Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Five minute film finder.
[00:00:07] Speaker B: Sizzle Reel hello and welcome back to five Minute Film Finder. I'm Ben and I'll be your host for today's January Sizzle Reel episode. If you're joining us for the first time, 5 Minute Film Finder is the podcast where we help you discover your next great movie. All available for free with your library card through Hoopla and Canopy. Each month we kick things off with one of these short Sizzle Reel episodes where we highlight staff picks up, share what's featured on our streaming platforms and let you know about new additions to the library's physical media collection.
All right, let's jump into this month's staff picks. Jamie recommends Dial him for Murder. Directed by ALFRED Hitchcock, this 1954 film is a masterclass in suspense.
It's a classic film from Hitchcock's filmography, so you should definitely check it out. Samuel is going big this month with Godfather Part 1 and Part 2, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. These are the classic film saga.
Big cinematic, big part of film history. You should absolutely watch these. It's a sweeping crime epic that kind of defined the genre.
Darren brings us 2002's equilibrium.
It's a dystopian future where emotions are outlawed.
It's very stylish, very 2002, kind of matrixy sci fi of that time. If you like action, if you like fight choreography, check this out.
Tracy recommends Stop Making Sense, directed by Jonathan Demme.
One of the best concert films ever made.
If you don't already know the Talking Heads, they're a true joy.
David Byrne is a genius and fun to watch in this incredible and unique concert film that kind of like set a standard for what you can do in this kind of genre of documentary filmmaking.
Next up, Kindle suggests Pie by Darren Aronofsky is a In classic, Aronofsky Fashion is intense experimental thriller that dives into obsession and chaos.
I believe it is his first film, so really kind of setting the tone for all the craziness that Darren Aronofsi gets into throughout his filmography.
Let's now move over to what's going on with our streaming platforms this month. So over on Hoopla, the movie club theme is art house comedy romance centered around Charles Burnett's the Annihilation of Fish.
Around this are other beloved classics like Benny and June and Harold Maude. Perfect if you're looking for something heartfelt, offbeat and a little unconventional.
Meanwhile on Canopy, they're highlighting all of their most watched films of 2025. So they have several different lists in different categories showing their most watched films under different genres, so you should definitely check those out. As well as a specially curated collection of top biopics spotlighting real lives brought to the screen in powerful and memorable ways.
Now let's take a look at what's new on physical media at the library. New DVDs available this month include Anemone, Black Phone 2, Bone Lake, Dead of Winter, Eleanor the Great, Good Fortune, Killing Faith, the Long Walk, the Roses and Small Things like these.
Coming soon, we have ZombieCon Volume 1, so keep an eye out for that in the coming month.
We also thought it might be fun to take a look at our top 10 checkouts so you can see what everyone's watching right now. So quick look at that. We got Moana 2 Dogman, Jurassic World, Rebirth, A Minecraft Movie, Thunderbolts, Snow White, Tulsa King, Season 2, Sinners, Lilo and Stitch, and Superman.
So last month, we recorded an episode of Family Friendly Titles to watch over the holiday break. But in the middle of holiday chaos and time off, we forgot to release it last week. Luckily, all the movies we suggested are still available on the platforms and not strictly holiday themed. So I figured I would go ahead and tag it on here as a little bonus content for January's Sizzle Reel episode. Enjoy, and we will catch you next week.
[00:05:03] Speaker A: Hello and welcome to five Minute Film Finder, a Pioneer Library System podcast where we talk about films that you can watch with your Pioneer Library System library card. My name is TV Tracy, and today I'm joined by Ben, and we are doing what we're going to call a special minisode today for the holidays. For the holidays. So I was talking to Ben about the fact that everyone's gonna be home for the holidays or a lot of people are gonna be home for the holidays. And you might be thinking, what movie should I sit down with my family on the couch?
Nice blanket.
[00:05:40] Speaker B: It's my. My first Christmas with a little one. So it's like we're. We're truly a little family now. So we need some family movies to watch.
[00:05:49] Speaker A: I'm gonna pitch you some films that I found on Kanopy. All of these are on Kanopi. Lovely to watch with your family with. I mean, a little mug of hot cocoa.
You a mini marshmallows guy?
[00:06:01] Speaker B: Oh, yeah.
[00:06:02] Speaker A: You said. Of course. Of course. We sit down and watch the. This. This holiday season with your family.
[00:06:07] Speaker B: Great.
[00:06:08] Speaker A: So I have them in a couple of categories.
So since it is the holiday season category, one is holiday film.
[00:06:15] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:06:16] Speaker A: In case you are a purist.
[00:06:17] Speaker B: Great.
[00:06:18] Speaker A: And the film that I have chose is 1979's Jack Frost.
[00:06:22] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:06:23] Speaker A: This is the Claymation classic.
[00:06:24] Speaker B: Oh, it's available.
[00:06:25] Speaker A: It's available.
[00:06:27] Speaker B: I mean, I'm genuinely probably gonna watch this.
[00:06:29] Speaker A: You should. If you're looking for something quick to watch with your kiddos. Short attention span. I think this one's 49 minutes long.
[00:06:35] Speaker B: Awesome.
[00:06:37] Speaker A: Way to get them into claymation early, because I think you should. I think claymation's one of the best animation styles.
[00:06:43] Speaker B: And it's so warm and, like, and tactile. It just feels good on the eyes.
[00:06:47] Speaker A: And I. So the plot synopsis for this one is a winter sprite becomes human for love, risking everything to save his beloved from an evil king, which I had forgotten because I think I mostly remembered the. That I had a huge crush on Claymation Jack Frost.
[00:07:00] Speaker B: Sure.
[00:07:01] Speaker A: And also a huge crush on the pretty blonde woman with the fabulous shag.
[00:07:04] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, Absolutely.
[00:07:07] Speaker A: And I loved this movie as a kid. It seems like you did too.
[00:07:10] Speaker B: Oh, yeah.
[00:07:10] Speaker A: Yeah. So I think if I.
For me, in my mind, those only exist on, like, ABC at 7:30pm on the Friday before Christmas.
[00:07:18] Speaker B: You had to catch it then.
[00:07:19] Speaker A: Exactly. But it turns out they're on Canopy, so I think a great place to catch up with it. So I've.
[00:07:24] Speaker B: This is a perfect suggestion. Yeah.
[00:07:25] Speaker A: Fantastic. Okay. Starting off strong. Taking a turn into a category that I called Blast from the Past. Okay. Which is another animated film from 1982, the Last Unicorn.
[00:07:37] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:07:38] Speaker A: So we talked about this a little bit before we started. You said you had not seen this film.
[00:07:43] Speaker B: Not seen this film.
[00:07:43] Speaker A: But you recognize the COVID Yes. Okay, so here's my pitch for it. Beautiful animation.
[00:07:49] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:07:49] Speaker A: It's done by a Japanese studio who also did, like, the weird 1970s Hobbit films.
[00:07:54] Speaker B: Yes. Which is such a vibe.
[00:07:56] Speaker A: They're so fun.
It's really. It feels like 1982. Actually. It kind of feels like 1979. But then I think it just took them that long to animate it.
[00:08:04] Speaker B: Absolutely.
[00:08:05] Speaker A: Unbelievably stacked voice cast.
Jeff Bridges.
Mia Farrow is the unicorn.
[00:08:13] Speaker B: Great.
[00:08:14] Speaker A: She's doing what sounds to me like an Audrey Hepburn impression. I don't know why.
[00:08:18] Speaker B: All right.
[00:08:18] Speaker A: I really like it.
Angela Lansbury, Oscar award winner Alan Arkin and Christopher Lee with original songs, as I put in my notes, inexplicably by the band America, as it should be. Yes. It's one that starts off with a song that is titled the title of the movie. So it's just America being like The Last Unicorn. And you're like, yes, yes, let's go.
[00:08:42] Speaker B: Give me more.
[00:08:43] Speaker A: It feels like the entire movie should be painted on the side of a van. Positive.
[00:08:47] Speaker B: Great. Yeah.
[00:08:48] Speaker A: The plot synopsis is a brave unicorn and a magician fight an evil king who is obsessed with a attempting to capture the world's unicorns. Okay. This one is rated G. So I.
[00:08:59] Speaker B: Think pretty easy, easy watching.
[00:09:01] Speaker A: I think there are definitely things in it where if you have a really little kid, they would find them a little scary.
[00:09:06] Speaker B: Sure. It's an 80s G. Exactly.
[00:09:09] Speaker A: Yes. It's a 1980s G film.
So there's some pretty spooky looking witches and monsters and things like that in it, but also some stuff that's really stunningly beautiful and songs inexplicably by America. So I think a super. A super fun one.
[00:09:27] Speaker B: Great.
[00:09:28] Speaker A: So we're moving on to my next category, which I called Family Book and Movie Club.
This is a library podcast.
[00:09:36] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:09:36] Speaker A: I don't know if you knew that.
For the library. And so there are a lot of great adaptations out there. And one that's off of one of my favorite childhood books. This will be for kids that are a little bit older, probably above seven or seven. Seven or eight is 2004's Ella Enchanted.
[00:09:56] Speaker B: Okay, sure.
[00:09:57] Speaker A: Do you know Ella Enchanted?
[00:09:58] Speaker B: I know it. I haven't seen it. Okay.
[00:10:00] Speaker A: It's one of my childhood favorite books. I remember when the movie came out, I lost my mind.
[00:10:06] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:10:07] Speaker A: This one's rated pg. It's my pitch for it was see Anne Hathaway do a musical number before she was Oscar nominated for it because she inexplicably once again sings Somebody to Love by Queen in this film.
[00:10:20] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:10:20] Speaker A: And it's great. It's an unbelievably good musical number. I said a silly adaptation based on one of my childhood favorite books. The plot synopsis is Ella is under a spell to be constantly obedient. A fact that she must hide from her new step family in order to protect the prince of the land, her friend for whom she is falling.
Yes. So it's very fairy tale.
[00:10:40] Speaker B: Ish.
[00:10:40] Speaker A: It's got evil stepmothers, great and great costumes and a very handsome prince. It's Hugh Dancy.
And then he went on to be in that terrible cannibal show. And I was like, oh, no. Oh, sure. Yeah. So it's a really fun movie. It's. It's.
I remember it being really fast paced and colorful and fun to watch as a kid. And so I just think if you're someone who wants to be like, let's read a book.
[00:11:10] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:11:10] Speaker A: And then watch the movie while you have, you know, two weeks off from school or whatever. Ella Enchanted is going to be a great opportunity to get away from maybe some of the. More like the Percy Jackson and the Harry Potter. Some things that maybe your family has already done if you want a new option. I think Ella Enchanted's really fun.
[00:11:27] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:11:27] Speaker A: And then my last one.
I don't think I'm gonna have to sell you on either of these films. I think you're probably already sold on them.
[00:11:33] Speaker B: Oh, boy.
[00:11:34] Speaker A: I called it the Double Feature.
Or we used to make perfect films using puppets.
[00:11:40] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:11:41] Speaker A: Can you guess what two films I'm about to pitch to you?
[00:11:44] Speaker B: No.
[00:11:45] Speaker A: It's the Dark Crystal from 1982.
[00:11:47] Speaker B: Great.
[00:11:48] Speaker A: And Labyrinth from 1986.
[00:11:50] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:11:51] Speaker A: Are both currently on Kanopy.
[00:11:53] Speaker B: Oh, boy.
[00:11:53] Speaker A: Which is maybe a double episode that we should do for the podcast.
[00:11:56] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely.
[00:11:58] Speaker A: So my pitch is Jim Henson was just built different, and so are all of his films.
[00:12:02] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely.
Yeah.
[00:12:06] Speaker A: Dark Crystal is a fantasy that's a little bit scary, but made magical with the help of the Muppet Studio, is what I put it. And same thing with Labyrinth. I think Labyrinth actually does have real people in it. Yes. David Bowie as the Goblin King is.
[00:12:22] Speaker B: We were very narrowly not the labyrinth for Halloween this year. Yeah. I almost was Bowie and my baby was almost. The baby.
[00:12:33] Speaker A: The babe with the powers.
[00:12:34] Speaker B: Yeah, the babe with the powers.
[00:12:36] Speaker A: You do what? Remind me of the babe.
[00:12:38] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:12:41] Speaker A: Just the plot synopsis on these. If you haven't seen these. Dark Crystal is on another planet in the distant past. The last of the Gelfing raised embarks on a quest to find a missing shard of a magic crystal to restore its order to the world. I think that the Dark Crystal is very like Lord of the Rings for children.
[00:12:56] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:12:57] Speaker A: Even more for children, because I think Lord of the Rings can't. But, like, it's fun. It's spooky. If you want to really get your kid interested in weird art early on, I think it's great for that because truly, Jim Henson said, what if the landscape was puppets? Yeah.
And it's stunning. I got to see this in a movie theater a couple years ago and was just like, wow, magic. It's beautiful, but it plays just as well at home.
And then Labyrinth is teenage Sarah journey through a maze to save her baby brother from the Goblin King.
Great puppets in this one, too. Great costumes. David Bowie unhinged, singing love songs in an MC Escher nightmare.
[00:13:41] Speaker B: @ one point, some all time Bowie.
[00:13:43] Speaker A: Hits. Yeah. I mean, really great songs.
Some stuff in it that is also a little scary. I was talking with my friend who recently showed it to her niece, and, like, the fire dancers bit where they're all puppets are tossing each other's heads can be a bit much. I love.
[00:14:00] Speaker B: It.
[00:14:00] Speaker A: Yeah.
But I think it's really.
[00:14:03] Speaker B: Fun. Oh, yeah. So.
[00:14:04] Speaker A: Fun. And I think if you have, like, a long day and you maybe want to make, like, a big bowl of popcorn and have everybody sit down and talk about the magic of Frank Oz with your family, introduce your children to the work of Frank Oz and Jim Henson, I think these are.
They're winners. I mean, they're cultural classics. Absolutely. Dark Crystal has a Netflix show now.
[00:14:32] Speaker B: Too.
[00:14:32] Speaker A: Yes. So if you're. If your family loves it, then you have the Netflix show to move.
[00:14:36] Speaker B: On, to continue the.
[00:14:37] Speaker A: Journey. Yeah. Yeah, that's my pitch. Do you think you're gonna watch any of these this holiday.
[00:14:42] Speaker B: Season? At least a couple, if not many.
[00:14:45] Speaker A: Yeah. I think that there are some really good options on there. And these are just some ones that I pulled out of, like, ones that I knew I already.
[00:14:50] Speaker B: Loved.
[00:14:51] Speaker A: Absolutely.
[00:14:52] Speaker B: And. And we keep talking about how we need to do more family movies. So thank you for doing this to. For all of our family listeners to be able to pull some great pics from our.
[00:15:02] Speaker A: Services. I just think that when you're home, you might want to have some options. So I thought this is what I can.
[00:15:06] Speaker B: Do. Yeah.
[00:15:07] Speaker A: Absolutely.
[00:15:08] Speaker B: Yay. All right, well.
[00:15:11] Speaker A: Thanks. You're welcome, Ben. I hope you. You'll have to text me when you and your family watch.
[00:15:15] Speaker B: These. Oh, yeah, let me know. Send pictures of the baby boy.
[00:15:18] Speaker A: Reacting.
Please be like, should I get a wig? Looks like David.
[00:15:24] Speaker B: Bowie. I think it's time draw on my.
[00:15:26] Speaker A: Eyebrows.
Yes, I think it'll be magical. All right, well, thanks for hanging out with.
[00:15:30] Speaker B: Me. Thanks. And happy holidays to all of our listeners.
Bye.
Five Minute Film Finder is a digital program brought to you by Pioneer Library System in Oklahoma.
All opinions expressed in this episode are those of the host and not those of the organization.
Five Minute Film Finder is produced, recorded and mixed by Ben Cuba.
Theme music by Ben C.
If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please email podcast at pioneerlibrariesystem. Org. Remember to, like, review and subscribe. Thanks for.
