Riley (writer, friend, and sci fi aficionado) is back to join us for conversation about what is quite possibly the greatest action movie of all time, Mad Max: Fury Road! But Fury Road is much more than a great action movie: it's a movie filled with sharp political commentary on various subjects and a masterclass in visual storytelling. All of this in a movie that’s the fourth in a series, and the first sequel in the franchise after 30 years. Hear us talk about all this and more! [Podcast mentioned: The Dollop]

It was great having Riley back on the podcast! You can check out Riley’s written work on his website, www.rileygerberick.com and you can follow him on Twitch/Twitter @mongorific.

This episode marks a couple of firsts on the podcast as we talk about Ida Lupino’s film noir, Hitchhiker (1953). This is our first film we’ve talked about that is directed by a woman, and this film in particular is considered the first film noir film directed by a woman. We’re excited to discuss the film’s merits on its own, but also what it has done for women in film overall and our opinions on this matter.

You can join the conversation by emailing us at [email protected] or DM us on twitter @filmoptimists. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter for more content.  

We’re joined by friend and educator Aaron McCray-Goldsmith to discuss Dune (2021). Adapted from the classic Frank Herbet novel of the same name, Dune follows Paul Atreides (played by Timothee Chalamet) as he is thrust into a battle over the planet Arrakis. The 2021 version is the latest of three film adaptations and many more attempted adaptations. Did this latest version finally give fans of the series the long awaited adaptation they deserve? Listen to find out!

Aaron, our guest, is a high school physics teacher who could use our help raising funds for his classroom. Keep an eye out for an upcoming link to his fundraiser!

Secrets are unveiled and theories are discussed as we dive back into the 80’s with this teenage classic from John Hughes. The film follows the titular character (played by Matthew Broderick) as he makes the most of his last chance to ditch school with his girlfriend and best friend. It also just so happens to be one of Megan’s favorite movies.

Got questions or comments for us? You can email them to [email protected] or DM us on twitter @filmoptimists. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter for more content.

Folks, this one’s a bit different. A listener and friend of the hosts suggested we do an episode on Drive. Despite its critical acclaim, neither of us liked the film when we first saw it over a decade ago. Was our initial analysis accurate, or flawed? To explore this we’re joined by Trenton Cressey who suggested Drive in the first place. Trenton makes his case for the film’s merits and we share our thoughts after a rewatch.

Got questions or comments for us? You can email them to [email protected] or DM us on twitter @filmoptimists. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter for more content.

With a career spanning six decades and over fifty feature length films, where does one start the discussion of Alfred Hitchcock and his amazing contributions to cinema? For us the answer was simple: the gay one. Released in 1948, Rope was groundbreaking not just for its depiction of homosexual characters but for it’s technical achivements. The entire movie takes place in real time and is composed of only ten, very long, shots.

Click here for the video discussing Hitchcock's bomb theory. 

We were honored to have award winning filmmaker Tal Skloot on the show to discuss his documentary 4 Wheel Bob. The film chronicles adventurer Bob Coombers as he attempts to be the first person in a wheelchair to cross 11,845-foot Kearsarge Pass in Sierra Nevada. This astounding film is currently available to watch for free on YouTube. 

Got questions or comments for us? You can email them to [email protected] or DM us on twitter @filmoptimists. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter for more content.

This episode we are thrilled to have Allie Felker on the podcast! Allie Felker is an activist and podcaster who joins us to talk about the 1987 classic, Moonstruck starring Cher and Nicholas Cage. Be sure to check out the links below for Allie’s podcast The Mourning Dove as well as to follow her work with Push for Empowered Pregnancy.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mourning-dove/id1562508342

https://www.pushpregnancy.org/

Got questions or comments for us? You can email them to [email protected] or DM us on twitter @filmoptimists. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter for more content.

In this episode, Megan and Seth do a deep dive into the sea-faring tale of The Lighthouse, an A24 classic directed by Robert Eggers. The pair discuss what the film did for them, their opinions on studio A24 in general, and what they’re looking forward to from the studio moving forward.

Got questions or comments for us? You can email them to [email protected] or DM us on twitter @filmoptimists. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter for more content.

With the Oscars coming up we’ve been reflecting on our favorite movies we saw last year. In doing so we realized some of the films that left the biggest impact on us weren’t new releases. So, in keeping up with our tradition of celebrating film as a whole rather than only focusing on newer films, we will be listing our favorite films we saw last year regardless of when they came out.

What made it to your Top 5 in 2021? Drop us a line at [email protected] or @filmoptimists on IG and Twitter!