The Top 100 Project

The 47th edition of the Next 100 Project finds us heart-deep in a zany love story. This one’s got loads of one-liners with its combative characters who fight, fight, love...and sometimes even make sense. Cher and Olympia Dukakis are the main event here, but we also pay tribute to the oddball that is Nicolas Cage. We didn’t agree on Moonstruck, although our spirited debate DOES fit the movie’s tone. Anyway, shoot over to Sparkplug Coffee, then spark up Bev’s #1 beloved rom-com!

Quentin Tarantino’s two-pack is our 46th Next 100 Project podcast, a feminist movie(s) that aces the Bechdel Test. And it’s also really bloody violent, man! Come hear us defend QT’s obsession with old movies and jabber about Uma Thurman’s Five Point Exploding yadda yadda (Ryan can never get it right). This remains a terriflick. Dig up some Sparkplug Coffee ASAP, then power up our longish chat about awesome revenge!

Here comes some comedy mixed with tragedy to kick off Year #2 of the Next 100 Project. In this 45th episode (that kinda starts out as the Grand Budapest Hotel podcast, actually), we tackle the hilarious performance by Gene Hackman and Wes Anderson’s admirable determination to go his own twee way. Of course, there’s more, but why ramble on here? Order up some Sparkplug Coffee and press play!

We end the year with Charles Dickens’ bittersweet Christmas treat, one of the most adapted stories of all times. Alastair Sim is the highlight of this fever dream of a movie that ventures into outright horror. The last 10 minutes of this 44th Next 100 Project ep also has us discussing our year in podcasting, the year in movies and some of our upcoming projects (the words “tube” and “you” are involved). So buy some Sparkplug Coffee to stuff some stockings, then God bless us yadda yadda for the final time in 2016!

Hey, it’s a Jesus story just 2 weeks before Christmas! The 43rd edition of the Next 100 Project tackles themes of terrorism, rebellion, racism, despair, hope...and saviourhood. Alfonso Cuaron’s ultra-realistic flick was unappreciated when it came out, but it has grown in esteem ever since. Order up your Sparkplug Coffee, then slip on your flip flops and drag the mother of the future through a war zone. Oh, and pull my finger.

The 42nd hit of your Next 100 Project heroin injection takes us into a gritty, gross and often goofy world. Danny Boyle’s ode to the glorious highs (and dizzying lows) of the H has more energy than an atomic bomb. Bev’s boyfriend Ewan McGregor leads a nutty cast of essentially foreign-language actors. Strap in, but you oughta get another addictive substance first...Sparkplug Coffee.

Aliens attack! Or they threaten to, which gives us plenty of opportunity to crack wise and tear the the story apart. Yup, the 41st Next 100 Project podcast about Klaatu & Gort and us stupid, stupid humans is the most fun you’ll ever have with this enjoyable, but dated motion pic. Check out Sparkplug.Coffee, then put our words in your ears!

Bring on the controversial comedy in our 40th Next 100 Project podcast! Billy Bob Thornton is perfectly cast in Terry Zwigoff’s crude Christmas opus. The flick has flaws, but it remains an LOL riot 13 years later. We even quoted half the funny lines for you! Dial up Sparkplug.Coffee, then get into your Santa suit...but please don’t pee in it. Or do.

The 39th edition of the Next 100 Project takes us overseas to France, Poland and Switzerland for Krzysztof Kieslowski’s filmic swan song. The trilogy is made up of 3 distinct movies, with some fascinating and even shocking overlaps. Juliette Binoche and Irene Jacob stand out the most, but the entire cast is magnifique. Get you some Sparkplug.Coffee, then sink this foreign treat into your ears.

It’s Election Week in the U.S., so here’s an appropriate movie to review. The 38th Next 100 Project podcast takes a good look at the American horror show that finally ends on November 8th (or does it, really?), but our real focus is of course on Reese Witherspoon and Matthew Broderick. Alexander Payne’s comic direction is at its peak. Caffeine up with some Sparkplug Coffee, then zap our chit chat into your earholes!

Episode #37 in the Next 100 Project is our final entry in Scary Movie Month. Greg Peck and Lee Remick’s unholy adoption has lost some of its punch, but the best (read: death) scenes are still a treat. This episode also brings about a return of Reasonably Good Questions! Get yourself some Sparkplug Coffee, then explore a swift chat about Dick Donner’s creepy fright flick.

Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie shine (and creep you out) in the topic of our 36th Next 100 Project ‘cast. Brian De Palma’s horror hit doesn’t truly frighten us anymore, but its themes are juicy. Bullying, feminism, religious insanity are all here, plus we discuss if Carrie is a burgeoning super-hero. Punch up the Sparkplug.Coffee link, then be nice to the prom queen and hear of her bloody tale.

Next 100 Project podcast #35 is a big pile of delicious intrigue. Is it also impenetrable? You want answers? We might have some! Special thanks to dozens of websites and articles for their help analyzing David Lynch’s haunting masterpiece. Naomi Watts is positively brilliant and Laura Harring is...pretty good too. Hit up Sparkplug Coffee to get your java, then hit that button!

One of the more messed-up movies ever made has us talking for more than an hour in the 34th episode of the Next 100 Project. Dennis Hopper is a monumentally crazy bad guy in David Lynch’s defining film. It's also technically gorgeous and, even after 30 years, ahead of its time. Suck up your amyl nitrate, tune up the piano and sing yourself some Bluuuuuue Velvet. Oh, and enjoy it with some Sparkplug Coffee!

A movie about pool? Those are 2 of Ryan's favourite things! The 33rd ep in the Next 100 Project explores the rich scenery, the cool writing and the terrific actors in this cynical '60s classic. Paul Newman is the man, but Piper Laurie might be even better. And who can forget the quiet coolness of Jackie Gleason and the dominant ferocity raging deep in George C. Scott? Buy Sparkplug Coffee, then chalk up your listening ears...or your pool cue. Whichever.

#32 in the Next 100 Project takes us back 70 years to peek at one of Hitchcock’s very best. Cary Grant is not Mister Charming in this one and Ingrid Bergman’s duplicity makes her untrustworthy. So you gotta root for Claude Rains, the Nazi! Wait...what? Hear our extensive thoughts (we even answer some emails!), but do it with a cup of Sparkplug Coffee in your hand!

Trek to Japan to shoot booze ads and find your unrequited love interest in the 31st edition of the Next 100 Project. Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson are a wonderfully matched duo in Sofia Coppola’s masterwork. Dry comedy, fish out of waterness and what about that whisper at the end? Take it all in after you cozy up to Sparkplug.Coffee!

If you haven’t come of age in a while, standing by a bunch of foul-mouthed pre-teens is definitely your best bet. The 30th edition of the Next 100 Project covers Rob Reiner’s acclaimed direction of Wheaton, Phoenix, Feldman and O’Connell. We were a bit split on the movie though. Who liked it more?! [The answer will not shock you.] Get some Sparkplug.Coffee for your long walk on the tracks, then gun this chat into your ears!

With our 29th Next 100 Project podcast, we deal in honour and shame...and also 16th Century small-scale war. Akira Kurosawa’s best-known film stars polar opposites: calm Takashi Shimura and frenetic Toshiro Mifune. They and their fellow actors are surrounded by authentic period sets & costumes...and all that rain & mud. Get your subtitles-reading eyeglasses on, order up some Sparkplug Coffee, then focus on our opinions about the Seven!

Our 28th Next 100 Project ‘cast explores the strange lives of Robert Crumb and his family. The access in this documentary sets it apart. No activism either, just 2 hours with a legendary cartoonist and his fascinating fellow Crumbs. Art as therapy! Get some Sparkplug.Coffee before you jump on for a piggyback ride.