December 22

Lethal Weapon ,1987

The boys are back for their last episode of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers for 2017! J. Blake and Dion Baia are going back once again to that endless well that has been so plentiful for them this year, and tackling one more from 1987! This time around they’re chatting an action classic, one that kick-started an entire franchise. To answer the age-old question: what do you get when you take an unhinged cop who gets partnered up with another whose got retirement on the mind? Well you get the Richard Donner essential, Lethal Weapon, from 1987.

Lethal Weapon Poster

The guys jump right into this Christmas-centric flick by discussing the sub, subgenre of Christmas-related action movies. They chat about what the allure is of having so many of these type of genre films set within the Holiday season. They talk about screenwriter Shane Black and the original script that was even deemed “to dark” by the studio and others involved. Dion and Blake analyze the insane ‘what-if ‘ game for this go-around, looking at how different of a movie this could have been with an alternate cast, had the other actors considered, been chosen. They also look back at the other influences in cinema and within the ‘police genre’ that led Hollywood to Lethal Weapon, and how this benchmark reset the action film for the years to come. So, what 1980’s action flick do the boys think should have been set at Christmas time? Was this actually the first use of a modern cellphone within a movie? And did Dion actually think once upon a time that the film’s title had to be spoken within the movie? Well everyone better make sure their Beretta‘s and Smith & Wesson‘s are cleaned and ready for use, cause the boys are taking you for one last ‘ride along’ on this last, all new 2017 holiday edition of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers!

Extras!

Here’s the deleted opening bar scene that was to originally intro Martin Riggs.

Check out this deleted scene of Riggs picking up a prostitute just to watch the Three Stooges with him.

Have a look at the notorious deleted sniper-at-a-school scene, that was another way of introducing Riggs.

Take a look at the original ending for Lethal Weapon.

Here’s the extended jumper scene.

Lastly, check out this original teaser trailer for Lethal Weapon, that features some scenes that did not make it into the final cut.

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Category: Action, Adventure, Classic, Crime, Police, Thriller | 3 Comments on Lethal Weapon ,1987
September 25

Batman, 1989

This week is a celebration here at Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers because we’ve turned ONE year old!

To usher in the monumental anniversary, J. Blake and Dion Baia have recorded a podcast that could be their most EPIC yet, presenting a film that played a huge role in their upbringing and practically revolutionized Hollywood moviemaking and marketing in the late 20th century; basically the 1977 Star Wars of their generation. If you haven’t guessed it already, we are speaking about 1989’s Batman, directed by Tim Burton.

batman

Dion and Blake start off by reflecting on turning a year old, and the humbling experience it has been to hear from the fans they’ve gained who share the same love for movies as they do. The fellas chat about being part of a nostalgic generation, and attempt to set-up what it was like for them to be 10 year-olds living in a pre-Batman era and then live through that unbelievable summer of 1989, a perfect storm which has been dubbed in the annuls of history as Batmania.

Then they get into all things Batman: The lads go back and setup the history of comic books, from dime-store novels, pulp magazines to comic strips, and detail the elements in the culture that helped Bob Kane and Bill Finger create the Dark Knight. The boys proceed to go through the various eras of Batman, from the post WWII 50’s era Fredric Wertham crusade to clean up comics, to the ‘Pop‘ 1966 show that defined an era, to the ’70’s and ’80’s push to bring the character back to his roots. Once they get to the main course, Tim Burton’s 1989 tour de force, they track the 10-year journey of getting the film made, the various casting challenges posed (with Dion and Blake playing the BIGGEST version of their ‘What If ?‘ Game EVER), and even tackle the argument of who was a better Joker: Jack Nicholson or Heath Ledger? Not to mention the 26 year-old surprise that could ultimately send them both to the HOSPITAL to get their stomach’s pumped!

Yes, as epic as this description is, it barely scratches the surface of this MEGA podcast to commemorate Saturday Night Movie Sleepover‘s one year anniversary. Go ahead and have a spin today!

EXTRAS:

(As of this recording, some great news has been released about Bill Finger finally receiving the Batman credit he deserves!)

(Straight out of the Saturday Night Movie Sleepover’s Archive, here is an original sketch by none other than Bob Kane himself!)

(As mentioned in the podcast, another straight out of the SNMS’s Archive is an ultra-rare, one of a kind original piece of art done by the Hanna Barbara legend Bob Singer of Batman and Robin with Scooby and Shaggy.) 

(To READ MORE on artist Bob Singer and his role in developing Hanna Barbara’s cartoon library, please read this EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW the boys did for Podwits.com) 

(Check out the TRAILER that started it all, released Christmas of 1988 to build excitement for the June 23rd 1989 premiere)

(Have a look at various 1989 commercials to promote all things Batman, including toys, Nintendo games, the *cereal*, Michael Gough as Alfred in a Diet Coke commercial, and many more! Wow it brings back memories!!)

(Here’s an VERY RARE Warner Bros. Industrial Short [courtesy of 1989Batman.com] part of the 1988 press kit, which some say was made to show the stockholders how the tone and look of the film would be, which was shot while the project was still in preproduction, and has in-depth interviews with Production Designer Anton Furst, Director Tim Burton, SFX man John Evans, among many others.)

(For all everything else related to the 1989 Burton film among other things, check out 1989Batman.com)

(HERE and HERE are some photo’s of the actual cereal box the boys opened on set and tried during the recording of their Batman 1989 podcast.)

(As referenced to in the podcast, have a gander at the 2011 Podwits article Dion did arguing Tim Burton‘s Batman films over Christopher Nolan‘s trilogy. )

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Category: Action, Adventure, Childrens, DC Comics, Drama, Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers Exclusive | 5 Comments on Batman, 1989