The MacGuffin

Here’s what I’ve been watching recently:

In honor of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Spencer and Greg reflect on Gary Oldman’s career. Then they tackle kid-driven movies and give DVD picks of the week.

Spencer and John discuss the rise of Gore Verbinski for the release of his film Rango, they consider what it takes to make a good film, and give their DVD picks of the week.

Spencer and John discuss the career choices of Liam Neeson, look into the future of home viewing, and give their DVD picks of the week.

For his DVD pick, John selected the blu-ray release of the movie classic, . Spencer went with the latest documentary from director Davis Guggenheim, Waiting For Superman (/).

This episode is available on and Zune. It is also available on Miro and Stitcher, or you can find our podcast RSS feeds on our subscribe page and use whatever system you want.

You can follow all of the happenings on our website through our blog’s RSS feed.

“Are you watching closely?” – Alfred Borden, The Prestige (2006)

They pass us everyday, like ghosts.  We see them, we are aware that they are there, but we know nothing about them; they are covers to books without anything written on the pages.  Who am I referring to?  People.  These are normal, regular, everyday people.  We pass dozens, maybe even hundreds of them everyday.  We are around people constantly, but how many of them do we actually know?  What are other people like, what are their stories, what are their secrets?  If we had the chance to learn about the life of a complete stranger, would we like what we see?  This is the question that obsesses the main character of Following (1998), director Christopher Nolan’s first full-length feature.

My mind has just been blown.

Inception (2010), the latest film from writer-director Christopher Nolan, is a mind-boggling exercise of epic proportions.  Not since David Lynch’s Mulholland Dr. (2001) has a film left me so utterly speechless; I do not even know where to begin with this review.  The film is a combination of all the best parts of The Matrix (1999), Memento (2000), Dark City (1998), and the television show Lost, put together in one spectacular whole.  This is a film that will remain with you for days, trying to put all the pieces together.  Even now, hours after watching the film, my mind is still racing, wanting to learn more. It is a film that must be seen to be believed.

***WARNING: MINOR SPOILERS BELOW***

Spencer is joined by guest host Brandi Sperry to take a look back at Christopher Nolan’s career, discuss the upcoming release of Inception, and think about the future of his career, before closing the show out with their DVD picks of the week.

Spencer is joined by guest host Kevin from the Backroom Comics Podcast.  First they tackle Batman’s representation in film and television over the years.  Next, they consider the meteoric rise of JJ Abrams, and the dangerous crossroads he is at in his career.  Finally, they discuss the issue of star power and the damage it does to the film industry.

Welcome to the first episode of the MacGuffin Film Podcast. In this episode Spencer & crew boldly tackle the new Star Trek film, discuss comic book movie adaptations, talk about film festivals, and give a brief tour of Scarecrow Video.