The Awards Watch Podcast

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Ep. 252: 47th Oscars Retrospective and If We Picked the Nominees and Winners Sep 16, 2024

Show notes

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).

Director Watch Podcast Ep. 63 - 'The Tree of Life' (Terrence Malick, 2011) Sep 13, 2024

Show notes

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).

Ep. 251 - 'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice' Review and Our Favorite (and Least Favorite) Legacy Sequels with Guests Karen Peterson and Cody Dericks Sep 09, 2024

Show notes

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).

Director Watch Podcast Ep. 62 - 'The New World' (Terrence Malick, 2005) with Guest Karen Peterson Sep 05, 2024

Show notes

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).

AwardsWatch Podcast Ep. 250: 51st Telluride Film Festival Roundup with Special Guest Christina Birro Sep 04, 2024

Show notes

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).

Director Watch Podcast Ep. 61: 'The Thin Red Line' (Terrence Malick, 1998) with special guest Jake Tropila Aug 30, 2024

Show notes

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 61 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by film critic Jake Tropila to discuss the next film in their Terrence Malick series, The Thin Red Line (1998).

After making two of the most celebrated, respected films of the 1970s, Terrence Malick spent the next twenty plus years crafting multiple projects, with nothing to show for it. Towards the beginning of the 1990s, the director was approached with the idea of crafting an adaptation of the World War II novel The Thin Red Line, which intrigued Malick enough to start working on this film, which seemed to spark every male actor in Hollywood to audition for him so they could be a part of this epic. The results of being gone from cinema for two plus decades gave us not only one of Malick's most signature films, but what some consider to be the greatest war film of all time. Ryan, Jay, and Jake discuss their thoughts on the film, the insane roster of actors in this film, how Malick cut Adrian Brody mostly out of the film to create a new vision from the original source material, the brutality of war and what it does to a soldier's morality, how it compares from Saving Private Ryan which came out from the same year, how something as so necessary as water becomes vital for the everyone involved, and the continued look into the career of Jim Caviezel.

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 1h58m. 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 New World. 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).

Ep. 249: 2024 Telluride Film Festival Preview and Predictions with Guest Christina Birro of Pop Culture Confidential Aug 23, 2024

Show notes

On episode 249 of the AwardsWatch Podcast it's another all editors edition as yours truly, Editor-In-Chief Erik Anderson, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade and Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello are packed and ready to head to mountains of Colorado for the 51st Telluride Film Festival with special guest Christina Birro of Pop Culture Confidential.

As Telluride famously does, the actual lineup of films isn't released until the day of the festival (August 30) but with Venice, Toronto and New York announcements and designations of films as a 'world premiere,' 'international premiere,' 'North American premiere' or 'Canadian premiere' we have a pretty good idea of many of the films we'll be seeing, with all important world premiere titles that we'll likely be seeing before anyone like Edward Berger's papal thriller Conclave (Focus Features) starring Ralph Fiennes, John Lithgow and Stanley Tucci, Michael Gracey's Robbie Williams biopic Better Man (Paramount Pictures) with the UK star playing himself, Jason Reitman's Saturday Night (Sony Pictures), telling the story of the first night of SNL in 1975 with Gabriel LaBelle, Dylan O'Brien, Rachell Sennott, Cory Michael Smith and Willem Dafoe, Malcolm Washington's adaptation of August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning The Piano Lesson starring Samuel L. Jackson, Danielle Deadwyler and John David Washington and RaMell Ross's Nickel Boys (Amazon MGM), adapting Colson Whitehead's Nickel Boys with Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Hamish Linklater and more.

We also expect a healthy selection of Sundance and Cannes features to make their way to Telluride for a fall resurgence like A Real Pain, Emilia Pérez, Anora, The Seed of the Sacred Fig and more. Telluride medallions are also a topic of conversation with three traditionally up for grabs. Based on the expected lineup we think it will be Jason Reitman, Angelina Jolie and Samuel L. Jackson but there's a handful of possible contenders here.

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 1h10m. We will be back the week after next to recap the 2024 Telluride Film Festival. Till then, let's get into it.

Music: "Modern Fashion" from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), "B-3" from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro).

Director Watch Podcast Ep. 60 - 'Days of Heaven' (Terrence Malick, 1978) Aug 22, 2024

Show notes

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 60 of the Director Watch Podcast, the boys are joined by AwardsWatch Associate Editor Sophia Ciminello to discuss the next film in their Terrence Malick series, Days of Heaven (1978).

Five years after delivering one of the best debut films of all time, Terrence Malick returned with an essential piece of art within his filmography, and one of the best films of the 1970s, Days of Heaven. Shot mostly in Alberta, Canada, Malick's epic follows lovers who travel to the Texas Panhandle for work harvesting crops for a wealthy grain farmer, only for the three of them to turn into a love triangle of biblical, spiritual proportions. While the shoot and edit of the film ran so long that additional editors and crew members had to be added to the film in order to get the film to the finish line, Malick was able to deliver a mesmerizing, lyrical cautionary tale about love, lust, greed, anger, desire, and finding your sense of freedom in a new world forming around. In other words, a masterpiece. Ryan, Jay, and Sophia breakdown their relationship with the film, the beautiful house built by Jack Fisk, the logistics of the locus scene, the film's incredible performances led by Richard Gere, Sam Shepard, and Brooke Adams, the troubled production of the film, the director's relationship with water, the insightful narration, if Malick's career relates to any other modern director, and how the film's ending full encapsulates all the themes suggested or mentioned throughout the film.

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 2h16m. 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 Thin Red Line. 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).

Ep. 248:'Alien: Romulus' Review and the Future of the Franchise Aug 19, 2024

Show notes

On episode 248 of The AwardsWatch Podcast, Executive Editor Ryan McQuade is joined by AwardsWatch contributor Josh Parham to breakdown the various films in the Alien franchise and then give their thoughts on the latest entry, Alien: Romulus.

For listeners of last week's episode, which covered the films of 1979 via a Oscar retrospective, you would've heard the team was really high on Ridley Scott's masterpiece, Alien. Known as one of the most celebrated films of the 1970s, as well as one of the greatest sci-fi films ever made, Alien set a standard of excellence for the sci-fi horror genre that everyone has tried to recreate. The film then spanned many sequels, prequels, spin-off films going on for the past 45 years. Ryan and Josh discuss their relationship with the franchise, their favorite and least favorite things about each film, which includes Alien, Aliens, Alien3, Alien: Resurrection, Prometheus, Alien: Covenant, and the two Alien vs Predator films. Once they've gotten through all of those titles, they jump right into a SPOILER-FILLED conversation about Fede Álvarez's Alien: Romulus (review here by Sophia Ciminello), which is a low stakes prequel set between the first two films in the franchise and stars Cailee Spaeny and David Jonsson. While the film provides some decent kills, Ryan and Josh give their full thoughts on how disappointed they were by this film, and how they don't know where the future of this franchise will go after this confusing, wasted entry left things off. It's a very in-depth conversation we hope you like.

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 1h56m. We will be back on the next episode to preview the 2024 Telluride Film Festival. Till then, let's get into it.

Music: "Modern Fashion" from AShamaleuvmusic (intro), "B-3" from BoxCat Games Nameless: The Hackers RPG Soundtrack (outro).

Interview: Jonathan Bailey Opens Up About 'Fellow Travelers,' Resilience and Having 'Angels' of Gay Culture Aug 16, 2024

Show notes

There aren't many actors that are having, and about to have, a year like Jonathan Bailey.

For Showtime's Fellow Travelers, a sprawling look at the Lavender Scare of the 1950s to the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s as told through the eyes of two lovers spanning these three decades, Bailey earned a Critics Choice Award for his performance in the series at Tim Laughlin and cheekily during his now viral speech thanking co-star Matt Bomer, "Those of you who have seen Fellow Travelers will know that Matt and I come together" and that was a moment I couldn't let pass by in my conversation with him after earning an Emmy nomination for Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie last month.

He'll be guest starring on the third season of Netflix's Emmy-winning YA hit series Heartstopper in October and then the silver screen in November with the feature film version of the smash Broadway musical Wicked, portraying Fiyero, the prince of princes in the land of Oz. He's set to return to the stage next year in Richard II and oh, he'll also have the fourth Jurassic World film to catapult him into even more mainstream screen stardom next summer.

For Bailey though, his focus is being able to talk about Fellow Travelers and like his co-star and fellow Emmy nominee Matt Bomer (read our interview with Bomer here), bringing the truth about this period in American history is something he's passionate about. Based on the 2007 novel by Thomas Mallon and created for television by Ron Nyswaner (Philadelphia), the story chronicles the lives of staid State Department official Hawkins 'Hawk' Fuller (Bomer) and rebellious but deeply Catholic political neophyte with the eagerness of a golden retriever, who wants to work in the Eisenhower administration in the late 1950s as the government began weeding out anyone suspected of homosexuality. Through marriages and children, secret retreats and rendezvous that push into the civil rights era of the 1960s, the gay sexual liberation of the 1970s and the brutality of the political reaction to the AIDS crisis of the 1980s, Hawk and Tim live deeply complicated and conflicting lives; of love and commitment, or lack thereof, of unbridled passion and sex, and ultimately acceptance.

He goes into great detail about how the book and series came to him, how much he wanted to do a gay romance of this scope after hitting such a starry stride from the huge success of Bridgerton. With both of us being gay men, Bailey's language quickly becomes an inclusive 'we' and 'our' and he also takes time to ask what my experience and knowledge was like. I mention my grandparents, who probably never knew what the Lavender Scare was and he talks about how his 92-year old nana, who was born the same year as his character, watched the show and recalled someone she knew and worked alongside with who was gay and killed himself and that the show was able to reveal a way for her to process and understand it. He wants to relate and wants Fellow Travelers to reach and be related to. But through serious questions, Bailey and I take time to have fun. To joke about his Critics Choice speech, to talk about carrying Kylie Minogue to the stage at Hyde Park with Andrew Scott. "The real trophy for any gay man is carry Kylie Minogue," he says, and he can't help but comment on Bomer's toes ("the most delicious I've ever come across") and we venture into the show's nakedly erotic and vulnerable sex scenes. So cheeky.

Bailey also wants to make sure that I knew the collective effort it took for him to bring Tim to life, shouting out his agents and reps ("The power of asking 'why not?'"), and the cumulative nature of allyship in aligning him with gay journalists that 'get it' because we're a part of the same community. "This is interview is knockout, one of my favorites," he says, not to toot my own horn too much but then again, why not? As he says, "The conversations open when opportunities arise."

Jonathan Bailey is Emmy-nominated in the category of Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for Fellow Travelers with the episode "Make It Easy."

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