Author Archives: The Hyphenates

The John Hough Cheat Sheet

John Hough

Want to be knowledgeable about our filmmaker of the month without committing yourself to an entire filmography? Then you need the Hell Is For Hyphenates Cheat Sheet: a suggested double that will make you an insta-expert in the director we're about to discuss…

JH Films

THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE (1973) and DIRTY MARY CRAZY LARRY (1974)

Normally, when we recommend two films in our Cheat Sheet, they're films that are not only great watches, but represent the filmmaker's entire body of work. But how do you represent John Hough's work? This is a guy who did Hammer Horror, war thrillers and Barbara Cartland TV movies. There's no easy pair of films that can sum all that up. So this time, we're going to simply suggest two of his best films. The Legend of Hell House is a tremendous horror, with great performances, terrific sound design, and superb direction. If you've been wondering why our guest Mark Hartley has picked Hough, the work he does in The Legend of Hell House will put that question to rest. But even better than that is his next film, Dirty Mary Crazy Larry, a wild thieves-evading-cops road movie with Peter Fonda, Susan George and Vic Morrow. It boasts a brilliant script, and Hough's direction is insane in all the best ways. Both of these films are a tight ninety minutes, and don't waste a nanosecond. If you want to watch a pair of great genre films this weekend, you couldn't do much better than these two.

Substitutions: If you can't get The Legend of Hell House, try the Hammer horror Twins of Evil (1971). If you can't get Dirty Mary Crazy Larry, try the assassination thriller Eyewitness (aka Sudden Terror) (1970).

The Hidden Gem: We always strive to recommend an off-the-beaten-path work from our filmmaker of the month, but pretty much everything Hough qualifies as off-the-beaten-path. Still, if you want a schlocky, supernatural horror flick starring John freakin’ Cassavetes, you might want to seek out 1982’s Incubus, even if just to see one of New Hollywood’s most compelling actors say the word “sperm” several hundred times in the most serious manner possible.

The next episode of Hell Is For Hyphenates, featuring Mark Hartley talking John Hough, will be released on the morning of November 30 (AEST).

Win a Jacques Tati Box Set!

Jacques Tati Collection

We know that, in addition to the one hour of free content we send into your ears every month, you're probably still wondering what we've done for you lately. That's a perfectly fair question, and we'd like to answer it in the form of a DVD giveaway.

Jacques Tati DVD

Thanks to Madman Entertainment, we have a DVD box set of the Jacques Tati: The Restored Collection to give away to one lucky listener. The set includes everything Tati made: not just his feature films, but all the alternate edits of those films, plus his TV special Parade, plus seven of his short films and the documentary The Magnificent Tati. It's a damn impressive collection.

To win the set, simply answer the following question:

In the October 2014 episode of Hell Is For Hyphenates, we discussed the works of Jacques Tati and the effect he had on cinema. Which two modern directors do we claim were influenced by him?

To enter, send your answer to co*********@*****************es.com by midnight on 30 November 2014 AEST. All correct answers will be put into some sort of electronic randomiser (probably a hat) and the winner will be drawn at random. The winner will be notified by email.

If you don't want to leave it to the fates, you can order the set on DVD or Blu-ray right now!

Our Next Hyphenate: Mark Hartley

Mark Hartley
Filmmaker and November 2014 Hyphenate Mark Hartley

We've been keen to get Mark Hartley onto the show since the very beginning. Hartley's trilogy of kinetic film documentaries - Not Quite Hollywood, Machete Maidens Unleashed and Electric Boogaloo - are celebrations of the type of cinema often ignored or dismissed by academics and documentarians, and we knew that whichever filmmaker Hartley picked to talk about on the show would be in a similar vein.

And sure enough, he's gone with Ingmar Bergman.

No, not really.

He'll actually be talking about the films of John Hough.

Directed by John Hough

Not sure who John Hough is? It's not a name you hear often. Hough has an eclectic filmography: he directed Hammer horror Twins of Evil in 1971, Disney's The Watcher in the Woods in 1980, the adventure adaptation Biggles in 1986, and a bunch of Barbara Cartland TV movies in the '90s. You really can't pin him down, which is what makes him such a fascinating choice.

Why did Hartley go with Hough over all other filmmakers? You'll have to listen in on November 30 to find out.

John Hough
Our next filmmaker of the month, John Hough

Inch on Maddin

Inch on Maddin
Hayley Inch (left) and her filmmaker of the month Guy Maddin (right)

Sounds like the sort of catchphrase or motivational slogan that is just odd enough to appear in a Guy Maddin film, doesn't it? “Inch on, Maddin! Inch on!”

The wonderful Hayley Inch was our guest this month, talking about her one true passion: Guy Maddin. Actually, being a true film buff after our own hearts, Hayley has many cinematic passions, but her love of Maddin is unparalleled. Whether you know Maddin's work or have never heard of him before, you've really got to hear Hayley waxing lyrical about what makes him so great.

This episode also marks the return of the mini-Hyphenate segment, where we take a filmmaker who may not have made enough movies to qualify for the main stage (we have a loose five-or-more rule in place), and discuss them in the mid-section of the show. This month we've gone with Jacques Tati who made five features, one telemovie, and a bunch of shorts. Okay, so we're stretching the rules a little to include him, but given Madman Entertainment just released a beautiful restored edition of his works, it felt like the perfect time.

There's rarely a rhyme or reason to the pairing of mini-Hyphenate with the guest's pick, but as we discussed their works, a connection emerged: both Tati and Maddin continued the tradition of silent films in very different ways. There aren't many filmmakers who so forcefully use the pre-sound era as inspiration the way these two have, albeit in completely different ways.

We say this every month, but this really is a great episode. We talk Gone Girl, Force Majeure, Obvious Child and Whiplash, delve into Tati, and explore Maddin all in one hour. Plus, one of us actually leaves the room at one point! Who leaves and why? You'll only find out the answer by listening to this month's show.

Hell Is For Hyphenates – October 2014

Hayley Inch, film programmer and writer, joins the Hyphenates for October 2014 as we look back at the month’s key releases, discuss the films of French auteur Jacques Tati, and delve into the unique works of Canadian filmmaker Guy Maddin.

The Guy Maddin Cheat Sheet

Guy Maddin

Want to be knowledgeable about our filmmaker of the month without committing yourself to an entire filmography? Then you need the Hell Is For Hyphenates Cheat Sheet: a suggested double that will make you an insta-expert in the director we're about to discuss…

GM Films

THE HEART OF THE WORLD (2000) and MY WINNIPEG (2007)

Guy Maddin has a style unlike any other filmmaker working today. Imagine an MTV music video director got sent back in time to the silent era, and you’ll have a good starting point to appreciate what it is he does. He is even more prolific as a director of short films than as a director of feature films, so we suggest a double that mixes the two. The Heart of the World is only six minutes long, but it's the perfect film if you want to understand what makes Maddin tick. Meanwhile, his 2007 quasi-documentary My Winnipeg is an hilarious, surreal, addictive look back at his upbringing. It's one of the most entertaining films you'll ever see, and its moments of obvious exaggeration are as revealing as the moments of autobiographical truth. This is about as fun as homework gets.

Substitutions: If you can't get The Heart of the World, try his first ever short film The Dead Father (1985). If you can't get My Winnipeg, try Brand Upon the Brain! (2006).

The Hidden Gem: If you want to go for something off the trodden path, be sure to seek out Maddin's 2002 film Dracula: Pages From a Virgin's Diary. It's one of the most incredible adaptations of the legend, and at only 73 minutes, you'll probably want to watch it twice.

The next episode of Hell Is For Hyphenates, featuring Hayley Inch talking Guy Maddin, will be released on the morning of October 31 (AEST).

Our Next Hyphenate: Hayley Inch

Festival programmer, film critic and October 2014 Hyphenate Hayley Inch
Festival programmer, film critic and October 2014 Hyphenate Hayley Inch

You see a lot of familiar faces at film festivals. This is, the films aside, one of the best things about them. Especially when one of the familiar faces belongs to the Melbourne International Film Festival's Membership Coordinator Hayley Inch. Running into Hayley at MIFF is always wonderful: whether you passionately agree or disagree on the quality of the film you just saw, it's always a joy to chat with her. So of course we had to ask her onto the show.

In addition to working for MIFF, Hayley is the Shorts Manager at the Human Rights Arts and Film Festival. She was Broadsheet's resident film writer from 2012 to 2014, and runs her own film criticism site at the brilliantly-named Herzog's Chicken.

Hayley has chosen to speak about the works of Canadian auteur Guy Maddin. If you've never seen any Maddin before, you are in for a treat. It's safe to say nobody else in the world makes films the way Guy Maddin does, and when we publish our forthcoming Cheat Sheet, those currently unfamiliar with him will see why.

But that's not all!

Long-term listeners will remember that in 2012 we introduced the “mini-Hyphenate” segment. Due to the fact that we introduced a rule saying the Filmmakers of the Month must have made more than five films, we realised this would exclude a whole lot of notable directors. No one could, for instance, choose Charles Laughton, whose only directed film was the Robert Mitchum classic The Night of the Hunter. Therefore, we introduced a semi-regular segment in which, in addition to the Filmmaker of the Month, we discuss the works of a director who has (a) made five films or fewer, and (b) has a finite filmography.

To date, we've spoken about the films of Sarah Watt, Jean Vigo, Elaine May, Fabián Bielinsky, Adrienne Shelly, Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker and Alice Guy-Blaché.

We had to rest the segment for much of this year, largely due to the epic workload involved in watching the films of Robert Altman simultaneous to the films of Luc Besson, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Harold Ramis and Jim Jarmusch. So when Hayley picked Maddin - a director with numerous credits, but only about ten feature films - we thought this would be a good month to introduce another mini-Hyphenate.

And so, in our next episode, we shall also be talking about the films of comic filmmaker Jacques Tati!

We're bending our own rules a little (and not for the first time): although Tati made five features, he also made numerous significant short films, and one feature-length film, Parade, that was produced for television. So he's slipping through on a technicality. But when Madman Entertainment released the epic Jacques Tati box set this year, we couldn't resist exploring the works of this fascinating comedian-filmmaker-performer.

If you want to play along at home, our Cheat Sheet will be released in a couple of weeks, ensuring you can become an instant expert in only one evening. The episode featuring Jacques Tati, Guy Maddin and special guest Hayley Inch will be released on the morning of October 31 AEST via iTunes, Stitcher Smart Radio and our website.

Tati Maddin
Next episode’s two filmmakers: France’s Jacques Tati (left) and Canada’s Guy Maddin (right)

Shelton on Denis

Shelton on Denis
Lynn Shelton (left), and her filmmaker of the month Claire Denis (right)

Allow us to do away with modesty for a moment and theorise on why our show works: it's not that we talk about the works of great filmmakers, it's that each filmmaker is told through the unique perspective of that month's guest. Over in the Alt-U section, you'll see that Julia Zemiro might have gone with Susanne Bier had we not already covered her with Kristy Best a few months earlier. Julia talking about Bier would have been totally different from Kristy talking about Bier. One would not have necessarily been better than the other: the point is that it's not just the filmmaker, it's the guest who chooses them.

This month's guest is Lynn Shelton, one of US independent cinema's most interesting and exciting voices. We became aware of her when she made the excellent Humpday, and followed that up with the brilliant Your Sister's Sister. She's continuing to do great work across both film (Touchy Feely, Laggies) and television (Mad Men, The New Girl, The Mindy Project), and we were delighted when she agreed to come on the show. Talking to someone you admire and finding out who they admire is always fascinating, and so when Lynn picked Claire Denis, we were keen to find out why.

It turns out the story was more personal than we'd realised. We were completely unaware that Lynn's filmmaking career actually was kicked off by Claire Denis. This is a story that even Claire Denis probably doesn’t know.

It's those connections that make discussing filmmakers' careers so much more interesting, and this month's episode is a perfect example of that. If you want to know a little more about the films of Claire Denis, check out our Cheat Sheet here, and then download the latest episode of Hell Is For Hyphenates, featuring Lynn Shelton talking the films of Claire Denis.

Special thanks to Lynn Shelton for generously giving us her time, and to Adam Kersch at Brigade Marketing for his wonderful help.

Hell Is For Hyphenates – September 2014

Filmmaker Lynn Shelton (Humpday, Your Sister’s Sister, Laggies) joins us for this episode as we talk the new releases of September 2014, examine whether we’re less enamoured by directors who are more stylistically experimental, and delve into the works of French auteur Claire Denis.

The Claire Denis Cheat Sheet

Director Claire Denis at the photo call for her film Les Salauds (Bastards)

Want to be knowledgeable about our filmmaker of the month without committing yourself to an entire filmography? Then you need the Hell Is For Hyphenates Cheat Sheet: a suggested double that will make you an insta-expert in the director we're about to discuss…

CD Films BEAU TRAVAIL (1999) and WHITE MATERIAL (2009)

Director Claire Denis was raised in colonial French Africa, and many of her films reflect this in some way. Beau Travail is a sublimely beautiful work about an ex-French Foreign Legion officer reminiscing about his time leading soldiers in Africa. It stars Denis Lavant, a newly-minted cult figure thanks to his now-legendary work in Leos Carax's 2012 film Holy Motors. Following Beau Travail, you'll want to put on White Material. The always-brilliant Isabelle Huppert is the matriarch of a white family about to be kicked off their African plantation, trying desperately to hold onto the crop of coffee beans they've grown as their lives hang in danger. Both films are truly stunning, managing to convey a sense danger while drawing you in and lulling you to spend more time in these worlds. These two brilliant works, made ten years apart, should give you a solid understanding of the style of Claire Denis.

Substitutions: If you can't get Beau Travail, try Chocolat (1988). If you can't get White Material, try 35 Shots of Rum (2008).

The Hidden Gem: If you want to go for something off the trodden path, you have to check out her 2001 film Trouble Every Day. It features Vincent Gallo and Béatrice Dalle, and is equal parts sexy and horrific. Not for the faint of heart.

The next episode of Hell Is For Hyphenates, featuring Lynn Shelton talking Claire Denis, will be released on the morning of September 30 (AEST).