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652 - Monsieur Verdoux (1947)

Random Acts of Cinema

Release Date: 05/27/2024

1072 - History is Made at Night (1937) show art 1072 - History is Made at Night (1937)

Random Acts of Cinema

If you throw everything at the wall (romance, screwball comedy, noir thriller, globe-trotting action) you will ALMOST predict one of the great disasters of the twentieth century.  This coincidence is inevitably repeated a ton on the IMDb trivia page. But spare yourself from being spoiled and just watch Frank Borzage’s charming tale of star-crossed lovers set against a backdrop of 1930s Hollywood glamour. Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our .  T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and more!...

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989 - The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice (1952) show art 989 - The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice (1952)

Random Acts of Cinema

Get ready for another action-packed…Yasuhiro Ozu movie?  Well, at least compared to his other masterpieces.  Buckle up for this bracingly gentle study of a middle-aged married couple as they lightly bicker and tell harmless lies to one another all in service of slowly coming to understand and maybe even love each other.  Hope you survive the experience! Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our .  T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and more! If you’d like to watch ahead for...

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814 - Alice in the Cities (1974) show art 814 - Alice in the Cities (1974)

Random Acts of Cinema

Two unlikely kindred souls find purpose and companionship as they wander through the cross-continental 1970s in search of a sense of… just a little stability. Wim Wenders sets the tone for his career as a quiet student of humanity with a big ol heart. Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our .  T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and more! If you’d like to watch ahead for next week’s film, we will be discussing and reviewing Yasuhiro Ozu's The Flavor of Green Tea Over Rice (1952).

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712 - Scanners (1981) show art 712 - Scanners (1981)

Random Acts of Cinema

Is this the one where Keanu takes a bunch of future drugs?  I mean that DOES sound kind of like a Cronenberg movie…. No wait!  It’s the head exploding one.  Except that maybe, just maybe, this early 80s psychic thriller offers a whole lot more than just exploding heads.  But don’t worry: if you really like exploding heads, this film still has you covered. Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our .  T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and more! If you’d like to watch...

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918 - The Color of Pomegranates (1969) show art 918 - The Color of Pomegranates (1969)

Random Acts of Cinema

Soviet cinema at its most… spiritual?  Iconoclast director Sergei Parajanov’s deeply personal exploration of the cultural echoes found in the life of 18th-century Armenian troubadour/monk Sayat-Nova uses manuscript-inspired tableaux vivants, exquisite staging, and a profoundly rich symbolic vocabulary to sneak this one past the censors.  Sort of. Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our .  T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and more! If you’d like to watch ahead for next...

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433 - Patriotism or The Right of Love and Death (1966) show art 433 - Patriotism or The Right of Love and Death (1966)

Random Acts of Cinema

Content warning: this film contains depictions of suicide. Come check out Mike and Charlie realizing exactly what they’ve gotten themself into AFTER watching this movie and getting about halfway through our discussion about it.  Yukio Mishima and Domoto Masaki’s rich confrontation of Noh-style staging with richly visualized sensuality propels a short film about a married couple’s suicided following a failed coup-d’etat in 1936 Japan. Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our . ...

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63 - Carnival of Souls (1962) show art 63 - Carnival of Souls (1962)

Random Acts of Cinema

Kansas.  The Great Salt Lake.  Peaches Christ.  Michael Varrati.  Abandoned carnival.  Am I listing the components of an unlikely-to-happen but likely-to-be-wild road trip?  Or is it the perfect formula for a really fun episode where two of our favorite guests return to discuss the weirdly atmospheric ultimate-indie horror film?   Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our .  T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and more! If you’d like to watch ahead for next...

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1121 - Eyimofe: This is My Desire (2020) show art 1121 - Eyimofe: This is My Desire (2020)

Random Acts of Cinema

Directing duo Arie and Chula Esiri tell two separate stories of would-be Nigerian emigrants navigating through a dehumanizing world that uses poverty and debt to perpetuate a cycle of exploitation that cares little for dignity and decency.  Beautifully shot on film on location in Lagos, Mofe and Rosa each strain towards a better life. Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get yourself or someone you love a random gift at our .  T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and more! If you’d like to watch ahead for next week’s film, we will be...

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120 - How To Get Ahead in Advertising (1988) show art 120 - How To Get Ahead in Advertising (1988)

Random Acts of Cinema

Look: if for some reason you DON’T want to watch Richard E. Grant rant about the entrenched conspiracy between the wretchedly corrupt spheres of big business and government in the form of consumer advertising, then I guess this isn’t the movie and podcast episode for you.  And if you still aren’t interested once you learn that it’s a HandMade Films production reuniting Grant with director Bruce Robinson?  What if I were to say that there’s a mustachioed boil growing out of the side of Grant’s neck spouting late-stage capitalist drivel?  No?  Then there’s not...

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1100 - The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957) show art 1100 - The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)

Random Acts of Cinema

Balancing on the razor-thin edge between the pedantic “what would REALLY happen if a guy kept slowly shrinking?” with “sure nerd, but let’s still make it a fun story”, Jack Arnold directs a domestic drama, a survivalist story, and everything in between as he questions foundational questions of existing in his classic science fiction tale.  Perceptions of safety, masculinity, and the infinite shift and fade in this allegory of manhood in the modern age. Join our  and support the podcast!  Join the Random Acts of Cinema Discord server ! *Come support the podcast and get...

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At the beginning of the 20th century, a deranged serial killer was convicted of seducing, marrying, robbing, and murdering over a dozen women.  It is believed that he killed many, many more than that.  So the lovable Tramp himself, Charlie Chaplin, decided to portray him in a movie.  What’s his light-hearted take on this unexpected premise?  Human society is diseased and nothing matters.  In a funny way, though.

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If you’d like to watch ahead for next week’s film, we will be discussing and reviewing Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused (1993).