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We have a special treat this week. The Critic and the Referee conducted their first interview with award-winning and Oscar-nominated director/screenwriter, Atom Egoyan, whose new movie, “Remember,” is being released in the U.S. on Friday, March 11, 2016. It stars Academy Award winners Christopher Plummer and Martin Landau, both giving riveting performances in this drama/thriller. Atom gives us inside details about what it’s like to work with Plummer, Landau, and first-time screenwriter Benjamin August in this unexpected tale of a 90-year-old Holocaust survivor suffering from memory loss. Listen as Egoyan walks us through how he developed his phenomenal storytelling chops, as well as his technique in working with the industry’s most talented actors and actresses. Finally, Atom shares what he’s watching, as well as what you should be watching. Yes, he ultimately takes the Critic and the Referee back to school—film school, that is.  We told you it was a special treat!

Show Notes

Here some fun facts about Atom Egoyan (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000382/ & https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atom_Egoyan):

Attended Film School:  Nope (Hitchcock/Truffaut Conversation was his film school.)

Break Out Feature: “Exotica”

Most Notable Work: “The Sweet Hereafter” (received tons of awards including two Oscar nominations)

Other Big Wig Stars He’s Directed: Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson, Reese Witherspoon, Ryan Reynolds, Colin Firth, Victor Garber, Rosario Dawson and…wait for it…Kevin Bacon. (Yes, we at Why Watch That were officially one degree away from Kevin Bacon. Major accomplishment, folks!)

Current Small Screen Favorites: “Ray Donavan,” “Breaking Bad,” “Mad Men”

Current Big Screen Favorite: “Tangerine”

What to Watch: “Vertigo,” “The Conversation,” “Taxi Driver,” “The Godfather,” and “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”

Remember (A24) http://a24films.com/films/remember/

Rating: R

Runtime: 1 hour 34 minutes

Synopsis: “Remember” tells the story of Zev Guttman (Academy Award® Winner Christopher Plummer), a 90-year-old struggling with memory loss who is living out his final years in a serene retirement home. A week following the death of his beloved wife Ruth, he suddenly gets a mysterious package from his close friend Max (Academy Award® Winner Martin Landau), containing a stack of money and a letter detailing a shocking plan. Both Zev and Max were prisoners in Auschwitz, and the same sadistic guard was responsible for the death of both their families – a guard who, immediately after the war, escaped Germany and has been living in the U.S. ever since, under an assumed identity. Max is wheelchair-bound but in full command of his mental faculties; with his guidance, Zev will embark on a cross-continental road-trip to bring justice once and for all to the man who destroyed both of their lives.

Pick of the Week: “The Conversation” by Francis Ford Coppola http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071360/