This week, we're on a mission from God: to make sure anyone co-hosting a Chicago-based film podcast has actually seen The Blues Brothers.
First, we're briefly celebrating the legacy of one of the film's stars: the late, great Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. Then, we're sitting down for Nakea's first viewing of John Landis's 1980 comedy classic, starring Dan Ackroyd, John Belushi, Carrie Fisher, and a veritable plethora of R&B legends including Franklin, Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, James Brown, and Cab Calloway.
We're talking about car crashes, scary nuns, vengeful exes, Illinois Nazis, appreciation vs. appropriation, Michael's musical illiteracy, and whether The Blues Brothers or Ferris Bueller deserves the title of Quintessential Chicago Movie.
Program
0:00: Prologue: Scene from The Blues Brothers
0:38: Preliminary Conversation: The Queen of Soul
8:24: Interlude: Aretha Franklin in The Blues Brothers
9:59: Cultural Osmosis: Pre-Viewing Discussion of The Blues Brothers
21:34: Trailer for The Blues Brothers
23:47: The Verdict: Post-Viewing Discussion of The Blues Brothers
1:08:08: Outro and Next Week's Movie
1:09:18: Outtake
Notes and Links
—Movie Reviewed: The Blues Brothers (dir. John Landis, Universal, 1980)
—Reviews and Articles Mentioned: Gary Arnold, Washington Post; Roger Ebert, rogerebert.com; Richard Corliss, Time; Tim Brayton, Alternate Ending; “Soul Men: The Making of The Blues Brothers," Ned Zeman, Vanity Fair; "Gentrification on the Big Screen," Aaron M. Renn, City Journal; "The Last National Anthem," Michael Harriot, The Root.
—Some of our younger listeners may be blissfully unaware of the short-lived musical career of Bruce Willis, which Nakea mentions. Enjoy.
—Read The Unenthusiastic Critic in prose form at unaffiliatedcritic.com.
—Email us, or follow us on Twitter and Facebook. (Suggestions of movies to watch for future episodes are welcome!)
—"Warm Duck Shuffle" by Arne Huseby is licensed under CC BY 3.0.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:13:06 — 58.9MB)
