The Empathy Machine

Andrew Ford and Josh Ickes
  • 5.0 (5)
  • TV & Film

Roger Ebert once described film as "the most powerful empathy machine of all the arts," and we aim to explore film through that prism. Each week, we'll be deconstructing films from as many angles as possible - from the production history, to the cultural environment in which they were conceived and later released, to the thematic and narrative threads that each film explores - we'll leave no stone unturned. Our tastes are varied, and we're generally receptive to just about any film that comes our way, so we're also open to suggestions and recommendations for episodes as well. Join us on this adventure!

Episodes

  1. 09/15/2017

    S1E10: Children Of The Corn-A-Thon!

    This week, we watched Every Single One of the Children of the Corn Sequels, as well as the Original, and we SURVIVED. There's not much to add here. Keep an eye out for Arrow Video's shockingly comprehensive blu-ray release, coming out on October 3rd, which features Dollar Baby "Disciples of the Crow" as a bonus feature. However, regarding the rest of the sequels, don't say we didn't warn you. Click through the links below to support us if you'd like! Children of the Corn Blu-Ray: http://amzn.to/2xzLkko Stephen King's Night Shift: http://amzn.to/2waxtAQ Children of the Corn 2-7 on DVD: http://amzn.to/2f7z7fk Children of the Corn 3-6 on Blu Ray: http://amzn.to/2xyauQB Children of the Corn: Genesis on DVD: http://amzn.to/2xzCwev

    2h 11m

  2. 09/01/2017

    S1E9: Stephen King's Dollar Babies

    This week on the Empathy Machine, we discuss a smattering of Stephen King's Dollar Baby shorts and explore what makes for a successful Stephen King adaptation. What is a Dollar Baby, you ask? Well, since the early-1980s, Stephen King has offered the opportunity for independent and student filmmakers to purchase rights to one of a limited selection of his stories for only one dollar. The filmmaker is only granted festival rights as a result, and only limited ability to display the work online, but this serves as a pretty great opportunity for filmmakers to try their hand at proven source material. Sometimes the shorts turn out to be quite good, and sometimes they turn out to be quite not so good. We viewed the following: The Boogeyman (1982, Jeff Schiro) The Woman in the Room (1983, Frank Darabont) Disciples of the Crow (1983, John Woodward) The Night Waiter (1987, Jack Garrett)** The Last Rung on the Ladder (1987, Dan Thron & James Cole) The Lawnmower Man (1987, Jim Gonis) Paranoid (2000, Jay Holben) Strawberry Spring (2001, Doveed Linder) Rainy Season (2002, Nick Wauters) Night Surf (2002, Peter Sullivan) Secret Transit Codes of America's Highways (2004, Brian Berkowitz) All That You Love Will Be Carried Away (2004, Scott Albanese) Umney's Last Case (2006, Rodney Altman) **Not actually a Stephen King adaptation We also discuss the book Dollar Deal: The Stephen King Dollar Baby Filmmakers by Shawn Lealos, which can be purchased here: http://amzn.to/2xCUlG6 Special thanks, as always, to our Sound Engineer Drew DeVore!

    1h 35m

  3. 08/17/2017

    S1E8: George Romero-In Memoriam

    This week, we memorialize George A. Romero by diving deep into his body of work to examine two of his lesser-known films, 1978's Martin and 1981's Knightriders, and go on to discuss the seismic impact he's had on not just the horror genre, but culture as a whole. RIP, George. You will be missed. Thanks again to our Sound Engineer, Drew DeVore!

    1h 33m

  4. 08/09/2017

    S1E7: Jaws Part 2

    This week on the Empathy Machine Podcast, we return to the ocean to talk more about Jaws and mostly advocate for more violence on screen, and for showing Jaws to children as young as you possibly can. Special thanks as always to our Fearless Sound Engineer Drew DeVore, and Extra Special Thanks to Jackie DeVore from the Sirens of Scream podcast for helping out with the episode intro this week. Be sure to check out the Sirens of Scream podcast! https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sirens-of-scream/id1117124332?mt=2 And, in case you missed them last week, below are a few fascinating video essays on the man, the myth, the legend, and his shark named Bruce: Spielberg Reacts to Oscar Nom Announcements: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mgrxvTdl-Q Inside Jaws: A Filmumentary by Jamie Benning: https://vimeo.com/68400837 How Spielberg Builds Tension: https://vimeo.com/219724293 Spielberg and the Horror Inside Blockbusters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWqyNE6ok14 The Spielberg Oner (Every Frame A Painting): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q4X2vDRfRk

    1h 16m

  5. 07/19/2017

    S1E5: We Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet Vol. 1

    This week, we discuss a pair of 1970s sports films due to the fact that I [Andrew] had not yet seen them. We start in 1977 with George Roy Hill's Slap Shot, and work our way backwards all the way to 1976 to discuss Michael Ritchie's work on the original Bad News Bears. For our advanced studies, we discuss Michael Ritchie's late-career triumph the underseen (and distressingly unavailable to stream anywhere other than Vudu) 1992 effort Diggstown, and explore the baseball-related filmography of Richard Linklater, most specifically his 2016 film Everybody Wants Some, while discussing what makes for a great sports movie, and if certain sports are simply more cinematic than others. And be sure to follow us on Letterboxd! Andrew Ford: https://letterboxd.com/MeadFord/ Josh Ickes: https://letterboxd.com/spartickes/

    1h 16m

  6. 07/07/2017

    S1E4: Alien Resurrection

    This week, we discuss Alien: Resurrection, the rapid evolution of big-studio filmmaking, the importance of managing tone and how best to translate the tone of a script to the screen, specifically via casting and the direction of said cast. We also make an earnest plea to armchair YouTube film critics to approach each film from a scholarly angle, as a work to be studied and discussed rather than derided and dismissed in the interest of empty-headed snark and sarcasm. In our Advanced Studies, we discuss Firefly and Serenity, alongside the career of Joss Whedon this week, and explore the 2nd trilogy of Resident Evil films (Afterlife/Retribution/The Final Chapter) as examples of comparatively successful, idea-driven Euro-helmed sci-fi/adventure films that are, when taken as a whole, surprisingly ambitious. Thanks as always to our brilliant Sound Engineer Drew DeVore, and be sure to check out the following clips/articles/and commencement addresses we reference off and on throughout the episode: Key and Peele - Awkward Conversation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKpQgEyjNdM Film Crit Hulk - Never Hate a Movie http://birthmoviesdeath.com/2011/11/03/film-crit-hulk-smash-never-hate-a-movie David Foster Wallace - This is Water https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcAhZ5JzYJY

    1h 31m

  7. 06/22/2017

    S1E3: Alien 3

    In this week's episode, we discuss Alien 3, the career of David Fincher, the struggles that come with helming one's first studio film (we assume), and come up with a pair of companion films that may not spring immediately to mind - Andrei Tarkovsky's Stalker and Andrew Dominik's Killing Them Softly. Thanks as always to our brilliant Sound Engineer Drew DeVore, and make sure to check out the following video essays for further insight into a film we're both quite fond of: David Fincher - The Director’s Series - 5 entries: https://vimeo.com/channels/directorsseries/page:3 Every Frame A Painting - Fincher - https://vimeo.com/107779620 The Unloved http://www.rogerebert.com/mzs/the-unloved-part-1-alien-3-david-fincher-sigourney-weaver-feminism-science-fiction-heroine

    1h 29m

  8. 06/07/2017

    S1E2: Aliens

    Join us as we continue our journey through the Alien franchise with our discussion of James Cameron's masterwork of sci-fi action cinema, 1986's Aliens.  We dive into behind the making of the film, James Cameron's career to-date, and explore the continuum of genre filmmaking that produced this film. With examples of films that directly led to this one (1941, Poltergeist, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom), as well as others that incorporate and repurpose many of this film's strengths (Mad Max: Fury Road, Green Room). We also discuss a more conventional/less successful sequel path not taken, by looking at Dan O'Bannon's contemporaneous sci-fi blockbuster, 1985's Lifeforce. And we top it all off by yelling at everyone to be nicer to James Cameron.  Special thanks goes out to Drew DeVore, our fearless editor.

  9. 05/23/2017

    S1E1: Alien

    We begin our in depth look at the Alien franchise and talk about some filmmaking lessons you can learn from one of this classic sci-fi/horror film.

    1h 42m
  • 9 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

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About

Roger Ebert once described film as "the most powerful empathy machine of all the arts," and we aim to explore film through that prism. Each week, we'll be deconstructing films from as many angles as possible - from the production history, to the cultural environment in which they were conceived and later released, to the thematic and narrative threads that each film explores - we'll leave no stone unturned. Our tastes are varied, and we're generally receptive to just about any film that comes our way, so we're also open to suggestions and recommendations for episodes as well. Join us on this adventure!

Information

  • Creator
    Andrew Ford and Josh Ickes
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    9
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Show Website
    The Empathy Machine