Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 96: Oppenheimer Released 18 December 2024 For this episode, we watched the 2023 Best Picture winner Oppenheimer written and directed by Christopher Nolan, based on American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J Sherwin. The cast includes Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr, Florence Pugh and Josh Hartnett, with acting Oscars for Murphy and Downey, contributing to its total of seven awards. We also discuss Barb...
Dec 18, 2024•1 hr 40 min•Ep. 96
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 95: Everything Everywhere All At Once Released 20 December 2023 For this episode, we watched the 2022 Best Picture winner Everything Everywhere All At Once, written and directed by Daniels (Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert). It won a very impressive seven awards including the trifecta of Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay and Best Director, and three of its cast walked away with awards too: Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Jami...
Dec 20, 2023•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 95
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 94: CODA (2021) Released 28 December 2022 For this episode, we watched the 2021 Best Picture winner CODA, written and directed by Sian Heder. It’s a remake of the French film La Famille Belier and the stars are Emilia Jones, Marlee Matlin, Daniel Durant and Troy Kotsur who won Best Supporting Actor and Heder also won for the screenplay. With this film, we’re going to press pause on the podcast, but we do have a few ideas about ot...
Dec 28, 2022•1 hr 34 min•Ep. 94
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 93: Nomadland (2020) Released 29 December 2021 For this episode, we watched Nomadland, written, edited and directed by Chloé Zhao, from the non-fiction book Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century, by Jessica Bruder. Among a cast of non-professional actors, the leads are Frances McDormand and David Strathairn. Music is by Ludovico Einaudi. From six nominations, it won three awards: Best Director for Zhao, Best Ac...
Dec 29, 2021•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 93
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 92: The King’s Speech (2010) Released 28 July 2021 For this episode, we watched The Kings Speech, written by David Seider and directed by Tom Hooper. It starred Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter and Guy Pearce and from a very impressive twelve Oscar nominations it scored four wins – for Colin Firth, for Tom Hooper as director, for the screenplay and of course Best Picture. Seth Meyers Oscar Bait trailer: https://yo...
Jul 28, 2021•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 92
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 91: Slumdog Millionaire (2008) Released 14 July 2021 For this episode, we watched Slumdog Millionaire, written by Simon Beaufoy, from the book Q & A by Vikas Swarup. It was directed by Danny Boyle and starred Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Anil Kapur and Irrfan Khan. It won a tremendous eight Oscars including for Danny Boyle as director and for the screenplay, but none of its cast was even nominated. Tom Cruise on Graham Norton htt...
Jul 14, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 91
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 90: Spotlight (2015) Released 30 June 2021 For this episode, we watched Spotlight, directed by Tom McCarthy and written by McCarthy and Josh Singer. The stars were Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams (nominated), Mark Ruffalo (nominated), Brian d’Arcy James and Stanley Tucci. It was also nominated for its editing and McCarthy as Best Director but apart from Best Picture, it won only for its screenplay. https://www.historyvshollywood.c...
Jun 30, 2021•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 90
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and our special guest Thom Tuck Episode 89: A Beautiful Mind (2001) Released 16 June 2021 For this episode, we watched A Beautiful Mind, which won Oscars for its screenplay by Akiva Goldsman, its director Ron Howard and Jennifer Connelly as Best Supporting Actress. It did not win an Oscar for its star Russell Crowe and the cast also included Paul Bettany, Ed Harris and Christopher Plummer. Music was by James Horner and the cinematography wa...
Jun 16, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 89
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 88: Gandhi (1982) Released: 2 June 2021 For this episode, we watched Gandhi, written by John Briley and directed by Richard Attenborough. It starred Ben Kingsley as Gandhi with support from Rohini Hattangadi, Roshan Seth, Pradeep Kumar, Saeed Jaffrey, Candice Bergen, Edward Fox and John Gielgud, among many others. From its 11 nominations, it managed to win eight Oscars including Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor...
Jun 02, 2021•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 88
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 87: No Country for Old Men (1987) Released 19 May 2021 For this episode, we watched No Country for Old Men. This is the only film directed by the Coen Bros to win Best Picture, but the second of their four nominations in this category. The film stars Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Woody Harrelson and Kelly Macdonald – Bardem winning Best Supporting Actor. As well as the film winning Best Picture, the Coens also won ...
May 19, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 87
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 86: Parasite (2019) Released 5 May 2021 For this episode, we watched Parasite, the first film not in the English language ever to win Best Picture. Director Bong Joon-ho also won Best International Feature, Best Director and shared Best Original Screenplay with Han Jin-won giving it a total of four awards. None of its cast was nominated. Audrey Hepburn flogs Dove Chocolate. https://youtu.be/sB44n4ADg2Y Marilyn Monroe and others r...
May 05, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 86
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and special guest Ned Sedgwick Episode 85: The Bridge on the River Kwai (1951) Released 21 April 2021 For this episode, we watched The Bridge on the River Kwai, written by Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson, based on the book by Pierre Boulle. The director was David Lean and the stars were William Holden, Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins and Sessue Hayakawa. From eight nominations, it won seven Oscars, including Best Director, Best Actor for Guinne...
Apr 21, 2021•1 hr 39 min•Ep. 85
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 84: Marty (1955) Released 7 April 2021 For this episode, we watched Marty written by Paddy Cheyefsky and directed by Delbert Mann, who both won Oscars. The stars were Ernest Borgnine, Betsy Blair and Joe Mantell, all of whom were nominated, Borgnine winning. It was also nominated for its Art Direction and Cinematography. Anna Magnani https://youtu.be/L3DdzN6Ji7M The Improv Handbook https://amzn.to/3tBbLzV BEST PICK LIVE We’re thr...
Apr 07, 2021•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 84
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and special guest Matheus Carvalho Episode 83: An American in Paris (1951) Released 24 March 2021 For this episode, we watched An American in Paris, written by Alan Jay Lerner, inspired by and featuring the music of George Gershwin. The director was Vincente Minnelli and the stars were Gene Kelly, Oscar Levant, Leslie Caron, Georges Guétary and Nina Foch. It was nominated in eight categories and won six Oscars, plus a special award for Gene...
Mar 24, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 83
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 82: 12 Years a Slave (2013) Released 10 March 2021 For this episode, we watched 12 Years A Slave, written by John Ridley, from the memoir by Solomon Northup. The director was Steve McQueen with music by Hans Zimmer and cinematography by Sean Bobbitt and the stars were Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Paul Giamatti, and Lupita Nyong’o. As is fairly typical for this period, as well as Best Pict...
Mar 10, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 82
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and special guest Sam Bain Episode 81: You Can’t Take it With You (1938) Released 24 February 2021 For this episode, we watched You Can’t Take it With You, written by Robert Riskin, adapted from the play by George Kaufman and Moss Hart, directed by Frank Capra and starring Jean Arthur, Lionel Barrymore, James Stewart, Edward Arnold, Mischa Auer, Ann Miller, and Spring Byington. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards but only won Best Pic...
Feb 24, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 81
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 80: Million Dollar Baby (2004) Released 10 February 2021 For this episode we watched Million Dollar Baby, written by Paul Haggis, based on stories by FX Toole. It was directed by Clint Eastwood and starred Hilary Swank, Eastwood and Morgan Freeman. As well as Best Picture, Eastwood won Best Director and Swank and Freeman both won acting awards. Eastwood was nominated as Best Actor but lost to Jamie Foxx. It was also nominated for...
Feb 10, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 80
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 79: Birdman (2014) Released 27 January 2021 For this episode, we watched Birdman, written by Alejandro G Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr and Armando Bó and directed by Iñárritu. The stars were Michael Keaton, Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton, Andrea Riseborough and Emma Stone. It received nine Academy Award nominations and won four awards including for its screenplay and its cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki...
Jan 27, 2021•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 79
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and our special guest Helen O’Hara Episode 78: Mrs Miniver (1942) Released 13 January 2021 For this episode, we watched Mrs Miniver based loosely on the 1940 novel by Jan Struther. It starred Greer Garson (won), Walter Pidgeon (nominated), Henry Travers (nominated), May Whitty (nominated) and Theresa Wright (won) and was directed by William Wyler (won). It also won for its screenplay and cinematography. Helen O’Hara https://twitter.com/Hele...
Jan 13, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 78
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and special guests Natalie Bochenski and Dan Beeston Episode 77: Titanic (1997) Released 30 December 2020 For this episode, we watched Titanic, written and directed by James Cameron with music by James Horner and cinematography by Russell Carpenter. It starred Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates, Frances Fisher, Bernard Hill and Gloria Stuart. From an amazing 14 Academy Award nominations, it collected eleven, meaning th...
Dec 30, 2020•1 hr 57 min•Ep. 77
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 76: The Hurt Locker (2009) Released 16 December 2020 For this episode, we watched The Hurt Locker, written by Mark Boal (won) and directed by Kathryn Bigelow (won). The stars were Jeremy Renner (nominated), Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Evangeline Lilly, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse and Guy Pearce. In total it was nominated in nine categories and it also won for its editing, sound mixing and sound editing. Next time we will be di...
Dec 16, 2020•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 76
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 75: Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) Released 2 December 2020 For this episode, we watched Mutiny on the Bounty, written by Talbot Jennings, Jules Furthman and Carey Wilson based on the novel by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall. It was directed by Frank Lloyd and starred Charles Laughton, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone (all nominated). It was also nominated for its screenplay, its music, its editing and Lloyd as Best Director but...
Dec 02, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 75
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 74: Moonlight (2016) Released 18 November 2020 For this episode, we watched Moonlight, written by Barry Jenkins, based on the play by Tarell Alvin McCraney and directed by Jenkins, with cinematography by James Laxton and music by Nicholas Britell. The cast included Trevante Rhodes, André Holland, Janelle Monáe, Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali. It was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won three – Best Adapted Screenplay, Bes...
Nov 18, 2020•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 74
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and special guest Phill Jupitus Episode 73: The Godfather Part II (1976) Released 4 November 2020 For this episode, we watched The Godfather, Part II, written by Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola, based on the novel by Puzo and it was directed by Coppola with music by Carmine Coppola. It starred Al Pacino, Robert de Niro, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, Michael V Gazzo, John Cazale and Lee Strasberg. Five of the cast were nomina...
Nov 04, 2020•1 hr 47 min•Ep. 73
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 72: Rocky (1976) Released 21 October 2020 For this episode, we watched Rocky, written by and starring Sylvester Stallone and directed by John G Avildsen. It also featured Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers and Burgess Meredith. Stallone was nominated for his screenplay and Stallone, Shire, Meredith and Young were all nominated as actors but all it won was Best Picture, Best Director and Best Film Editing. Angel (Every Boxer’s...
Oct 21, 2020•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 72
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 71: My Fair Lady (1964) Released 7 October 2020 For this episode, we watched My Fair Lady, the movie adaptation of the Lerner and Lowe musical, itself based on the play Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. It won eight Oscars from twelve nominations, including Best Actor for Rex Harrison, Best Director for George Cukor and Best Adaptation Score for Andre Previn. Leading lady Audrey Hepburn was not nominated. Thurl Ravenscroft “Ghost...
Oct 07, 2020•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 71
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan, Tom Salinsky and special guest Felicity Ward Episode 70: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) Released 23 September 2020 For this episode, we watched The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson from the book by JRR Tolkein. It was directed by Jackson and starred Elijah Wood, Ian McKellan, Viggo Mortensen, Andy Serkis and many others. It was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and won e...
Sep 23, 2020•1 hr 44 min•Ep. 70
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 69: Wings (1928) Released 9 September 2020 For this episode, we watched Wings, written by John Monk Saunders, Hope Loring, Louis D Lighton, Julian Johnson; directed by William A Wellman and starring Clara Bow, Charles “Buddy” Rogers, Richard Arlen, Gary Cooper. As well as Best Picture, Wings also won for its Engineering Effects. Next time we will be discussing The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. If you want to watch it...
Sep 09, 2020•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 69
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 68: Driving Miss Daisy (1989) Released 26 August 2020 For this episode, we watched Driving Miss Daisy, written by Alfred Uhry from his play, directed by Bruce Beresford and starring Jessica Tandy (won), Morgan Freeman (nominated) and Dan Aykroyd (nominated). It also won for its screenplay and its make-up. Beresford was not even nominated as Best Director – very rare for a Best Picture winner. Kim Basinger sticks up for Do the Rig...
Aug 26, 2020•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 68
Best Pick with John Dorney, Jessica Regan and Tom Salinsky Episode 67: Gentleman's Agreement (1947) Released 12 August 2020 For this episode, we watched Gentleman’s Agreement, written by Moss Hart (nominated) from the novel by Laura Z Hobson and directed by Elia Kazan (won) and starring Gregory Peck (nominated), Dorothy McGuire (nominated), John Garfield, Anne Revere (nominated) and Celeste Holm (won). Those wins were the only categories in which it triumphed, although it was also nominated for ...
Aug 12, 2020•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 67
