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The Hopscotch Friday Podcast

Hopscotch Friday is an informed and impassioned pop culture binge. What does that mean? Well, it means we’ll review stuff and give you a good idea of what’s good, what’s bad, and what’s probably worth a cheeky watch anyway. Importantly, we also give you the *why*. Online we mostly focus on movies and DVDs. But we also like music, games, telly, comics…you name it. If you like what you hear, give us a shout at hopfriday@gmail(.com). Join Stevie and Emmet O'Cuana each week for a bit of pop culture pillow talk.
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Now displaying: April, 2017

Hopscotch Friday is an informed and impassioned pop culture binge. What does that mean? Well, it means we’ll review stuff and give you a good idea of what’s good, what’s bad, and what’s probably worth a cheeky watch anyway. Importantly, we also give you the *why*. Online we mostly focus on movies and DVDs. But we also like music, games, telly, comics…you name it.

If you like what you hear, give us a shout at hopfriday@gmail(.com).

Join Stevie and Emmet O'Cuana each week for a bit of pop culture pillow talk.

Apr 30, 2017

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is back, with more tunes and more antics from this galactic misfits. Stevie and Emmet chat about the film and where it fits in the Marvel Studios. James Gunn has delivered a film that promises to get close and personal with Quill, Gamora, Drax and Rocket - but does it deliver?

Guardians of the Galaxy - team shot

Then Neevon Mohtaji from 2 Dollar Movie Reviews is back to talk Kiwi comedy Pork Pie, starring Dean O'Gorman (The Hobbit prequels, Trumbo, The Almighty Johnsons) and James Rolleston (Boy, from Boy, went and grew up!). 

It's a show of tunes, chases and grand desperate gestures. 

As always you can find us on Twitter and Facebook - and if you feel like giving us a rating pop over to iTunes

Apr 23, 2017

To quote Pauline Kael, this week is all about Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.

Or just Bang Bang.

Aliens

Stevie and Emmet talk violence in movies, from the taboo busting films of Arthur Penn and Sam Peckinpah, up to the work of James Cameron in the 80s and Michael Bay's stylised chaos.

Free Fire

Then Neevon Mohtaji from 2 Dollar Movie Reviews drops by to talk about Ben Wheatley's new film Free Fire, a movie that extends a gun fight to the very extremes.

This week's show is all about bullets and blood, with a run through of our favourite movies that use action and violence to make a point - or even leave a mark.

Apr 16, 2017

Two very different movies - one a historical drama directed by Mick Jackson of the David Irving libel case, and Nacho Vigalondo's curious horror rom-com Colossal - that feel very close to home today. 

Rachel Weisz plays Deborah Lipstadt, a Holocaust historian who is sued in London by David Irving (Timothy Spall) for identifying him as a denier of the genocide of Jewish people in German concentration camps. 

Denial also stars Andrew Scott and Tom Wilkinson and has a great deal of resonance to current events given its focus on freedom of speech and the abuse of same. 

Denial - Rachel Weisz, Tom Wilkinson, Andrew Scott

 

Colossal is an original and inventive picture by Spanish director Nacho Vigalondo that stretches from South Korea to rural America. This international production mashes up Kaiju monsters with the tropes of Hollywood romantic comedy and then serves up something genuinely startling. 

While this vehicle of Anne Hathaway has been described as a metaphor for addiction, there is far more at work here. Stevie and Emmet dance around potential spoilers while trying to sketch out exactly why you should see this curious and powerful film. 

Colossal - Anne Hathaway, Jason Sudeikis

Also Emmet tries to suggest a tagline for the film 'The personal is Colossal.'

Apr 9, 2017

This week's films run the gamut from the poignantly romantic to the perplexing and strange.

Stevie and Emmet review British romantic drama (made by Danish director, Lone Scherfig), Their Finest starring Gemma Arterton, Sam Claflin and Bill Nighy. Set in 1940, the film follows Catrin Cole as she negotiates the man's world of propaganda films during wartime.

Their Finest with Gemma Arterton

Stevie then explains to Emmet why she's not sure about Olivier Assayas' Personal Shopper, a surreal vehicle for Kristen Stewart. Acclaimed by some, Stevie's not sure if it's brilliant or ordinary.

 Personal Shopper Kristen Stewart

Apr 2, 2017

Mårten Eskil Winge - Tor's Fight with the Giants

Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology sets about retelling the stories of Thor, Loki and Odin in the author's voice. The book is an accessible and enjoyable read. 

But in the telling of these stories, has Gaiman produced a piece of fiction, or is the retelling similar to a fanfic about your favourite superhero or starship captain? And if he has, should there be a stigma attach to that?

Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology

Stevie and Emmet discuss the book in relation to Gaiman's successful career as a storyteller who brings his dedicated following to his reinventions of DC/Marvel Comics properties or Doctor Who. The conversation then segues into Meg Downey's The Age of Transformative Works Has Changed The Rules of Compelling Narratives. What does it mean to tell stories today when there is competition between published authors and licensed creators with fans willing to produce novel-sized manuscripts on their favourite characters? For free, to boot! 

Why is diversity being blamed for dips in publishing sales by Marvel Comics, when fan fiction readily caters to diverse audience? And has given rise to successful mainstream creators who first found a following writing about Potter, Buffy, or Twilight? What exactly lies behind the stigma against fan fiction? 


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