 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Watch the trailer!
Sponsored by Manscaped! Concluding our pairing of Academy Award-winning musicals, we move ahead a decade to a completely different type of story, one that combines culture and history into one complete dancing and singing package. Directed by Normal Jewison, 1971's "Fiddler on the Roof" is a celebration of Jewish culture and tradition, but also a historical acknowledgement of a dark time in history, when Tsar Nicholas II held sway in Russia and began passing discriminatory laws prohibiting Jewish citizens from living in rural areas, or in towns of less than 10,000 people. The story follows the family of Tevya (Topol), a poor milkman who, with his wife Golde (Norma Crane), has five daughters to care and look out for. Their eldest, Tzeitel (Rosalind Harris) is of eligible age to be married, and is initially betrothed to Lazar Wolf (Paul Mann), the local butcher and widower, but is actually in love with a poor tailor, Motel (Leonard Frey), and begs her father to reconsider. He does, but his troubles are just beginning. A pogrom (an organized massacre of a particular ethnic group, in particular that of Jewish people in Russia) occurs in their town of Anatevka in the middle of Motel and Tzeitel's wedding. From there, things only get worse, as another of Tevya's daughters, Hodel (Michele Marsh) marries a Russian radical, and his middle daughter, Chava (Neve Small) marries outside the Jewish faith and is cast out of the family. All this happens around the growing anti-Jewish sentiment and the eventual forced displacement of the entire Anatevka community. A beautiful and poignant look at a sad time in history that manages to find beauty in tragedy and love in a time of unrest! Plus, the trio unveil which two western comedies will ride their way into the next pairing! Get 20% OFF @manscaped + Free Shipping with promo code MANSCAPEDGEEKS at MANSCAPED.com!
| Find us on Facebook! |
 Follow us on Twitter! |
 Support us on Patreon! |
Watch the trailer!
Sponsored by Manscaped! We begin our pairing of classic, Academy Award-winning Hollywood musicals with one of the best examples of how cinema can translate stage to screen! Directed by Jerome Robbins and Robert Wise, with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, 1961's "West Side Story" is part-ballet, part-Shakespeare, and part-gang story, but all worthy of the awards bestowed upon it. The film follows the street gang known as "The Jets," led by Riff (Russ Tamblyn) and their continuing conflict with "The Sharks," a Puerto-Rican gang led by Bernardo (George Chakiris). The conflict really boils over, however, when member-gone-straight Tony (Richard Beymer) sees Bernardo's little sister, Maria (Natalie Wood) at a dance, and sparks immediately fly. Maria is warned off by Bernardo's girlfriend, Anita (Rita Moreno), the gangs prepare to "rumble" with each other, and Tony and Maria disregard the fact that they're from warring tribes and begin a passionate romance. The conflict rises until the two gangs finally meet and tragedy strikes, resulting in the death of both gang-leaders. After that, it's pain, anger, and spite until it all comes to a head in a deadly way! Get 20% OFF @manscaped + Free Shipping with promo code MANSCAPEDGEEKS at MANSCAPED.com!
| Find us on Facebook! |
Follow us on Twitter! |
Support us on Patreon! |
Watch the trailer!
The second film in our pairing of Chinese action films is one of the most visually stunning films yet made! Directed by master of the form Zhang Yimou, the story of a lone warrior, known only as Nameless (Jet Li), appears before the King (Daoming Chen) with the story of killing three mighty assassins: Sky (Donnie Yen), Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung), and Broken Sword (Tony Chiu-Wai Leung). After being rewarded by the King and being allowed to approach within ten paces, the King begins to explain how he understands the story has actually unfolded. Following that, Nameless reveals the actual truth to the King about the assassins and the plot to kill the King. What sets this film apart from others, however, is the directorial and cinematographical artistry and elegance exhibited by Yimou! The film plays with color palettes in such a unique and picturesque way as to suggest a moving painting during the action scenes. A true feast for the eyes and an intricate, interesting storyline loosely based on Chinese history! And finally, the trio reveal which two classic movie musicals will be the subject of the next pairing!
| Find us on Facebook! |
Follow us on Twitter! |
Support us on Patreon! |
Watch the trailer!
This pairing focuses on some of the best Chinese action films to cross the ocean to the United States. We begin with the first foreign film from China to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, a high-flying fantasy action film that, while not taking home Best Picture, did win Best Cinematography, Best Music - Original Score, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, and Best Foreign Language Film! Directed by acclaimed artist Ang Lee, the film stars Chow Yun-Fat as Master Li Mu Bai and Michelle Yeoh as Yu Shu Lien, sword legends and partners who bring the legendary sword Green Destiny to a local governor's residence. Once there, however, the sword is stolen by a masked warrior and the chase is on! Add in strange martial arts masters, mystic powers, and parallel love stories, and you have an engaging story and effects that were ground-breaking in their beauty and elegance! The film also stars Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen, Sihung Lung, Pei-Pei Cheng, Fazeng Li, Yan Hai, and Suying Huang!
| Find us on Facebook! |
Follow us on Twitter! |
Support us on Patreon! |
Watch the trailer!
Our second episode in our pairing looking at 80s mind-based science fiction moves ahead one year to 1984 and, this time, focuses on the subconscious and unconscious mind in director Joseph Ruben's sci-fi/political thriller/romance film "Dreamscape!" Alex Gardner (Dennis Quaid) is a talented psychic whose abilities include telepathy, telekinesis, and precognition. After disappearing as a teenager, he's sought out by one-time mentor Doctor Paul Novotny (Max von Sydow) to work with him again, this time on a new technology that allows a psychic to project their consciousness into another person's dreams! After being essentially kidnapped and brought to the location of the project, he meets Dr. Novotny's associate Jane DeVries (Kate Capshaw) as well as his government "handler" Bob Blair (Christopher Plummer). Once Alex agrees to join the project, he also meets Tommy Ray Glatman (David Patrick Kelly), the current lead psychic and the most successful dream-walker. As Alex learns how to enter other people's dreams, Tommy Ray is learning to finer points of dream manipulation, resulting in a showdown between the Novotny-Gardner side and the Blair-Glatman side, and a battle for control of the project takes place in the subconscious of none other than the President of the United States (Eddie Albert)! Plus, Buddy reveals which two Chinese action-dramas the trio are reviewing next!
| Find us on Facebook! |
Follow us on Twitter! |
Support us on Patreon! |