Film Utopia

Originally recorded and published in 2021. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On the final part of our Bond retrospective series, Steven and Benjamin reconvened in 2021 for a response to the release of the latest film, No Time to Die (2021).

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On the final part of our original archive series from 2015, Steven and Benjamin review Daniel Craig’s 4^th outing as James Bond in Spectre, which was just out in cinemas when this episode was originally published. Additionally, in the second half of this episode, Steven and Benjamin reflect upon the film series as a whole and share some of their favourite moments, cars, henchmen, villains and music from across the Bond films as well as some of their not-so favourites!

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On part 7, Steven and Benjamin explore the first three movies from the Daniel Craig Bond era and talk about the stunts, the cars, the villains, the music and all the rest of it! Covered on this retrospective are Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008) and Skyfall (2012). Please note: Spectre (2015) and No Time to Die (2021) were originally presented as stand-alone episodes and will be re-published as such over the next two days following this.

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On this episode, Steven and Benjamin stride into the 90s and early 00s with Eon Productions’ latest James Bond, Pierce Brosnan, to share their thoughts on Goldeneye (1995), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The World is Not Enough (1999) and Die Another Day (2002).

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On part 5, Steven and Benjamin share their thoughts on the two Timothy Dalton outings as MI6 spy, James Bond with The Living Daylights (1987) and License to Kill (1989).

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On this part, Steven and Benjamin wrap up their retrospective of the Roger Moore as Bond era with For Your Eyes Only (1981), Octopussy (1983) and A View to a Kill (1985), as well as a segway discussion on Sean Connery’s final outing as James Bond in the non-Eon produced outing, Never Say Never Again (1983).

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

In this episode, Steven and Benjamin crack into the first half of Roger Moore’s tenure as 007, with Live and Let Die (1973), The Man With the Golden Gun (1974), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Moonraker (1979).

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’, our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On part 2, Steven and Benjamin continue dissecting the Bond film series in chronological fashion to discuss (most of) the classic Blofeld appearances in order, starting with a detour away from Eon Produced entries in the series to share their thoughts on the widely lambasted, David Niven fronted Casino Royale (1967). Other films discussed are You Only Live Twice (1967), On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969) and Diamonds Are Forever (1971).

Originally recorded and published in 2015 for our former podcast, Filmwerk. Please excuse our less-than-stellar audio quality efforts back then!

With Bond in the news again, and in the run up to our 2025 Bond update episode coming later this month, we’ve decided to reach way back into the depths of our archives and resuscitate one of our classic filmography review series’; our nine-part, complete James Bond movie retrospective, originally released back in 2015 to coincide with the release of Spectre (2015), plus a single-episode, stand-alone return in 2021 for a review of No Time to Die (2021).

On this first part, Steven and Benjamin dig in to the first four Sean Connery outings and share their thoughts on the infancy of the film series based on the popular spy novels by Ian Fleming: Dr. No (1962), From Russia With Love (1963), Goldfinger (1964) and Thunderball (1965).

Stay plugged in! We’ll be rolling out the other parts of this series over the coming days x

We’ve made a YouTube Playlist of the full cues that we mention in this episode! Check it out HERE.

On part 2 of our ‘Some Great Music Cues’ double-bill, Steven, Benjamin and Sean each discuss another five music cues from films that float their boat, either as stand-alone pieces, or within the context of the movie scene that they are a part of. We will be mentioning the likes of Tom Holkenborg (Junkie XL), Basil Poledouris, Loek Dikker, Alan Silvestri, Tyler Bates, Marvin Hamlisch, Pete Schickele, John Williams and many more!

 

Where applicable, the content of this podcast episode adheres to Fair Use as commentary and discussion of motion picture music.

Copyright Disclaimer: Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 (USA), allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching, scholarship and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. All rights and credit go directly to their respective rightful owners. No copyright infringement is intended.

We’ve made a YouTube Playlist of the full cues that we mention in this episode that we’d be delighted for you to check out HERE.

As much as we are film fanatics, we are also just as much music maniacs, and when both are combined in the medium of film scores and soundtracks; even better! On this episode, Steven, Benjamin & Sean highlight some of their favourite film music cues from across the board, including go-to nostalgia picks as well as more modern offerings that have tickled us or just get us right in the feels. Expect to hear mentions of Howard Shore, Clint Mansell, Graeme Revell, Jerry Goldsmith, Ennio Morricone, Danny Elfman, Daniel Pemberton, Bernard Herrmann, Bill Conti, and plenty more!

 

Where applicable, the content of this podcast episode adheres to Fair Use as commentary and discussion of motion picture music.

Copyright Disclaimer: Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976 (USA), allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching, scholarship and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. All rights and credit go directly to their respective rightful owners. No copyright infringement is intended.

We’re back for another ‘Year in Film’ episode! Join us as we welcome back our co-host, Benjamin, from his short time away from the podcast and continue refusing to leave our cosy, nostalgia-tinted 1980s to talk our way through the films that made 1985 special for each of us.

And, oh my, what a year 1985 was at the flicks! Absolute bangers such as Back to the Future, Fright Night, Rocky IV, The Company of Wolves, The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, Demons, Return of the Living Dead, Legend, Brazil, Pale Rider, Rambo: First Blood Part II, Commando and The Goonies all released within mere months of each other. The list is almost endless!

With the short break from our originally planned episodes for the start of 2025 still ongoing, Steven & Sean have taken the opportunity to indulge in a little passion-project of theirs!

Italian horror fans are in for a treat as we delve into the four early films of Michele Soavi. Starting with the Joe D'Amato produced 'StageFright' (1987), then the Dario Argento co-scripted and produced 'The Church' (1989) and 'The Sect' (1991) and finally, the self-produced 'Cemetery Man', aka 'Dellamorte Dellamore' (1994).

We thoroughly enjoyed deep-diving these, frankly crazy, movies and so we will definitely revisiting the topic of Italian Horror and Exploitation films again in the near future, with another director taking the spotlight.

Enjoy!

 

 

In a very last minute change to our December episode, Steven and Sean wrap up 2024 in cinema to discuss the highs and lows of the year. Including new movies, legacy re-releases and stand-out physical media releases of the year.

Still pumped from our summer series in which we covered the major subgenres of science fiction in cinema, Steven, Benjamin and Sean have decided to revisit the topic in this bonus episode! We'll each be picking a film that we believe exemplifies the traits of all the subgenres we discussed previously: Time Travel, Science Out of Control/Machine Over Man, Dystopia/Utopia, Post Apocalypse, Alien Contact/Alien Invasion, Cyber/Steam/Bio Punk, and Space Opera, and explain why we think each is a shining example! Amazingly, we resisted mentioning Star Trek... OK, maybe once... but only briefly! 

Expect to hear our thoughts on the wonders of Planet of the Apes (1968), Serenity (2005), Timecrimes, or Los cronocrímenes (2007), Cyber City Oedo 808 (1990-1991), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), Battle Beyond the Stars (1980) and many more!

We’re back for Part 2 of our Halloween Hellraiser Special! On this episode, Steven, Benjamin and Sean unpack the remaining movies in the Hellraiser series, including Rick Bota’s Hellraiser: Hellseeker (2002), Hellraiser: Deader (2005) and Hellraiser: Hellworld (2005), followed by Victor Garcia’s Hellraiser: Revelations (2011), Gary J. Tunnicliffe’s Hellraiser: Judgement, and finally David Bruckner’s reboot, Hellraiser (2022) before we each give our rankings to the whole series’ entries.

So, strap in and enjoy! Hopefully, your suffering won’t be legendary, even in hell!

Happy Halloween!

Continuing with our usual horror franchise "Halloween Special" format, this year Sean has picked the long running Hellraiser series for us to have a good old yarn over, across two episodes! Starting with the original 1987 movie based on The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker and directed by the man himself, the film series has developed over the years into all manor of miss-fires and return to forms alike!

In part one we're discussing Hellraiser (1987), Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988), Hellraiser III: Hell On Earth (1992), Hellraiser: Bloodline (1996) and Hellraiser V: Inferno (2000) and seeing which are hit or miss for the three of us! Enjoy! x

We're back for part 2 of our Kathryn Bigelow theatrical retrospective!

Things get a little heated on this episode with divided opinions between Steven, Benjamin and Sean as we discuss a more drama-focused and historically themed selection of movies from our beloved Bigelow. Including; The Weight of Water (2000), K-19: The Widowmaker (2002), The Hurt Locker (2008), Zero Dark Thirty (2012) and Detroit (2017).

It's Steven's choice for our latest director deep-dive and this time he has picked Kathryn Bigelow!

With numerous accolades to her name, a filmography that runs the gamut from iconic cult horror to Oscar winning war drama, and one of the finest action directors of a generation, Bigelow has long been a high ranking filmmaker for the three of us at Film Utopia.

We have split her 10 theatrical releases neatly across two episodes starting here with part one, covering; The Loveless (1981), Near Dark (1987), Blue Steel (1990), Point Break (1991) and Strange Days (1995). Join us as we explore this eclectic mix of movies, many of which have significant nostalgia appeal to the three of us. Enjoy!

Steven, Benjamin and Sean conclude their look at science fiction subgenres with an examination of the bizarre fascination with placing the noun ‘punk’ after various technological descriptors to create a subgenre within a subgenre for seemingly no other reason than superficial aesthetics. Yes, we're talking about Cyberpunk. And Steampunk. And Biopunk. And all the other 'punk's'!

While Sean and Benjamin can barely contain their disdain for this labelling trend, Steven valiantly attempts to keep things on track as we talk our way through the subgenre in cinema, including Johnny Mnemonic (1995), The Matrix (1999), Mortal Engines (2018), Treasure Planet (2002), eXistenZ (1999), The City of Lost Children (1995), Upgrade (2018), Blade Runner (1982) and many more.

Fun fact; Star Trek doesn’t get mentioned for the first and only time in this entire series!

For the second time this year, the Film Utopia Podcast breaks from its traditional show format of legacy movie coverage to discuss Alien: Romulus; the latest film in the long-running Alien franchise. Hot on the heels of an impressive opening weekend, the Fede Alvarez helmed entry is certainly making waves, both financially and critically. But opinions seem to be divided; and they certainly are among us!

Also! To go along with this special episode, we have a special guest joining: a film industry practical effects artist and life-long Alien fan! Max Payn of Oracle FX, is on board the FU ship to share his tuppence on whether Romulus lands, or burns up on re-entry!

Hit or miss? Listen and find out!

On the penultimate episode of our science fiction subgenres series, we discuss all things alien invasion, contact with other worlds and alien abduction stories in movies; including some literary influences to the world of cinema.

Join us as we talk our way through the early days of the genre in the 1950s and 1960s with the likes of The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) Invaders From Mars (1953) right through the ‘70s and ‘80s with Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) and E.T. (1982) and into the 90s and beyond when the genre was massively revitalised with Independence Day (1996).

For part 5 of our Science Fiction Subgenres Series, Steven, Benjamin & Sean dive into the world of oppressive societies, shady governments and brutalist aesthetics with Dystopian set movies. We're calling it Utopia/Dystopia, though. Despite struggling to identify a utopian set narrative that isn't really just a dystopia in disguise!

Join us as we talk all things "Orwellian", from Gattaca (1997), Idiocracy (2006), 1984 (1984), Logan's Run (1976), A Clockwork Orange (1971), Equilibrium (2002) and more!

In part 4 of our Science Fiction sub-genres series, Steven Benjamin and Sean tackle the topic of "science out of control", or "machine over man", or "we've gone and created something for the betterment of mankind, and now it's going to kill us all"!

Join us as we discuss our way through the tropes of the sub-genre and touch base with a wide variety of movies such as The Matrix (1999), Fantastic Voyage (1966), Upgrade (2018), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Surrogates (2009), Splice (2009), The Fly (1986) and, of course, Star Trek!