Cinema Blindspot

For Tara to choose the film The Tree of Wooden Clogs for Ti at first makes it look like she is becoming a parody of herself. Or is she deliberately trying to upset him. Featuring real farmers and locals, Ermanno Olmi's film follows the daily concerns of Lombard peasants in 19th century Italian. Will the film's illicit strawberry-growing and clog-making intrigue Ti? Is it ever ok to kill animals on screen for cinematic accuracy? Does this look at the early Italian neorealist movement deserve to be the winner of fourteen awards including the Palme d'or at Cannes and the César Award for Best Foreign Film? Listen now to find out. Please subscribe to Cinema Blindspot on whatever podcast system you use. Also, please feel free to leave us a review and follow us on Facebook and Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot.    

Cinema Blindspot - The Eighth Wonder of the World - is back! In time for Cinema Rediscovered in Bristol this month, Ti and Tara talk about the classic monster movie King Kong (1933). Discussing everything from the film's ground-breaking stop motion animation to the 2005 Peter Jackson remake, the Cinema Blindspot team muse whether beauty really did kill the beast. Follow Cinema Blindspot on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot and on Facebook. Please rate and review us on iTunes so fellow film fans can find us!  

CINEMA BLINDSPOT IS BACK! It's only been nine months, but Ti and Tara are back for a new season of Cinema Blindspot where the two film fans will once again be introducing films to one another that they have no earthly interest in seeing or that have just passed them by.   To kick off the new season with a suitable bang, Tara has picked... Mike Leigh's Bleak Moments following the tortured, semi-articulated anguish' of Sylvia and her search for love and meaning.    Needless to say, Ti was overjoyed at the prospect of watching this.   As usual, find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh and if you enjoy the podcast, please leave us a review on iTunes.    If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com    Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh @soylent_grey.

Ti and Tara watch Neil Marshall's Doomsday (2008)! If you were expecting an episode of El Topo (1970)... things have gone awry. Instead, we're skipping to one of Ti's choices - Neil Marshall's Doomsday. Depending on how you look at it, this is a fun homage/ blatant rip-off of classic John Carpenter and George Miller films from the 80s. During this episode, Ti and Tara will discuss female action heroes, the UK film industry's lack of imagination, classic 80s action films and when you should just switch off your brain and embrace cinematic madness. Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh and if you enjoy the podcast, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh @soylent_grey.

Ti and Tara are back and are discussing that most problematic of genres - The Western. This week, Ti gets Tara to watch the 1993 western Tombstone, which tells the legendary story of Wyatt Earp and the shootout at the OK Corral. With its all-star cast including Kurt Russell, Sam Elliott, Val Kilmer and Bill Paxton and its cinematic re-telling of an infamous story of the Old West, will this be enough to entertain Tara despite the genre's problematic constants of casual racism, sexism and gun crime? Please note that going forward, episodes of Cinema Blindspot will be released every two weeks! Our editor needed a rest! Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh and if you enjoy the podcast, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh @soylent_grey.

We're back!  After a couple of weeks off, which saw Tara jet off to the Bologna Film Festival and Ti drift around the Balkans, Cinema Blindspot is jumping straight into the deep end with Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris (1972). As a card-carrying sci-fi nerd, the odds are that Ti will love this cinematic epic, but will its ponderous themes and lack of spectacle leave him cold? Meanwhile, Tara educates Ti about the importance of Soviet cinema and Tarkovsky's unique style. Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh and if you enjoy the podcast, please leave us a review on iTunes. If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh @soylent_grey.

This week Ti takes Tara back to the 1980s when gender stereotypes were used for comedy and heart. Starring John Cusack and Daphne Zuniga, The Sure Thing is 1980s rom-com at its high school narrative best. Will Rob Reiner melt Tara's heart or will she spend thirty-two minutes yelling at Ti in complete exasperation? Listen in to find out and, if you enjoy it, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh @soylent_grey.

It's a return to the works of Jean-Luc Godard this week as Tara recommends the director's first feature-length film - A Bout De Souffle. Godard's acclaimed masterpiece, with its long takes and rapid-cut editing, remains a startling example of the French new wave and frequently makes cinephile's top 10 lists - but will Ti appreciate it or will it leave him breathless in exasperation? Listen in and, if you enjoy it, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

It's time for submarines, Hans Zimmer and the greatness that is Denzel Washington as Ti and Tara discuss the late Tony Scott's Crimson Tide (1995). Things get heated this week as Tara watches the Jerry Bruckheimer/Don Simpson-produced submarine thriller and takes issue with the levels of bombast - both in the music, story, acting and... well, everything.  Meanwhile, Ti waxes lyrically about his love for Denzel Washington, Hans Zimmer and how he is happy to be emotionally manipulated by composers.  Listen in and, if you enjoy it, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

Ti can't remember if he's seen The Greatest Movie Ever Made (as voted by numerous publications over the years), but is pretty sure he knows the basics, so Tara sits him down to watch Orson Welles' finest hour - Citizen Kane. Ti and Tara discuss the film's legacy, its groundbreaking cinematography and all the facts, fiction and legends surrounding its talented creator. Listen in and, if you enjoy it, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

After the surrealistic weirdness of Alice (1988), Ti introduces Tara to the popcorn monster fest that is Stephen Sommer's Deep Rising (1998). As a diverse group of ethnic actors battle evil sea monsters, Ti and Tara discuss the 90s trend of big budget B movies, CGI vs practical effects and whether Nathan Fillion based his performance in Firefly off Treat William's performance in this under-seen, but perfect Friday night movie. Listen in and, if you like what we do, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

Alice Through The Looking Glass is out this weekend, but seeing as Tim Burton's first film was pretty rubbish, we don't really care. Still, Tara wanted Ti to watch a version of Lewis Carroll's classic story, but instead of selecting the 1999 fun version with Whoopi Goldberg and Martin Short (LIKE SHE PROMISED!), she changed her mind and choose Jan Svankmajer's Czech surrealistic version - Neco Z Alenky - aka Alice (1998).  How will Ti cope with the this down-right terrifying version of the story? There definitely aren't songs about learning from the flowers in this film...  Listen in and, if you like what we do, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Star Trek and to coincide with the release of the latest trailer for Star Trek Beyond, uber-Trekkie Ti shows Tara her very first Trek film - Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Will Tara boldly go where many people have gone before her? Will she understand what is going on without ever having seen any Star Trek episodes before in her life? Or is this entire venture simply the Kobayashi Maru for Ti? Listen in and, if you like what we do, please leave us a review on iTunes. If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh  Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

When it came to animation, Ti suggested the toe-tapping Jungle Book. For Tara's animated pick, it's the bleak war movie Grave of the Fireflies from Studio Ghibli. Having only seen one Ghibli film previously, will the serious nature of Fireflies put Ti off the studio forever or will he be moved to discover more?  Listen in and, if you like what we do, please leave us a review on iTunes. If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh  Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

This week on Cinema Blindspot Ti sets out on a Sisyphean journey: introducing Tara to a Disney film she'd never seen in the hopes of opening up a door to enjoyment. Discussion - well, bickering - about The Jungle Book (1967) and Disney more generally ensues.  Will Ti win Tara round through the joys of animated animals on an adventure? Or will Tara finally convince Ti that she has zero interest in stories about dudes - even if they are personified beasts of the wild and a small human child? Recording for some reason without any wine the two spit nonsense back and forth as always as Tara demonstrates just how terrible her memory is by forgetting all of the major reasons why she hates Disney films in the first place and why exactly she thinks they're fascist.  Listen in and, if you like what we do, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh  Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh.

Still running with the musical baton, this week on Cinema Blindspot Tara introduces Ti to Francois Ozon's all-star cast 1950s murder mystery/musical satire 8 Women.  Determined to get Ti to enjoy French cinema as much as she does Tara explains why plot isn't important and how seamlessness in cinema is unnecessary - a successful tactic?  Does Ti think the musical numbers appear out of nowhere and that Catherine Deneuve smashing a bottle of booze over Danielle Darrieux's head is alarming rather than entertaining?  What then should we think about Tara's idea of 'entertainment'?  Are the screen charms of Fanny Ardant, Emmanuelle Beart and Isabelle Huppert enough save the hosts from re-creating such a scene? Listen in and, if you like what we do, please leave us a review on iTunes.  If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Find us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot or individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh  Cinema Blindspot is edited and produced by Peter Walsh. 

Things get heated this week as Tara and Ti discuss that oft-maligned genre - the musical.  As Tara watches Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando's adaptation of Guys and Dolls, Frank Loesser's popular musical for the first time, our two hosts discuss everything from Disney musicals to Hamilton, the latest Broadway smash. But what causes the argument? Is it because Tara has never seen The Jungle Book? Is it because Ti thinks Russell Crowe's singing in Les Miserables is perfectly fine? Listen to find out.  Please leave us a review on iTunes and if you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot. Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh

"Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me....aren't you?" After saying he hadn't seen it in the very first episode, Ti finally gets round to watching Mike Nichol's The Graduate (1967). What does the film have to say about America in the late 1960s? How does Tara feel about Ben's stalking of Elaine paying off? More importantly, how will it compare to Wayne's World 2?  Apologies in advance for the clinking of glasses and bottles - we may have been finishing off a bottle of wine... Please leave us a review on iTunes and if you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot. Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh

"It's like a finger pointing away to the moon. Don't concentrate on the finger or you'll miss all the heavenly glory!" This week, Tara watches her first Bruce Lee film - Enter The Dragon (1973) and Ti gets all nerdy about his love of Jackie Chan and martial arts movies.  Please leave us a review on iTunes and if you have any comments, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot.  Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh

"This is the most beautiful land ever seen by human eyes." Tara introduces Ti to the world of Soviet-Cuban cinema with Mikhail Kalatozov's Soy Cuba (I Am Cuba) - a film packed with acrobatic tracking shots, idiosyncratic mise en scene and very on-the-nose criticism of the US.  Grab some rum or a rifle, sit down or rise up and prepare for an insight into Cuban cinema...or political revolution! Please leave us a review on iTunes and if you have any comments, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot. Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh

"What we've got here is... failure to communicate. Some men you just can't reach." Ti introduces Tara to the Paul Newman classic Cool Hand Luke (1967) for the first time. Will Tara think it's a crazy handful of nothing? Will Ti spend the night in the box? Will they have a failure to communicate? Listen to find out! Please leave us a review on iTunes and if you have any comments, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com  Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot.  Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh

"Is this a tragedy or a comedy? Either way it's a masterpiece." Tara introduces Ti to French New Wave cinema as he sits down to watch his first Jean-Luc Godard film - Une Femme est Une Femme (1961). Will he become frustrated with the constant breaking of the fourth wall? Will he want to seek out the likes of Vivre Sa Vie (1962)? Will he ever pronounce the film's title correctly? Please leave us a review on iTunes and if you have any comments, please feel free to email us at cinemablindspot@gmail.com Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot.  Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh

"Tell me, which lunatic asylum did they get you out of?" This week, Bond superfan Ti introduces Tara to the world of Ian Fleming's gentlemen spy with the second film in the series From Russia With Love (1963). Will Tara embrace the gadgets, the action and the combination of Sean Connery and Robert Shaw, or will the series dated gender politics hang over proceedings like a shady octopus-like terrorist organisation? Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot. Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh

Do you pretend to have seen Citizen Kane? Nod along when your friends are discussing the ins and outs of The Three Colours Trilogy without knowing what the hell they’re talking about? Avoided the Fast and Furious films like the plague because you fear it'll be as if Michael Bay has taken amphetamines? Due to personal preferences, everyone has blindspots when it comes to cultural touch-points and cinema is no different. When it comes to movies, hosts Timon Singh and Tara Judah are generally at opposite ends of the cinematic spectrum. One likes their films with depth, feeling and something important to say. The other is happy if there’s aliens, swords or a good car chase in there somewhere. On Cinema Blindspot, Ti and Tara will introduce to the other a film that they would not normally watch, has passed them by or have deliberately avoided and discuss whether or not they have been wrong all this time. In this introductory episode, the Ti and Tara discusses their cinematic differences, key blindspots in their film knowledge and their mutual love of Nicolas Cage.  Tara Judah is a freelance film writer and radio critic, as well as co-director of Bristol's premier video shop 20th Century Flicks. Tara's writing on cinema can also be found at tarajudah.com. Ti Singh is a former contributor to Den of Geek and once bumped into Andy Serkis at the Albert Hall. He is a purveyor of B-movies and runs the Bristol Bad Film Club. Cinema Blindspot can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CinemaBlindspot. Find us individually on Twitter at @midnightmovies and @timonsingh