Cinema In Context

Exploring the "greatest film of all time". Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss Mank (2020) and Citizen Kane (1941). We start by comparing Mank to Joker and Alien3, and then jumping into a discussion of Citizen Kane, as the subjective greatest film of all time. We discuss the impressive cinematography and the strength of the cast, linking the strength of the ensemble to the films of Christopher Guest. We unpack the shots and cinema work of both Citizen Kane and Mank, praising the work of Kane and questioning some of the techniques used in Mank. We compare Mank to Roma and Ed Wood, for their use of cinema techniques. Our discussion moves to the various motivations behind the making of Mank and how they either work or don't work. We talk about the strengths and weaknesses of the cast of Mank, including Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Charles Dance, Tuppence Middleton, Tom Burke and Lilly Collins. Our conversation touches on the Netflix deal David Fincher has made, comparing the potential compromise

Memorable film and television from an unpredictable year. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss their highlights from 2020, but because of the unsettled nature of 2020, we talk about both film and TV we watched this year, regardless of when they were released. We talk about and mention the films Babyteeth, One Cut of the Dead, Cats, Corpus Christi, Queen & Slim, The Surrogate, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Hamilton and The Invisible Man. We also mention and discuss multiple television series, including Green Eggs and Ham, Watchmen (2019), Ted Lasso, Schitt's Creek, The Midnight Gospel and BoJack Horseman.

Aaron Sorkin scripts. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss The Social Network (2010) and The Trial of Chicago 7 (2020). We start by speaking about the real-world impact of the real-life stories of both films, especially Facebook and how its impact has changed over time. Our conversation then moves into the work of Aaron Sorkin, highlighting his work on The West Wing, A Few Good Men and Molly's Game. We talk about the strengths and weaknesses of The Trial of the Chicago 7, especially the brilliance of the cast and script, but the misfires around the direction, pace and tone of the film. We then move onto a more focused discussion of The Social Network, praising the cast in this film as well and the music of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

Two versions of Mulan. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss Mulan (1998) and Mulan (2020), both available on Disney+. We start by discussing the state of Disney live action remakes and whether the new Mulan is a "cash grab". We discuss the talents of Niki Caro and what she brought to the live action film. We criticise the lack of intention in the new live action films or the new films not understanding what made the original animated films tick, including bringing up Aladdin, The Lion Kind and The Jungle Book. We talk about the accents in the films and how language works in Disney films, considering where the story is set, like watching the Chinese version in Mulan and French version of Ratatouille. We discuss the openings of both films, with the instant stakes in the original and the messiness of the new film. We talk about the intended audience of the new film, comparing it to The Great Wall. We discuss the music in the animated Mulan film and both the great themes and missed opportunities, b

Christopher Nolan films. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing, Doug Dillaman and William Chen discuss two Christopher Nolan films, Memento (2000) and Tenet (2020). We start by discussing how we each saw Tenet at the cinema, with a global pandemic, comparing our respective experiences - especially the sound design of Nolan's films. Sarah unpacks elements of the sound in Tenet, highlighting her own podcast The Sound of Movies and the work of Hans Zimmer. Our discussion then moves into the central story of Tenet, trying to unpack what the film is trying to do and comparing it to the simple narrative drive of Memento. We compare the work done behind the scenes in bth films, especially the big budget nature of Tenet and the low-budget focus of Memento. We compare the films to Zack Snyder's work, The Matrix, Jonathan Nolan and Westworld, Primer, Timecrimes, Triangle, Inception, The Lost Boys and Timecop.

Obsessive game competition documentaries. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss the Netflix+ distributed The Speed Cubers and The King of Kong (2007). We begin by discussing the despicable qualities of the people featured in The King of Kong, particularly Billy Mitchell, and the under-dog qualities of Steve Wiebe. We then talk about the filmmaking and crafting of The King of Kong, particularly the areas where artistic license has been taken, and highlighting the characters of Brian Kuh and Steve Sanders. We move the conversation into The Speed Cubers, highlighting the difference in spirit between the two films, with the more recent film being far kinder than the harsher older film - connecting to our previous episode on Catfish and Tickled. We unpack the focus of the film The Speed Cubers, especially around its lack of focus on speed cubing competitions, with a focus on the relationship between Max and Feliks. We then discuss the films in comparison to other documentary films and documentary ser

Musical political figures. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss the Disney+ distributed, live-filmed presentation of Hamilton and Evita (1996). We begin by discussing Madonna, her cultural influence and her performance in Evita. We criticise the adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber shows to film, including Cats and Jesus Christ Superstar, but also highlight the ways that Evita fix aspects of the stage musical in the film. The conversation then moves into a discussion around Hamilton and our experience with the musical before watching it. We compare the Lin-Manuel Miranda show with the work of Shakespeare, and then the work of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Our conversation then moves into a discussion of the female characters in the two shows/films. We then discuss the way Hamilton explores race representation, captures the heart of its story through its cast and how it is a metonymy for wider America. We also discuss the representation in Evita, including its cast's previous work, like Jonatha

Treasure hunts in war. Billy Revell-Siō, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss the Netflix film Da 5 Bloods and 1999 film Three Kings. We begin by unpacking Da 5 Bloods, and how it doesn't work on a whole, but highlighting the areas that it does do well. We then talk about Three Kings and the commentary it is trying to achieve, the experimentation with film techniques and how well those elements have aged. We talk about the films' ability to be ironic and build commentary around American military involvement in other countries. We then discuss the cast of Three Kings, including Cliff Curtis, Spike Jonze, Said Taghmaoui, Judy Greer and Jamie Kennedy, alongside the leads of Mark "Marky Mark" Wahlberg, Ice Cube and George Clooney. We discuss the experimentation with film indicative of the late 1990s and early 2000s, including Ocean's Eleven, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, Run Lola Run and The Matrix. We finish with a discussion around how the cinema medium has changed and is changing, with the ris

Chase action films. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss the Netflix film Extraction and 2002 film The Bourne Identity. We begin by pulling Extraction apart, highlight many of its floors. We highlight the brilliant photography, production design and direction of the film, and spent time celebrating the action and stunt choreography. We compare the long shot in Extraction to Children of Men and Atomic Blonde. We talk about the classic qualities of The Bourne Identity, and how the series developed through Bourne Supremacy, Bourne Ultimatum, Bourne: Legacy and Jason Bourne.

Our fourth anniversary, celebrating by discussing the greatest Number 4 films. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss Toy Story 4 (2019), Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), and Star Wars (1977), which was retrospectively assigned the subtitle Episode 4: A New Hope. Each are great examples of the fourth film being a great work of cinema, despite other fourth films typically being sub-par. We begin discussion around Star Wars and the way they if backloaded a franchise into its title, as well as how this franchisation has been preloaded into films since, as well as the place of the prequel. We talk about the way each of these four films work into their series, particularly the quality of the films they are following. Our discussion then moves into a discussion of the Mission Impossible series, focused around Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol. We then talk about Toy Story 4 and how the whole of Pixar's original series has played out. We talk about the strength of B

Streaming options during our Covid-19 crisis. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss films that you can watch while stuck at home, during the Covid-19 lockdowns occurring around the world. We have split our discussion into five categories: Film for the family: William: How to Train Your Dragon (2010, Netflix) Sarah: The Adventures of TinTin: The Secret of the Unicorn (2011, Netflix) Jeremy: Hairspray (2007, Netflix) Classic to rewatch: Sarah: Sense and Sensibility (1995, Netflix) Jeremy: Beetlejuice (1988, Netflix) William: Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003, Netflix) Something new: Jeremy: Russian Doll (2019, Netflix) William: Sonic the Hedgehog (2020, Amazon Prime Video) Sarah: The Occupant (2020, Netflix) Something a bit off the wall: Sarah: Eye in the Sky (2015, Netflix) Jeremy: Mulholland Drive (2001, Netflix) William: Cats (2019, Lightbox) Go to happy film: Jeremy: The Castle (1997, Lightbox) Sarah: Game Night (2018, Netflix) William: Community (2009-2015, Amazon Pri

Post Oscars discussion. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss the 2020 Academy Awards. We begin by discussing our expectations going into the ceremony, our general apathy towards the ceremony in general and our collective surprise as to how things rolled out. The biggest and best surprise was Parasite, the Cinema in Context film of 2019, winning Best Picture. We discuss the Netflix representation in the ceremony, with lack of awards for Marriage Story, The Irishman and Klaus, as well as referencing Roma from last year. Our discussion then moves into the "Oscars so white" and lack of female nominations debates and the representation of not-white people in the ceremony. We then talk about the four acting awards, with Brad Pitt, Laura Dern, Joaquin Phoenix and Renee Zellweger all taking away at award. Our conversation then moves into discussing 1917 and its technical prowess, including the fantastic work of Roger Deakins. We talk about the Best Score award won by Hildur Guðnadóttir for Joker, the B

Continuous shot films. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss two films that use a continuous shot throughout most of their films: 1917 (2019) and Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014). We begin by discussing the way each film utilises the continuous shot affect. We compare the two films to other films that explore long takes, including Gravity (2013), Dunkirk (2017), The Adventures of Tintin (2011), Searching (2018), Children of Men (2006), and Roma (2018). Roger Deakins' work is celebrated in 1917, as we marvel the photography and how it works within the real world realities of filming this film. We compare the way the two films balance their leads with their supporting characters and how that plays out with the continuous shot structure. 1917 is compared to a range of better films, including The Revenant (2015), Saving Private Ryan (1998), and Apocalypse Now (1979). We unpack and marvel the choreography in both films, which help make the continuous shot dynamic work. We talk

Best films of 2019. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss their top films of the year, in the following categories: Biggest surprise, biggest disappointment, most anticipated film yet to come out (this episode was recorded in mid-November), wildcard, runner up films and each of our film of the year. Biggest Surprise: William: Midsommar Sarah: The Cameraman (1928) Jeremy: Doctor Sleep Biggest Disappointment: Sarah: Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood William: Us Jeremy: Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood Most anticipated film yet to come out: Jeremy: Jumanji: The Next Level William: Klaus Sarah: The Irishman Wildcard: Sarah: Family Romance, LLC. William: Crazy Alien Jeremy: Mary Poppins Returns Runner up films to Film of the Year, in order from 4th to 2nd: William: Toy Story 4, The Nightingale, Parasite Jeremy: Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé, Toy Story 4, Midsommar Sarah: Les Misérables (2019), Joker, Bacurau Film of the Year: Sarah: Parasite Jeremy: Parasite William: Apollo 11 Cinema in Contex

Comedic World War Two. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss two films that focus on Nazi-occupied Europe during World War Two that have a comedic or satirical edge: Jojo Rabbit (2019) and Inglourious Basterds (2009). We begin by discussing the situations and ways we first watched Inglourious Basterds, highlighting key reactions we had to the film the first time and upon rewatching it. We then move into a discussion of Jojo Rabbit, beginning with a comparison of music between the two films and then progressing into a chat about the film generally. We unpack the way that Jojo Rabbit plays with comedic moments, while not underplaying the horrors of the regime and war, as well as thinking about how the film connects to other movies. We celebrate the character of Col. Hans Landa and the work of Christoph Waltz. We talk about the tension in Tarantino films and how editor Sally Menke's work contributes to his films' confidence in tension. Our discussion then moves back to Jojo Rabbit and how it deals

Dark comedian stories. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss two films that centre around wannabe comedians, with a story that follows a dark trajectory: Joker (2019) and The King of Comedy (1982). We begin by discussing the clear connections between the two films, particularly how clearly Joker is riffing on The King of Comedy. The discussion moves onto the mythology of Joker and how it weaves in the existing threads of Batman stories, while fabricating new storylines and ideas. We talk about the concern around Joker inciting violence and the depiction of violence in the film. The discussion harks back to earlier versions of the Joker and representations in other Batman media, including Batman: The Animated Series (1992), The Dark Knight (2008) and Batman (1989). We then discuss The King of Comedy, connecting to the cringe-factor in Curb Your Enthusiasm, the inclusion of Martin Scorsese's mother, who also appears in Goodfellas. We talk about the female characters in The King of Comedy, includin

Bong Joon-ho directed films. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss Bong Joon-ho's films Parasite and Snowpiercer. We begin by discussing Parasite, particularly its status as the winner of the 2019 Palm d'Or and the way an audience should come into the watching of the film, mainly with no spoilers. We compare Parasite to the work of Tarantino, particularly Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood and Inglourious Basterds, and how the both directors are working within the realms of building tension and paying it off. Our discussion then moves to Snowpiercer, and its balance of reality and heightened-reality. We compare the film to the work of Jean-Pierre Jeunet, particularly Alien: Resurrection, Delicatessen, City of Lost Children and Micmacs, and the work of Terry Gilliam. We then talk about the themes of class explored in both films, how heavy-handed that exploration is and how the films bring about questions of the morality of class systems.

Cinema experiences, the world over. Sarah Watt, William Chen and Jeremy Downing discuss the various films and cinema experiences from their trips around the world. Sarah opens the discussion by outlining her trip around Europe. She mentions La Dolce Vita, Drive and Avengers: Endgame. She talked about multiple masterclasses, including with steadicam inventor Garrett Brown, one with Rutger Hauer, another with Joe Dante and later with Francis Ford Coppola. William then shared about his trip to the United States, highlighting Los Angeles and its focus on cinema. He watched Toy Story, Story 2 and Toy Story 3 on the plane, which guides the discussion for a while. We chat about Thor: Ragnarok, Eagle vs Shark, The Breaker Upperers, No. 2 and Whale Rider. William then chats about Hobbs & Shaw, as well as the Fast & Furious connections. We talk about the jarring feeling of hearing the New Zealand accent in big budget films, like Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Aquaman and in Hobbs & Shaw. This moves into

Toy Story 4. Jeremy Downing and William Chen have separate conversations in different parts of the world. The first is with Georgie Swan and the second is with Jon Portinga. The first conversation is lead by Jeremy, talking with Georgie Swan, during a conference focused on Indigenous Education, hosted in Auckland, New Zealand. The discussion begins about the first three Toy Story films and what they mean to both Georgie and Jeremy, specially around the social conscience of Pixar films. They then talk about the place of Toy Story 4 in the series and the overall arc of the characters, as well as how the films are able to connect to children and adults. Talk then moves into the themes, around the ideas of where toys go to die and the idea of brokenness. Conversation then focuses on the role Woody plays in the film, with the ensemble taking more of a back seat. The second conversation is lead by William, talking with Jon Portinga, at a cafe called Sara's Table, in Duluth, USA. Discussion between William and Jo

The X-Men universe. Special guests Sinead Fitzgerald and Adam Spedding join Jeremy Downing and William Chen to discuss X-Men, Dark Phoenix and all the X-Men films in between. Discussion starts with ripping into Dark Phoenix and discussing how the original X-Men film established the world. We then work our way through the other X-Men films, starting with X-Men: Days of Future Past and the moving through X-Men: First Class, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, The Wolverine, Logan, X-Men: Apocalypse, X2, X-Men: The Last Stand, Deadpool and Deadpool 2. We talk about the ageing of various characters in the films, including the CGI de-ageing processes of the new Marvel films and how many characters don't seem to age in the X-Men timeline. We talk about how the series and the genre has developed over the past twenty years, and what that might mean for the X-Men in the future. We discuss the various fantastic opening sequences and it being one of the strongest aspects of the films.