Thu, 26 September 2024
Director Watch Podcast Ep. 65 - 'Knight of Cups' (Terrence Malik, 2015) with special guest Jesse Nussman
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 65 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by film critic Jesse Nussman to discuss the next film in their Terrence Malick series, Knight of Cups (2015).
The second entry in Malick’s modern, personal trilogy finds the director exploring fame, love, family, faith, and one’s purpose in the city of angles with Knight of Cups. Centered around the idea of chapters in a person’s life, he uses tarot cards and their meanings to reflect on his own life, using Christian Bale as a surrogate to funnel the pain, love, and loss of his life. The result is a beautiful odyssey through the chaos and confusion of life that has been fully lived in, and doesn’t know where to go next upon reflection of the past. Ryan, Jay, and Jesse break down the film, explore Bale’s filmography, discuss the meaning behind each tarot card talked about in the film, examine Malick’s thoughts on LA and Las Vegas as his version of hell, the use of comedians throughout the film, and a special surprise at the end of the episode that you aren’t going to want to miss.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 1h59m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Terrence Malick with a review of his next film, Song to Song. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “Malick Mode” by Jesse Nussman (outro). |
Mon, 23 September 2024
On episode 254 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch contributors Karen Peterson and Dan Bayer to review and give their reactions to the movie everyone is talking about, The Substance.
Since its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, audience can’t stop talking about the latest body horror thriller from director Coralie Fargeat, The Substance. Led by powerhouse performances from actresses Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley, and filled with tons of blood, twists, and turns, the film just came off of winning the TIFF People's Choice Award for the Midnight Madness section of the program. As it heads into theaters across the country, Ryan, Karen, and Dan break down their inventive, unique world that Fargeat created, the make-up design as well as the stellar work by the entire ensemble, making for one of the team’s favorite films of the year. They did their best to not give any of the film’s reveals away, knowing audiences show go into The Substance knowing little to nothing about it in order for the full wave of shocking moments Fargeat’s second feature presents. Also on the show this week was brief thoughts by Karen about Transformers One, and Dan’s thoughts on the TIFF Audience Winner, The Life of Chuck. A rare one-hour episode with lots packed in, so we hope you enjoy!
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 1h08m. We will be back next week to do discuss the latest film release, Megalopolis.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Thu, 19 September 2024
Director Watch Podcast Ep. 64 - 'To the Wonder' (Terrence Malick, 2012) with Special Guest Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 64 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com Brian Tallerico to discuss the next film in their Terrence Malick series, To the Wonder (2012).
A year after his most celebrated film was released, Malick returned with something new, experimental for even his own standards. The director had looked to turn away from even more traditional storytelling, filming hours on end, searching for the meaning of his film in the edit as he made his first contemporary setting about a couple’s troubled marriage. Mirroring a lot of his own personal life, Malick examines his role in his past marriage and in turn, makes one of his saddest, brutally open films of his filmography. Ryan, Jay, and Brian breakdown their feelings on the film, why it might be considered Malick’s least successful work, the weight of expectations a movie can have on its shoulders, the wild career of Benjamin Affleck, how faith and love are tested to their ultimate limits, and how the director sees himself in this film, and if he is successful in pointing the finger at his past transgressions to make a compelling narrative.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 1h38m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Terrence Malick with a review of his next film, Knight of Cups. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Wed, 18 September 2024
On episode 253 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Editor-In-Chief Erik Anderson, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade and Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello take a look at the awards landscape now that we're in a post-Venice, Telluride and Toronto film festival world.
With Venice, led by jury president Isabelle Huppert, choosing Pedro Almodóvar's The Room Next Door, Telluride critics and audiences both going for Sean Baker's Anora and Toronto voters choosing Mike Flanagan's currently distributor free The Life of Chuck as the People's Choice, there's plenty to talk about in how these choices impact the Oscar race, solidifying some early predictions and changing up others. Telluride saw strong showings for early frontrunner Conclave and late surprise September 5, which just got a Paramount pick up and a prime awards release date while Saturday Night seems to have peaked and cratered in a matter of days.
With Nicole Kidman winning the Volpi Cup at Venice for Babygirl and Sony Pictures Classics choosing to push both Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore in TRND for lead consideration, the Best Actress conversation gets more exciting and fruitful by the day. Angelina Jolie, Mikey Madison, Amy Adams and more are all circling that final five. But a lot of internet chatter hyper-focused on that TIFF win for The Life of Chuck and understandably so; all of but one of the last 15 winners there earned a Best Picture Oscar nomination. That stat caused lots of scurrying, lots of extra math, and for many, finding a place for it in their new top 10. But, stats fall every year and sometimes instinct beats out overthinking.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 51m. We will be back next week to do discuss the latest film release, The Substance. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Mon, 16 September 2024
On episode 252 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello and AwardsWatch contributors Karen Peterson and Josh Parham to go back 50 years to take a look at the 47th Academy Awards, celebrating the films of 1974.
Fifty years ago, the Academy Awards gave out the Best Picture Oscar to the first sequel in their history by awarding The Godfather Part II their highest award, as well as Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Art Direction and Best Original Dramatic Score. 1974 not only featured one of the greatest sequels of all time, but multiple masterpieces like Chinatown, The Conversation, Young Frankenstein, and many more. The Best Picture lineup, as well as the nominees, showcased a pretty stacked, diverse year at the movies, with comedies, ensemble action films, costume dramas being represented alongside prestige crime dramas that spoke to the moment. In their in-depth discussion, the AW team talked about the film year of 1974, briefly discuss talk about The Godfather Part II as a Best Picture winner, do an extensive conversation over the below the line categories and nominees for the year, and then the new version of the AW Shoulda Woulda Coulda game, where instead of individual replacements, they must decide as a group who the nominees and winners should be in the top eight categories. The rules of the game state they can only replace two of the nominees that year from each category, except in Best Picture, where the group could replace up to three films to make up the final set of five nominated films. Like past retrospective episodes, it was a fascinating, fun conversation including spirited debates, alliances, vote swinging, celebrating various movies, performances that aren’t normally talked about and more that we all hope you enjoy.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 3h17m. We will be back next week to do discuss the latest film release, The Substance.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Fri, 13 September 2024
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 63 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by Editor-In-Chief Erik Anderson to discuss the next film in their Terrence Malick series, The Tree of Life (2011).
We’ve come to the midpoint mark of the Malick series and have hit the most important film in the filmography of the director, not just in terms of accolades and being known as one of the most important films of the 2010s, but it is also the film Jay claims as his favorite film of all time. A very personal episode of Director Watch is in store as the guys, alongside Erik, break down Malick’s most personal film to date about a journey through time, our place in the universe, what our stamp on history is, and what the meaning of life is through the eyes of a family living in a small Texas town. Ryan, Jay, and Erik talk about their relationship with The Tree of Life, how well the film has aged from when they first saw it due to growth and experience in their lives, the masterful imagery conveyed by cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, the work of Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain as not just parents to the boys in the film but as the personification of nature vs. nurture, the dinosaur sequence, the glorious ending mixed into the fascinating scenes feature Sean Penn as a grown up version of Jack, how Malick is able to evoke the viewer’s memories of their past and juxtapose it to what he is showing on screen through his characters and setting, and of course, talk about the wild Oscar season that covered the films of 2011.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h17m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Terrence Malick with a review of his next film, To the Wonder. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Mon, 9 September 2024
Ep. 251 - 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' Review and Our Favorite (and Least Favorite) Legacy Sequels with Guests Karen Peterson and Cody Dericks
On episode 251 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch contributos Karen Peterson and Cody Dericks to discuss Tim Burton’s latest film, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and talk about some of the favorite (and least favorite) “legacy sequels.”
While everyone is making their way back from Venice and Telluride, and others are in Toronto for TIFF, the new release of the week spark a surprise hit at the box office, and a return to form for its director, Tim Burton. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, a legacy sequel to the 1988 cult classic, took in close to $145 million at the worldwide box office after premiering to a mostly positive reception out of Venice just two weeks ago. The team break down the film, how it fits in with the original, Keaton’s performance, the evolution of the existing characters alongside the addition of new one, and what Burton should do next.
After talk about Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, they transitioned to talking about the “legacy sequel,” which is a film that follows the continuity of the original movie(s), but takes place further along the timeline and focuses on new characters with the original ones still existing in the new story. Sometimes the film can even follow the same formula as the original film, just adding in new special effects or characters to make the audience feel like they are witnessing this world for the first time; essentially a nostalgia bomb. While these don’t always work, there are some that are an exception to the rule, as Ryan, Karen, and Cody discuss when they talked about films like Top Gun: Maverick, Creed, Doctor Sleep, The Color of Money, Before Sunset, Mad Max: Fury Road, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Mary Poppins Returns, and more, including some legacy sequels that frustrate them like the recent Scream and Indiana Jones films.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h05m. We will be back next week to do another AW Oscar Retrospective episode about the 47th Academy Awards, covering the films of 1974. Till then, let’s get into it. Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Thu, 5 September 2024
Welcome to Director Watch! On this AwardsWatch podcast, co-hosts Ryan McQuade and Jay Ledbetter attempt to breakdown, analyze, and ultimately, get inside the mind of some of cinema’s greatest auteurs. In doing so, they will look at their filmographies, explore what drives them artistically and what makes their decision making process so fascinating. Add in a few silly tangents and a fun game at the end of the episode and you’ve got yourself a podcast we truly hope you love. On episode 62 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by AwardsWatch contributor Karen Peterson to discuss the next film in their Terrence Malick series, The New World (2005).
Entering a new millennium, Malick embarked on a mission to create a vision of timeless story that he had been trying to make since the 1970s. After finally getting the financing to create The New World, he sent out to create a definitive take on the story of historical figures Captain John Smith (Colin Farrell), Pocahontas of the Powhatan tribe (Q'orianka Kilcher), and Englishman John Rolfe, without having to hold true to being one hundred percent accurate to their history. He uses this love story to breakdown our human relationship with exploration and nature, and how when these worlds collide, it provides change that irreversible, beautiful, and tragic. In short, he created another masterpiece. Ryan, Jay, and Karen give their reaction and relationship to the film, speak about how hot Colin Farrell was during this era of his career, Emmanuel Lubezki luscious cinematography, Q'orianka Kilcher’s transformational performance, the movie’s connection with the past, present, future via water and boats, the poor animated Disney version of this story, and how the freedom, if the extended version of this film is worth it, and how the experimental filmmaking of this movie set a path for the modern Malick we’ve come to know.
You can listen to the Director Watch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h02m. The guys will be back next week to continue their series on the films of Terrence Malick with a review of his next film, The Tree of Life. You can rent it via iTunes and Amazon Prime rental in preparation for the next episode of Director Watch. Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: MUSICALIFE, from Pond5 (intro) and “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |
Wed, 4 September 2024
AwardsWatch Podcast Ep. 250: 51st Telluride Film Festival Roundup with Special Guest Christina Birro
On episode 250 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by Editor-In-Chief Erik Anderson, Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello, and special guest Christina Birro of Pop Culture Confidential come together to discuss their reactions to the films at the 51st Telluride Film Festival.
The 2024 film festival season has begun and many of the biggest titles of the fall film slate, Oscar season are being released over the last week with both the Venice Film Festival and Telluride Film Festival. Based on our past episode, the Telluride Film Festival announced their line-up with the world premieres of Conclave, Nickel Boys, Saturday Night, The Piano Lesson, The End alongside with several other films, as well as movie that have premiered at other festivals like Anora, The Outrun, Maria, A Real Pain, September 5, Emilia Perez, and more. It made for a great lineup over the Labor Day weekend, and the group break down their time at the festival, talk about all the movies they saw above and more.
You can listen to The AwardsWatch Podcast wherever you stream podcasts, from iTunes, iHeartRadio, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Audible, Amazon Music and more.
This podcast runs 2h01m. We will be back next week to discuss Beetlejuice Beetlejuice and talk about our favorite “legacy sequels.” Till then, let’s get into it.
Music: “Modern Fashion” from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), “B-3” from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro). |