Cinema in Context

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 a discussion around Pacific Island culture representation, including the final act of Hobbs & Shaw and Moana. This moves into a conversation about Vai, including the progression of Pasifika cinema. We highlight The Orator, One Thousand Ropes, Three Wise Cousins, Hibiscus & Ruthless, and Take Home Pay. We unpack the filmmaking of Vai, comparing it to Waru. William then brings up the brilliance of Idris Elba in Hobbs & Shaw, including the rap that he wrote for the film. William raps. It is quite glorious. We wrap up the episode with Sarah sharing her experience at Festival de Cannes 2019. She mentions multiple films and her involvement in press conferences and interviews. This includes lining up for two hours to see Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood, Sarah's husband Doug getting the opportunity to interview Joon Ho Bong, director of Palme d'Or winning Parasite, watching the films Les Misérables and Bacurau, as well as seeing conversation with Sylvester Stallone. Sarah had the opportunity to see Apocalypse Now: Final Cut, as well as taking part in a masterclass with Francis Ford Coppola. She also watched The Piano and The Devil Thumbs a Ride, finishing her trip with a visit to a Stanley Kubrick exhibition.

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 Jon starts around the history of the Toy Story films, looking at the greatness of the first film. They then get into a discussion around the success of the sequels, specifically the simplicity of the first two films and then the escalation of Tory Story 3. Conversation then moves into a discussion around Toy Story 4 and the experience of watching the film at a local Duluth cinema. They then discuss the role of Po Beep and her representation throughout the films, as well as what she brings out in the films. Discussion then moves into exploring the concept of Woody being a surrogate parent to various characters, like Bonnie and Forky, as well as an exploration of usefulness and a person's purpose. This conversation then moves into a chat around Gabby Gabby and the role she plays alongside Woody, as well as how she sits alongside previous villains, Stinky Pete and Lotso. The discussion finishes with a chat around how Toy Story 4 is the conclusion and feelings towards that conclusion.

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.

A Song of Ice and Fire. Special guests Sarah Cullen, Jeremy Foster, Katy Roose, Phoebe Shum and Rewa Worley join Jeremy Downing and William Chen to discuss the HBO television series Game of Thrones. We start by focusing on whether people were satisfied or dissatisfied by the series finale and unpacking why. We then move into discussing specific character arcs, starting with a general discussion of Daenerys Targaryen and whether the creators succeeded with her arc or it was a fail. We then present our favourite character arcs, starting with Sansa Stark, then moving through to Podrick Payne, Arya Stark, Joffrey Baratheon, Samwell Tarly, Jon Stark, Brienne of Tarth, Jaime Lannister, Theon Greyjoy, with a quick dig at Euron Greyjoy, finishing with a discussion about Davos Seaworth. We end by quickly going through our biggest shock or win moments, starting with Jon killing Daenerys, the death of Lady Mormont, Jon parrying the white walker's sword attack at Hardhome, Bron shooting the fire arrow into the ship of wildfire in Blackwater Bay, Cersei destroying the Sept of Baelor, the battle between Oberyn Martell and The Mountain, the death of Catelyn Stark, the fight between Brienne and The Hound, and a special shout out to Arya killing all of the Freys.

Phil Lord and Christopher Miller films. Special Guest Katy Roose joins Jeremy Downing and William Chen to discuss two films produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller: The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. Discussion starts with looking into Lord and Miller's work being focused on what things aren't, and subverting expectations. We jump into a chat about Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, specifically focusing on the character of Sam Sparks. This leads into a talk about the meta-quality of The Lego Movie 2, particularly the layering of themes, storytelling and ideas, specifically Toxic Masculinity. We look at the wider oeuvre of Lord and Miller, talking about 21 Jump Street, 22 Jump Street and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. We talk about the songs and credit sequences in both films. The discussion returns to the themes of gender in The Lego Movie 2, through the characters of Lucy, Emit and rex Dangervest. William then goes into an incredible rant about the themes in childrens' films, including ripping into: the Hotel Transylvania films, the Ice Age films, Despicable Me 2, The Secret Life of Pets and Peter Rabbit. This leads into further investigation into the family and community present in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. We finish our discussion by looking at the structure of Lord and Miller's films, specifically how they earn their third and fourth acts, and the way that they reincorporated disparate elements into the climax and greater narratives.

Post Oscars discussion. Special Guest Phoebe Shum joins Jeremy Downing and William Chen to discuss the 2019 Academy Awards. Our discussion touches on the selected films this year in contrast to previous years. We mention The Shape of Water, Moonlight and La La Land. We talk about the lead up to the ceremony, with the suggestions around the "Popular Oscar" category and shifting certain awards to the ad breaks, and the outcome of not having a dedicated host. We unpack the Best Picture winner and nominees, starting by discussing Green Book, then moving into a discussion around Black Panther, BlacKkKlansman and Roma. Our discussion about Roma focuses on the Netflix presence in the cinema landscape, how watching on a smaller screen affects the Roma viewing experience and how streaming services will affect enjoyment of cinema moving forward. We talk about the varying degrees of quality in Bohemian Rhapsody. We discuss the Best Animated Feature winner and nominees, focusing on Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, Isle of Dogs, The Incredibles 2 and Ralph Breaks The Internet. We then discuss the Best Animated Short winner Bao and its connection to the Asian family experience. We talk about Olivia Coleman, Glenn Close and Lady Gaga in the Best Actress category, and the surprise around Coleman winning. We finish by discussing the various other categories, touching on "Shallow" by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, Mary Poppins Returns, and we end the discussion with a return back to talking about Black Panther and Isle of Dogs in more detail.

James Cameron Science Fiction. Special Guest Sinead Fitzgerald joins Jeremy Downing and William Chen to discuss two films written by James Cameron: his 2009 Box Office breaking Avatar and his most recent script Alita: Battle Angel. Discussion starts with looking into Cameron's career, including his multiple cinematic hits and even his work in theme park rides. We then get into talking about Avatar, the world building, the special effects and the soundtrack. The use of 3D in films comes into our discussion, specifically about the representation of flight of screen, through Avatar, How To Train Your Dragon and Gravity. Our chat then moves to Alita: Battle Angel, the predicability of the story and the strength of the action. Our discussion then moves onto the career of Robert Rodriguez, and his strength and weaknesses.

M. Night Shyamalan films. Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing, Doug Dillaman and William Chen discuss two M. Night Shyamalan films: his 2008 clunker The Happening and his most recent film Glass. Discussion starts with a discussion about Glass and looking at its connections to Unbreakable and Split. The chat then moves onto The Happening and covers some of the many pitfalls of the film. The conversation then explores the history of Shyamalan's career and the placement of his films in the wider cinema landscape.

Sarah Watt, Jeremy Downing and William Chen discuss their top films of the year. This year, they have split their top films into five categories: Biggest Surprise, Biggest Disappointment, Most Anticipated (still come to come out, at the time of recording), Wildcard, and Film of the Year.

Biggest Surprise:

William: Annihilation

Sarah: Filmworker

Jeremy: Avengers: Infinity War

Biggest Disappointment:

Sarah: BlacKkKlansman

William: Hereditary

Jeremy: Incredibles 2

Most Anticipated (still to come out, at the time of recording):

Jeremy: Roma

William: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Sarah: The Children Act

Wildcard:

William: Teen Titans Go! To The Movies

Sarah: Upgrade

Jeremy: Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

Runner-ups to Film of the Year:

Sarah: A Quiet Place, Phantom Thread, McQueen

William: Isle of Dogs, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, First Reformed, Paddington 2

Jeremy: Annihilation, Isle of Dogs, A Quiet Place

Film of the Year:

Sarah: Mission: Impossible - Fallout

William: Sorry To Bother You

Jeremy: A Star Is Born

Cinema in Context Overall Film of the Year:

Mission: Impossible - Fallout