Defining Rick Ramos 

The Self-Indulgence is strong in this episode as Mr. Chavez and I break down our lives in movies over the next two episodes. From The Blues Brothers through Unforgiven and the concert films of George Carlin, it's a fun trip through the psychology of a movie lover. Take a listen; it's a fun conversation. 

Questions, Comments, Complaints, and Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com

Many Thanks. 

Three Auteurs: DePalma, Friedkin Uncut, and by Sidney Lumet 

When you have these three names there's little else that needs to be said. Take a listen as Mr. Chavez & I look at the careers and brilliance of three 1970s names that are sometimes left in the shadows of Scorsese, Spielberg, and Coppola - Brian DePalma, William Friedkin, and Sidney Lumet. It's a fun talk. We hope you enjoy it. 

Questions, Comments, Complaints, & Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Many Thanks. 

A Dish Served Cold: Mark Mylod's The Menu 

This week Ibrahim & I sit down to talk a film that has recently left theatres, Mark Mylod's The Menu. Featuring a wonderful slumming performance from Ralph Fiennes and a captivating Anya Taylor-Joy (both Golden Globe nominated), this film is the very definition of empty calorie cinema. Ibrahim & I differ greatly in our opinions of this film, but we had fun with the viewing and and an even better time talking the film. You're in for an interesting and enjoyable discussion on a fun and forgettable film that many of you will enjoy simply for what it is. Class, Culture, The Restaurant and Cooking Industries, and Fame - We cover all of it, doing so with our usual insight and penchant for truth. Take a listen and see if you agree. Questions, Comments, Complaints, & Suggestions should be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. 

The Colonel and The King - Baz Luhrman's Elvis 

This week Ibrahim and I sit down to discuss the Academy Award nominated, Baz Luhrman directed, Elvis Presley Bio-Pic, Elvis. Definitely a visual assault on the senses, Luhrman has an incredible eye that re-creates the country from the 1950s thru the birth of the Vegas Lounge Act in the 1970s. Featuring an award-winning performance from star, Austin Butler, as Presley and Tom Hanks as his controversial and Svengali-like manager, Colonel Tom Parker (born Andreas Cornelis van Kujik) in a strange and polarizing performance. Luhrman's film hits the familiar points; the music, censorship, racism and segregation, The Blues, Gospel, and - of course - the enduring legacy of Elvis Presley and the early days of the media star and the beginnings of cancel culture. Take a listen; it's an interesting discussion. Questions, Comments, Complaints, & Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Our Continued Thanks. 

Monster Hunter - Todd Field's TÁR - WatchThis W/RickRamos 

This week Mr. Chavez & I sit down to talk Academy Best Picture Contender, Tár, featuring a stand-out performance from Cate Blanchett. This is the kind of picture we only ever get to see at awards season. In a cinematic world filled with remakes, re-hashes, and action tent-poles, Tár delivers a wonderfully nuanced and brutal honest examination of the  world we live in. This is a slow-paced, thoughtful film that asks a great deal from its viewers while simultaneously delivering a great deal. Take a listen and catch this essential film playing in theaters and streaming on select services.

 Questions, Comments, Complaints, & Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Many Thanks for your continued love and support. 

Blue Dances with Wolves - James Cameron's Avatar Films 

In 2009 James Cameron took old soup and re-heated it in a familiar bowl. Equal parts Lawrence of Arabia, The Last Samurai, and (most glaringly) Kevin Costner's revisionist Western, Dances with Wolves, Cameron has gone back to the well-worn tradition of re-imagining Native Cultures, Colonialism, and the Trope of the White Saviour. This is territory that we (and many others) have explored ad-nauseum, however the films continue to get made and starving whores that we are, we take the bait. You can love this film series, you can hate it, but the discussion will always be an important, controversial, and impassioned one. Take a listen as Mr. Chavez and I discuss 2009s Avatar and it's thirteen years in the making sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water. At the very least it's a fun and combative discussion. 

Questions, Comments, Complaints, and Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Many Thanks for your continued love and support. 

Eating Images: Jordan Peele's Nope 

On this episode, Mr. Chavez & I sit down to discuss one of the best directors to emerge from the late 2010s into the early 2020s, Jordan Peele. With three films under his belt, 2017s Get Out, 2019s Us, and his latest - 2022s Nope, Peele has established himself as one of the most creative and compelling voices in today's cinema. His films challenge convention and stun audiences and critics with their audacity. This week we discuss Peele's emerging style as a filmmaker as well as the conventions and evolution of the genre. Take a listen. Ibrahim & I continue to have great times recording these episodes. We hope you can join us. 

Questions, Comments, Complaints, and Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Many Thanks. 

The Many Faces of The Little Wooden Boy - Pinocchio 

Talking a Classic . . .  Netflix has recently premiered Guillermo del Toro's (with co-director Mark Gustafson) Pinocchio (2023), a touching stop-motion animation feature that is overwhelming in its beauty. On this week's episode I'm taking a look at Carlo Colidi's 1883 classic tale (The Adventures of Pinocchio) as it has been interpreted throughout the 20th and 21st Centuries. For this episode I look at the del Toro Netflix film, the 1940 Walt Disney Classic, and (my favorite) the 2019 Italian film from director Matteo Garrone and featuring Roberto Benigni as Geppetto. Hopefully this episode will give you a few things to consider. Take a look at these three films. I hope you will enjoy them. 

Questions, Comments, Complaints, & Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Many Thanks. 

Hollywood - Spectacle & Sacrifice: Damien Chazelle's Babylon

This week, Mr. Chavez & I continue our close out of 2022 (going into this third week of 2023), with a look at one of the most highly-anticipated films of the year (and one of its most polarizing films and biggest box-office disappointments), Damien Chazelle's Babylon. This is certainly a film that defines cinematic ambition, but also thematic and visual excess; A film of grotesque imagery and questionable plot points, Chazelle's love and fascination for the Hollywood's Silent Era and the slow emergence into "Talkies" is divisive at the very least. Rarely does a film emrege that is as beautiful, overblown, and misguided as this three-hour opus. Featuring Hollywood Stars interpreting the lives of early screen stars John Gilbert (Brad Pitt) and Clara Bow (Margot Robbie), and newcomers Diego Calva, Li Jun Li, and Jovan Adepo, as well as Jean Smart, Flea, Lukas Haas, Eric Roberts, Jeff Garlin, and Tobey McGuire. Incredibly problematic, but definitely worth seeing on the big screen, Chazelle's "Love Letter to Cinema and Hate Letter to Los Angeles/Hollywood" is one of the more fascinating spectacles in recent cinema. Take a listen and let us know what you think. 

As always, we. dive into all aspects of this film. It is best to have seen the film before listening. You've been warned. Questions, Comments, Complaints, and Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com Many Thanks. 

Prison of the Self: Darren Aaronofsky's The Whale

On this week's episode of WatchThis W/RickRamos, Mr. Chavez & I continue our look at a series of challenging, polarizing, and (in some cases) critically-acclaimed films closing out 2022 and carrying us into 2023. This week we look at Brendan Fraser's return to the big screen in Darren Aaronofsky's The Whale. There is definitely greatness here, but there are also troubling and problematic (cinematic) elements to this film. We are not getting on a bandwagon our overlooking the attitudes and problems the public may have with this film, but are focusing - rather - on the qualities of telling a narrative centered around a morbidly obese man and all that that entails. 

There's a lot to unpack. Mr. Chavez and I do our best to come at the film with open-minds and balanced understanding. Take a listen as we dive into this moving and difficult film. 

Questions, Comments, Complaints, & Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Many Thanks.