A collaborative exploration of cinematic rhetoric.
Highlighting one of the most innovative animation studios producing content today, Alex and Jonathan look at the four feature films produced by Irish studio Cartoon Saloon: The Secret of Kells (2009), Song of the Sea (2014), The Breadwinner (2017), and Wolfwalkers (2020). We discuss the unique art style, the various cultural influences, and the ongoing… Continue reading Episode 129. Cartoon Saloon’s (mostly) Celtic Saga
We all know those movies that are so bad you just have to watch them, and today Alex and Jonathan are talking through the history of these terribly good films with Plan 9 From Outer Space (1957), Birdemic: Shock and Terror (2010), Sharknado (2013), and The VelociPastor (2018). We discuss the role intention plays in… Continue reading Episode 127. So-Bad-It’s-Good
For the first episode of season 5, Alex and Jonathan take a look at the many and on-going adaptations of the works of Jane Austen. The specific adaptations we'll be talking about are Sense and Sensibility (1995), Northanger Abbey (2007), Love & Friendship (2016), and Emma. (2020). We discuss the changing style of period pieces,… Continue reading Episode 126. Adapting Austen
To wrap up the fourth season of the Filmlings Podcast Alex and Jonathan take a look at three films taking different angles on the downfall of the world as we know it in 28 Days Later... (2002), Children of Men (2006), and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). We discuss apocalyptic worldbuilding, themes inherent to the… Continue reading Episode 125. The End of the World
For the final installment of the Silver Screen Sports series Alex and Jonathan look at three documentaries that cover a range of sports: Tokyo Olympiad (1965), Hoop Dreams (1994), and Senna (2010). We discuss three different approaches to the creation of a documentary, the difference between fictional and non-fictional representation of sports, and the appeal… Continue reading Episode 124. Silver Screen Sports: Documentary Dreams
The Patrons voted on what contemporary female director we should talk about and the winner was Scottish filmmaker Lynne Ramsay! So today Alex and Jonathan talk about her films Ratcatcher (1999), We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011), and You Were Never Really Here (2017). We discuss Ramsay's very personal and close-to-home debut feature, the… Continue reading Episode 121. Rueful Ramsay
Following up on Episode 109 about team sports, Alex and Jonathan step into the ring and tackle three films about individual sports: Rocky (1976), Chariots of Fire (1981), and The Rider (2017). We discuss what makes an underdog story so powerful, when a sports movie falls short of being greater than the sum of its… Continue reading Episode 117. Silver Screen Sports: Individual Glory
Music and movies have always been linked, but today Jason Harden joins the show once again to talk with Alex and Jonathan about three films which detail the life of three modern music legends, What's Love Got to Do with It (1993), Ray (2004), and Love & Mercy (2014). We talk about when depicting a… Continue reading Episode 113. Music and Manipulation Feat. Jason Harden
Jonathan sits down with Hayden Chauffe today to discuss the career of the modern filmmaker's filmmaker, Quentin Tarantino, in the films Reservoir Dogs (1992), Inglourious Basterds (2009), and The Hateful Eight (2015). We talk about Tarantino's literary story structure, the controversies that tend to follow his films, and the way he breaks various rules of… Continue reading Episode 91. Quintessential Quentin Feat. Hayden Chauffe
Continuing our series focusing on female filmmakers, Alex and Jonathan take a look at the narrative and documentary career of French New Wave pioneer Agnes Varda in her films Le Bonheur (1965), The Gleaners & I (2000), and Faces Places (2017). We talk about Varda's capacity for biting social commentary, her empathy for her documentary… Continue reading Episode 89. Films de Femmes Deux: Agnes Varda
The Filmlings 