With its latest entry FALLOUT, the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE franchise has solidified its evolution from the spy thriller Brian De Palma made in 1996 into the setpiece-centric, Tom Cruise-endangering action series we know it as today. In this half of our franchise-spanning conversation, we look at what FALLOUT, helmed by first-time returning director Christopher McQuarrie, brings to the table in terms of stakes-raising action and plot. Then we pull at the many strings connecting the two ends of the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE franchise, most notably its seemingly ageless star, Tom Cruise, as well as its treatment of Ethan Hunt’s associates, both professional and romantic. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MISSION:IMPOSSIBLE, give or take a FALLOUT, by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. <br><br>Works Cited: • Get Ready for <em>Mission: Impossible—Fallout </em>With This Recap of the Entire Series (From Michelle Monaghan’s Character’s Perspective) by Matthew Dessem (Slate.com)<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>• Tasha: Guy Richie’s THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.<br>• Keith: Aaron Horvath and Peter Rida Michail’s TEEN TITANS GO! TO THE MOVIES<br>• Genevieve: Carlos Lopez Estrada’s BLINDSPOTTING<br>• Scott: Bo Burnham’s EIGTH GRADE<br><br>Outro Music: Lorne Balfe, “Mission: Accomplished”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The new MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE — FALLOUT is the latest entry in a franchise that’s become a showpiece for Tom Cruise-endangering stunts and practical effects, but the surprisingly enduring action series began as something more akin to a spy thriller built around a handful of Hitchcockian setpieces. In this half of our franchise-spanning pairing, we look back at 1996’s MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, in which Brian De Palma helped shape what the series would become, while also exerting his own iconoclastic style on the film. Plus, some feedback on our recent episodes on HEREDITARY and DON’T LOOK NOW.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, give or take a FALLOUT, by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: Pulp, “I Spy”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

As with Robert Downey Sr.’s 1969 satirical oddity PUTNEY SWOPE, there’s a lot going on in Boots Riley’s new SORRY TO BOTHER YOU, which takes a similar anything-goes approach to the intersection of race and capitalism. In the second part of our “white voice” double feature, we dig into the anti-capitalist philosophy that unites Riley’s work and keeps SORRY TO BOTHER YOU on the rails, then we look at how the two films compare in their views of race and capitalism, and their use of satire and surrealism. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PUTNEY SWOPE, SORRY TO BOTHER YOU, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Works Cited: • “Why Sorry To Bother You director Boots Riley thinks artists should be activists” by Alissa Wilkinson (Vox.com)<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>• Genevieve: The Coup’s SORRY TO BOTHER YOU and TuneYards’ I CAN FEEL YOU CREEP INTO MY PRIVATE LIFE<br>• Scott: Lynn Ramsay’s YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE<br>• Keith: Lewis Teague’s CUJO<br>• Tasha: Federico D’Allesandro’s TAU<br><br>Outro Music: The Coup f/ Lakeith Stanfield, “OYAHYTT”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Rapper-director Boots Riley has said he hadn’t seen Robert Downey Sr.’s 1969 satirical comedy PUTNEY SWOPE when he made the buzzy new SORRY TO BOTHER YOU, but the films share so much on both a surface level (white men providing the literal voices of black characters) and deeper thematic ones (concerns about capitalism, race, and what it might take to burn down an unjust system) that we had to put them in conversation with each other. In this half, we try to make sense of the fascinating mess that is PUTNEY SWOPE, considering how it works as both satire and comedy, and whether Downey’s choice to overdub his black title character’s voice with his own is an asset or a liability.&nbsp; Plus, feedback on our recent INCREDIBLES 2/GOLDFINGER episodes and some general thoughts on auteur theory and film categorization.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PUTNEY SWOPE, SORRY TO BOTHER YOU, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. &nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Ari Aster’s debut feature HEREDITARY carries over the themes of grief, guilt, and extrasensory perception found in Nicolas Roeg’s 1973 shocker DON’T LOOK NOW, another emotionally grueling story about parents wrestling with loss. After discussing our sometimes-visceral reactions to Aster’s film, we put these two movies in conversation with each other, talking over their use of shock tactics, the supernatural, and a memorable setting. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about DON’T LOOK NOW, HEREDITARY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Show Notes<br>Works Cited:&nbsp;<br>• "How Hereditary composer Colin Stetson made the movie 'feel evil,'" by Bryan Bishop (The Verge)<br>• "The biggest shock in Hereditary was almost much worse," by Bryan Bishop (The Verge)<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>• Tasha: “How Pixar’s Open Sexism Ruined My Dream Job” by Cassandar Smolcic<br>(Variety/Medium) and Debra Granik’s LEAVE NO TRACE<br>• Scott: Tim Wardle’s THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS<br>• Keith: Dave Itzkoff’s ROBIN and Marina Zenovich’s ROBIN WILLIAMS: COME INSIDE MY MIND<br><br>Outro Music: The Muppets, “Pass It On”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Ari Aster’s breakout debut HEREDITARY draws on a fair number of horror touchpoints, but it’s linked by its themes of parental grief and psychic distress to another terrifying film about the lingering impact of a death in the family: Nicolas Roeg’s form-busting 1973 thriller DON’T LOOK NOW. In this half focused on Roeg’s film, we discuss why the film’s intensity of emotion is integral to its horror, what makes its shadowy vision of Venice so unnerving, and what's behind the film’s famously graphic sex scene. Plus, some feedback on our recent episode on GOLDFINGER and INCREDIBLES 2.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about DON’T LOOK NOW, HEREDITARY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. &nbsp;<br>Outro music: “Don’t Look Now” by Torch Song<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

On the surface, Brad Bird’s new animated family adventure INCREDIBLES 2 wouldn’t seem to have a lot in common with Guy Hamilton’s swingin’ 1964 James Bond entry GOLDFINGER, but superhero films and spy movies are actually pretty closely thematically related, as we discover in our comparison of the two films. After discussing our reactions to INCREDIBLES 2, a follow-up to what one of us calls “a perfect movie,” we look at how these two very different versions of 1960s heroism compare in their evolution (and establishment) of familiar tropes, in their respective wish-fulfillment fantasies, and in how they handle extraordinary individuals with a license to kill. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about GOLDFINGER, INCREDIBLES 2, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Show Notes<br><br>Your Next Picture Show: • Scott: The Science Behind Pixar exhibit&nbsp;<br>• Tasha: David Lynch and Kristine McKenna’s ROOM TO DREAM<br>• Keith: Sidney J. Furie’s THE IPCRESS FILE<br><br>Outro Music: Michael Giacchino, “Pow! Pow! Pow! - Mr. Incredible’s Theme”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week on the podcast, it’s supervillains, secretive heroes, and slippery schemes as we pair Brad Bird’s new, long-delayed INCREDIBLES 2 with arguably the best iteration of one of Bird’s oft-cited reference points — James Bond — the third film in the Bond franchise, 1964’s GOLDFINGER. In this Bond-centric first half, we discuss how GOLDFINGER helped codify the 007 we know so well today, how its aspirational qualities and gender politics have aged, and how playing Bond shapes an actor’s subsequent career. Plus, some (semi-spoiler-y) feedback on our recent episode on FIRST REFORMED.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about GOLDFINGER, INCREDIBLES 2, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. &nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Goldfinger” by Shirley Bassey.<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our examination of Paul Schrader’s fixation with “God’s Lonely Man” continues with the critic-turned-screenwriter-turned-director’s 20th film, the searing and excellent FIRST REFORMED, which shares more in common with the Schrader-scripted TAXI DRIVER than just a lonely male protagonist. After examining our reactions to FIRST REFORMED — including its bold ending — we look at how these two films make use of their female characters and the idea of the male savior, what they have to say about societal values and decline, and their conspicuous use of voiceover. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about TAXI DRIVER, FIRST REFORMED, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:<br>• Genevieve: Alex Richanbach’s IBIZA<br>• Scott: Baltasar Kormakur’s ADRIFT<br>• Keith: THE ATOMIC CAFE and THE VALLEY OF GWANGI<br>Works cited: “Let’s talk about the ending of First Reformed,” by Kevin Lincoln (Vulture.com)<br><br>Outro Music: Iris Dement, “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Paul Schrader’s excellent, difficult new film FIRST REFORMED inspires us to travel back to Schrader’s first screenwriting collaboration with Martin Scorsese and grapple with TAXI DRIVER, to see how Schrader’s vision of “God’s Lonely Man” first graced movie screens. In this first half focusing on TAXI DRIVER, we discuss the techniques Scorsese uses to force us into Travis Bickle’s sick mind, and consider what effect that approach has had on the reception and legacy of this “dangerous” film. Plus, some feedback on our recent episode on THE RIDER, and another question that asks us to ponder the state of STAR WARS.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about TAXI DRIVER, FIRST REFORMED, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Late For The Sky” by Jackson Browne<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

In part two of our comparison of two part twos, we dig into the meta magic that animates both GREMLINS 2 and DEADPOOL 2 (and get a little meta ourselves in the process). After discussing what works and doesn’t in DEADPOOL 2, a film with a lot that works and a lot that doesn’t, we look at how these two studio sequels tap into similar but different veins of self-aware and reference-based humor, how they play with the restrictions and perks of studio filmmaking, and how to break the fourth wall without losing the audience. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about GREMLINS 2, DEADPOOL 2, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show: • Tasha: Taika Waititi’s HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE and John Cameron Mitchell’s HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS AT PARTIES• Genevieve: Agnes Varda and JR’s FACES PLACES• Keith: Christopher Nolan’s “unrestored” 70mm 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY and Jennifer Fox’s THE TALE• Scott: Joe Dante’s HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD, James Schamus’s INDIGNATION, and John Boorman’s QUEEN &amp; COUNTRY<br><br>Outro Music: Celine Dion f/Deadpool, “Ashes”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The new DEADPOOL 2 shares a self-aware sensibility and anarchic spirit with Joe Dante’s GREMLINS 2: THE NEW BATCH, which saw the director returning reluctantly to the franchise and wreaking havoc on everything that had made it a hit, up to and including the much-loved (by everyone but Dante) mogwai Gizmo. That approach works far better for some of us that others, and so we spend much of the first half of this pairing debating whether GREMLINS 2 is a funny movie, a good movie, both — or neither. Plus, feedback on our recent episodes pairing X2 and AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about GREMLINS 2, DEADPOOL 2, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “New York, New York,” by Tony Randall<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR is the culmination of a decade of Marvel moviemaking, but much of the mechanics of this massive superteam machine can be traced back further, to what was once the biggest teamup of the modern superhero era, 2002’s X2: X-MEN UNITED. After we spend some time helping Scott work out his emotions surrounding INFINITY WAR, we dive into the connections between these two films, including their mass-extinction plots, their lazily conceived romantic pairings, and their respective fealty to their comics source material. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about X2, AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show: • Genevieve: Paul King’s PADDINGTON 2• Scott: Tony Zierra’s FILMWORKER• Tasha: Julia Hart’s FAST COLOR• Keith: Mike Flanagan’s HUSH<br><br>Outro Music: Infinity War Cast, “The Marvel Bunch” (via The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon)<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The Russo Brothers’ new, massive AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR may exist in a different cinematic universe than Bryan Singer’s 2003 sequel X2: X-MEN UNITED, but the two films use a lot of the same tricks to bring Marvel's four-color heroes to a live-action setting, and both function as middle chapters in a bigger ongoing saga. In this half of the pairing, we consider how X2’s superteam dynamics look after 15 years of subsequent superhero-movie evolution, dig into the malleability of the mutant metaphor, and wonder whether the morality of mutant freedom is as cut-and-dry as that metaphor suggests. Plus, feedback on some recent episodes and a discussion of our thought process around superhero-movie pairings.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about X2, AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “X-Men Opening Theme” by Ron Wasserman<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Chloe Zhao’s THE RIDER’s naturalistic synthesis of documentary and narrative has some roots in Abbas Kiarostami’s 1990 Iranian classic CLOSE-UP, but with a very different story to tell, about a very different part of the world. After discussing what made The Rider one of our favorite films of the year so far, we look at how these two films both dance on the line separating fact and fiction, through their use of non-actors, their respective sense of place, and their preoccupation with identity. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CLOSE-UP, THE RIDER, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>• Genevieve: Kay Cannon’s BLOCKERS<br>• Scott: Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead’s THE ENDLESS<br>• Keith: Francois Truffaut’s TWO ENGLISH GIRLS and MISSISSIPPI MERMAID<br><br>Outro Music: Woody Guthrie, “Gamblin’ Man”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Chloe Zhao’s new THE RIDER lives in the space between the real world and a fictional world that was memorably carved out by Abbas Kiarostami’s 1990 classic CLOSE-UP, which blends documentary and narrative to find a third approach that draws on the strengths of both while committing to neither. In this half of the comparison, we dig into what makes CLOSE-UP tick, where it fits into a Western understanding of Iranian cinema, and how Kiarostami calls attention to the artificiality of filmmaking. Plus, feedback on our recent episodes on CHICKEN RUN and ISLE OF DOGS.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CLOSE-UP, THE RIDER, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We continue our examination of stop-motion animals conspiring to escape captivity by bringing in ISLE OF DOGS, Wes Anderson’s new Japan-set homage/provocation, to see how it stacks up against Aardman Animations’ 2000 feature CHICKEN RUN. After weighing the controversy that’s arisen around ISLE OF DOGS against our own reactions to the film, we dig into what unites these two tonally distinct features, from their deployment of cinematic reference points to their ideas about human/animal interaction to their respective death machines. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CHICKEN RUN, ISLE OF DOGS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Your Next Picture Show: • Tasha: Sergio G. Sanchez’s MARROWBONE• Keith: Plane viewing via the Starz app• Genevieve: Jeff Baena’s THE LITTLE HOURS• Scott: Christian Nemescu’s CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’<br><br>SHOW NOTES:<br><br>Works Cited:• “Wes Anderson’s ‘Isle of Dogs’ is often captivating, but cultural sensitivity gets lost in translation” by Justin Chang (<a href="http://latimes.com/">latimes.com</a>)• “Orientalism Is Alive And Well In American Cinema” by Allison Willmore (<a href="http://buzzfeed.com/">buzzfeed.com</a>)• “Unpacking the Akira Kurosawa References in Isle of Dogs” by Charles Bramesco (<a href="http://vulture.com/">vulture.com</a>)• “Wes Anderson Explains Hayao Miyazaki’s Influence on ‘Isle of Dogs’” by Zack Sharf (<a href="http://indiewire.com/">indiewire.com</a>)• “Stream These 12 Great Films From Romania” by Scott Tobias (<a href="http://nytimes.com/">nytimes.com</a>)<br><br>Outro Music: Cat Stevens, “I Love My Dog”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Is there such a thing as “auteurist animation”? That’s a question that unites this week’s pairing, which looks at two highly collaborative stop-motion animated films that nonetheless bear the fingerprints of a singular filmmaking presence: Wes Anderson’s new ISLE OF DOGS and Aardman Animations’ 2000 feature CHICKEN RUN, co-directed by Wallace &amp; Gromit creator Nick Park. In this half of the pairing we focus on CHICKEN RUN, digging into what exactly gives it that “Aardman Touch,” whether its storyline reflects its status as a US-Britain co-production, and the advantages of silicone over plasticine when it comes to chicken puppets. Plus, feedback on our recent episodes on TRON and READY PLAYER ONE.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CHICKEN RUN, ISLE OF DOGS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. <br><br>SHOW NOTES:<br>Works Cited: “Home is a reminder that DreamWorks Animation needs an actual identity” by Tasha Robinson (<a href="http://thedissolve.com/">thedissolve.com</a>)<br>Outro music: “Flip, Flop, and Fly” by Ellis Hall<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Steven Lisberger’s groundbreaking live-action Disney film TRON is one of the few 1980s properties that doesn’t get explicitly referenced in Steven Spielberg’s new adaptation of Ernest Cline’s novel READY PLAYER ONE, but the earlier film makes up a significant portion of RP1’s source code. After discussing our reactions to READY PLAYER ONE, and hashing out what made Cline’s novel become so strangely controversial, we look at what connects and distinguishes these two films about life inside a video game, from their attitudes about human/computer relationships to how they approach the idea of corporate control. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about TRON, READY PLAYER ONE, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Your Next Picture Show: • Genevieve: Anders Walter’s I KILL GIANTS• Scott: Andrew Haigh’s LEAN ON PETE• Tasha: Rich Moore’s WRECK-IT RALPH<br>SHOW NOTES:<br>Works Cited:• “The Ready Player One Backlash, Explained” by Constance Grady (Vox.com)• “Ready Player One is a truly awful book. I’m really looking forward to the movie” by Todd VanDerWerff (Vox.com)• “Ernest Cline: Ready Player One” (review) by Kevin McFarland (AVClub.com)• Ernest Cline’s “Ultraman is Airwolf” (ErnestCline.com)• “Here are all the references in Ready Player One” by Abraham Riesman (Vulture.com)• “I Kill Giants director Anders Walter on making a likable fantasy with a hateful protagonist” by Tasha Robinson (TheVerge.com)• “Our film critic and the director of a movie he hated sat down and tried to work out their differences” by David Ehrlich (Indiewire.com)<br>Outro Music: Rush, “2112 (The Temples of Syrnix)”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Steven Spielberg’s new READY PLAYER ONE turns videogaming into both a fantasy adventure and a meta-narrative about adventure fantasies, a premise that feels directly inspired — and given Ernest Cline’s source novel, almost certainly is — by Steven Lisberger’s 1982 Disney oddity TRON. Before digging into what connects the two films, we dive into TRON’s glow-y, rudimentarily CGI-ed mainframe to consider the bits and bytes that drive this fascinatingly flawed film, from its confusing religious undertones (overtones?) to its strange real world/virtual world disconnect. Plus, we continue to wade through the ocean of feedback on our episodes pairing STALKER and ANNIHILATION.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about TRON, READY PLAYER ONE, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Only Solutions” by Journey (TRON OST)<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Like H.G. Clouzot’s DIABOLIQUE, Cory Finley’s directorial debut THOROUGHBREDS develops around a plot between two women who enter into a pact to murder a purely malevolent man, but to much different effect. After discussing our reactions to THOROUGHBREDS’ hyper-formal style and disconcerting ending, we dig into how the two films compare and contrast in terms of their many stylistic flourishes, their motivations for murder, and their respective killer conspiracies. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about DIABOLIQUE, THOROUGHBREDS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. Your Next Picture Show: • Keith: Serge Bromberg and Ruxandra Medrea’s CLOUZOT’S INFERNO• Genevieve: Anna Deavere Smith and Kristi Zea’s NOTES FROM THE FIELD• Scott: Clarence Brown’s INTRUDER IN THE DUST<br>Outro Music: The Sweet Hurt, “All The Things”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Cory Finley’s stylish directorial debut THOROUGHBREDS follows an unlikely pairing of women as they endeavor to kill a domineering man in their life, a setup reminiscent of H.G. Clouzot’s classic 1955 shocker DIABOLIQUE, which took that premise and then applied one of cinema’s all-time greatest twists. In this half of our pairing, we dig deep into DIABOLIQUE, discussing whether its legendary ending is “spoiler-proof,” admiring the skill with which Clouzot keeps viewers off their guard (and how it differs from the approach of Clouzot’s contemporary, Alfred Hitchcock), and debating what makes for a believable on-screen drowning. Plus, a glimpse at the mountain of feedback we received on our episodes pairing STALKER and ANNIHILATION.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about DIABOLIQUE, THOROUGHBREDS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Deadly Valentine” by Charlotte Gainsbourg<br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We take another science-fiction-adjacent journey into the unknown via Alex Garland’s new ANNIHILATION, a distinctive cinematic vision that nonetheless calls back to Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 film STALKER in terms of its structure and filmmaking — if not quite the specifics of its dreamlike narrative and themes. After discussing what puzzled and delighted us about ANNIHILATION, we discuss what connects it to STALKER, and how both challenge viewers in their own way. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STALKER, ANNIHILATION, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. Your Next Picture Show: • Genevieve: Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman’s LOVING VINCENT• Tasha: Duncan Jones’ MOON• Keith: Saul Bass’ PHASE IV• Scott: Travis Wilkerson’s DID YOU WONDER WHO FIRED THE GUN?<br>SHOW NOTES:Works Cited:• “So, the lady or the tiger? 28 stories that make the audience choose the ending”&nbsp; by Tasha Robinson et al (The A.V. Club) • “The original scripted ending of Annihilation sounds better” by Tasha Robinson (The Verge)• “Annihilation Co-Composer Ben Salisbury Explains How That Weird Little Melody Wound Up in the Film’s Trailer” by Marissa Matinelli (Slate.com)• Instagram account @petrifiedrainbow<br>Outro Music: Crosby, Stills &amp; Nash “Helplessly Hoping”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Alex Garland’s new ANNIHILATION is a loose adaptation of a novel, but its premise, themes, and style give it just as strong a connection to Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 philosophical science fiction film STALKER. In this half of the pairing, we venture into STALKER’s mysterious Zone on a search for meaning and metaphor within an enigmatic cinematic landscape that’s as beguiling as it is intimidating. Plus, feedback on some recent episodes that were, and episodes that might have been.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STALKER, ANNIHILATION, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Meditation” by Eduard Artemiev<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the deep, dark waters of the id to unpack what SHAPE OF WATER director Guillermo Del Toro saw in Jack Arnold’s 1954 horror-sci-fi classic CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON that inspired him to literalize a relationship between a woman and a fish-man. After analyzing the range of reactions we had toward Del Toro’s film and debating whether it is a “snowglobe movie,” we plunge into the connections that link the two films, from the obvious character analogs to their not-so-obvious shared nostalgia. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, SHAPE OF WATER, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Keith: Joe Dante’s MATINEE<br><br>• Scott: William Wyler’s MRS. MINIVER<br><br>• Tasha: Agnieszka Smoczynska’s THE LURE<br><br>Outro Music: Sally Hawkins, “You’ll Never Know”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Guillermo Del Toro has made clear that his new THE SHAPE OF WATER stems directly from his obsession with 1954’s THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, and his desire to see the “romance” between the monster and leading lady work out. We unpack that desire by revisiting Jack Arnold’s horror-sci-fi classic, to consider the film’s place in the Universal Monsters pantheon and mid-century sci-fi boom alike, ponder what makes the image of a screaming woman being spirited away by a monster so enduring, and pinpoint the Herzogian echoes in the film's ill-fated excursion to the Amazon. Plus, some feedback on our recent episodes on A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE and PHANTOM THREAD.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON, SHAPE OF WATER, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Underwater Love” by Smoke City<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

David Wain’s new A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE brings the deconstructive spirit of his cult comedy classic WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER to the biopic formula, putting a meta, self-aware spin on the story of Doug Kenney, co-founder of The National Lampoon. After digging into the benefits and limitations of Wain’s approach as applied to a sprawling biopic-slash-portrait of a scene, we talk over how the two films work together, as points of comparison as well as contrast. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER, A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Keith: Elaine May’s A NEW LEAF<br><br>• Genevieve: Michael Almeryeda’s MARJORIE PRIME<br><br>• Scott: Abbas Kiarostami’s 24 FRAMES<br><br>Outro Music: Martin Mull, “The Time Of My Life”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

David Wain’s new biopic spoof A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE had a pretty ignominious Netflix debut, but that seems in keeping with the comedic director’s history of films that are unappreciated in their time but grow a cult following — a history that was established with 2001’s WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER, a Sundance flop that’s now rightly considered a comedy classic. In the first half of our comparison of the two films, we talk over our WET HOT impressions then and now, share some theories for why it didn’t hit with critics or audiences, and consider the limitations of Wain’s affectionate but ultimately insincere, sketch-comedy-influenced style. Plus, some feedback on our recent episodes on PHANTOM THREAD and I, TONYA.<br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER, A FUTILE AND STUPID GESTURE, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Higher and Higher” by Craig Wedron and Theodore Shapiro<br><br>Articles cited:&nbsp;<br><br>• Tonya Harding Would Like Her Apology Now, by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (New York Times)<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

With PHANTOM THREAD, Paul Thomas Anderson has repurposed REBECCA to his own ends, telling a personal story that’s unique from the original yet still resonates with echoes of Hitchcock’s gothic romance. We tug at the many threads Anderson has woven throughout his film, before diving into what unites it with REBECCA, from the two films’ character analogs to their complementary relationships with food. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about REBECCA, PHANTOM THREAD, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Genevieve: William Oldroyd’s LADY MACBETH and Frederic Tcheng’s DIOR AND I<br><br>• Scott: Michal Marczak’s ALL THESE SLEEPLESS NIGHTS<br><br>• Keith: Christopher Landen’s HAPPY DEATH DAY<br><br>• Tasha: Brian Taylor’s MOM AND DAD<br><br>Outro Music: Chic, “I Want Your Love”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Paul Thomas Anderson has made it clear that his new PHANTOM THREAD is a purposeful riff on Alfred Hitchcock’s 1940 Best Picture winner REBECCA, inspiring us to return to Manderley for a reflection on the film that brought Hitchcock to Hollywood (and to producer David O. Selznick, whom he famously clashed with). We talk over what REBECCA gained and lost from being produced under the Hays Code, what it signaled for Hitchcock’s career going forward, and what to make of the two big relationships (or would-be love triangle) at its center. Plus, some belated but welcome feedback on our CALL ME BY YOUR NAME discussion.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about REBECCA, PHANTOM THREAD, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Walking With a Ghost” by Tegan and Sara<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Like Gus Van Sant’s TO DIE FOR, Craig Gillespie’s new I, TONYA takes a light, playful tone with a lot of ugly events, an approach that’s earned it acclaim and some criticism, particularly for its treatment of domestic violence. We talk over our reactions to that and the rest of I, TONYA, then dive into the many connections between these two films, from their portrayals of a scandal-hungry media to their depictions of ambitious women in bad marriages to their conspicuous use of attention-getting music. Then we wrap up by sharing our individual picks for the top 5 films of 2017.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about TO DIE FOR, I, TONYA, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro Music: Joanie Sommers, “Little Girl Bad”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Craig Gillespie’s crowd-pleasing new I, TONYA features a tragicomic tone, a genesis in tabloid true-crime, and an abundance of style, all qualities it shares with Gus Van Sant’s 1995 mockumentary TO DIE FOR, starring an ascendant Nicole Kidman. In this half of our discussion of the two films, we attempt to pinpoint where TO DIE FOR fits into Van Sant’s varied filmography, how it navigates its tricky tonal and narrative divides, and what exactly its broad satire is actually targeting. Plus, in place of our usual Feedback segment, our four hosts share the first half of their individual lists of 2017’s best films.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about TO DIE FOR, I, TONYA, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. <br><br>**Show Notes**<br><br>Outro music: “Season of the Witch,” by Donovan<br><br>Works cited:<br><br>• “Naked Animals and Sacred Cows: Buck Henry” by Tim Sheridan at StopSmilingOnline.com<br><br>• “The 15 best movies of 2017” by Tasha Robinson at TheVerge.com<br><br>• Filmspotting #661 and #662 (“Top 10 Films of 2017”) at <a href="http://filmspotting.net/">filmspotting.net</a><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the consideration of pleasure and heartbreak under the Italian sun via Luca Guadagnino’s sensual new romance CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, a film with a very different narrative than THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY that nonetheless shares some of its major characteristics. After sharing our reactions to CMBYN, we dive into a discussion of what the two films share, and don’t, in their portrayals of life in (and a little bit out of) the closet, their approach to the Italian/American cultural divide, and their use of music as an emotional and thematic underpinning. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY, CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Genevieve: Dee Rees’ MUDBOUND<br><br>• Scott: Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’ THE WORK<br><br>• Keith: Wim Wenders’ THE AMERICAN FRIEND<br><br>Outro Music: The Psychedelic Furs, “Love My Way”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The new CALL ME BY YOUR NAME’s gorgeous invocation of Italian summers and repressed desire brought to mind an earlier film that does the same, though to much darker ends: Anthony Minghella’s 1999 film THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY, starring top-of-their-games Matt Damon, Jude Law, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Gwyneth Paltrow. In this half of the discussion, we dig into what all three of those actors bring to their respective roles, as well as the additions Minghella brings to his adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel — including a pivotal character created for the film — and how he manages the film’s tricky tone. Plus, feedback from our recent episodes on ED WOOD and THE DISASTER ARTIST.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY, CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>**Show Notes**<br><br>Outro music: “Tu Vuò Fà l’Americano” from THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our so-bad-it’s-good moviemaking double feature continues with a new film from James Franco that channels the spirit of Tim Burton’s ED WOOD: THE DISASTER ARTIST, about the tortured making of Tommy Wiseau’s cult hit THE ROOM. We discuss the new film in some depth before going into its connections to ED WOOD, from their depictions of the filmmaking process to their shared instinct to send their tragic subjects out on a high note. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about ED WOOD, THE DISASTER ARTIST, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Tasha: “The Battle over ‘The Room’” (Entertainment Weekly); “What’s Fact and What’s Fiction in The Disaster Artist,” by Marissa Martinelli (Slate); “The Room Actors: Where Are They Now” (Funny or Die)<br><br>• Genevieve: Craig Gillespie’s I, TONYA<br><br>• Keith: You Must Remember This: Boris and Bela<br><br>• Scott: Santiago Rizzo’s QUEST<br><br>Outro Music: Kitra Williams, “You Are My Rose”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by James Franco’s new THE DISASTER ARTIST, we look back at another movie about bad movies and the people who make them, Tim Burton’s 1994 comic biodrama ED WOOD. In this half of our discussion, we muse on the motivations driving Wood and Burton alike, locate the emotional core of this highly stylized film, and try to determine what makes a good bad movie, rather than just a plain old bad one. Plus, some feedback on a recent episode and a suggestion for a pairing that might have been.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about ED WOOD, THE DISASTER ARTIST, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>**Show Notes**<br><br>Outro music: “Que Sera Sera,” by Bill Murray w/Mariachi Band (from ED WOOD deleted scenes).<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Following our visit to David Mamet’s STATE AND MAIN, we head to another small town for a different sort of redemption tale: Martin McDonagh’s THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI. While the two films may not have a whole lot of overlap in terms of plot, they share a theatrical lineage as well as a tweaked view of small-town life, and both feature stacked ensembles with a strong handle on writerly dialogue, all of which we dig into here. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STATE AND MAIN, THREE BILLBOARDS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Scott: Brett Morgan’s JANE and Chris Smith’s JIM &amp; ANDY: THE GREAT BEYOND<br><br>• Genevieve: Nora Twomy’s THE BREADWINNER<br><br>• Tasha: Joachim Trier’s THELMA<br><br> • Keith: Jamie M. Dagg’s SWEET VIRGINIA<br><br>Outro Music: The Four Tops, “Walk Away Renee”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by Martin McDonagh’s new pitch-black comedy THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI, we look back at another playwright-driven film about redemption set in a small town populated by a colorful ensemble: David Mamet’s 2000 comedy STATE AND MAIN. How does the sex scandal at the center of Mamet's film look in a post-Weinstein 2017? What are we to make of the film’s cynicism toward Hollywood and those who populate it? And just what is the deal with that running matzo gag? We discuss all that and more, plus dig into some excellent feedback from recent episodes.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STATE AND MAIN, THREE BILLBOARDS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>**Show Notes**<br><br>Outro music: “The Song Of The Old Mill” by Patti Lupone<br><br>Articles cited:&nbsp;<br><br>• “David Mamet’s State And Main Engineers A Perfect Punchline,” by Mike D’Angelo (The AV Club)<br><br>• William H. Macy Interview (2001), by Scott Tobias (AV Club)<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the dawn of the millennium to discuss Greta Gerwig’s new solo directorial debut LADY BIRD, and how it echoes the sardonic coming-of-age comedy that characterizes Terry Zwigoff’s GHOST WORLD. After parsing our individual reactions to and readings of LADY BIRD, we look at how the two films compare in terms of their view of nostalgia and mainstream culture, as well as the respective family dynamics that affect each protagonist’s view of the world. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about GHOST WORLD, LADY BIRD, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Genevieve: Taika Waititi’s BOY<br><br>• Tasha: Caroline Labreche and Steeve Leonard’s RADIUS<br><br>• Scott: Switchblade Sisters podcast<br><br>Show Notes:<br><br>Articles cited:<br><br>• “How Greta Gerwig Turned the Personal ‘Lady Bird’ Into a Perfect Movie,” by Esther Zuckerman (RollingStone.com)<br><br>• Interview with RADIUS’ Caroline Labreche and Steeve Leonard, by Tasha Robinson (TheVerge.com)<br><br>Outro Music: Dave Matthews Band, “Crash Into Me”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Greta Gerwig’s fantastic directorial debut LADY BIRD is set in 2002, when its protagonist might have recognized a contemporary kindred spirit in Enid, the protagonist of Terry Zwigoff’s 2001 coming-of-age comedy GHOST WORLD: Both characters are creatively minded outcasts who are leaving high school and facing uncertainty about their futures. In this half of our pairing of the two films, we focus on the prickly and not-quite-lovable iconoclasts who populate GHOST WORLD, discussing its garish version of the turn of the millennium, how it translates Danial Clowes’ comic of the same name for movie screens, and whether it contains the best existential fart joke ever committed to film. Plus, feedback from our recent episodes on MOTHER! and THE GRADUATE.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about GHOST WORLD, LADY BIRD, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br>Outro music: “Devil Got My Woman” by Skip James<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Noah Baumbach’s new THE MEYEROWITZ STORIES (NEW AND SELECTED), starring Dustin Hoffman, has some strong connections to Hoffman’s star-making role in Mike Nichols’ THE GRADUATE, in particular, its depiction of generations trying to escape one another. After discussing our largely positive reactions to the new film (with one major exception), we talk over how the two stories reflect and refract each other, in their Hoffman performances as well as their respective family dynamics and female characters. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE GRADUATE, THE MEYEROWITZ STORIES, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Tasha: Jeremy Rush’s WHEELMAN<br><br>• Genevieve: Sean Baker’s THE FLORIDA PROJECT<br><br>• Keith: Elaine May’s THE HEARTBREAK KID<br><br>• Scott: David Miller’s LONELY ARE THE BRAVE<br><br>Outro Music: Adam Sandler and Grace Van Patten, “Genius Girl”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Noah Baumbach’s new THE MEYEROWITZ STORIES casts Dustin Hoffman on one side of a generational divide, which naturally brings to mind Hoffman’s breakout role as a character on the other side of that generation divide: Mike Nichols’ seminal 1967 comedy-drama THE GRADUATE. In this half of the discussion dedicated to that earlier film, we discuss how THE GRADUATE’s sympathies shift with age, argue over the nature of Ben Braddock’s affair with Mrs. Robinson, and swoon together over that perfect ending. Plus, a brief sampling of the mountain of feedback we’ve received on our recent episodes on BLADE RUNNER 2049 and MOTHER! <br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE GRADUATE, THE MEYEROWITZ STORIES, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>**Show Notes**<br><br>Articles cited: "The Best Thing About Blade Runner 2049 Is What It Isn't" at Vox.com<br><br>Outro music: “Sound of Silence” by Simon &amp;Garfunkel<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our consideration of Blade Running through the decades continues with a discussion of Denis Villeneuve’s new BLADE RUNNER 2049, which picks up several of the threads left dangling by Ridley Scott’s BLADE RUNNER and adds a few more of its own in the process. After discussing our mixed reactions to the new film, we dig into the many ways 2049 is informed by its predecessor, and the ways in which it manages to distinguish itself as well. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BLADE RUNNER, BLADE RUNNER 2049, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Scott: S. Craig Zahler’s BRAWL IN CELL BLOCK 99<br><br>• Genevieve: Susan Lacy's SPIELBERG<br><br>• Tasha: Angela Robinson’s PROFESSOR MARSON AND THE WONDER WOMEN<br><br>• Keith: John Carroll Lynch's LUCKY and Kevin Phillips’ SUPER DARK TIMES<br><br>Outro Music: Lauren Daigle, "Almost Human"<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Denis Villeneuve’s new sequel BLADE RUNNER 2049 made an inauspicious debut with audiences and critics alike when it opened, something it shares with its predecessor and inspiration, Ridley Scott’s 1982 sci-fi noir touchstone BLADE RUNNER. Will the new sequel follow in its ancestor’s footsteps and become a cult classic that viewers are still picking apart 35 years later? It’s too soon to tell, but we do know that the original BLADE RUNNER offers plenty to talk about in this first half of our discussion, which digs into the film’s unusual tone and structure, its many variations, and whether the “Is Deckard a replicant?” question ultimately matters. Plus, some belated feedback from our recent episodes on STAND BY ME and IT.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BLADE RUNNER, BLADE RUNNER 2049, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Tears In Rain” by Vangelis<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the realm of societal allegory in our examination of Darren Aronofsky’s divisive horror-comedy-whatsit MOTHER! and how it relates to Luis Buńuel’s 1962 surrealist satire THE EXTERMINATING ANGEL, a film Aronofsky has cited as direct inspiration. After grappling with our reactions to MOTHER! and its abundance of malleable metaphors, we look at what the two films share — and what they don’t — in terms of their central allegories, their relationship with religion, their tone and style, and depiction of nightmares. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE EXTERMINATING ANGEL, MOTHER!, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Keith: JG Ballard’s HIGH RISE and David Cronenberg’s SHIVERS<br><br>• Scott: David Gordon Green’s STRONGER<br><br>• Tasha: Benjamin Renner and Patrick Imbert’s THE BIG BAD FOX AND OTHER TALES<br><br>Outro Music: Kate Bush, “Mother Stands For Comfort”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

In Darren Aronofsky’s MOTHER!, Jennifer Lawrence is stuck in a creepy old estate while a series of bizarre, inexplicable events drive her to the brink of madness — a premise and tone that’s surprisingly similar to the surreal black comedy of Luis Buñuel, in particular his 1962 classic THE EXTERMINATING ANGEL. In this half of the discussion, we dig into Buñuel’s film, its place in his filmography, and what the film's deadpan satire and surrealism reveal about its maker's opinion of human nature. Plus, some belated feedback from our recent episodes on OCEAN’S ELEVEN and LOGAN LUCKY. &nbsp; Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE EXTERMINATING ANGEL, MOTHER!, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.&nbsp; &nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Exterminating Angel” by The Creatures<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the realm of Stephen King adaptations for a first-impressions review of the new IT, whose vision of 1980s childhood camaraderie and adventure shares a lot with STAND BY ME’s vision of 1950s childhood camaraderie and adventure — only with a really scary clown in the mix. We dig into how the two films reflect some of King’s favored tropes around bullies and adults, how they each handle their period settings, and whether or not they’re both “rite of passage” movies. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STAND BY ME, IT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Tasha: Stephen King’s PET SEMATARY and “Why is John Denver's Music In So Many Movies This Year?” by Karen Han at Vulture.com<br><br>• Keith: Robert Bierman’s VAMPIRE’S KISS<br><br>• Scott: Houda Benyamina’s DIVINES and Adam Leon’s TRAMPS<br><br>Outro Music: New Kids On The Block, “Hangin’ Tough”<br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

On the surface, Andy Muschietti’s new adaptation of Stephen King’s IT is about a scary clown and fear itself, but beyond that, it’s also about friendship, nostalgia, and the moment when childhood ends — themes it shares with another of the better cinematic King adaptations, Rob Reiner’s 1986 film STAND BY ME. In this half of our comparison of the two films, we speculate why King thought STAND BY ME was the first film adaptation to get his work right, what in the film holds up (the performances), and what doesn’t (that framing device). Plus, some belated feedback from our recent episodes on THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS and DETROIT.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STAND BY ME, IT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “Stand By Me” by Ben E King<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

For the second half our gentleman-thieves pairing, we bring LOGAN LUCKY into the discussion, to see how it fits into the reliably eclectic filmography of Steven Soderbergh, and how it stands up to its clear forebear within that filmography, 2001’s OCEAN’S ELEVEN. But there are marked distinctions between the two films as well, from their wildly different settings and characters to the mechanics and styles of their central heists, all of which we get into in Connections. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about OCEAN’S ELEVEN, LOGAN LUCKY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Genevieve: Matt Spicer’s INGRID GOES WEST<br><br>• Keith: Michael Curtiz’s THE BREAKING POINT<br><br>• Tasha: Jules Dassin’s RIFIFI and Sidney Lumet’s DOG DAY AFTERNOON<br><br>• Scott: Eliza Hittman’s IT FELT LIKE LOVE and BEACH RATS<br><br>Outro music: Farrah Mackenzie, “Take Me Home, Country Roads”<br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Steven Soderbergh’s recent return to feature filmmaking, LOGAN LUCKY, has drawn comparisons to the director’s 2001 smash hit OCEAN’S ELEVEN, and not without good reason: The two crowd-pleasing heist films share a lot in terms of their structure, team dynamics, and filmmaking style. In this first half of our discussion of the two films, we dive into Soderbergh’s OCEAN’S to talk over how this finely tuned entertainment machine reflects its director’s preoccupations as a filmmaker, how it utilizes its movie-star-heavy cast, and whether it has anything deeper on its mind than a good time at the movies. Plus, some belated feedback from our recent episodes on 1968's PLANET OF THE APES and WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES. <br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about OCEAN’S ELEVEN, LOGAN LUCKY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Outro music: “A Little Less Conversation” by Elvis Presley&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Like Gillo Pontecorvo’s BATTLE OF ALGIERS, Kathryn Bigalow’s new film DETROIT expresses a strong point of view on racial injustice through a careful recreation of a real historical event — and also like BATTLE OF ALGIERS, it’s stirred up some controversy surrounding its docu-journalistic approach. We unpack that controversy, and DETROIT more generally, before diving into how the two films compare in their visceral style, their portrayals of law enforcement, their use of female characters, and more. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS, DETROIT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Tasha: Dave McCary’s BRIGSBY BEAR<br><br>• Keith: Sabaah Folayan and Damon Davis’ WHOSE STREETS? and Ronal Neame’s HOPSCOTCH<br><br>• Scott: Gillo Pontecorvo’s BURN<br><br>• Genevieve: Amanda Lipitz’s STEP<br><br>Outro music: The Roots, “It Ain’t Fair”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Kathryn Bigelow’s intense, controversial new docu-drama DETROIT owes no small debt to Gillo Pontecorvo’s intense, controversial 1966 film THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS, which covers another volatile historical moment with a potent mixture of newsreel-style realism and expressionistic fervor. In this half of our comparison of the two films, we discuss what makes BATTLE OF ALGIERS such an unsettling and resonant film, debate what point it’s making around the issues of terrorism and torture, and, somehow, find the echoes of Pontecorvo’s film in James Cameron’s AVATAR. Plus, a listener takes us up on our request for feedback on “anything else film-related” with a fruitful prompt on unadaptable adaptations. <br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS, DETROIT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the PLANET OF THE APES series to see how it’s evolved from the 1968 original to Matt Reeves’ stunning new WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES. After discussing why the new trilogy, and WAR in particular, works so well in the current era, we examine how the two ends of this franchise speak to each other over the span of five decades, discussing their ape effects, their social themes, and their very different central performances. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PLANET OF THE APES, WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Scott: Amanda Lipitz’s STEP, Kogonada’s COLUMBUS, and Brett Leonard’s THE LAWNMOWER MAN<br><br>• Keith: the rest of the PLANET OF THE APES original series<br><br>• Genevieve: The Ross Bros.’ CONTEMPORARY COLOR<br><br>Outro music: The Kinks, “Apeman”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week, we’re exploring two films from the opposite ends of the same ape-filled franchise. First, we focus on the cry of “YOU MANIACS” heard ’round the world, 1968’s PLANET OF THE APES, which introduced a fruitful concept that would continue evolve through sequels, TV series, remakes, and a modern prequel series, the most recent installment of which, WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES, we’ll discuss in Pt. 2. In this half, we tease out the various thematic notions that have kept this premise enticing over the decades, debate the merits of Charlton Heston’s hammy lead performance, and more. Plus, some spirited feedback from our recent episode on A GHOST STORY.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PLANET OF THE APES and WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES, and all other ape-related queries, by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to a plane somewhere between life and death (and between horror and drama) to discuss David Lowery’s new A GHOST STORY, both on its own and in the context of Herk Harvey’s similar haunting and genre-defying CARNIVAL OF SOULS. We talk over how the two films tackle big, weighty concepts like the nature of time and the afterlife, as well as how their distinctive use of music contributes to their eeriness. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CARNIVAL OF SOULS, A GHOST STORY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Genevieve: Douglas McGrath’s EMMA<br><br>• Tasha: Tom Weaver’s interviews with Candace Hilligoss on BMonster.com and Hirokazu Koreeda’s AFTER LIFE<br><br>• Scott: Brian Knappenberger’s NOBODY SPEAK: TRIALS OF THE FREE PRESS and Malcolm D. Lee’s GIRLS TRIP<br><br>Outro music: Dark Rooms, “I Get Overwhelmed” from A GHOST STORY<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by David Lowery’s new A GHOST STORY, we’re looking back at another microbudget horror-drama that’s haunting in both the literal and puntastic sense: Herk Harvey’s creepy cult hit CARNIVAL OF SOULS, a 1962 oddity about a woman trapped somewhere between life and death who can’t ditch the strange figures following her. In this half of the discussion, we look for links to Harvey’s background in industrial filmmaking and interest in European cinema, contextualize the film’s strangely wooden performances, and consider just what makes this strange film work, seemingly against all odds. Plus, some feedback on recent episodes and a brief discussion of another pairing we discussed for this week.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CARNIVAL OF SOULS, A GHOST STORY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Bong-Joon Ho’s new Netflix release OKJA has some commonalities with Chris Noonan’s 1995 family film BABE — beyond just a porcine protagonist — but it’s a decidedly different animal. In this half of the discussion, we talk over the odd beast that is OKJA, then consider the how it and BABE both engage with the question of whether it’s wrong to eat meat, how they use very different settings and time periods to similar effect, and more. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BABE, OKJA, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Keith: Nicholas Ray’s THEY LIVE BY NIGHT<br><br>• Scott: Alison Maclean’s THE REHEARSAL<br><br>• Genevieve: Edgar Wright’s BABY DRIVER, Michael Showalter’s THE BIG SICK, and James Mangold’s LOGAN NOIR<br><br>Outro music: The Mamas and The Papas, “Dedicated To The One I Love”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by Bong Joon-ho’s new OKJA, we look back at another whimsical fantasy film about a super-pig and its human, albeit one of a decidedly different breed: BABE, Christopher Noonan’s 1995 family hit about a taciturn farmer and his innocent sheep-pig. In this half of the discussion, we consider the film’s well-honed storybook sensibility, the endurance of its then-cutting-edge special effects, and the note-perfect perfect performance at its center. Plus, some of the excellent feedback we received on our recent episodes on THE THING and IT COMES AT NIGHT.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BABE, OKJA, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to matters of isolation and paranoia in the second half of our comparison of John Carpenter’s THE THING with Trey Edward Shults’ new horror-drama IT COMES AT NIGHT. After debating IT COMES AT NIGHT’s difficult ending and almost perverse commitment to ambiguity, we talk over what the two films share — and don’t — in their portrayals of paranoia, the ties that bind, the apocalypse, and, naturally, dogs. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE THING, IT COMES AT NIGHT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a> or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br><br>• Tasha: John Sayles’ LIMBO and Jack Sholder’s THE HIDDEN<br><br>• Keith: Brad Bird’s THE IRON GIANT<br><br>• Scott: Alain Guiraudie’s STAYING VERTICAL<br><br>Outro music: Brian McOmber, “It Comes At Night”<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Trey Edward Shults’ new IT COMES AS NIGHT takes as one of its influences John Carpenter’s 1982 bloody masterpiece THE THING, which is as good a reason as any to revisit one of our favorite genre films. In this half of the discussion, we geek out over the film’s how’d-they-do-that gore effects and distinctive ensemble, and theorize why THE THING didn’t connect with audiences in 1982, and why it holds up so well today. Plus, a small taste of the deluge of feedback we got on our recent episodes on WONDER WOMAN and PATHS OF GLORY.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE THING, IT COMES AT NIGHT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the battlefields of WWI to talk over Patty Jenkins’ new WONDER WOMAN, both on its own and as it relates to Stanley Kubrick’s PATHS OF GLORY. After discussing what worked and didn’t work in WONDER WOMAN, we bring in the Kubrick film to discuss how these two stories approach themes of leadership and the military, as well as their views of the Great War specifically and all war in general. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PATHS OF GLORY, WONDER WOMAN, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. <br><br>Your Next Picture Show: <br><br>• Tasha: Karl Freund's THE MUMMY (1932)<br><br>• Keith: Amber Tamblyn's PAINT IT BLACK and Bill Morrison's DAWSON CITY: FROZEN TIME<br><br>• Scott: <a href="http://kogonada.com/">kogonada.com</a> and the work of Kogonada<br><br>• Genevieve: The One Perfect Shot video-essay database (<a href="http://video.filmschoolrejects.com/">video.filmschoolrejects.com</a>)<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Patty Jenkins’ new WONDER WOMAN takes World War I as its setting, opening up a host of comparisons to a much earlier, much different cinematic vision that looks to the Great War to uncover the best and worst of humanity: Stanley Kubrick’s 1957 anti-war drama PATHS OF GLORY. In this half of the discussion, we focus on PATHS OF GLORY, marveling at its efficiency and technical achievement — and at how both contribute to the film’s delicate but scathing unilateral indictment of the military system. And in lieu of feedback this week, we also discuss some other potential pairings we considered for this episode.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PATHS OF GLORY, WONDER WOMAN, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We brave the choppy comedic waters of the new BAYWATCH movie to see how it stacks up against the parodic TV-to-film genius of 1995’s THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE. Spoiler: Not well. But the comparison allows us to unpack the nuances of each film’s comedic approach, and consider how the films’ respective approaches to self-awareness, casting, and sophomoric humor contribute to their overall success. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE, BAYWATCH, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Genevieve: Howard Zieff’s PRIVATE BENJAMIN<br><br>* Tasha: “Logan: Superhero Movies Get Old” by YouTube user Nerdwriter1<br><br>* Keith: Goran Olsson’s THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975<br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by the less-than-inspiring new BAYWATCH movie, we consider the strange alchemy that is the cheesy-TV-show-to-feature-film adaptation, via one of the genre’s standout entries: Betty Thomas’ 1995 spoof THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE. In this half of the discussion, we debate how essential knowing the source material is to the BRADY BUNCH MOVIE’s comedy, which of the many standout Brady performances reigns supreme, and whether the film’s moments of slapstick add anything to a movie that thrives on a very different strain of humor. Plus, some feedback from recent episodes.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE, BAYWATCH, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

In this half of our appreciation of the late, great director Jonathan Demme, we bring what would be his final film, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE + THE TENNESSEE KIDS, into the mix, to see what connects it to the director’s first foray into the concert-film genre, STOP MAKING SENSE. The two films focus on very different musical acts, but they’re undeniably connected via “the Demme touch,” and function as appropriate bookends to an impressive filmmaking career (which we can’t help but explore a little more broadly in this discussion as well). Plus, <em>Your</em> Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STOP MAKING SENSE, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE + THE TENNESSEE KIDS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Scott: Kitty Greene’s CASTING JONBENET<br><br>* Genevieve: Paul Thomas Anderson’s music video for Haim’s “Right Now”<br><br>* Keith: Ben Young’s HOUNDS OF LOVE<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We’re still mourning the recent death of Jonathan Demme, a director of incredible range capable of working across many different genres — most notably, for our purposes, the concert film. This week, we hold our lighters aloft for Demme by looking at his first and last concert films, 1984’s STOP MAKING SENSE and 2016’s JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE + THE TENNESSEE KIDS. In this half, we consider the first film’s enduring legacy and influence on the concert-film genre, and how the film functions as a symbiosis of the unique talents of both Demme and Talking Heads frontman David Byrne. Plus, some very strange but undeniably well-executed feedback on our recent episodes on BURDEN OF DREAMS and&nbsp; THE LOST CITY OF Z.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STOP MAKING SENSE, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE + THE TENNESSEE KIDS, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

There’s a lot more connecting Les Blank's BURDEN OF DREAMS with James Gray’s new THE LOST CITY OF Z than the jungle setting, though that of course factors into our discussion of the two films. In this half, we share our reactions to Gray’s stately new film before delving into how the two films engage with obsession and hubris, the clash between European and South American cultures, and the handling of early-19th-century stories. Plus, <em>Your</em> Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BURDEN OF DREAMS, THE LOST CITY OF Z, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Genevieve: Paul F. Tompkins’ “The Great Undiscovered Project” and Jonathan Demme’s RICKI AND THE FLASH<br>* Keith: Les Blank’s GARLIC IS AS GOOD AS TEN MOTHERS<br>* Scott: Francois Ozon’s FRANTZ<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

James Gray’s new jungle adventure THE LOST CITY OF Z inspired us to take another trip to the Amazon via Les Blank’s BURDEN OF DREAMS, the 1982 documentary chronicling the notoriously difficult filming of Werner Herzog’s Amazonian epic FITZCARRALDO. In this half, we talk about Herzog — both the director and the pop-culture character we’ve come to know — and the borderline-mania that seems to drive his unique process. We also wrestle with what BURDEN reveals about how the indigenous people who worked on Herzog’s film were treated. Plus, some feedback from our recent episodes on THE MATRIX and GHOST IN THE SHELL.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BURDEN OF DREAMS, THE LOST CITY OF Z, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

In this half of our discussion of the “weird conceptual sandwich” that is THE MATRIX and GHOST IN THE SHELL, we puzzle over why the latter hyper-stylish, cerebral film fails where the former succeeds. The two films ultimately have different aims, but their approaches are surprisingly similar — though it’s how they differ that’s most telling. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE MATRIX, GHOST IN THE SHELL, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Keith: Makoto Shinkai’s YOUR NAME and David Cronenberg’s EXISTENZ<br>* Genevieve: Netflix’s FIVE CAME BACK<br>* Tasha: Jonathan Glazer’s UNDER THE SKIN<br>* Scott: Oz Perkins’ I AM THE PRETTY THING THAT LIVES IN THE HOUSE and THE BLACKCOAT'S DAUGHTER<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The poorly received new live-action GHOST IN THE SHELL draws inspiration from a lot of different sources — including one that was itself inspired by the original GHOST IN THE SHELL anime: The Wachowskis’ 1999 future-thriller THE MATRIX, which turns on a similar form of science-fiction dysmorphia. In this half of the discussion, we focus in on tiny miracle that is THE MATRIX, a studio-backed, creator-driven sci-fi film that drew from a deep well of cinematic, literary, and philosophical reference points — and would go on to influence countless other films in turn, including, naturally, the new GHOST IN THE SHELL. Plus, some feedback from our recent episodes on ALIEN and LIFE (2017).<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE MATRIX, GHOST IN THE SHELL, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

It’s perhaps unfair to compare the uninspiring new LIFE with the genre-defining ALIEN, but we do it anyway in this half of our discussion of how the Ridley Scott classic (and GRAVITY) informed Daniel Espinosa’s halfhearted homage. After wrestling with our apathy toward the newer movie, we compare the two films’ extraterrestrial baddies, their effects, and their use of space, both outer and inner. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about ALIEN, LIFE, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Tasha: “Junkyard” by Clifford D. Simak (via Tangentonline.com); “No Offense, But What Is Donnie Darko?” by Rachel Handler (MTV.com); “Beauty and the Beast’s Lumiere and Cogsworth Have a Fascinating Real-Life Backstory,” and “Game Over, Uwe Boll,” by Darryn King (VanityFair.com)<br><br>* Keith: John Waters’ MULTIPLE MANIACS and SERIAL MOM<br><br>* Scott: Julia Ducournau’s RAW<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The new LIFE has come in for some pointed comparisons to Ridley Scott’s ALIEN, which seems like as good an excuse as any to revisit the unimpeachable 1979 space thriller. In this half of the conversation, we marvel at how a film so narratively economical can be so deliberately paced, and still manage to induce scares after multiple viewings. Plus, some feedback from our recent episodes on KONG: SKULL ISLAND and GET OUT.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about ALIEN, LIFE, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to Skull Island to puzzle over the stylish curiosity that is Jordan Vogt-Roberts’s new take on the classic film monster, KONG: SKULL ISLAND. Why is this movie aping APOCALYPSE NOW? Have we reached our limit of giant CGI creatures pummeling each other? And, most pertinent of all, how does this bigger, bolder vision of Kong reflect and react to the legacy of its legendary cinematic ancestor, 1933's KING KONG? Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about KING KONG, KONG: SKULL ISLAND, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Genevieve: Macon Blair’s I DON’T FEEL AT HOME IN THIS WORLD ANYMORE<br>* Keith: Robert Zemeckis’ ALLIED<br>* Tasha: Danny Boyle’s T2: TRAINSPOTTING&nbsp;<br>* Scott: Theo Anthony’s RAT FILM and the True/False film festival<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Does every generation get the Kong it deserves? That’s the question on our minds with the release of Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ new take on the great ape, KONG: SKULL ISLAND, which inspired us to go all the way back to the source: 1933’s medium-defining KING KONG. In this half of the discussion, we attempt to separate the movie from the cinema myth, grapple with some less savory aspects of the film’s legacy, and give Keith a few more opportunities to rail against the term “dated.” Plus, a few of the many, many great comments we received in response to our last discussion on GET OUT.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about KING KONG, KONG: SKULL ISLAND, or any other Kongs present and future, by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Jordan Peele’s writing-directing debut GET OUT translates the satirical horror of Wes Craven’s THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS from the Reagan era to the Obama era, to very different — and highly entertaining — effect. In this half of our discussion of the two films, we rave for a bit about GET OUT’s willingness to make us uncomfortable, then discuss the two films’ respective horror-to-satire ratios, as well as their approach to comedy. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS, GET OUT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Keith: Gore Verbinski’s A CURE FOR WELLNESS<br><br>* Tasha: Colm McCarthy’s THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS<br><br>* Scott: Anthony Mann/John Alton collaborations T-MEN, RAW DEAL, and HE WALKED BY NIGHT<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by Jordan Peele’s excellent new writing-directing debut GET OUT, we’re looking at another horror film that openly addresses race, inequality, and its era: the 1991 Wes Craven oddity THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS. In this half, we debate how the earlier film’s central metaphor holds up divorced from the Reagan era that inspired it, how it reflects and fits into Craven’s directorial viewpoint, and to what extent it's actually scary and/or funny. Plus, excerpts from some of the most detailed feedback we’ve ever received, on our previous BATMAN discussion.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS, GET OUT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Tim Burton’s BATMAN kick-started the cinematic and pop-culture proliferation of the now-ubiquitous Batman, who today can not only sustain multiple movies at once, but also provides ample fodder for the reference-happy new THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE. In this half of our discussion of all things Batmen, we talk about all the ways LEGO BATMAN draws on — and benefits from — the character’s long history, and consider how the larger Bat Universe has evolved on film since Burton’s day. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BATMAN, LEGO BATMAN, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Tasha: ’66 BATMAN, BATMAN: RETURN OF THE CAPED CRUSADERS, and BOY WONDER: MY LIFE IN TIGHTS<br>* Keith: Kirsten Johnson’s CAMERAPERSON<br>* Genevieve: Stephen Frears’ FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week’s show tells a tale of two Batmen — plus a whole bunch of other Batmen in between. The success of the new family-friendly LEGO BATMAN MOVIE inspired us to go back to a very different earlier iteration of The Caped Crusader: Tim Burton’s 1989 series-starter BATMAN, which took the comic-book hero into darker realms than he’d previously occupied onscreen. In this half, we talk about how Burton and Michael Keaton’s vision for the character functions in the larger context of Batman adaptations over the years, as well as Burton’s subsequent career. Plus, some feedback from our last episodes. <br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BATMAN, LEGO BATMAN, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We turn our attention now to Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg's cringe-inducing 2016 behind-the-scenes campaign documentary WEINER, which plays in many ways like a natural extension of 1993’s THE WAR ROOM. After discussing how WEINER plays today — after its star, disgraced Congressman and mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner, arguably had a hand in sinking Hillary Clinton’s presidential hopes — we talk about how the newer film’s versions of scandal, politics, and media compares to those of THE WAR ROOM. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE WAR ROOM, WEINER, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>* Genevieve: Michael Dowse’s WHAT IF<br>* Keith: Michael Dudok du Wit’s THE RED TURTLE<br>* Scott: Clay Tweel’s GLEASON<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week’s pairing tracks the rise and fall of Clintonism in America via two behind-the-scenes documentaries following dramatic Democratic campaigns: 1993’s THE WAR ROOM and 2016’s WEINER. In this deep-dive discussion of the earlier film, we talk over the advantages and limitations of Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker's fly-on-the-wall documentary style, compare the yin-yang personalities of stars James Carville and George Stephanopoulos, and, inevitably, wonder about the lasting effects of Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign on the 2016 election. Plus, some feedback from our last few episodes. <br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE WAR ROOM, WEINER, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

In lieu of our regularly scheduled episode — postponed two weeks due to the collision of illness and the Sundance Film Festival — we bring you a recording of our recent live episode, recorded at the Chicago Podcast Festival in November 2016. Inspired by the selection process that goes into each Next Picture Show pairing, with each host pitches a future episode inspired by a 2016 film (and letting the audience decide which we'll do). Plus, a game where the hosts — and live audience — challenge each other to find the connective tissue linking two seemingly unrelated films.&nbsp;<br><br>Enjoy, and come back in two weeks for our discussion of WEINER and THE WAR ROOM.<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Jim Jarmusch’s new PATERSON is one of 2016’s best films, and plays like a natural mirror to his breakthrough, STRANGER THAN PARADISE. After waxing rhapsodic about PATERSON for a while, we talk about how the two movies are connected, through their observational approaches, their quirky relationships with time, and their appreciation for the small things in life. We also try in vain to determine whether Jarmusch actually hates dogs, or just finds them unpredictable. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STRANGER THAN PARADISE, PATERSON, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. <br><br>Your Next Picture Show: <br>* Tasha: John Schlesinger’s COLD COMFORT FARM<br>* Scott: Fritz Lang’s American films, specifically FURY, YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE, SCARLET STREET, and HOUSE BY THE RIVER (as curated from this Noel Murray overview of Lang’s career: <a href="http://thedissolve.com/features/career-view/222-the-sprawling-obsessive-career-of-fritz-lang">thedissolve.com/features/career-view/222-the-sprawling-obsessive-career-of-fritz-lang</a>)<br>* Keith: Wim Wenders’ KINGS OF THE ROAD<br>* Genevieve: Alexis Bloom and Fisher Stevens’ BRIGHT LIGHTS<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by Jim Jarmusch’s new PATERSON, we take a trip through Jarmuschland, way back to the director’s second and breakthrough feature, STRANGER THAN PARADISE. We talk over the ways in which STRANGER THAN PARADISE helped redefine American independent filmmaking, through its bare-bones style, dry humor, memorable characters, and glimpses of underexplored parts of the country. Plus, some feedback on LA LA LAND and UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG, inspired by our last episodes.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about STRANGER THAN PARADISE, PATERSON, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our melancholy-musical double feature heads from Cherbourg, France, to Los Angeles USA, to see how Damien Chazelle’s new “modern-throwback” musical LA LA LAND stacks up against Jacques Demy’s UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG. We talk over LA LA LAND’s nostalgic appeal and speculate about its staying power, then compare how the two films utilize their settings, love stories, and singing to different but complementary ends. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about UMBRELLA OF CHERBOURG, LA LA LAND, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br>*Genevieve: Jeff Nichols’ LOVING<br>* Keith: Martin Scorsese’s SILENCE, Maren Ade’s TONI ERDMANN, Pedro Almodovar’s JULIETA<br>* Scott: Karyn Kusama’s THE INVITATION<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Damian Chazelle’s new big-screen musical LA LA LAND takes its cues from various singing-and-dancing cinematic predecessors, but its melancholy tone is directly descended from Jacques Demy’s classic 1964 musical THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG — a Next Picture Show favorite that we dig into in this first half. We talk over the effects of the film’s sung-through style and working-class setting, and try to pinpoint that certain je ne said quoi that makes UMBRELLAS so indelible. Plus, some feedback on our recent episodes on MOANA and ARRIVAL.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG, LA LA LAND, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Disney Feature Animation had some ups and downs—both artistic and commercial—in the years between MULAN and MOANA, and we chart them in the second half of our comparison of the two films. After taking a moment for a big collective squee over the great MOANA, we get into the evolution of the Disney female heroine (and her sidekicks) and discuss how music features in these films—perhaps with some singing involved. (You're welcome!) Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MULAN, MOANA or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>. <br><br>Supplemental materials:<br><br>*"The Translation of 'We Know The Way' From 'Moana' Makes Perfect Sense" (Bustle): <a href="http://bustle.com/articles/196387-the-translation-of-we-know-the-way-from-moana-makes-perfect-sense">bustle.com/articles/196387-the-translation-of-we-know-the-way-from-moana-makes-perfect-sense<br></a><br>*"How Pacific Islanders Helped Disney's 'Moana' Find Its Way" (Vanity Fair): <a href="http://vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/11/moana-oceanic-trust-disney-controversy-pacific-islanders-polynesia">vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/11/moana-oceanic-trust-disney-controversy-pacific-islanders-polynesia<br></a><br>*The 25 Best Films of 2016: A Video Countdown (David Ehrlich): <a href="http://vimeo.com/194508152">vimeo.com/194508152<br></a><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

MOANA is a successful new entry in Disney Feature Animation’s ongoing experimentation with non-Western stories and non-white characters, an experiment that was still in its nascent stages around the time of 1998’s MULAN. Inspired by an ancient Chinese poem about a female warrior who disguises herself as a man, the film is an odd mishmash of comedy and war movie, of ancient and modern reference points, and of traditional and CG animation. In this half, we talk over how MULAN fares in 2016, and puzzle over a couple of the movie’s stranger casting choices. Plus, lots of feedback, most of it on ARRIVAL.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MULAN, MOANA, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our conversation about movies about talking to aliens moves to the present with Denis Villeneuve’s new ARRIVAL, which hits many of the same narrative points as CONTACT, but points them in a different emotional direction. We talk about our reactions to the newer film, and how its ideas about science, communication, and emotion compare with CONTACT’s. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CONTACT, ARRIVAL, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:(773)%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>00:00-01:40 - Intro&nbsp;<br>01:41-25:34 - "Arrival"&nbsp;<br>25:35-39:41 - Connections&nbsp;<br>39:42-50:40 - Your Next Picture Show:&nbsp;<br> *Genevieve: Ava DuVernay’s 13TH<br> *Scott: Paul Verhoeven’s ELLE&nbsp;<br> *Keith: Criterion’s LONE WOLF AND CUB box set<br> *Tasha: TORCHWOOD “Children of Earth” miniseries, Ben Wheatley’s HIGH-RISE<br>50:41-53:41 - Outro&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week, we look to the skies to consider two films about the difficulty of communication between worlds, and the inward journeys involved in looking to the stars. Inspired by Denis Villeneuve’s new ARRIVAL, we begin with an in-depth discussion of an earlier film with which it shares many thematic and narrative elements: Robert Zemeckis' 1997 Carl Sagan adaptation CONTACT. We consider the film’s ambition, dissect its blockbuster qualities, and try to determine what makes this unwieldy, emotional movie work so well, almost despite itself. (Spoiler: It’s mostly Jodie Foster.) Plus, a brief feedback discussion on cultural empathy and the movies.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CONTACT, ARRIVAL, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our discussion of lyrical portraits of unrequited love turns its attention to Barry Jenkins’ MOONLIGHT, the look and feel of which—the final third in particular—recalls the bittersweet tone of Wong Kar-Wai’s IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE. We share our reactions to MOONLIGHT, and consider the two films’ shared qualities, including their use of unusual framing and the thematic importance placed on food. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, MOONLIGHT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-03:00<br>Main Discussion: 03:01-39:50<br>Your Next Picture Show: 39:50-<br> *Tasha: Mike Mitchell and Walt Dohrn’s TROLLS<br> *Keith: Kelly Fremon Craig’s THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN<br> *Scott: David Farrier’s TICKLED<br> *Genevieve: Park Chan-Wook’s THE HANDMAIDEN<br>Outro: 51:07-54:30<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by one of the year’s biggest indie sensations, Barry Jenkins’ MOONLIGHT, we’re looking at another highly romanticized tale of unrequited love: Wong Kar-wai’s beautiful 2000 film IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE. In this half, we talk about how affecting LOVE’s central non-love-story is - and why - and consider how the film reflects Wong’s improvisational methods and his desire to create a dreamlike return to the Hong Kong of his childhood. Plus, feedback from our last episode on AMERICAN HONEY and MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, MOONLIGHT, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week’s regular episode has been postponed a week, but in the meantime, Tasha and Genevieve get together to chat a little about why we’re postponing, and how we’re collectively figuring out how to care about movies again when so much else is going on in the world.&nbsp;<br><br>Check back in two weeks for our regular episodes on IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE and MOONLIGHT.<br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to the road in our two-part exploration of America and self, jumping to the current day with Andrea Arnold's sprawling, music-packed AMERICAN HONEY, a film with some of the same concerns as MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO, but a much different stylistic approach. In this half, we talk over how the two films handle matters of poverty, style, infatuation, and "the other America." Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO, AMERICAN HONEY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-04:10<br>Main Discussion: 04:10-52:09<br>Your Next Picture Show: 52:10-1:03:02<br> *Keith: William Richert's WINTER KILLS<br> *Scott: Xavier Dolan's TOM AT THE FARM<br> *Tasha: "For Youths, A Grim Tour on Magazine Crews" (New York Times Magazine) and "My Own Private Idaho" (Interview Magazine)<br> *Genevieve: Jonathan Demme's JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE &amp; THE TENNESSEE KIDS<br>Outro: 1:03:04-1:06:36<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week, we’ve all come to look for America, and we’re looking for it in a pair of road movies about underprivileged outsiders and the dreams that keep them hustling from place to place. Inspired by Andrea Arnold's sprawling new AMERICAN HONEY, we look back at Gus Van Sant's 1991 indie-punk-surrealist-fantasy-coming-of-age mishmash MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO. In this half, we attempt to wrangle IDAHO's many moving parts, admire and mourn its central performances, and share some crazy (or not so crazy??) fan theories.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO, AMERICAN HONEY, or both by sending an email to <a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at <a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Intro/Keynote: 00:00-06:11&nbsp;<br>Main Discussion: 06:12-34:47<br>Feedback/Outro: 34:48-43:38<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return to WESTWORLD in the second half of our double-feature, this time venturing into the wilds of television to discuss HBO's high-profile new series, which uses the concept of Michael Crichton's 1973 film as a jumping off point for a sprawling meditation on humanity, AI, evil, and where they intersect. We talk about how the series extends some of the ideas of the original film, and talk about what the two share—and don't—in their portrayals of humans, robots, and techno-paranoia. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WESTWORLD v.1.0, WESTWORLD v.2.0, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-01:50<br>Main Discussion: 01:51-42:22<br>Your Next Picture Show: 42:23-53:56<br>&nbsp;*Genevieve:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/everyframeapainting">Every Frame A Painting</a><br>&nbsp;*Scott: Kelly Reichardt's CERTAIN WOMEN<br>&nbsp;•Keith: Babak Anvari's UNDER THE SHADOW<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: "How Hollywood Whitewashed the Old West" (The Atlantic), and Rick Morales' BATMAN: RETURN OF THE CAPED CRUSADERS<br>Outro: 53:57-57:09<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week, we take two trips to Westworld—one via hovercraft, in Michael Crichton's 1973 film of the same name, and one via underground train, in the new HBO series that blows out the film's premise to a serialized-television scale. In this half we focus on Crichton's film, questioning whether it's a political film or just a sci-fi lark, how WESTWORLD plays into its creator's ongoing fixations (ahem, JURASSIC PARK), and what the deal is with those weird robot hands. And yes, we also talk robot sex.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WESTWORLD v.1.0, WESTWORLD v.2.0, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes<br>Intro/Keynote: 00:00-06:50<br>Main Discussion: 06:51-36:52<br>Feedback/Outro: 36:53-44:31<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

In this half, we look at a successor to WAIT UNTIL DARK that puts a very different sort of blind person in the middle of a home invasion: Fede Alvarez's recent horror-thriller DON'T BREATHE, which stars Stephen Lang as a blind ex-Marine who turns out to be much more than a simple victim. We talk over the new movie's more grisly aspects, and compare how the two films both use their settings and space, empathy, and blindness itself to eke different kinds of thrills from their viewers.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WAIT UNTIL DARK, DON'T BREATHE, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes<br>Intro: 00:00-02:19<br>Main Discussion: 02:20-37:10<br>Your Next Picture Show: 37:11-44:43<br>&nbsp;*Keith: IMAGINARY WORLDS podcast<br>&nbsp;*Scott: Kirsten Johnson's CAMERAPERSON<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: Andrea Arnold's AMERICAN HONEY and Mira Nair's QUEEN OF KATWE<br>Outro: 44:44-48:33<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return from hiatus with a much-requested pairing inspired by Fede Alvarez's new breakout horror hit, DON'T BREATHE, which reminded us, and our listeners, of a different cinematic take on the story of a blind person fending off a home invasion: Terence Young's WAIT UNTIL DARK, a 1967 Audrey Hepburn-starring thriller that plays on different sympathies than its modern successor, but delivers similarly chilling results.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WAIT UNTIL DARK, DON'T BREATHE, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes<br>Intro/Keynote: 00:00-06:35<br>Main Discussion: 06:36-40:21<br>Feedback/Outro: 40:22-50:06<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We turn our discussion of puppet-driven fairy-tale adventure stories to Laika Studios' new stop-motion wonder, KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS, to see how it extends THE DARK CRYSTAL's tradition of deep personal investment on the part of committed craftspeople. We discuss the two films' shared strengths and weakness, and how they're reflected in how each utilize puppetry, villains, and mythology. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent film-related experiences in hopes of putting something new on your radar.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE DARK CRYSTAL, KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes<br>Intro: 00:00-01:59<br>Main Discussion: 02:00-37:08<br>Your Next Picture Show: 37:09-49:46<br>&nbsp;*Keith: THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI ACROSS THE 8TH DIMENSION<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: "How the father of Claymation lost his company" (via Priceonomics.com); Imagination Illustrated: The Jim Henson Journal; Mark Osborne's THE LITTLE PRINCE (Netflix)<br>&nbsp;*Genevieve: Jim Henson's Creature Show Challenge, "Return of the Skekses"; Journey; WEINER<br>Outro: 49:47-52:50<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by the new Laika stop-motion marvel KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS, we look back at another unconventional children's movie, made by unconventional creators pushing the envelop of their craft: Jim Henson's live-action puppet fantasy THE DARK CRYSTAL. In this half, we talk about how Henson and conceptual designer Brian Froud created their high-fantasy world, and wonder whether there's room for a satisfying story among all the visual wizardry. Plus, we talk over some of the other suggestions we got for KUBO pairings from our listeners.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE DARK CRYSTAL, KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes<br>Intro/Keynote: 00:00-07:01<br>Main Discussion: 07:02-41:53<br>Feedback/Outro: 41:54-50:55<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Continuing the legacy of Carroll Ballard's THE BLACK STALLION, David Lowery's new Disney live-action remake of PETE'S DRAGON treats kids' films, kid audiences, and the emotional lives of children with respect and intelligence. In this half of the discussion, we talk over the two films' use of stories within stories, cinematography, child actors, and our relationship with animals and the natural world.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE BLACK STALLION, PETE'S DRAGON, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-02:17<br>Main Discussion: 02:18-43:52<br>Your Next Picture Show: 43:53-53:27<br>&nbsp;*Scott: James Schamus' INDIGNATION<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: THE ALIEN MINUTE podcast and David Mackenzie's HELL OR HIGH WATER<br>&nbsp;* Keith: Kinji Fukasaku's THE GREEN SLIME<br>&nbsp;*Genevieve: Mike Birbiglia's DON'T THINK TWICE<br>Outro: 53:28-59:29<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The director of the new Disney live-action remake PETE’S DRAGON, David Lowery, recently cited as inspiration Carroll Ballard’s 1979 film THE BLACK STALLION, noting the older film’s careful merging of art and the mainstream. Following Lowery’s example, we look back this week at THE BLACK STALLION’s wondrous beauty and split structure, and try to ascertain what makes the film unique among films aimed at children. Plus, we’re still fielding feedback from our GHOSTBUSTERS episodes, and we have some more to share.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE BLACK STALLION, PETE’S DRAGON, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes<br>Intro: 00:00-03:41<br>Keynote: 03:42-07:16<br>Main Discussion: 07:17-40:35<br>Feedback/Outro: 40:36-47:28<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our comparison of bad-guys-doing-good films continues with THE DIRTY DOZEN’s ultra-modern, ultra-messy progeny, the new DC Extended Universe entry SUICIDE SQUAD. We try to make sense of the many issues plaguing the newer film, and decipher how the two films each come down on the ideas of villainy and leadership. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE DIRTY DOZEN, SUICIDE SQUAD, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-01:45<br>Main Discussion: 01:46-42:44<br>Your Next Picture Show: 42:43-52:56<br>&nbsp;*Scott: Joachim Trier’s LOUDER THAN BOMBS<br>&nbsp;*Keith: Justin Lin’s STAR TREK BEYOND<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: Sian Heder’s TALLULAH<br>&nbsp;*Genevieve: Andrew Haigh’s LOOKING: THE MOVIE<br>Outro: 52:57-55:01<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

David Ayer has characterized his new entry in the DC Expanded Universe, SUICIDE SQUAD, as a modern take on Robert Aldrich's THE DIRTY DOZEN, a 1967 war/heist film that set the standard for movies about a band of criminals teaming up to take on a greater evil. In this half of the conversation, we put THE DIRTY DOZEN's violence and attitude toward war in historical context, and tangle with the film's difficult morality. Plus, lots of feedback from our last episode on the GHOSTBUSTERS of the past and present.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE DIRTY DOZEN, SUICIDE SQUAD, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes<br>Intro: 00:00-02:32<br>Keynote: 02:33-5:33<br>Main Discussion: 05:34-34:50<br>Feedback/Outro: 34:51:45:44<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our GHOSTBUSTERS discussion turns its attention to Paul Feig's new remake, which was made with obvious affection for (and cameos from) the 1984 version, and replicates certain character types and plot points. But it also breaks from it in significant ways we'll discuss, as well as thoughts on the effects, the villains, New York City, blockbuster culture, and more. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about Oldbusters, Newbusters, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Intro: 00:00-02:09<br>Main Discussion: 02:10-51:24<br>Your Next Picture Show: 51:25-58:50<br>&nbsp;*Genevieve: Emily Carmichael's STRYKA<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: Entertainment Weekly's GHOSTBUSTERS oral history<br>&nbsp;*Scott: Hirokazu Koreeda's OUR LITTLE SISTER<br>&nbsp;*Keith: King Hu's A TOUCH OF ZEN<br>Outro: 58:51-1:02:58<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week, we ain’t afraid of no ghosts, but we’re a little freaked out by the politics of busting them. The strange controversy over Paul Feig's gender-reversed GHOSTBUSTERS has us looking back at the original 1984 GHOSTBUSTERS to see what about it has inspired such strong feeling. In this half of the conversation, we focus on the then-and-now of Ivan Reitman's original, while trying (unsuccessfully) to dodge the dreaded "N" word: "nostalgia." Plus, some extra-long, extra-great feedback from our SUSPIRIA/NEON DEMON episodes.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about Oldbusters, Newbusters, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Intro: 00:00-02:50<br>Keynote: 02:51-05:10<br>Main Discussion: 05:11-41:02<br>Feedback/Outro: 41:03-51:25<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We move our conversation of Dario Argento's 1977 film SUSPIRIA to Nicholas Winding Refn’s THE NEON DEMON, which works as a contemporary companion piece. In this half, we talk over the two films' respective uses of color, violence, and female competition. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about SUSPIRIA, THE NEON DEMON, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-02:01<br>Main Discussion: 02:17-40:13<br>Your Next Picture Show: 40:14-47:13<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: ACTION MOVIE KID on YouTube<br>&nbsp;*Keith: Isaac Florentine's NINJA: SHADOW OF A TEAR<br>&nbsp;*Scott: Hong-jin Na's THE WAILING<br>Outro: 47:14-50:18<br><br><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Nicholas Winding Refn’s new THE NEON DEMON inspired us to look back at another tale of female rivalry that plays out in lurid colors and more than a little violence: Dario Argento’s classic 1977 horror movie SUSPIRIA. In this half, we explore the specific, lurid style in which Argento works, and consider how it functions as both cinema and horror. Plus, lots of MEMENTO feedback from our last episode.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about NEON DEMON, SUSPIRIA or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.&nbsp;<br><br>Intro: 00:00-03:25<br>Keynote: 03:26-07:09<br>Main Discussion: 07:10-42:06<br>Feedback/Outro: 42:07-51:34<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We dive into the murky waters of Andrew Stanton's new FINDING DORY to search for links between Pixar's latest and Christopher Nolan's mind-bending thriller MEMENTO. Turns out the two disparate films have more in common than even we thought, in their respective treatments of memory, identity, mystery, and more. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.&nbsp;<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MEMENTO, FINDING DORY, or both by sending an email to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:comments@nextpictureshow.net">comments@nextpictureshow.net</a>, or leaving a short voicemail at&nbsp;<a href="tel:%28773%29%20234-9730">(773) 234-9730</a>.&nbsp;<br><br>Intro: 00:00-02:16<br>Main Discussion: 02:17-43:41<br>Your Next Picture Show: 43:42-52:51<br>&nbsp;*Genevieve: Jason Benjamin's SUITED<br>&nbsp;*Scott: Brian De Palma's PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: Frank Perry's THE SWIMMER<br>&nbsp;*Keith: Alexander Hall's HERE COMES MR. JORDAN<br>Outro: 52:52-55:43<br><br>Outro music by&nbsp;<a href="http://youtube.com/CapnDesDes/">CapnDesDes</a><br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The conceit behind Pixar's new FINDING DORY, about Ellen Degeneres' forgetful fish character, inspired us to talk about a very different film about memory and the limits thereof: Christopher Nolan's breakthrough feature MEMENTO. In this half, we consider the unsolvable mysteries of Nolan's film, how it fits into his larger body of work, and whether it qualifies as a noir. Plus, some contentious feedback from our SPINAL TAP/POPSTAR episodes.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MEMENTO, FINDING DORY, or both by sending an email tocomments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-03:59<br>Keynote: 04:00-6:30<br>Main Discussion: 06:31-38:23<br>Feedback/Outro: 38:24-54:51<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our look into the mockumentary's trajectory from THIS IS SPINAL TAP through the new POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING delves into the comedic complexities of The Lonely Island's supremely silly update of the Spinal Tap formula. In this half of the discussion, we consider the two films' respective use of editing, music, pop culture, and the comeback narrative. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THIS IS SPINAL TAP, POPSTAR, or both by sending an email tocomments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-02:38<br>Main Discussion: 02:39-46:54<br>Your Next Picture Show: 46:55-57:20<br>&nbsp;*Keith: Anna Rose Holmer's THE FITS<br>&nbsp;*Scott: Noah Baumback and Jake Paltrow's DEPALMA<br>&nbsp;*Genevieve: Rick Famuyiwa's DOPE<br>&nbsp;*Tasha: Robert Benton's TWILIGHT<br>Next Show Announcement/Goodbyes: 57:21-1:02:22<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Inspired by the new Lonely Island feature mockumentary POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING, we look back at the grandaddy of mock-rock-docs: Rob Reiner's THIS IS SPINAL TAP, which helped set the template for modern comedy in more ways than one. In this half of the discussion, we go deep into the hows and why's of SPINAL TAP's improvised humor, and consider how the film's message scans in the current music-industry climate. Plus, lots of feedback from our L.A. CONFIDENTIAL/THE NICE GUYS episode.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THIS IS SPINAL TAP, POPSTAR, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.&nbsp;<br><br>Time Codes:<br>Intro: 00:00-03:23<br>Keynote: 03:24-07:04<br>Main Discussion: 07:05-39:18<br>Feedback/Outro: 39:19-51:47<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We bring our discussion of L.A. noir into the modern era by connecting L.A. CONFIDENTIAL with the slick new buddy action-comedy from Shane Black, THE NICE GUYS. The two films are playing on very different sandboxes, and decades, but we find connective tissue in their central ideas of justice, their period settings, and their view of L.A.'s secrets. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, THE NICE GUYS, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.&nbsp;<br><br>TIME CODES<br>
Intro: 00:00-02:19
<br>Main Discussion: 02:20-48:33
<br>Your Next Picture Show: 48:34-59:17
<br>-Keith: Kaneto Shindo's THE NAKED ISLAND<br>
-Tasha: Jodie Foster's MONEY MONSTER and Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg's WEINER<br>-Genevieve: Patton Oswalt's TALKING FOR CLAPPING<br>-Scott: Arthur Penn's NIGHT MOVES<br>Next Show Announcement/Goodbyes: 59:18-1:02:30<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week's pairing brings us into the twisted world of L.A. noir, courtesy of two period pieces that follow byzantine plots to the depths of human depravity. Inspired by Shane Black's new THE NICE GUYS, we're revisiting Curtis Hanson's L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, which has a much different tone, but similar spirit. In this half, we zoom in on the tabloid sleaze and police corruption that inform "Confidential," and how it reflects the preoccupations of L.A. noir.<br><br>Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, THE NICE GUYS, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.&nbsp;<br><br>
Intro: 00:00-03:06
<br>Keynote: 03:07-05:19<br>
Main Discussion: 05:20-39:45
<br>Feedback/Outro: 39:46--48:36<br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

We return again to the Marvel Cinematic Universe to see how the armor-plated seed planted in IRON MAN has blossomed into the sprawling new CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR. We discuss how the newer movie carries its added weight, and compare how the two films - and their MCU brethren - handle matters of heroes, villains, and the Marvel House style. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about IRON MAN, CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Intro: 00:00-02:14 Main Discussion: 02:15-52:07 Your Next Picture Show: 52:08-1:01:36 -Scott: Paul Thomas Anderson's 35mm music video for Radiohead's "Daydreaming" -Genevieve: Tom King's comic series VISION -Keith: Whit Stillman's LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP -Tasha: Josh Trank's FANTASTIC FOUR Next Show Announcement/Goodbyes: 1:01:37-1:04:52 <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week, The Next Picture Show is going full-on superhero. Inspired by the Marvel Cinematic Universe's latest offering, CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, we look back at the movie that serves as the Big Bang for the MCU: 2008's IRON MAN. This half of the discussion focuses on how Jon Favreau's interpretation of Tony Stark's superhero transformation helped set the template for what became the biggest thing in modern blockbuster cinema, and how that vision holds up under the weight of what followed. Plus, we share some excellent feedback from the last episode about GREEN ROOM. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about IRON MAN, CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. Intro: 00:00-03:05 Keynote: 03:06-06:22 Main Discussion: 06:23-42:30 Feedback/Outro: 42:31-50:44 <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

In this half of our ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13/GREEN ROOM discussion, we bring Jeremy Saulnier's chill-inducing new thriller into the picture, and consider the many ways in which it reflects John Carpenter's earlier work. The two films have a lot to say about each other, particularly in their distinctive approaches to political statement and violence, and the way in which they both use callbacks to create a distinctive narrative. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about ASSAULT, GREEN ROOM, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

As John Carpenter fans, we were excited to see director Jeremy Saulnier citing Carpenter's ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13 as a specific influence on his excellent new film GREEN ROOM. Watching the two movies together, it’s hard to miss the connections: Both feature an outnumbered and outgunned group of people barricaded in a small, remote space, figuring out how to either hold off waves of merciless attackers, or make a break for it through enemy lines. In this Carpenter-focused half of this week's discussion, we’ll talk about the roots of ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13, what it says about its era, and how it reflects some of John Carpenter’s most recognizable signatures as a director. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about ASSAULT, GREEN ROOM, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our CLOSE ENCOUNTERS/MIDNIGHT SPECIAL discussion turns toward the newer film, and the ways it reflects its Spielbergian inspiration – and the many more ways it diverts from the earlier film. We'll talk over how the two films explore spirituality and mystery, and the similar ways they utilize child actors. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CLOSE ENCOUNTERS, MIDNIGHT SPECIAL, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Director Jeff Nichols cited the 1977 Steven Spielberg classic CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND as one of his primary inspirations for the new MIDNIGHT SPECIAL. But while the two films work toward a similar ending, they don't necessarily work toward the same ends. In this half, we dig into the wonders and optimism of CLOSE ENCOUNTERS, and the many ways in which the film reflects both its director and its era. Plus, we share some of the great feedback we received from our PSYCHO/10 CLOVERFIELD LANE episodes. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CLOSE ENCOUNTERS, MIDNIGHT SPECIAL, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our PSYCHO/10 CLOVERFIELD LANE discussion brings the newer film into the picture, grappling with how the Dan Trachtenberg-directed/JJ Abrams-produced psuedo-sequel echoes Hitchcock's film both deliberately and accidentally. We'll talk over how the two films approach fear the the unknown, highlight their unusual sound design and marketing, and determine whether 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE falls into the grand tradition of "the gearshift movie." Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PYCHO, 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Two women skip town in a hurry and find themselves in an isolated place, overseen by a gentle-toned but temperamental host: You might think us mad to compare PSYCHO and 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE, but we all go a little mad sometimes. There's more than just the setup connecting these two films, though. In this half of the discussion, we dig deep into Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 horror-suspense classic, getting into its legacy, style, and psychology, and how all three affect a modern viewing of the film. Plus, we wrestle with some of the feedback we got for our contentious MASH episode. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about PSYCHO, 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our MASH - WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT discussion digs deeper into the two films' many contrasts, finding unexpected connections in the films' depictions of the military, women, and downtime. We also get into the two films' very different strains of black humor. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MASH, WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Attention. Attention: This week’s movie pairing looks at the communities that spring up in the middle of war, and the odd ways people try to push back against the insanity that surrounds them. Inspired by the new Tina Fey wartime dramedy WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT, we look back at Robert Altman's 1970 breakthrough MASH to see how the lives of those at war – and the visions of those depicting it – have changed in the years between Korea and Afghanistan. Fittingly, this turns out to be our most contentious selection ever. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MASH, WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our THE WICKER MAN - THE WITCH conversation goes deeper into the two films' shared qualities, including their portrayals of religion and women, and their canny use of (very different types of) music. We'll also get deeper into the question of "is it horror?" and whether that ultimately matters. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE WICKER MAN, THE WITCH, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The buzzy new horror film THE WITCH inspired us to look at another period piece about good, evil, self-righteousness, and murder: Robin Hardy's 1973 cult classic THE WICKER MAN. (No, not the Nicolas Cage one - though it does come up.) In this half of the discussion, we talk over both films' reputations as horror (or not), and get into how THE WICKER MAN cultivates its very specific strain of dread. Plus, lots and lots of feedback from our last Coen Brothers-centric episode. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about THE WICKER MAN, THE WITCH, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our cinematic matchup of Coen brothers past and present continues as we dive deeper into the connections between 1991's BARTON FINK and the new HAIL, CAESAR! In this half of the discussion, we get into the films' shared lineage as "movies about movies," and try to home in on what exactly gives both films "that Coen Brothers feeling." Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BARTON FINK, HAIL, CAESAR!, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week's pairing seems like an obvious one: Two Coen Brothers films about Hollywood, set at the same fictional studio, during roughly the same time period–what do you need, a roadmap? But Joel and Ethan Coen's 1991 breakout BARTON FINK has very different things on its mind than the brothers' new HAIL, CAESAR! In the first half of this week's discussion, we get into our various interpretations of BARTON FINK, its titular character, and what it says about the Coens' work as a whole. Plus, listener feedback on our last pairing, complete with some other, non-JOHN CARTER suggestions for a Mars-set double feature. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BARTON FINK, HAIL, CAESAR!, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The second half of our JOHN CARTER/THE MARTIAN comparison looks at the various ways Ridley Scott's film succeeded where Andrew Stanton's failed: its humor, its production design, its approach to adaptation, and its overall simplicity. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts and questions about JOHN CARTER, THE MARTIAN, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

This week, we look back to one of last year's biggest blockbusters — and an Oscar frontrunner — for inspiration, and turn up an interesting, misbegotten cinematic comparison point. Ridley Scott's THE MARTIAN is critically and commercially successful in a way Andrew Stanton's D.O.A. JOHN CARTER never even approached, but the two Mars-centric films viewed in tandem offer interesting takeaways about the nature of science fiction and fantasy, the perils of source-material fidelity and visual poetry. Can one's failure be better understood through the lens of the other's success? Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about JOHN CARTER, THE MARTIAN, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our discussion of "old marrieds" past and present reveals that Andrew Haigh's new 45 YEARS covers a lot of the same ground as Mike Nichols' WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF — it just does it a lot more quietly. We talk over how the two films relate and diverge when it comes to their depictions of a long marriage, how the past informs those marriages, and what emotional inflections each film brings to the party. Plus, Your Next Picture show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF, 45 YEARS, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The release of Andrew Haigh's beautiful 45 YEARS got us thinking about another film about the toxic dynamic between a long-married couple: Mike Nichols' 1966 film debut WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? In this half, we discuss how Nichols brought Edward Albee’s play to the screen, how Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton brought the tension of their own famously fraught marriage to their performances, and what the film says about the institution of marriage, our capacity for illusion, and American society itself. Plus, lots and lots of feedback from our STAR WARS episodes. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF, 45 YEARS, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our conversation linking the very first STAR WARS film with the new sequel (or is it a reboot? a remake?) THE FORCE AWAKENS delves into the myriad ways the two films are connected, and how the cultural impact of A NEW HOPE plays out in the new film. And in a special edition of our recommendation segment Your Next Picture Show, we'll share our top films of 2015, our ultimate recommendation for what to watch during the January catch-up season. Please share your comments, thoughts and questions about A NEW HOPE, THE FORCE AWAKENS, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

J.J. Abrams' record-breaking smash THE FORCE AWAKENS consciously reaches back to the very first entry in the STAR WARS universe, 1977's A NEW HOPE, for inspiration, plot points and design — and offers us an opportunity to look back at how George Lucas changed the game for science-fiction, and film in general, forever. In this half of this week's discussion, we'll look at Lucas' inspirations, the story A NEW HOPE tells, and how the legend around it grew into a billion-dollar business. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about A NEW HOPE, THE FORCE AWAKENS, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our conversation about the links between Werner Herzog's 1972 cult classic AGUIRRE, THE WRATH OF GOD and Alejandro González Iñárritu's new THE REVENANT delves into the way the two films handle the themes of imperialism and madness, and how each is informed by their reportedly tense and exhausting shooting conditions. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about "Aguirre," "The Revenant," or both, by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

BIRDMAN director Alejandro González Iñárritu is back with THE REVENANT, a half-revenge thriller/half-survival adventure that recalls in many ways the work of cinema’s most intrepid adventurer, Werner Herzog – particularly AGUIRRE, THE WRATH OF GOD. In the first half of this week's discussion, we talk about how Herzog's 1972 cult classic, about Spanish conquistadors searching for El Dorado, informs "The Revenant," in both its depiction of arrogant non-natives trying to exploit a foreign land, and its central figure of a man who is pushed to the brink of madness and beyond. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about "Aguirre," "The Revenant," or both, by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our conversation on Pixar's trajectory from 1995 to today delves into the company's most recent offering, discussing how THE GOOD DINOSAUR fits in with the rest of Pixar's output, including TOY STORY, as well as the modern computer-animated-feature landscape. Plus, Your Next Picture Show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about TOY STORY, THE GOOD DINOSAUR, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The second Pixar film of 2015, THE GOOD DINOSAUR, inspires us to look back at the revered animation company's auspicious beginning: 1995's TOY STORY, the first computer-animated feature film. In the first half of this Pixar-spanning discussion, we discuss the history of the company that would go on to change feature animation forever, and how the seeds of that change are apparent in TOY STORY. Please share your comments, thoughts and questions about TOY STORY, THE GOOD DINOSAUR, or both, by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Our conversation on the many connections between BATTLE ROYALE and THE HUNGER GAMES series continues with the Forum discussion focusing on the films' respective styles, their different approaches to violence and teen angst, and their influence on the YA film genre as a whole. Plus, Your Next Picture show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about BATTLE ROYALE, THE HUNGER GAMES series, or both, by emailing comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

With the final installment of the blockbuster YA series THE HUNGER GAMES hitting theaters, we look back to the material many accused HUNGER GAMES author Suzanne Collins of ripping off: 2000's BATTLE ROYALE, a hyper-violent Japanese film adaptation of a hyper-violent manga about kids killing kids in a government-mandated slaughter. In this episode, we get into the many similarities – and many more differences – between the two, as well as BATTLE ROYALE's reputation and place in the larger scope of Japanese cinema. Please share your comments, thoughts and questions about BATTLE ROYALE, THE HUNGER GAMES series, or both, by emailing comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

The Next Picture Show's discussion of ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN and SPOTLIGHT continues with the group Forum discussion. In this half, Scott Tobias, Tasha Robinson and Keith Phipps talk about the films' respective approaches to journalism, the cities of Washington, D.C., and Boston, and visual style. Plus, Your Next Picture show, where we share recent filmgoing experiences in hopes of putting something new on your cinematic radar. Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about "All The President's Men," "Spotlight," or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

Welcome to The Next Picture Show, a movie of the week podcast devoted to a classic film that has shaped our take on a new release. With director Tom McCarthy's SPOTLIGHT getting lots of acclaim for its treatment of the Boston Globe's investigation into the Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal, Scott Tobias, Tasha Robinson and Keith Phipps devote their debut show to arguably the Fourth Estate's finest couple of hours on celluloid, the 1970s classic ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN. Part of the Filmspotting Podcast Network. <br><br>Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>