Ayo! It’s time for PALMREADER’s (belated) birthday episode! This week, we are covering David Ayer’s excellent 2014 war film “Fury” starring Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Herman, Jon Bernthal, Michael Peña, and a selection of real WWII tanks. Originally recorded on PALMREADER’s birthday, we chose to start things off with some serious positivity by sharing some love for one another and looking back on a crazy year of growth for both of us. We muse on the process of making positives out of negatives and overcoming the challenges that forced us to grow this past year. This prompts PALMREADER to share a personal motto about going through tough times and Otis to share the importance of finding time to do the things you love and enjoying life. For him, this includes things like watching “Boogie Nights” and making sure you’re present in people’s lives. This leads to a conversation about the importance of not "phoning it in" when it comes to any relationship. We also discuss our weekend, breakdancing at weddings, an impromptu reunion, telling your people that you love them, and more.
Then it’s time to talk about what is arguably Ayer’s best film and one of PALMREADER’s favourite war films, "Fury". Set in the final days of World War II, “Fury” is a wartime road movie that focuses on a team of soldiers in an M4 Sherman tank as they travel deeper into Germany and are forced to make a heroic final stand against a battalion of German SS soldiers. It’s equal parts gritty, dark, violent, beautiful, human, and complex. Written and directed with full creative control from David Ayer, this brutal film features stunning cinematography, incredible tank-based action, historical accuracy, and inspired performances from the entire cast. It’s a marvel. We break down the filmmaking choices made by Ayer in both direction and storytelling and detail the months-long training camp that he put the cast through to prepare them for this movie. It’s a little insane and probably wouldn’t be allowed to happen today. Nonetheless, it worked. There is a palpable feeling of realism, tension, and camaraderie amongst the cast that makes the film that much more powerful. We discuss some of our favourite scenes, the powerful moments, the excellent action sequences, and all the stuff we love about this movie. It’s insanely rewatchable. Plus, there are tank battles with tracer rounds. So sick.
Later, we take some time to discuss David Ayer as a writer-director and unpack his filmography. We look at the moments of excellence in his career like “Fury”, “End Of Watch”, “Training Day”, and “The Fast And The Furious”. We also discuss his failures and shortcomings which leads to a discussion of the studio system and what happened to the ill-fated “Suicide Squad”. Plus, PALMREADER’s secret love for “Bright” and the post-“Suicide Squad” hangover that he theorizes influenced the film's reception. We close things out with a few announcements of stuff we’ve got going on including…
Otis is in a comedy competition! Come out and support your boy! Get your tickets here:
PALMREADER wrote something fun! Read “Alien: Outer Rim - Part One” here:
https://www.tumblr.com/codexcurses
We’ll be back next week!
INITIATE BIRD PROTOCOL!
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