This week brings a very special edition of PlayGroundZero. The gang dives into the movie Gymkata, which has influenced thousands of films, and yet remains unkown to the larger movie-going audience. Hollywood has tried to supress knowledge of the film for years, afraid of people discovering the truth about where they get their ideas. Stephen Spielberg, Ron Howard, Christpher Nolan, Kevin Smith...the list of directors that have staright up stolen from this film is incalculable. There are hundreds of films that owe their greatest scenes to the artistry on display. The upside down kiss from Spider-man 2, the layered betrayals of the Departed, and the cinematography of the James Bond film Skyfall, all owe a debt to Gymkata. The film single-handidly changed Jackie Chan's career, and he isn't even in it. Settle in, because the Playground is going to bust the blacklist wide open.
