and producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer took from their experience was a much more serious, deeper connection to the mindset of the officers below, thus became the beginning of a research process that would result in one of the great action thrillers of the 1990s, Crimson Tide. Based on a script by Michael Schiffer (with significant additions by Quentin Tarantino), Scott crafted a masterpiece in tension, pitting two generational actors, Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington, against each other for the battle of not just the ship they are on or the idea of going to all-out war with their enemy, but an examination of who people really are when they are faced with pressure, and just how dangerous or stubborn they can become in the name of having to be provide right. Ryan, Jay, and Sophia break down their feelings on the film, talk way too much about college football, the behind-the-scenes disagreement between Washington and Tarantino, dive deep into Hackman’s career at this time, the racial component at the core of the film, the stacked supporting cast, and even sing a little bit of Seal once they get to the Oscar conversation at the end of the episode.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h13m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Tony Scott with a review of his next film, Enemy of the State. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Mon, 24 June 2024
On episode 237 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch contributor Karen Peterson to discuss the latest film from Jeff Nichols, The Bikeriders, and talk about their Top 5 Hang Out Movies.
Before getting into this week’s topics, Ryan and Karen give a little update to the AW Summer Box Office Game as we are about to head into the month of July. For most of summer, Team Erik held a healthy lead in the friendly competition but things have changed with the entrance of Pixar’s Inside Out 2. With Despicable Me 4, Deadpool and Wolverine, and each teams “bomb pick” still in play, the game looks to still have plenty of twists and turns that we will keep you updated on throughout the upcoming weeks.
Transitioning to the main discussion, Jeff Nichols returns to theaters with his first film in eight years, The Bikeriders. Following a gang of bikers in the 1960s in Illinois, the film has been considered on the best releases of the year so far, but our two podcasters were left impressed that others and explained their thoughts as to way Nichols’ latest effort felt half baked. Once they gave their thoughts on The Bikeriders, they used this new release as a chance to do a Top 5 over their favorite “hang out” movies, stories where the plot takes a back seat to a group of characters and their usually fun, vibrant interactions. During their Top 5, some of the films discussed during this conversation included Empire Records, Almost Famous, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Lost in Translation, American Graffiti, Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Everybody Wants Some, A Hard Day’s Night, and more.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 1h46m. We will be back next week to talk about Yorgos Lanthimos’ latest film, Kinds of Kindness, and discuss our Top 5 Westerns inspired by the release of Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter One. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Thu, 20 June 2024
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision-making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 51 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by the host of Two Peas On A Pod Podcast, Gerald Morris to discuss the latest film in their Tony Scott series, True Romance (1993).
Continuing his trend of gravitating towards collaborations with in-demand screenwriters, Tony Scotts next project following The Last Boy Scouts has him teaming up with one of the most celebrated writers of the last thirty years right as he is breaking out, Quentin Tarantino. Coming off the heels of Reservoir Dogs releasing, Scott was able to direct the film after Tarantino sold the screenplay to the studio after losing interest himself in directing it. However, Tarantino is on record of saying that True Romance is one of his most autobiographical films to date, and while he tussled with Scott over aspects of the final cut, including the ending, Tarantino and Scott respected the hell out of each other by the end of this. The result was a cult classic about two cinema loving newlyweds on the run from the Mafia after stealing a shipment of drugs, and another signature film in Scott’s filmography. Ryan, Jay, and Gerald talk about their thoughts on the film, the career of Christian Slater, the film’s ending, the incredible supporting cast of veteran actors, Tarantino’s controversial dialogue, the score by Hans Zimmer, and just how long should a movie really be.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h11m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Tony Scott with a review of his next film, Crimson Tide. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Mon, 17 June 2024
On episode 236 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch Editor-In-Chief Erik Anderson, Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello and AwardsWatch contributors Karen Peterson and Jay Ledbetter to participate in a draft of the greatest movie stars of all time.
A recurring question surrounding the talks about the future of modern cinema is the absence of the ‘movie star,’ a person audiences can trust when spending their money to go to the theaters. For close to a hundred years, the film industry has survived on the movie star to survive, though the idea of what makes one had changed as time has gone on. In trying to understand potentially the future of the ‘movie star,’ the AW team decided to have some fun with this topic by doing a Greatest Movie Star draft, consisting of six rounds where the team, in a ‘snake order’ draft picks the best movie stars that represent various decades that include 1930s-1940s. 1950s-1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s-2000s, and a wild card round where the team picks a current movie star that is under 35 years old that they think will be the new faces of Hollywood. Some of the stars mentioned in this draft are Denzel Washington, Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Meryl Streep, Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Eddie Murphy, Katharine Hepburn, Julia Roberts, Robert Redford, Paul Newman and many more. Listen and see who everyone drafted and then go and vote to see which team is the best ensemble of the greatest movie stars of all time.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h53m. We will be back next week to talk about Jeff Nichols’s latest film, The Bikeriders, and discuss our Top 5 Hang Out Movies. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Mon, 17 June 2024
On episode 236 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch Editor-In-Chief Erik Anderson, Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello and AwardsWatch contributors Karen Peterson and Jay Ledbetter to participate in a draft of the greatest movie stars of all time.
A recurring question surrounding the talks about the future of modern cinema is the absence of the ‘movie star,’ a person audiences can trust when spending their money to go to the theaters. For close to a hundred years, the film industry has survived on the movie star to survive, though the idea of what makes one had changed as time has gone on. In trying to understand potentially the future of the ‘movie star,’ the AW team decided to have some fun with this topic by doing a Greatest Movie Star draft, consisting of six rounds where the team, in a ‘snake order’ draft picks the best movie stars that represent various decades that include 1930s-1940s. 1950s-1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s-2000s, and a wild card round where the team picks a current movie star that is under 35 years old that they think will be the new faces of Hollywood. Some of the stars mentioned in this draft are Denzel Washington, Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Meryl Streep, Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Eddie Murphy, Katharine Hepburn, Julia Roberts, Robert Redford, Paul Newman and many more. Listen and see who everyone drafted and then go and vote to see which team is the best ensemble of the greatest movie stars of all time.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h53m. We will be back next week to talk about Jeff Nichols’s latest film, The Bikeriders, and discuss our Top 5 Hang Out Movies. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Wed, 12 June 2024
Director Watch Ep. 50 - 'The Last Boy Scout' (Tony Scott, 1991) Director Watch Ep. 50 - 'The Last Boy Scout' (Tony Scott, 1991) with guest Diego Crespo of The Waffle Press Movie Podcast
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 50 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by the host of The Waffle Press Movie Podcast, Diego Crespo to discuss the latest film in their Tony Scott series, The Last Boy Scout (1991).
After the mild success of Days of Thunder, Tony Scott transitioned away from the protective arms of producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer to move over to a Joel Silver project with a script pinned by screenwriter Shane Black, who was coming off of writing Lethal Weapon and turning that into a franchise. But Black was kicked off the second installment of Lethal Weapon, and the script for The Last Boy Scout, a buddy action sports comedy about a private eye and a former pro Quarterback teaming up to stop corruption involving professional football and the US government, became the hottest thing in Hollywood (Black earned a record $1.75 million for the script, with over a $1 million guaranteed up front), and intrigued Scott immensely because of Black’s overall vision. Led by the impeccable duo of Bruce Willis and Damon Wayans, this dark, even dystopian vision of 1990s Los Angeles is a relic of 90s action films with tons of politically incorrect, problematic moments of humor that is a cult classic and is a wildly impressive piece of filmmaking within Scott and Black’s careers. Ryan, Jay, and Diego break down this complicated film, their history with it, kid acting, the body of work by its two stars Willis and Wayans, their relationship with the game of football, and why we don’t get movies like this made anymore.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h03m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Tony Scott with a review of his next film, True Romance. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Mon, 10 June 2024
On episode 235 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello and AwardsWatch contributors Dan Bayer, Cody Dericks, and Josh Parham conclude their tier ranking of the 97 Best Director winners from the Academy Awards.
In the second part of the Best Picture tier rankings (listen to Part 1 here), the AW team start in the 1980s and go all the way to the most recent winners of Best Director. This is where our hosts and audience are able to talk about the films they have most likely seen the most, and see the expansion of the limited “S tier,” where compromise and sacrifices of some member’s favorites are placed lower than you would be expected. But there are plenty of surprises amongst the team, leading to a fascinating final ranking of these 97 winners, including Ang Lee, Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Sam Mendes, Steven Soderbergh, Christopher Nolan and Chloé Zhao. This was another fun exercise getting to talk about some of the best (and not so great) winners of all time and the team really hopes you enjoy this part as much as part one.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 3h06m. We will be back next week to review Richard Linklater’s latest film Hitman and participate in a fun draft to determine who are the greatest movie stars of all time. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Thu, 6 June 2024
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision-making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 49 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by AwardsWatch contributor Karen Peterson to discuss the latest film in their Tony Scott series, Days of Thunder (1990).
Four years after making the monster hit that was Top Gun, Tony Scott reteamed with Tom Cruise and producers Dom Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer to take their collaboration from the skies to the racetrack with Days of Thunder. After making Beverly Hills Cop II and Revenge (which are discussed briefly on the show), Scott was tapped to recreate the magic of his 1986 hit, this time with his leading man a bigger star and co-writer on the project, inspired by Cruise falling in love with racing, as well as the producers loving this new idea. While Scott clashed with Simpson and Bruckheimer throughout the production, the end result is an entertaining sports action drama with tremendous performances by Cruise and Robert Duvall, as well as the breakout role for Nicole Kidman. Ryan, Jay and Karen (the biggest Tom Cruise fan we know) discuss the film, their relationships to the sport of racing and their overall love of sports, Karen’s favorite Tom Cruise movie, the overt boyish behavior the characters have throughout the film, if the ending/John C. Reilly side plot works, the racing scenes, the infamous wheelchair race scene between Cruise and Michael Rooker, and if this movie is better than Top Gun.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h05m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Tony Scott with a review of his next film, The Last Boy Scout. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro).
Direct download: Director_Watch_Days_of_Thunder.mp3
Category:Director Watch -- posted at: 8:08am PDT |
Mon, 3 June 2024
On episode 234 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello and AwardsWatch contributors Dan Bayer, Cody Dericks, and Josh Parham to tier rank the 97 winners for Best Director from the Academy Awards.
While everyone is breakdown the summer box office and the state of movies from the month of May, the AW team turn to the month of June by going back to a favorite exercise from last year, an extensive tier of an Oscar category. After doing Best Picture last year, the team moves onto the next most prestigious category at the Oscars; Best Director and its 97 winners. In trying to place these winners in the correct spot, the team had to come together and decide on whether to place the films in the S (all-time winner), A, B, C, D, or F tier and explain the ranking. The episode was so much fun that it had to be split into two parts, with this episode covering all the films up to 1980, placing a couple of classics making their way into the S tier early on.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h46m. We will be back next week with Part 2 of the Best Director tier rankings. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |