Who in the Hell Was Alan Smithee, and Why Did He Make So Many Bad Movies

11/12/21 • 47 min

7 Listeners

On this very special episode of the podcast, we discuss the life, career, and death of Alan Smithee, one of the most prolific filmmakers of the 1980s... who never actually directed a film, or, really, ever even existed. It's a twisted tale of incompetence, greed, and saving face.

----more----
The movies discussed in this episode:
Accidental Love (2015, Stephen Greene)
An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn (1998, Alan Smithee)
Appointment With Fear (1985, Alan Smithee)
The Barking Dog (1978, Alan Smithee)
The Birds II (1994, Alan Smithee)
Catchfire (1990, Alan Smithee)
City in Fear (1980, Alan Smithee)
Death of a Gunfighter (1969, Alan Smithee)
Dune (1984, David Lynch)
Eep! (2010, Ellen Smith)
Exposed (2016, Declan Dale)
Fade In (1975, Alan Smithee)
Ghost Fever (1987, Alan Smithee)
The Guardian (1990, William Friedkin)
Gunhead (1989, Alan Smithee)
Gypsy Angels (1980, Alan Smithee)
Heat (1995, Michael Mann)
Hellraiser IV: Bloodline (1994, Alan Smithee)
I Love New York (1987, Alan Smithee)
The Insider (1999, Michael Mann)
Let's Get Harry (1986, Alan Smithee)
Morgan Stewart's Coming Home (1987, Alan Smithee)
New York Ninja (1984/2021, John Liu)
The Shrimp on the Barbie (1990, Alan Smithee)
Stitches (1985, Alan Smithee)
Student Bodies (1981, Mickey Rose)
Supernova (2000, Thomas Lee)
Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983, John Landis)
Woman Wanted (1999, Alan Smithee)

Previous Episode

A Brief History of the Halloween Movies

9 Recommendations

In this very special episode, we do something that only 13,948 other podcasts have already done or are in the process of doing this week: taking a look back at the Halloween movies.

----more----

The movies covered in this episode:
Halloween (1978, John Carpenter)
Halloween II (1981, Rick Rosenthal)
Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982, Tommy Lee Wallace)
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988, Dwight H. Little)
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989, Dominique Othenin-Girard)
Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995, Joe Chapelle)
Halloween: H20 (1998, Steve Miner)
Halloween: Resurrection (2002, Rick Rosenthal)
Halloween (2007, Rob Zombie)
Halloween II (2009, Rob Zombie)
Halloween (2018, David Gordon Green)
Halloween Kills (2021, David Gordon Green)
Halloween Ends (2022, David Gordon Green)

Next Episode

The Orphans

1 Recommendations

This episode begins an irregular series that will take a look back at a minor cinematic phenomenon that happened more often in the 1980s than in any other decade: a one-time-only distribution company.

----more----

We talk about the 1980 Tinto Brass erotic historical drama Caligula, starring Malcolm McDowell, Helen Mirren, and Peter O'Toole, and the 1985 Bud Yorkin family drama Twice in a Lifetime, featuring Gene Hackman, Ellen Burstyn, Ann-Margret, Amy Madigan, Ally Sheedy, and Brian Dennehy.