The Next Picture Show

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#056: (Pt. 2) Mulan / Moana Dec 15, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MULAN, MOANA or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Supplemental materials:

*"The Translation of 'We Know The Way' From 'Moana' Makes Perfect Sense" (Bustle): bustle.com/articles/196387-the-translation-of-we-know-the-way-from-moana-makes-perfect-sense

*"How Pacific Islanders Helped Disney's 'Moana' Find Its Way" (Vanity Fair): vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/11/moana-oceanic-trust-disney-controversy-pacific-islanders-polynesia

*The 25 Best Films of 2016: A Video Countdown (David Ehrlich): vimeo.com/194508152

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#055: (Pt. 1) Mulan / Moana Dec 13, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MULAN, MOANA, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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#054: (Pt. 2) Contact / Arrival Dec 01, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CONTACT, ARRIVAL, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

00:00-01:40 - Intro

01:41-25:34 - "Arrival"

25:35-39:41 - Connections

39:42-50:40 - Your Next Picture Show:

*Genevieve: Ava DuVernay’s 13TH

*Scott: Paul Verhoeven’s ELLE

*Keith: Criterion’s LONE WOLF AND CUB box set

*Tasha: TORCHWOOD “Children of Earth” miniseries, Ben Wheatley’s HIGH-RISE

50:41-53:41 - Outro

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#053: (Pt. 1) Contact / Arrival Nov 29, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about CONTACT, ARRIVAL, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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#052: (Pt. 2) In the Mood for Love / Moonlight Nov 24, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, MOONLIGHT, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Time Codes:

Intro: 00:00-03:00

Main Discussion: 03:01-39:50

Your Next Picture Show: 39:50-

*Tasha: Mike Mitchell and Walt Dohrn’s TROLLS

*Keith: Kelly Fremon Craig’s THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN

*Scott: David Farrier’s TICKLED

*Genevieve: Park Chan-Wook’s THE HANDMAIDEN

Outro: 51:07-54:30

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#051: (Pt. 1) In the Mood for Love / Moonlight Nov 22, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, MOONLIGHT, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

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Short: Elections, Entertainment, and Empathy Nov 15, 2016

Show notes

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.

Check back in two weeks for our regular episodes on IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE and MOONLIGHT.

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#049: (Pt. 1) My Own Private Idaho / American Honey Nov 01, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO, AMERICAN HONEY, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Intro/Keynote: 00:00-06:11

Main Discussion: 06:12-34:47

Feedback/Outro: 34:48-43:38

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#048: (Pt. 2) Westworld (1973) / Westworld (2016) Oct 20, 2016

Show notes

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.

Please share your comments, thoughts, and questions about WESTWORLD v.1.0, WESTWORLD v.2.0, or both by sending an email to comments@nextpictureshow.net, or leaving a short voicemail at (773) 234-9730.

Time Codes:

Intro: 00:00-01:50

Main Discussion: 01:51-42:22

Your Next Picture Show: 42:23-53:56

*Genevieve: Every Frame A Painting

*Scott: Kelly Reichardt's CERTAIN WOMEN

•Keith: Babak Anvari's UNDER THE SHADOW

*Tasha: "How Hollywood Whitewashed the Old West" (The Atlantic), and Rick Morales' BATMAN: RETURN OF THE CAPED CRUSADERS

Outro: 53:57-57:09

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#047: (Pt. 1) Westworld (1973) / Westworld (2016) Oct 18, 2016

Show notes

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.

Time Codes

Intro/Keynote: 00:00-06:50

Main Discussion: 06:51-36:52

Feedback/Outro: 36:53-44:31

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