Cinema60

Kick start your engines! Throw on that cutoff jean jacket vest with the pro-fascist pins ‘n’ patches! Respect nobody and nothing - society’s rules least of all! That’s right, it’s time to hit the highway and live that dream of total freedom and cause some violent mayhem and wanton destruction! It’s biker movies of 1969!
In this season finale, as part of their once Bootleg Bond series, now expanded Genre series, Bart and Jenna explore all that hogs and leather have to offer. Don’t miss out on their in depth discussion on 1960s cinema classic Easy Rider and a film Jenna describes as truly evil, Satan’s Sadists.
The following films are discussed:

• Run, Angel, Run! (1969)
Directed by Jack Starrett
Starring William Smith, Valerie Starrett, Dan Kemp
• Hell's Belles (1969)
Directed by Maury Dexter
Starring Jeremy Slate, Jocelyn Lane, Adam Roarke
• Naked Angels (1969)
Directed by Bruce D. Clark
Starring Michael Greene, Jennifer Gan, Richard Rust
• The Cycle Savages (1969)
Directed by Bill Brame
Starring Bruce Dern, Melody Patterson, Chris Robinson
• Hell's Angels '69 (1969)
Directed by Lee Madden
Starring Tom Stern, Jeremy Slate, Conny Van Dyke
• Satan's Sadists (1969)
Directed by Al Adamson
Starring Russ Tamblyn, Scott Brady, Regina Carrol
• Easy Rider (1969)
Directed by Dennis Hopper
Starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson

One a basic level, ‘60s cinema is the story of the complete breakdown of censorship rules about what could and could not be shown on American theater screens. Hollywood’s Production Code was already falling apart in the ‘50s when competition with television forced movies to offer kinds of entertainment that were not available on the small screen. Films from countries with fewer restrictions on content were being shown more frequently and naturist documentaries were getting around rules about nudity – though you had to go to “art” cinemas or less reputable theaters to see these things. While the studios still had strict guidelines on what was acceptable for release in mainstream theaters, smaller theaters were pushing boundaries on what they were willing to show audiences. As a result, Hollywood, in order to keep up, threw all their old self-censorship rules by the end of the ‘60s.
One of the major figures on the grindhouse circuit who continued to push the amount of sex and nudity that could be shown in films throughout the decade – and made enough money doing it for the studios to really take notice – was Russ Meyer. His goofy, satirical, surprisingly well-made exploitation films were cutting-edge smut that gained popularity over the course of the ‘60s because they delivered the sleaze they promised and dis it with skill and style. Eventually he gained a cult reputation among cineastes and reputable film critics that continues to this day, even though many of his films are more shocking by modern standards than they were when they first hit screens.
In this episode, Bart and Jenna discuss all things boobs, sexual desperation and boobs. Bart takes on the brunt of the burden, getting through the entire decade and finding there’s more to Meyer than pure titillation. Jenna, however, is less than enthused with Meyer’s ‘comedic’ sensibilities, finding Bart’s cherry-picked selections mostly intolerable. But even both agree that at least a little bit of Meyer is essential viewing for anybody who want to understand the what the decade in cinema was all about.
The following films are discussed:

• Lorna (1964)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Lorna Maitland, Mark Bradley, James Rucker
• Mudhoney (1965)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Hal Hopper, Antoinette Cristiani, John Furlong
• Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1965)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Tura Satana, Haji, Lori Williams
• Good Morning and... Goodbye! (1967)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Alaina Capri, Stuart Lancaster, Haji
• Vixen! (1968)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Erica Gavin, Garth Pillsbury, Harrison Page
• Harry, Cherry and Raquel (1969)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Linda Ashton, Charles Napier, Larissa Ely
Also mentioned:
• The Immoral Mr. Teas (1959)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Bill Teas, Ann Peters, Enrico Banducci
• Eve and the Handyman (1961)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Eve Meyer, Anthony-James Ryan, Frank Bolger
• Erotica (1961)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Denise Daniels, Kathy Lee, Candis McKay
• Wild Gals of the Naked West (1962)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Sammy Gilbert, Anthony-James Ryan, Jackie Moran
• Europe in the Raw (1963)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Veronique Gabriel, Gigi La Touche, Abundavita
• Fanny Hill (1964)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Miriam Hopkins, Letícia Román, Ulli Lommel
• Motorpsycho (1965)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Haji, Alex Rocco, Steve Oliver
• Mondo Topless (1966)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Babette Bardot, Darlene Grey, Pat Barringtonn
• Common Law Cabin (1967)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Jackie Moran, Babette Bardot, Adele Rein
• Finders Keepers, Lovers Weepers! (1968)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Anne Chapman, Paul Lockwood, Gordon Wescourt
• Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Dolly Read, Cynthia Myers, Marcia McBroom
• Supervixens (1975)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Charles Pitt, Shari Eubank, Charles Napier
• Up! (1976)
Directed by Russ Meyer
Starring Edward Schaaf, Robert McLane, Elaine Collins

The impact of The Dirty Dozen on the decade cannot be overstated – here was a big-budget, Hollywood star-powered blockbuster, about a popular topic, that simply didn’t hold back. Toss on the fact that there was no rating system at the time, it’s very likely Little Timmy didn’t know what he was getting into when he decided to go see that new World War II movie. With a few well placed curse words and a few dozen dead Nazis, director Robert Aldrich ushered a whole new era of screen violence into the American consciousness.
In this episode, Bart and Jenna discuss the legacy of The Dirty Dozen by going straight to the immediate rip-offs that followed in its wake. There’s at least two surprisingly underseen gems in the bunch, as well as one other massive hit, all of which bring up the body count even as some question their own morality. Finally, some war movies even Bart can enjoy!
The following films are discussed:

• The Dirty Dozen (1967)
Directed by Robert Aldrich
Starring Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson
• Dark of the Sun (1968)
Directed by Jack Cardiff
Starring Rod Taylor, Yvette Mimieux, Jim Brown
• The Devil's Brigade (1968)
Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen
Starring William Holden, Cliff Robertson, Vince Edwards
• Play Dirty (1969)
Directed by André De Toth
Starring Michael Caine, Nigel Davenport, Nigel Green
• The Wild Bunch (1969)
Directed by Sam Peckinpah
Starring William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan
• Battle of the Commandos (1969)
La legione dei dannati
Directed by Umberto Lenzi
Starring Jack Palance, Thomas Hunter, Curd Jurgens

Cinema60 is back with a ghost guest in order to highlight some notable opinions on film. Dwight Macdonald, a celebrity film critic of the ‘50s and ‘60s who is now more remembered as a cultural critic and political pundit, had a lot to say about the dumbing down of high art to appeal to middlebrow tastes. Championing films that challenged audiences, he famously took on Alain Resnais’ Last Year at Marienbad as one of the most difficult films to ever be embraced by American audiences.
While he does not consider the film one of his favorites, he admires its techniques and ambitions. He would use it as a touchstone through his career to describe the type of film that pushes boundaries of what cinema can do and engages on a higher level. In this episode, Bart and Jenna respond to Macdonald, muse on the actual difficulty of such a film and use his word to illustrate their own mission statement.
The following film is discussed:
•Last Year at Marienbad (1961)
L'année dernière à Marienbad
Directed by Alain Resnais
Starring Delphine Seyrig, Giorgio Albertazzi, Sacha Pitoëff

Text discussed:
• On Movies (1969) by Dwight Mcdonald

Other films mentioned:
• Citizen Kane (1941)
Directed by Orson Welles
Starring Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Dorothy Comingore
• Children of Paradise (1945)
Les enfants du paradis
Directed by Marcel Carné
Starring Arletty, Jean-Louis Barrault, Pierre Brasseur
• Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959)
Directed by Alain Resnais
Starring Emmanuelle Riva, Eiji Okada, Stella Dassas
• Breathless (1960)
À bout de souffle
Directed by Jean-Luc Godard
Starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg, Jean-Pierre Melville
• La Dolce Vita (1960)
Directed by Federico Fellini
Starring Marcello Mastroianni, Anita Ekberg, Anouk Aimée
• Jules & Jim (1962)
Directed by François Truffaut
Starring Jeanne Moreau, Oskar Werner, Henri Serre

For the first half of the 1960s, Akira Kurosawa was arguably at the peak of his career, making masterpiece after masterpiece at a rate that was sure to surpass the heights of his ‘50s glories. But then, after making the most beloved film of his career, he hit a wall. There would be several more great films to come, but for a while there it seemed like the career of one of cinema’s most widely celebrated masters had come to an end.
In this episode, Bart and Jenna discuss what happened to Kurosawa’s second half of the decade, but mostly they relish the opportunity to finally cross off some ‘60s cinema heavy-hitters from their list. From the banging drums of Yojimbo, to the harrowing screams of Red Beard, with some striking and atypical gendai-geki thrillers along the way, the episode is packed with must-see films. Listen as Jenna admires Kurosawa’s artistry but occasionally struggles with his pacing, while Bart rapturously discovers that some old favorites are even better than he remembered.
The following films are discussed:

• The Bad Sleep Well (1960)
悪い奴ほどよく眠る / Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Starring Toshiro Mifune, Masayuki Mori, Kyoko Kagawa
• Yojimbo (1961)
用心棒 / Yôjinbô
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Starring Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Yoko Tsukasa
• Sanjuro (1962)
椿三十郎 / Tsubaki Sanjûrô
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Starring Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Keiju Kobayashi
• High and Low (1963)
天国と地獄 / Tengoku to jigoku
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Starring Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Kyōko Kagawa
• Red Beard (1965)
赤ひげ / Akahige
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Starring Toshiro Mifune, Yūzō Kayama, Reiko Dan
• Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)
トラ・トラ・トラ！
Directed by Richard Fleischer, Toshio Masuda & Kinji Fukasaku
Starring So Yamamura, Martin Balsam, Tatsuya Mihashi