Monthly Archives: April 2020

FilmWonk Podcast – Episode #166 – “Tigertail” (dir. Alan Yang), “Red Rover” (dir. Shane Belcourt)

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Poster for "Tigertail"

On this week’s podcast, Glenn and Daniel head north of the border and into the quixotic dream of a crowdfunded mission to Mars with Shane Belcourt‘s Red Rover (which is available for streaming Tuesday, May 12), and then check out Master of None co-creator Alan Yang‘s fictionalized take on his parents’ immigrant story from Taiwan, with Tigertail, newly available on Netflix (49:30).

Still from "Red Rover" (2018 film)

May contain NSFW language.

FilmWonk rating (Tigertail): 6/10 (Glenn), 4/10 (Daniel)
FilmWonk rating (Red Rover): 7 out of 10

Show notes:

  • [01:17] Review: Tigertail
  • [26:08] Review: Red Rover
  • [41:48] Spoilers: Red Rover
  • The language that is referred to in the Tigertail subtitles as Taiwanese [and it appears in brackets, while Mandarin Chinese appears without them] is also known as Taiwanese Hokkien, and while we picked up on a bit of the linguistic and political subtext in the film, the reality was obviously a bit more complex than could be conveyed in a film in which it was a minor detail.
  • Check out the article from Matter that we excerpted in brief:
    “All Dressed Up For Mars and Nowhere to Go” by Elmo Keep

Listen above, or download: Tigertail, Red Rover (right-click, save as, or click/tap to play)

FilmWonk Podcast – Episode #165 – “Birds of Prey” (dir. Cathy Yan), “Same Boat” (dir. Chris Roberti), “The Way Back” (dir. Gavin O’Connor)

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Poster for "Birds of Prey"

On this week’s podcast, Glenn and Daniel venture back in time with director Chris Roberti to a time when we could all gather aboard a cruise ship and secretly shoot a romantic comedy about time-traveling assassins, with Same Boat, which hits VOD on Tuesday 4/7. We also catch up with Birds of Prey, an impressive return to the brightest and most colorful parts of the DCEU after a whole lot of grimdark, and actor Ben Affleck‘s spotty attempt to do the same, with The Way Back (01:06:21).

Still from "The Way Back"

May contain NSFW language.

FilmWonk rating (Birds of Prey): 7/10 (Glenn), 5/10 (Daniel)
FilmWonk rating (Same Boat): 7.5/10 (Glenn), 7/10 (Daniel)
FilmWonk rating (The Way Back): 4 out of 10

Show notes:

  • [02:38] Review: Birds of Prey
  • [22:46] Review: Same Boat
  • [34:13] Spoilers: Same Boat
  • [47:04] Review: The Way Back
  • There is a super-quick spoiler section at the end of the episode for The Way Back. You’ll know it when it comes.
  • Music for this episode is a song that I’ve always maintained is about time-traveling assassins, plus a Barracuda.
  • We mentioned Mick LaSalle‘s scathing review of Birds of Prey from the San Francisco Chronicle – to varying degrees, we did not agree!
  • Stay tuned at the end for an audio artifact that occurred during a break in recording that sounded suspiciously like Daniel threatening to cut off Glenn’s face.

Listen above, or download: Birds of Prey, Same Boat, The Way Back (right-click, save as, or click/tap to play on a non-flash browser)