Podcast Episode 100: Films To Be Thankful For

For Thanksgiving, I ask people what movies they’re grateful for

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Photo credit: Columbia Pictures

Martin Scorsese's "Taxi Driver," starring Robert DeNiro, is one of the films that director Guillermo del Toro says he is thankful for.

Aired 11/24/16

Episode 100: Films To Be Thankful For

A special holiday show! Gael Garcia Bernal, Jonas Cuaron, Cody Goodfellow, John Skipp, and attendees of TCMFF and Horrible Imaginings reveal what films they are thankful for. Plus a tease for "Christmas Smackdown."

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Transcript for audioclip 32443

This all started years ago when I asked filmmaker Guillermo del Toro ("Cronos," "Hellboy") in 2006 if there was a film he was thankful for.

He told me: “I am very thankful for James Whale’s 'Frankenstein' because I believe that it is one of the most beautifully articulate ways of saying how we are thrown into this world by a creator that does not care for us, and how we have to find our way in it. It is the film that taught me sympathy for the monster. And I’m very thankful for Martin Scorsese’s 'Taxi Driver,' starring Robert DeNiro, for being a variation on the Frankenstein monster in an urban environment.”

I'm thankful for zombies, femme fatales, film noir and horror. I am thankful for moments that take my breath away — Chow Yun Fat sliding down a banister with two guns blazing in "Hard-Boiled," Grace Kelly's kiss in "Rear Window," the opening shots of "Blade Runner," the intoxicating romance of Wong Kar Wai, and Slim Pickens riding a nuke at the end of "Dr. Strangelove."

There are hundreds of films, moments and people I'm thankful for, so thanks to all of the creative people and wondrous films that have given me so much joy in a darkened theater. For this podcast, I speak with attendees at the TCM Film Festival, filmmakers and writers at Horrible Imaginings Film Festival and others about films they are grateful for.

If there's a film you feel thankful for, tell us the title and your reasons in the comments below. Thanks!

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Beth Accomando
Arts & Culture Reporter

opening quote marks closing quote marks I cover arts and culture, from Comic-Con to opera, from pop entertainment to fine art, from zombies to Shakespeare. I am interested in going behind the scenes to explore the creative process; seeing how pop culture reflects social issues; and providing a context for art and entertainment.