The Big Picture - The Ringer

Latest Episodes:

‘Sinners’ Is for the Sickos, the Cinephiles and You, with Ryan Coogler! Apr 17, 2025

Show notes

Sean and Amanda are joined by Van Lathan to unpack Ryan Coogler’s highly anticipated vampire horror film, ‘Sinners.’ They applaud the film for its originality and authenticity, debate whether or not this is Michael B. Jordan’s best performance of his career, and unpack one of the film’s most controversial and daring scenes by hypothesizing about whether its boldness will be well received (2:28). Then, Sean is joined by Ryan Coogler to explain why he felt like he needed to make this movie, the importance of shooting on film, and the advice Christopher Nolan gave him for shooting on IMAX film cameras (1:12:03).

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Guests: Ryan Coogler and Van Lathan

Producer: Jack Sanders

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The 1990 Movie Draft Apr 15, 2025

Show notes

We are drafting again! Before their draft, Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to briefly discuss Matt Damon’s shredded appearance for Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ and the new trailer for Ari Aster’s ‘Eddington’ (1:03). Then, they talk about who they were in 1990 and draft the best movies from the year (10:37).

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Guests: Chris Ryan and Bobby Wagner

Producer: Jack Sanders

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The 10 Most Intriguing Movies at the Cannes Film Festival. Plus: ‘Warfare’ Is Hell, With Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza. Apr 11, 2025

Show notes

Sean and Amanda begin the episode with their instant reactions to the official announcement of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival lineup. They share their overall mixed feelings about the slate, attempt to figure out why some notable films missed the cut, and debate whether or not Sean would be capable of taking a three-month movie sabbatical (1:45). Then, Chris Ryan joins the show to cover Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s new combat drama, ‘Warfare,’ to discuss how emotionally affecting the film is and examine its use of differing perspectives (29:22). Finally, Sean is joined by Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza to explore the intentions behind ‘Warfare,’ then work through the importance of memory and examine how it plays a critical part in the storytelling of the film (1:02:40).

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Guests: Alex Garland, Ray Mendoza, and Chris Ryan

Producer: Jack Sanders

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The 25 Best Movies of the Century: No. 23 - ‘Something’s Gotta Give’ Apr 09, 2025

Show notes

Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. They discuss Nancy Meyers’s ‘Something’s Gotta Give,’ the 2003 romantic comedy starring Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson, which featured some of the most realized and developed characters of the century. They highlight and celebrate Meyers’s auteurist vision, argue why it’s the last great studio romantic comedy, and remember one of Jack Nicholson’s final performances that featured an incredible balance of his powerful charisma and uglier, stranger side.

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Producer: Jack Sanders

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‘A Minecraft Movie’ Is the Most Important Movie of the Year So Far. And These Flicks Are the Best … Apr 07, 2025

Show notes

Sean and Amanda cover the absolute box office phenomenon ‘A Minecraft Movie,’ a video game adaptation starring Jack Black and Jason Momoa. They explore the event film of the year and discuss why the theatergoing experience of the film is such a great thing for the industry at large (1:08). Then, they give a Movie State of the Union, where they work through the troubling slate of early 2025 movies and consider whether television is currently “beating” movies (22:05). Finally, in an attempt to end the episode on an optimistic note, they highlight some movies they’ve enjoyed in 2025 and share their list of the best movies of the year so far (54:05).

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Producer: Jack Sanders

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The 15 Most Anticipated Movies at CinemaCon, and Our Trip to Las Vegas! Apr 05, 2025

Show notes

Sean and Amanda recap their recent trip to Las Vegas for CinemaCon and catch up on the latest news from around the industry, including some exclusive insight on the ‘Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood’ sort-of sequel, which will reportedly be directed by David Fincher (0:45). Then, they are joined by Puck’s Matt Belloni to talk about their 15 most anticipated movies from CinemaCon (28:43).

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Guest: Matthew Belloni

Producers: Jon Jones and Marcelino Ortiz

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The Gen Z Movie Focus Group Apr 01, 2025

Show notes

Amanda is joined by The Ringer’s very own Jomi Adeniran, Jade Whaley, and Jack Sanders to convey the first (and possibly last) Gen Z Movie Focus Group! They discuss how they watched movies growing up versus today, debate what is the most important movie to Gen Z, and assess whether movies are “so back” or “so over.”Host: Amanda Dobbins

Guests: Jomi Adeniran, Jade Whaley, and Jack Sanders

Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner

Video Producers: Jack Sanders and Cory McConnell

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The Garbage Women Canon! Plus: 'Holland' and 'Kinda Pregnant.' Mar 28, 2025

Show notes

Amanda is joined by Yasi Salek to create a new mini-genre called "Garbage Women," a list of mediocre to bad streaming movies starring the greatest actresses of our generation. Before officially forming the canon, they cover some recent releases that fit into the genre, ‘Holland’ (2:54) and ‘Kinda Pregnant’ (20:44). Then, they get into the list, working through the official criteria, discussing what they love and hate about these types of movies, and sharing their notes for future Garbage Women films (32:04).

Host: Amanda Dobbins

Guest: Yasi Salek

Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner

Video Producer: Jack Sanders

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The 25 Best Movies of the Century: No. 24 - ‘The Handmaiden’ Mar 26, 2025

Show notes

Sean and Amanda return to continue their year-long project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far with a discussion of Park Chan-wook’s ‘The Handmaiden,’ the 2016 erotic thriller period piece starring Kim Tae-ri and featuring some of the best camera work and production design of the century. They talk about Park Chan-wook’s incredible ability to complicate simple stories with depth of design, how it portrays the complicated power dynamics of sex, and why its layered portrayal of shifting psychological perspectives is so impactful.

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner

Video Producer: Jack Sanders

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The Top 10 Garbage Scorsese Movies and ‘The Alto Knights’ Mar 24, 2025

Show notes

Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to react to some trailer and release calendar news about ‘One Battle After Another,’ ‘Materialists,’ ‘F1,’ ‘Together,’ and ‘The Phoenician Scheme’ (2:41). Then, they discuss Barry Levinson’s new gangster movie ‘The Alto Nights,’ written by Nicholas Pileggi and starring Robert De Niro (18:58). Finally, they sketch out a new mini-genre, “Garbage Scorsese,” a list of films that are deeply indebted to the work of Martin Scorsese but not actually that good (43:45).

Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins

Guest: Chris Ryan

Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner

Video Producer: Jack Sanders

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