Call It, Friendo Andy J Ritchie & Donnchadh Tiernan

This week, we discuss two films from American director Samuel Fuller.
The first is White Dog (1982), a drama/horror film based on Romain Gary's 1970 novel of the same name. The film depicts the struggle of a dog trainer named Keys (Paul Winfield), who is black, trying to retrain a stray dog found by a young actress (Kristy McNichol), that is a "white dog"—a dog trained to make vicious attacks upon, and to kill, any black person.
The second is The Big Red One (1980), an epic war film starring Lee Marvin alongside an ensemble supporting cast, including Mark Hamill. Based on Fuller's own experiences as a soldier in World War II, it was produced independently on a low budget, and shot on location in Israel as a cost-saving measure.
 
Timestamps
What we’ve been watching (00:01:05) – Curb Your Enthusiasm season twelve, Baby Reindeer, Blood Diamond, Paddington 1 & 2, The Gilded Age season two
White Dog (00:22:00)
The Big Red One (00:51:40)
Coin toss (01:16:15)
 
Links
Instagram -
@callitfriendopodcast
@munnywales
@andyjayritchie
 
Letterboxd –
@andycifpod
@fat-tits mcmahon
 
Justwatch.com – streaming and rental links - https://www.justwatch.com
 

This week, we discuss two films which competed for the Palme d’Or in 2021.
The first is A Hero (2021), an Iranian-French drama film written and directed by Asghar Farhadi and starring Amir Jadidi, Mohsen Tanabandeh and Sahar Goldoost. The film was screened at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, ultimately winning the Grand Prix.
The second is Annette (2021), a musical romantic drama film directed by Leos Carax in his English-language directorial debut. The film's story and music were co-written by Carax and the band Sparks. The film follows a stand-up comedian (Adam Driver) and his opera singer wife (Marion Cotillard), and how their lives are changed when they have their first child. At the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, Carax received the Best Director award.
 
Timestamps
What we’ve been watching (00:01:10) – Civil War, The Beach, Spider-Man, Mr Inbetween season one, Tesis
A Hero (00:28:45)
Annette (01:00:45)
Coin toss (01:30:15)
 
Links
Instagram -
@callitfriendopodcast
@munnywales
@andyjayritchie
 
Letterboxd –
@andycifpod
@fat-tits mcmahon
 
Justwatch.com – streaming and rental links - https://www.justwatch.com

This week, we discuss two highly acclaimed films from the 90s.
 
The first is Before the Rain (1994), a Macedonian war film written and directed by Milcho Manchevski and starring Katrin Cartlidge and Rade Šerbedžija. The film was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 67th Academy Awards.
 
The second is Farewell My Concubine (1993), a Chinese-Hong Kong epic historical drama film directed by Chen Kaige and starring Leslie Cheung, Gong Li and Zhang Fengyi. The film won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 1993 and was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars the following year. In 2005, the film was selected as one of the "100 Best Films in Global History" by Time magazine.
 
Timestamps
 
What we’ve been watching (00:01:40) – Slow Horses season three, The Zone of Interest, The King, The Three-Body Problem, Beethoven, Beethoven’s 2nd, Crime season one, Die Hard with a Vengeance, The Silence, Shaun of the Dead, De Palma, Went the Day Well?, The Man in Grey, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
 
Before the Rain (00:41:30)
 
Farewell My Concubine (00:57:30)
 
Coin toss (01:27:40)
 
 
Links
 
Instagram -
 
@callitfriendopodcast
 
@munnywales
 
@andyjayritchie
 
 
 
Letterboxd –
 
@andycifpod
 
@fat-tits mcmahon
 
 
Justwatch.com – streaming and rental links - https://www.justwatch.com

This week, we discuss two films from the 1970s starring Elliott Gould.
 
The first is The Silent Partner (1978), a 1978 Canadian thriller film directed by Daryl Duke and starring Elliott Gould, Christopher Plummer, and Susannah York.
 
The second is Capricorn One (1977), a 1977 British-produced American thriller film in which a reporter discovers that a supposed Mars landing by a crewed mission to the planet has been faked via a conspiracy involving the government and—under duress—the crew themselves.
 
Timestamps
 
What we’ve been watching (00:01:05) – American Fiction, The Jinx, Drive-Away Dolls, JFK
 
The Silent Partner (00:28:10)
 
Capricorn One (01:05:20)
 
Coin toss (01:45:50)
 
 
Links
 
Instagram -
 
@callitfriendopodcast
 
@munnywales
 
@andyjayritchie
 
 
 
Letterboxd –
 
@andycifpod
 
@fat-tits mcmahon
 
 
Justwatch.com – streaming and rental links - https://www.justwatch.com
 

This week, we discuss two films from legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa.
 
The first is Throne of Blood (1957), which is based on Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The film stars Toshiro Mifune and Isuzu Yamada in the lead roles. With a budget of $350,000, the film was one of the most expensive films ever made in Japan at the time of its release.
 
The second is Ikiru (1952). The film examines the struggles of a terminally ill Tokyo bureaucrat (played by Takashi Shimura) and his final quest for meaning. The screenplay was partly inspired by Leo Tolstoy's 1886 novella The Death of Ivan Ilyich.
 
Timestamps
 
What we’ve been watching (00:01:02)
 
Throne of Blood (00:35:45)
 
Ikiru (00:51:55)
 
Coin toss (01:15:55)
 
 
Links
 
Instagram -
 
@callitfriendopodcast
 
@munnywales
 
@andyjayritchie
 
 
 
Letterboxd –
 
@andycifpod
 
@fat-tits mcmahon
 
 
Justwatch.com – streaming and rental links - https://www.justwatch.com

In this week’s episode we run through our best of 2023, starting with our top 5 toss pick films. We also delve into our favourite (and least favourite) media released last year.
  
Links
Instagram -
@callitfriendopodcast
@munnywales
@andyjayritchie
 
Letterboxd –
@andycifpod
@donnchadh
 
Justwatch.com – streaming and rental links - https://www.justwatch.com