Seconds (1966)

This week on The Spectator Film Podcast…

Seconds (1966) 6.21.19
Featuring: Austin, Maxx

Commentary track begins at 13:00

— Notes —

• We watched the Criterion Collection release of Seconds for the show this week. It looks wonderful and includes lots of neat bonus features, including a commentary track from John Frankenheimer.
• ‘Seconds: Reborn Again’ by David Sterritt from The Current
• A Little Solitaire: John Frankenheimer and American Film edited by Murray Pomerance and R. Barton Palmer — Here’s a really nice collection of essays on Frankenheimer’s entire career – opposed to focusing only on his 60’s work – and it serves as a great critical introduction to his work. There’s several good essays in here discussing Seconds.
• ‘”The Old Vines are Buried Deep” Classical Motifs in John Frankenheimer’s Seconds‘ by Sean Easton from Illonois Classical Studies — Here’s a really neat essay that examines some of the Greco-Roman motifs in the film, some of which we discussed during the commentary but not to this extent. It illuminates an additional layer of subtext to this already fascinating film.

— Corrections —

• We never had a chance to really mention it, but fun fact: the camera crew for Seconds also included John Alonzo – no wonder the camerawork is so fantastic.