Vintage Sand

Whatever happened to Hollywood film comedies? Setting aside action comedies like the Deadpool films and Thor: Ragnarok, as well as animated comedy, why have there been so few great film comedies in the 2010's? We're talking films where the humor arises organically from dialogue, setups and punchlines, and situational as well as physical humor; you know, like all those good ones from Duck Soup through The Hangover. With few exceptions, like Spy, Bridesmaids and Trainwreck (some controversy on that last one), the kind of comedy that Hollywood became famous for seems all but gone. In this episode, our intrepid heroes from Team Vintage Sand try to figure out if and why this is so.

What makes a film a classic? As with any art, the best answer is simply time. So many of the films we revere today were both critical and popular failures when they were released, and many successful films have likewise faded into obscurity. In this episode, each member of Team Vintage Sand champions a lost film that they feel merits a reappraisal. And where else would you get Bertrand Tavernier, Alan Rudolph and Dennis Hopper sharing the spotlight?

This year marks the 50th anniversary of some of the greatest albums of the rock era: Abbey Road, Let It Bleed and Tommy are but a very small sample. Yet in that year of Woodstock, what was the most popular song of the year? That’s right, trivia fans: “Sugar Sugar” by The Archies. That got us to thinking about one-hit wonders, who have a place of pride in the history of film as well as music. Some of these films were made by directors who made many films but had only one hit, while some were made by artists who only had the chance to make one film. Some were completely ignored upon release, but their reputations have grown steadily in the years that followed; others were commercial and even critical successes upon release, but have faded somewhat over time. One-hit wonders in all endeavors are often dismissed out of hand, but let’s remember that 99.9999999% of all artists never even have the one hit. So join us this month as Team Vintage Sand gives some sugar to the “Sugar Sugars” of the film world as we celeb

For a while there, it looked as though 2018 might go down in history as one of the great years in film in recent memory. In the end, it was something of a split decision. The big, highly anticipated studio entries were mostly enjoyable but forgettable (think Ocean’s 8 or A Star Is Born). But it was a truly outstanding year for the small film, for the movies that told intimate stories in fine detail. The year will also be remembered as the year that black directors finally achieved a prominence in filmmaking of all sizes that was long overdue. Led by the likes of Ryan Coogler and Ava Duvernay, their success hinted that some day soon, “black directors” may simply be thought of as “directors”. (Now, as Wesley Morris pointed out in his brilliant Times article, let’s just hope that the Academy chooses not to repeat the fiasco of rewarding so-called “white savior” movies about racism by giving Green Book any major prizes). All in all, 2018 proved that the reports of television taking over as the predominant form of

In 1993, the great film writer Danny Peary published a book called Alternate Oscars. In it, Peary realized the silent (or quite vocal) wish of every film fan by going through the Oscars year by year, listing who won and then arguing who should have won and why. To celebrate the silver anniversary of Peary’s book, the Vintage Sand team takes Peary’s approach and applies it to that most underrated of decades in American film, the 1980’s. Look out, Miss Daisy; no one’s taking you to the Piggly Wiggly today…

After four decades of anticipation, Orson Welles' final film, "The Other Side of the Wind", was finally released in a handful of theaters and for streaming on Netflix earlier this month. Was it worth such an epic wait? Team Vintage Sand discusses the film both as a work in and of itself and in the context of the rest of Welles' unique, brilliant and ultimately heartbreaking career. Was Welles a victim, the embodiment of what happens when art comes into conflict with commerce in Hollywood? Or was his troubled career due, at least in part, to his own immeasurable streak of self-destructiveness? You decide.

In making movies, perhaps the only thing as difficult to create as the ending of a film is an unforgettable opening. A great opening is not just a hook; a truly amazing one (think underwater camera and two notes on a double bass in Jaws) can set the tone for an entire picture. Here, our nerdy-yet-lovable trio of film geeks looks at some of their favorite movie openings of all time, ranging in time from the silent era to this decade. Settle in, and don't be late!

Conventional wisdom tells us that the greatest year in the history of film was 1939. And if you add Renoir’s The Rules of the Game on to the long list of Hollywood classics that year (Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Stagecoach, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Only Angels Have Wings, Young Abe Lincoln, Wuthering Heights, etc.) one could certainly make the case for that year. The Vintage Sand team begs to differ, however. In this episode, we make the case for our own favorite years in film history. Josh lands on 1960; Michael opts for 1972 and John goes with 1974. Let the arguments begin!

It's August, when a middle aged-film lovers dreams turn to Hitchcock. For Episode 4 of Vintage Sand, Josh, John and Michael discuss their favorite moments in all of Hitchcock's work. Some will be exactly what our listeners might expect, but we promise a few surprises in there as well.

Around the turn of the 21st Century, a group of directors emerged who seemed destined to take the place of the American New Wave directors of the 1970's. This new group, led by such filmmakers as P.T. Anderson, Wes Anderson, David Fincher, Chris Nolan, Darren Aronofsky, the Wachowskis, David O. Russell, Todd Haynes, the Jonze/Gondry/Kaufman nexus, Kim Pierce, Alexander Payne and Sofia Coppola, to name a few, were poised to stake their claim. And in the last two decades...well, it has not exactly worked out as hoped. Join our intrepid trio as we explore the careers of some of these gifted directors and discuss what went right and what went a bit awry.

When you think of film of the early 1960's, the first things that come into your mind are European and Asian films. In Episode 2 of Vintage Sand, our intrepid trio make the case for the beauty and importance of black and white American films of the period by focusing on the work of three very different directors: Billy Wilder, John Frankenheimer and Stanley Kubrick.

While “obscure Hitchcock” may be a contradiction in terms, there are some films by the master that the Vintage Sand crew feel do not get their just desserts from critics and fans. In our inaugural episode, we make the case for three of Hitchcock’s lesser-known works of the 1950’s.