GTGC - #172 - Twelve Monkeys

Hello there dear listener! If you're listening to this, you've landed back in 2016 and we are the GoodTrash GenreCast and this week we take a look at Terry Gilliam's time romp Twelve Monkeys. To do so, we've gone outside the Network to find a guest host to join us at the table, Mr. Eric King. Eric King is one of the co-hosts ofCinema Curio and is a member of the OKC Film Club who host live screenings every month in the Plaza District of Oklahoma City. He is also a fan of Terry Gilliam, so we thought we'd phone-a-friend and bring him in. 

This week, we talk our favorite time machines to get the ball rolling. After having some fun talking about time travel, a topic that Caleb could discuss on repeat y'all, we throw Twelve Monkeys on the table for analysis. Alex kicks things off by mixing two parts auteurism to one part reader response theory to put together a comparison reading of Twelve Monkeys which feels like a spiritual sequel or follow up to Brazil which we discussed during our 2016 Anti-Trash marathon. Guest Eric King takes over from here as he discusses the film in formalist terms. He highlights the films fidelity to traditional time travel narratives and specifications, while critiquing the movie's pacing. Caleb keeps the auteurist thread going as he hones in on the themes Twelve Monkeys and how Gilliam addresses many of the same topics here as he did in Brazil. Caleb proposes that Twelve Monkeys takes the commentary on consumerism from Brazil and takes it even further by deconstructing its impact on society. Dustin then takes us home and gets didactic as he talks Gilles Deleuze. In his discussion of Deleuze, Dustin deals with issues of film periodization and the theory of the Time Image... These are the things that Dustin talks about - you know that by now, Dear Listener. 

And there you have it, for the second time in four months, Terry Gilliam rears his cult film head. The first time by choice, the second time thanks to the Randomizer AB1700. We again want to thank Eric King for coming out and sitting with us at the table. Again, if you haven't, you can check him out at Cinema Curio. If you are in OKC and are interested in checking out what the OKC Film Club does, you can keep up with them over here on Facebook. Now, Dear Listener, its time for you to go on your next adventure in time. To activate the machine, just hit that play button below. 

Twelve Monkeys Time Stamps

00:45 - Welcome and Introductions with guest Eric King

04:20 - Synopsis and Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down review

13:13 - The Game: Favorite Time Machines

19:33 - Analysis 

44:07 - Shelf or Trash/Else or Instead

52:29 - Social Media and Wrap Up

54:53 - Special Announcement of Next Week's Film