Exploring the intersections of cinema
As we bring our discussion of the history of comedy to the modern day, Alex and Jonathan look at three comedy films from the past two decades: Mean Girls (2004), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), and The Fall Guy (2024). We discuss the facets of wit as a mode of humor, the way wit has… Continue reading Ep 172. COMEDY CINEMA 5: The Wit’s End
Moving from the absurd to the irreverent, today Alex and Jonathan look at three films which encompass a subset of comedy in which the characters are under the influence in some form or fashion: Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989), The Big Lebowski (1998), and The Hangover (2009). We discuss the glorification and justification of… Continue reading Ep 171. COMEDY CINEMA 4: The Stoners
After the collapse of the Production Code, filmmakers now had the ability to put anything and everything in their movies, so they did. Today Alex and Jonathan discuss three films which take comedy beyond rational proportions and talk about The Producers (1967), Airplane! (1980), and The Mask (1994). We discuss the history of absurdist comedy,… Continue reading Ep 170. COMEDY CINEMA 3: The Absurdists
With the arrival of sound in Hollywood, a new subgenre of comedy arose, so today Alex and Jonathan discuss the history of the "screwball comedies" while looking at Trouble in Paradise (1932), His Girl Friday (1940), and Some Like it Hot (1959). We talk about how screwballs differed from standard romantic comedies, the emphasis on… Continue reading Ep 169. COMEDY CINEMA 2: The Screwballs
To kick off a new series on the history of American comedy films, Alex and Jonathan travel back to the early days of cinema and look at the physical comedy of the early film clowns in Safety Last! (1923), City Lights (1931), and Duck Soup (1933). We discuss the transition from live performances in theater… Continue reading Ep 168. COMEDY CINEMA 1: The Clowns
This month Alex and Jonathan fly to a mythical Nordic world and discuss the recent animated trilogy How to Train Your Dragon (2010), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014), and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019). We discuss a brief history of dragons, ways to incorporate high stakes and family into… Continue reading Episode 141. How to Train Your Podcast
Kicking off season 6 of the podcast, Alex and Jonathan take a look at the films and careers of two oft-paired star performers: Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. We look at their films The Gay Divorcee (1934), Shall We Dance (1937), and The Barkleys of Broadway (1949), and discuss the history of each performer, the… Continue reading Episode 137. Rogers-Astaire
Today Alex and Jonathan ask "How did Billy do it?" as we dive into the work and career of Golden Age director Billy Wilder through his films Sunset Boulevard (1950), Stalag 17 (1953), Sabrina (1954), and The Apartment (1960). We discuss the way Wilder turns a mirror back on Hollywood, the influence Ernst Lubitsch and… Continue reading Episode 135. Wilder, Not Wyler
The combined creative talents of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller is one of the biggest forces in the animation industry at the moment, so today Alex and Jonathan take a look at four films they have had a hand in bringing to the big screen: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009), 21 Jump Street… Continue reading Episode 132. Lord & Miller’s Laughs & Mischiefs
Travelling back to the Golden Age, Alex and Jonathan take a look at one of the early masters of the budding film medium, Ernst Lubitsch, through his films Ninotchka (1939), The Shop Around the Corner (1940), To Be or Not to Be (1942), and Heaven Can Wait (1943). We discuss Lubitsch's history as a German… Continue reading Episode 128. Long Live Lubitsch
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
One of the more behind-the-scenes members of the Monty Python group takes the spotlight today as Alex and Jonathan take a look at Terry Gilliam's "Imagination Trilogy": Time Bandits (1981), Brazil (1985), and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988). We talk about Gilliam's larger-than-life approach to fantasy, when his story structure lives up to the… Continue reading Episode 119. Gallant Gilliam
From acting, to starting her own production company, to directing both film and television, Alex and Jonathan take a look at the extensive career of Ida Lupino in Hollywood's golden age through her work in High Sierra (1941), The Hitch-Hiker (1953), and The Trouble with Angels (1966). We discuss her popular acting persona as the… Continue reading Episode 112. Mother Lupino
Dorothy Arzner is one of the largest names in the history of Hollywood's female directors, so today Alex and Jonathan look at the themes and relationships in her films Get Your Man (1927), Merrily We Go to Hell (1932), and Dance, Girl, Dance (1940). We talk about how romance differs in Arzner's films from other… Continue reading Episode 111. Dorothy Arzner’s Due
Our Patrons voted on what silent film star we should cover and chose the great Buster Keaton! We look at three of his classic films: Sherlock Jr. (1924), The General (1926), The Cameraman (1928) and talk about the way Keaton melds comedy into various genres, hallmarks of Keaton's characters and techniques, and ways we still… Continue reading Episode 110. Blank-Face Buster
Heavens! Today Alex and Jonathan wrap up the Films de Femmes series and look at the varied career of the well-rounded filmmaker and entertainer Elaine May in her films A New Leaf (1971), Mikey and Nicky (1976), and Ishtar (1987). We talk about her background in improvisational comedy, her range of directing styles from comedy… Continue reading Episode 95. Films de Femmes Trois: Elaine May
According to our recent poll for our Patrons, today Alex and Jonathan discuss the ridiculous filmography of British comedy group Monty Python: Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Life of Brian (1979), and The Meaning of Life (1983). We discuss the hallmarks of Monty Python's comedy, various ways to create sketch-based films around a… Continue reading Episode 82. Mighty Preposterous Monty Python
When it comes to post-sound era physical comedy, Jacques Tati's character Monsieur Hulot is an inspiration that still resounds today. Alex and Jonathan take a look at the complex scenarios created in Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (1953), Playtime (1967), and Trafic (1971). We talk about traits of the Hulot character, how Tati built a miniature city, and how he is… Continue reading Episode 70. Tricky Tati
The Filmlings 