Feb. 2, 2025

Carl Franklin - Devil in a Blue Dress

Carl Franklin - Devil in a Blue Dress
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Season 6 A Film By...

We're celebrating Black History Month with Carl Franklin's Devil in a Blue Dress, an atmospheric film noir that's equal parts mystery and social commentary. Denzel Washington leads a powerhouse cast in this thriller that captures the essence of both the genre and the era!

For exclusive episodes and content, check out A Film By... Podcast on our Patreon with a FREE 7-day trial. You can also sign up as a free member! 

Check out www.afilmbypodcast.com/ for more information.
Email us at afilmbypodcast@gmail.com with your questions, comments, and requests.
Find us on Instagram, X, and Facebook @afilmbypodcast.

WEBVTT

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You know, we've covered some great films that employ the

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use of film noir. Are you Are you aware of

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the terms origin?

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I don't think I am.

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Okay, well, it originated in France right after World War

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Two and translates from French as black cinema. These films

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typically require the following archetypes, and Scott, I'm gonna ask

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you to just check the boxes here because we're on

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topic today and I want to. I want to see, like,

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how many of these fit the bill? Starting off with

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a hard boiled detective check, a fem fatale check. Corrupt

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officials triple check, an innocent bystander absolutely check, a fallen

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hero or an anti hero check. Yeah, But a hero

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on a rise okay? All right? How about powerful and

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wealthy politicians ugh check? And finally gangsters no check. All right?

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So yeah, I think we agree that each and every

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one of these can be found in the film we're

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discussing today. So let's talk about a film by Karl Franklin,

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his nineteen ninety five underrated hard boiled detective film Devil

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in a Blue Dress.

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So on the job, it depends what kind of job

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it is.

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I'm gonna get mixed up in that Walk Up the

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Dorn and Morning Easy. He mixed up with something only

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thing that matters if you mixed up to the top

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or not. Hello everybody, I'm Jeff Johnson and I'm Scott

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Hoffman and this is a film by podcast. So this

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film was recommended by a friend of the show and

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one of our Patreon producers, James Buckley. James joined us

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on last year's Top five Courtroom Movies episode, and as

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one of our Patreon subscribers at the producer tier, he

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has the option to suggest directors and films for the show, Scott,

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which so far I got to say, he is batting

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a thousand.

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That's great. It's always appreciated. Thank you, James.

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Yeah. Do you remember the first time you and I

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discussed a James Buckley suggestion? It was actually on our

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Patreon we did a fish called Wanda for him.

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Yes, yes, and very much, thank you, James. Yeah.

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Yeah, Well, James, we hope you'll enjoy this one, and

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we look forward to your next pick for us, Scott.

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Seeing us how Valentine's Day is approaching and we love

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all of our Patreon subscribers, how about we give every

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new paying subscriber this month a chance to select a

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director or a film for us to cover. Can we

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do that?

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Oh? Sure, sure, I'll allow it.

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All right, all right, So listeners, if you're not on

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Patreon already, head over to www dot patreon dot com,

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slash a film by podcast and sign up for as

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little as three dollars a month. And if you do,

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you too can select a film for us to discuss.

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Just like our good friend James Buckley Scott, we got

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to get to it. I'm excited because you know, you're

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this is your first time with the new format. I

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think we've we kind of tweaked how we do things

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a little bit.

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So, uh yeah, I think it's a new flow.

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Yeah.

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Listened to a few of these, uh, more than a

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few of these, and it's a I think it's a

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great new flow. So I'm looking forward to getting into it.

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Well, let's let's talk. We gotta talk about Carl Franklin.

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Let's do let's do some trivia. Let's do a couple

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of facts about Carl Franklin. Maybe maybe a quote or two.

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Before he was a director, he was actually an actor.

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From nineteen seventy five to nineteen eighty five, he was

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a regular cast member in four television series Kareebe or Keribye.

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I don't know if I'm saying. I don't know which

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way you say that, Scott, So I Do'm not a

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stologize the Fantastic Journey. He was in McLean's Law, which

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was a James Arness show, and Scott, you most likely

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remember him as Captain Crane from one of our eighties favorites,

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The A Team.

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Yeah. Yeah, I mean he's got a very lengthy career

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in a lot of different capacities director, actor, producer. He's

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got a lot of work to dig into.

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How about this one. In nineteen ninety three, he won

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the MTV Movie Award for Best New Filmmaker for his

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film One False Move.

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Oh yeah, well deserved, Yeah.

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Scott, you want to take a wild guest at who

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presented him.

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The award, Denzel Washington.

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You are correct, Sir, Denzel Washington, who in turn won

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the MTV Movie Award for Best Male Performance for Malcolm

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X that very night. You gotta wonder. You gotta wonder

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if that was their first time discussing working together.

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Yeah, that'd be interesting, Yeah, Scott.

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His AFI thesis short film Punk, about an African American

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boy in South Central dealing with his sexuality in manhood

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not only got him a job working for Roger Corman's

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Concord Films, it garnered him enough attention to get hired

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to direct his first big budget project, which was a

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film written by Billy Bob Thornton starring Billy Bob Thornton

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and Bill Paxson, which is again one false move, which

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we've we've mentioned already a lot of cool stuff. Listen,

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we usually do like three facts, but I gotta ask

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any facts you dig anything up.

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Yeah, So in terms of you know, you've gone over

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a lot of what he has done. I found some

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interesting tidbits about some unrealized things that hopefully we get

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a chance to see in the future at least one

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of them as we get into this movie. It's interesting

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to know that this is something that Franklin and Denzel

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both plan to collaborate on for a trilogy of films

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starring the lead character that we'll talk about in a

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few minutes. He was also directed to attach He was

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also attached to direct Will Smith in A Star Is

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Born What at one point, Yeah, Smith passed up the

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role for Ali when that was being made.

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I wonder, So I wonder was Smith the star or

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was he the you know, because like typically, I mean,

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what do we got like four versions of that movie,

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and it's always an up and coming young singer, you know,

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female singer who like the like kind of like the

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washed up male singer is like helping. So I'm wondering

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was Will Smith like the.

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I think he would have been the established singer.

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Yeah, yeah, he would have to have been, right.

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Yeah.

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Well, you know, we didn't lose out there because like

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he was, he was he was pretty phenomenal. Ali.

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Back in twenty thirteen, there was news that he was

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directed biopic about singer songwriter Sam Cook, one of my Favoritesarently,

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Franklin was developing the film with a script that he

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wrote himself based on biography about Sam Cook Dream Boogie.

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So it would have been interesting to see that happen.

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Maybe well, like you said, maybe we will still have

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an opportunity to catch that one at some point. Yeah. Yeah,

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how about how about a quote? You got a quote

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from this guy?

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Yeah, So obviously we're in Black History Month, so it

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was interesting to see one of his perspectives on the

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realities for black Americans in the television film industry. He

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had said, when I came up, the only legitimate dramatic

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actor was Sidney Potier, the bankable star was Richard Pryor,

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and the other choice roles were action parts that went

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to Jim Brown. Even someone as good as Billy D.

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Williams had a couple of great moments and then couldn't

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get a decent part. I for when I'm glad to

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see Franklin's career take off and how much he has

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been able to, uh not only dive into expanding film

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for black actors and filmmakers, but he's he's elevating stories

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that are very important in black literature, like Walter Mosley's

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Devil in a Blue Dress.

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Well, you know, when we talk about this guy's body

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of work, you know there's not a lot of big

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feature films for us to discuss. But I want to

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do take I do want to take a quick moment

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and talk about Franklin's direction in television because Scott, he

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has been involved with some of the biggest television series

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in recent history, and I want to I want to

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just blitz through these real quick, because I have to

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believe you've probably watched some, if not if not most

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of these. I know I have and our listeners probably

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have as well. So this this is the guy who

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has directed episodes of Rome, the Pacific mini series if

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you remember that one, kind of like the Follo up,

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the Band of Brothers.

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Yep.

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He did The news Room with Jeff Daniels House of Cards,

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which kind of think about this, how House of Cards like,

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we've we were kinda we're kind of numb to it

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right now, but we've got all these great prestige television

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shows on all these streaming options, right and Netflix kind

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of may they maybe maybe they kind of started that

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with House of Cards way back when, you know, it's

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kind of, at least for me, it was like the

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first must watch television show on a streaming platform.

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Yeah, say that's fair.

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Yeah. He also directed episodes for Homeland, The Leftovers Ray Donovan,

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one of my favorites, mind Hunter another Netflix favorite of mine,

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and most recently he did a Manhunt on Apple Plus.

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Did you see that one? The series about a Lincoln assassin,

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John Wilkes.

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Booth not yet interesting?

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Yeah, And he also did Monsters for Netflix, which is

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kind of like their anthology True Crime Serious.

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Okay, Yeah, lots to catch up on Man.

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Lots to catch up on, but let's start. Let's get

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our listeners. Caught up on Devil in a Blue Dress

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Scott A synopsis If You.

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Will, Based on the mystery thriller novel by Walter Mosley.

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This is the origin story of a private detective whose

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first case turns Los Angeles inside out while changing his

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life forever. Denzel Washington plays Ezekiel Easy Rawlins, a war

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hero living in the La Watts area in nineteen forty

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eight who's desperate for work after losing his job at

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an aviation manufacturer. While searching through one ads in a

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friend's bar, he's given the chance to make some money

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under the A man named DeWitt Albright offers him a

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few hundred dollars to find a woman whose mysterious disappearance

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is shaking up the race for mayor of La Her

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name is Daphne Monette, and she vanished just before candidate

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Todd Carter dropped out of the race. Easy's job is

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to get into the clubs where Daphney used to hang

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out and find anyone who can give a clue about

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where she's gone. Easy dives into a mystery that entangles

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his friends, and his life uncovers more questions with every

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answer he finds and reveals a far more scandalous side

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of the race for mayor, murder, racism, and intrigue. We've

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through this critically acclaimed nineteen ninety five thriller as a

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follow up to Franklin's Breakthrough a Movie, One False Move,

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and for the propels his impressive career as a successful filmmaker.

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So I want to go ahead and open up with

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the statement that the set design is excellent. Yes, I mean,

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we're filming in and around Los Angeles. We're led to believe,

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you know, the story places us in Los Angeles in

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the summer of nineteen forty eight, and we're there. I

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absolutely believe it.

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Yeah. He transports people very easily with his with his

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the setup of the sets, but also the shots, Like

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it's these giant, kind of sprawling shots that take in

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all of the atmosphere and transport you pretty quickly. Like

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we're not talking about the heart of the city of

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La It's a lot of neighborhoods, it's a lot of docks,

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a lot of things that you might not necessarily associate

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with a with a big city. But he also he

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uses them all with great effect.

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Yeah, well, you know, and it's easy to say that's

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nineteen forty eight, so we need a couple of picture

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cars that that that are period accurate. But it's the

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little things like even down to the yard tools that

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are that are period accurate, and you know, the clothing,

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the music. Can we talk about the music for us

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a quick minute. We got a score by Elmer Bernstein,

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and one thing this film certainly has going for it

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is the music. It's almost like a background character in

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the film that not only breathes life into the setting,

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but informs on the characters' motivations throughout the film.

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Yeah, for sure, it transports.

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Yea, I absolutely love it. Well, Scott, you know, our

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resident expert on film composers, Wayne Whited, has something to

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say about Elmer Bernstein's work for Devil in a Blue Dress.

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So here he is with another scoring session. Take it away, Wayne.

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Devil in the Blue Dress, the motion picture starring Denzel Washington,

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stands as a nearly forgotten film of the nineteen nineties.

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A beautifully shot noir mystery film directed by Carl Franklin.

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He crafts a rich and moody atmosphere to a nineteen

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forty setting, gritty and grounded to the period and settings.

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Frankly needed a score to perfectly compliment the image that

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he brought to the screen, to match the look and

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feel of the period, and to convey the emotionally driven

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script he wrote. So it's no surprise that he turned

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to one of the senior musical legends in Hollywood, Elmer Bernstein.

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At this point in his career had been scoring film

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and television for over forty years, with over one hundred

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and fifty movies under his belt, which had brought him

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five Grammys and an Academy Award. His score were legends,

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and his hits were numerous. The Ten Commandments, the Magnificent Seven,

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The Great Escape, Animal House, Cape, Fear, Ghostbusters. I could

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go on and on naming the success stories that Bernstein

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had placed his music to. He was a master of

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every genre of film imaginable, so it was no question

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that they had the right man for the job. With

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Devil in a Blue Dress, Bernstein gave us a classic

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noir score drenched with mood and class, with jazzy piano

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and noir trumpets that paint the picture of a seductive

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yet oppressive summer grounded by a fantastic main theme that

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gives the hero a noble accomplishment, along with a beautiful

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light piano and string melody godded throughout the nearly fifty

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five minute score. He has created one of the best

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and most melodic modern noir scores of the nineteen nineties,

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and this decade was full of those type of scores,

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very similar to the score of Bernstein's composer friends Jerry Goldsmith,

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who a year later delivered his own film noir masterpiece

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in Melee Confidential. The original soundtrack album, released back in

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nineteen ninety five by Columbia Records, is more of a

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complimation than a soundtrack containing fourteen tracks of blues and

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funk music heard in the film by various artists like

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t bone Walker, Duke Ellington, and Roy Milton. Alma Bernstein's

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actual score was only given the last three tracks, the

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main theme, Malibu Chase, and the end credits, totally about

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eight minutes of the score.

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Time.

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Back in the late twenty tens, lal Aleian Records was

278
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working on getting the rights to release the complete score

279
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to this film on CD. But ten years on and

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there has been no sign of any official release of

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Bernstein's score. Fans of the film will just have to

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wait and hope that one day we will see it

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finally materialized complete remastered. But until then we'll have to

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just rewatch the film and listen to the beautiful melodies

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underlying the picture.

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I tell you, Scott, the more we get Wayne scoring

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sessions involved in these episodes, the happier I get. I

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just I love his take on the music because I

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don't think we ever really did it justice in the

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past seasons.

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Yeah, I mean, especially knowing that he's a musician himself.

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I mean, the guy's an encyclopedia of knowledge about these things.

293
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But he truly loves these scores and all the composers.

294
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So I always love hearing from Wayne, and.

295
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I can't tell you how excited I am about this

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Friday's Bonus episode. David is getting Wayne in our loving

297
00:17:00.399 --> 00:17:04.680
buddy Chuck Bryan from the Cinematic Flashback podcast. Together, they're

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going to discuss their top five favorite Jerry Goldsmith scores.

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So no good, Yeah, that'll be good. I was happy

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to hear Chuck coming back to join us, and sounds

301
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like it'll be a great, great.

302
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Chat let's just hope it doesn't turn into a backdoor

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phaser set to Sun episode, because.

304
00:17:24.160 --> 00:17:25.319
Hey, I'll just take a week off.

305
00:17:25.359 --> 00:17:28.759
That's fine, Yeah, that's it. Right. Well, while you take

306
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that week off, let's take a quick break and when

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we get back, we'll discuss the cast. Welcome back to

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a Film by podcast. We are talking about Carl Franklin's

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Devil in a Blue Dress. Denzel Washington as Ezekiel easy

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rawlins Scott nine time Oscar nominee, two wins Best Supporting

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Actor for Glory in nineteen ninety and Best Actor for

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Training Day in two thousand and two. I mean, I mean,

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the man can do no wrong right nine times, nine times? Good?

314
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Eighty six?

315
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Uh spot there, there's always room for eighty six. But yeah,

316
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I mean, none of those accolades are any kind of surprise.

317
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I absolutely love Denzel Washington. He is captivating to watch

318
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and this movie is is no different. And it's an

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interesting time to catch him in his career. Right.

320
00:18:26.599 --> 00:18:30.200
Well, yeah, because he's he's red hot. I mean again,

321
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he could pick any project he wants. He's he's got,

322
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He's got Philadelphia and Malcolm X behind him at this point.

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But nineteen ninety five is a hell of a year

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for him. He's got Crimson Tide, virtuosity, and Devil in

325
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a Blue Dress. Yeah, I mean Denzel is all over

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the uh the box.

327
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Office for sure, and I mean showing no signs of

328
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slowing down. So thank you, Denzel, please canine to do so.

329
00:18:56.519 --> 00:18:58.559
It's interesting how you mentioned kind of where he is

330
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in his career at this point, because it's the same

331
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year as Crimson Tide. When I'm looking at IMDb, it

332
00:19:05.880 --> 00:19:10.759
fits squarely between Virtuosity and Courage under Fire, and I

333
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feel like in this role, it's fascinating to watch the

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range of his career as someone who easily transitions from

335
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the in depth dramatic roles like you mentioned Philadelphia to

336
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thought provoking action like Crimson Tide. Right, that feels like

337
00:19:24.799 --> 00:19:27.640
it fits squarely within virtuosity and Courage under Fire. It

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kind of reminds me of Fallen or The Equalizer. But

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Franklin Is the director does a great job of bringing

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out Denzel's dramatic depth and range even in the high

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action moments. And That's what I've noticed with, you know,

342
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watching some of his other work. He has this affinity

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for drawing out those emotionally driven stories in these rich settings.

344
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Scott, he did Power in nineteen a six. You mentioned

345
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Courage under Fire, which he did that and The Preacher's

346
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Wife in nineteen ninety six, and we had limited series

347
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covering both those years, and we slept on Denzel both times.

348
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Who's in charge around here?

349
00:20:07.240 --> 00:20:10.119
You're forgetting that, j'ell just to do bonus episodes for

350
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those So it's fine.

351
00:20:11.720 --> 00:20:13.640
Well, I mean outside of our Spike Lee episode for

352
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Inside Man, we we've kept our listeners. Pretty Denzel starved

353
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for almost six seasons, so we we got we got

354
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some work to do.

355
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I think, hey, there's always room.

356
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There's always room. I love when a hard boiled detective

357
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has an unassuming hobby, you know, like like take John

358
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Woo's Hard Boiled where Inspector Tequila plays a saxophone.

359
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Mm hm.

360
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I just love how passionate Easy Rawlings is about gardening

361
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and taking care of his lawn.

362
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Yes, and protecting from the neighbor that wants to constantly

363
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chop down this tree.

364
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I mean, it's just it's a it's a nice character trait,

365
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like where because he's it's peppered through the whole the

366
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whole movie. Yeah, he's always he's alway getting back to

367
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his house. He's protective of his house. He loves his house,

368
00:20:56.119 --> 00:20:59.359
and I just love that. I mean, he could easily

369
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be sitting inside being a hard boiled detective type, just drinking.

370
00:21:04.200 --> 00:21:05.519
You know, he could be like he'd be like a

371
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decker and blade runner. But he's just out in his yard,

372
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you know, tend and tending to the flowers. I love

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that about this guy.

374
00:21:13.680 --> 00:21:17.799
Well, speaking of speaking of caring about his neighborhood, I

375
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found kind of an interesting last minute tidbit that I

376
00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:25.799
was I was amazed to hear. Okay, one of the

377
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kids in the neighborhood that has a cameo as a

378
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a young boy running through the street with a rifle

379
00:21:32.920 --> 00:21:35.039
like he's just got like a toy rifle, is you know?

380
00:21:35.119 --> 00:21:35.319
Yeah?

381
00:21:36.279 --> 00:21:40.720
Uh, played by John David Washington, Denzel's son.

382
00:21:41.160 --> 00:21:44.000
You gotta be kidding me. No, John David Washington was

383
00:21:44.039 --> 00:21:44.279
in this.

384
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Yes, yeah, I got a blake and you miss it cameo,

385
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But yeah.

386
00:21:49.279 --> 00:21:52.039
I did not see that. So, you know, because here's

387
00:21:52.039 --> 00:21:55.880
the thing about John David Washington. He he he makes

388
00:21:55.920 --> 00:22:01.319
it on his own. No one, there's no there's no nepotism. Here.

389
00:22:02.000 --> 00:22:04.279
He was very it was very important to him that

390
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no one knew that Denzel was his father m until

391
00:22:08.200 --> 00:22:09.920
after the fact. Now he's he's a big star, and

392
00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:12.319
it's like, well, it's we're gonna we're gonna find out.

393
00:22:12.359 --> 00:22:16.240
But yeah, my question was always why wouldn't they do

394
00:22:16.720 --> 00:22:18.640
Why wouldn't they work together? How come there is hasn't

395
00:22:18.680 --> 00:22:21.119
been a film that has father and son in it

396
00:22:21.599 --> 00:22:25.640
already and you've just just broke the story. It has

397
00:22:25.720 --> 00:22:30.079
happened officially, you know, even if he's you know, wasn't

398
00:22:30.200 --> 00:22:32.960
didn't technically have a role per se. But all right,

399
00:22:33.359 --> 00:22:34.079
well that's amazing.

400
00:22:34.319 --> 00:22:36.839
I'm glad they're both busy and hey, you know, let's

401
00:22:36.839 --> 00:22:39.039
consider that the first time they worked together, not the last.

402
00:22:39.759 --> 00:22:43.240
I like it. I'll tell you what I I like

403
00:22:43.319 --> 00:22:47.799
and don't like. We got to talk about Tom Sizemore

404
00:22:47.880 --> 00:22:52.319
as de Witt Albright. Yeah, so you mentioned in your synopsis,

405
00:22:52.359 --> 00:22:55.599
you know, easy meets Albright. He after he had unfairly

406
00:22:55.640 --> 00:22:58.039
lost his job at the factory, puts him on the

407
00:22:58.079 --> 00:23:02.039
beat looking for work and you know, along come Tom Sizemore, Scott.

408
00:23:02.079 --> 00:23:04.880
When someone is looking to hire you and you ask

409
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them what it is they do for a living an

410
00:23:07.400 --> 00:23:11.279
answer like I do favors, I do favors for friends.

411
00:23:12.200 --> 00:23:14.759
That that should tell you that no goodwill will come

412
00:23:14.759 --> 00:23:17.160
from the situation. This, This is not gainful employment. Am

413
00:23:17.200 --> 00:23:17.519
I right?

414
00:23:18.440 --> 00:23:25.279
You are correct? I don't you know. I find it

415
00:23:25.400 --> 00:23:28.039
very hard to separate Tom Sizemore from his role in Heat.

416
00:23:28.759 --> 00:23:32.319
And I will say that the gaze of Tom Sizemore

417
00:23:32.559 --> 00:23:39.200
is very hard to break, very electric and intimidating. And

418
00:23:39.279 --> 00:23:41.519
I think if I got that job offer at that point,

419
00:23:42.400 --> 00:23:45.920
I would find the best excuse that I could not

420
00:23:46.319 --> 00:23:49.160
to take the job and try to politely do so

421
00:23:49.200 --> 00:23:50.559
and not make him mad.

422
00:23:50.920 --> 00:23:55.599
You're not gonna work for Tom Sizemore, huh No, Tom Scott,

423
00:23:55.799 --> 00:23:57.920
I love size more and everything, but it's it's hard

424
00:23:57.920 --> 00:23:59.799
to do here because he's such a degenerate.

425
00:24:00.640 --> 00:24:03.880
Yes, yes, for sure. And I mean, you know, relating

426
00:24:03.920 --> 00:24:10.279
the easy situation, it is not it. You know, I'd

427
00:24:10.319 --> 00:24:12.359
say the word easy. It's not easy to come by work,

428
00:24:12.960 --> 00:24:16.720
and it's this time and it's it's a it's a

429
00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:20.160
horrible state that he's put in. But you know, it's

430
00:24:20.200 --> 00:24:21.440
a desperate situation.

431
00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:25.519
Yeah. Jennifer Biels as Daphne Monette.

432
00:24:26.359 --> 00:24:26.839
Wow.

433
00:24:27.559 --> 00:24:29.200
Yeah, talk about a heartbreaker.

434
00:24:29.759 --> 00:24:33.119
Yeah, she's She's smooth and seductive in a role that

435
00:24:33.160 --> 00:24:35.759
starts with this air of suspicion because the you know,

436
00:24:36.920 --> 00:24:40.920
the titular character of the devil into blue Dress quickly

437
00:24:40.960 --> 00:24:45.319
turns into empathy because her life is turned around for

438
00:24:45.359 --> 00:24:49.880
the worst reasons. Even though she has good intentions and

439
00:24:49.920 --> 00:24:52.400
the chance to keep an abysmal and twisted man from

440
00:24:52.960 --> 00:24:56.319
rising to power, she barely escapes with her life, and

441
00:24:56.960 --> 00:24:58.839
the life that she's left with is far from what

442
00:24:58.960 --> 00:25:00.720
she wants deserves.

443
00:25:01.000 --> 00:25:03.920
I think let's talk about the life of Jennifer Biel

444
00:25:04.000 --> 00:25:07.160
though the career. She became a household name in nineteen

445
00:25:07.160 --> 00:25:11.960
eighty three after Flash Dance, but never quite capitalized on it.

446
00:25:12.400 --> 00:25:15.480
And keep in mind she's been working very steadily from

447
00:25:15.519 --> 00:25:18.960
then until now, like up until last year. I think

448
00:25:20.200 --> 00:25:25.480
I've got a theory on why Kimi. So my theory

449
00:25:26.000 --> 00:25:29.519
is that she was going to have Demi Moore's career

450
00:25:30.400 --> 00:25:34.960
but chose education instead. And here's here's where I here's

451
00:25:34.960 --> 00:25:38.599
where I will support that. It turns out Joel Schumacher

452
00:25:39.319 --> 00:25:42.160
asked her to audition for the role of Jewels in

453
00:25:42.160 --> 00:25:45.240
sant Almo's fire, and she turned him down to pursue

454
00:25:45.279 --> 00:25:48.839
a degree at Yale. So the rule of jewels went

455
00:25:48.880 --> 00:25:51.640
to de Me Moore, who at that point had pretty

456
00:25:51.680 --> 00:25:55.519
much only done blaming on Rio in eighty three and

457
00:25:55.559 --> 00:25:58.519
then launched her into the stratosphere. She was part of

458
00:25:58.559 --> 00:26:01.559
the brat Pack, and then you know, she became Demi Moore,

459
00:26:01.640 --> 00:26:07.559
who box off a superstar. Interesting what happens if Jennifer

460
00:26:07.559 --> 00:26:09.839
Bials doesn't go to Yale and instead says, sure, Joe,

461
00:26:09.839 --> 00:26:12.920
I'll play the part of Jules. Because Jennifer Bills is

462
00:26:12.960 --> 00:26:17.839
a stunning actress. She's a sensational actress. She's very talented. Yes,

463
00:26:18.000 --> 00:26:20.759
love her and everything she's done, But I feel like

464
00:26:21.720 --> 00:26:26.279
it's the Demi Moore uh filmography that she should have had.

465
00:26:27.039 --> 00:26:30.359
I think that's a that's an interesting trip. You just

466
00:26:30.400 --> 00:26:34.400
recommended to the alternate reality video store. Yeah, where we

467
00:26:34.480 --> 00:26:38.799
have to pick that up with the Bride starring Sting

468
00:26:38.960 --> 00:26:41.640
and Demi Moore to see what we're Yes.

469
00:26:42.559 --> 00:26:46.640
Yeah, absolutely. Now you know we said Denzel was having

470
00:26:46.640 --> 00:26:48.240
a good year ninety five. Ninety five is a good

471
00:26:48.279 --> 00:26:50.279
year for her too. She's got Devil in a Blue

472
00:26:50.359 --> 00:26:53.799
Dress and she's got the anthology film Four Rooms with

473
00:26:54.720 --> 00:26:57.839
several of our favorite directors, and that we should we

474
00:26:57.839 --> 00:26:59.519
should cover that one at some point, maybe like a

475
00:26:59.559 --> 00:27:00.359
New Year's ual.

476
00:27:02.519 --> 00:27:05.599
I think Jennifer Bial's when I see her in a role,

477
00:27:05.799 --> 00:27:12.039
it's like you're seeing a friend on screen, Like, Oh,

478
00:27:12.039 --> 00:27:14.000
it's Jennifer Biles, you know. I mean, she has a

479
00:27:14.079 --> 00:27:16.920
very storied career. It's not a surprise when you see

480
00:27:16.960 --> 00:27:21.400
her on screen. But she's just got a very iconic

481
00:27:21.480 --> 00:27:24.720
presence that I feel like, as somebody who grew up

482
00:27:24.720 --> 00:27:26.559
with her, it's just always always great to see her

483
00:27:26.599 --> 00:27:27.000
on screen.

484
00:27:27.720 --> 00:27:30.519
It's great to see her. There's a Nicholas Cage vampire

485
00:27:30.599 --> 00:27:35.920
comedy called Vampire's Kiss. Oh dear, it's a Bonker's Nicholas

486
00:27:35.920 --> 00:27:39.039
Cage performance. It's one of his greatest acting performances of

487
00:27:39.079 --> 00:27:43.880
all time, I promise you, okay. And she's this seductive

488
00:27:44.920 --> 00:27:49.480
vampire who's who's kind of feeding off him and mentoring

489
00:27:49.559 --> 00:27:52.599
him in a way. I'll say no more. You got

490
00:27:52.680 --> 00:27:55.519
to check it out. It's so good. It's so good.

491
00:27:55.880 --> 00:27:58.920
Hey, maybe one of our friends with a with a

492
00:27:58.960 --> 00:28:04.759
podcast could take on Vampire's Kiss versus Once Bitten. I

493
00:28:04.839 --> 00:28:07.160
have no stake in the fight but I'd be very

494
00:28:07.200 --> 00:28:09.200
interested to see what happens that.

495
00:28:09.839 --> 00:28:13.279
I would Jennifer Beals versus Lauren Hutton. I'm I'm there

496
00:28:13.319 --> 00:28:16.519
for that one. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah, let's let's put that

497
00:28:16.559 --> 00:28:20.799
into the podcast atmosphere and hopefully someone grabs it.

498
00:28:21.160 --> 00:28:21.519
Got it?

499
00:28:22.319 --> 00:28:27.640
Don Cheatle playing Mouse, Alexander. Listen, this is Denzel's movie,

500
00:28:27.680 --> 00:28:33.319
but don Cheedle is basically stealing every scene he's in.

501
00:28:33.559 --> 00:28:34.079
Am I right?

502
00:28:34.720 --> 00:28:39.680
You're absolutely right. Yeah, he's a standout role. He's got that.

503
00:28:40.640 --> 00:28:45.039
I feel like it's a focused determination as the only

504
00:28:45.079 --> 00:28:47.920
friend the Easy can trust, even though I kind of

505
00:28:47.960 --> 00:28:50.519
say that in air quotes, because even though there are times,

506
00:28:51.720 --> 00:28:54.359
there are a lot of times when he always has

507
00:28:54.400 --> 00:28:57.759
Easy's back, but Easy also has to hold him back

508
00:28:57.920 --> 00:28:59.960
quite a bit. Like remember the scene where he got

509
00:29:00.000 --> 00:29:02.759
that's a little drunk. Oh gosh, she's holding a gun

510
00:29:02.799 --> 00:29:05.960
to his face, and it's like this could go several

511
00:29:06.000 --> 00:29:07.119
bad ways all at once.

512
00:29:08.319 --> 00:29:13.599
Mouse is that friend that you don't necessarily want to

513
00:29:13.599 --> 00:29:17.240
be around, but you're glad you know him when you're

514
00:29:17.279 --> 00:29:20.960
in a bad situation because like, yeah, that scene where

515
00:29:20.960 --> 00:29:26.079
he like he he wakes up, don Cheedle, he's just drunk,

516
00:29:26.079 --> 00:29:28.759
out of his mind and he's got a handgun and

517
00:29:28.880 --> 00:29:32.559
he's waving around his face like that's not the buddy

518
00:29:32.599 --> 00:29:33.920
I want to I want to wake up, you know.

519
00:29:34.480 --> 00:29:34.720
Yep.

520
00:29:35.920 --> 00:29:38.480
It's it's amazing to me that we almost didn't get

521
00:29:38.519 --> 00:29:41.640
don cheedele here. Uh. He was reluctant. He didn't want

522
00:29:41.640 --> 00:29:43.480
to audition for the role because he thought he was too young.

523
00:29:44.279 --> 00:29:46.400
M And you know when you look at him, I

524
00:29:46.440 --> 00:29:50.680
mean he he is very youthful, you know. And it's

525
00:29:50.720 --> 00:29:54.759
not like Denzel was was, you know, an elder statesman

526
00:29:54.799 --> 00:29:57.440
in nineteen ninety five. You know, he's he's, uh, he's

527
00:29:57.480 --> 00:30:01.839
young and handsome, but cheatle next to even looks much younger.

528
00:30:03.799 --> 00:30:05.119
But I think that played to us. I think that

529
00:30:05.119 --> 00:30:08.319
played to his performance, honestly for sure. Yeah.

530
00:30:08.359 --> 00:30:12.680
I mean he's wise beyond his years. There's a lot

531
00:30:12.680 --> 00:30:17.200
of history in that youth, right. I mean, he definitely

532
00:30:17.240 --> 00:30:19.599
commands attention and in every scene that he's in. I

533
00:30:19.640 --> 00:30:22.599
know that. I had seen an interview with Carl Franklin

534
00:30:22.599 --> 00:30:25.920
where he talked about the fact that he was adding

535
00:30:25.960 --> 00:30:28.119
a lot of humor to a lot of the scenes,

536
00:30:28.200 --> 00:30:31.480
even though he wasn't playing it for humor, but still

537
00:30:31.519 --> 00:30:34.720
it was it was coming out that way to great effect,

538
00:30:34.799 --> 00:30:38.279
not in a distracting way, but it's a very tense

539
00:30:38.359 --> 00:30:41.240
it's a very kind of in depth, intrigued kind of movie.

540
00:30:41.279 --> 00:30:42.799
So for him to be able to do so, I

541
00:30:42.799 --> 00:30:44.240
think it definitely helps the film.

542
00:30:44.559 --> 00:30:48.720
You know, it's interesting that you say he's bringing the comedy,

543
00:30:49.640 --> 00:30:54.000
whether it's intentional or not, to this role, because David

544
00:30:54.039 --> 00:30:58.440
Alan Greer almost got this role. Yeah, I just can't

545
00:30:58.440 --> 00:31:00.359
see Dave. I mean, I love David al green On

546
00:31:00.680 --> 00:31:05.000
in Living Color. He was hilarious on that show, but

547
00:31:05.039 --> 00:31:07.640
I've never I've never seen him do dramatic acting. So

548
00:31:07.680 --> 00:31:11.359
it's kind of hard to picture Mouse Alexander when he's

549
00:31:11.359 --> 00:31:13.559
being played by David On Greer. So you know, I'm

550
00:31:13.559 --> 00:31:16.000
glad I worked out the way it did, because you know,

551
00:31:16.359 --> 00:31:18.599
I remember this is we don't know who don Cheatle

552
00:31:18.680 --> 00:31:21.640
is in nineteen ninety five. He's still he's still his

553
00:31:21.680 --> 00:31:22.519
Stars on the Rise.

554
00:31:23.160 --> 00:31:25.720
True, although you know, I mean, let's add that to

555
00:31:25.759 --> 00:31:29.000
the cart in the Alternate reality video store. I think

556
00:31:30.880 --> 00:31:35.519
having the comedic sensibility helps you figure out whether to

557
00:31:35.960 --> 00:31:39.759
play it dramatic or play it intentionally, like lean into

558
00:31:39.799 --> 00:31:43.240
the humor I'd be interested to see what David Ellen

559
00:31:43.319 --> 00:31:46.480
Greer would have done with it. I think he probably

560
00:31:46.480 --> 00:31:49.079
would have played along similar lines to what Don Cheedle

561
00:31:49.119 --> 00:31:52.440
had done. I wonder, if you know, you say that

562
00:31:53.000 --> 00:31:58.559
Jennifer Beals, what if she had taken to me Moore's trajectory.

563
00:31:59.880 --> 00:32:02.039
I wonder what another universe looks like if you know

564
00:32:02.079 --> 00:32:05.240
the same had happened with David Allen Greer and Don Cheatle.

565
00:32:05.759 --> 00:32:10.400
David Allen Greer as Roady war Machine in the Marvel universe.

566
00:32:10.279 --> 00:32:11.160
And how they possible.

567
00:32:11.279 --> 00:32:15.440
Yeah, let's talk a little bit about this film's background, Scott.

568
00:32:16.759 --> 00:32:19.599
As you mentioned in your synopsis, the film is based

569
00:32:20.240 --> 00:32:23.119
on Walter Mosley's nineteen ninety novel of the same name.

570
00:32:24.319 --> 00:32:27.880
Moseley served as an associate producer on the production, which

571
00:32:28.480 --> 00:32:35.079
was in turn produced by director Jonathan Demi. How about that. Yeah, Yeah, apparently,

572
00:32:35.119 --> 00:32:38.200
after working with Denzel on Philadelphia ninety three, he actually

573
00:32:38.200 --> 00:32:41.880
considered directing this picture until he saw one false move

574
00:32:42.319 --> 00:32:44.000
and decided that Franklin was a better option.

575
00:32:44.680 --> 00:32:47.440
Wow, that's interesting. Yeah, I know that I had seen

576
00:32:48.400 --> 00:32:52.440
I haven't read a lot of Walter Mosley's work. I

577
00:32:52.480 --> 00:32:55.680
know that there's a lot that I get the impression

578
00:32:55.720 --> 00:32:59.920
there's a lot that dives into Easy's character beyond this story,

579
00:33:00.519 --> 00:33:02.880
and I know it's regarded as an important contribution to

580
00:33:03.680 --> 00:33:08.759
African American detective fiction. I'm glad that he was so

581
00:33:08.839 --> 00:33:12.039
close to this. I'm glad that he was so involved.

582
00:33:13.640 --> 00:33:16.759
It seems like this is something that would have gone further.

583
00:33:16.839 --> 00:33:19.599
I mentioned in the beginning, this could have been a

584
00:33:19.680 --> 00:33:23.880
trilogy of films at one point. Apparently ABC at one

585
00:33:23.920 --> 00:33:28.079
point was thinking about turning this into a pilot for TV.

586
00:33:28.759 --> 00:33:31.880
Oh okay, I'm gonna I'm gonna go ahead say, I'm

587
00:33:31.880 --> 00:33:35.240
glad that didn't happen. Yeah, and here's why. And you know,

588
00:33:35.519 --> 00:33:39.799
with all respect to to the subject matter, you couldn't

589
00:33:39.839 --> 00:33:43.200
have done this on primetime television. I mean you could have,

590
00:33:43.279 --> 00:33:47.359
but it would have been really, really bland. They could

591
00:33:47.440 --> 00:33:52.000
not capture the they couldn't capture the vibe that this

592
00:33:52.240 --> 00:33:55.759
that this this story has. There's just no way. Yeah,

593
00:33:55.799 --> 00:33:58.519
you know, it's it's a little too adult, it's a

594
00:33:58.559 --> 00:34:03.599
little too violent for for primetime TV in my opinion. Yeah,

595
00:34:03.680 --> 00:34:05.279
you know, this was like, like we said, this was

596
00:34:05.319 --> 00:34:10.159
shot mostly in La two famous locations of scott We

597
00:34:10.239 --> 00:34:15.559
got the Griffith Park Observatory, which we've seen many times

598
00:34:16.199 --> 00:34:19.360
throughout cinema. You know, obviously probably the most famous rebel

599
00:34:19.400 --> 00:34:22.840
without a Cause. And then it's one of those places

600
00:34:22.840 --> 00:34:24.559
where you see in the movie and you spotted immediately

601
00:34:24.559 --> 00:34:26.679
and you're like, oh, I know that, you know, I

602
00:34:26.719 --> 00:34:30.760
always remember from The Rocketeer honestly, because yeah, yeah, Rocketeer

603
00:34:30.800 --> 00:34:31.239
is amazing.

604
00:34:31.639 --> 00:34:32.800
Oh yeah, absolutely.

605
00:34:33.199 --> 00:34:35.760
And then we got the the Ambassador Hotel, which was

606
00:34:36.719 --> 00:34:42.119
prominently featured in Pretty Woman seven, The Mask True Romance.

607
00:34:42.920 --> 00:34:48.320
It's always great when you've got these iconic locations that

608
00:34:48.360 --> 00:34:51.280
are that are a part of the city. They've they've

609
00:34:51.320 --> 00:34:53.480
been a part of the city for decades and decades,

610
00:34:53.519 --> 00:34:55.719
and they get to become it's almost like they become

611
00:34:55.840 --> 00:34:58.159
characters in the movie to an extent.

612
00:34:58.639 --> 00:35:01.280
For sure. And I mean, especially in Carl Franklin's Hands.

613
00:35:01.679 --> 00:35:03.559
You and I talked before about the set and the

614
00:35:03.599 --> 00:35:08.360
scenery and the uses of those He does so so

615
00:35:09.360 --> 00:35:14.199
effortlessly and it I think those are the great locations

616
00:35:14.320 --> 00:35:17.440
to include in here, and I'm glad they have a space.

617
00:35:18.519 --> 00:35:18.760
Yeah.

618
00:35:19.400 --> 00:35:21.840
One thing that I had noticed, so speaking of locations,

619
00:35:21.840 --> 00:35:22.679
there's a movie theater.

620
00:35:23.440 --> 00:35:25.239
Oh I was about to tell you about this, you

621
00:35:25.320 --> 00:35:25.599
know it?

622
00:35:25.679 --> 00:35:29.920
Yeah, yeah, okay, go ahead. Oh well you're run with

623
00:35:29.960 --> 00:35:30.320
that ball.

624
00:35:30.719 --> 00:35:32.840
Well okay, so we're talking. You're talking about the movie

625
00:35:32.880 --> 00:35:36.320
theater that easy passes by, uh with the marquee that

626
00:35:36.360 --> 00:35:42.199
says the Betrayal, Yes, okay, all right, so not I

627
00:35:42.199 --> 00:35:46.280
mean again, the attention to detail in this film is

628
00:35:46.519 --> 00:35:52.440
just amazing because they got everything right. The Betrayal, that's

629
00:35:52.440 --> 00:35:55.280
not a fake movie title for the for the Marquee.

630
00:35:55.719 --> 00:36:01.320
The Betrayal actually was a very popular film released in

631
00:36:01.400 --> 00:36:04.760
nineteen forty eight, which is period accurate. Scott. The term

632
00:36:04.880 --> 00:36:07.920
race film describes a genre of film produced in the

633
00:36:08.000 --> 00:36:12.000
United States between nineteen fifteen and the nineteen fifties. These

634
00:36:12.039 --> 00:36:17.360
films were produced for black audiences, starred black casts, and

635
00:36:17.480 --> 00:36:21.880
were very popular despite being produced outside the Hollywood studio system.

636
00:36:22.360 --> 00:36:26.719
Now of the five hundred produced, sadly, most of them

637
00:36:26.840 --> 00:36:30.800
were lost over time until some of them started receiving

638
00:36:30.880 --> 00:36:34.880
a resurgence in the nineteen eighties on the bet cable network.

639
00:36:37.360 --> 00:36:41.079
And here's a here's a cool, cool bit of trivia

640
00:36:41.079 --> 00:36:45.280
for you. Oscar Michelle, who wrote and directed The Betrayal,

641
00:36:46.000 --> 00:36:49.440
was also the first African American to produce a film.

642
00:36:50.280 --> 00:36:52.280
And that's one of the things I love about this

643
00:36:52.559 --> 00:36:55.679
is that it's a it's a bread krom, It's a

644
00:36:55.719 --> 00:37:02.280
thread that you can follow. Two more black history in cinema, right,

645
00:37:02.760 --> 00:37:05.679
you can follow that thread. I had no idea about,

646
00:37:05.840 --> 00:37:08.000
you know, all of what you had just said. I had,

647
00:37:08.159 --> 00:37:11.239
you know, a note about Oscar Micheau being the first

648
00:37:12.280 --> 00:37:16.400
black producer on a feature linked film. That's a lot

649
00:37:16.440 --> 00:37:17.599
of fascinating background on that.

650
00:37:18.159 --> 00:37:20.119
Well, yeah, I mean you think that's that's a whole

651
00:37:20.199 --> 00:37:22.639
genre I wasn't aware of.

652
00:37:23.280 --> 00:37:29.280
Yeah, and we got a connection to you know, if

653
00:37:29.280 --> 00:37:31.440
you're a Carl Franklin fan, it's a way to dive

654
00:37:31.480 --> 00:37:34.320
into that through this movie. Same thing if you're a

655
00:37:34.360 --> 00:37:38.119
Denzel Washington fan, a Don Cheetle fan. A lot of

656
00:37:38.159 --> 00:37:40.599
great ways to keep that history life.

657
00:37:41.199 --> 00:37:45.679
Well, Scott, let's talk about noteworthy scenes and the pivotal

658
00:37:45.679 --> 00:37:50.360
moment in this film. Let's try let's try a little

659
00:37:50.400 --> 00:37:52.960
bata back and forth, because I'm betting you've got a

660
00:37:53.000 --> 00:37:56.320
few that maybe I don't have, and vice versa. I

661
00:37:56.360 --> 00:37:59.400
want to start with easy sleeping with his best friend's

662
00:37:59.440 --> 00:38:02.920
girl to get information about Daphne. So here's the thing.

663
00:38:03.599 --> 00:38:07.639
A film no our hero will always be flawed, right,

664
00:38:08.920 --> 00:38:11.880
his actions can be deemed unlikable at times, and I

665
00:38:11.920 --> 00:38:14.039
think this scene informs us that we're not going to

666
00:38:14.119 --> 00:38:17.159
agree with everything he does from a moral point of view.

667
00:38:17.960 --> 00:38:20.679
I think that's definitely fair. It also adds a layer

668
00:38:20.719 --> 00:38:24.159
of guilt that he feels throughout the movie, a sense

669
00:38:24.199 --> 00:38:27.199
of personal responsibility, something he's ashamed that he had done

670
00:38:28.760 --> 00:38:32.599
to a certain degree. You know, obviously he's cheating on

671
00:38:32.599 --> 00:38:35.079
one of his best friends from the next room.

672
00:38:35.519 --> 00:38:37.960
Yeah, his best friend is passed out drunk in the

673
00:38:38.000 --> 00:38:41.400
next room, and you know it's Buddy's wife's just coming

674
00:38:41.400 --> 00:38:44.800
on to him. And he he he, I get that.

675
00:38:44.880 --> 00:38:46.880
He's it's not about passion for him. He's still trying

676
00:38:46.880 --> 00:38:51.039
to get information about Daphne. But come on, man, your

677
00:38:51.039 --> 00:38:51.880
best friend's.

678
00:38:51.599 --> 00:38:55.239
Girl and and he's he's using her to get information.

679
00:38:55.639 --> 00:38:57.679
So it definitely.

680
00:38:58.800 --> 00:39:01.960
He's hitting that spot, she says, And you know, it's

681
00:39:02.000 --> 00:39:04.639
just it's just it's a but you know, you need

682
00:39:04.679 --> 00:39:07.519
a scene like that, because what film noir always teaches

683
00:39:07.559 --> 00:39:10.639
us is you sleep with the wrong person, they're gonna

684
00:39:10.679 --> 00:39:14.599
end up dead like kredit In, you know. And then

685
00:39:14.599 --> 00:39:15.880
we're off and we're off and running.

686
00:39:15.920 --> 00:39:18.800
So well, I think it definitely adds to you know,

687
00:39:18.960 --> 00:39:21.320
like I said in the synopsis, this is a detective's

688
00:39:21.360 --> 00:39:24.800
origin story, right, Yeah, So I think that's something that

689
00:39:24.880 --> 00:39:27.119
definitely probably comes out in the novels, something it would

690
00:39:27.159 --> 00:39:29.639
have come out if there were subsequent movies, uh, to

691
00:39:29.679 --> 00:39:32.000
see how he kind of follows that kind of pattern.

692
00:39:32.840 --> 00:39:35.800
One of the other scenes that I noticed, speaking of

693
00:39:35.880 --> 00:39:37.480
kind of his growth, is where he stands up for

694
00:39:37.559 --> 00:39:41.880
himself at Todd Carter's house the first opportunity he sees

695
00:39:41.920 --> 00:39:45.079
that I could make some money at this, and I

696
00:39:45.159 --> 00:39:48.079
know how much danger is involved in this. I know

697
00:39:48.119 --> 00:39:50.960
how much personal risk there is, so I have a

698
00:39:51.079 --> 00:39:54.199
right to ask for more money to do these things.

699
00:39:54.280 --> 00:39:55.760
And I think we would have seen more of those

700
00:39:56.480 --> 00:39:58.239
moments in his subsequent movies.

701
00:39:58.760 --> 00:40:02.360
Again, it's it's one of those ropes that I expect

702
00:40:02.639 --> 00:40:04.679
in a movie like this, but I love seeing it.

703
00:40:05.000 --> 00:40:08.320
He is making money from everyone because he's playing one

704
00:40:08.360 --> 00:40:11.480
side against the other back and forth. He's getting money

705
00:40:11.480 --> 00:40:13.840
from Todd, he's getting money from Albright, he's getting money

706
00:40:13.840 --> 00:40:18.599
from Daphne. Everyone's paying him for information or to get

707
00:40:18.599 --> 00:40:20.880
more information. They're putting him to work, and he's working,

708
00:40:21.280 --> 00:40:24.639
He's basically working them all. It's fantastic. It's a I

709
00:40:24.679 --> 00:40:27.480
love the slide of hand that he's doing here with that.

710
00:40:27.480 --> 00:40:30.119
That's a great that's a great moment. How about sneaking

711
00:40:30.159 --> 00:40:31.280
up to Daphne's hotel room.

712
00:40:32.079 --> 00:40:36.400
That was very clever. Another level attention there, because it's

713
00:40:37.360 --> 00:40:40.119
a segregated hotel, right.

714
00:40:40.039 --> 00:40:42.119
Yet remember what time it is in nineteen.

715
00:40:41.840 --> 00:40:46.880
Forty eight, right, not allowing any black guests. And how

716
00:40:46.920 --> 00:40:48.679
does he not only get up there, but how does

717
00:40:48.719 --> 00:40:49.239
he get out?

718
00:40:50.000 --> 00:40:52.800
Well, if I'm him, I don't want to get out

719
00:40:52.840 --> 00:40:59.360
because the heat between these two is intense. Jennifer Beals

720
00:40:59.559 --> 00:41:02.719
and Denze Washington are melting the screen and that and

721
00:41:02.760 --> 00:41:05.800
that and that scene, and I think about the dialogue.

722
00:41:05.920 --> 00:41:08.639
I love they've got. They've got this great back, this

723
00:41:08.719 --> 00:41:12.480
great bit of dialogue where Denzel is like, you know,

724
00:41:12.519 --> 00:41:14.159
I don't want to upset you, but you were the

725
00:41:14.199 --> 00:41:17.039
last one to talk to Corretta. And then she fires

726
00:41:17.119 --> 00:41:19.039
right back, I don't upset you, but you were the

727
00:41:19.119 --> 00:41:20.880
last one with her. Now where does that leave us?

728
00:41:21.639 --> 00:41:25.159
And they're just sizing each other up. You know, you're

729
00:41:25.199 --> 00:41:31.719
watching this and you're you expect a very steamy sex scene.

730
00:41:32.480 --> 00:41:36.599
And the funny thing is they shot it, but Carl

731
00:41:36.599 --> 00:41:38.679
Franklin cut it from the movie because he didn't feel

732
00:41:38.719 --> 00:41:41.320
it was needed to convey their story. I got to

733
00:41:41.320 --> 00:41:43.400
ask you, you agree with it, you agree with him?

734
00:41:43.800 --> 00:41:47.119
I agree with that. Yeah, And as much as I agree,

735
00:41:47.159 --> 00:41:50.639
her presence is very seductive. It you know, there's a

736
00:41:50.920 --> 00:41:53.519
lot of temptation for him in that room, but she's

737
00:41:53.559 --> 00:41:59.079
a champagne flute full of gasoline, right, Very seductive, but

738
00:42:00.360 --> 00:42:04.079
a volatile situation to say the least. If he gets in,

739
00:42:04.239 --> 00:42:08.280
if he gives into that heat, it could be pretty explosive.

740
00:42:08.320 --> 00:42:10.559
So I think he made the right call on that moment.

741
00:42:10.960 --> 00:42:13.440
It's a tough call. I got one more scene, but

742
00:42:14.239 --> 00:42:15.760
drop another scene on me. What do he got?

743
00:42:16.519 --> 00:42:19.639
Meeting Mouse for the first time when he says easiest life.

744
00:42:19.400 --> 00:42:22.679
In his home? Oh, that moment.

745
00:42:23.320 --> 00:42:28.559
It just specifically the moment where he Mouse puts his

746
00:42:28.559 --> 00:42:30.159
gun away and he's like, all right, all right, let

747
00:42:30.199 --> 00:42:32.480
me talk to him, So let me tell you something.

748
00:42:32.559 --> 00:42:33.880
Let he pulls out the gun and shoot him the

749
00:42:33.880 --> 00:42:39.719
shoulder anyway like that, That epitomizes Mouse for for the

750
00:42:39.719 --> 00:42:42.039
rest of this movie. And I think it's a dynamic

751
00:42:42.119 --> 00:42:44.400
that I would have wanted to see in subsequent sequels

752
00:42:44.440 --> 00:42:46.320
between Denzel and Mouse.

753
00:42:47.000 --> 00:42:51.400
Look, I love Mouse, and I love Don Cheatle's performance

754
00:42:52.199 --> 00:42:56.239
of Mouse. But the scene we're talking about here, just

755
00:42:56.360 --> 00:43:00.440
imagine for a second Samuel Jackson's playing Mouse out Alexander,

756
00:43:01.199 --> 00:43:03.480
bringing some of that Jewels Winfield vibe to it.

757
00:43:04.360 --> 00:43:05.760
True, How true?

758
00:43:05.840 --> 00:43:09.079
I mean right? That's I mean Cheatle kind of reminded

759
00:43:09.119 --> 00:43:12.599
me of of that the aggression that he had, like

760
00:43:12.960 --> 00:43:15.639
that boldness that he has where he does not back

761
00:43:15.679 --> 00:43:17.440
down from anybody, and maybe he goes a little too

762
00:43:17.480 --> 00:43:20.760
far in just about every situation.

763
00:43:21.719 --> 00:43:25.000
True. Although I i'd be in, you know, add that

764
00:43:25.039 --> 00:43:29.199
to the cart in the alternate movie house because I

765
00:43:29.239 --> 00:43:34.159
wonder about the age difference between Denzel and Samuel, because

766
00:43:34.159 --> 00:43:38.480
I feel like I'd have to look maybe for some

767
00:43:38.559 --> 00:43:43.039
reason in this role, Don strikes me as younger than Denzel.

768
00:43:43.559 --> 00:43:46.519
And oh he's probably the way that he kind of

769
00:43:46.840 --> 00:43:52.719
carries himself, right, he's a little bit more impulsive. I

770
00:43:52.760 --> 00:43:55.039
don't know that we would have seen that dynamic between

771
00:43:55.079 --> 00:43:58.559
the two. They would have been more peers in terms

772
00:43:58.559 --> 00:43:59.480
of age and experience.

773
00:43:59.719 --> 00:44:02.599
That's all right, that's fair. I got one more for you.

774
00:44:02.880 --> 00:44:05.360
I'm gonna call this what I feel is the pivotal moment.

775
00:44:06.199 --> 00:44:08.920
And you're waiting for it because in a movie where

776
00:44:09.199 --> 00:44:11.880
we're trying to uncover the mystery and solve the puzzle,

777
00:44:12.840 --> 00:44:17.079
you need that one moment where everything pieces together. So

778
00:44:18.159 --> 00:44:24.199
how about discovering the pictures inside the Bible? Uh, it's

779
00:44:24.239 --> 00:44:26.760
the moment. It's the moment when all is revealed. You

780
00:44:26.800 --> 00:44:30.079
find out what's motivating everybody. And I'll tell you that

781
00:44:30.119 --> 00:44:33.920
the what really hits home for me here is Uh.

782
00:44:34.000 --> 00:44:36.920
I'm reminded of Easies meeting with Terrell in the limo,

783
00:44:38.719 --> 00:44:41.000
you know, when he acknowledges the the young Hispanic boy

784
00:44:41.039 --> 00:44:44.519
as his quote adopted son, and I just got sick

785
00:44:44.559 --> 00:44:46.639
to my stomach. I was like, Oh, this guy's a

786
00:44:46.679 --> 00:44:47.400
slime ball.

787
00:44:48.000 --> 00:44:52.440
Yeah, yeah, it really does. It's horrible.

788
00:44:52.719 --> 00:44:56.679
You know, it's all the corrupt politicians, protecting secrets, bribing,

789
00:44:56.800 --> 00:45:00.920
bribing people. It brings it brings everything to This is

790
00:45:00.920 --> 00:45:04.159
what I feel is the pivotal moment. But I got

791
00:45:04.159 --> 00:45:06.519
to ask you. You know, we've talked about several scenes.

792
00:45:06.559 --> 00:45:09.119
What is the pivotal moment here, Scott? Is it this

793
00:45:09.159 --> 00:45:11.119
moment or have you got something different in mind?

794
00:45:11.440 --> 00:45:15.440
So to compound that, Daphne's confession about why she ran

795
00:45:15.480 --> 00:45:19.320
away not only because of what she knew from those photographs,

796
00:45:19.400 --> 00:45:24.239
but the fact that because of her parentage, Yeah, you know,

797
00:45:24.280 --> 00:45:30.079
the racist reasons why she was kind of forced out,

798
00:45:30.480 --> 00:45:34.480
culminating in that scene where you see the discussion between

799
00:45:34.559 --> 00:45:39.239
her and Todd Carter and he's just not letting her

800
00:45:39.320 --> 00:45:41.280
back in and it's just heartbreaking.

801
00:45:41.599 --> 00:45:45.440
Quick callback to Oscar my Show's The Betrayal from nineteen

802
00:45:45.480 --> 00:45:49.119
forty eight. Obviously I haven't seen the movie, but I

803
00:45:49.159 --> 00:45:52.840
looked up the synopsis. It's all about a man falling

804
00:45:52.880 --> 00:45:55.280
in love with a woman who he believes is white.

805
00:45:55.599 --> 00:45:57.280
What isn't interesting?

806
00:45:57.480 --> 00:46:00.760
So again tying it to the characters that we have

807
00:46:00.840 --> 00:46:01.440
in Devil in.

808
00:46:01.360 --> 00:46:04.599
A Blue Dress, Yeah, it's another one to check out.

809
00:46:05.280 --> 00:46:09.000
We gotta find that one. But first, uh, let's let's

810
00:46:09.000 --> 00:46:11.400
find our way to one last break, Scott, and when

811
00:46:11.400 --> 00:46:18.800
we come back, we'll wrap things up. Welcome back, Scott.

812
00:46:19.079 --> 00:46:23.880
If someone was unfamiliar with Carl Franklin, which three films

813
00:46:24.079 --> 00:46:25.360
would you suggest they watch?

814
00:46:26.239 --> 00:46:30.519
So I've got two that i'd recommend with one thing

815
00:46:30.559 --> 00:46:33.119
in common, and it's that they both start with the

816
00:46:33.480 --> 00:46:34.000
word one.

817
00:46:34.880 --> 00:46:37.119
Okay, give me the first one.

818
00:46:37.960 --> 00:46:43.400
So One False Move is an interesting, interesting movie with

819
00:46:45.000 --> 00:46:49.159
Billy Bob Thornton, written by Billy Bob Thornton, Tom Eperson,

820
00:46:50.320 --> 00:46:54.800
but also Bill Paxton, one of our favorites yep and

821
00:46:54.880 --> 00:46:58.320
in this one, Bill Paxton plays a small town police

822
00:46:58.360 --> 00:47:05.760
chief in Star City, Arkansas who gets the warning from

823
00:47:06.320 --> 00:47:10.800
l A PD that a trio of killers, including Billy

824
00:47:10.800 --> 00:47:15.440
Bob Thornton, is coming back to Star City. One of

825
00:47:15.440 --> 00:47:18.599
those killers is basically coming home. So you have this

826
00:47:18.719 --> 00:47:22.639
kind of trail of danger that's following them all the

827
00:47:22.679 --> 00:47:26.000
way while you've got Bill Paxton trying his best to

828
00:47:26.039 --> 00:47:29.320
make a great impression on these LA detectives that he

829
00:47:29.360 --> 00:47:29.840
looks up to.

830
00:47:30.719 --> 00:47:30.840
Uh.

831
00:47:31.039 --> 00:47:34.719
It's a it's a very smart thriller. It gets into

832
00:47:34.760 --> 00:47:37.119
a little bit more kind of suburbia and more kind

833
00:47:37.159 --> 00:47:42.079
of back roads kind of locations. But it's I can

834
00:47:42.159 --> 00:47:46.159
see why that one got a lot of attention and

835
00:47:46.280 --> 00:47:48.440
why it led to Devil in a Blue Dress.

836
00:47:48.800 --> 00:47:52.039
Well, I'll tell you something, I'm gonna agree with you.

837
00:47:52.079 --> 00:47:54.519
That was that's one of my that's one of my recommendations,

838
00:47:55.000 --> 00:47:57.880
which is a bit of a cheat for me because

839
00:47:57.960 --> 00:48:02.559
I haven't seen it, but given the pedigree involved with

840
00:48:02.559 --> 00:48:05.000
this film and what it did for Carl Franklin's career,

841
00:48:05.960 --> 00:48:07.440
I'm just saying, yeah, we got, I got. I have

842
00:48:07.559 --> 00:48:09.679
to see it now, I'm I'm I'm actually excited because

843
00:48:09.679 --> 00:48:12.199
you've you've seen it, you're recommending it, So now I

844
00:48:12.239 --> 00:48:14.639
know I'm in for a treat because I love Devil

845
00:48:14.639 --> 00:48:17.760
in a Blue Dress. So ye, next movie? What else

846
00:48:17.800 --> 00:48:18.519
you got?

847
00:48:19.119 --> 00:48:22.000
The next one is one true thing. So this is

848
00:48:22.159 --> 00:48:25.239
Meryl Streep, this is William Hurt, this is Renee Zellwigger.

849
00:48:26.199 --> 00:48:30.239
It's actually a film that Meryl Streep won the Oscar for.

850
00:48:31.960 --> 00:48:36.679
This one is following Renee zel Wigger. She plays a

851
00:48:36.760 --> 00:48:42.199
career New Yorker journalist who is trying her best to

852
00:48:42.840 --> 00:48:46.239
break the break a big story and make her career.

853
00:48:46.920 --> 00:48:49.719
Her father is William Hurt, her mother is Meryl Streep.

854
00:48:50.360 --> 00:48:54.159
She's always looking for William Hurt's acceptance because he is

855
00:48:54.199 --> 00:48:58.960
this professor that's always pressuring his family and you know,

856
00:48:59.159 --> 00:49:02.599
raising expectation is way too high his loving mother. Though,

857
00:49:03.639 --> 00:49:09.039
her loving mother, Meryl Streep, is diagnosed with cancer that

858
00:49:09.599 --> 00:49:14.360
progresses quickly, so the dynamics there it's a bit different

859
00:49:14.360 --> 00:49:16.320
than the other movies that we're talking about, different than

860
00:49:16.360 --> 00:49:19.800
Devil in the buddhas different than One False Move because

861
00:49:19.800 --> 00:49:23.719
it's more focused on relationships. But that's another thing that

862
00:49:23.760 --> 00:49:27.400
I think Carl Franklin does so well is bring out

863
00:49:27.719 --> 00:49:31.280
the drama with the framing of the scenes and also

864
00:49:31.360 --> 00:49:36.199
how he's walking the actors through it. It's a tough

865
00:49:36.199 --> 00:49:37.960
one to watch, but it's it's worth a watch.

866
00:49:38.800 --> 00:49:41.840
I haven't seen that one, but remid me, isn't that

867
00:49:41.880 --> 00:49:44.119
the one that Streep was? She? Did she get like

868
00:49:44.159 --> 00:49:47.159
a Golden Globe nomination for that one? I believe.

869
00:49:48.639 --> 00:49:50.599
She got eight nominations?

870
00:49:50.800 --> 00:49:51.039
Yeah?

871
00:49:51.119 --> 00:49:53.840
Oh, actually, okay, she was nominated for an Oscar and

872
00:49:55.719 --> 00:49:59.719
Best Actress. No leading role, but yeah, Golden globally.

873
00:49:59.719 --> 00:50:03.639
Well all right, well we we talked about one False Move.

874
00:50:04.239 --> 00:50:07.039
I'll give you to I'll give you two more. Uh

875
00:50:07.159 --> 00:50:11.119
for for my three, check out High Crimes with Morgan

876
00:50:11.159 --> 00:50:14.920
Freeman and Ashley Judd. Uh. This is the one. Ashley

877
00:50:14.960 --> 00:50:18.119
Judd's husband goes on trial for murdering villagers under a

878
00:50:18.119 --> 00:50:21.440
different name while serving in the military, and she's a

879
00:50:21.559 --> 00:50:25.599
very successful attorney who decides to defend him. But because

880
00:50:25.639 --> 00:50:28.840
she has no idea about military protocol. She enlists the

881
00:50:28.880 --> 00:50:33.840
help of Freeman, who's like this washed up military trial lawyer.

882
00:50:35.639 --> 00:50:41.960
Really cool. Her husband's played by h Jesus aka Jim Caviezel,

883
00:50:42.679 --> 00:50:47.159
so you know, powerful, powerful performances. It's a it's a

884
00:50:47.199 --> 00:50:49.000
it's a really good movie. I checked that one out

885
00:50:49.440 --> 00:50:51.760
and then the other one, Scott, you gotta see because

886
00:50:51.800 --> 00:50:55.920
it's so good. A movie called Out of Time. Uh

887
00:50:56.000 --> 00:50:59.960
here he's he's back with Denzel Denzel and Eva Mendez.

888
00:51:00.920 --> 00:51:03.039
He's a he's a police chief in Florida, you know,

889
00:51:03.159 --> 00:51:05.760
kind of a down on his luck, you know guy.

890
00:51:06.159 --> 00:51:07.719
You know, he gets mixed up in an affair with

891
00:51:07.760 --> 00:51:11.360
a married woman she's she claims she has cancer, so

892
00:51:12.840 --> 00:51:14.960
you know, I almost spoil it for you, but basically,

893
00:51:15.039 --> 00:51:17.440
a half a million dollars goes missing from an evidence locker.

894
00:51:18.039 --> 00:51:20.800
She ends up dead, and his ex wife played by

895
00:51:20.840 --> 00:51:24.400
Eva Mendez, who happens to be a homicide detective in Miami,

896
00:51:25.320 --> 00:51:27.280
is building a case against him while he's trying to

897
00:51:27.280 --> 00:51:28.880
figure out who set him up in the first place.

898
00:51:30.400 --> 00:51:33.840
It's one of those, like, you know, he is literally

899
00:51:33.920 --> 00:51:38.199
running out of time. Really cool movie. Let's talk about

900
00:51:38.199 --> 00:51:42.239
a recommendation, Scott, I gotta tell you, I love how

901
00:51:42.320 --> 00:51:45.119
upbeat the film's ending is with Easy's narration that he

902
00:51:45.920 --> 00:51:49.039
sat on my porch at my house. You know, he's

903
00:51:49.159 --> 00:51:50.719
very proud of that house, and I love that about

904
00:51:50.719 --> 00:51:52.960
his character. You know, he tells us he's going to

905
00:51:53.079 --> 00:51:55.639
use the money that he made to invest in real estate,

906
00:51:55.760 --> 00:52:00.199
maybe open up a private investigation and agency. You know,

907
00:52:00.199 --> 00:52:02.360
that's such a shame because, like you you've said, you know,

908
00:52:02.400 --> 00:52:04.920
you've mentioned a couple of times, you know, I mean,

909
00:52:04.920 --> 00:52:08.039
the film was loved by critics, but it wasn't successful

910
00:52:08.039 --> 00:52:10.800
at the box office. So you know, the plans to

911
00:52:10.800 --> 00:52:16.000
see Denzel play Easy in you know, subse you know,

912
00:52:16.440 --> 00:52:20.840
subsequent films based off of Walter Mosley's work, It just

913
00:52:20.920 --> 00:52:23.559
it never happened. And that just it makes me sad

914
00:52:23.599 --> 00:52:25.039
man because this is such a great film.

915
00:52:25.760 --> 00:52:30.760
Yeah, although knowing that this can still stand alone on

916
00:52:30.800 --> 00:52:33.719
its own, I think it makes it worthwhile. I think

917
00:52:33.760 --> 00:52:35.880
if we had, you know, for piling up that cart

918
00:52:35.920 --> 00:52:38.079
and the alternate videos to earths, go ahead and do

919
00:52:38.199 --> 00:52:43.239
a few of those. I do want to. I would

920
00:52:43.239 --> 00:52:45.639
be curious though, on that alternate universe, if you know

921
00:52:45.880 --> 00:52:50.320
how that would interfere with other movies involving Denzel, involving

922
00:52:50.800 --> 00:52:55.400
Don Cheadle, Jennifer Beals, a bunch of the others. I

923
00:52:55.400 --> 00:52:57.199
would want to make sure that it's something that doesn't

924
00:52:57.960 --> 00:53:00.519
kind of skip those other tracks on the record.

925
00:53:01.159 --> 00:53:04.000
Well, the Devil in a Blue Dress is a film

926
00:53:04.079 --> 00:53:06.840
for any fan of Denzel Washington, as well as a

927
00:53:07.639 --> 00:53:12.159
film noir genre in my opinion for sure. Well, listeners,

928
00:53:12.199 --> 00:53:14.519
what do you think of Devil in a Blue Dress?

929
00:53:14.960 --> 00:53:17.360
Have you seen it? Did you enjoy it as much

930
00:53:17.440 --> 00:53:20.639
as our friend and listener and Patreon producer James Buckley? Did?

931
00:53:21.400 --> 00:53:23.119
You can la us know on social media. You'll find

932
00:53:23.199 --> 00:53:26.239
us on Facebook, Instagram, and x You can check out

933
00:53:26.760 --> 00:53:29.760
a Film by Podcast dot com for all of our

934
00:53:29.800 --> 00:53:33.440
episodes streaming free, that is, with exceptions Scott to the

935
00:53:33.599 --> 00:53:37.519
Patreon stuff. You can write to us at a Film

936
00:53:37.559 --> 00:53:40.360
by Podcast at gmail dot com with your questions, comments

937
00:53:40.360 --> 00:53:43.440
and concerns. We may just read your response on the

938
00:53:43.440 --> 00:53:46.880
show and send you some of a film by swag. Scott,

939
00:53:46.880 --> 00:53:50.800
I gotta tell you you have you alluded to the

940
00:53:50.840 --> 00:53:55.280
Alternate Universe video store on several occasions this episode, and

941
00:53:55.920 --> 00:53:59.440
I'm not gonna I'm gonna tell you or the listeners everything,

942
00:53:59.440 --> 00:54:01.960
but I will tell you this. We got something special

943
00:54:02.000 --> 00:54:05.840
coming and it's pertaining to that that very phrase.

944
00:54:06.360 --> 00:54:09.880
So all right, you know you mean the alternate Ultimate

945
00:54:10.360 --> 00:54:10.920
Video starts.

946
00:54:11.039 --> 00:54:18.440
Yeah, you know you guys, Scott, you just give us

947
00:54:18.559 --> 00:54:21.280
a pretty pretty good review, you and your your buddies

948
00:54:22.159 --> 00:54:25.159
over on Phaser Set the Stun for section thirty one,

949
00:54:25.199 --> 00:54:26.760
that new Paramount Plus movie.

950
00:54:27.159 --> 00:54:29.360
Yes, so here's my question.

951
00:54:30.199 --> 00:54:33.639
You you kind of had that crossover situation where it

952
00:54:33.719 --> 00:54:35.360
was a film at forty five and it was a

953
00:54:35.360 --> 00:54:38.599
Phaser Set the Stun last December. You did you did

954
00:54:38.679 --> 00:54:41.480
Star Trek the Motion Picture. How about we get to

955
00:54:41.719 --> 00:54:42.840
you know, I'm not trying to tell you all what

956
00:54:42.880 --> 00:54:44.760
to do, but how about we get to some of

957
00:54:44.760 --> 00:54:47.119
the other track movies, the original six.

958
00:54:48.039 --> 00:54:52.840
Your wish is granted. We are gonna dive in next week.

959
00:54:52.880 --> 00:54:54.960
We're coming back and we're talking about Star Trek to

960
00:54:55.280 --> 00:55:00.679
the Wrath of Khan, the arguably the granddaddy of Star films.

961
00:55:00.719 --> 00:55:04.119
We've got some time. We're kind of spending some time

962
00:55:04.199 --> 00:55:08.039
before we get back into Strange New Worlds, covering a

963
00:55:08.079 --> 00:55:09.840
lot of those early movies.

964
00:55:10.440 --> 00:55:13.559
All Right, you just made me very happy. I want

965
00:55:13.559 --> 00:55:16.639
to thank you for joining me today, Scott. It's always

966
00:55:16.679 --> 00:55:17.079
a pleasure.

967
00:55:17.760 --> 00:55:20.159
Yeah, thank you, And I mean, you know, listeners, if

968
00:55:20.800 --> 00:55:24.239
I would say, go to IMDb, look up Carl Franklin

969
00:55:24.280 --> 00:55:29.000
and see which of his direction has come into contact

970
00:55:29.039 --> 00:55:32.880
with the series that you follow, and see what other

971
00:55:33.199 --> 00:55:35.000
movies he has to discover. I think it can be

972
00:55:35.000 --> 00:55:35.800
pleasantly surprised.

973
00:55:36.440 --> 00:55:40.079
And remember listeners, like easy Rollings tells us, if you

974
00:55:40.159 --> 00:55:42.480
mixed up in something, you better be mixed up to

975
00:55:42.519 --> 00:55:44.800
the top. So to all of you mixed up in

976
00:55:44.840 --> 00:55:48.519
our show, following us on social media and subscribing to

977
00:55:48.559 --> 00:55:50.400
our Patreon, we thank you.