Episode 036: Strangers On A Train (1951, Alfred Hitchcock)

A tennis player without a loss,
Meets a bachelor with too much gloss,
Politeness can drain,
Riding on the train,
As Bruno suggests to Guy, Criss Cross!

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500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • Alfred Hitchcock: A Life In Darkness & Light – Patrick McGilligan (2003, Wiley)
  • Hitchcock – François Truffaut (1984, Simon & Schuster)

Episode 035: Goodfellas (1990, Martin Scorsese)

Henry and Tommy bleed Brooklyn dry,
With their fingers in every pie,
But Henry flays,
When Tommy says,
“What do you mean, ‘I’m a funny guy’”?

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500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • Made Men: The Story Of Goodfellas – Glenn Kenny (2020, Hanover Square Press)
  • Martin Scorsese: A Journey –  Mary Pat Kelley (1991, Hachette Books)
  • De Niro: A Biography (2002, HarperCollins)
  • Wiseguy – Nicholas Pileggi (1985, Bloomsbury)
  • The Lufthansa Heist: Behind The Six-Million Dollar Cash Haul That Shook The World  – Henry Hill & Daniel Simone (2015, Rowman & Littlefield)
  • Why wasn’t Goodfellas’ Henry Hill murdered by the mob? – Peter Bradshaw (2012, The Guardian)
  • 25 Years Later: The Memorable Goodfellas Soundtrack – Jordan Esekia (The Film Archive, 2015)

Episode 034: The Blues Brothers (1980, John Landis)

Though the brothers couldn’t be whiter,
For a band they couldn’t be tighter,
In a car ex-police,
Says Jake post-release,
‘Elwood, fix the cigarette lighter’.

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500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • The Blues Brothers: An Epic Friendship, The Rise Of Improv, And The Making Of An American Film Classic – Daniel De Vise (2024, Atlantic Monthly Press)
  • Improv Nation – Sam Wasson (2017, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
  • The SNL Companion: An Unofficial Guide To The Seasons, Sketches, And Stars Of Saturday Night Live – Stephen Tropicana & Steven Ginsberg, 2013, Applause)
  • Live From New York: The Complete Uncensored History Of Saturday Night Live – James Andrew Miller & Tom Shales (2002, Little, Brown And Company)

Episode 033. Wake In Fright (1971, Ted Kotcheff)

Joining Doc and Jock for a blabber,
Daughter Janette wants you to grab her,
At this time of year,
Don’t have too much beer,
You’ll never escape from the Yabba.

*

500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

Episode 032. Ocean’s Eleven (1960, Lewis Milestone)

Frank Sinatra, Sammy and Deano,
Want more from Las Vegas than Keno,
In a town full of sights,
They turn out the lights,
And steal the cash from the casino.

*

500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

Episode 031. The Lavender Hill Mob (1951, Charles Crichton)

All Henry wants is some more power,
As talk of heists begin to flower,
The plan is bold,
Steal all the gold,
Smuggle it out to the Eiffel Tower.

*

500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • Ripping England! – Roger Rawlings (2017, State University Of New York)
  • Ealing Studios – Charles Barr (1977, Cameron & Tayleur)
  • The Secret Life Of Ealing Studios – Robert Sellers (2015, Aurum Press)
  • Forever Ealing – George Perry (1981, Pavilion)

Episode 030. Met At Work (1990, Emilio Estevez)

A councilman becomes too brash
In Las Playas he make a splash,
At the end of the day,
As James and Carl say,
This is the last year we throw trash.

*

500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • Emilio Estevez, Seriously – Paula Span (1985, The Washington Post)
  • Brat: An ‘80s Story – Andrew McCarthy (2021, Simon & Schuster)
  • Men At Work: AFI Catalog (1990)
  • Met At Work: A Labor Of Laughter – Kevin Thomas (1990, Los Angeles Times)

Episode 029. Night Of The Juggler (1980, Robert Butler & Sydney J. Furie)

In the Bronx, never take it easy,
For a thriller that’s really breezy,
One thing about Boyd,
Don’t get him annoyed,
New York has never looked so sleazy.

*

500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • 80 Blocks From Tiffany’s (1979, Gary Weis)
  • Psychotic Reactions, NYC Style – Glenn Kenney (2025, Night Of The Juggler 4KUHD Restoration)
  • “Another Goddamn New York Day”: Night Of The Juggler’s Street Map Of The Vigilante Genre – Travis Woods (2025, Night Of The Juggler 4KUHD Restoration)
  • Turning Up The Heat With William P. McGivern – Barry Forshaw (2025, Night Of The Juggler 4KUHD Restoration)
  • Fear City (NYC Urbanism)
  • In a Cult Bronx Film, Hints of Hip-Hop – Andrew Borgia (2010, The New York Times)

Episode 028. Walkabout (1971, Nicholas Roeg)

The man takes a drive out of Sydney,
But then pulled a gun on them did he,
They live off the land,
Find water in sand,
With help from an Aborigine.

*

500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • 1971: The Films From Cinema’s Greatest Year – Robert Sellers (2023, The History Press) 
  • Native Features: Indigenous Films From Around The World – Houston Wood (2008, Continuum)
  • Cast Mates – Sam Twyford-Moore (2023, NewSouth Publishing)
  • Gulpilil – Derek Rielly (2019, Macmillan)
  • Walkabout (review) – Roger Ebert (1997, rogerebert.com)
  • Walkabout (review) – Roger Ebert (1998, criterion.com)

Episode 027. Village Of The Damned (1960, Wolf Rilla)

Mothers with no one between their thighs,
Gave birth to an alien surprise,
The town was conned, 
Their hair is blonde,
Just never look them straight in the eyes. 

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500 FILMS: A JOURNEY THROUGH GENRE CINEMA is a new podcast taking a spoiler-filled behind-the-scenes look at movies from the 1950s to the 1990s. Season two is now available. Come along on the journey!

🎧 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/500-films-a-journey-through-genre-cinema/id1809685360

🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0n3RHHUyqkLMC4IXbMzV1o?si=J-9aKeoJSimHQfHwCcHOXg

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Further Reading

  • Return Of The Cuckoos – Mark Burman (2003, The Guardian)
  • Logical Fantasy: The Many Worlds Of John Wyndham – Edited by David Dyte (2024, Subterranean Press)