Each month on The Playlist, critic-programmer Aaron Hillis (owner of Video Free Brooklyn, three-time “Best Video Store in NYC”) highlights a handful of the latest, greatest new DVDs and Blu-rays, and asks a trio of industry guests to discuss their favorites of the month. For previous editions of the “DVD Is the New Vinyl” podcast, click here.
Podcast Intro Music: Jim Williams, “Baloo My Boy (feat. Richard Glover)”
SPECIAL GUEST #1: David Cross on “Breaking the Waves”
Intro Music: Jethro Tull, “Cross Eyed Mary”
David Cross is a Grammy-nominated comedian, Emmy award-winning writer, and an actor with nearly 40 feature film credits, not to mention his contributions to cult TV favorites like “Mr. Show,” “Arrested Development,” and “The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret.” His directorial debut “Hits” premiered at this year’s Sundance, and he can next be seen alongside Jenny Slate in “Obvious Child,” which hits theaters June 6. On the podcast, we discuss Danish provocateur Lars von Trier‘s Cannes award-winning 1996 drama “Breaking the Waves” (Criterion, BD/DVD combo, available now), a profound spiritual heartbreaker starring Emily Watson and Stellan Skarsgård.
SPECIAL GUEST #2: Kate Lyn Sheil on “Bastards” and “Trouble Every Day”
Intro Music: Tindersticks, “Put Your Love in Me”
Kate Lyn Sheil is a New York-based actress and writer whose screen credits include “The Comedy,” “Sun Don’t Shine,” and “You’re Next.” This year, she joined the cast of “House of Cards,” co-starred in Sundance and SXSW premieres like “Listen Up Phillip” and “The Heart Machine,” and will soon be seen in Ti West‘s religious-cult thriller “The Sacrament.” On the podcast, we riff on two hypnotic psychosexual thrillers from French auteur Claire Denis, including her latest, “Bastards” (IFC Films, DVD, available now), and 2001’s even more lurid nightmare “Trouble Every Day” (KimStim, DVD, also available now).
SPECIAL GUEST #3: Mark Webber on “Big Bad Wolves”
Intro Music: Frank Ilfman, “Big Bad Wolves: Main Theme”
Mark Webber is the award-winning filmmaker of “The End of Love“ and “Explicit Ills,” though you might recognize him as an actor whose credits include “For a Good Time, Call…,” “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World,” “Storytelling,” and the upcoming “Laggies.” Mark is also the star of “13 Sins,” a psychological horror-thriller costarring Ron Perlman that premiered in theaters this month. On the podcast, we riff on “Big Bad Wolves” (Magnolia, DVD, BD, available now), a wickedly comic Israeli nail-biter praised by Quentin Tarantino as the best film of the year.
Podcast Outro Music: Sex Bob-Omb, “Threshold”
10 WORTH A SPIN (April 2014, as mentioned on the podcast)
“Alice” (1988, First Run Features, BD)
“Bang! Bang! You’re Dead!” (1966, Olive Films, BD, DVD)
“A Field in England” (2013, Drafthouse Films, BD, DVD)
“Gloria” (2013, Music Box Films, DVD)
“The Inspector Lavardin Collection” (1985-86, Cohen Media Group, BD, DVD)
“The Last Time I Saw Macao” (2012, Cinema Guild, DVD)
“La Maison de la Radio” (2013, Kino Lorber, DVD)
“Rita, Sue and Bob Too” (1987, Twilight Time, BD)
“The Selfish Giant” (2013, IFC Films/MPI, DVD)
“Sorcerer” (1977, Warner, BD, DVD)
