The Ones That Really Mattered..‪.‬ Jared Billings

Once upon a time a kids fantasy film could be DARK, that time was 1984 (ironic?). In this episode I'm talking with writer/teacher Jan Hemming about "The NeverEnding Story." We go over books vs. film adaptations, unworthy sequels, and the conundrum of whether or not Atreyu is a boy or a girl??? Be sure to follow me on twitter https://twitter.com/TheGreatTales and check out all of my film reviews on Letterboxd https://letterboxd.com/Jbillz/

The 90s brought us a lot of films about kids playing professional baseball. This time I'm talking with AJ Allegra and we watched "Angels in the Outfield." We hit on the difficulty of acting in these sort of films (bet you don't know which three Academy Award winners are in this one), why baseball movies never end with the World Series,  a children's film tackling the subject of faith, and crying like a sissy. Be sure to rate this podcast on whatever platform you use, follow me on Twitter @TheGreatTales (https://twitter.com/TheGreatTales)  and letterboxd (https://letterboxd.com/jbillz/) for all my film reviews.

In this episode I sit down with actor and playwright Michael Santos, we reminisce on the VHS age and a sequel that may actually be better than the original, also this film is a great example of things the 80s did well as far as cinema goes...and, obviously, some things that maybe the 80s didn't do so well. Revisit The Karate Kid Part II and let me know what you think on Twitter https://twitter.com/TheGreatTales and follow me on Letterboxd for all of my current film reviews https://letterboxd.com/Jbillz/

In this episode I'm sitting down with writer/director Isaac Webb (First Born) to discuss Night of the Living Dead. This film arguably launched the zombie genre, it is without question the grandfather of zombie stories as we know them today. Isaac and I discuss the film's low budget tactics, the racial commentary both in terms of its relevance in 1968 and 2019, and Isaac's unique connection to this film. What tough calls does a filmmaker have to make in order to tell a story that stands the test of time, and how conscious can we be of those decisions at the time, or do we just trust the process? Follow The Ones That Really Mattered on Twitter @TheGreatTales and let me know what you think.

In this episode, fellow teacher Ryan Brent and I discuss My Girl. We cover how different aspects of the story affected us in childhood vs adulthood, Anna Chlumsky being a phenomenal actress (Macaulay Culkin isn't bad either), seeing the emotional strings of a film, and just how many times this movie can make a grown man cry. Follow me on Twitter @TheGreatTales to let me know what you think and check out my reviews for current films. 

In this episode I discuss the Spike Lee film School Daze with my guest, New Orleans native Melodie Franklin. Melodie shares the impact this film had on her during her college years, we talk about Spike Lee hitting on topics with School Daze 30 years before those topics became mainstream, differences between this film and other "college" movies of the 80s, and we examine a few reviews. This is the first episode in which we talk about a film I've never seen before, comparing my experience watching it for the first time with Melodie's experience having known this film for decades.