The Film 89 Podcast

Episode 155 of The Film ‘89 Podcast is a full-on history lesson as hosts Martin Kessler and John Arminio take a trip back to 480 BC as they celebrate the 20th anniversary of Zack Snyder’s big screen adaptation of legendary comic book writer Frank Miller’s 300. 300 tells the epic tale of the Battle of Thermopylae, and how an alliance of Greek city-states fought the invading Persian army in the mountain pass of Thermopylae. Vastly outnumbered, the Greeks held back the enemy in one of the most famous last stands in history. Snyder’s hyper-stylised film employed then-cutting-edge filmmaking techniques and remains one of the most faithful comic-book adaptations ever made. In addition to analysing the film, John and Martin delve deep into Greek history and discuss Christopher Nolan’s new adaptation of Homer’s The Odyssey, as well as Wolfgang Petersen’s 2004 film Troy, loosely based on Homer’s The Iliad.

On Episode 154 of the Film ’89 Podcast, Steve and Skye are joined by returning co-host, Becky D’Anna. A veteran of Hollywood movie marketing and a seasoned podcaster, Becky now has her very own podcast, the brilliant Hanging with Becky Podcast. The topic of this episode is a film that’s not only one of the Film ’89 team’s all-time favourites, it’s also become the most requested film for the team to cover, but moreover, it’s Becky’s all-time favourite film; from 1991, director James Cameron re-teams with superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger; it is of course, Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Also starring Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick and Edward Furlong, T2 was not only the most expensive film ever made upon its release in July 1991, but it would go on to be a critical and commercial smash hit and the highest-grossing film that year. But more than that, it was a film so groundbreaking in its use of cutting-edge special effects technology that it would forever change the face of cinema. More than just an action-science-fiction blockbuster, T2 is a superbly written and impeccably directed film, and easily one of the greatest movies ever made and more than worthy of the usual in-depth Film ’89 treatment.

Episode 153 of The Film ’89 Podcast lands just in time for this year’s July 4th celebrations, and there’s no more fitting a film that the guys could be covering than one that honours that great American holiday. Joining Neil and Skye (who definitely aren’t American) is returning co-host, filmmaker, producer and master cinephile (and importantly, an American), Mr Adam Rackoff. And the film they’re discussing is an epic alien invasion film that takes its cues from ‘50s science-fiction, ‘70s disaster movies, and also one of the Film ’89 Team’s favourite pieces of event television, the early ‘80s miniseries, V. That film is Independence Day, which celebrates its 30th anniversary the day this episode drops. With a superb ensemble cast and featuring jaw-dropping special effects that still impress three decades on, Independence Day, on a relatively meagre budget considering its scope and scale, would go on to utterly dominate the global box office in 1996, becoming far and away the most financially successful film that year. It would also set a new benchmark for special effects in an era where CGI was yet to dominate, and still puts many modern-day, big-budget effects-heavy movies to shame. In many ways, Independence Day is the sort of film that cinema is made for, and along with Jurassic Park, represents one of the very best examples of big budget '90s summer blockbusters, influenced by their 1970s disaster themed forbears, and is a film that will be ingrained in the minds of anyone who was of a certain age in 1996, who’ll never forget the cinematic phenomenon that was defined by those iconic images of colossal alien ships hovering over America.

On Episode 152 of The Film 89 Podcast, Steve and Skye are joined by a trio of returning co-hosts, Jacob Rivera, Kyle Reardon and Leighton Winstone, to discuss one of the all-time great serial killer thrillers, director Jonathan Demme’s multi-Oscar-winning 1991 adaptation of Thomas Harris’ best-selling novel, The Silence of the Lambs. Starring Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn and Ted Levine, the film would receive huge critical acclaim and worldwide box office success and would go on to become one of only three films to win “the big 5” at the Academy Awards; Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor and Best Actress, as well as nominations for Best Editing and Best Sound. The Silence of the Lambs is widely regarded as one of the greatest films in the history of the medium and is given the in-depth Film ’89 treatment for its 35th anniversary.

On Episode 151 of The Film ‘89 Podcast, Steve and Skye are joined by a trio of guest-hosts that may be the greatest ever assembled for a single episode of the podcast as they celebrate the 40th anniversary of James Cameron’s Aliens. The sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1979 sci-fi-horror masterpiece, Alien, Cameron’s film wouldn’t be a retread, but an evolution of the story of Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), as well as expanding what we know about the life-cycle of the deadly species she encountered in the first film. Featuring a superlative ensemble cast, an electrifying pace and endlessly quotable dialogue, as well as incredible special effects and a landmark score from composer James Horner, Aliens is rightly considered not just one of the greatest sequels ever made, but one of the greatest movies, period. So join our battle-hardened crew as they dive into the making of this incredible film and give their in-depth analysis of Aliens for its 40th anniversary.