The Top 100 Project

Superman has been a patriotic force on the big screen seemingly forever, but Richard Donner and his team did it best in 1978. Except for Superman II, none of the sequels or reboots hold any kind of candle to Donner's Supes, especially when it comes to the ways in which Christopher Reeve chose to play him. He's great when he's Superman, but greater at playing Clark Kent. No one else has ever come close. This, of course, is a film with Marlon Brando as Space Dad, Gene Hackman as the arch rival and Margot Kidder as the lovable love interest, yet this flick belongs to the newcomer Reeve. As for the story, there are some flaws in logic, even considering this story is such a fantasy to begin with. After all, we're talking about an alien boy scout who gets sick around rocks from his home planet, yet tries his time-travelling best to stop a violent land swindler from destroying Hollywood. Anyway, Ryan is working alone on this one---and talking about most of the Kal-El movies---but the focus is on the blockbuster from

As far as ensemble "a few days in the life of a bunch of people" movies go, Short Cuts is not only one of Robert Altman's best...it's one of the best anyone has ever made. He maintains a consistent tone and pace beautifully for over 3 hours. It's even pretty tense for a character study. Altman also ties all these Los Angelenos together brilliantly, even though Raymond Carver's short stories aren't inter-connected the way the film is. And that's the key word because this is a movie about people trying to make connections...and often failing miserably. The actors---Lemmon, Robbins, Moore, Tomlin, JJ and so many more---are mostly tremendous...with some notable exceptions (cough cough the baker). Just like Short Cuts itself, these characters are flawed, but they are oh so human and relatable. So get comfortable, but keep your clothes on as our 520th episode analyzes a truly excellent picture made by a master filmmaker. Well, Actually: Madeleine Stowe is in fact fully naked when she's posing for Julianne Moore's p

Nora Ephron's When Harry Met Sally screenplay made for a classic romantic comedy. It's one of the best in the genre. Sleepless In Seattle, however, is a rom-com that isn't funny and we didn't even find it particularly romantic, partly because the couple we're supposed to root for don't even meet until the end. That's a clever idea, but we don't think it works to keep these 2 great stars apart for so long. Tom Hanks plays a sad-sack and Meg Ryan plays a stalker. Yeah. We said it. This even has the dreaded trope that we never enjoy: a precocious kid who bosses adults around. So, yeah, you could say we weren't fans of Sleepless In Seattle...but we sure had a blast making fun of it. So join us for our 519th edition of Have You Ever Seen, unless your deal-breakers are allergies or a weird laugh. We've got a little of both, so we are, thus, undeserving of love. Sparkplug Coffee offers our listeners a 20% discount. Those listeners just have to use our "HYES" promo code. Go to "sparkplug.coffee/hyes". You can communi

Before anyone gets all excited that this is a review of the Pacino/DePalma version of Scarface, Ryan's latest solo show actually focuses on the Hawks/Muni version. The 1983 "little friend" comes up a lot though, so it's almost like getting 2 reviews in 1. And you should be just as excited about the 1932 original anyway because Paul Muni, director Howard Hawks and producer Howard Hughes (yup, him) teamed up to make a true gangster classic. Muni plays a bootlegger and a mass murderer of criminal rivals, so he's basically Al Capone. For a film that came out only about 5 years into the sound era, this is pretty terrific technically too. So dial up the 518th lip-wag about Scarface as the Italians battle the Irish in 1920s Chicago while everyone else faces the wrath of a man who has an unhealthy interest in his own sister. Sparkplug Coffee doesn't need to use vicious tactics to get their product sold. They just gently suggest you buy some. They even offer a 20% discount to anyone who uses our "HYES" promo code. Use

We haven't reviewed that many silent movies in our previous 516 episodes, but #517 gets into Harold Lloyd's business. There are reasons the sometimes-overlooked silent comedian doesn't have the legacy that Chaplin and Keaton do, even though he should be just as well-remembered. He had the charm of the Tramp and he performed dangerous stunts the way Keaton did. Directors Newmeyer and Taylor's 100-year-old flick is fun and it has a great pace. Their Safety Last is also the rare comedy that's also a thriller and ALSO tells a good story. And then we get the climax, with that incredible extended sequence where Lloyd climbs a building despite encountering many pitfalls. So spend more money than you can afford on your loved one and take crazy chances to earn a big stack of cash as we talk about a non-talkie in Safety Last. Sparkplug Coffee sponsors this podcast and they offer our listeners a 20% discount when they use our "HYES" promo code. Hit up "sparkplug.coffee/hyes" and explore the drinking options. You can con

Sidney Lumet and Al Pacino were a terrific combination in the mid-70's and their Serpico is an effectively gritty motion picture, just like their Dog Day Afternoon would be 2 years later. Pacino is nearly at his best in this, even though he feels more like a character actor in a huge cast of character actors than he does a movie star. The real-life Frank Serpico was an absolutist who risked deadly retribution for refusing to take pay-offs. Pacino is nothing if not authentic here, so he's playing a maddening man, an idealist who just will not be pragmatic. Yes, rampant corruption in the police department is bad, but the system has been rotten forever. There aren't easy answers about how to fix it. In any case though, this deliberately-paced cop drama is interesting and well-made. So stick by your principles and don't work harder to collect bribes than at doing your actual job as we offer you our 516th dash of Have You Ever Seen. Our sponsor is Sparkplug Coffee. If a one-time 20% discount appeals to you, use ou

POW movies might seem like a dime a dozen now, but 70 years ago they weren't common. And POW comedies? They really weren't a thing. Of course, The Great Escape set an iconic standard a decade after Stalag 17 that was hard to match...and it doesn't match it. Billy Wilder's film is filled with hijinks and physical comedy, but not even the brilliant funnyman was able to make something that's actually got a lot of laughs. It's solid work, at least, and it's an effective mystery about just who is the Nazi rat embedded with our heroes. By design, William Holden never clicks with the other actors, which makes his Oscar-winning performance quite effective. So slip contraband in your pantleg as you plug some buds into your ears to hear the 515th edition of Have You Ever Seen, Ryan's solo show about Stalag 17. Sparkplug Coffee sponsors us and they give their customers a one-time 20% discount if they use our "HYES" promo code. Plug "sparkplug.coffee/hyes" into your browser. Contacting us continues to be an easy experien

With Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse hitting theatres on Friday, we're taking a fond look at INTO The Spider-Verse. This monumental achievement in animation wowed the world 5 years ago, but what really set it apart were 2 big things...heart and humour. Of course, Lord & Miller were heavily involved, so laughs were a given. What's almost as impressive is that this covers many of the same Spider-beats as other films about this character, but the rehash is done in such inventive and lovely ways that you can't say you're going down the same old road. This feels fresh. Shameik Moore heads a great voice cast in which some of the biggest names like Cage, Pine and Kravitz have some of the smallest parts. We talked about all sorts of angles in this 514th dose of Have You Ever Seen, but barely even brought up race...or that Miles Morales is in fact a bi-racial teenager in a superhero movie. This film is just so much deeper than labels. So prepare for the release of the funky sequel by settling in for our yammer

Who's a good boy?! Well, the miracle dog who licks his gunshot wound back to health is the Morgan family's very-good boy. Black sharecroppers in 1930s Louisiana had it tough enough, but they finally got their own movie in the early '70s and then had to play second fiddle to...the dog?! But, okay, they don't. Young Kevin Hooks is actually the main character, although Paul Winfield and Cicely Tyson got the accolades and the Oscar nominations for playing his parents. Martin Ritt was an underrated director who was always good on social issues. His Sounder isn't all that political, but Ryan DID get a little political about idiotic racism in this one-man show, So as you enjoy Victoria Day, settle in for a 30-minute monologue about a hardworking family (and their dog) in this 513th edition of Have You Ever Seen. Sparkplug Coffee is our sponsor. They'll give a 20% discount to those who use the "hyes" promo code. Go to "sparkplug.coffee/hyes". You can certainly write to us. We're emailable (haveyoueverseenpodcast@gmai

Have You Ever Seen #512 takes a bus down to the Florida Keys to see what Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall and Edward G. Robinson are up to at Lionel Barrymore's hotel. Bogart and co-writer/director John Huston are back doing another noir after The Maltese Falcon made them major players in the industry 7 years earlier. Key Largo was also released the very same year as their masterpiece, The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre. There's a lot of content packed into this strong script, but Huston ties it all together in a tidy 100-minute runtime. Everyone gets a chance to shine, even if real-life lovebirds Bogie & Bacall are muted compared to their other 1940s collaborations. Robinson stands out the most---even more than Oscar-winner Claire Trevor---playing another in his long line of criminals. So pour a drink to steady your gun-toting hand and batten down the hatches against the raging storm as Ryan handles this Key Largo review alone. Sparkplug Coffee remains our sponsor. Go to "sparkplug.coffee/hyes" and use that

Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau didn't team up for the first time in The Odd Couple, but it's one of their most-famous collaborations...and certainly one of their funniest. Feminized Lemmon is the sad, neat-freak and alpha-male Matthau is the brash slob. Clash! This begat an unsatisfying sequel 30 years later and many TV series, but the 1968 film was a blockbuster and remains one of the most-beloved "oil and water" comedies ever. Neil Simon adapted his own Broadway hit, then went on to become a writing legend. Gene Saks directed this movie, which is stagy and (not surprisingly for a 55-year-old comedy) a little dated, but those flaws don't ruin this parade of yuks. So don't let everything we do irritate you, even if the Ellises are our very own Oscar and Felix. Just learn to live together and make the 511th rendition of Have You Ever Seen a tidy part of your day. Our sponsor remains Sparkplug Coffee. Go to "sparkplug.coffee/hyes" and you'll get a onetime 20% discount by using our "hyes" promo code. If you want

It was about time we covered a Yasujiro Ozu film. The Japanese director is considered a legend and his Tokyo Story has consistently ranked in the Top 5 of the Sight & Sound polls for decades. He gives us a family reunion of a very unhappy family and slowly reveals why we should care about them. That takes quite a while. Ozu's trademark static camera shots are low to the ground. His characters are polite and withholding. And, yet, his style and substance wasn't a home run with both Ellises. Tokyo Story devastated one of us while leaving the other one moved, but much less so. Anyway, stroke that play button while you sit cross-legged on the floor staring off into space with a polite smile on your face. After all, life is disappointing, but we don't think our 510th podcast is. Residents of Japan can't get Sparkplug Coffee delivered to their front door, but Canadians and Americans certainly can. Punch in "sparkplug.coffee/hyes" and get a one-time 20% discount. We are people who scroll through Twitter (@movief

The day after we talked about a classic animated film set in the ocean---Finding Nemo---Ryan posts a solo gab about another highly-enjoyable seafaring adventure comedy called Moana. The Disney blockbuster is formulaic, but it's fun and fantastically well-made. So, yes, this monologue spends 10 minutes yipping about Moana, but the real thrust of this 509th episode of Have You Ever Seen is a breakdown of Dwayne Johnson's career in film. Is The Rock actually "the biggest star in the world", as his wrestling colleagues have been saying for years? Ryan deluges you with facts and figures to analyze just how true or not that "biggest star in the world' statement is. Go to "sparkplug.coffee/hyes" and you can save 20% off your next order by using that "hyes" promo code. This episode---like our other 2023 podcasts---is available on YouTube. These solo shows are always just the same audio you can download from your podcast avenue of choice, but occasionally Ryan and Bev sit down for some on-camera chat time for the epis

Disney will monopolize Have You Ever Seen's first 2 days of May. We start the month with Finding Nemo, which even 20 years later remains one of Pixar's best stories and feats of animation. Even though he's one of the funniest people in Hollywood, Albert Brooks has to play the killjoy, so the laughs are courtesy of the supporting voice cast, especially Ellen DeGeneres. Her Dory is one of the great characters in all of Pixar, both from a comedy standpoint, but also from a lovability standpoint. We spent a lot of time talking about her checkered real-life history, plus we jawed about the driving forces behind this film: director Andrew Stanton and the now-reviled executive producer John Lasseter. We also talked about Pixar's legacy, including their decline in the past 10 or 12 years. Still, a classic is a classic and Finding Nemo is that. So just keep swimming while you make this podcast mineminemine by downloading it, then go on a perilous mission with your helpful Memento-esque friend as our 508th edition drif

Emerald Fennell has been acting for more than 15 years, but the first film she wrote and directed just 3 years ago was an unforgettable debut behind the camera. We had a few problems with Promising Young Woman's ending, but this rape-revenge movie succeeds remarkably well up to that point. Fennell has a sense of humour, she casts (smartly) against type and shows empathy for everyone, even the villains. Self-preservation is a strong instinct, after all, and putting yourself in the shoes of even someone who did something horrible can be necessary to understand the entire situation. Fennell's Oscar-winning script provides no easy answers. And the sensational Carey Mulligan isn't exactly a hero in this. She's this movie's Batman, channeling her rage and courting death as she exacts justice by essentially turning into a terrorist. This might be the finest performance she's even given. Oh, and she's 5'7", so she's not as short as we thought. Everyone just looks tiny standing next to Bo Burnham. Anyway, our lengthy

Join Ryan for a solo trip back to the era of big shoulder pads and huge hair in this 506th edition of Have You Ever Seen. Working Girl represents the first time a Mike Nichols film has been hashed out on this channel since the fall of 2014. His feminist venture into the comedy arena does something The Graduate didn't. It gets funnier as it goes along. Melanie Griffith's character has long been considered an icon of woman empowerment. How much ARE we supposed to root for Tess though? For good reasons or not, she's lying to everyone around her, including the surprisingly loose Harrison Ford. Even though Ford & Sigourney Weaver aren't in their comfort zones in these roles, the two of them and Griffith make a terrific love triangle in Working Girl. So let a certain body of water run as you settle in for a monologue about a rom-com set in the corporate world that remains fun and funny 35 years later. Sparkplug Coffee! They're our sponsor and they continue to offer a 20% discount to those who use our "hyes" pro

You can't have Revenge Month and not cover a Quentin Tarantino movie. His half of the Grindhouse double-bill, Death Proof, is a throwback to an era of B-level filmmaking that perhaps QT and Robert Rodriguez admire more than audiences did. After all, this was the rare QT box-office bomb. Even he admits it's his worst movie. Still, that car chase is a masterpiece of stunt-work. Real-life stuntwoman-turned-actress Zoe Bell just did what she does anyway...risk her life for the shot in spectacular ways. Sydney Poitier in the first half of Death Proof and then Rosario Dawson in the second half are both hot & cool, but this flick belongs to a malevolent Kurt Russell as Stuntman Mike. Is he a stand-in for his director? We discuss. The short of it is, Tarantino's flick remains entertaining and very watchable, despite some horrifying decisions made by the lady "heroes". Well, baby, it's you, so burn rubber to save your life, then drive like a maniac to get some payback as Have You Ever Seen's 505th episode covers t

A feisty and gorgeous Jane Fonda is a perfect accompaniment to this Easter Monday. Or even if young Jane has nothing to do with the rabbit holiday and even if this is far from her most-challenging role, she DOES headline a fun comedy-western where she gets some payback. And that's fitting since this is Revenge Month. Lee Marvin won the Best Actor Oscar for his dual role as the killer villain and the drunken "hero". Comedy performances don't often result in Academy Awards, so his win still stands out. Elliot Silverstein does a good job managing those tonal changes in what was his debut as a movie director. Anyway, Bev has the week off, so Ryan is working alone on this 504th edition of Have You Ever Seen. Spend a zippy 29 minutes hearing all about Cat Ballou, Cat Ball-ou-ou-ou. We have a beverage sponsor and they are Sparkplug Coffee. Type in "sparkplug.coffee/hyes" and you can get a 20% discount by entering our "hyes" promo code into the right place. Our podcasts have been going on our YouTube page (@hyesellis

Vengeance is hers! Revenge Month is upon us and the main payback-getters in April will be women. We start with Coralie Fargeat's bloody, gross, violent and awesome Revenge. Her movie is fantastic, but is most of it a fantasy? We got into that possibility and also dug into the symbiosis of #metoo happening around the same time this film was made. Matilda Lutz---who, like her director, didn't become as big a name as she should have---is sexy playing the party girl, then galvanizing as the angry phoenix rising from the ashes. So go on the hunt for a podcast about a justifiably homicidal woman who was badly wronged in our 503rd chat on Have You Ever Seen. Well, Actually: Matilda Lutz was in Final Cut, not One Cut Of The Dead (which is the title of the Japanese film that inspired Final Cut). Also, in addition to Revenge & Mandy, the other picture on Shudder's main page is of a TV show called Channel Zero and the character is known as the "Tooth Child". We are sponsored by Sparkplug Coffee. They will dole out a

We did a brief review of 12 Years A Slave when the film came out nearly 10 years ago. Here in Oscar Month 2023, we delve a lot deeper with the benefit of perspective. This tough-but-necessary film is the pinnacle of slavery movies, partly because it was written and directed by black men (John Ridley and Steve McQueen). Prestige Movies have had far more inclusion in the above-the-line jobs in the decade since, so there's clearly been progress in the film business. As for the story, Solomon Northup was a free man who was forced into this terrible life. It seems even more tragic that it happened to this exceptional man, although the moral question is why did ANYONE ever have to go through this? Chiwetel Ejiofor and Lupita Nyong'o are tremendous at showing us what it probably really was like to be a person held under the boot of vicious racists like Michael Fassbender. So as you cue up our 502nd edition of Have You Ever Seen, we ask you to understand that we're two white Canadians trying to sort through the horro