Film Focus’ Emily Cook joins special guest Mike Freedman Founder of the first Dada Festival, at the London Cinema Museum. They speak about the origins of Dada, its relevance today and what you can do if you’re inspired to watch or create Dada Cinema.
Retro- Geek, Instagram Throw-backs, Vintage style and Hipster- Chic- It’s totally rad these days to focus on retrospect in fashion, print, design and most importantly (for us), cinema. You only have to look at the recent Netflix sensation STRANGER THINGS to see a programme saturated with 80’s popular references.
The 80’s as an era was characterised by the introduction of ‘high-concept’, big budget Hollywood blockbusters. As big business took control of the studios, film budgets skyrocketed due to new technologies, developments in special effects and inflated salaries of name-recognition stars. After the innovations of the 70s, films in the 80’s were less experimental and original, but more formulaic and entertainment was king. By the end of the 80’s the average U.S. movie budget was $18 Million, a staggering increase from the $5 million figure at the start of the decade.
Here are the 80’s films that never fail to give us the warm fuzzies.. Schweet!
What’s the film about ? Beetlejuice was written by horror specialist Michael McDowell and directed by Tim Burton and is about a couple of recently deceased ghosts who contract the services of a “bio-exorcist” in order to remove the obnoxious new owners of their house. Why Sarah selected this film… I really love Tim Burton’s approach to movies and find the worlds he creates to be darkly beautiful. This is a particular favourite of mine because it’s the perfect blend of humour, iconic acting performances and amazing special effects – all in all, a movie I’ll happily see time and time again.
Trivia I was surprised to find out that Michael Keaton’s part of the film only lasted seventeen and a half minutes out of the ninety two minute running time – it seemed so much longer!
What’s the film about ?
ET the Extra Terrestrial directed and produced by Steven Spielberg, , tells the story of Elliott, a lonely boy who befriends anextraterrestrial, called “E.T.”, who’s stranded on Earth. He and his siblings help it return home while attempting to keep it hidden from their mother and the government.
Why Emily recommends this film… The films is complete escapism, it brings alive many childhood fantasies and innocently deals with fundamental life lessons such as compassion, integrity and loyalty. Similarly to the Goonies, Hook and a number of other fantasy films of the same ilk, ET follows the plot from a child’s point of view. This device really does revert the viewer to childhood where illusions can’t be broken and magic is real, if you only have the power of belief. Watching it today, the music, Special Effects and plot are so evocative it can still transport me back to a happy innocent place. Released on June 11, 1982 byUniversal Pictures, E.T was an immediateblockbuster, surpassingStar Wars to become thehighest-grossing film of all time—a record it held for eleven years untilJurassic Park, another Spielberg-directed film, surpassed it in 1993.
Trivia: Spielberg himself was the first voice of ET. During shooting, Spielberg acted out the voice parts of E.T. by positioning himself just to the side of the camera, uttering famous phrases like “E.T. phone home,” but also occasionally speaking in full sentences to better connect the character to the child actors
What’s the film about ?Ferris Bueller’s Day Off was written, co-produced and directed by the amazing John Hughes and, as most people will know, it’s about a high school wise guy who is determined to have a day off from school, despite what the principal and his older sister thinks of that.
Why Sarah selected this film… This movie makes me smile every time I watch it. I don’t know whether it’s the fact that the movie encourages living life to the fullest or you feel as if you are on this crazy adventure with Ferris, Cameron and Sloane but I always feel uplifted and happy every time I’ve seen it, which is now a considerable amount of times!
Trivia John Hughes personally designed Ferris’ bedroom, mirrored mostly on his own bedroom when he was in high school.
What’s the film about? The 1984 original Ghostbusters film directed by Ivan Reitman, has become somewhat of a cult classic. The story follows a group of scientists, Dr. Peter Venkman (Bill Murray) and his Columbia University colleagues (Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson) as they get kicked out of their prestigious academic posts, and start a private practice as professional ghost-catchers, ridding New York of the Ghouls.
Why Emily recommends this film… I remember first watching it when I was six in America and just like it’s theme tune, it’s stuck with me ever since. The film is iconic, fun and for it’s time, technically very clever. It made excellent use of the new special effects technologies that came out of the 80’s, using a subject matter that lent itself to showcasing the visual effects. Although many aspects of the film might seem slightly corny watching it today, one must remember,as with any film, it was a product of it’s time. The soundtrack, entertaining plot and light hearted comedy, deliver up a generous helping of cinematic nostalgia. The film received twoAcademy Award nominations, includingBest Original Song (for the hit song “Ghostbusters“) andBest Visual Effects.
Trivia: The “marshmallow” goo was actually shaving cream. More than 50 gallons was dumped on Walter Peck (William Atherton), almost knocking him to the ground.
What’s the film about ? Blade Runner is based on the novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” by Philip K Dick and is a classic envisioning of a dystopian future, set in 2019 Los Angeles. The film focusses on a replicant hunter who must pursue and try to terminate four replicants who stole a spaceship and who have returned to Earth to find their creator.
Why Sarah selected this film… This movie doesn’t make me feel warm and fuzzy with nostalgia, as such, but I selected it because I’m still blown away by Ridley Scott’s creative vision, especially with regards to the location in which the film is set. I have read quite a few Philip K Dick books and have enjoyed every one of them and this movie is one of the best interpretations of his ideas out there, along with Minority Report and A Scanner Darkly.
Trivia: In 1969, Martin Scorsese met Philip K. Dick to discuss the possibility of adapting the novel into a film but the novel was never optioned and the project fell through.
Which films from the 80’s do you remember the most fondly and who do you think we should have included on our list? Please leave a reply below, we’d love to hear from you.
Film Focus’ Emily Cook speaks with Special Guest Hollywood Props Master Lynda Reiss about her most recent work on Netflix sensation STRANGER THINGS. They discuss the show, what a props master actually does and Lynda reveals some behind the scenes secrets from the set of the series. Lynda has also worked such iconic productions as American Beauty, True Detective and Cruel Intentions.
Emily and Sarah review recent release Swiss Army Man staring Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe. The film tells the story of a hopeless man stranded on a deserted island who befriends a washed-up corpse and together they go on a surreal journey to get home.The film is directed by visionary duo, renowned music video directors Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert who bring their own brand of bizarre ‘out there’ creativity to the mix. We also hear from Daniel Radcliffe himself who we saw at the press preview screening of the film the other week. Here’s what we thought of it…
In this episode Emilyand Sarahreview recent releases Tickled, a bizarre and chilling documentary into the sinister world of competitive tickling, and Swiss Army Manincluding an interview clip withDaniel Radcliffe, the film’s star. Emily catches up with special guest, Hollywood Props Master Lynda Reissto talk about her most recent work on NetflixsensationSTRANGER THINGS. We’ll find out the latest on Sarah’s challengeto watch over 500 feature films in a year and, as if that wasn’t enough, we’ll be getting all warm and fuzzy as we reveal OurTop 5 80’s Nostalgia Films.
For more episodes and exclusive clips, please check out our Vimeo Channel and Soundcloud channel which house all of our episodes. To be the first to hear about our new posts and videos please subscribe to the channels and this blog.
Film Focus’ Emily Cook speaks with highly accomplished multi-camera director and live events producer Peter Maniura. They met up at the BBC in London to talk about the art of directing multi-cameras for live TV, the media landscape of today and Peter’s top tips for anyone wanting to break into the industry.
Emily and Sarah review Cult Classic ‘Labyrinth‘ Directed byJim Henson, Executive Produced byGeorge Lucas, and based upon conceptual designs by Brian Froud. The musical film revolves around 15 year-old Sarah’s quest to reach the centre of an enormous otherworldly maze to rescue her baby brother Toby, who has been kidnapped byJareth, the Goblin King (played by David Bowie). With the exception of Bowie and Connelly, most of the significant characters in the film are played by puppets produced by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop. The Film will be screening at this year’s Isle of Man Film Festival.
In this exclusive video Emily‘s joined by Film Focus‘ Resident Cultural Commentator Ash Singh to talk about the controversial avant-garde film movement, Dogme, where the director doesn’t get credited and sexual acts are depicted for real. In this filmed segment, Ash speaks about this exciting and often misused Danish school of filmmaking.
*Warning- trailers contain nudity and sexual references.*
Ash Singh
Ash Singh is a social and cultural commentator and broadcaster who has written for the Guardian, Spectator, Scotsmen and appears regularly on national and international television. He has a book coming out later this year.
Emily and Sarah review Absolutely Fabulous, the latest British comedy from BBC Films and Director Mandie Fletcher. The film tells the story of much loved characters Patsy and Edina who, after being blamed for a major incident at an uber fashionable launch party, become entangled in a media storm and are relentlessly pursued by the paparazzi. Fleeing penniless to the glamorous playground of the super-rich, the French Riviera, they hatch a plan to make their escape permanent and live the high life forevermore!”
In this episode Emily and Sarah review new release, ‘Absolutely Fabulous’ the latest from BBC Films. Emily catches up with a special guest, highly accomplished Multi Camera Director, Peter Maniura. Having Directed the BBC Proms and with over 30 years industry experience, he speaks to us about the craft of directing live TV, revealing some industry secrets and divulging his top tips for anyone wanting to break into the industry.We’re also joined by our Resident Cultural Commentator Ash who discuses the importance of the controversial, raw and often shocking films of the Dogme Movement. Finally, we let you know of any film-making opportunities and events on the horizon, the latest from the Isle of Man Film Festival.
For more episodes and exclusive clips, please check out our Vimeo Channel and Soundcloud channel which house all of our episodes. To be the first to hear about our new posts and videos please subscribe to the channels and this blog.
We’re also joined by our Resident Cultural Commentator 