This week... a fight! Gavia and Morgan go in on AMC's limited series "The Terror," an Arctic exploration horror-drama show designed to make Gav happy and Morgan annoyed. They discuss how the show compares to other explorer fiction, the insanity of the Victorians, whether or not horror can work on television, and all those old white men.
This week, Morgan and Gavia dive into Jim Henson's cult classic "Labyrinth." They discuss David Bowie's iconic performance, the very understandable impact this film had on generations of impressionable young ladies, its similarity to classical romance, and more. A Patreon-funded episode.
This week, Morgan and Gavia travel back in time to revisit David Fincher's 2010 biopic of Mark Zuckerberg, "The Social Network." They assess how the film has aged, its near-total divergence from the actual history of Facebook's early years, and Andrew Garfield's Bambi eyes.
At long last... Gavia and Morgan revisit the first film in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, courtesy of a very generous Patreon subscriber. Topics discussed include: the greatness of Liam Neeson, the terribleness of George Lucas' dialogue, and what on earth is going on with Jar Jar Binks.
This week, Morgan and Gavia watch a classic: Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" (1960). Topics discussed include Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh's iconic performances, the film's influence on the slasher genre, its famous plot twists, and how it fits into Hitchcock's wider filmography.
This week, Gavia and Morgan are joined by culture writer Sulagna Misra for a discussion of Guillermo del Toro's fan favorite blockbuster "Pacific Rim." They reflect on the film's success as a smart-dumb blockbuster, its elaborate world building, the mesmerizing woodenness of Charlie Hunnam, and how sequel "Pacific Rim: Uprising" stacks up to the original.
This week, Gavia and Morgan discuss CBS's long-running Sherlock Holmes procedural "Elementary," a topic chosen by Patreon subscribers. They compare the show to other Holmes adaptations, express their admiration for its central cast, and bemoan the state of mainstream Hollywood. [This episode focuses on the finale of "Elementary's" first season.]
This week, Gavia and Morgan dive into the mesmerizing world of "Annihilation," the trippy new science fiction film from director Alex Garland. They discuss the film's frustrating distribution (or lack thereof), how it stacks up against Garland's other work and other science fiction classics, and What It All Means.
This week, Gav is joined by guest hosts Elizabeth Minkel and Natasha Simonova for a very special episode about the pirate drama "Black Sails." We explore the historical and literary themes of the show, including its similarities to 17th century Revenge Tragedy, and what "historical fiction" actually means. Spoiler warning: We cover all four seasons, so this is mostly aimed at "Black Sails" fans rather than new viewers!
This week, Morgan and Gavia recap the good, the bad, and the ugly of 2017 (or, if you insist, 2018) Oscar ceremony, from "The Shape of Water"'s Best Picture win to Frances McDormand's barn-burning speech to... jet-skis?
This week, Gavia and Morgan discuss Marvel's latest hit, the record-breaking "Black Panther." Topics include the film's thrilling visuals, its departure from traditional superhero storytelling, its excellent women, and... "The Lion King"?
This week, Gavia and Morgan preview the 2018 Winter Olympics. They discuss NBC's disastrous coverage of the opening ceremony, break down each of the figure skating disciplines, and survey some of the other sports, including snowboarding.
This week, Morgan and Gavia dig into Paul Thomas Anderson's sumptuous masterpiece "Phantom Thread." They discuss the film's magnificent costumes, its delectable use of food, how it compares to PTA's recent work, the wondrous Vicky Krieps, and the hungry boy. In other news, last week, we launched a Patreon! Please check out our page and, if you can, pledge to contribute anywhere from $1 to $100 (we can dream!) to the podcast every month. We are so grateful to everyone who has already signed up an...
Morgan and Gavia dive into the good, the bad, and the ugly of the nominations for the 90th Academy Awards. Greta! Jordan! Chris! Paul! Guillermo!
This week, Morgan and Gavia find themselves at odds over Steven Spielberg's new historical drama "The Post." They consider the film's classical style, Spielberg's corpus, Meryl Streep's caftan, and get side-tracked by their antipathy of Winston Churchill biopics.
This week, Morgan takes a trip down memory lane by rewatching the 1997 animated classic "Anastasia"... which Gavia just watched for the first time. They discuss its adaptation potential, the enduring power of the Anastasia myth, and the enduring appeal of millennial icon Dmitri.
This week, Gavia and Morgan discuss Gavia's favorite film of the year, Guillermo del Toro's new creature feature, "The Shape of Water." They consider its topical political resonances, its mishmash of genres, how it fits into del Toro's filmography, and Sally Hawkins' luminous performance.
This week, Morgan and Gavia duke it out over Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the latest, divisive installment in the Star Wars universe. Gavia is a fan; Morgan is frustrated. A disturbance in the Force!
This week, Morgan and Gavia rhapsodize over Morgan's favorite movie of the year, indie sensation "Call Me by Your Name." They compare it to director Luca Guadanigno's previous films, "I Am Love" and "A Bigger Splash," reflect on its universal specificity, the brilliance of actors Timothée Chalamet and Michael Stuhlbarg, that peach scene, and more.
This week, Gavia reports back from DC's disappointing mega-blockbuster "Justice League." Morgan refused to see this film on principle, so Gav gives a full report on the film's aesthetic mediocrity, the unfortunate effects of all that reshooting, and what on earth is going on with Ben Affleck.
This week, Gavia and Morgan revisit their childhoods with Philip Pullman's new novel "La Belle Sauvage," the first installment of his new trilogy The Book of Dust, a companion to His Dark Materials. They discuss this book's relationship to Pullman's earlier trilogy, earnest children, frightening villains, Oxford, and—for some reason—Edmund Spenser's living situation.
This week, Morgan and Gavia discuss Taika Waititi's masterful addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, "Thor: Ragnarok." Topics include Chris Hemsworth's comedic chops, the film's eye-popping design and postcolonial politics, and more.
This week, Gavia and Morgan celebrate Halloween by watching Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 horror classic, "Bram Stoker's Dracula." They discuss how it diverges from other Dracula films, its unconventional romance, Keanu Reeves' worst performance, and Gavia's dream Frankenstein adaptation.
This week, Gavia and Morgan are joined by special guest Mallory Ortberg for a conversation about Netflix's surprise true crime spoof "American Vandal." They discuss the show's relationship to true crime, its glorious depiction of dirtbag teens and innovative use of social media, and the relief of watching something that just feels not-terrible.
This week, Morgan and Gavia report back from the New York and London Film Festivals, where they saw an eclectic collection of films including "The Florida Project," "BPM," "Mudbound," "Lady Bird," "The Meyerowitz Stories," "The Killing of a Sacred Deer," and more.
This week, Gavia and Morgan are lukewarm on Denis Villeneuve's sequel to Ridley Scott's 1982 sci-fic classic "Blade Runner." Topics of discussion include the films problems with women, its overly complicated screenplay, Harrison Ford's best performance in years, and whether the idea of a sequel was doomed from the outset.
This week, Gavia and Morgan change it up by diving into the latest novel by master spy novelist John le Carré, "A Legacy of Spies," which marks his final return to the world of George Smiley and the Circus. Topics discussed include the novel's relationship to its predecessors, le Carré's difficulties writing women, Morgan's le Carré fandom, and Brexit.
This week, Morgan and Gavia discuss the new Star Trek show airing on CBS All Access, "Star Trek: Discovery." Topics include Gav's longtime Star Trek fandom, how the show diverges from other iterations of the franchise, new star Sonequa Martin, and what's up with those Klingons anyway.
This week, Gavia and Morgan discuss Darren Aronofsky's Biblical parable horror flick, "Mother!" Topics discussed include whether or not the film's muddled allegory actually means anything, its poor box office performance, and Jennifer Lawrence's very bad wig. Reminder: on October 3rd, we will be discussing John le Carré's new novel, "A Legacy of Spies." Read now to join us!
This week, Gavia and Morgan discuss Tim Burton's Batman films, "Batman"(1989) and "Batman Returns" (1992), starring Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Michelle Pfeiffer, and others. Topics discussed include how these Gothic movies stand apart from later cinematic Batmans, Burton's early-20th century cinema influences, the unique appeal of Keaton's Bruce Wayne, and the greatness of Pfeiffer's Catwoman.
