During the final years of the Cold War, a Russian submarine captain takes his brand new Typhoon-class vessel into international waters, headed for America. Is he intending to fire his missiles at the Eastern coast of the United States or, as one CIA analyst maintains, is he planning to defect and turn the vessel over to the Americans? A tense game of cat and mouse played out underwater may have explosive results in 1990's "The Hunt for Red October!" Episode 237 concludes our tribute to the late Sean Connery with this incredible Tom Clancy book brought to the screen. Directed by John McTiernan (of "Die Hard" fame), Connery plays Captain Marko Ramius of the nuclear submarine "Red October." Alec Baldwin is the first actor to portray CIA analyst Jack Ryan on-screen. With a supporting cast including the masterful job done by Scott Glen, the film also features Sam Neill, James Earl Jones, Joss Ackland, Richard Jorden, Peter Firth, Tim Curry, Courtney B. Vance, Stellan Skarsgard, Jeffrey Jones, Fred Thompson, and Daniel Davis! Plus, the geeks reveal what actor they'll be focusing on for the next pairing!
The year is 1964. A German businessman is plotting to become owner of the new global gold standard, after he renders untouchable the entirety of the gold in Fort Knox! Only Agent 007, James Bond, can get the girl and save the day! Episode 236 begins our tribute to Sean Connery in 1964's "Goldfinger!" Directed by Guy Hamilton, based on the novel by spymaster Ian Fleming, the film stars Connery as James Bond, Gert Frobe as the titular character Auric Goldfinger, Honor Blackman as Pussy Galore, Shirley Eaton and Tania Mallet as the ill-fated Masterson sisters Jill and Tilly (respectively), Harold Sakata as Oddjob, Bernard Lee as 'M', Lois Maxwell as Miss Moneypenny, and Desmond Llewelyn as 'Q'. This is the Bond film that set the standard for every other Bond film that would come after it, and established James as a wise-cracking spy, lethal to his enemies and the embodiment of desire for every woman he crossed paths with! A Connery classic!
The second film in our official Holiday pairing is about as far away from "A Christmas Carol" as you're able to get! It's "Ernest Saves Christmas," a story about Santa Claus choosing his successor, a task that would have been made easier, but also wouldn't have been possible, without the help (or interference) of one Ernest P. Worrell! Ernest is, of course, played by the multi-talented Jim Varney, who ends up driving Santa Claus, played expertly by veteran actor Douglas Seale, to a meeting with local personality and former children's TV host Joe Carruthers (Oliver Clark) who has, unbeknownst to him, been chose to be the new Santa. Along the way, they pick up Harmony Star (Noelle Parker), a street-kid who isn't buying the whole "Santa" thing. But when Santa's sack goes missing, Joe fails to believe Santa, and Ernest is left in charge of getting the reindeer and sleigh to Santa, who must have his successor in place before 7:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve, it looks like this might be the end of Christmas! But, of course, as the title suggests, Ernest saves Christmas. A surprisingly sweet film at its core, behind Varney's clowning, and a wonderful film to show to children during the holidays, especially those who might not know who Ernest is! Knowwhuddimean? And the trio reveal which two films they'll be reviewing as they honor the passing of the great Sean Connery in the next pairing!
This film begins our official Holiday pairing for 2020! Chosen by Chad, it's the 1938 version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol!" This version of the story contains a few changes from the original tale, but all of them work for this particular telling! Directed by Edwin L. Marin, and adapted for the screen by Hugo Butler, this film clocks in at a trim 69 minutes, but it doesn't skimp on Christmas cheer! Starring Reginald Owen as Ebenezer Scrooge, Gene Lockhart as Bob Cratchit, Kathleen Lockhart as Mrs. Cratchit (and yes, they were real-life husband and wife), Terry Kilburn as Tiny Tim, Barry MacKay as Fred, Lynne Carver as Bess, the great Leo G. Carroll as the ghost of Jacob Marley, the dazzling Ann Rutherford as the Ghost of Christmas Past, and Lionel Braham as the Ghost of Christmas Present, in many ways, this film set the standard to which all subsequent versions would mimic! This film is also the very first cinematic appearance of a young June Lockhart as well!
The second film covers close to a whole year, but features the December holidays significantly, in a story about people at cross purposes, in love without knowing who each other are. Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) is the owner of "The Shop Around the Corner," a small New York bookstore specializing in children's literature she inherited from her mother. Joe Fox (Tom Hanks) is the youngest member of a corporate dynasty known as "Fox & Sons Books." When their newest store imperils the survival of Kathleen's bookstore, the two meet and are immediately at odds with one another. But, unbeknownst to either, they have already fallen for each other online. After meeting in a chatroom, they've struck up an email correspondence and are both quite taken with each other, sight unseen. This is a modern take on the original 1940 film which shares a title with Kathleen's book store, and at the same time, a nod to the classic "Pride and Prejudice" story as well! Director/Screenwriter Nora Ephron, with screenwriting help from her sister Delia Ephron, create an engaging, twisty love story for the modern age, and brings Hanks and Ryan together for the third time to cement this as a lovely light-hearted romantic film! Featuring supporting roles by Dabney Coleman, Dave Chappelle, Greg Kinnear, Parker Posey, Steve Zahn, and the legendary Jean Stapleton! Plus, the trio explain how their own rules for picking films resulted in a horse-trade between two of the crew, resulting in the Christmas films chosen for 2020!
During the final years of the Cold War, a Russian submarine captain takes his brand new Typhoon-class vessel into international waters, headed for America. Is he intending to fire his missiles at the Eastern coast of the United States or, as one CIA analyst maintains, is he planning to defect and turn the vessel over to the Americans? A tense game of cat and mouse played out underwater may have explosive results in 1990's "The Hunt for Red October!" Episode 237 concludes our tribute to the late Sean Connery with this incredible Tom Clancy book brought to the screen. Directed by John McTiernan (of "Die Hard" fame), Connery plays Captain Marko Ramius of the nuclear submarine "Red October." Alec Baldwin is the first actor to portray CIA analyst Jack Ryan on-screen. With a supporting cast including the masterful job done by Scott Glen, the film also features Sam Neill, James Earl Jones, Joss Ackland, Richard Jorden, Peter Firth, Tim Curry, Courtney B. Vance, Stellan Skarsgard, Jeffrey Jones, Fred Thompson, and Daniel Davis! Plus, the geeks reveal what actor they'll be focusing on for the next pairing!
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