Cinema Smorgasbord

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Check out the full We Do Our Own Stunts archive right here

It doesn’t get much better than this. On a long-awaited WE DO OUR OWN STUNTS Jackie Chan fulfills his long-term goal (devised partially as a response to his experience with James Glickenhaus’ The Protector) to make a different kind of Hong Kong martial arts movie and pulls it off in spectacular fashion with 1985’s POLICE STORY. Containing some of his most celebrated fights (the glass-filled mall spectacular) and stunts (the shantytown car chase, the umbrella assisted bus stunts and – of course – his dangerous pole slide), it changed the game for martial arts films, and launched Chan’s career into the stratosphere. BUT DOES IT LIVE UP TO THE HYPE?! On this episode of WE DO OUR OWN STUNTS we look at the stories and history behind the film, and where it exists in Jackie’s career.

Police Story Alternate and Deleted Scenes

The post Episode 325 – We Do Our Own Stunts – Police Story (1985) first appeared on Cinema Smorgasbord.

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Check out the entire Do You Otaku? archive right here.

In Delicious in Dungeon an adventuring group tries to track down and kill a dragon that ate one of their members, but can only survive by killing and eating the monsters they find along the way. Sounds simple, right? Well, this comedy-adventure series is anything but, with loads of often odd humor, detailed cooking sequences and some impressive world building.. BUT WILL DOUG LIKE IT? That’s the question on this episode of DO YOU OTAKU? where Liam once again introduces Doug to a full season of a popular anime series and tries to convince him that it’s worthwhile. LISTEN AND SEE HOW IT WORKS!

Check out DELICIOUS IN DUNGEON (aka DUNGEON MESHI) on Netflix.
The post Episode 324 – Do You Otaku? – Delicious in Dungeon (aka Dungeon Meshi) (Season 1) first appeared on Cinema Smorgasbord.

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Check out the Serpent’s Path archive right here.

After starting his V-Cinema adventure with MEN OF RAGE and YAKUZA TAXI (both covered on our last episode) Kiyoshi Kurosawa began his most ambitious project yet: a series of SIX films featuring two bumbling, but loveable, gangsters played by Shô Aikawa and Kôyô Maeda who continually find themselves in unlikely, comical scenarios (with – naturally – bursts of sex and violence). Kurosawa would shoot two of the films at a time, and on this episode of Serpent’s Path we’re checking out the first two entries. In 1995’s Suit Yourself or Shoot Yourself: The Heist our pair end up falling for the same woman, only to be forced to help her raise money for a sick relative once she gets involved with (wait for it!) the yakuza. Then, in Suit Yourself or Shoot Yourself: The Escape (also from 1995) the two are hired by a Yakuza boss to spy on his daughter and her boyfriend, only for them to get wrapped up in a tale of love, betrayal and AUSTRALIA. All that and plenty of context, so ENJOY!

Our major sources for this episode are:

This Tom Mes interview with Kurosawa from Midnight Eye:

http://www.midnighteye.com/interviews/kiyoshi-kurosawa-3/#:~:text=It%20was%20based%20on%20a,I%20actually%20made%20this%20film.

A French interview with Kurosawa covering his early career

http://eigagogo.free.fr/en/interview-kiyoshi-kurosawa.php
The post Episode 323 – Serpent’s Path: The Films of Kiyoshi Kurosawa – Suit Yourself or Shoot Yourself: The Heist (1995) & Suit Yourself or Shoot Yourself: The Escape (1995) first appeared on Cinema Smorgasbord.

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Check out the full HOW DO YOU DO, FELLOW KIDS? archive right here

We RETURN TO THE SANDLER-VERSE on this episode of HOW DO YOU DO, FELLOW KIDS? (the world’s finest Steve Buscemi podcast) with the 2015 made-for-Netflix western-comedy THE RIDICULOUS 6 featuring Terry Crews, Taylor Lautner, Rob Schneider, Jorge Garcia, and Luke Wilson and Sandler himself as the titular 6, as well as appearances by Will Forte, Steve Zahn, Nick Nolte, Danny Trejo, Harvey Keitel and.. uh.. Vanilla Ice as Mark Twain. Oh, and it sucks! It’s really bad! Hear us suffer, please.
The post Episode 322 – How Do You Do, Fellow Kids? – The Ridiculous 6 (2015) first appeared on Cinema Smorgasbord.

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Check out the full Bartel Me Something Good archive right here

On this free-wheeling episode of BARTEL ME SOMETHING GOOD we’re doubling up with two films featuring notable Paul Bartel ACTING performances. Uh.. kinda. We start with the cult-classic killer robots in a mall horror film CHOPPING MALL, directed by Jim Wynorski. With an all-star cast including Kelli Maroney, Barbara Crampton, DICK MILLER, Gerrit Graham, Mel Welles, Angus Scrimm and – of course – Paul Bartel and Mary Woronov, reprising their roles from EATING RAOUL! Then we put on our deerstalker hats and pull out our magnifying glasses as we solve the mystery of WHERE IS PAUL BARTEL (as “Twister Master”) IN GREGG ARAKI’S THE LIVING END?! The record will be changed PERMANANTLY as we discuss Araki’s transgressive 1992 road comedy-drama ALSO featuring an appearance by Mary Woronov. Have a listen, friends!
The post Episode 321 – Bartel Me Something Good – Chopping Mall (1986) & The Living End (1992) first appeared on Cinema Smorgasbord.