Two Reel Cinema Club

Popcorn Counter: What is Plaguing Today's Biggest Movies?

We’ve got to stop reading, it’s just making us mad. This week at the popcorn counter we’ve been looking at Namwali Serpell’s article in the recent New Yorker about ‘The New Literalism’, and boy do we have something to say. Serpell’s been to the multiplex a lot lately, and frankly if we’d just come out of Gladiator II and Megalopolis like she has, we’d probably be annoyed too. But is ‘on the nose’ story-telling really a new phenomenon? Or do some films still value showing instead of telling? And is there a difference between a film being too long and a film being too wide?
Here's the article if you want to check it out yourself: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/critics-notebook/the-new-literalism-plaguing-todays-biggest-movies
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Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: Netflix's Old Movie Problem

You may have read as we did recently in The Hollywood Reporter about ‘Netflix’s Old Movie Problem’. But is there really a problem? Does it matter if old movies aren’t available on Netflix? Join us at the popcorn counter where we’ll talk about discoverability, Quentin Tarantino, algorithms and the BBC Moviedrome. Which country has the biggest Netflix library? Is there anything to stop young people enjoying films from 1939? And what is our proposed solution to the whole 'problem'?
Here’s the article, if you want to read it for yourself: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/streaming-impact-classic-fillms-algorithm-1236146209/
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: Alice in Brazil with Inês

We’ve set the Popcorn Counter up at the beach this episode, to enjoy a coconut water and a chopp with last week’s guest Inês Braga. She tells us about the experience of writing Alice, the first HBO production made for South America, fills us in on life in Rio, gives us a watch-list of some of the greats of Brazilian cinema, reflects on changes in Brazilian society over the last twenty years, and recommends a little music by Ezra Collective. Please bring your own towel.
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
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Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

I'm Still Here vs Four Days in September: I'm Still Here in September

We’re heading to the southern hemisphere this week and taking regular guest Inês Braga with us, as we catch up with the Best International Feature Film Oscar winner, I’m Still Here, and compare it to 1997’s Brazilian kidnap drama Four Days in September. Two adaptations, two films about the Military Dictatorship, two films starring Fernanda Torres, two films with similar timely themes. But which film has five endings? Which film stars the cutest dog? Which film is bookended with images of resistance? And which film was so tense it made us drop our avocado?
Plus Inês explains the real background of both films, discusses Brazilian acting dynasties and tells us about meeting Walter Salles. And in between all these revelations, we also squeeze in a penguin in a classroom, a trip to the North Sea, a Trumpian biopic, a new British version of AI, a very diffident lifeguard and a huge crowd of nepo-babies.
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: A Conversation About Gene Hackman

We’ve set up the reel to reel, we’ve planted our hidden microphones and we’ve put on our headphones, so it’s time to pay tribute to the late Gene Hackman and his finest film, The Conversation, at the Popcorn Counter this week. But which of Hackman’s many other outstanding movies stick in our minds? What was his connection to Dustin Hoffman? Which was his most famous hat? When did he put in an epidural? How do we manage to get deflected into a discussion about Alan Parker? And are John Grisham and Michael Crichton the same guy?
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: Small Gold Man

We’re sending our tuxedos back to the dry cleaners once again now that awards season is over. But did the Oscars thrill or disappoint this year? And more importantly, did we get it right? Which gong did we cheer at home, and which left us shrugging our shoulders? What do we think about the screenplay winners and who would have picked up the awards if we’d been in charge? Who would Letterbox’d have given the awards to? Who goes to the movies? And did we spot any trends that suggest what kind of films we’ll be seeing in the next few years?
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

September 5 vs Munich: September in Munich

We’re taking a trip back to the 1970s this episode, as we watch the new Oscar-nominated, Munich Olympics-based reconstruction-drama September 5, and compare it to Steven Spielberg’s film about the aftermath of those same events, 2006’s Munich. Two tense movies about truthfulness, integrity and violence. But which one features accountants chasing accountants? Which one takes full advantage of Aristotle’s principles? Which one quotes directly from a 1976 TV movie? Which one appeals to the nerd in both of us? And which one features maybe the most misconceived scene we’ve watched in years?
Plus a message from a Cuban outfitter, a singalong with an R&B legend and friend of John Lennon, a trip to a surreal but disappointing office complex, a reflection on the importance of endings, and a content warning about Eric Bana’s face.
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com

Popcorn Counter: Guillermo's Labyrinth

After spending the week in Mexico last episode, we’re drinking a Corona at the Popcorn Counter and reflecting on Mexican cinema as a whole. Is there more to Mexican movies than Día de Muertos and narco-gangsters? Which Mexican director used to hang out with Andres at the coffee shop all the time? Which movie made its Mexican director so much money they could buy West London? Which Mexican director got their start at Maine Media Workshops? And who is the Mexican cinematographer who brought so many successful films to life?
If you enjoyed the show, find us on social media:
Instagram: @tworeelcinemaclub
Contact us at tworeelcinemaclub@gmail.com
Or come to our website, where we’ll be writing about the movies we cover in the show and a few more things besides: https://tworeelcinemaclub.com