Million Dollar Movies

Peg Haller joins Bob and Dan for a very special FINAL episode of the show to discuss their movie, Normal Life (1996). Called Luke Perry's finest performance on film, Normal Life follows two real life bank robbers from suburban Chicago. Other topics discussed: researching screenplays, how to write with your spouse, married life, crime, capitalism, and guns. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Preston Sturges' Sullivan's Travels (1941), a movie about a comedic film director who wants to say something big and important in his next picture so he tries to live like a poor person as inspiration. Other topics: privilege, comedy, drama, movies about movies, the Coen brothers, and the end of the podcast! Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Terry Gilliam's sci-fi thriller, 12 Monkeys (1995), a film about a convict sent into the past to investigate the outbreak of a diseas that forced humans to live underground. Other topics discussed: camp, the uncanny, terrorism, and Brad Pitt. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the 60s Rock & Roll satire Wild in the Streets (1968), directed by Barry Shear. The film follows a celebrity rock star who starts - gasp! - to influence politics in America. Other topics discussed: meth, music, mayhem, and how old people are completely crazy. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Antonioni's Blow-Up (1966). The film is about a fashion photographer in London who discovers he may have taken pictures of a crime scene. Other topics discussed: Blow Out, Rear Window, drugs, and pubic hair. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Dan and Bob discuss the action/comedy/western Rio Bravo (1959), starring John Wayne, Angie Dickinson, and Dean Martin. Other topics discussed: broad comedy in film, Attack on Precinct 13, the Alamo, and racism. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Le Samouraï (1967), a French neo-noir film directed by Jean-Pierre Melville about an assassin who doesn't seem to care if he lives or dies. Other topics discussed: offensive words, Pickpocket, subways, prostitutes, and the end of the world. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the South Korean Kaiju movie, The Host (2006). The movie follows one family's fight against a giant river monster created by Americans dumping toxic chemicals into the water. Other topics discussed: emotional alchemy, comedy, Godzilla, and pointing out the terrible things America has wrought. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

From the geniuses that brought you Suicide Squad... it's The Accountant (2016), starring Ben Affleck as an autistic criminal accountant who's also a trained killer for some reason. Bob and Dan discuss the merits of the movie, and argue about whether it's a good depiction of people with autism or if it's problematic or both! Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss yet another Sam Fuller film, Underworld USA (1961). The movie follows a juvenile delinquent seeking revenge for his father's murder. Other topics include: the prison system, The Godfather, drugs, Fuller's view of America, and newspaper scoops. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the all-black produced, directed, and starring film Ten Minutes to Live (1932). It's difficult to say what the plot of the film is, and Bob and Dan argue over whether or not the movie succeeds in what it sets out to do. Other topics include: sound film versus talkies, blackface, and how to build suspense. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan talk about the original Japanese version of Godzilla (Gojira, 1954), a sci-fi film that clearly endeavors to show how the Japanese felt about the use of atomic weapons shortly after World War II. Other topics include: Pacific Rim, who is a victim, love triangles, and where it is safe to be a Jew. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Dan forces Bob to watch his all-time favorite film, Fellini's 8 1/2 (1963), and Bob can't wrap his head around why Dan likes it so much. 8 1/2 is an avante-garde Italian film about a director taking a hiatus from work at a spa and reflecting on how his dreamworld, films, and real life all meld together. Other topics discussed: movies within movies, Catholics, the male gaze, art, pretentiousness, and harems. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.  

Bob and Dan discuss Ray Milland's sci-fi survival movie, Panic in the Year Zero! (1962). Made on a shoestring budget as part of a double feature, Panic follows a family of four navigating California during nuclear fallout. Other topics discussed: The Martian, American families, war, murder, juvenile delinquents, a kid Bob hated in high school, and - yes - anti-semites. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the ultimate indictment of the military-industrial complex as told through a Hollywood action film: White House Down (2013). The White House is taken over by terrorists, some of whom want money, some of whom want revenge. What happens next won't surprise you if you've seen a lot of action movies, but the underlying themes are insane. Other topics discussed: race, Die Hard, great presidents, terrible presidents, setting it up and paying it off. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the artsy crime drama Point Blank (1967), and ask if it's worthy of being covered on this show as part of the ever-growing Bizarro Canon. Other topics discussed: Get Carter, actors who produce movies, who deserves to die, campy films, and Alcatraz. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Johnnie To's revenge tragedy Vengeance (2009), a film about a former-assassin-turned-chef who is losing his memory but still seeks revenge on the men who killed his daughter. Other topics discussed: great food, French film, primal storytelling, and Macbeth. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the terrifying and prescient Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), a sci-fi film about seedpods from space coming to Earth and replacing human beings with exact replicas. Other topics discussed: exploiting pathos for political gain, socialism, The Thing, The Truman Show, and living in the "snatched world."  Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan argue about Tim Burton's sci-fi tribute film Mars Attacks! (1996). Other topics discussed: Tarantino, comedy, racism, trading cards, and movies from the 50s we've covered on the show before! Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Stanley Kubrick's political satire Dr. Strangelove: or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb (1964). Other topics discussed: Russia, Trump, nuclear annihilation, the Button, and funny things that can also be scary. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the Fritz Lang masterpiece, M (1931), a police procedural about tracking a child murderer played by Peter Lorre. Other topics discussed: Berlin, Times Square, serial killers, criminals, The Code, Rififi, and - maybe it seems out of left field - the Nazis. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan welcome Bob's better half, Peg Haller, to discuss Shanghai Express (1932), a film about strangers on a train trying to survive the night as they travel through war-torn China. Other topics discussed: Brooklyn, art, train etiquette, and Mao. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan welcome back filmmaker and critic Scout Tafoya (creator of "The Unloved" video essays) to discuss The Brain from Planet Arous (1957). The film follows a scientist whose body is taken over by an ethereal brain from another planet. Chaos ensues. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Eli Schneider joins Bob and Dan to discuss the weirdest pro/anti-Fascist sci-fi war movie ever made, Starship Troopers (1997). The movie centers around young people caught up in a militarized Earth at war with a bug planet. Other topics discussed: fear, the military, unknown actors, the Iraq War, amphetamine, and - you guessed it - the Nazis. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss an unforgettable sci-fi film from Bob's troubled childhood, Invaders from Mars (1953). The movie follows a young boy who discovers aliens have landed in his backyard, and are taking over the brains of the adults around him. Topics discussed: Body Snatchers, alcoholics, Passover, and American military might.  Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan talk about Tony Scott's nearly incoherent revenge tragedy, Man on Fire (2004), starring Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning. A former assassin takes a job as a bodyguard for a child in Mexico, and finds himself emotionally invested against his better judgement. Other topics discussed: guilty pleasures, strange kids, great acting, drugs, confusing storytelling, and Mexico. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan are back to discuss Sam Peckinpah's The Getaway (1972), a film about an ex-con and his wife getting caught up in a botched bank robbery. Other topics discussed: Hollywood tropes, sexism, bad guys, good guys, and guilty pleasures. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan are back to talk about Rififi (1955), a diamond heist movie made by an American director living in Paris after he was blacklisted. Other topics discussed: violence, Mission Impossible, and who's at the table with Jesus. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

It's a Million Dollar Movies Christmas special! Bob and Dan invite comedian George Gordon (Your Good Friend) to discuss the greatest action movie of all time, Die Hard. When New York police officer John McClane attends his wife's office Christmas party in LA, the last thing he expects is to spend the night fighting terrorists. On a good day, he's a great cop. On a bad day... he's the best there is! Die Hard, baby! Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the soap-opera-before-there-were-soap-operas-on-TV film Written on the Wind (1956), directed by Douglas Sirk. After an alcoholic heir to an oil dynasty elopes with the woman of his dreams, his family drama and health issues rise to the surface. Lust! Betrayal! Rich people getting drunk! Other topics discussed: Texas, 50 Shades, Unsolved Mysteries, and the word "tawdry." Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Infernal Affairs (2002), the Hong Kong film that inspired The Departed. The film follows two police cadets, one who infiltrates the mob as an undercover cop, and one who infiltrates the police department for the mob. Other topics discussed: bizarre deaths, sentimental moments, rats, moles, Boston, good food, and audio equipment. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Dan and Bob discuss Orson Welles' masterpiece Touch of Evil (1958), a film about cops on the Mexican-American border solving a crime that appears to be tied to organized crime. Other topics: racism, murder, Orson Welles' weight, Blowout, Get Carter, and Citizen Kane. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the nearly silent Japanese masterpiece The Naked Island (1960). The film follows a family of four as they irrigate and harvest wheat on an island alone. It sounds boring, but it's enthralling! Other topics discussed: Jews who like hockey, marriage, comedy, TV, raising kids, and thrillers. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Sam Fuller's 1953 crime drama/romance/anti-anti-communist film, Pickup on South Street (1953). A pickpocket steals from the wrong purse and winds up in possession of a film negative the Russians desperately want. Other topics include: heroes, bad film critics, the French, and money. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss one of the great auteurs of French cinema, Jean-Pierre Melville, and his crime drama Le Doulos (1962). Other topics discussed: The Code, drugs, the French veneration of movies, and tragedy. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.  

Bob and Dan celebrate Halloween by discussing one of George Romero's best zombie horror films, Land of the Dead (2005). Joining the conversation is critic and filmmaker Scout Tafoya. Topics include: every good horror that's ever been made, gore, social commentary, camp, and hating Nazis. You know, the usual! Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice (2014), an adaptation of Thomas Pynchon's novel about a Chandler-esque PI in 1970s California who investigates a crime while being stoned for most of the process. Other topics: what makes a good adaptation, Manson, drugs, hippies, and what makes someone a hack. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Michael Mann's Thief (1981), starring James Caan. Other topics discussed: Rififi, heists, boner material, bad soundtracks, and "The Code." Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan talk about Brian De Palma's homage to Blowup, Blow Out (1981), a film about a sound engineer who witnesses a murder. Other topics discussed: meta filmmaking, John Travolta's finest work, getting stoned, and Bob shares a story about meeting Jodorowsky. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

A very special guest, Peg Haller (Normal Life, Bob's cowriter and wife), joins Bob and Dan to discuss A New Leaf (1971), a film written, directed, and starring Elaine May. The film follows a man who spent his entire inheritance, and rather than lose his social standing, decides to find a rich woman, marry her, and murder her. Other topics discussed: great comedy, likability, working and living together, the rich, and -I can't believe it- the Nazis. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.  

Bob and Dan watch Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch (1969), a elegiac Western about a group of outlaws who take on a murderous Mexican general. Other topics discussed: spaghetti Westerns, violence, the 60s, and who the real bad guys are. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan welcome special guest Anya Garrett to talk about Todd Solondz's dark comedy Happiness (1998). The movie covers everything from bad breakups to child molesters. You have to see it to believe it. Other topics discussed: perfection in film, great ensemble movies, and how to make murder funny. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss a prescient guilty pleasure, Enemy of the State (1998). Robert Dean (Will Smith) is a lawyer who finds himself accidentally wrapped up in a conspiracy to protect the NSA. Other topics discussed: the surveillance state, paranoia, the Monomyth, and director Tony Scott. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan watch Robert Altman's anti-Western, McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971). The film is about a pair of professional brothel owners building up an entire town around their business before a mining company decides to take them over by any means necessary. Other topics discussed: Deadwood, prostitution, Altman's greatest movie, and whether or not you can like something without liking all of it. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan invite screenwriters Hannah Schneider and Nelson Greaves back to the show to discuss everyone's favorite Michael Bay film, Armageddon (1998). Armageddon follows the amazing true story of 6 astronauts who - just kidding - it's the one where NASA sends a bunch of oil drillers into space to stop a meteor from destroying Earth. It's a blast! Sadly, Bob remains unconvinced. Other topics discussed: America, cheap thrills, space, and guilty pleasures from childhood. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Joon-ho Bong's Memories of Murder (2003), a South Korean film about detectives tracking a serial killer. Other topics covered: how to get away with murder, Silence of the Lambs, setting it up and paying it off, America, and the FBI. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Sam Fuller's The Steel Helmet (1951), a war drama about a group of US soldiers in the Korean War who end up defending a Buddhist Temple/lookout post from the enemy. Other topics discussed: what America is vs. what it could be, racism, Casablanca, and how to spot an anti-Semite (spoiler: everyone's an anti-Semite). Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Luis Buñuel's Los Olvidados (1950), a Mexican film about the demoralizing effects of poverty. Other topics discussed: abstract film, dream sequences, Jewish last names, and feral capitalism.  Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss Douglas Sirk's All That Heaven Allows (1955), a film about a widow who falls in love with her young gardener much to the dismay of her family and friends. It's a melodrama with the best art direction you'll ever see! Other topics discussed: conformity, Merritt Parkway novels, German expressionism, and - I can't believe we went there - escaping Nazi Germany. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

Bob and Dan discuss the bleakest crime drama ever made, Get Carter (1971). When Carter, a professional killer played by Michael Caine, finds out his brother died in a drunk driving accident, he suspects foul play. When Carter starts digging, he finds a much darker truth than he expected. Other topics discussed: Animal Kingdom, nihilism, and porn. Follow us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Follow Dan on Twitter.

Bob and Dan welcome Michael Molina (Trivia Night) to discuss Wake in Fright (1971), an Australian film about a school teacher who tries to take a trip to Sydney but gets stuck in a mining town for a nightmarish few days. Other topics: parables, Hell, drunk men, and hunting kangaroos. Join our Facebook page Follow us on Twitter Follow Dan on Twitter