Imitating Art with Don & Chuck

Don and Chuck begin their second season the same way they started the first - talking about one of their favorite movies. This time, they finally give Good Will Hunting the full Imitating Art treatment. The movie's story about a troubled youth finally learning to accept love from others lets Don and Chuck discuss how to give people direction without manipulating them, how you'll always find the negative if you keep looking for it, and how important it is to tell hard truths to the people you love.

Music by Nathan Terry

David Fincher's Fight Club is one of the most iconic movies of all time. Starring Edward Norton and Brad Pitt, Fight Club explores why young, disillusioned men are attracted to toxic masculinity - and what the ultimate ramifications of it are. It's a violent, mind-bending dark comedy with an endless supply of quotable dialogue. This week, Fight Club helps Don and Chuck discuss toxic masculinity, why young men seem to learn the movie's lessons in the wrong way, and how flawed logic can turn good ideas into dangerous ones.

Music by Nathan Terry

Adapted from August Wilson's play, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom tells the story of blues singer Ma Rainey (Viola Davis) and her band trying to record some of her most famous songs. Her trumpet player, Levee, has plans to take her spotlight as he tries to write his own songs and form his own band. What results is a single day filled with personal conflicts, racial tension, and philosophical quarrels. There's plenty of material here from which Don and Chuck can draw lessons, such as the commodification of black talent, not taking power you haven't earned, and the building pressure of being polite to your enemies.

Music by Nathan Terry

Inception is a thrilling, visually stunning, reverse-heist film primarily taking place within a dream world. It's also further proof that Don and Chuck struggle to discuss Christopher Nolan's films in a way that makes sense for anyone who hasn't seen them. Though the plot may seem overly complicated, its heist structure gives Nolan a simple backbone on which to lay his complex ideas. Through its explorations of dream-sharing technology and the subconscious, film helps Don and Chuck discuss guilt, technology addiction and why knowing you're stuck in a dream might not matter.

Music by Nathan Terry

Truman Burbank is the star of the most popular show on television - and he's completely unaware of it. The Truman Show tells the story of a man (Jim Carrey) who slowly discovers that his friends, family, and hometown - his entire life - is a piece of fiction broadcast to TVs around the world. The film expertly blends comedy and drama to give us one of Jim Carrey's first dramatic roles. The film also lets Don and Chuck discuss topics such as how making decisions makes life your own, corporations exploiting people for profit, and how facing your fears can open up the entire world to you.

Music by Nathan Terry

In our world, The Fifth Element is a sci-fi action movie starring Bruce Willis, Milla Jovovich, and Chris Tucker. In the movie's world, the fifth element is the key to saving the planet. French action screenwriter and producer Luc Besson brings his talents to America for a movie that's very silly, very entertaining, and very, very 90s. Despite being a fun action movie, Don, Chuck, and special guest DaVonne cull some meaningful lessons from the story in what turns out to be a very fun discussion.

Check out DaVonne's book of poetry at Amazon and tinyurl.com/drrooneybook

Music by Nathan Terry

Starring Christopher Walken, Zach Braff, and Christina Ricci, Percy vs. Goliath is a small film with a huge impact. It tells the true story of a small farmer who takes pride in using and harvesting his own seeds. But, when his crop is accidentally infected with a gene copyrighted by agribusiness behemoth Monsanto, he finds himself in a court case, fighting for the livelihoods of farmers the world over. With a timely story and moving performances, Percy vs. Goliath helps Don and Chuck discuss such lessons as not letting the bully win, finding a community to fight both for and with, and understanding how generous ordinary people can be.

Music by Nathan Terry

Bob Odenkirk stars as Hutch Mansell (yes, really) in the action movie Nobody. And, hey - he's actually a pretty convincing action hero! The writer of John Wick tells the tale of a mild-mannered family man who unleashes his violent past after criminals invade his home. And then he fights the Russian mob. Like, a lot. It might be a little light on story, but the action doesn't disappoint. Plus, it allows Don and Chuck to discuss something about family, something about not taking shit from people, and some other things you might technically consider life lessons. S'all good, man!

Music by Nathan Terry