Alternate Sides

We close out season three with Steven Spielberg’s dystopian thriller Minority Report, starring Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton and Max von Sydow.Plus: the seeming immortality of Tom Cruise, Sam’s first feature, and yet another award nomination – but this time, it’s not for Sam.LINKS:Trailer for Minority ReportWill Ferrell takes one in the jugular in OId SchoolTom Cruise as Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder"Fly Like an Eagle," by Steve Miller BandSupport the show

This week we take a slow, spiraling ride down Mulholland Dr, David Lynch’s puzzle-box fever dream starring Naomi Watts, Laura Harring, and Justin Theroux.Plus: Transcendental Meditation, Adolescence, and the time James was up against Angelo Badalamenti for a film-scoring job.LINKS:Trailer for Mulhallond DrBob climbs over the sofa in Twin PeaksJeff Goldblum forgot his mantraSupport the show

This week we slash our way through Mary Harron’s satirical horror-thriller American Psycho, starring Christian Bale, Chloe Sevigny, and Willem Dafoe.Plus: The Picard Maneuver! And Sam gets stalked by his auto mechanic.LINKS:Trailer for American PsychoThe Picard ManoeuverTom Cruise as inspiration for Patrick BatemanSupport the show

This week we explore Abbas Kiarostami’s meditative drama The Wind Will Carry Us, starring Behzad Dorani.Plus: Iranian hospitality, Marjie’s Broadway debut, and the movie that led to Sam and James meeting each other.LINKS:Trailer for The Wind Will Carry UsTrailer for Joe Gould's SecretNick Cave on cold-water swimmingSupport the show

A double-bill! Vincent Gallo’s Buffalo ‘66, starring Gallo and Christina Ricci; and Thomas Vinterberg’s Festen, or The Celebration, starring Ulrich Thomsen, Paprika Steen and Thomas Bo Larsen. One of them became an instant classic for James.Plus: Dogme 95 and the “vow of chastity.”LINKS:Trailer for Buffalo '66Trailer (a terrible and misleading one) for The CelebrationThe Dogme 95 movement’s “Vow of Chastity”Support the show

This week we get into Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 kaleidoscopic end-of-an-era drama Boogie Nights, starring Mark Wahlberg, Julianne Moore, and Burt Reynolds. Plus: James’s psilocybin adventure!LINKS:Trailer for Boogie NightsBen Affleck on teaching miners to be astronautsThe final scene of Big NightSupport the show

This week we explore John Sayles’s 1996 bordertown drama Lone Star, starring Chris Cooper, Matthew McConaughey, and Kris Kristofferson. Plus: Sam goes to the Emmys!LINKS:Trailer for Lone StarA Scene from Taste of CherryDooghSupport the show

This week we explore Todd Haynes’s prescient 1995 environmental-illness drama Safe, starring Julianne Moore. Plus: Emmy nominations, James’s upcoming psilocybin journey, and how bad Sam is at running.LINKS:Trailer for SafeKripaluSam's Emmy nominationsSupport the show

This week we dig up Danny Boyle’s suitcase-full-of-cash thriller Shallow Grave, starring Ewan McGregor, Kerry Fox, and Christopher Eccleston.Plus: Ripley, the frustrations of tourism, and the European Cup.LINKS:Trailer for Shallow GraveTrailer for RipleyTrailer for Cry Funny HappyDeadline.com announcement of Sam’s football projectSupport the show

We kick off Season Three of the podcast with Brian De Palma’s crime drama Carlito’s Way, starring Al Pacino, Penelope Ann Miller, and Sean Penn.Plus: offensive accents, an update on Sam’s car, and the time we almost paid someone $10,000 to read a script.LINKS:Trailer for Carlito's WayThe Globe and Shakespeare’s “anti-literalism”Trailer for Bonnie, a documentary about casting director Bonnie TimmermannSupport the show

We close out Season Two of the podcast with Martin Brest’s drama Scent of a Woman, starring Al Pacino and Chris O’Donnell.Plus: Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers, and an encounter with a rude traffic warden.LINKS:Trailer for Scent of a WomanTrailer for The HoldoversTrailer for People I KnowSupport the show

This week week we’re taking a bite out of Jonathan Demme’s classic serial-killer thriller The Silence of the Lambs, starring Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins.Plus: James comes out of film-scoring retirement.LINKS:Trailer for The Silence of the Lambs"Lotion" by GreenskeepersAustin Pendleton as a lawyer in My Cousin VinnySupport the show

This week we discuss the journey of author Janet Frame in Jane Campion’s biographical drama An Angel at My Table, starring Alexia Keogh, Karen Fergusson, and Kerry Fox.Plus: Season Two of The Jinx, and the time Stanley Tucci took James to a Yankees game.LINKS:Trailer for An Angel at My TableTrailer for season two of The JinxDr McCoy treats a patient in Star Trek IV: The Voyage HomeSupport the show

This week we explore Spike Lee’s comedy-drama Do the Right Thing, starring Spike Lee, Danny Aiello, John Turturro and Rosie Perez.Plus: James eats a $35 salad, Don Mischer’s “Go balloons”, and 1990 as the year of sequels.LINKS:Trailer for Do the Right ThingTrailer for Thea Sharrock's Wicked Little LettersDon Mischer at the 2004 Democratic National ConventionAn incredible use of film score in In the Mood for LoveSupport the show

This week we discuss Stephen Frears’s film-adapted-from-a-play-adapted-from-a-novel Dangerous Liaisons, starring Glenn Close, John Malkovich, and Michelle Pfeiffer.Plus: James finally visits the Vanguard!LINKS:Trailer for Dangerous LiaisonsMalkovich and Sinise in True WestJohn Candy in Uncle Buck: "unbreakable"Support the show

This week we take a stab at Adrian Lyne’s classic romantic thriller Fatal Attraction, starring Glenn Close and Michael Douglas.Plus: the two faces of Harrison Ford, and James’s habit of talking to the television.LINKS:Trailer for Fatal AttractionThe original ending of Fatal AttractionTrailer for Running on EmptySupport the show

It’s a double-feature this week as we riff on two movies about musicians: Bertrand Tavernier’s Round Midnight and Alex Cox’s Sid and Nancy.Plus: burned-out cars, slow television, and the unhelpful advice Robert Redford used to get.LINKS:Trailer for Sid & NancyTrailer for Round MidnightSiskel & Ebert on Round Midnight"Slow Television": the train in NorwaySupport the show

This week we survey the expanses of Ran, Akira Kurosawa’s epic adaptation of Shakespeare’s King Lear.Plus: beds in cinemas, Werner Herzog on psychotherapy, and Sam’s aversion to movies set on ships.LINKS:Trailer for Ran"VIP Beds" in UK cinemasHow an 18th-Century Sailing Warship WorksWerner Herzog on psychology as a “catastrophe”Support the show

This week we tackle the Coen Brothers’ gritty debut feature, Blood Simple, starring Frances McDormand, John Getz, and M. Emmet Walsh.Plus: Wayne Shorter, rock climbing, and our experiences with first-time directors.LINKS:Trailer for Blood SimpleTrailer for Wayne Shorter: Zero GravityLet's go to court: a scene from The InsiderSupport the show

This week we discuss Nicolas Roeg’s period drama Eureka, starring Gene Hackman, Theresa Russell, and Rutger Hauer.Plus: Wynton Marsalis, washroom attendants, and James's recent trip to London.LINKS:Trailer for EurekaWynton Marsalis does Louis ArmstrongThe WolseleyClimax of The Natural (Randy Newman)Support the show

It’s a special holiday episode! We’re deviating from our usual chronology to talk about Jon Favreau’s 2003 Christmas classic, Elf, starring Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel, and James Caan. And it turns out that neither of us had ever seen this movie before this week. Plus: Ferris Bueller, overripe fruit, and “cross-hatched” dreams.LINKS:Trailer for ElfWill Ferrell takes a dart to the neck in Old SchoolWill Ferrell imitates a cat in his SNL auditionM. Ward sings Bowie's "Let's Dance"Support the show

This week we close out Season One of the podcast with a conversation about Ingmar Bergman’s family epic Fanny and Alexander, starring Bertil Guve, Ewa Fröling, and Jan Malmsjö.Plus: wind chimes, bookstore etiquette, and Gloomhaven.LINKS:Trailer for Fanny and AlexanderArt Garfunkel in the studioChevy Chase can't get left, from European VacationSupport the show

This week we discuss Michael Mann’s gritty debut feature, Thief, starring James Caan and Tuesday Weld.Plus: spa treatments, house cats, and Pink Floyd knockoffs.LINKS:Trailer for ThiefThe VEMI treatmentSteve Martin makes coffee in Dead Men Don't Wear PlaidThe end of Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb” (starting at 4:20)“Confrontation”, the final music cue in Thief (starting at 0:40)Support the show

This week we explore David Lynch’s black-and-white period drama The Elephant Man, starring Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, and Anne Bancroft.Plus: Just how bad was James’s first screenplay?LINKS:Trailer for The Elephant ManMichael Jackson bids for Merrick's bonesThree pages from The Mourning Cloak (1999)Support the show

This week we tackle two movies. Hal Ashby’s American satire Being There, starring Peter Sellers; and Terry Jones’s biblical spoof Monty Python’s Life of Brian, starring the Pythons.Plus: blooper reels, the death of Black Panther, and the apparently ambiguous ending of Planet of the Apes.LINKS:Trailer for Being ThereTrailer for Monty Python's Life of BrianJames's mother's eyes in Twelve MonkeysTrailer for Not the Messiah (with glimpse of James, in back row, at 0:48)Support the show

This week we discuss Terence Malick’s luminous period drama Days of Heaven, starring Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, and Sam Shepard.Plus: Virgil’s Eclogues, group dynamics, and the Identified Patient.LINKS:Trailer for Days of HeavenSteve Coogan's impression of Richard Gere (from The Trip)The "identified patient"Support the show

This week we discuss Werner Herzog’s black comedy Stroszek, starring Bruno S, Eva Mattes, and Clemens Scheitz.Plus: Sam has a martini with Dianne Wiest.LINKS:Trailer for StroszekThieves stealing the "cat"Afternoon tea at Fortnum & MasonThe afternoon tea menuSupport the show

This week we discuss John Avildsen’s rousing and immortal Rocky, starring Sylvester Stallone and Talia Shire.Plus: Real tennis, a dead car battery, and the time Sam’s parents met Mike Tyson.LINKS:Trailer for RockyThe LOKITHOR car chargerCharlie Chaplin boxing in City LightsReal tennisSupport the show

This week we talk about Michelangelo Antonioni's existentialist thriller The Passenger, starring Jack Nicholson and Maria Schneider.​Plus: What George Plimpton found at the top of the Brooklyn Bridge.LINKS:Trailer for The PassengerThe Weather Channel explains "wintry mix"Trailer for Flesh Gordon (1974; NSFW)Support the show

This week we talk about Hal Ashby's road movie The Last Detail, starring Jack Nicholson, Otis Young, and Randy Quaid. ​Plus: James shares a bedroom with Sam's parents.LINKS:Trailer for The Last Detail"The Man Who Never Heard of Frank Sinatra"Trailer for Flash Gordon (1980)Support the show

At Sam's suggestion, James starts his journey with Nicolas Roeg's 1973 horror-thriller Don't Look Now, starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie. Plus, penalty kicks, second sight, and why not to keep loaded guns in the house.LINKS:Trailer for Don't Look NowHarry Kane misses World-Cup penaltyMarquinhos's reaction after he misses his penaltySupport the show

James accepts that it's time to overcome his fears and watch some movies, but he'll need some guidance. Sam, stuck in his car thanks to New York's alternate-side-parking regulations, is only too happy to oblige.LINKS:NYC alternate side parking rulesMartin Scorsese’s thoughts on TárSupport the show