ROGUE COMMENTARY

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by David Hughes.  For this episode, I’m joined by Damien Lewis, author of the non-fiction book The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, the first third of which is now a major motion picture directed by Guy Ritchie. I read – no, devoured the book before I saw the film, but if I hadn’t, it wouldn’t have mattered how many ‘based on a true story’ captions came up before the film started, I wouldn’t have believed a word of it – the story was just too deliciously outrageous to be true. But it is. Surely no human could possibly be as larger-than-life as Anders Lassen? Surely Operation Pitchfork, the truth about which was only declassified in 2016, couldn’t possibly have happened? It was like something out of James Bond, except Churchill was behind it, with both M and Ian Fleming in the room. It took me a minute to vibe with the Commando comic/boys’ own adventure tone of the film, but once I’d tuned in to its wavelength, I had what can only be described as an outrageously good time with the film, and I’m sure, if you’re listening, you did too. Thanks to Damien’s page-burner – a page-turner where you turn the pages so fast they risk igniting – I already knew the background of the story, but I still wanted to dig deeper, and although time constraints meant Damien couldn’t go the full two-hour film commentary, much less what would have been a reductive and redundant scene-by-scene breakdown, he did give us 90 minutes of gold, smuggled out not of Fernando Po or even Lisbon – that’ll make sense when you listen to the commentary – but from his study in Dorset, where he’s working on a new book, based – if you can believe this – on an even more unbelievable yet true story from the Second World War. Enormous thanks to Damien, of course, but also Sophie Ransom and Poppy Delingpole for helping to set it up. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tweet⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and/or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Synchronicity⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ production, conceived and presented by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠David Hughes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, David Hughes.  For this episode, we’re joined by Swiss director Peter Luisi for a fascinating discussion about his new film The Last Screenwriter, the first film scripted entirely by A.I. – specifically ChatGPT4.0 Now, before you grab your pitchforks and burning torches and lay siege to Rogue Commentary HQ, hear me out: I’m staunchly, even militantly anti-A.I. in the arts. But when I heard that London’s beloved Prince Charles Cinema had called off what was to be the world premiere of The Last Screenwriter because of blowback it receive online, I was disheartened, because it seemed that Peter’s film was a genuine attempt to engage with the question of A.I. in film specifically, and that we desperately needed to have the kind of conversation the film should have, and would have, provoked. Instead, by shelving the screening, conversation as shut down. As I said in my subsequent piece for Time Out, I don’t think the screening would have been cancelled if the film was being presented as an experimental film by a known quantity such as a Michael Winterbottom, a Steven Soderbergh or Mike Figgis. While not exactly a household name in his native Switzerland, Peter co-wrote his country’s excellent Oscar entry for 2007, Vitus, and is the writer, director and producer of last year’s Bonjour Switzerland, the 8th most successful Swiss film of all time, and the biggest-grossing film in Switzerland since the advent of streaming. The Last Screenwriter is now available online, for free, at lastscreenwriter.com and there’s no need to have seen it before listening to Peter’s commentary, but whether or not you’ve seen the film – and I would urge you to give it a watch – I think you’ll find Peter’s commentary as fascinating as I did. Thanks Peter! Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tweet⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and/or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Synchronicity⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ production, conceived and presented by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠David Hughes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by David Hughes.  For this episode, I’m delighted to be joined by director Alberto Corredor for a peek under the hood of his terrific 2023 horror movie BAGHEAD. When I first saw the film, reviewing it for Time Out, it had a very late embargo, which normally means you can expect the worst. But even though I didn’t go in with low expectations – because I like to give every film a fair shot – I was still mightily impressed, not only by Freya Allen’s terrifically spiky performance, but also by the way Corredor understood what audiences wanted, and was determined to give it to them, without ever condescending to them with a knowing wink. Now that I’ve seen the 2017 short on which Baghead was based, I’m also impressed by how far the screenwriters went to build on not only the idea at the heart of the short, but also deeper themes of grief, inherited trauma and determinism. Massive thanks are due to Alberto for jumping on board, but also to Studio Canal, especially Mubanga Mweemba, for connecting us. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tweet⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and/or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Synchronicity⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ production, conceived and presented by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠David Hughes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, David Hughes.  For this episode, I’m thrilled to welcome Jen Johans, award-winning writer, film critics, essayist and historian, and host of the excellent Watch With Jen podcast. Now, that has really good guests, but Jen must be short for Jenerous because she always gives her guests more of the floor than she uses herself, so I thought it’d be perfect to invite her to record a solo commentary, and choose any film she wanted, and I’m super excited she chose Norman Jewison's timeless 1987 romantic comedy-drama Moonstruck, starring Cher and Olympia Dukakis – both of whom won Oscars for their performances – Nicolas Cage and Danny Aiello, from an Oscar-winning original screenplay by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright John Patrick Shanley. I’m a huge fan of Moonstruck, and I’m really excited to bring you this exclusive audio commentary, which I’m sure you’re going to love. Even though, as we all know, "love don’t make things nice. It ruins everything. It breaks your heart. It makes things a mess.” Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠⁠⁠⁠tweet⁠⁠⁠⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠ and/or ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠⁠⁠⁠Synchronicity⁠⁠⁠⁠ production, conceived and presented by ⁠⁠⁠⁠David Hughes⁠⁠⁠⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, ⁠⁠⁠David Hughes.⁠⁠⁠ For this episode, I’m delighted to welcome Gonzalo López-Gallego and José David Montero, director and cinematographer respectively of the terrific neo-noir American Star, in which Ian McShane plays an ex-soldier-turned-hitman who travels to Fuertaventura, one of the Canary Islands, to do a job, and finds himself on a journey into his soul. As I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, we’re doing a second episode covering the splendid neo-noir American Star, in which Ian McShane plays an ex-soldier-turned-hitman who travels to Fuertaventura, one of the Canary Islands, to do a job, and finds himself on a journey into his soul. This time, our guest is screenwriter Nacho Faerna, and not just because he wasn’t able to make the first recording we did for this film, but also because he really gave birth to the story, and I thought his insights into the development of the film could offer a broader inspiration for aspiring screenwriters. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠⁠⁠tweet⁠⁠⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠ and/or ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠⁠⁠Synchronicity⁠⁠⁠ production. Conceived, written and presented by ⁠⁠⁠David Hughes⁠⁠⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, ⁠⁠David Hughes.⁠⁠ For this episode, I’m delighted to welcome Gonzalo López-Gallego and José David Montero, director and cinematographer respectively of the terrific neo-noir American Star, in which Ian McShane plays an ex-soldier-turned-hitman who travels to Fuertaventura, one of the Canary Islands, to do a job, and finds himself on a journey into his soul. It’s an elegiac, ruminative and surprisingly affecting film, with a captivating performance by McShane. He’s so good, in fact, so mesmerizing, that you almost miss the incredible work Nora Arnezeder is doing. For me, this was the film many critics thought they were watching when they raved about David Fincher’s The Killer, another film that deals a hitman’s ennui. Can you imagine how diminished American Star would be if it was slathered in voiceover, or if Ian McShane’s character played The Smiths on an endless loop? I really appreciate Gonzalo and José-David coming on to talk about one of my favourite films of the year so far, but I also have to thank screenwriter Nacho Faerna, who put us in touch. He wasn’t able to make the recording, but don’t worry – we’re going to record a separate Rogue Commentary with Nacho that will uncover all the screenwriting secrets of the film’s development, including how it was inspired by a conversation much like the one Wilson has with Max in American Star. Keep an eye out for that episode, which will be dropping soon. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠⁠tweet⁠⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ and/or ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠⁠Synchronicity⁠⁠ production. Conceived, written and presented by ⁠⁠David Hughes⁠⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, ⁠David Hughes.⁠ For this episode, I’m delighted to welcome Lee Roy Kunz, co-writer, co-director and star of the impressive horror movie Deliver Us (2023), which – as you know, because you wouldn’t listen to an audio commentary without seeing the film first – concerns a priest sent to investigate a nun who believes that the immaculately-conceived twins she is carrying are destined to be the messiah and the antichrist. Filmed during the pandemic, mostly in Estonia, it’s an extraordinarily accomplished film, with a scope and production value that belies its low budget, and I particularly wanted to ask Lee Roy to give tips on how to stretch a budget as far as it can go. Despite the fact that his ten-month-old son had kept him up most of the previous night, Lee Roy was generous with his time and gracious and open with his answers to my questions, and I’m really grateful for him for guesting on the pod. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠tweet⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠Twitter⁠ and/or ⁠Instagram⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠Synchronicity⁠ production. Conceived, written and presented by ⁠David Hughes⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello, and welcome to the latest edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, ⁠David Hughes.⁠  This is a bittersweet episode; basically an edited and extended version of the audio commentary I recorded with director David Leland eighteen months before his death on Christmas Eve at the age of 82. The commentary was ostensibly for his 1990 drama The Big Man, starring Liam Neeson, Billy Connolly, Ian Bannen, Joanne Whalley – then Joanne Whalley-Kilmer – Hugh Grant and Peter Mullan, but David was so generous with his time we ended up talking about other films, including Mona Lisa, Personal Services, and Wish You Were Here, with sidebars about Harvey Weinstein, Ennio Morricone, Jeremy Irons, Pierce Brosnan and Tennesse Williams. It doesn’t really cue up with the film, but if you haven’t seen The Big Man, I urge you to check out Plumeria Pictures’ extras-packed Blu-ray, available from PlumeriaPics.co.uk I feel so privileged to have been able to meet David to discuss his incredible body of work, and hope you enjoy this look back at a brilliant career. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠tweet⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠Twitter⁠ and/or ⁠Instagram⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠Synchronicity⁠ production. Conceived, written and presented by ⁠David Hughes⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2024 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, ⁠David Hughes.⁠ For this episode, I’m delighted to be joined by John Walsh, author of the exceptionally detailed, exhaustively researched and endlessly entertaining The Wicker Man: The Official Story of the Film, just out from Titan Books. We’re going to be watching the version of The Wicker Man known as The Final Cut, which has slightly different running times depending on the frame rate, but should stay in sync throughout our chat. John has spoken to almost literally everyone for the book, anyone who had anything to do with the making of the 1973 masterpiece, which happens to be my favourite horror film, and be celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. By the end of the commentary, you’ll think you know everything there is to know about the making of The Wicker Man, but I promise you, John has only scratch the surface: to dig deeper, you’ll really need to pick up that book – ideally a physical copy, as it’s a beautiful thing in its own right, packed with archive material, rare and previously unseen photographs and all kinds of other buried treasures. I’m really grateful to John for walking through the film with me, and for unearthing so much incredible background for the book and the commentary. Apologies for the slight quality degredation in the opening 20 minutes or so, likely due to dark magic by the people of Summerisle. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a ⁠tweet⁠. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on ⁠Twitter⁠ and/or ⁠Instagram⁠ to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A ⁠Synchronicity⁠ production. Conceived, written and presented by ⁠David Hughes⁠. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2023 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hello! Welcome to another edition of the exclusive audio commentary podcast hosted by me, David Hughes. For this episode, I’m delighted to welcome the legendary Daniel Waters, screenwriter of Heathers, Demolition Man, Batman Returns and the film we’re here to talk about today: Hudson Hawk. It's well known that Hudson Hawk went wildly off the rails during production, but whether you love it or loathe it – for me it’s a little from column 'A', a little from column 'B' – it was fascinating to hear Steven De Souza’s exclusive Hudson Hawk commentary right here on Rogue Commentary back in March, and to re-examine the film here with Daniel Waters, who inherited the project from De Souza in 1990, and substantially rewrote it, for director Michael Lehmann, producer Joel Silver and star Bruce Willis. Hudson Hawk was arguably the victim of a perfect storm of a troubled production, poor marketing, anti-Bruce Willis sentiment, and ahead-of-its-timeism, and all four of those things are discussed here. I’d like to thank Daniel Waters for his time, and for revisiting the film with me, and for former Rogue Commentary guest Josh Olson for putting us in touch. Comments? Feedback? Suggestions? Email David *at * Rogue-Commentary *dot* com or send us a tweet. We have lots of exciting episodes in the works, so if you like what you hear – or just the idea – please subscribe, and remember to rate us wherever you hear this podcast – it'll really help us to keep going. Oh, and follow us on Twitter and/or Instagram to stay up-to-date on our forthcoming releases. Thanks for listening! A Synchronicity production. Conceived, written and presented by David Hughes. Produced by Sam Ibrahim. Music by Olli Oja. All content © 2023 Synchronicity II Ltd. All rights reserved.